After leaving Northridge Farm, Amanenar led Rhode northeast.
First came a gentle slope, then a stretch of low grass and shrubs.
Most of the weeds and shrubs here were grayish black and gave off a rotten stench. Insects drawn to the smell buzzed above the grass, scattering in a rush as the two passed.
Once they crossed the grassland, a forest came into Rhode's view.
The forest looked gray and cold. Thick white mist shrouded it entirely, twisting and dancing around the two of them like tentacles.
As they entered and wound their way through the forest, Rhode found tangled roots and branches everywhere, forcing him to avoid them carefully.
The trees seemed to have been contaminated by something. Most were covered in gnarled knots, their overhead branches twisting together like snakes and insects, blocking out the sky in a chilling sight.
The deeper they ventured into the woods, the darker, more twisted, and more densely packed the trees became. Rhode could no longer even glimpse the sky through the foliage overhead.
The north wind sighed through the woods, shaking droplets from the branches and leaves, soaking Rhode's Mage Robe.
He felt as though his entire body were submerged in icy water. Chills kept brushing his exposed neck, as if someone were constantly blowing on it.
Apart from the sound of dripping water, there was no other movement or noise in the entire forest. The deathly silence only made the place more unsettling.
This Amanenar isn't luring me into the forest to ambush and kill me, is he?
Maybe I gave something away during that deception earlier.
Rhode could not help entertaining the thought.
In this oppressive black forest, it always felt as though monsters were watching maliciously from the darkness, searching his body for somewhere to sink their teeth.