Eden and his father both walked side by side through the Forbidden Forest. He listened to the bright green grass crunch as he walked. He was more focused on the grass rather than in front of him but he relied on his father to watch out for danger.
"Eden." Adam called his son. Eden looked up at his father. "Always look ahead."
Eden lifted his head slowly from the ground and looked straight ahead. All he could see was darkness going on for what seemed to be miles. The closest and furthest thing from him were the trees which seemed to stretch out more than the eye could see.
"Where are we going?" Eden asked his father. His voice was soft but shaky. Adam could easily tell that his son was afraid however he had to stay strong.
"I already told you, Eden. We are going to train."
Eden looked at his father sideways. He was extremely confused.
The forest is a place everyone avoids but we are using it for training?… Eden thought to himself as he followed his father through the trees.
A loud screech could then be heard in the distance.
Adam held Eden back with one hand and had his other hand in front of him almost as if he was going to take on whatever it was without any weapons.
"Eden, on the battlefield you won't always have a weapon." Adam told his son.
Eden stared at his father in confusion however he then realised what his father meant.
Adam whipped his head around every time he heard the screech again. He looked left and right constantly to the point where Eden was questioning whether this man was human or not.
Suddenly, a rustle in the trees caught their attention. Their heads both instantly cocked towards the direction of the rustling.
Adam crouched down and Eden did the same. Adam then slightly touched the ground with his fingertips. He slowly dragged his hands across the ground.
A loud growl could be heard now. Suddenly, something jumped from one of the trees to another tree.
Adam stood up and held his arms out facing the trees. Eden stayed behind his father still crouching down.
The forest went silent again. The cold wind blew causing the brown autumn leaves to fall to the ground. What was green was now a bright brownish-red colour.
Eden turned his head to see behind him and that was when he saw it.
A large red creature which seemed to resemble a bear had jumped out from the trees. Eden could only watch it as his body was frozen in fear. He felt his small, frail body trembling upon seeing the "bear".
The "bear" had six eyes. The eyes could only be described as blood-red with black slits for pupils. The "bear" had blood-red fur and was twice as large as his father.
Adam came in front of Eden and tackled the "bear" to the ground. Adam then leapt back as he held his arm which had three lines on it. The "bear" seems to have slashed his arm with its dagger-like claws.
Adam slowly caressed the blood which was dripping from his arm. Adam then grabbed a twig which was laying on the ground. He then gripped it with all his strength and the slashes from the "bear" seemed to have healed however the blood travelled to the twig and the twig then became a large greatsword around the size of Adam.
Eden stared in awe and confusion. He couldn't believe his eyes. The magic he saw in novels in his previous life was being used in front of him.
Adam spun around and used the momentum to deliver a heavy blow on the "best" however the "bear" held the greatsword. Adam applied more pressure to the greatsword. Soon the "bear" stood no chance and let go of the greatsword. The greatsword split the "bear" into two.
"Eden, you will learn how to fight like that and soon you will surpass me." Adam said.
Eden looked at his father in awe. He admired his father and made it his goal to surpass him so he can take care of the family in the future.
"I will surpass you, father!" Eden exclaimed.
Adam looked at Eden from the corner of his eyes and smiled.
My boy has grown… Adam thought to himself.
"Let's get going." Adam smiled as he spoke.
Eden ran to his father and followed him into the depths of the forest.
* * * * * *
I followed my father as we walked into the forest. Our surroundings have gotten darker. It seems the more we venture into the forest the darker it gets. Perhaps the trees are so tall and stretch out so much that it blocks the sunlight.
I felt a cold breeze brush against my cheek. My body shivered as the temperature decreased.
"It's…so…cold…" I muttered as I held my body tight.
My father didn't seem to be affected by the low temperatures. It was times like this when I questioned my father's humanity.
"Eden, we haven't even gotten anywhere."
I shed a tear as I heard those words leave my father's mouth.
It then hit me. My father must be using some sort of magic to keep himself warm. That has to be the reason my father is inhumanely strong.
"Father, can you use magic to warm me as well?" I asked my father.
My father looked back at me. His eyebrows were creased indicating he was confused.
"What do you mean, Eden? I can't use magic."
Eh?… I stared at my father. I forced a smile on my face before nervously speaking.
"Then how aren't you cold and how did you kill that beast?"
"Raw strength, Eden. That is the most powerful thing in this world." My father chuckled as he spoke. "Soon you'll be like me."
"What about magic?"
I was eager to learn about magic because it wasn't something in my past life and it could probably help me return.
"Ask your mother about that."
"Father, do you still remember that I am only two years old?"
"Yet you have the strength of a regular adult." My father chuckled.
I resisted the urge to ask my father how he became so strong but the conversation wouldn't go anywhere.
I looked around as we walked. I could smell the grass and trees around us although I could barely see them. All I could see were a few long pillars with branches coming out of them.
I could hear the grass as I walked on it. I could hear slight rustling in the distance which I didn't think too much of.
My father suddenly stopped. He had his hand out to indicate that we were stopping. He looked up at the branches of the trees. He slowly moved his head around which was unusual.
I felt a slight uneasiness in my stomach as it started to growl loudly. Although it was clear I was hungry my father's eyes were transfixed on whatever was in the trees.
A bloodcurdling shriek devoured the forest to the point where even my father was covering his ears. I felt my ears become warm. I then found that blood was dripping from my ears.
I stared at the blood on my hands in horror. My eyes widened and cold sweat started to drip from my forehead. My body was shivering but not from the cold but from fear.
I opened my ears and looked around only to find that I was alone. I saw nothing but trees and darkness around me. I whipped my head around to try to find my father but he was nowhere in sight.
"Father!" I called out but there was no response.
My voice became shaky but I couldn't show that I was scared or else whatever was in the trees would kill me.
I've been in this world for only two years and this was the fourth time I truly felt fear.
My eyes searched around me as I grew more and more scared that something would just grab me and pull me into the darkness.
I tried to calm myself down but this felt like nothing I had ever experienced. This was the reason why this forest was avoided by everyone.
I then heard something. I turned my head slowly towards where the sound came from. There I saw a man standing near one of the trees looking up. I walked slowly towards the man and that was the moment I felt my heart stop beating.
The man had his eyeballs out of his socket and blood was dripping from his mouth. His skin was so pale it looked like snow. He looked as if he had no muscle, only bones.
The man then realised I was looking at him. He turned his neck in my direction without moving his body. As he turned his head I could hear cracks as if the bones in his neck were breaking. He then held his arm out and pointed at me.
"…Ich…I…ro…" The man muttered something before he collapsed.
Unfortunately, I couldn't hear what the man had said but I didn't care; All I wanted was to run away from this place.
I turned in the opposite direction and ordered my legs to run but they were frozen in place. I collapsed to the ground but I couldn't let that stop me.
I used my hands to drag my body but the man grabbed my leg from behind.
I shrieked at the top of my lungs as the man grabbed my leg and slowly dragged me to him.
Father…
My legs finally started to move. I kicked the man's head so hard that his head came off. There wasn't any blood. All there was a headless skeleton laying on the ground.
I picked myself up from the ground and started to run. I ran through the forest even though I didn't know where I was going.
I couldn't see where I was going but it grew warmer the more I ran so I continued. I ran as fast as I could even though I felt that my heart was going to burst. I soon tripped over something and fell over.
I hit my head on something hard. I picked up my head however my vision was blurry. I could make out a large rock in front of me and because of that rock, I couldn't see anything else. I couldn't support my head any longer and eventually, my consciousness left me. I woke up shortly afterwards and found myself in the same place.
The forest had gone dark and I was laying down on the grass in a place I didn't know where.
I got up from the grass and brushed my clothes. Fortunately, my clothes were unharmed and remained in their "perfect" condition.
I looked around again to see if there was anything new but unsurprisingly there wasn't. I could barely see because of the darkness and I could just about make out a few trees but other than that I couldn't see anything else.
I put my arms in front of me and guided myself back to the rock until my eyes got used to the darkness.
I sat on the rock staring blankly at whatever was in front of me. I looked up to see if the stars would accompany me but unfortunately, the trees had blocked them from my sight.
I couldn't hear anything nor see anything; All I could do was rely only on my smell, touch and hearing.
After a while, my eyes had gotten used to the darkness and I could make out a few more trees—it wasn't good but it was better than before.
I looked around and called out to my father but again there was no response. I got up from the rock and started to walk around but stayed close to the rock.
I made it a rule in my mind to stay close to the rock and not let it out of my sight but I soon found myself exploring the darkness of the forest. I couldn't see the rock anymore so I continued with my exploration.
Although I couldn't see much I could still guide myself through the forest.
In the distance I found light. From my perspective, it seemed like a dot but it was still light so I walked towards it like a moth.
Slowly and carefully I walked towards the light as it grew larger and larger.