ate of her friend very cute. Charlene always seemed like a little □□, only now did she truly look like a child just like her.
Raphael also came ashore, still exclaiming with lingering excitement, "It was so fun!"
"Shush! Look, Charlene is asleep!" Edith put a finger to her lips, signaling him to be quiet.
The two children sat side by side under the shade of a tree.
"What should I do? My shirt is soaked too much. I''m afraid Father will notice," whispered Raphael anxiously, pulling at the wet lantern sleeves clinging to his arms.
Edith shrugged. "Just take it off and lay it on the grass. It''ll dry soon in the sun."
"But..." Raphael looked surprised and embarrassed.
Edith gave him a puzzled glance. "What''s the matter? Those boys in the village go shirtless all summer."
After hesitating for a while, Raphael slowly unfastened the buttons and cuffs of his shirt, revealing his thin and fair upper body.
The boys in the village that Edith usually saw all had tanned and sturdy bodies, making this young master appear particularly unique. She couldn''t help but take a few extra glances.
Raphael noticed Edith''s gaze, blushing and crossing his slender arms in front of his chest.
"But seriously, why are you so afraid of getting scolded by your pa?" After Raphael sat back down, Edith mumbled as she nibbled on a cleaned fruit, "He won''t really do anything to you anyhow. Every time I come home covered in mud, my pa also glares at me and says if I get this dirty again, he won''t let me eat. But I''m not afraid at all. In the end, he can''t do anything to me! Much less, I have mama to defend me."
"Sounds like they really love you," commented Raphael.
"Don''t your mama and papa love you?" Edith asked in return.
Raphael lowered his eyes. "I don''t have a mother. She passed away when Charlene was born. My memory started late. What Mother looked like, how she treated me, I c