I'm Stuck on a Remote Island With the Male Leads - Chapter 182

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The note I received from my mother said that Marquis Rohade had left for Alea Island with the Blood Oath document.

The Bilterheims had assigned a man to watch over Marquis Rohade, and thankfully, they’d gotten wind of his movements.

‘I have to quickly share this with Enoch and Kayden.’

Arriving in front of the Magic Tower, I got out of the carriage.

A child passing by offered me a daily newspaper. I didn’t hesitate to buy it from him and open it.

[Margaret Rose Floné has changed?!

Is the love triangle between Lady Floné, the Crown Prince, and the Lord of the Magic Tower true?]

I was surprised to see my name on the front page. Apparently, it wasn’t a newspaper that focused on current events.

I roughly rolled up the newspaper and tucked it into my side, then looked at the Magic Tower. The building soared into the sky and was so huge that I couldn’t take it all in at once.

I lowered my head slightly and saw Enoch standing at the entrance to the tower. It was a simple outfit, different from the uniform he’d worn the night before, but it was quite elegant and suited him very well.

He stood with his arms folded and his back against the wall, his eyes deeply sunken in thought.

I walked over to him with a brisk step and leaned forward to look at Enoch.

“Have you been waiting long?”

Enoch’s golden eyes came into focus.

“No, I was just here.”

There’s something somewhat seductive about his low, gravelly voice that gets me excited in the morning. It was strange to hear my name in that charming voice.

He kissed the back of my hand gently, the skin hot where his lips touched. I stared at Enoch, tensing up. The atmosphere was a little strange today.

Enoch’s gaze was intense as he watched me. I slowly averted my gaze and pointed to the entrance of the tower.

“Shall we go in?”

Without a word, Enoch followed me into the tower.

We stood in the lobby for a moment before he called out to me again, his voice deep and hushed.

“Margaret.”

“Yes?”

“There’s something I want to ask you.”

I looked up at him, wondering. “What do you want to ask?”

Enoch’s serene golden eyes scanned my face, as if trying to dig up everything about me.

“Do you remember everything from the past, everything I did, everything I talked to you about?”

The question weighs heavily on me. I wonder why he’s asking me that out of the blue.

“Ah…… yes. I remember.”

“Do you still think of your past self as separate from who you are now?”

“……”

This is another unexpected question.

But it was also not a new question. It was similar to the question Ruzef asked me on the island. What did I answer at the time?

“The Lady Floné I saw at the Holy See, and you now. Which one is the real you?”

“……that’s a strange question. Both are me. I’ve decided to accept my past self, because if I don’t, I won’t be able to move forward.”

Yes, I had decided to accept my past self.

I had lived twenty-two years as Margaret and twenty-seven years as Lee Jinju, so the Margaret of my past seemed like a distant memory to me.

As if the twenty-seven-year-old me and the twenty-year-old me couldn’t possibly be the same.

And Enoch, who despised me so much, must have been changed by meeting me, Lee Jinju, on the island.

“I was me then. I know I said a lot of hurtful things to Your Highness. I’m sorry.”

Margaret and Lee Jinju are all me. But the old me only did things to make Enoch hate me. So it was no wonder he hated me, but I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of bitterness.

“I guess that’s why I had to live a different life, maybe God punished me, to make me wake up.”

Enoch laughed at my response. “You’re as good at sophistry as ever.”

“What do you mean?”

“You and me. We made mistakes in the past.”

“Yes?”

“I’m saying that you should stop apologizing.”

I asked what he meant, but Enoch didn’t say anything more.

Just then, one of the Magic Tower’s wizards greeted us as we waited in the lobby.

“The Lord has been away for a while. He asked me to escort you two to his office if you’d like to. He’ll be right back.”

I nodded and climbed the stairs to the tower with Enoch.

“Isn’t it uncomfortable? Do you want me to give you a piggyback ride?” Enoch asked, eyeing my dress with concern.

I shook my head and replied cheerfully, “In case you forgot, I used to climb mountains in a dress and flats.”

Enoch smirked at my response. I tried to sound cheerful, but it was still a little hard to walk up the stairs in heels instead of flats.

Damn, did I act cheerful for no reason? Why are there so many stairs? I recalled the height of the building I’d seen from outside and composed myself.

Surely we don’t have to go all the way to the top, right? Why aren’t there elevators or escalators here? Why isn’t there a portal gate? Isn’t this the Magic Tower where the wizards are?!

“Just a moment.”

Then Enoch swept me up in a quick hug.

“Ah!”

“What’s the matter……?!”

Hearing my little scream, the wizard who had been climbing the stairs ahead of us turned and looked at us. His face turned into a ripe apple as our eyes met, and he turned away as if he saw something he shouldn’t have and continued up the stairs. It was a rude gaze, but I couldn’t point it out. Because I was too embarrassed by what was going on.

“Let me down.”

“Do you really want me to?” Enoch asked, carrying me up the stairs with a questioning look on his face.

I smiled along, a little embarrassed, and put my arm around his shoulders.

“If you’ll excuse me, then.”

I tensed with nervousness as my body pressed against his. I wondered if he could hear my heartbeat.

He carried me up the stairs without missing a breath.

It reminded me of the first time I met him on Alea Island. It felt a little weird.

Luckily, we arrived at Kayden’s office quickly.

There was only one door on the floor we arrived at, and the wizard who escorted us in had disappeared on other matters.

The interior of the office had very high ceilings, with books lining the walls to the ceiling. I looked around the room with a bit of wonder.

So this is what a wizard’s office looks like.

“……huh?”

“Why?”

Enoch approached me as I exclaimed, wondering. I pointed to one of the bookshelves.

“There are books here about Jenas,” I said, “and books about the time of the Ingram Dynasty.”

I quickly pulled out a book.

[The Great Wizard, Jenas Igran Rohade]

The Great Wizard?

……yes, he’s a great wizard.

Enoch glanced at me as I flipped through the pages. I stood for a moment, studying the book.

[……Jenas had a very disadvantaged childhood, for he was not born with mana. Most people born into this world are born with even a small amount of mana, but Jenas had none.]

That’s a fact I didn’t know. I was intrigued. I brought the book with me and sat down on the couch to read his life story in earnest.

[A thousand years ago, hatred of people with no mana was widespread. There was a perception that people with no mana were lesser creatures. This wave of disdain reached its peak in the 666th year of the Ingram Dynasty, when large-scale persecutions of people with no mana occurred. People with no mana were hunted down by people with mana.

Even Jenas Igran, who was known as a man with no mana at the time, could not escape their blades.]

I paused, holding my breath.

Persecution and hunting of people with no mana. The horrible words were shocking, but I was most shocked that Jenas had been subjected to such a thing.

By the way, 666 in the year of the Ingram Dynasty seems to be the same date written on the map of Alea Island……

It may not be that the map was created in 666, but simply that year itself had some meaning to Jenas. Maybe it has something to do with the creation of Alea Island.

[Jenas was lucky: he awakened just before he was hunted down by the wizards. He was not born with mana, but it was trapped somewhere in his body, unable to flow.

He had escaped death, but he had already suffered so much that his hatred for those with mana and those with divine powers was unimaginable.]

He hates people with mana and people with divine powers. This is also the first time I know of this. Well, what do I know about Jenas? Until now, I thought Jenas was a wizard of wizards, so this is surprising.

‘No, he was a wizard of House Rohade to be precise.’

In retrospect, I don’t think he ever really showed much pride or affection for wizards.

[In the midst of the persecution of people with no mana, a rebellion erupts in the Kingdom of Ingram. During this time, Jenas led the rebellion, sending the Ingram Dynasty towards its downfall.

He was later honored with the title of Rohade for his contributions to the founding of Langridge, but only as a Marquis. This was due to his history of persecution as a man with no mana.

Jenas thought that all he had to do was topple the Ingram Dynasty and he could create a new world, but in the end, Langridge was no different from Ingram.]

Wow. No wonder Jenas was so pissed off. Of course, that doesn’t change the fact that he’s a total maniac.

“What did you read that gave you that look?” Enoch asked, sitting on the couch across from me, watching me.

I closed the book I was holding and shrugged. “I was just wondering if the reason Jenas created the crazy experimental island was to get revenge on people with mana and divine powers.”

Enoch’s one eyebrow rose at my words. He seemed to mull over my words. “Actually, now that I think about it, what does it matter? Jenas’ plans have been thwarted.”

Just then, the door to the office opened and Kayden appeared, accompanied by the wizard who had given us directions earlier.

“I am sorry to keep you waiting, it took me longer than expected to get here.”

His face looked tired. Then he added, “Do you want to go see it right away?”

I understood at once what he meant. This was the reason Enoch and I came to the Magic Tower.

We followed him up another flight of stairs.

“Where have you been?”

Kayden sighed, his face grim. “The Rohade mansion. Apparently, the seals in the basement have been tightened. I don’t think it’s going to be easy to find the Blood Oath document.”

I nodded at Kayden’s words, as I had expected this.

Further up, there was a room, but the wizard who’d led us there couldn’t enter.

I watched Kayden lock the door and calmly looked around the room. There wasn’t much to look at, really. The Archbishop was tied to a large chair in the center of the room, and around his chair were candles surrounding a magic circle.

It’s a familiar magic circle……

“Yes. It’s the same magic circle that sealed Anata alive.”

At Kayden’s explanation, I suddenly remembered being trapped on a magic circle in the cabin because of Jenas.

My whole body shuddered. My horrific experience on Alea Island came flooding back to me.

The Archbishop in front of me had been a part of it. As I thought about it, I felt a surge of anger.

“Ugh! Eub!”

On the magic circle, the Archbishop struggled, bound to a chair, and gagged.