Chapter 120
Diego knelt on the ground, taking out what seemed to be heavy luggage from his bag and transferring it to the leaf bag he was carrying. Most of it consisted of daily necessities such as dishes and Wooden Knives.
“Is that all?”
Diego handed the somewhat lighter bag to Luzef. Luzef nodded, looking a little awkward.
“Thank you.”
Diego didn't answer and silently walked ahead.
“The Saintess and the Crown Prince will follow, right?”
As Luzef muttered, Diego silently nodded.
“Still, Prince Asdal has a weapon, so it should be fine.”
After the suspension bridge broke and Margaret, Enoch, and Kaiden disappeared one after another, they were in utter chaos.
The distance to the south island was considerable, so they couldn't hear each other, and communication by other means was difficult.
However, soon Asdal, who was on the south island, cut a large leaf and made a star mark, and only then did Diego and Luzef realize what Asdal was trying to say. It meant that they should meet at the place marked with a star, as originally planned.
But it was extremely problematic for Diego and Luzef, who had neither compass nor map, to set out on their own.
In the end, after much debate, they decided to mark the path they had taken and return to their original spot if they got lost. Only after making such a decision did they start walking aimlessly towards the west of the north island.
“Honestly, it was unexpected. I thought you would go straight to find The Saintess.”
At Luzef's words, Diego silently walked and answered calmly.
“The Saintess is not as weak as she looks. And isn't it more important now to find out if Lady Flone is alive or not?”
Diego glanced back at Luzef. It sounded as if he was saying, ‘Mind your own business,’ so Luzef twisted his lips in dissatisfaction.
“Lady Flone is not that weak either. She must be alive.”
His trust in her was solid, but in reality, Luzef was also anxious. He tried to suppress the anxiety boiling inside him and constantly reminded himself that she would be safe.
“Honestly, isn't it true that Lady Flone's absence is the biggest loss compared to the absence of others?”
And Diego brought up such an unexpected topic.
“This is a perilous island where it wouldn't be strange for anyone to disappear at any time, but for some reason, I thought only Lady Flone would be safe. I never thought she would disappear so suddenly…”
“Lady Flone is indeed someone who inspires such faith.”
Luzef smiled bitterly. But what good was it? They didn't even know if she was alive or dead.
Diego nodded with a heavy expression.
“I hope she's safe. I really mean it.”
\ \ *
Eunji knew exactly where I was, as if she had a tracker on me, but she didn't know the location of other people.
I rummaged through my crossbody bag.
“Is there anything that belongs to Kaiden? If Eunji smells it, maybe she can find him?”
“……Do you really think of that guy as a dog?”
I had nothing to say to Enoch's question, so I put down my bag. Eunji tilted her head as if she didn't understand, sticking out her tongue.
I stroked Eunji's head and ended up searching for Kaiden on foot with Enoch.
But my ominous premonitions were always right. We wandered through the forest until sunset, but we couldn't find Kaiden.
Besides, the fog had completely cleared, but it was still difficult to figure out where we were in the forest.
“It seems to be near Zenas's cabin. Where did the cabin go?”
Awooooo!
At the sound of a wolf howling from somewhere, Enoch drew his sword and looked around.
“We need to find a place to hide for the night.”
I nodded, taking out the Flares I had received from Zenas and loading them.
“If Monsters are roaming around even during the day now, then waiting for morning isn't the answer, right?”
“That's right. The forest or the riverside are also at risk of being surrounded by Monsters.”
Listening to Enoch's words, I slowly looked around the forest.
The forest we were in was like a jungle, with trees that had strong roots and were quite thick.
I looked back at Enoch.
“Let's climb up a tree.”
Enoch looked up at the trees after me. Climbing a tree wouldn't be easy, but this was the only way.
“There's a risk of falling.”
At Enoch's muttering, I quickly scanned the surroundings. Jungles usually have tough and thick vines that can be used as ropes.
“We can tie ourselves up. Even if we lean over while sleeping, we won't fall right away, so we can prepare for a fall.”
I chose some suitable vines and handed them to Enoch.
“Can you cut them with that sword?”
I quietly watched Enoch cut the vines with his long sword.
Eunji, who was wrapped around my arm, cautiously went up to my shoulder and peeked out from behind my neck.
Perhaps she had learned from experience, she seemed to have taken refuge on my shoulder because she thought I would be using my arms soon.
‘How cute.’
Enoch lightly held a considerable amount of vines in one arm, tucked them under his side, and looked back at me.
I was estimating which tree to climb when he called me in a low voice.
“Margaret.”
I turned to him with a puzzled expression. And I met his eyes as he looked at me with a calm face.
“I have thought that you might really be someone else. Quite often, too.”
“Yes? What are you……”
I was so surprised that I couldn't finish my sentence and stared at him with a frozen face. He looked at me steadily with an unwavering face, then slowly lowered his head and whispered in my ear.
“But I'm not confused. What I liked was the current you. I want you to know that.”
His low voice tickles my ear. I didn't know what he meant by saying this to me, so I just opened and closed my mouth. I wondered if my heart would stop beating like this.
Then, as if he had interpreted my expression, Enoch gave a bitter smile and moved away from me a little.
“I didn't want an answer, so I hope you won't say anything.”
In the end, I couldn't say anything.
‘What I liked was the current you.’ Those words echoed in my ear. This was a perfect confession that couldn't even be confused.
Perhaps because I had heard an unexpected confession, I suddenly remembered when I first met him.
At first, I only thought about running away from him. I was scared of him. Because I didn't know when he would kill me.
From some point on, I thought he might change his mind and abandon me at any time. So I avoided him to avoid getting hurt.
But now…….
I was thinking that I wanted to survive together, not alone.
I might not feel the same way as him, but my heart was also different from before.
“Margaret.”
Enoch, who was moving away, turned to me and called. His face said, why aren't you following me?
I put my thoughts aside. I was grateful that he didn't force me to do anything and didn't ask me anything.
I followed him at a trot. And together, we chose a tree to spend the night in.
I stepped on Enoch's shoulder and climbed up the tree first, followed by Enoch. It wasn't too difficult to climb the tree because I was wearing pants.
We settled on a branch quite high up. The wound on my stomach was very sore and painful as I climbed up, but I tried not to show it as much as possible.
Then, Enoch leaned against the tree trunk first and patted between his legs.
“Come here.”
“Um……. Do we really have to?”
I sat facing him and asked with a troubled face. At my question, Enoch asked back as if it were strange.
“There's nothing for you to lean your back on over there. And I can't sit in front of you, since I'm so big.”
He pointed to my back, which was wide open, and I had nothing to say, so I remained silent. Then, after hesitating for a moment, I slowly approached him.
I watched him for a moment, then quietly leaned my back against him. I was so awkward making skin contact with him that I stiffened my back without realizing it. I heard a sigh from behind.
“We have to tie ourselves up anyway, so lean back comfortably. You're not going to sleep like that, are you?”
“Well, yes, but……”
This wasn't the first time I had physical contact with him, but a back hug was a little different from just hugging, wasn't it?
‘This is awkward.’
I tentatively leaned back slightly. Eunji came down from my shoulder and sat on my lap. I was so nervous that my body stiffened.
‘Damn it, my shoulder feels a bit stiff. I've already settled in, so it's embarrassing to move again.’
I was suffering from the uncomfortable posture and wondering how to get through this situation.
“Excuse me.”
An extremely low voice pierced my ear. Before I could ask what he meant, a thick arm wrapped around my waist.
“Huh?”
He lifted me slightly and pulled me close to him, so that I could lean my back against his chest.
The position became much more comfortable. However, it was very embarrassing because I was so close to him, and the wound was sore from moving for a moment.
Come to think of it, I don't think I treated the wound earlier when the gauze was stained with blood.
“Is the first aid kit in your bag?”
Enoch, who had noticed my condition like a ghost, asked me. Even if it fell into the water, the first aid kit would still be usable because the lid was tightly closed. Probably?
“Ah…… Yes.”
I had been repeating stupid answers like a broken robot since earlier. Meanwhile, he put his chin on my shoulder.
His breath brushed against my ear. I felt like my hair was standing on end from the tension.