The light was swallowed.
The moment they stepped into the forest, the blazing midday sun seemed to have been...
The temperature plummeted inside the forest. A damp, clinging smell of mold filled the air, mingled with the rank odor of wild beasts, forcing its way into their nostrils.
This was Blacktooth Forest, reputedly the largest magical forest in Fertile Plains Province-a paradise for magical beasts, forbidden to humans.
Even Golden Whistle's map offered little information about this place. The locals only dared hunt around its edges.
No one had expected the depths of the forest to be so quiet. Not even an insect chirped. Only the crack of hooves crushing dead branches echoed through the trees, amplified until it set their nerves on edge.
At the head of the column, a shadow slipped silently down from the treetops.
Kale landed on a moss-covered rotting log without stirring a speck of dust. He held his short sword in a reverse grip, his perpetually half-lidded eyes now wide open as he scanned the dark undergrowth around him.
[Too quiet.]
He did not turn around. His mental signal reached Veylin, who followed a little over a hundred meters behind him.
[I haven't seen so much as a squirrel. My lord, something is very wrong. I suspect magical beasts have their eyes on us.]
Veylin reined in his horse and raised his right hand.
Behind him, the column winding like a long snake came to an immediate halt.
[Everyone, stay alert.]
[Sarah, check for vibration signals.]
[Yes, Father.]
Sarah moved close beside Veylin. Her jointed legs stepped across the ground in alternation, steady and swift. At his command, the bony wings on her back began to tremble, and the antennae hanging behind her head probed their surroundings like snakes.
Before long, a flood of