Camp had been set up outside of the outpost walls but not within the treeline of the forest, allowing the people who had marched all this way to finally get some comfortable rest and eat up.

The forest loomed ahead of them like a dark ocean, the trees rising tall enough to blot out the last of the sun. Morena made sure that everyone got enough food and rest, because she knew that entering the forest meant they might be moving constantly.

Morena sat astride her horse, her eyes fixed on the treeline. The sound of insects hummed faintly, mixed with the other sounds of the forest, yet the dim dusk light made the place feel eerie.

With dusk slowly approaching them, they had the last of the supplies loaded back safely into the carriages.

"Move in."

The soldiers obeyed without a word.

The wagons creaked as they rolled forward, the torches lighting the narrow path through the trees, and the forest swallowed them almost immediately. The light of the dim sky vanished behind the canopy, and the air grew heavy with the scent of moss and forestry.

The oddness of the forest, mixed with the rumors that had spread throughout the camp about bandits and odd lights, had the people on edge; they looked at every corner like it was hiding a threat. Even the horses grew uneasy, snorting and shifting with every shadow that crossed their path.

For a while, they traveled in silence, everyone keeping their senses peeled so that they wouldn't be ambushed. Of course, Morena knew that the likelihood of being ambushed so close to the edge was very low.

She wasn't too bothered with the forest; with the help of the AI, she could constantly scan her surroundings and react accordingly if anything stood out; the real issue came when they got deeper in.

'AI, scan for any abnormalities around, also notify me if there's anything of value.'

[Understood]

Only the faint sound of boots against the earth and the rustle of leaves filled the air. Aside from the worry that the soldiers felt, Morena herself felt a hint of unease; it wasn't the kind that came from fear, but from the unknown.

Something inside of her seemed to be expecting something to happen, but she didn't know what.

"Keep the lights low. We don't know what animals might be crawling through these woods."

She ordered in a low voice.

Adolf nodded and gave the signal; a few torches were extinguished, leaving only the faint glow of lanterns by the carriages that gave them just enough sight to follow the path.

The shadows deepened around them, the forest swallowing their presence almost completely.

The deeper they went, the colder it became due to the moisture in the air.

The air clung to their skin like mist to the point that even their breathing gave off a faint coldness when exhaled; an odd thing to see in the region they stayed during this time of year.

As they were moving, a sound in the distance alerted them; like the cracking of a branch, however, it wasn't them who did it.

Everyone stopped almost instantly.

Weapons were drawn by soldiers who were more on edge than others. Morena raised her hand to halt the people, stopping them from taking any action and bringing danger to them all.

For a few seconds, she observed the location of the sound, just beyond the trees ahead, near a patch of bushes; yet there was nothing that followed.

"False alarm?"

One of the soldiers whispered.

"Maybe."

Adolf replied, but his words were directed towards Morena.

Morena herself was also unsure if it was merely the forest settling or something else; even the AI hadn't prompted her that it had detected anything within range.

However, that could be merely because it was limited to using her senses.

"Keep your eyes open anyway."

She said as she lowered her hand and they resumed walking.

But the longer they moved, the more the forest began to change. The ground sloped downward slightly, roots curling over the path like veins. The trees grew thicker, twisting in various directions, and some even had strange markings carved into their bark.

Markings, almost like the claw markings of a creature; yet they hadn't seen any prints along the way.

Morena slowed her horse, narrowing her eyes as she examined one of the markings when they passed. They were large, too large to be from a small creature. It looked almost like the marks of a lion, or a large animal like that.

However, it didn't make sense for a lion to be in the forest; she had never heard of any sightings of one. The forest, while large, was often only home to smaller animals because of overhunting.

Large animals wouldn't survive long.

Could it be that some animal had escaped hunters long enough to grow up? It could be troublesome if it came across them.

However, as she was lost in thought about the chances of it being an animal, the AI's voice echoed faintly in her mind, giving her a much larger surprise.

[Energy density increase detected. Residual mana detected in the surrounding area.]

'Mana? Here?'

That was strange. Morena didn't understand mana very much, but she knew elemental energy, and elemental energy wasn't something that just gathered in places and lingered.

At least not without a reason.

If mana were similar, then what could be the reason here? The forest did connect the Kingdom to the Empire; could something have entered the forest from the Empire's side?

The soldiers didn't seem to notice, but she could feel it now, a faint vibration beneath her skin, a tension in the air that made her energy stir restlessly within her.

The group pressed forward until the darkness became too thick to see clearly, and moving would be dangerous; it left them with no choice but to stop for the night and set up camp.

They set up camp in a small clearing surrounded by trees. The fires were kept low, just enough to keep the cold away. The soldiers spoke quietly among themselves, eating their rations while keeping their weapons close.

Adolf walked over and knelt beside her, where she sat by the fire, staring into the flames.

"My Lady, we'll keep rotating patrols through the night. I doubt anyone will sleep much here anyway."

"Good. Tell them not to wander far from the light. If something happens, we regroup immediately."

"Understood."

He left to give the orders, leaving her alone by the fire.

For a long while, she simply listened to the forest, the soft creak of wood, the distant hoot of an owl, the quiet hum of mana that she could feel within her skin, yet couldn't explain.

It wasn't natural.

Her instincts told her this forest was odd, or perhaps something in it was making it odd, in a way most weren't.

Hours passed, and the camp grew quiet as soldiers began to doze off, though a few still patrolled along the edges, and some just couldn't sleep given the situation they were in.

Morena remained awake, her eyes half-lidded as she stared at the faint light of the embers. The sound of leaves rustling made her glance up ever so often, yet each time was merely a faint.

That was until she eventually saw it, or perhaps it allowed her to see it.

A flicker of light between the trees.

At first, she thought it was a torch, but it was too white, too pure. It moved like a floating orb, weaving between the trunks and then vanishing, only to reappear further away.

Another light joined it, then another.

Before long, there were several, drifting silently in the dark, pulsing faintly like stars in the distance.

She rose quietly, her hand tightening on her spear.

"Adolf."

She called softly.

He was beside her within seconds, his expression shifting when he saw them too.

"What in the gods' name is that?"

"I don't know."

They watched in silence as the lights drifted closer. They weren't fast, but steady, moving almost in a pattern. The air grew colder as they approached.

Then one of the soldiers at the edge of the camp called out.

"Something's moving out there!"

Before anyone could respond, a scream echoed from the dark, sharp, short, and then cut off.

The camp burst into motion.

Soldiers grabbed weapons, forming a defensive circle. The lights suddenly shifted, breaking apart like ripples in water before vanishing completely.

Only silence remained, then came the sound of footsteps.

They were slow and heavy, coming from the direction of the trees where the soldier had been standing.

Adolf stepped forward, sword drawn.

"Who goes there?"

No answer.

The footsteps grew louder, and then from the shadows, something stepped into the edge of the firelight.

It looked like a man, or at least, it used to. Its skin was pale, stretched tight, and its eyes glowed faintly blue, like the lights they had just seen. It moved awkwardly, jerking slightly as though pulled by invisible strings.

The soldiers froze.

"What in the hells..."

One muttered.

The thing opened its mouth, and a dry, broken sound escaped; it wasn't a sound, more like a roar from its very guts.

Then it lunged.

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