114 Old Whispering Woods (1/2)

The group marched towards the forest. They had again formed a formation where Clara, together with Venessa, were placed in the middlemost position.

Surrounding them were a bunch of Silver Knight guards, all rank-5 with the exception of two who were rank-6 mages. Sir Hanry always stayed at such a distance from Clara, where he would be able to act instantly if something were to happen.

Then mercenaries were placed at the front of the group. Leading them was Clive together with Barry, who was also a rank-7 mage.

While most mercenaries were placed at the front, roughly a quarter took the convoy's back.

An eerie silence ensued in the surroundings as they approached the other forest in front of them, and only the sound of twigs and dry leaves cracking under their feet was heard.

The silence was getting on their nerves, but no one dared to make any sound.

Clive was in the lead. Despite when he himself had also not entered this forest before, he was relatively a lot calmer than the mercenaries only because he knew that they had hidden support.

He swept his gaze in the surroundings. Not being able to sense the hidden group either, he lifted the giant tree vine to create a path inside the Old Whispering Woods.

As he got inside, the entire convoy followed behind him. The people who followed behind were creeping out again when others seemed to disappear in the darkness.

However, they were mercenaries and not some pampered kids. They had dealt with many life-threatening situations, so they just readied themselves and took the steps forward.

Raven and Blaze were the last in the group, together with Ozul. Clive had no problem with this since he knew Ozul was capable enough, and they needed somebody strong at the back of the group too.

After entering the woods, everybody started to disappear. Clara looked back when it was her turn to see if Ozul was following behind or not. She then entered inside while holding Venessa's hands.

When everyone had disappeared, it was the trio's turn. Raven and Blaze both turned to look at Ozul, who nodded his head in confirmation.

”There is nothing to worry about... for now,” Ozul assured them before the trio also stepped inside the jungle.

The thick branches that covered the trees and the ground were a hindrance. They pushed aside the bushes and moved forward.

As they moved further in the darkness, they had to deal with a lot of bushes and vines, all tangled together, creating a confusing mess. Raven even had to summon her blades to create a path even when the others had gone through here just a moment ago.

Despite that, making their path wasn't difficult for them, as no matter how thick they were, in the end they were just plants. The further they proceeded, the darker it turned.

The sudden light subconsciously caused the trio to close their eyes. When they opened their eyes, a whole new scene awaited them.

The group of men that had entered before them were also there, looking at the surroundings in awe.

When they looked around them, all they saw were lush dark green plants covering the forest floor. As if decorated, thick vines entangled with the branches drooped from every tree with a variety of flowers blooming everywhere.

The forest was modest, dark, and looked archaic. It was as if no human had ever reached these parts of nature, and it preserved its beauty for ages.

The towering trees eclipsed its canopy with their crown decorated with leaves and only allowed enough sunlight for the plants to grow under them.

A variety of beastly noises, predominantly those of bird songs, added life to the forest but were out of sync with the sounds of fights over dominance between other beasts.

”Beautiful,” muttered Raven as she took a deep breath to feel the surrounding nature.