Chapter 92: The Empty Forest
Nathan entered the forest with Soul Sense at maximum range.
Liaraen walked beside him with the green sword sheathed but her right hand casually resting on the hilt. Her pale green eyes scanned the surroundings with attention.
Nathan maintained a slow pace for the first twenty minutes.
With Soul Sense expanded.
Detecting nothing.
*Nothing.*
Nathan stopped.
He checked again.
Nothing.
No hostile presence within approximately a kilometer and a half. Only small forest animals in the normal register. No signature matching any major creatures.
Nathan looked around.
The forest was quiet.
Approximately too quiet.
The sounds of birds in the upper levels were normal. The breeze moved through the leaves with the fluidity suggesting no major predator was disrupting natural patterns. And the insects buzzed in areas where light reached the ground with the normal activity of an autumn afternoon.
Nathan turned to Liaraen.
"Sprout."
"Yes."
"There’s nothing."
"What?"
"Nothing. Soul Sense is at maximum range. A kilometer-and-a-half radius. No major creatures. No hostile signatures. Nothing."
Liaraen looked at him.
"Nathan."
"Yes."
"The mission specifies twelve to fifteen Greater Nightbrid. Apparently near the trade route. Apparently in this area."
"Correct."
"And apparently there are none."
"Correct."
"Nathan."
"Yes."
"I’m going to share information about Greater Nightbrid."
"Go ahead."
Liaraen removed her hand from the sword. She turned to face him directly. And with a calm voice.
"Greater Nightbrid are particularly rare creatures. Documented in elven catalogs with considerable detail because historically they’ve been difficult to eliminate."
"Understood."
"They have three characteristics that make them special."
"Go ahead."
"One. Mimicry. They can alter their magical signature and visual appearance to resemble other lesser creatures. Especially large birds and small mammals. Apparently that’s why the warning about direct damage magic resistance specifically applies: when in mimicry mode, apparently magic targets the false form and doesn’t reach the real core."
"Understood."
"Two. Total magical camouflage. Apparently they can completely hide their magical signature during prolonged periods. Apparently Soul Sense likely doesn’t detect them during those periods."
"Ah."
"Correct."
"Apparently that explains why I’m not detecting them now."
"Apparently yes."
"Three. Cooperative behavior. Apparently they don’t operate alone. They coordinate in groups that apparently learn patterns from their prey. If they establish a presence in an area, apparently they specifically build their movements around the routines of beings they consider food."
"Understood."
"Nathan."
"Yes."
"They’re considerably more dangerous than the mission superficially suggests."
"So it seems."
"And the fact that you’re not detecting them now could mean several things."
"Which are?"
"One. They’re in total camouflage and are observing us from locations we can’t verify."
"Understood."
"Two. They moved to another area."
"Understood as well."
"Three. Something eliminated them or scared them off before we arrived."
"Understood as well."
Nathan processed that for a few seconds.
"Sprout."
"Yes."
"We’re going to have to plan with all three possibilities in mind."
"Correct."
"We’re going to walk slowly. Calmly. I’ll keep Soul Sense at maximum. If new signatures appear, we’ll try to identify which are real and which are mimicry."
"How?"
"Apparently Greater Nightbrid mimic but probably not perfectly. Soul Sense at maximum range likely detects discrepancies between the apparent signature and the genuine signatures of the same species."
"Understood."
"And if I detect discrepancies, I’ll use Minor Necromancy to create a skeleton barrier around the impostors."
"A skeleton barrier?"
"Yes. I can raise up to three post-mortem bodies simultaneously. If I find enough bones in the forest from dead animals, apparently I can position them to block the Nightbrids’ retreat."
"That’s very creative and it might work."
"I appreciate the assessment."
"Continue."
"After the barrier, you attack with the sword at those who are distracted."
"Alright."
"I’ll keep you in the optimal position with Soul Sense. We’ll coordinate through signals I’ll explain to you along the way."
"Alright."
Liaraen nodded once.
With her posture slightly more relaxed upon seeing that Nathan had apparently developed a reasonable strategy.
Nathan resumed the path.
They continued deeper into Karak Forest.
---
Approximately three hours of travel later, they still hadn’t detected anything.
The forest remained quiet. No signature discrepancies. No signs of recent combat. No remains of eliminated creatures. No fallen feathers or destruction patterns suggesting recent Greater Nightbrid activity.
Just forest.
Nathan stopped the horse for the third time.
"Sprout."
"Yes."
"Something doesn’t add up."
"I also think something’s wrong."
"The mission indicates active infestation. An infestation of twelve to fifteen Greater Nightbrid leaves physical evidence. Prey bones. Specifically hunted areas. Patrol routes. Anything."
"Correct."
"But here I’m not seeing anything."
"It’s as if they vanished."
"Apparently this is wrong."
Nathan checked Soul Sense again.
With more intensity.
And this time he detected something.
Not a major creature.
A settlement.
Approximately a kilometer to the north. With multiple normal human signatures. No hostile signatures. No active magical signatures beyond the basic ones of common bearers.
Nathan turned to Liaraen.
"Sprout."
"Yes."
"There’s a settlement approximately a kilometer north."
"A settlement?"
"Yes. Human likely. Normal signatures."
"Nathan."
"Yes."
"The mission parchment mentioned it was requested by a nearby settlement."
"Correct."
"Maybe that’s the settlement."
"Let’s go there—maybe they know what’s happening."
"Let’s go."
Nathan moved the horse north.
Approximately twenty minutes later, the path opened into a small clearing with wooden houses distributed around a central well. Approximately eight small houses. Approximately twenty visible people. A small smithy with smoke coming from the chimney. A modest chapel with the open-eye symbol.
The settlement was humble but functional.
Nathan stopped the horse at the clearing’s edge.
The settlement’s people noticed their arrival.
One of them—a man of about fifty with hands stained from the smithy—approached.
With an expression combining caution with hope.
"Adventurers?"
Nathan nodded.
"Hunter Nathan Voss. From the Greywall guild. I’ve come in response to the Greater Nightbrid elimination mission."
The man looked at him.
Then at Liaraen.
Then at Nathan again.
"Well, it seems you arrived late."
"Late?"
"Yes. The Greater Nightbrid disappeared."
Nathan dismounted.
He approached the man.
"Disappeared?"
"Yes. Apparently about four days ago. Suddenly. Apparently they were here in the morning; by the afternoon they were gone. And they haven’t returned since."
"Did anything specific happen that day?"
"Nothing—the day started normal. The Nightbrid had been attacking occasionally over the previous five weeks. That morning we heard growling from the deep forest direction. The growling stopped after about twenty minutes. And in the afternoon, when we sent a scout to check, he found no Nightbrid and no Nightbrid bodies either."
Nathan processed that.
Liaraen dismounted as well.
She approached Nathan’s side.
And with a calm voice:
"Sir."
"Yes, ma’am."
"The scout you sent. Did he find any evidence of what might have eliminated the Nightbrid?"
The man thought for a moment.
"Apparently he did—he found an area in the deep forest with specifically burned vegetation. And with marks on the ground suggesting footprints of a large creature, larger than the Nightbrid."
"Larger?"
"Yes—considerably larger. The scout didn’t recognize the footprint signature—it didn’t match any locally documented creature."
Nathan processed that.
*Apparently something larger eliminated the Greater Nightbrid.*
*Something not even locally cataloged.*
*And that’s not here now either. Soul Sense doesn’t detect major signatures.*
*It left after eliminating the Nightbrid.*
*This is specifically strange.*
Nathan nodded to the man.
"I appreciate the information. We’re going to investigate. Could we stay in the settlement tonight while we explore?"
The man nodded.
"Of course—you’re welcome. We have a small empty house you can use. No luxuries. But with a roof and beds."
"Acceptable."
"I’m Harl. The settlement’s blacksmith. You can find me at the smithy if you need anything."
"I appreciate it, Harl."
"If the Nightbrid were eliminated before you arrived, the guild will consider the mission fulfilled due to external circumstances, right?"
"Yes. We’ll verify when we return to Greywall."
"Good."
Harl led them to a small house at the settlement’s edge.
Nathan and Liaraen entered.
---
The house was simple.
Approximately five meters by five. A main room with two beds against the wall. A small kitchen in one corner. A small table with two chairs. A small window with a view of the forest.
Nathan set his things beside one bed.
Liaraen set hers beside the other.
They both sat in the chairs at the table.
And with the calm voice she’d been developing, Liaraen spoke first.
"Nathan."
"Yes."
"This mission is no longer what it was."
"No."
"Apparently something eliminated the Nightbrid before we arrived."
"The question is what—another creature? Maybe an adventurer who got ahead of us?"
"Something the local scout didn’t even recognize."
"Apparently yes as well."
"That’s specifically concerning."
"Yes, also."
Nathan thought for a moment.
Then he spoke with a calm voice.
"Sprout."
"Yes."
"We’re going to stay tonight. We’re going to explore the area where the scout found the burned vegetation. We’re going to see if we can identify what eliminated the Nightbrid. Apparently if something strong enough to eliminate twelve Greater Nightbrid is operating in this area."
"Correct."
"And that’s also information the guild is going to want."
"Also correct."
"Apparently this mission is no longer about eliminating Nightbrid. Apparently it’s about understanding what happened."
"Apparently yes."
Silence.
Nathan looked at the small window with its view of the forest.
The last hours of the afternoon were falling over the treetops. The light filtered in orange tones. The forest remained quiet with the specific calm of an area without active major predators.
And that was considerably more unsettling than the contrary information.
*A specifically quiet forest when there should apparently be an active A-Rank infestation.*
*Something larger passed through here.*
*Something strong enough to eliminate twelve Greater Nightbrid without leaving bodies.*
*Something efficient enough to complete the work in approximately twenty minutes.*
*Something not even locally cataloged that made all the merit and achievement I was going to get from this mission go to hell—now it doesn’t matter, all the trouble I’m going to get into when I arrive.*
*Good.*
Nathan turned to Liaraen.
"Sprout."
"Yes."
"The next few days are going to be specifically interesting."
"Apparently yes."
"We’re going to have to learn to operate as investigators as well as combatants."
"Yes—that’s something I’m good at."
"Acceptable."
"Acceptable."
Silence again.
Then Liaraen added, with a softer voice.
"Nathan."
"Yes."
"I’m going to prepare something for dinner—I brought enough provisions."
"Thanks—I’m starving."
"And after dinner we can review the mission details again to see if there are clues we missed on the first reading."
"Acceptable."
Liaraen stood up.
She began preparing dinner.
And Nathan stayed sitting in the chair, looking out the small window with its view of the forest.
With the feeling that apparently the adventure he’d planned as a demonstration of strength against A-Rank creatures had apparently mutated into something specifically different over the last few hours.
And that apparently the next day was going to include considerable unanswered questions.