Chapter 59
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Chapter 59
Enoch clicked his tongue and draped an arm across my shoulders, drawing me closer to him.
Thanks to that, I drifted a little further from Asdal. Somehow, it felt like I was being protected by Enoch.
"I didn't realize Margaret was your maidservant. For a crown prince to hide behind a woman like that—I'm deeply concerned about the future of the Hestia Kingdom."
"That's harsh. There's no shame in standing behind a woman, is there? Besides, the Young Lady isn't an ordinary woman."
Asdal, having said that, looked at me and raised his eyebrows. His gaze seemed to ask: Aren't I right? Didn't I do well?
Rather, his abnormal behavior made it even harder to understand what lay beneath the surface.
Enoch regarded Asdal with a calm expression before letting out a soft laugh.
"Ah, my apologies. I have an allergy to being courteous with ungentlemanly people."
"Pfft."
Yuanna, who had been watching the exchange between the two men from a distance with great interest, burst into laughter.
Asdal's eyebrows twitched. When he turned to look back, Yuanna hastily averted her gaze and pretended not to notice.
Asdal, wearing an expression that suggested something was thoroughly tangled, apologized to me first.
"You're right. I wasn't being gentlemanly. As royalty, I have my dignity to uphold. I apologize, Young Lady."
Hmm, he's like a stubborn old boss, but the fact that he apologizes suggests he's not completely devoid of common sense.
"But I would appreciate it if you could catch the insect for me. Please, Young Lady. You're capable of it."
"You can't even catch an insect? If a monster showed up, you'd faint."
"That's different from an insect. And that creature seems a bit odd for a mere bug."
"Your Highness seems to think I'm some kind of miracle worker, but I don't like insects either, you know? Especially ones with many legs or no legs at all... ugh..."
Just thinking about it made me shudder. As I did, the hand Enoch had placed on my shoulder tensed slightly. He looked deeply displeased.
"Your Highness Asdal."
Yuanna, who had been observing the situation, approached and called out to him.
"Stop tormenting Flone Young Lady and come here. You said you'd help me grill the fish."
"Me...?"
Asdal raised his shoulders in bewilderment, his expression one of utter confusion.
Yuanna was quick-witted. When our eyes met, she gave me a graceful smile, and I could almost swear I saw a halo shining behind her.
I felt enchanted by her smile. No wonder all the male leads fell for her.
"The insect will leave if you just open the window."
At Yuanna's words, Asdal finally gave up on catching the insect and approached her.
"Margaret."
As I watched them move away toward the kitchen, Enoch pulled me closer once more.
I leaned against him almost entirely as I looked up at him. My eyes met his deep golden gaze.
"I'd prefer it if you didn't go hunting alone with the crown prince again. I'm worried."
"Ah... don't worry. I don't think that will happen again."
My hunting trip with Asdal had left me with the nickname "Minefield Moon."
'It was dreadful.'
I shouldn't carelessly offer to teach anyone hunting again in the future.
I mustn't end up in a disaster where I intended to give someone life experience but ended up gaining it myself instead.
As I shuddered at the memory of Minefield Moon, I heard Enoch's low voice near my ear.
"Promise me."
Though motionless, her calm gaze seemed to harbor turbulent emotions swirling beneath the surface.
'Like a blazing inferno.'
Enoch placed his hand against my cheek and slowly lowered his head. Soon, his forehead touched mine.
"Margaret, promise me."
His voice, exhaled like a sigh, carried such warmth that I found myself holding my breath.
I often felt bewildered whenever Enoch spoke like this. More precisely, I found his attention toward me rather curious.
'I've never harbored such passionate emotions myself.'
In truth, I had never received affection or care, nor had I given it. So I didn't quite understand what it looked like.
Enoch appeared cold—like a withered branch, like winter's biting wind—yet in reality, he had always been a passionate person.
At least, that's how he seemed to me.
Perhaps Enoch and I were opposites in temperament. After all, it was I whose heart resembled a withered branch.
"I promise."
I spoke while meeting his gaze directly.
"I don't particularly want to do things Enoch dislikes."
There's no need to force it. There's no reason to do things he dislikes.
While Enoch and I had our foreheads pressed together, the Cabin door opened, and my eyes met Kaiden's as he entered carrying an armful of firewood.
"Margaret...!"
He was about to rush toward me like an excited puppy when a tremendous crash suddenly echoed through the Cabin.
Crash!
The sound came precisely from the Second Floor.
"What...?"
Kaiden drew his dagger in alarm. Enoch pulled me behind him and drew his sword.
"Ugh, aaahhh!"
Rujeep's agonized scream pierced through from the Second Floor.
When we all rushed upstairs, what we saw was an enormous leg bursting through Asdal's door.
It appeared to be the insect Asdal had mentioned.
But that insect...
'Damn it, that's no ordinary insect, sir.'
Rujeep, who had collapsed in shock upon seeing the leg in the Second Floor corridor, scrambled toward us.
"It seems to be the Monster Diego mentioned seeing before."
At Enoch's murmur, I recalled the tarantula-type Monster that Yuanna's group had encountered.
"It was definitely a small spider back then... though it apparently emanated a distinctly suspicious aura."
Asdal, who had been standing behind us at some point, muttered in exasperation.
It was remarkable that he had sensed the suspicious aura from such a small spider. He must have keen instincts.
-It seems,
they are evolving.-
I recalled Yuanna's monologue from the original novel. A chill ran down my spine.
Fortunately, having just evolved, the spider fell to Enoch's blade without resistance.
Though we managed to drag the massive spider's corpse outside the Cabin, Asdal's bedroom became unusable due to the overwhelming stench.
"How dreadful. It brings back nightmares..."
Yuanna sat before the fireplace with a pallid complexion, murmuring to herself.
She seemed to be recalling what had happened before. Diego, seated beside her, silently patted her shoulder in comfort.
Sleeping on the Second Floor where the Monster had appeared was impossible. In the end, we all spread our bedding before the fireplace.
Enoch and Kaiden still occupied the spaces on either side of me, while Asdal and Diego positioned themselves on either side of Enoch, with Yuanna between them.
Rujeep, lying near the door, looked somehow lonely—or was that just my imagination?
"This confirms it. Monsters are definitely evolving."
Kaiden murmured while lying on his back, his interlaced hands cradling the back of his head.
"We need to leave this Island."
Enoch, lying beside me and following my train of thought, answered with a sigh.
"Then we should return to the place where the key was found as soon as possible."
Yes, we had to go.
"This Cabin doesn't seem safe either."
At my words, everyone who had been lying quietly turned to look at me. Startled by their piercing gazes, I scrambled to sit up.
"Why? What do you mean?"
At my question, Enoch rubbed the back of his neck and rose from his position.
"I was thinking the same thing."
"So was I. I'm not sure how much longer this Cabin will hold up."
Kaiden agreed with Enoch's response.
But Yuanna sat up and turned to look at me, raising a counterargument.
"We don't know what might happen if we go to the place where the key fell. Losing an excellent Base Camp would be a significant risk."
At Yuanna's words, those who had been looking at me turned their attention to her. She swept her gaze across everyone before continuing calmly.
"The spider has evolved, but the Monsters themselves still haven't managed to enter the Cabin, have they?"
"That's true."
As Enoch nodded in agreement with her words, Yuanna smiled softly and addressed me in a tone seeking my consent.
"Let's go to the place where the key fell as quickly as possible, and then we can organize the Cabin. We'll have to leave anyway if we're going to scout the entire Island. What do you think, Young Lady?"
At Yuanna's question, the attention that had been directed at her turned back to me. Then my neck would break.
Worrying needlessly, I nodded.
"I agree with what the Saint says."
Thus we agreed to uncover the secret of the key as quickly as possible before leaving the Cabin, and we returned to sleep.
Somehow, now that a plan was in place, I felt more at ease.
Lying quietly and gazing at the Cabin's ceiling, Kaiden beside me turned to face me, staring intently.
Puzzled, I turned my head toward him as well. His deep crimson eyes gleamed with an eerie brilliance as he gazed at me.
"Why?"
At my question, he breaks into a smile. It was a smile that didn't fit the situation—impossibly charming.
"Because you're beautiful."
He whispered words that made me blush in a quiet voice meant only for me. They were so tender and sweet that I felt a flutter in my chest.
"Because you're beautiful, I keep wanting to have you. It's ridiculous."
What's so ridiculous about that?
I dismissed Kaiden's words as his usual nonsense and simply laughed it off.
I didn't know then that it wasn't nonsense at all.
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