Escape From a Deserted Island With Enemy Female Soldiers

35 – The Second Escape (2)

In war, it’s not bombs, machine guns, sacred laws or magic that kill the most people.

Influenza, trench foot, dysentery, the bubonic plague, tetanus.

For every one person killed in an air raid, ten times that number die from fever and necrosis. Disease is the true enemy soldiers have to fight.

I was no different.

A fever was rising, my body stiffened. Near the place where I’d been hit by the metal barbs on my abdomen and wrist, a searing pain was rising, as if being branded with fire. It was becoming clearer with each passing moment.

In the end, I collapsed again without managing to do anything.

“Mage?”

The Valkyrie, who had placed her hand on my forehead, was startled and called for the Saintess.

“Why is the mage suddenly like this?”

“Just a moment.”

“Surely it’s not tetanus?”

“No, the incubation period is too short for that. And I placed a blessing of antibiotics on the mage yesterday. There’s absolutely no way he could be infected…”

The saintess’s eyes took on a dull, watery hue.

“It’s the mana.”

Mana.

I’d expected as much.

Yesterday, I’d used magic far beyond my limit. It was the first time in my life I’d unleashed that much in such a short time.

“It seems using magic excessively weakened my body’s immunity. That, combined with a bad cold, is what happened. This, seeing the fever, it’ll be pretty rough.”

The saintess started to cook. She brewed tea with herbs.

“Drink this. It’s tea brewed with leaves that have antibiotic properties. There are petals that boost immunity too, so chew on those as well. Drink it and rest well.”

I wasn’t in a position to refuse her care. I nodded.

And so, I rested for an entire week, accomplishing nothing. Of course, I didn’t use magic either.

During that time, the valkyrie took charge of hunting and securing water, while the saintess did the cooking and gathering.

They even effortlessly rotated watch duties, and even considering the noticeably fewer monsters, they managed without a hitch.

A sudden fear crept in.

“You two, you’ll be able to escape just fine without me, at this rate.”

I said jokingly to the saintess, who was tending to me. I thought she’d just laugh it off.

Contrary to expectations, her face stiffened.

“Don’t say things like that.”

“It was a joke.”

“Don’t even joke about it. It drains my energy when I’m taking care of you. I went out of my way to fuss over you, and you can’t even read the mood, tsk. Are you an idiot?”

The Saintess’s pupils deepened to almost violet.

For Lumina, the irises reveal a lot. When they’re terrified, worried about the future, or anxious, their eyes turn violet.

“Look at my eyes. Can you see my sincerity?”

“…Yeah, I guess.”

“To be honest, I haven’t always been happy about being a Lumina. People can read my emotions too easily. But it’s really convenient in moments like these. If I weren’t a Lumina, you’d probably think I wasn’t being sincere, wouldn’t you?”

“….”

“You need to live. You’re making the very compass of my faith waver. What is the true path of an ascetic, what is the difference between a mage and a magician… you’re responsible for showing me.”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t understand a single thing you’re saying.”

“Don’t spout nonsense! It means, drink this!”

The Saintess offered a brew of herbs. There was a slightly sweet taste behind the bitterness. This isn’t bad.

“How’s your body?”

“It’s definitely better than last week.”

The Saintess wasn’t the only one who nursed me.

The Valkyrie had even fed me my meals. It was mortifying as hell, but I was so weak I just took it.

“Come to think of it, Mr. Caston.”

“What is it?”

“Are you alright, with your injuries?”

“Don’t worry, I’m fine.”

The Saintess gave a faint smile. Despite that, her dark circles were pronounced. Now that I look closer, she was dripping with sweat. Her face was flushed too.

“Excuse me.”

I brushed the hair behind the saintess’s ear, then touched her forehead and cheek.

Hot. Her temperature was rising.

This is, like, a furnace.

Her eyes, dyed orange, the saintess shoved my hand away sharply.

“W-what are you doing?!”

“Look. You’re feverish.”

“How dare you touch me in such a defiling way…! This is a sin against heaven! The face of a saintess shall never be touched except by her spouse!”

“You’re about to come down with a bug yourself. Best to rest before you get worse.”

“Hmph, I don’t want to hear that from a sick person.”

And exactly half a day later, the saintess was bedridden.

*

It took about three weeks after that day for us to fully recover from the ghoul fight. Because the situation wasn’t good, the aftereffects, which should’ve stopped within a week at most, dragged on for almost a month.

Anyway, we’re all better now.

“How are your wrist and stomach, are they okay?”

“How about you? Is your injury all healed?”

“……Why are you two talking and leaving me out?”

All three of us were in decent condition.

It was time to begin the real work of escaping the island.

We started by moving our shelter. We moved the lifeboat to a flat spot a little ways from the lake. We made a frame by connecting thick pieces of wood in an A-shape on top of the boat, and then covered it with a dense layer of palm leaves to make a roof.

“Shelter done.”

Next up, food.

Since taking down the ghoul, the island was shifting. Birds had started to sing.

“I swear, I’m gonna puke if I eat another fish. A month of it has me ready to explode.”

“Maybe there’s a way to hunt birds.”

Even water elves wouldn’t eat this much fish. It’s time for some meat, damn it.

“Mage, pay up for patching me up.”

“Yessir.”

I quickly crafted a trap. A classic bird snare made of pumice, a basket, some sticks and a few threads.

But with a little automation added.

I gathered some berries and finished setting it up. Then, after a bit, a bunch of birds chirped and fluttered down to the ground, one by one.

They hopped right under the basket, pecking at the berries. A last supper. As one was about to leave, the pumice started vibrating.

Wooo!

The pumice’s energy tightened the thread. And the stick tied to it naturally fell. The basket tumbled after, trapping the birds.

“Got ’em!”

I immediately built a fire, plucked all the feathers off the birds, and threw them on.

“Sorry, no hard feelings. But I’m starving, what else am I gonna do?”

“Oh merciful goddess, thank you for this daily bread.”

The Valkyrie and the Saintess were praying, so I joined them, clasping my hands.

Damn right, being out in the wild makes you look for a god, whether you want to or not. I hope we make it through tomorrow too.

Tearing into the grilled fresh meat, tears pricked my eyes.

“Wow.”

Delicious.

“How long has it been since we’ve had meat like this?”

“Just smelling fish has been giving me a headache, all we’ve eaten is fish lately.”

“See, people need to eat a balanced diet. You agree, right, Magician?”

After finishing the meal and resting another night, we began our proper ascent of the mountain.

Everything was just as it was. The tree stumps, the altar for the burnt offerings.

Even the people who had turned to bone.

“What do we do? These people. They weren’t even buried properly.”

If it were a dozen or so, we might have been able to make gravestones, but even that was impossible given the time. In haste, we built a stone cairn and offered prayers before starting our search.

First, we recorded the mana information of this area using the Origin Stone. Once a pattern was injected into one Origin Stone, it, true to its nature, influenced the other Origin Stones.

With this, the mana compass is complete.

[‘Captain.’]

It was then that David whispered.

[‘I’m getting a stronger sense of the former battalion commander. I don’t think I’m mistaken.’]

“Is that really true? Where is he?”

[‘That way. No, not there. Yes, in the direction you’re looking now.’]

I moved as if in a trance.

“Magician? Where the hell are you going all of a sudden?!”

“You should at least *say* something before going! Ugh, seriously! Why is he acting like that *again*?”

Mana, unique yet familiar in its form. Following that scent, I’d ended up in a small clearing behind the altar.

All that was visible was an old stack of papers on a stump, some old scrolls and candles, a few alchemy tools, and a couple of artifacts.

The saintess and valkyrie, having rushed to catch up, gasped.

“There was a place like this behind the altar…”

“Come over here. There are tons of ancient documents. All of them are written in Wheon, though?”

“Can you read them, Colonel?”

I could hear the two women whispering behind me, but that wasn’t important right now.

There was something at the corner of the stump.

“A…a stone.”

Perfectly spherical.

A stone with an ideal symmetry, like the moon in the night sky, was talking to me.

[‘It’s been a long time, Captain Ronstein. No, my friend Erich.’]

Looking at its shape, I couldn’t help it.

[‘A mage of your skill level would have noticed who I am just from the mana waves. Yes, it’s Johannes Callon, your superior. I died that day, but I didn’t stay dead. I have so much to tell you…wait, what are you doing! Uoooaah!?’]

I impulsively picked up the stone and rolled it around in my hand.

Not artificially carved. 100% natural.

Smooth!