(Thank you very much to 'Kaede no Chōrei,' 'Yume no Shouyou,' and 'Lei Xiang' for the rewards!)
Hiding behind several trees, completely invisible, Shokuhou Misaki, Kinuhata Saiai, Frenda, Takitsubo Rikou, and Astrea—the group of five girls—slightly poked their heads out and looked ahead.
What appeared before the girls was an extremely strange sight.
It was a vast woodland surrounded by aged trees.
Unlike the other areas in the mountains, this patch of woodland remained illuminated even in the dead of night. It was not exactly brightly lit, but it was enough that the darkness no longer affected their vision.
Huge Magical Beasts prowled through the woods, patrolling back and forth. Each one radiated a faintly vicious, dangerous aura; at a glance, it was clear that they were at least Eighth Order.
Flying Magical Beasts continually swept through the air, taking in everything below. Between the trees, Magical Beasts with exceptional night vision lay in wait, their sharp eyes flashing crimson or sickly green as they repeatedly swept across the dark corners around them. Their poised vigilance gave one an immediate impression of the words "tight security."
In stark contrast to that heavily guarded scene, not a single Magical Beast in the woods made even the slightest sound. There were no habitual roars, not even a faint noise that was remotely loud.
Under such circumstances, any disturbance in the surroundings would be noticed first by the many Eighth Order Magical Beasts patrolling the woods, scanning the trees, and circling the sky.
At that point, all it would take was one Magical Beast crying out, and every Magical Beast in the entire woodland would rush over, wouldn't they?...
Unfortunately, the Magical Beasts clearly had no way of knowing that even with such vigilant patrols, they still could not prevent intruders from entering.