Chapter 13
In a small town located somewhere in Rockvarich, Islanthia, a wooden cabin sat in the vast frostland, its windows glowing with warm, yellow light.
A slender woman brought out a few pots of flowers that were meant to be sold on the day itself from the greenhouse in the backyard. She used a remote control to turn on the thermostat in the cabin before tweaking the temperature to 78.8 degrees Fahrenheit.
As the woman felt the warmth washing over her, she leaned against the fireplace while scrolling through her phone. Thank goodness for the advanced technology that allowed her to lead a warm and cozy life despite living in the northernmost country in the world.
A news app that broadcasted Cheronian news showed a few familiar names all of a sudden. Penelope, the woman in the cabin, paused in the middle of scrolling. A few seconds later, she tapped on the news article.
Apparently, Eric, Ingrid, and Esther had caused a huge ruckus with their fight in the hospital, which was livestreamed by the nosy onlookers. Everyone began piecing the entire storyline together through the contents of the argument.
It turned out that Eric had an affair with Ingrid and knocked her up. And all this while, Ingrid had been provoking Eric’s then fiancée, Penelope. Both of them were the reason why Penelope ended up taking her own life.
The global live stream on Eric and Penelope’s wedding had already attracted millions of viewers to begin with. Penelope’s suicide triggered countless speculations regarding the
reason.
Now that the main characters had already revealed the truth, it was only natural for the internet users to react strongly to them. Almost immediately, countless comments flooded the internet, berating Eric and Ingrid for being the cause of Penelope’s death.
The internet users even began boycotting all of the products and services offered by Fulmer Industries. They also dug out Ingrid’s identity as a college student. Thanks to the negative public opinion, her college ended up expelling her.
When Penelope saw the news, she was dazed at first. But soon, she decided not to dwell on it anymore. Instead, she put down her phone and began taking care of the plants.
It had only been a month since she arrived in Islanthia, yet she was already starting to get used to the slow–paced and relaxing lifestyle here. While the world around her was covered in frost and ice, she still had a warm and cozy home to return to.
Thanks to her new life, Penelope no longer cared about the affairs of love and hate of the past. All she wanted was to live her life peacefully.
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Chapter 13
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The tinkling sounds of the wind chimes echoed from the front door. A figure, shrouded in snow and sleet, burst into the cabin excitedly. After the man wiped the snow off his face, he waved the package he was holding in Penelope’s direction. “Guess what I got for you!”
Penelope arched a brow in response. “Are those fruits and veggies again?”
The man wagged a finger mysteriously. Then, he pulled out a pair of snow boots that were tailored for women. “This is a pair of cotton shoes that comes in size 5.5! It’s extremely difficult for me to scour for shoes this size in the entire continent of Eucardia, you know!”
Delight flashed across Penelope’s eyes instantly. She accepted the boots happily. As she tried on the boots, she thanked the man at the same time, “This is exactly what I need! Thank you so much, Steve!”
Penelope had small feet, so it was difficult for her to buy shoes her size in Northern Eucardia.
The sight of Penelope’s apparent love for the boots made Steve Anderson’s smile widen even more. “No need to get so courteous with me! Not many Cheronians live here, to begin with. If anything, I cherish the fact that I got to reunite with you in this country! It only makes sense for me to take better care of you!”
Steve and Penelope were classmates and neighbors during their high school years. They often went to school together in the morning and walked home together in the evening. But after graduating from high school, they lost contact with each other. All Penelope knew was that Steve had migrated to Northern Eucardia after that.
She definitely didn’t expect to bump into Steve right after moving to Islanthia. It turned out that he was running a global tech company that was based in Northern Eucardia.
As for Steve, he was elated to meet an old friend who shared the same cultural roots as him. The only reason why Penelope could settle down so quickly in Islanthia was all thanks to Steve’s help, be it dealing with life’s necessities or getting her new life in order.
Steve rubbed his cheeks, which were flushed from the cold. Then, he turned to look at Penelope, who seemed to be spacing out.
“Did you read the news? It seems that karma is finally going for those assholes. But from the way I see it, the flames still need to be fanned in order for things to get out of control.‘
Penelope just smiled tenderly as she started arranging a vase of flowers. “It’s all in the past. There’s no need to bring it up ever again.”
But Steve frowned in response. He chose not to bring up the things he had wanted to say to Penelope.
After arranging a bouquet of purple flowers–with violets being the main character of the arrangement–Penelope wrapped the bouquet up before passing it to Steve. “I don’t know
Chapter 13
how to thank you properly, so I shall keep giving you flowers.”
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After Penelope arrived in Islanthia, she told Steve the truth behind her fake death as well as everything related to the reason behind her change in identity. Instead of scolding her like how the internet users did in the past, Steve merely patted her on the head quietly,
But Penelope knew that Steve clearly took her matters to heart, for he kept coming over to the cabin to drop things off. He also helped Penelope deal with matters that required her photos.
She was extremely grateful to Steve for his help. Honestly, she thought paying Steve for his efforts would be very diminishing toward his help. Besides, he didn’t need any money at all. That was why she decided to repay him by giving him flower bouquets.
“What’s with the courtesy? The fact that I’m able to receive fresh bouquets in this frost- covered place every now and then makes me the most privileged person in this entire town!”
Steve then picked up the purple bouquet carefully. When he saw how amused Penelope was, he hesitated for a moment before continuing, “Penelope, just say the word and I’ll help you get revenge on them.”
She lowered her gaze and shook her head. “There’s no need for you to put in so much effort because of those things. I don’t want to have anything to do with him anymore.”
“Alright, alright. How about this? I’ll take you out to coffee as a gesture of thanks for the flowers you gave me.” Steve gazed at Penelope intently after asking. When he saw her nodding in response, he finally smiled brightly at her.
Chapter 14
