The moment she stepped into the fog, all of Yanaki's senses were assaulted. The sounds of the outside world vanished completely, as if an invisible wall separated them. In its place, the whispers began. They didn't come from a specific direction but seemed to echo from everywhere: from the twisted tree trunks, from the thick fog, from the very ground beneath her feet. The sounds were a chaotic jumble of rustling leaves, wind whistling through branches, and even vague, mournful cries.
"This is the sorrow of the forest," Elara said, her voice low. "It has accumulated for centuries. Those with weak wills will go mad if they stay here too long."
Sylva took the lead, its steps heavy and sure. It was a nature spirit, but it could feel the sickness of this place. It constantly looked around, its wooden buckler always at the ready. Visibility here was extremely limited, just a wall of milky white about five meters ahead. The gnarled, leafless trees looked like misshapen phantoms in the mist.
They followed the footprints left in the soil, feeling their way deeper into the woods. Suddenly, Sylva stopped short, raising its shield.
Yanaki strained her eyes. From a branch directly above, a seemingly ordinary vine was slowly slithering down, silent as a hunting snake.
But Sylva, with the instincts of a Treant, had sensed its malice. The vine lunged, intending to wrap around Sylva, but was blocked by the wooden buckler. It immediately tightened its grip on the shield, trying to crush it.
Yanaki used [Appraisal].
[Vine of Despair]
Level: 4
Description: A carnivorous plant heavily influenced by the forest's sorrow. They often hang from large branches, resembling a suicide's noose, waiting for prey to pass underneath to constrict and drain their life force.
Skills: [Constrict], [Drain Vitality].
Weakness: Fire, Pure Life Energy.
"Hangman's Trees..." Yanaki murmured as she realized most of the large trees around them had similar vines. This forest was one giant trap.
Sylva was straining against the vine's constricting force. Seeing this, other vines on the same tree began to stir.
There was no time to hesitate. Yanaki threw her pouch to the ground, taking out the bone and the jar of Oily Moss. She quickly re-lit the torch. The sickly green flame flared to life, dispelling some of the fog.
She thrust the torch towards the vine wrapped around Sylva's shield.
HISSS!
The vine made a sound like sizzling flesh. It immediately recoiled in pain, releasing Sylva and hastily retreating high up, disappearing into the misty canopy.
The other vines also seemed to fear the flame; they stopped moving.
"It works," Yanaki breathed a sigh of relief. She held the torch high, turning it into an effective repellent.
They continued forward, now with twice the caution. The torch in Yanaki's hand created a small zone of safety, but the whispers seemed to grow more mournful, as if angered by the intrusion of the flame.
They kept following the footprints. The tracks were still very clear, proof that the other person wasn't far ahead. Suddenly, Yanaki saw a Vine of Despair lying coiled on the ground. But it wasn't burned. It had been severed cleanly by a razor-sharp cut.
"A single strike..." Yanaki was amazed. Her own weapon could only injure it slightly, but this person could sever it with ease. This proved that the person possessed an extremely sharp weapon, at least A-rank, or some special skill.
The fog ahead suddenly thinned for a moment.
And Yanaki saw it.
About a hundred meters away, a lone figure stood there. The person wore a dark cloak with a hood that obscured their face. From a tree above, another Vine of Despair lunged down. But before it could even get close, a silver streak flashed. It was so fast the naked eye couldn't follow. The vine was cut in two and fell to the ground.
The figure paused for a moment, as if sensing Yanaki's gaze. They turned their head slightly in her direction. Yanaki couldn't see a face, only felt a cold, sharp gaze, as sharp as their blade.
Then, the figure turned away and quickly melted into the thick fog, vanishing without a trace.
Silence fell. Elara and Sylva both took up defensive stances.
Yanaki stood motionless, her heart racing. Who was that? Their skills and equipment were clearly far beyond that of a normal player on this floor. They were also heading towards the center of the forest. Could their target also be the [Shard of Growth]?
The journey in the Whispering Woods was no longer just a battle against a corrupted nature. It had now become a race against a mysterious and extremely dangerous person up ahead.