TAVBZ 104

Chapter 104

Diego knelt on one knee on the ground and took some heavy-looking items out of his bag, transferring them into his leaf bag. Most of the items were daily necessities—dishes, wooden knives, and the like.

“Is this enough?”

Diego handed his now somewhat lighter bag to Ruzef, who nodded with a slightly awkward expression.

“Thank you.”

Diego didn’t reply and quietly walked ahead.

“The Saintess and His Highness the Crown Prince will follow, I assume?”

Muttering to himself, Ruzef glanced back, and Diego silently nodded.

“It should be fine as long as His Highness Asdal is carrying weapons.”

After the suspension bridge broke and Margaret, Enok, and Kaiden disappeared one by one, the situation had descended into utter chaos.

The distance to the southern island was considerable, so not only could voices not be heard, but communication by any other means was also difficult.

Soon, however, Asdal on the southern island cut a large leaf into the shape of a star to signal them, and only then did Diego and Ruzef understand what Asdal meant: meet at the location marked by the star, as originally intended.

But without a compass or map, it was extremely risky for Diego and Ruzef to set off blindly.

After much debate, they decided to mark the path they had taken so that if they got lost, they could return to their original spot. Once that decision was made, they began walking toward the western side of the northern island.

“Honestly, I didn’t expect this. I thought you’d go straight to find the Saintess,” Ruzef said.

Diego walked silently and calmly responded without looking at him.

“The Saintess is not as fragile as she appears. And right now, it is more important to find out whether Lady Flone is alive or not.”

Diego glanced at Ruzef, and the way he said it sounded almost like, ‘You worry about yourself.’ Ruzef twisted his mouth in displeasure.

“Lady Flone isn’t weak either. She’s definitely alive.”

Although his trust in her was firm, Ruzef, in truth, was anxious. He tried to suppress the rising unease in his chest, repeatedly reassuring himself that she would be safe.

“Honestly, the absence of Lady Flone weighs heavier than anyone else, doesn’t it?”

Diego spoke unexpectedly.

“This island is perilous; anyone could disappear at any moment, yet I somehow assumed Lady Flone would remain safe. I never imagined she’d vanish so suddenly…”

“Lady Flone does inspire that kind of trust,” Ruzef said with a bitter smile. But what use was it now, when they didn’t even know whether she was alive?

Diego nodded with a troubled expression.

“I hope she’s safe. Truly.”

Eunji seemed to track me perfectly, like she had a locator attached to me, but she had no idea where anyone else was.

I rummaged through my crossbody bag.

“Is there anything belonging to Kaiden? If Eunji smells it, she might be able to find him.”

“…Do you really think she’s a dog?”

I had no reply to Enok’s retort, so I set the bag down. Eunji tilted her head, tongue out, looking utterly confused.

After petting her head, I finally set off with Enok on foot to search for Kaiden.

But as usual, my foreboding instincts proved correct. We wandered the forest until sunset, but Kaiden remained nowhere to be found.

Even though the fog had completely lifted, it was still difficult to gauge exactly where we were in the forest.

“It seems like we’re near Jenas’s cabin, but where did the cabin go?”

A wolf howl echoed somewhere, and Enok drew his sword to scan the surroundings.

“We need to find a place to hide for the night.”

I took out the flare I had received from Jenas, loading it as I nodded.

“If monsters are wandering even during the day, waiting until morning isn’t an option.”

“Exactly. There’s also the risk of being surrounded by monsters near the forest or river,” Enok said, and I carefully surveyed the woods around us.

The forest we were in was dense, like a jungle, with thick, sturdy roots and trees clustered closely together.

I looked back at Enok.

“Let’s climb the trees.”

He followed my gaze upward. Climbing the trees wasn’t easy, but it was the only option.

“Seems risky to fall, though.”

Muttering this, Enok made me scan the area quickly. There were plenty of thick, tough vines that could substitute for ropes in the jungle.

“We can tie ourselves up. Even if we tilt while sleeping, we won’t fall immediately, and it’ll help prevent injuries from a fall.”

I selected some sturdy vines and handed them to Enok.

“Could you cut these with your sword?”

I watched as Enok calmly sliced long lengths of vine with his greatsword.

Eunji, wrapped around my arm, sensed the movement and quietly climbed onto my shoulder, peeking her face out from behind my neck. She must have realized I was about to use my arms and had taken cover.

‘How cute.’

Enok picked up a large bundle of vines with one arm and held them at his side, glancing at me.

I had been eyeballing a tree to climb when he called my name in a low voice.

“Margaret.”

I turned to him, puzzled, and met his calm gaze.

“I did wonder, sometimes quite often, whether you might actually be someone else.”

“Huh? What… suddenly?”

I froze, unable to complete my words. He silently looked at me, then slowly leaned toward my ear and whispered.

“Still, I’m not confused. The one I like is the present you. I want you to know that.”

His low voice tickled my ear. I didn’t know why he said this, and I could only part my lips slightly. My heart felt like it might stop.

Interpreting my expression, Enok gave a bitter smile and stepped slightly away.

“I’m not expecting an answer, so don’t feel pressured to say anything.”

I couldn’t answer.

‘The one I like is the present you.’ The words echoed in my mind—it was a perfect confession that left no room for doubt.

Hearing an unexpected confession reminded me of when I first met him. Back then, all I wanted was to run away. I was scared of him, not knowing if he might kill me.

Over time, I feared he might suddenly abandon me, so I avoided him to protect myself from getting hurt.

But now…

I wanted to survive—not alone, but together.

My feelings had changed from before, even if his might not be the same.

“Margaret.”

Enok, moving ahead, called back to me. His expression said, Why aren’t you following?

I set aside my thoughts, grateful that he didn’t force or question me.

I hurried to catch up and chose a tree to spend the night.

I climbed first, stepping on Enok’s shoulders, and he followed. Wearing pants, it wasn’t too difficult.

We settled on a high branch. The wounds on my stomach stung badly as I climbed, but I tried not to show it.

Enok leaned his back against the trunk, placing his hands between his legs.

“Come here.”

“Uh… do I have to?”

I sat facing him, awkwardly. Enok, puzzled, responded.

“There’s nowhere for you to lean your back. And I can’t exactly sit in front of you either.”

He gestured to the empty space behind me. I glanced back, then stayed silent. After a moment, I slowly moved closer to him.

I sat in front of him, my back stiff as we pressed together. A sigh came from behind me.

“Since we’re going to tie ourselves anyway, just lean comfortably. You won’t sleep well otherwise.”

“Right, but…”

Though it wasn’t the first time we’d had physical contact, a hug and a back hug felt different.

‘This is awkward.’

I hesitantly leaned back. Eunji hopped down from my shoulder onto my lap, making me even more tense.

‘Ugh, my shoulders hurt. But it’s embarrassing to adjust now…’

As I pondered how to manage the uncomfortable position, a low voice pierced my ear.

“Excuse me.”

Before I could respond, a thick arm wrapped around my waist.

“Huh?”

He gently pulled me closer, pressing my back against his chest.

I felt immediately more comfortable, though extremely embarrassed from the closeness. Even a small movement made my wounds sting.

I don’t think I treated the wound properly after bandaging it with gauze earlier…

“Do we have a first-aid kit in the bag?”

Enok asked, sensing my condition perfectly. The kit was sealed tightly, so it should still be usable even if wet.

“Ah… yes.”

I kept giving dumb, robotic answers, while he rested his chin on my shoulder. His breath brushed my ear, making the hairs on my neck stand on end.