The group moved carefully through the dense forest, each step measured, each breath controlled. The eerie sensation of being watched never left them, clinging to their backs like a phantom. It had been there since morning, a silent observer lurking beyond their sight.

  Rain's fingers twitched near the hilt of his newly acquired sword. He kept gncing at the treetops, half-expecting something to lunge from the shadows. The others felt it too—Diego’s stance remained guarded, Emily’s eyes darted from side to side, and the rest of the group kept their weapons within reach.

  The deeper they went, the more the feeling intensified. It was suffocating, like invisible hands wrapping around their throats.

  Rain exhaled sharply. It’s them again.

  The Harrowstalkers.

  They pressed forward, their footsteps tense and deliberate—until a bloodcurdling scream tore through the forest ahead.

  "Run!"

  The desperate cry was followed by the unmistakable csh of metal against something solid—wood, thick and unyielding. The echoes of battle carried through the trees, sending a chilling realization through the group.

  Someone was fighting for their life.

  Diego didn’t waste a second. With swift, decisive steps, he sprinted toward the source of the scream, his grip tightening around his sword.

  Emily and Rain exchanged quick gnces, hesitation fshing in their eyes. Charging into an unknown battle was reckless—but leaving whoever was ahead to their fate wasn’t an option either.

  With a shared unspoken decision, they bolted after Diego, the rest of the group scrambling to keep up.

  As Rain and the others neared the bush obscuring the source of the scream, a man suddenly tumbled out. He was an older gentleman, a rge bag slung over his back, his face twisted with fear and exhaustion.

  Rain immediately recognized him—the same man he had spoken to before the expedition began.

  "Help him up!" someone called out.

  But Rain had no time for that. The sounds of battle raged just beyond the bush, and he knew Diego was in the thick of it. Without hesitation, he pushed forward, leaping through the brush.

  On the other side, chaos awaited. A Harrowstalker was barely a few feet away, its wooden limbs twitching in surprise at Rain’s sudden arrival. He didn’t give it a chance to react—his sword fshed, slicing clean through its neck. The creature staggered, trying to drag him down with its colpsing body, but in seconds, it crumbled into a pile of lifeless wood.

  Rain’s eyes snapped forward. Diego and another man were locked in a desperate fight against four more Harrowstalkers.

  He moved to help—but the moment he took a step, something shed out from the side. He barely turned in time before a sharp, skewer-like limb from a Harrowstalker’s back punched through his shoulder. A sharp, burning pain shot through him as he gritted his teeth.

  The beast wasn’t done. Its cwed hands shot up, ready to carve him open with a swipe faster than any Forsakened he’d ever encountered. Rain barely managed to block, his arms shaking from the force. The Harrowstalker reared back, ready to strike again—

  A fire bolt suddenly smmed into its side, bsting it apart into burning splinters.

  Rain staggered back, gasping, and turned to see Emily lowering her hand, her expression nervous.

  Rain's eyes snapped forward again, instincts taking over. Without hesitation, he lunged, driving his bde into the exposed side of a Harrowstalker that was locked in combat with Diego and the other man.

  The creature let out a strangled, wooden screech as it twisted toward him, but Rain yanked his sword free and kicked it away before it could retaliate. The beast stumbled, limbs twitching, before colpsing into a pile of lifeless wood.

  Diego barely spared him a gnce, too focused on fending off the remaining Harrowstalkers. "Good timing! But we're not done yet!"

  Rain tightened his grip on his sword, his shoulder still throbbing from the earlier wound. He took a deep breath and readied himself. "Yeah, I figured."

  Emily took down another Harrowstalker with a precise firebolt, the creature barely letting out a sound before it was reduced to charred splinters. Diego, moving with practiced efficiency, cut down the remaining two, their wooden forms colpsing at his feet.

  For a brief moment, silence settled over them. Rain exhaled, his body aching, but that ever-present unease still cwed at the back of his mind.

  Then, the feeling of being watched returned—stronger than before.

  Before anyone could speak, the trees behind them rustled violently. More Harrowstalkers leaped from the branches, their limbs stretching unnaturally as they nded in perfect formation, surrounding the group. Their glowing eyes locked onto their prey, their bodies tensed to strike.

  Rain swallowed hard, tightening his grip on his sword. "You’ve got to be kidding me."

  Bond didn’t even have time to scream. One of the Harrowstalkers moved like a blur, its elongated limb stabbing clean through his chest, piercing his heart in an instant. His body jerked, his mouth opening in shock, but no words came out—only a choked gasp as his life was snuffed out.

  Rain’s breath hitched. Just like that, one of them was dead.

  “Damn it!” Diego cursed, stepping back into a defensive stance.

  Emily’s eyes widened, her hands already glowing with the beginnings of another fire bolt.

  But the Harrowstalkers weren’t waiting. The moment Bond’s body hit the ground, the rest lunged forward.

  The fnk barely held on, their weapons cshing desperately against the Harrowstalkers’ relentless assault. Without Diego or Emily to support them, those few seconds felt like an eternity.

  One man swung his sword wildly, only for a Harrowstalker to duck under the strike and drive its cwed hand into his stomach. Another fighter tried to block an incoming attack, but the creature’s skewer-like limb pierced straight through his weapon and into his shoulder, pinning him in pce.

  Rain clenched his jaw. If they didn’t move fast, they’d be torn apart.

  As Rain stepped forward, Diego shot past him like a blur, moving faster than Rain could even react.

  In one swift motion, Diego cleaved through a Harrowstalker, its wooden body colpsing before it could react. At the same time, the man he had protected earlier hurled his sword, the bde piercing straight through another Harrowstalker’s side, stopping it in its tracks.

  Rain saw the opening. Without wasting a second, he lunged forward, ready to finish the job.

  The remaining Harrowstalkers lunged at Rain, their skewer-like limbs poised to strike—but before they could reach him, a surge of fmes erupted between them.

  Emily’s fire bolt exploded against the ground, forcing the creatures to recoil. The intense heat and sudden burst of light halted their charge, giving Rain just enough time to regain his footing.

  Diego burst through the wall of fmes Emily had created, his bde a blur as he cut down the Harrowstalkers in a single, fluid motion. The creatures barely had time to react before they colpsed into lifeless piles of wood.

  Just as more Harrowstalkers lunged toward Diego, one was abruptly stopped mid-leap—a spear pierced through its chest, pinning it against a tree.

  Rain's eyes snapped to the source.

  It was Grayson. His face filled with anger.

  As the others rallied, they fought with renewed determination, cutting down the remaining Harrowstalkers one by one. Bdes cshed against hardened wood, fire scorched through the air, and the sounds of battle filled the forest.

  Rain, gripping his sword tightly, struck down another as it tried to lunge at him. Emily unched another bst of fire, forcing the st few creatures back before Diego swiftly finished them off.

  Finally, the forest fell silent.

  Everyone took a breath, their bodies aching from the relentless fight. A heavy silence settled over the group as they turned their gazes to the fallen. Their expressions were grim, exhaustion mixing with the weight of loss.

  Some clenched their fists, others looked away, unwilling to face the reality of their dwindling numbers. The battle was over, but the price had been steep.

  They had lost more members than they had gained.

  The realization weighed on them like a boulder. Every new face that joined their ranks was overshadowed by the ones who would never stand again. The dead outnumbered the saved, and the forest showed no signs of mercy.

  At least now, that uneasy feeling of being watched had vanished.

  For the first time in what felt like hours, the oppressive tension eased. No more piercing stares from the darkness, no more rustling that wasn’t their own. But the relief was bittersweet—won at the cost of those who would never leave this accursed forest.

  The man they had saved, along with the elderly man carrying the rge bag, stepped forward and bowed their heads in gratitude.

  "Thank you," the younger man said, his voice filled with exhaustion and relief. "If not for you, we would’ve been done for."

  The elderly man, still catching his breath, gave a tired nod. "You have my deepest gratitude. I only wish I could repay you properly."

  Their words were sincere, but the weight of their losses still hung over the group like a shadow.

  "No worries, it's only right to save another, after all. Plus, we need to stick together," Diego said calmly, his voice steady despite the exhaustion in his eyes.

  He wasn’t just reassuring the two men—they all needed to hear it. The group had suffered losses, and the weight of it was pressing down on everyone. But Diego’s words, spoken with quiet conviction, were enough to push back the creeping despair, even if just for a moment.

  The elderly man hurriedly opened his bag, his hands trembling with urgency. "Oh, I know! We've had more food and water than we could use for the past few days. We've been trying to save it."

  His voice carried a mix of relief and desperation, as if holding onto those supplies had been both a blessing and a curse. Now, with more people to share the burden, it seemed like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

  Rain gently pced a hand on the man's arm, stopping him. With a slight smile, he said, "Let's get to a safer area first, shall we?"

  There was no telling if more Harrowstalkers—or something worse—were lurking nearby. It wasn’t the time to lower their guard just yet.

  The group pressed on, their steps weary but determined. Though fatigue weighed on them, they had no choice but to keep moving forward.