Chapter 31: The Dark Forest

There was only the sound of humming on a quiet night. Arisanna boarded a carriage before her brother. She nimbly sat down and rested her head on the carriage windows. The curtains weren't drawn so the moonlight lightly peered into the carriage. Arisanna slowly closed her eyes, letting them rest. She switched her brain off for a moment, concentrating on her rhythmic breathing.

She just wanted sleep.

She heard the carriage doors open, a light breeze found its way in. Hearing a thump opposite her, she readjusted her posture and moved closer to the corner to fully lean her body in.

Not long after, the sleep-inducing 'clacking' sounds of a moving carriage started to play. The sensation of sitting in a moving vehicle was therapeutic.

They both did not speak a word. There were quiet yawns here and there until she finally drifted off into sleep.

–

Arisanna woke up to an empty carriage. She was still positioned inside of it, except everything was pitch-black. The curtains, at some point, were drawn.

She looked opposite of her to find her brother gone, she couldn't feel him.

Arisanna knew well he wasn't kidnapped. For one, if there was any heavy movement in the carriage, she would have woken up by the noise. For another reason, it would be weird if they were to kidnap half a twin and leave the other one untouched.

She quickly reasoned her options and lifted her hands toward the curtain. Tugging at it, she took a peek outside.

The coachman was talking with her father about something. He was jittery and afraid, his thumbs rubbed against each other repeatedly.

Her mother was probably still inside a carriage, letting her father do the work.

Peering around the edges of the window, she couldn't see where Reynold went.

Paying closer attention to the surroundings, she found this wasn't the regular route they usually took. There was no trail ahead, only dark greenery.

It was then she realized they were deep in the Dark Forest.

The Dark Forest existed in between the North and the Capital. As the name suggests, it was home to a couple of demonized beasts, warding people far from the forest. Hence why the path was established and designed with tight security, to ensure those crossing won't have any mishaps.

She contemplated for a moment before stretching her limbs. She sat up and walked out of the carriage, rubbing her eyes to adjust to the bright light.

Yawning, she circled around her carriage where she could hear what the coachman was saying.

"My lord, we would not be able to make it if we go further in. This servant suggests we go back toward the intended path."

"We can leave the carriages here. My son and I can venture off on our own," her father resolutely decided.

"It is dangerous my lord, we should return on schedule as it was originally intended."

"We would be safe. If waiting would delay our return then I suggest you hastily go with the carriages safely protected. You could come back the next morning."

"But my lord-"

"They were able to harm those on the road towards the North. It used to be safe but perhaps not anymore. Since we are already here, we should survey the grounds to make improvements."

Arisanna watched the scene, a hand resting on the side of the carriage.

"Were the beasts able to break our defenses?" a hoarse voice rang out. Surprised, she quickly touched her throat.

'I really need water.'

"Did we startle you, dear?" her father looked back toward her.

"No, I woke up on my own," she shook her head. "Where is Mother?"

"She's inside the carriage."

'As expected.'

"Where is Cecilia?" she asked and scanned around.

"Last I checked, she was with your brother. They are a little further from here. Your brother decided to scout while she tagged along."

'Tagged along?' Arisanna pondered.

"Head back into your carriage, your brother and I will stay to check the surrounding area. It might be a good idea to head out before us."

"Mother and Cecilia should head back. I wish to stay. I want to scout for something."

He gave her a look before nodding. "Call your brother."

She nodded back and looked back toward the forest.

'Reynold, come back.'

Nothing…

'Reynold?'

There was a huff from the other as if he was catching his breath.

Arisanna became warry. 'Are you alright?'

A response came back, 'I'm fine. Give us a few minutes. We encountered a beast.'

—

The carriages all of a sudden stopped.

'That doesn't happen often.'

Reynold opened his eyes into the pitch darkness of the carriage.

His vision adjusted to the darkness and looked toward his sister. She was resting soundly, unmoved.

He reached out toward the curtain but then stopped. Giving his sister another look, he decided to leave the carriage instead.

As he stepped out, he was met with Cecilia. She seemed cautious and confused. Met with his gaze, she spoke.

"Young master, do you have any idea why we stopped?"

"I am also curious as to why. It seemed something must have interrupted. I hear no fighting so it is not something that will cause you worry."

They both walked closer to the front carriage to take a look. Unfamiliar voices sounded.

"It came out over yonder and pounced on our coachman. The knights guarding started to attack and managed to draw it away. Our carriage got tumbled over after I decided to take a look outside. Thankfully, my wife was able to get out before she hurt."

"It is good that you both are not hurt," a deeper voice replied.

They both walked further to see the figure of his father.

"What about the knights? Have they not returned?"

"They have not…"

Reynold caught the eye of the nobleman. The man was only an ordinary Count, perhaps Baron. His wife could be seen behind him, their coachman checking her condition. She seemed paler, it seemed like the shock got to her.

Since he was spotted, it was pointless to stay silent.

"Father, has something happened?"

The older man turned back to gaze at his son and his blonde companion.

"Yes, there seems to be a situation," he briefly smiled. "We stopped because of their fallen carriage on the path."

The two looked at each other for a moment before Reynold nodded.

"Should we bring the carriage with us?"

He knew they needed to investigate.

"There might be injured soldiers we would need to carry back. We won't travel far with, only station it close enough for easier access."

"Then I'll go ahead and scout."

"I would like to come with you," a smaller voice was heard.

A pair of green eyes looked at him.

"It may prove to be dangerous."

"I can defend myself, I won't drag us into trouble," she firmly assured.

Before he knew it, they both decided to head toward the forest, with Reynold leading.

—

They paced further into the forest.

There was a trail of prints left behind, part of the ground was a bit lopsided.

Cecilia wasn't tired as they went in further. She took off her heels before leaving, thanking herself for bringing a pair of flat shoes with her.

There was a reason she wanted to accompany him into the forest.

'It should be nearby…'

No matter, she continued to jog onward while paying close attention to her surroundings. She knew it was dangerous, many things could pounce at her out of nowhere.

However, she came prepared. There was a small dagger hidden inside her dress pocket, still inside its sheath. She grasped it as she ran, making sure it didn't fall out of her pocket.

Although she had no practical knowledge of using the dagger, this particular one was more special. It was a gift from Sir Bently, as an acknowledgment of their cooperation.

The dagger itself had runes drawn on them, indicating that it possessed an amount of mana. With one slash, she could inject the mana into the beast and it would cause enough damage for her to escape.

This was also one of the reasons she wanted to tag along. If she were to encounter a beast, she wanted to test out its effectiveness.

If she succeeded, that would mean she would be more than capable of defending herself in the future. If it didn't, she knew the young master of the Blanchette family couldn't afford to get her killed.

'Regardless, this was for the experience…'

As they continued to dash through the dark forest, with Reynold lighting up a path with an item, they saw a faint figure in the distance.

The light was turned off and a hand pushed her behind one of the trees.

She could faintly see Reynold making a shushing gesture.

The figure looked again through the ongoing darkness and turned their back towards them. They stood there a bit, as if confirming something, before dashing off into the distance.

Reynold went out of hiding and guided her to follow the hidden figure.

It was only a few minutes into the distance that they lost them.

"Are you alright?" she heard him whisper.

"I'm fine… Thank you."

He nodded, and let out another whisper, "Do you have an idea who that was?"

She shook her head, "No… but I may have a guess on who they are."

Seeing how she wasn't going to elaborate, he let her off.

A shout came from the distance, "Fall back! Fall back!"

Screaming could be heard, the echoes ran through the forest.