At my words, Yuanna turned her head to look at me. Kayden, lost in thought, spoke again, "The cabin is where Jenas can freely use his magic given that he managed to seal Anata in there, but he can't if he's outside of it."
Yuanna nodded in affirmation. Seeing her nod, Kayden added, "Then we'll have to lure Jenas out."
He's right. Jenas' magic power is limited outside the cabin. Plus, he was in the form of a young boy, so he would be easy to subdue if a group of us could get him outside.
Enoch chimed in, "We should split into two teams, one to lure that damn kid away and buy us time, and one to break Anata's seal."
Everyone agreed with Enoch.
So it was decided that I, Yuanna, and Eunji would go into the cabin while the rest would drag Jenas out. That was our first plan.
In fact, without the success of the first plan, the second plan (to get off the island) was completely impossible to realize.
This is because we had very little information about how to get off the island and how to deal with Jenas, so we had to rely on Anata for clues.
So it was imperative that our first plan succeed.
"By the way, how do we break Anata's seal?"
"Hm......"
At my question, Yuanna looked at me with a puzzled look on her face as if she didn't know that much.
Kayden, who'd just finished cleaning up and packing, chimed in, "If all else fails, just destroy the cabin."
That big cabin......? That would hurt Anata, too.
Seeing my expression, Kayden smiled. "Ask Anata. She probably knows everything."
"Sure, whatever. We don't have any other choice, so we'll figure it out as we go," said Yuanna.
I nodded at Yuanna's words and looked worriedly at Ruzef, who was still unconscious.
I wonder if he's going to be okay.
***
Jenas smiled as he borrowed the raven monster's eyes to survey Margaret's situation in the hut.
"Looks like she's heading this way. I should probably go greet her," Jenas muttered as he pulled up a chair next to Anata and sat down. Anata frowned in annoyance.
Jenas, who certainly didn't care about Anata's feelings, smiled and continued, "When you think about it, this isn't so bad. Opening the Return Gate kept our descendant alive."
Jenas had been unusually talkative lately. Anata furrowed her brow at his words.
The descendant of ours that he was referring to was Kayden Blake Rohade.
"Our descendant died the last time we met, so I gave up on taking his body, but this time he's still alive." Jenas stroked his chin with his small hand.
He continued, "This is the last one, so I look forward to it. I think I can wipe them out once and for all, leaving only the Saintess."
"You're going to end the experiment in one fell swoop?"
"Yes, I've waited too long. Anata, the Saintess will become Alea, right? Seven is the lucky number in the dice game. If she's the last one standing, she'll have to kill herself again, poor thing."
"How do you know who will be the last one standing?" Anata replied irritably.
"I'm just making a prediction. The priests are always the last ones standing, the ones who are favored by God and blessed with good fortune."
Jenas slowly rose from his seat, opening the door of the Sanctuary Chamber and looking back at Anata.
"Yuanna is a saint who appeared after a hundred years, she must be greatly blessed by God. I'm looking forward to it."
And with that, he disappeared. Left alone in the room, Anata bit her lip hard.
'Damn it, what are you planning to do?'
***
Our biggest concern was Ruzef. He hadn't regained consciousness, even as Kayden cast a healing spell.
"He's still breathing......"
Yuanna looked at Ruzef, who was carried on Kayden's shoulder, with worry. She said, "Let's wait and see, but at least he's still alive."
I nodded at her words. Then I glanced at the bag she was carrying.
She'd scavenged what she could from the supply box, but there was more useful stuff than I'd expected. Arthdal's crossbow was there, as well as two new swords and some flare ammunition.
Noticing that I was looking at her bag, Yuanna smiled at me. "By the way, young lady, I think we should be partners now."
"We?" I asked back, confused.
Kayden, walking ahead of us, narrowed his eyes and looked back at us.
"Hey, Saintess, stop being clingy to Margaret."
When Kayden said something like this, Ruzef would usually tell him to behave himself......
"Well, that's a bit rich coming from you," said Arthdal as if filling Ruzef's empty seat.
Kayden then looked at me with a shocked expression. "What the......! Margaret, have I been too clingy to you?"
I chuckled at Kayden's reaction. Here we go again.
It was annoying at first, but now it's cute. The way he looks at me with those wide, hopeful eyes is also quite cute.
I stood still, admiring Kayden's handsome face, and then I looked over at Ruzef, sleeping soundly on his shoulder, and I remembered what Ruzef had asked me to tell Kayden.
"Oh, there's something the Archbishop wanted me to tell you."
"Huh? What?"
Kayden tilted his head, puzzled. I hesitated, pursing my lips for a moment. I felt a little heartbroken for some reason.
"He said... he's useful too."
Kayden looked genuinely taken aback when he heard that. It was the first time I'd ever seen him look like that.
"Hey... why did he say that as if he's a poor guy..." Kayden muttered, his voice trailing off, his embarrassment still evident.
"Is the Archbishop not going to wake up until we get the ghosts out of him?" asked Diego, who had been listening to our conversation as we walked along.
Hearing that, I felt a little uneasy. What should I do? He's really going to wake up, right?
"Don't worry, I'll take care of him no matter what." Kayden comforted me, patting my head as if he knew what was on my mind.
Enoch, who was walking in the front, said, looking at the map, "We'll camp here tonight, we should be at the cabin by tomorrow."
We decided to sleep in a tree since all the monsters hadn't disappeared yet. We divided into groups and climbed a tree. I teamed up with Yuanna, the only woman besides me.
Tomorrow, we'll really meet Jenas, save Anata, and......
If our plan succeeds, will we be able to get off the island?
I feel strange.
'Will we really succeed?'
I tied myself to the tree trunk and looked up to see Yuanna smiling at me. I stared at her face for a long time.
I realized I hadn't asked her that question yet, about her soul being bound to the island and unable to escape.
"Do you have any questions?"
She smiled, her face relaxed as if she had no burden of problems. I thought it was amazing how she was able to keep an unwaveringly bright face no matter what.
Perhaps that's why, the pre-regression Yuanna I saw in the bunker with her face full of tears looked more genuine, and I felt a little guilty for all the times I'd doubted her.
If I was the real Margaret, I shouldn't have.
"Are you really unable to get off the island?" I asked.
"Ah......"
She sighed, a look on her face that told me I was asking a difficult question.
"I'm afraid so."
Is there really no way out? Really?
"Maybe... Anata might know how, right?"
Yuanna nodded at my question as if it was no big deal. But it was as if she had no expectations and was forced to answer just because she was asked.
She leaned back against the tree and looked wistfully up at the sky. She was lost in thought for a long moment before she looked at me again and spoke.
"She said she built this island and created a system called 'Alea,' so maybe she knows something."
I was surprised by her words. I hadn't known that.
"Anata built the island? Not Jenas?"
"Jenas was the one who organized and ran the experiment, in fact, he's the biggest brains behind it."
That bastard! God, I want to kill him!
As I was grinding my teeth at Jenas, Yuanna asked, "When we get off the island, how much time do you think will have passed?"
How much time has passed? That was something I was curious about too.
"Maybe not as much time as we've spent on this island?"
"Maybe there's a war going on. It would be strange if nothing happened when key people from each country disappear without a trace."
A war.
I have to live as Margaret again. So I have to adjust to people in her world, but in a situation where a war broke out......
My head hurts a lot.
"I don't know everything either, but I had no choice but to listen and believe what Anata told me," Yuanna said to me, looking at me blankly. As if she couldn't answer all my questions.
She's right. She's a victim of an experiment, and she can't just take the perpetrator's word for it.
Just then, I heard Diego and Kayden quarreling in the next tree.
"Damn it, I can't see Margaret from here!"
"You've already gotten most of the spots, Lord. It's an unfair place setting. I'll go over there."
Apparently, Kayden kept asking Diego to move over, which made Diego uncharacteristically irritated that he was being pushed out of the way.
I couldn't see Kayden's face because the leaves and branches were blocking my view, and that seemed to be the beginning of this quarrel.
Ha... how embarrassing......
As I looked at Kayden while shaking my head in disbelief, Yuanna suddenly asked, "Margaret, which one of those two guys do you like?"
"Yes? You mean... between Kayden and Sir Diego?"
Surprised by her question, I was at a loss for words to reply, then looked at Kayden and Diego.
Yuanna waved her hand and corrected me. "Oh, not Sir Diego. Between Lord Kayden and Crown Prince Enoch, who is your favorite man?"
"Uh... what?"