Chapter 47
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Chapter 47
Enoch nodded with an impassive expression, affirming the point.
"That's certainly one plausible cause among many. But there are so many other possibilities to consider that drawing a firm conclusion becomes difficult."
We were back to square one. Rujeep, who had been watching for the right moment to speak, raised his hand.
"In that case, I believe our best course of action is to work together toward finding the escape gate."
Everyone nodded in agreement with Rujeep's words. The exhaustion and fatigue etched into their faces was unmistakable.
By now, the sky had grown dim. Far more time had passed than I'd realized.
"Additionally, it might be wise to periodically visit the Beach and watch for passing ships."
Asdal added this final suggestion.
Knowing as I did that any rescue attempt would be futile, I desperately wanted to object.
But the others, unaware of this truth, all nodded in agreement.
Awoooooo—
A wolf's howl echoed from somewhere far in the distance.
A chilling silence fell over us.
Everyone tensed visibly, exchanging wary glances with one another.
"We can discuss the details after sunrise. For tonight, I think we should settle in and rest."
Everyone nodded in agreement with Yuanna's suggestion.
Even if Monsters rarely ventured near the Cabin, lighting a fire at night was too dangerous.
We all quickly tidied up and headed into the Cabin.
* * *
We decided to take turns keeping watch through the night.
By "we," I mean myself, Enoch, Kaiden, and Rujeep.
Our watch served partly to prepare for Monster attacks, but more importantly, to prevent any provocation from Yuanna's group.
We were in the midst of preparing to sleep, spreading fallen leaves across the wooden floor of the first level.
Kaiden descended the second-floor stairs, pointed upward toward me, and asked a question.
"I heard one of the two rooms upstairs is for the Saint?"
At Kaiden's words, Rujeep, who had been helping me spread the leaves, let out an irritated sigh.
"The other room, His Highness the Crown Prince has claimed for himself."
At his words, Kaiden approached me with a scowl darkening his features.
"What? Then where is Margaret supposed to sleep?"
Diego and Enoch, who had been conversing some distance away, turned toward us with puzzled expressions.
I had no desire to cause a commotion in the dead of night, and besides, the upstairs rooms offered nothing but hard wooden beds anyway.
I understood why they were upset, but the truth was I hadn't been prevented from going upstairs—I simply chose not to.
In fact, Yuanna had suggested we share a room, but something about her intentions seemed suspect, so I declined.
Either way, in a situation like this, staying close to my companions was safer than separating from them. So I shrugged and tried to calm Kaiden.
"It's fine. I think sleeping here is the safest option. You're here, Enoch is here, and the Bishop is here too."
Kaiden's eyebrows rose slightly, and a smile played at the corners of his mouth. My words seemed to have pleased him.
I wasn't sure if Diego and Enoch had heard our conversation. They quickly turned away again, appearing absorbed in some discussion.
I finished spreading the leaves and sat down on top of them, quietly observing the two men. What could they possibly be discussing so intently?
"They seem to be sharing information about Monsters."
Kaiden, resting his chin on his hand as he sat beside me, turned his gaze toward Enoch and spoke.
"Monster information?"
"It seems two people made some kind of deal."
Rujeep, who sat before the fireplace poking at the logs with a stick, also turned to look at Kaiden with curious eyes.
Kaiden narrowed his brow and listened intently to the conversation between Enoch and Diego.
They were whispering at least a dozen paces away—how was Kaiden hearing them? Superhuman senses?
"It seems Diego is reporting to the Crown Prince what he learned while staying with those people over there."
With those words, Kaiden clicked his tongue.
"Right, I momentarily forgot. Diego is Crown Prince Enoch's man."
I sighed and replied.
'I should take revenge on that woodcutter somehow....'
How could I make it known that I'd gotten proper revenge?
Kaiden let out a scoff, then gazed at Diego with his arms crossed.
"A knight failing his duty. By the looks of it, he's fallen hard for the Saint. He says he won't follow the Crown Prince but will stay by the Saint's side instead. That bastard's not just a little crazy, is he? What's he planning to do when we return to the Empire?"
Coming from someone who'd grabbed the Crown Prince by the collar, that was rich. I sighed, shook my head, and settled down to lie back.
Kaiden grumbled for a moment before lying down on my left side.
Rujeep, who had been cautiously observing the situation, was about to lie down in the spot on my right when Enoch appeared.
"Even if the space beside Margaret appears empty, it's not truly empty. Are you coveting my spot? Do you have the confidence to bear the consequences of that covetousness?"
He certainly has a difficult way of saying 'move.'
At Enoch's sharp tone, Rujeep's expression soured. But he sighed and meekly shuffled over to the other spot.
I looked pitifully at Rujeep huddled down, then rolled over to gaze up at Enoch.
He stood as he unbuttoned his short-sleeved shirt.
Damn, even looking up at him from below like this, he was handsome without a shred of shame.
He slowly sat down beside me and gazed down at me intently.
"It seems you have something to say to me."
I sat up to face him.
"What were you talking about with Diego?"
At my question, I heard Kaiden, who had been lying behind me, rustle as he rolled over.
Enoch sighed, rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, and shrugged his shoulders.
"We exchanged information about the Monsters each of us has encountered."
Just as Kaiden said.
"The Monsters that attacked us were mainly wolves and Anaconda Monsters, weren't they? But the Monsters they encountered over there were different."
At Enoch's words, Kaiden sat up and pulled himself closer to me with an intrigued expression.
Rujeep also drew near to Enoch and listened intently to his words.
Diego, who stood at a distance, seemed to have heard our entire conversation, but this level of discussion wasn't classified information, so there was no problem with it being shared.
Regardless of whether they did or not, Enoch paid no mind and rested his chin on his hand with a serious expression.
"According to Diego, that group encountered a massive tarantula-type Monster and a beast-type Monster with a human form."
A beast-type Monster with a human form....
At those words, I suddenly recalled the Monster I'd encountered a few weeks ago while being chased by Kaiden.
A beast that stood on two legs like a human and was covered entirely in fur.
"It didn't really look like a person so much as... a massive orangutan. That Monster I encountered while being chased by Kaiden. It matches the humanoid Monster that Diego described."
Kaiden slapped his knee in agreement with my words.
"Ah, that one—I know it. I was attacked by it. This scar is from that creature."
He suddenly lifted his shirt to reveal the wound on his chest.
True to his word, the spot I had treated bore a deep scar. Without access to magic, it would be difficult to erase it.
"...The Monsters seem to be evolving."
Enoch added after a brief silence.
I agreed with that assessment.
The wolf-type Monsters that Enoch had torn apart last time were clearly undergoing evolution.
—It had already been four days since I entered the Underground Storage alone.
I still couldn't make sense of what had happened just before entering the Underground Storage.
I encountered a Monster right before entering the Underground Storage. I managed to escape, but what shocked me more than the Monster's appearance was the time of day it appeared.
The sun was setting, yet it was clearly still daylight.
And the massive tarantula I encountered just before entering the Underground Storage didn't seem to be affected by the sun's rays.
It seemed,
that they were indeed evolving.—
It wasn't exact, but there was definitely something like that in the text.
In the novel, this phenomenon supposedly began near the end of the first volume. And that was right before Yuanna entered the Bunker.
But we witnessed this phenomenon as soon as we arrived on the Island. On the first day we awoke on the Island, Enoch and I encountered a Monster during sunset.
The moment I realized this fact, I couldn't suppress the chill running down my spine.
At this rate, won't Monsters start appearing in broad daylight?
"We need more weapons."
Kaiden furrowed his brow and muttered with a serious expression. As his gaze turned toward me, he shrugged and spoke.
"If the Monsters are truly evolving, we'll reach the limits of what we can handle with our current weapons."
He was right. What we have now isn't enough. The flare rounds and grenades are consumables with limited quantities.
"Before the Monsters become unmanageable, finding the 'Door' that matches the key is also urgent."
"We must uncover the secret of the key."
"And the secret of the Island."
Rujeep and I answered in turn.
What on earth was the nature of this bizarre Island?
It felt as though mysteries only continued to pile up without resolution.
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