Chapter 130: Island (II)

As Louis gazed at the setting sun, his thoughts began to wander.

Have I lost my way?

He quickly shook his head.

No way.

Even if he hadn’t used a compass while navigating, there was no chance that his sense of direction could be wrong. Besides, even if he had gotten lost due to misjudging directions, what were the odds of ending up back on this island after several hours of sailing?

“It can’t be… Let’s not jump to conclusions just yet.” With a small sigh, Louis turned to Fin, who was watching him with concern. “Let’s rest here for tonight.”

“All right.”

It was already too late in the day. Louis abandoned any dangerous nighttime travel plans and lay down on the white sandy beach instead.

I’ll find out tomorrow whether all this is just coincidence or something more.

Louis’s group spent another day on the island’s white sandy beach. As dawn approached, they prepared to leave at first light.

“All right.” Louis tied a blue cloth to a nearby tree so he would immediately spot the island if they returned here again.

“Let’s go.”

The Dragon Fly headed west away from the rising sun. A few hours passed when…

“M-my lord?” Fin urgently called out to Louis but received no response; his face was equally grave.

“We’re back…aren’t we?”

“It seems that way…”

“What should we do now?” Fin asked anxiously.

Louis pondered her question briefly. The first two times could be coincidental, so this time he decided to test things differently by introducing a variable.

“One more trip,” he said firmly. “This time, let’s head east.”

Louis turned the handles of the Dragon Fly. It moved in the opposite direction from that morning.

If we return to the island again…

Louis’s face was tense as he piloted the ship. The twins didn’t tease him due to his serious expression; they simply leaned against the sides of the Dragon Fly quietly.

In this manner, they left the island at noon, and six hours passed once more.

As dusk settled in, Louis stopped the Dragon Fly. Floating aimlessly on the sea, he burst out laughing bitterly.

“Oh man… This is…” He stared straight ahead.

Yet another island had appeared before them.

“This is troubling.” Their worst fear had become reality. No matter how far they tried to escape, they always ended up back at these strange islands.

At that moment, Louis realized:

I’m truly stuck this time.

He knew he couldn’t escape fate’s trick so easily this time around.

“Louis… we can’t go home?”

“We have to stay here?”

The twins’ soft question elicited a faint sigh from Louis.

“Sigh… Let’s head for the island first.”

It was the only landmass visible amidst the vast sea. Whether they liked it or not, it seemed they would have to spend some time on the island.

Louis piloted the Dragon Fly once more, arriving at the white sandy beach. He sat down with the twins and Fin before speaking up.

“Listen carefully. We’re facing something extremely serious and dangerous right now.”

“Louis, don’t use big words…”

“I don’t understand what you’re sayingggg.”

”…”

A vein popped on Louis’s forehead.

“We’ve got a problem.”

“Huh? Wha?”

“What is it?”

“We’re trapped. We’ll have to live here for a while.”

“Then, is this our home?”

“You numbskull! It’s not a house—it’s just land!”

“Well then, let’s build one!”

“A wooden house!”

“Louis, can we really build our own home?”

“Huh? Loooyyy?”

The twins’ carefree attitude, devoid of any sense of impending crisis, left Louis utterly deflated.

I’m the fool for even trying to have a serious discussion with these two around…

He waved his hands in exasperation. “Fine… Go ahead and build whatever you want. Just don’t wander off too far.”

“Yes!”

“We won’t go far!”

With Louis’s permission granted, the twins dashed away without looking back.

As he watched them disappear into the nearby forest, Louis couldn’t help but sigh deeply.

His only solace was having someone by his side to confide in.

“What should we do now?” came the question—a perfectly reasonable one given their situation—yet it filled Louis with such relief.

Louis smiled at Fin’s question.

“We need to find a way out of here.”

The best solution Louis could think of was for him to reach top-tier rank and install spatial movement crystals. Since their current predicament stemmed from spatial movement magic, it seemed like an appropriate remedy.

However, there lay the problem…

I don’t know when I’ll ascend to become a space attribute top-tier…

Currently, Louis stood at tier one in terms of his mastery over space attributes. He felt tantalizingly close to breaking through to top-tier but remained just beyond his grasp. It was impossible to predict how long it would take to achieve that milestone.

Of course, since they were stranded on this island anyway, he could simply commit himself to rigorous training until then, but…

“How long can we hold out?” Louis stroked his chin thoughtfully.

For most humans, water and food were essential for survival.

It would be even better if there were clothes to keep warm and protect his body, as well as a house to shelter from wind and rain.

Then what about hatchlings? They had sturdy bodies that never fell prey to common illnesses. Moreover, they didn’t even need the usual caloric intake required for survival. The same went for water consumption. A hatchling could easily survive years in a desert without so much as a single sip of water.

However, even these resilient creatures had one essential requirement:

The elixir.

A dragon heart, a semi-permanent magic power organ, took considerable time to fully develop. Once matured, it possessed the incredible ability to accumulate elemental energy autonomously. Yet, for perfect growth, regular ingestion of the elixir was crucial.

For Louis, who possessed all four innate attributes, these medicinal herbs were nothing short of lifelines. After a moment’s deliberation, he opened his pocket dimension and retrieved a refrigerator filled with such elixirs.

“Let’s start by sorting these out.”

“Yes, sir!”

Louis and Fin set about categorizing the herbs while neatly stacking them beside them. Observing the substantial pile, Louis stroked his chin thoughtfully.

“Well, if we share this much with the twins…”

After roughly estimating the quantity, he reached a conclusion.

“We should be able to comfortably last for 2 to 3 years.”

Thankfully, their previous haul had yielded an abundance of medicinal herbs; otherwise, they might have faced a perilous situation. For Louis, it was truly a stroke of luck.

We’ve been given at least two years’ worth of time…

If they rationed their supply carefully, it might be possible to stretch it even further, but their best bet was to escape this island within that timeframe. Louis and Fin meticulously categorized the elixirs by date accordingly. Since survival depended on these calculations, there could be no mistakes. As a result, they spent fully an hour sorting out the potions.

“Ahhh.” Once finished, Louis stood up after stowing away the medicinal herbs in his pocket dimension. The silence around them startled him.

“Where did those kids go?” The twins had vanished from the forest near the white sandy beach where they’d last heard them playing.

“Oh boy! I told them not to wander off too far!”

The interior of the island’s jungle remained unexplored territory for now.

Concerned for his twin boys, Louis had set out from their home. But not long into his search, he found himself coming to a halt—his sons had appeared before him of their own accord.

Louis barked, “Hey! Didn’t I tell you not to stray too far?”

“Mm-hmm…”

“Sorry…”

The twins’ shoulders slumped instantly, their spirits deflated.

“If you don’t listen one more time, I won’t play with you anymore!”

“Geez…”

“We understand…”

“Oh man…”

Seeing that his anger seemed to have softened them, Louis cautiously took notice as they tugged at his sleeve.

“We’ve got something to show you, Louis.”

“Come here, then.”

“We made a house! A real house!”

The twins grinned widely as if they had never been sad, taking Louis by each hand and pulling him along.

Louis pretended not to resist their tug, although his face clearly showed his disinterest.

What have these two done now?

It didn’t take long for Louis’s expression of annoyance to change completely.

As the twins led him somewhere, one of them excitedly pointed at something and exclaimed:

“Look, Louis!”

“It’s our house!”

Pride radiated from the twins’ faces.

”…?!”

On the other hand, Louis blinked in surprise, momentarily speechless before he managed to ask:

“You… you made this?”

“Yeah!”

“Khan and I did it!”

“No, I did most of it!”

“Nah, I did more!”

As the bickering twins receded into the background, Louis gazed upon the humble dwelling spread out before him. It was no small feat—large enough to house at least twenty grown men. The wooden structure, elevated about a meter off the ground, appeared remarkably sturdy. Its walls were impressively flat, as if crafted from precision-cut lumber rather than rough-hewn logs. The neatness of the workmanship was so exceptional that one might suspect it had been purchased from a timber yard.

Yet, given the numerous tree stumps scattered around, Louis couldn’t help but conclude that the twins had indeed built this remarkable abode themselves.

“Huh…” Louis was amazed.

I told them to do it themselves because I thought they’d go crazy if they tried to help me, but look at this…

He hadn’t expected much when the twins announced their intention to build a house. But this completely shattered his expectations. The finishing of the log cabin didn’t look like something made by beginners at all. Not only that, it had been built by twins! And in just one hour?!

Well, they may not be perfect, but dragons are still dragons, aren’t they?

Louis knew from personal experience how incredibly misleading the dragon buff could be.

This is like asking them to stack blocks and getting back an entire apartment building.

His surprise was fleeting as Louis’s lips began to curl into a smile.

These twins might actually be useful.

Who would’ve thought there’d come a day when he’d find his twin sons helpful? He had always considered them a bother, but this time they proved quite handy. Louis had a feeling their island life was about to get a lot more comfortable.

He ruffled their hair affectionately, meeting their bright eyes with warmth. “Well done! You’ve built something great!”

“Right?”

“Hehe.”

The twins giggled at the praise, their heads still being stroked fondly. Louis smiled back at them.

“You can keep doing this from now on.”

“In the future?”

“Mm-hmm?”

Louis gestured towards the open space that had been cleared for building their new hut.

“Alright, you two, turn this place into your secret hideout.”

Since they’d be living on the island for a while, Louis needed somewhere for them to stay. He decided to let the twins handle it.

“S-secret hideout?”

“Huh?!”

The twins’ eyes widened at the mention of a secret hideout. Soon, their eyes sparkled like stars in the night sky.

“We will! We will!”

“We’ll make that secret hideout ourselves!”

Louis had never seen the twins so enthusiastic since he met them. They sprang into action before Louis could even stop them.

“S-se-c-ret h-hi-de-outtt…”

“S-sseeeccre-tt hii-ddeoo-ouuut…”

They skipped around, humming a tune as Louis watched with a sly grin.

“Heh-heh, how simple-minded they are.”

To children, having their own secret space was nothing short of a dream. How convenient—it made them work willingly on their own accord.

“Fin.”

“Yes!”

“You keep an eye on the twins for me.”

“Got it!”

Having thus resolved his housing issue with the twins’ help, Louis turned away from them.

Should I begin my thorough exploration now?

He stood there for a moment before stretching vigorously. A fire began to smolder in Louis’s eyes.

“Heh-heh.” If fate was trying to trap him here…

“I’ll just have to break free somehow.”

All he had to do was face whatever destiny threw at him head-on like always.

To accomplish that…

I need to investigate this island.

He needed to discover what secrets it held that were keeping him bound to these shores. Besides, since he’d be stuck on the island for some time anyway, a thorough investigation was necessary—to eliminate any potential dangers if nothing else.

“All right then, let’s get started.”

With this small vow, Louis grinned widely.

And so began life on the island for Louis, the twins, and Fin.