I’m Stuck on a Remote Island With the Male Leads - Side Story 19

Arthdal could not rest due to the persistent pain. Despite losing his magic, the effects of the Magic Eye should have disappeared, yet he continued to feel a peculiar pain similar to when he used the Magic Eye.

“What’s wrong?” Ruzef asked as they drank tea together. Arthdal stood up.

“I think I need to go to the Magic Tower. I have a feeling something unusual is happening.”

Ruzef looked out the window with a thoughtful expression. From the Floné estate, the Magic Tower was clearly visible—the tower where Kayden was sleeping.

Both Ruzef and Arthdal had heard that Margaret regularly checked on the Magic Tower. They also received news a few hours ago that Margaret and Enoch had visited the tower together.

Ruzef rose from his seat as well. “I’ll come with you.”

***

“This isn’t much of a price, is it? Still lacking, I’d say.” Enoch approached in long strides, grabbed Kayden by the collar, and flung him out of the cave. “Facing me directly is a better way for you to pay your dues. Those creatures are no match for me.”

And so began an intense battle.

Crackle, crackle.

I sat by the fire, absentmindedly watching the flames dance.

Boom!

Outside the cave, a fierce gale blew, accompanied by a blizzard. I turned my gaze toward the swirling snowstorm.

Through the snow, I saw the dark-haired man. Amid the white, he stood out starkly, drenched in dark red blood. His severed arm was regenerating—a startling and eerie sight that didn’t feel real.

Kayden soon charged at him.

The two men continued to fight, over me.

I pondered again why this situation had arisen. Where am I? Who am I?

Who is that dark-haired man, fighting so fiercely to restore my memory? And why does Kayden desire me so desperately?

Screech!

Outside the cave, the sharp cries of monsters pierced the air. I watched as the body of a snake, slithering past the cave entrance, was split vertically.

The dark-haired man had cleaved the snake in half with his harpoon. How could he slice such a massive creature with just a harpoon?

Then, the man leaped and grabbed Kayden by the collar, slamming him to the ground.

Crash!

The earth cracked and split with the snow.

Is something like that even possible? I rubbed my eyes and watched again. Was this really the power of a human being?

It was then that—

“Yo-ho.”

A child’s voice called from near the cave entrance.

“Oh, this is tough.”

Two tiny hands, like maple leaves, appeared at the cave entrance, which was a bit elevated from the ground.

“Hup!”

A small boy struggled to climb up to the cave entrance, kicking his legs. Without thinking, I reached out to him, lifting him under his arms. The boy’s eyes widened.

“Unnie!” The boy’s cheeks turned red with delight.

I tilted my head at him. “Who are you?”

The boy looked shocked, as if he’d been hit by a massive blow. “H-how can you say that to Eunji?”

Eunji?

I realized the name wasn’t unfamiliar. It was the name Kayden had mentioned.

“Are you Eunji? Are you my son?”

“Huh?”

The boy, who had been on the verge of tears, widened his eyes and tilted his head.

“Are you going to be Eunji’s mom, Unnie?”

Then Eunji laughed and snuggled into my arms. “Eunji likes that too.”

What is this lethal cuteness?

After snuggling up to me, Eunji let go without hesitation and began fidgeting with his fingers.

He glanced around and then wiped his forehead with his small hand. It seemed he wanted to pretend to wipe away sweat, but it was so cold there was no way he was sweating.

“Eunji had a hard time. Kayden blew me away. I came here shivering in the snow. Kayden is mean.”

Eunji didn’t seem to be a son born to me and Kayden. Nor did he appear to be Enoch’s child.

Then who is he?

Not to mention that Kayden had tossed this little boy aside and left him in the snow.

What a scoundrel!

Eunji grumbled, looking out at the noisy cave entrance. “Sigh. There’s only one unnie, but Enoch and Kayden won’t share. Can’t they just share you nicely?”

“…Eunji, I can’t be split in two.”

Eunji looked at me, wide-eyed in surprise. “Unnie can’t be split?”

Of course not.

“But who are you really?”

“Huh? W-why are you pretending not to know Eunji, Unnie?”

Eunji looked at me with a shocked expression, then seemed to have a thought and became sullen.

“Well, when Eunji was born, you tried to eat me, so maybe you dislike me again.”

“What do you mean? I would never do that.”

“It’s true! You said Eunji was full of protein and licked your lips!”

“…That version of me must have been crazy. That wasn’t me.”

What kind of person was I in the past to think of eating such a young child? Was I some kind of murderer? I felt the blood drain from my face.

“So, do you remember Eunji?”

“No, I’m sorry. I don’t remember anything right now. I feel like I need to stop those men from fighting if we want to make any progress…”

“Gasp!” Eunji looked at me in surprise, then turned to look outside the cave. “Then Eunji will stop the fight!”

“You?”

“Eunji is stronger.” Eunji reached out and patted my head with his small hand. “Top predator anaconda. That’s what you said, Unnie. Eunji is strong.”

I looked at the boy, not understanding what he meant. Why did he call himself an anaconda when he was human?

And I said that?

“Eunji, does that mean you’re an anaconda?”

“Yep! Eunji is a snake!”

With those words, Eunji suddenly vanished. Or rather, the child disappeared, and a thick-bodied anaconda was slithering across the ground.

“Aaaah!”

Startled, I screamed and jumped around as the snake lifted its head to look at me. Though snakes have no expressions, I somehow felt it was upset, so I stopped and looked at it. The anaconda seemed to be on the verge of tears, appearing so distraught that I hesitantly approached it.

“Y-you… are you Eunji?”

In response, the anaconda thumped its tail on the ground. It seemed to be a sign of affirmation.

Oh my God. It’s not human.

Meanwhile, Eunji’s body swelled even larger. With each expansion, I felt a strange energy draining from me. As I panted for breath and sank to the ground, Eunji slithered out of the cave.

“Hah… E-Eunji… be careful…” I called out weakly, reaching out to him as I sat on the floor.

Boom—!

A tremendous roar echoed through the snowy mountains. For a moment, I couldn’t see Enoch, Kayden, or Eunji at the cave entrance. Only the blizzard, frigid and ominous, filled the still air.

But then—

Roar!

The sharp growl of a beast pierced the silence. I saw a white snake slicing through the blizzard from right to left at incredible speed. I couldn’t see it clearly, but there was definitely a person in the snake’s mouth.

“Oh my God.”

I rushed out of the cave in a panic. I didn’t know why, but my strength kept leaving me, and I eventually collapsed back into the snow.

“Kayden? Eunji?”

Come to think of it, I didn’t even know the black-haired man’s name.

Then I saw a giant pillar—or rather, the massive body of an anaconda—rise high into the sky. It was definitely Eunji. Eunji lowered his head and rushed toward the cave entrance.

Blegh.

He opened his gigantic mouth and spat something out.

I sat in the snow, staring blankly at the two men who rolled to a stop at the cave entrance.

“Unnie, did Eunji do well?”

Seeing Eunji easily subdue those monstrous men, I was speechless. Was this little guy actually the strongest in the world?

What kind of person was I to want to eat such a snake?