The nameless forest.
In this underdeveloped area far from the center of civilization, such unnamed regions are everywhere. Although all land has a lord, not all land can be cultivated.
The kingdom lacks the manpower and resources to develop the border areas near the ruins of Gondor. Additionally, because the elves helped humans build the magnificent wall that encircles the entire Gondor wasteland, using the Watchtower as a node, the current nations do not need to station excessive forces at the borders to deal with the occasional monsters wandering out of the wasteland. Thus, the borders have fallen into a vicious cycle of continuous decline.
There is not only one route from the Cecil territory to the northern town of Tansan. However, crossing the forest to reach the main road is the shortest option.
If one were to choose another route, they would either have to go around the entire area or pass through even more dangerous uncharted lands, neither of which would be wise choices.
The deeper they went into the forest, the darker the light became, and the thick layer of decaying leaves on the ground became increasingly troublesome.
While this cannot be called a great forest yet, a place that has been left untouched by humans and has grown wildly certainly broadened Highwen's horizons. In his previous life, he lived in a man-made jungle of steel and concrete, and after crossing over, he had only been able to observe this world from a distant perspective for many years.
It was at this moment, stepping into it himself, that he realized his imagination of the natural environment had been too superficial.
Fortunately, he was gradually getting used to this body. The powerful physical abilities and overall qualities that this body possessed made it relatively easier for him to face the challenges of wilderness survival. Beside him, Sir Byron and Amber also had ample experience traversing mountains and forests, making the journey not too bad.
Only Hedy would suffer a bit. Even though the Cecil family had fallen, it was still an ancient noble house directly loyal to the king, and Hedy, born into it, was a true noblewoman. In noble circles, she could be considered experienced and toughened by trials. But against the challenges of nature, she indeed needed some training.
Moreover, a mage's physical strength could only be so strong.
Rebecca's performance was somewhat surprising to Highwen: this girl, who looked like a high school student from Earth, kept up without falling behind in the pathless forest, even matching the stamina of the tall soldiers. Curious, Highwen asked her, and Rebecca answered a bit shyly: "I was quite wild as a child, always running around like a boy and even exploring the woods in the territory.
At that time, I hadn't shown any magical talent, and my father thought I could be trained as a knight... which turned out to be a disappointment for him.
But even though I couldn't pursue the knight's path, I still pay attention to my training. After all, the family teachings say that to become a lord who can protect the people, one first needs a strong body..."
Gawain nodded silently. This N+1 great-granddaughter, while sometimes appearing as if her head had been caught in a door, was still quite earnest and straightforward.
This was rare in noble circles.
The other Nth great-granddaughter, who was already gasping for breath, might as well learn from her.
"There might be some magical beasts deeper in this forest, but they shouldn't be very strong..."
Sir Byron raised his sword and poked a dark, murky clump from the ground. The mass gradually turned transparent at the tip of his sword and slowly dissipated into the air. "The shadow elements are rich here; there should be a natural magical focal point in the center of the forest, but it should be quite weak."
"It's definitely weak..." Amber twirled a delicate dagger in her hand, surveying the surroundings. "If there were a high-quality magical focal point, this forest would have long been claimed by the Arcane Society or the Astrologers' Guild as their territory.
And looking at the surrounding plants... there's no noticeable mutation, indicating that the elemental richness doesn't even affect the flowers and grasses here."
Gawain looked at the two wilderness survival experts with some surprise: "You seem to know quite a bit?"
Rebecca glanced at Byron. "Before swearing loyalty to my father, Uncle Byron was once a mercenary."
Byron seemed not too accustomed to discussing his past: "It's all in the past, Miss."
Amber's small dagger spun increasingly joyfully: "Tch, with that weary expression, who doesn't have a past?"
Though Amber had a face full of "My past is impressive, so come ask me about it!" expression, Highwen had no intention of cooperating with her performance.
In just this short day and a half of interaction, he had learned enough about her character; her rich outdoor knowledge was probably cultivated from being chased around the town by the patrol guards, forcing her to hone her wilderness survival skills.
But if you asked her, she would certainly concoct a thrilling and grand story, perhaps claiming to have traveled the entire continent and laughed with the elven king...
As they spoke, they had already walked deeper into the forest, and the trees grew thicker around them, with the sunlight filtering through the canopy becoming sparser.
Gawain raised his head; among the shadowy branches, that giant sun was broken into fragmented light points, as if a massive plate was upside down in the sky. The sunlight pouring down seemed to grow even colder.
The weakest among them, Betty, couldn't help but sneeze. She felt her hands getting cold, nearly dropping the frying pan to the ground.
Amber halted her dagger's spinning; suddenly, she crouched low, a wary glint flashing in her light-colored eyes.
She looked at Highwen, speaking as she exhaled a breath of white vapor: "Don't you think... the temperature is a bit too low right now?"
Hedy suddenly sharpened her gaze, the fatigue from the journey suppressed. She raised her staff and slammed it forcefully on the ground, swiftly reciting a complex incantation: Detect Distortion.
This was a general magic that any second-level mage could learn, up to the ninth-level archmage, with corresponding spell models. This spell had no offensive capabilities; its function was to detect hidden energy phenomena within a certain range, such as hidden magical traps or invisible energy fields.
When fully cast, Detect Distortion could detect energy traces up to one level higher than the caster, and Hedy was a third-level mage.
From a professional standpoint, this third-level mage (the pinnacle of low-tier) was weaker than Byron, who had entered the intermediate tier (though still at the beginner stage). However, in terms of the utility and versatility of magic, her spells could prove more beneficial than brute strength.
As the effects of Detect Distortion took hold, Highwen noticed fog rising around them.
No, it wasn't fog; it was the ethereal energy that had been hidden before, now dense enough to significantly impact the material realm.
They gathered from all directions, constantly enriching and strengthening. At this moment, the density had risen to the point that it was nearly impossible to see the trees a few dozen meters away. And within the rolling pale mist, vague shadows flickered past.
Betty's eyes widened in terror, about to scream, but Highwen quickly covered her mouth: "Shh, don't make a sound. It will disturb the things in the fog."
The young girl's eyes were wide open, nearly brimming with tears, as she clutched her beloved frying pan tightly, trying hard to nod.
Gawain couldn't help but shake his head: she hadn't cried during the dragon's arrival, yet now she was terrified to this extent. It really showed that everyone has different weaknesses.
"These things, what are they?" Rebecca was also somewhat frightened, clutching her staff tightly; sparks were already flickering at the tip of the staff. "When did we... get surrounded by these things?"
"Spirit Mist, the curse of the undead..." Hedy bit her lip. "How could there be such things here?"
The Spirit Mist. Gawain had found corresponding knowledge in his memory; it is a product that can occur both naturally and be artificially created. The naturally occurring type is relatively common: where shadow energy converges and where undead wander, there is a very low probability for Spirit Mist to appear. It is part of the shadow environment but becomes highly destructive due to the influence of the undead aura.
However, this mist remains invisible once it appears. It forms and grows in the spirit realm, while in the material world, people cannot see any trace of it. Unless the victim has already stepped deep into the mist, it will gradually kill the unwitting trespasser. This process occurs through low temperatures and illusions of fear that invade their minds. For an ordinary person who accidentally enters, many times they won't understand what is happening until they die, as they see nothing until their last moments. The mist will only manifest at the moment their souls plunge into the shadow realm, occupying all of their dying memories.
It is also possible to artificially create Spirit Mist, but the conditions are exceedingly stringent, and the requirements for the caster are high. Moreover, its effects are not as effective as most spells of the same level, so dark necromancers rarely waste time on it.
Gawain had already drawn his Pioneer's Sword but did not launch an attack: the Spirit Mist is peculiar. Although any intruder would suffer damage once they enter its range, it does not actively attack at first; the damage is merely an inherent attribute of its "negative environment." Only when the "things" within the mist are disturbed does it become ferocious.
Gawain was unsure if the mist had already been disturbed. Thus, he refrained from ordering an attack, cautiously searching for a weakness in the mist while preparing to make a break for it.
However, as he was doing this, a light, ethereal laugh suddenly drifted from a direction deep within the mist, reaching his ears.
What the hell? I'm being toyed with by a cloud of mist!
Gawain immediately raised his sword and swung it towards the direction of the sound, unleashing a dark red flame that cleaved through the indistinct image flickering within the mist.
"Focus fire on that one in white darting around in the mist!"