I Became the Villainess, But My Beast Husbands Can Hear My Mind?!-Chapter 125: Falling Together

It turned out that the underground river was much longer than they had expected. Cyrus needed at least fifteen minutes to follow the flow and check the whole path.

When he finally returned to Roxanna and Luan, he looked relieved, but also clearly annoyed. It was obvious that the exit he found was far from perfect.

"What did you find?" Roxanna asked softly.

Cyrus wiped the water from his face with his sleeve before answering, "I found the way out... but it looks more like a waterfall. Once we get out, the water goes straight into a deep cliff. If we want to climb up, we’ll have to depend on our own strength and try our best to jump up."

Roxanna fell silent after hearing his words. She lowered her head and stared at the dark water beneath her feet. "A cliff..." she murmured.

Luan frowned deeply. "How high is it?" he asked right away.

"Very high," Cyrus answered honestly. "I couldn’t see the bottom. The mist was too thick, so everything below looked like endless darkness."

For a moment, no one spoke. The sound of flowing water echoed softly inside the narrow cave, making the silence feel even heavier.

"If we slip..." Roxanna started, then stopped herself before finishing.

Luan reached out and gently held her hand. His grip was warm and firm. "You won’t slip," he said seriously. "We’ll hold you the whole time."

Roxanna let out a sigh. In fact, jumping from the cliff was not the only thing they had to think about. They also had to think about how to cross the river below.

[Should I buy a boat or maybe a rubber raft from the system?] Roxanna thought. [Yeah, I think I’ve seen a rubber raft in the system’s market before, but the price... oh, damn it! It’s so expensive!]

If she remembered correctly, one rubber raft cost around 10,000 SP, and she really didn’t want to spend that much SP since they would have to let it fall into the waterfall anyway.

"I found something we can use to cross the water," Cyrus said suddenly.

Roxanna looked up at him at once. "What is it?"

Cyrus pointed toward the river below. Even though they couldn’t see it clearly, he said, "There are a lot of big logs down there. They’re probably tree trunks that were washed in from outside. We can sit on them and float across."

It sounded dangerous. But in this strange and primitive world, Roxanna had learned that danger was almost a daily thing.

Then another question came to her mind. How were they supposed to get down there?

Climb down with a rope, or just jump straight down?

"If we want to save time, it would be better for us to jump down," Luan said. "As long as we dive in with the correct body position, the water won’t hurt us."

Their bags were waterproof, so it seemed that the items inside wouldn’t be damaged or soaked by the water.

However, free-falling downward sounded scary, and Roxanna wasn’t the type of person who liked extreme sports like skydiving or bungee jumping.

"Are... are you sure it’s safe?" she asked quietly.

Luan nodded. "It’s not completely safe," he admitted honestly. "But compared to climbing down slowly, this is faster. And the longer we stay here, the more dangerous it might become."

Cyrus crossed his arms and looked toward the rushing water. "I agree," he said. "If something collapses again, we might not even have a chance to escape."

Roxanna hugged herself and tried to steady her breathing. Even though she was scared, she forced herself to think clearly.

After a short moment of silence, Roxanna finally spoke. Her voice was a little shaky, but she tried to sound calm. "Cyrus, you can go down as a bird," she said softly. "I... I’ll carry your bag."

Cyrus frowned at once. "What? But—"

"She’s right," Luan cut in before he could finish. "If you go first, you can look for the big logs for us. Don’t worry. I’ll stay with her and protect her."

Cyrus clenched his fists for a moment. He clearly didn’t like the idea. He wanted to argue, but when he looked at Roxanna’s face and Luan’s serious expression, he knew they were right.

After that, Luan tied the bag straps with a rope to make sure the bag wouldn’t slip off his back. Meanwhile, Cyrus helped Roxanna put on the bag.

"Fine," he said at last. "But be careful. Both of you."

Luan nodded. "We will."

After that, Luan took out a rope and carefully tied the bag straps together, making sure they were tight and secure on his back. He pulled on them a few times to check.

Meanwhile, Cyrus helped Roxanna put on the bag. He adjusted the straps slowly, afraid of hurting her.

"Is it too tight?" he asked.

Roxanna shook her head. "No. It’s okay."

Still, Cyrus didn’t look relieved. He kept glancing at the edge of the cliff, then back at Roxanna. Letting her jump down with only Luan by her side made his chest feel heavy.

If only he could summon his wings in human form, he could carry her himself and she wouldn’t have to face something so scary, but unfortunately, he couldn’t.

The thought made him feel helpless and also useless.

He silently promised himself that he would become stronger. Next time, no matter what happened, Roxanna would never have to face this kind of danger again.

"Alright," Luan said softly, looking at her. "Are you ready?"

He reached out and took her hands, then gently pulled her into his arms. His hold was firm but careful, making sure she was safely against his chest. He didn’t want there to be even the smallest gap between them.

Roxanna nodded, though her body was still a little stiff from fear. Her voice trembled when she spoke. "Just... don’t let me go."

"I won’t," Luan replied without hesitation. He wrapped his arms around her even tighter, as if trying to give her all his strength. "On the count of three," he whispered near her ear, "we’ll jump."

"One... two..." Luan’s voice was calm, even though his own heart was pounding hard inside his chest.

Roxanna closed her eyes.

Her fingers tightened around his clothes, as if letting go for even a second would send her falling into endless darkness. "Three."

They jumped, and the ground disappeared beneath their feet in an instant.

Cold wind rushed past their faces, roaring in their ears like a wild beast. Roxanna felt her stomach drop as if her soul had been left behind above the cliff. Fear exploded inside her chest, making it hard to breathe.

She wanted to scream, but no sound came out. All she could feel was Luan’s arms holding her tightly.

"It’s okay," he whispered near her ear, though his own voice shook slightly. "I’ve got you."

Splash!

Cold water crashed into them, and it felt like hitting a hard wall.

Roxanna gasped as icy water rushed over her face and into her hair. Her body was pushed down for a moment, spinning helplessly in the strong current.

For a split second, panic took over. [I’m sinking!]

But before she could lose herself in fear, strong arms wrapped around her again. Luan pulled her upward. "Breathe!" he shouted.

They broke through the surface together, and Roxanna immediately took a deep breath, as if she had been holding it in forever.

She coughed hard as water spilled from her lips, her chest burning from the cold, only then did she clearly hear the loud, rushing sound of the river around them.

"Hold on to me!" Luan shouted, tightening his arms around her.

She nodded quickly and wrapped her arms around his neck, afraid to loosen her grip even a little. "I’m holding," she replied in a weak, hoarse voice.

The strong current dragged their bodies forward, tossing them like leaves in the water. Roxanna felt dizzy, her hands growing numb from the cold.

Just when she thought she might lose her strength, powerful arms suddenly reached out. They grabbed them, and lifted them onto a big, floating log.

Roxanna collapsed against the rough wood, breathing hard, her whole body shaking.

"Are you both okay?!" Cyrus shouted anxiously at them.

"I... I’m okay," she answered weakly, her voice still shaking. "Just... just a little cold."

Her body was able to regulate heat, but still, the icy water had soaked through her clothes and chilled her to the bone.

Seeing this, Luan quickly moved closer and wrapped one arm tightly around her shoulders. "It’s alright," he whispered near her ear. "It’s alright. I’ve got you."

His warmth slowly spread to her, making her feel a little safer. While Luan focused on keeping Roxanna warm, Cyrus didn’t waste any time.

He quickly took out the ropes and began tying them around their waists, one by one. His movements were fast but careful, making sure every knot was tight and secure.

Soon, the three of them were connected together. "As long as one of us holds onto the cliff, none of us will fall," Cyrus said seriously. "We’ll stay together."