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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the ‌‌‌latest ‌‌releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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Chapter 3
* * *
Once the sunset begins, darkness falls swiftly upon the land.
Having already encountered a monster, I couldn't afford to wander deeper into the Forest.
My startled heart still hadn't calmed, but dwelling on that sensation here would serve no purpose.
We eventually made our way back ‌‌‌to the Beach and ‌‌‌‌searched for shelter. By fortune, we discovered an enormous fallen log beneath a palm tree.
The log lay tilted toward the sandy shore, and beside it lay a space perfectly ‌‌suited for concealing ‌‌‌our bodies.
Though we were on the Beach, we were closer to the Forest's edge, which offered protection from the ‌‌sand winds.
We decided to establish our refuge here for the night.
I first excavated the sandy ground beside the log to create enough space for two people to lie down.
Then I gathered pebbles and spread them across the excavated ground to prevent the sand from collapsing while we slept.
"I need small twigs. I'll ‌‌‌lay them on top of ‌‌‌‌this."
Enoch stared at me with an ‌‌‌expression suggesting he had much to ask but didn't know where to begin.
"Your Highness, the twigs."
When I ‌‌‌‌repeated myself, ‌‌Enoch glanced at me with an uncertain expression before departing to gather the branches.
I ‌‌arranged the twigs Enoch brought densely across the pebbles. Next, I discovered thick moss in the shallow Forest near ‌‌the shoreline.
Moss clumps were moist and soft, making them ideal for sanitation purposes and as a makeshift cloth in this wilderness, and they served equally well as bedding beneath us.
"I also need broad leaves to lay on top...."
I was about to mention that I needed leaves to place over the soft moss.
But Enoch had already gathered broad leaves before I could speak and laid them across the sleeping place I'd prepared.
He then leaned a flat-surfaced wooden beam diagonally against the fallen log as a support.
A slanted roof formed above our makeshift bed.
We'd managed to create a reasonably ‌‌‌serviceable sleeping quarters. Unexpectedly, Enoch and I worked together seamlessly.
"Don't lie right against me. Keep your distance. I have absolutely no desire to sleep beside the Young Lady."
At Enoch's words, ‌‌‌‌I shot him a sideways glance.
"The feeling is mutual, you know? How could I know what you might do?"
He then glared at ‌‌me as if exasperated.
"You?"
"I mean, Your Highness."
I brazenly corrected my form of address.
Enoch's expression soured, but he didn't press further and fell silent.
He clearly hadn't adapted well to my transformation.
Yet there were ‌‌far too many pressing matters before us to scrutinize such changes in detail.
In any case, ‌‌‌Enoch yielded the spot beside the log to me and took the outer position for himself.
To show such consideration to someone he disliked—his manners were truly impeccable.
Seated upon the makeshift bed gazing at the sunset sky, I turned to Enoch with a serious expression.
"Your Highness."
Enoch regarded me with ‌‌‌‌a puzzled look.
"Aren't you thirsty?"
Enoch, who appeared to have been tensely braced, now wore a deflated expression as he glared at me.
I shrugged and rose to my feet.
"Wait here. I'll fetch some coconuts for us."
I'd spotted a coconut palm earlier while wandering about the Beach.
'I'm quite skilled at climbing trees.'
I'd even attempted the feat of scaling trees and harvesting bananas—something only true masters could accomplish.
Of course, it would be preferable if there were unspoiled coconuts lying on the ground.
But Enoch blocked my path with ‌‌‌a face full of suspicion.
"Where do you think you're going? Stay put."
"It's not far at all—just right behind us. I'm genuinely parched."
"I don't trust you. The moment my back is turned, you're plotting an escape."
He wasn't wrong, so I had nothing to say.
"I told you—the Young Lady hasn't been completely cleared of suspicion. So until we return to the Empire, keep yourself alive and ‌‌stay by my side." ‌‌
...Somehow that sounded almost protective, though I must be mistaken.
In any case, he was forbidding any thoughts of escape.
I understood ‌‌‌his reaction well enough, so I simply exhaled a weary sigh.
"Just describe what the fruit ‌‌looks like. I'll go fetch it."
Enoch, who had been studying me with ‌‌‌a contemplative expression, spoke. He'd apparently decided it was easier to keep me on the Beach than send me into the Forest, where ‌‌I might slip away.
That logic was sound enough. I had no choice but to describe the coconut's appearance to him.
He listened quietly to my explanation and disappeared, returning some time later with two coconuts in hand.
"Did you climb the tree to pick them?"
"No, there were plenty lying on the ground, just as you mentioned."
His tone was gruff, but he dutifully fulfilled everything I asked of ‌‌him.
"But what does your thirst have to do with this fruit?"
"It grows on coconut palms, and the liquid inside is excellent for rehydration."
I tapped the ‌‌coconut thoughtfully as ‌‌‌‌I continued.
"This one is perfect—if you consume overly ripe fruit, it can cause diarrhea. You'd end up losing more fluids than you gained."
I searched ‌‌‌for a sharp stone capable of splitting the coconut.
As I struck the shell repeatedly with the rock, I heard Enoch sigh beside me.
He snatched the coconut from my hands and, with a sharp crack, split it cleanly in half with his bare hands. ‌‌‌
His raw strength was truly extraordinary. Or was ‌‌‌this simply superhuman power? ‌‌‌
I'd never seen anyone cleave such a hardened coconut shell with bare hands—even blades struggled against it.
"Wait! Don't drink it straight like that!"
I barely managed to stop Enoch from drinking the liquid directly.
He looked at me with confusion.
"Fruit that's fallen to the ground might be spoiled. ‌Insects could have eaten through it."
I inspected the interior of the coconut, smelled it, and even dipped my finger into the liquid to taste it cautiously with my tongue.
It was a flavor I'd experienced before.
"It's safe now. You can drink it."
At ‌‌‌my words, Enoch lifted the coconut and drank from the liquid inside.
Since I was also parched, I swallowed the liquid that poured through the crack in the split shell.
"I think I'll survive."
I ‌‌‌‌‌set down ‌‌‌‌the coconut and exhaled deeply.
"You know more than I expected."
Enoch spoke after replenishing his ‌‌‌‌‌‌‌fluids, his expression noticeably more at ease.
I answered with a silent shrug.
Now that I thought about it, in the original story, Margaret and Enoch had struggled considerably with hydration before meeting the heroine—collecting rainwater or gathering dew over days to drink.
But unlike the original, thanks to me, Enoch was adapting smoothly, and thanks to him, I'd survived the creature attack.
'Is this what they call mutual aid?'
With ‌‌‌that thought, I lifted my gaze. The sky had already begun to tint a pale violet.
I sat there, staring blankly up at the heavens.
I still ‌‌couldn't make sense of ‌‌‌what had happened.
Whether I was truly alive. Whether this was really inside a novel.
"The Young Lady seems like a completely different person."
Enoch, who had been observing me with a quiet expression, finally spoke after a long silence.
"I am a different person."
I'd simply stated the truth, but Enoch didn't believe me.
Why not? He was the one who said I seemed different first.
"Certainly, watching how the Young Lady judges situations ‌‌‌‌‌and handles them now makes me doubt whether you're truly the Floné ‌Young Lady I knew." ‌‌‌
Enoch's expression ‌‌‌suggested he wanted an explanation, but I had nothing I could really offer. ‌‌
"Your reactions differ even from typical noble ladies. Usually, in circumstances like these, they wouldn't remain as composed as you are."
I nodded in agreement with Enoch's words. But this too was something I couldn't explain away.
The original Margaret Rose Floné had been a young lady of a ducal house consumed by aristocratic superiority. She would naturally have no skill in acting composed in such situations.
She probably would never have even visited a desolate beach like this.
But before my possession, I had lived a completely different life from Margaret.
I had been a Girl Scout troop leader and instructor whose hobby was hardcore camping.
After quitting that position, I'd even taken a job at a company selling camping equipment.
I enjoyed outdoor sports without discrimination, and ‌‌‌‌I'd once traveled to the tropical rainforests of the African Continent and experienced wilderness survival.
Back then, I'd lamented that I was living life spectacularly, but now it seemed like being stranded on a deserted island wasn't a bad application of those skills.
Of course, there's no such thing as a "good" skillset for being stranded on a deserted island, but still—wouldn't my chances of survival be higher than those of an ordinary person who knew nothing?
Who could have known those experiences would prove useful like this?
Of course, as I'd mentioned before, my combat ability was zero, so I'd die instantly if any creatures or wild beasts appeared.
"People tend to change when forced into extreme environments."
I focused on the fact that I had changed and offered my excuse.
Acting as though I weren't Margaret was never a good choice. It would be voluntarily raising suspicion.
There was a risk ‌‌that Enoch might misunderstand—that I'd kidnapped him or was the one responsible for this situation.
I'd half-expected it, but as I suspected, Enoch's expression showed he couldn't accept my explanation.
"Well, such cases are rare."
Then he answered in a matter-of-fact tone.
Only then did I realize that wasn't something I should say in front of someone who'd rolled through countless battlefields.
I was hardly one to lecture a seasoned warrior.
Ultimately, I had no rebuttal to offer, so I fell silent. Then I lay down on the narrow makeshift bedding and gazed up at the sky. ‌‌‌
As I stared blankly at nothing but the heavens, Enoch spoke first.
"That creature earlier wasn't ‌‌‌an animal. It emanated an aura strikingly similar to a demon."

---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team ‌‌and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------