Krafft's Notes on Anomalies

Traveling in the forest, which becomes increasingly sparse as we go deeper, the opening of the space gradually compresses the sense of security in our subconscious. Although no one said it clearly, it was obvious that many people began to miss the lush forest area that once hindered their footsteps.

The servants walking on the periphery of the team looked around frequently, casting inexplicable glances behind the rugged tree trunks, as if something would emerge from the light and mist in the forest that had lost its green curtain.

They had some boring chats and shared various scandals, but the monotonous life in the castle didn't have much room for rumors to grow. The remaining conversation material was quickly regurgitated and digested, and they could only start from the same old story. Meaningless crumbs picked out of food and training support a tasteless exchange.

The endless chatter has lost its own meaning, just to maintain the sound in the ears and ensure that the team does not fall into empty silence.

This forest hides another side of it, leaving visitors to discover when it is silent. There is a lack of anything that can make a sound except itself. The background sound of the nocturnal ensemble of insects completely disappears, and even a bird song is difficult to hear.

This is no different than drinking in the noisy atmosphere of a banquet, and suddenly realizing that the sound of the wine glass you put down against the table became the last sound in the entire hall, making people instinctively feel that there is something in the empty silence where everything around them is stagnant. Factors that cause mutations will attract attention.

Every moment we marched in the lifeless forest, the feeling of being spied on became stronger. Some people began to complain that the sparse plants made the team too obvious, and soon reacted to the unclear tree shadows in the distance. For a moment, they were seen as other objects.

At first, this impulse could be restrained. It was just a pause of a certain servant and the interruption of the words being organized. However, after a day, it developed into low-pitched exclamations from time to time, and it was about a period of time somewhere in the forest. Gaze and shake your head in denial.

It turned out later that it was really just a small visual error. A half-decayed tree trunk that has been deformed by its own weight has a wood tumor that looks like a head from a distance; or a relatively slender bush, the details of which are blurred by diffraction.

People with keen emotional intuition can feel the tense nerves of most people, slowly and continuously increasing the pressure under the constant cues from the environment, and only get better rest during deep sleep.

But after traveling here for more than two days, even the double increase of fatigue and strong armor cannot make people fall asleep quickly. They need constant conversation and comfort to the spirit through an intentionally created atmosphere of human activity.

The group's emotions spread like hyphae under the bark of a tree, covered up by things like knight's honor, training results, and personal dignity. They didn't turn over to the outside, and the team still maintained order.

More than ever, they hoped to see some animal other than themselves, even if it were pagans attacking them.

This wish was realized, or half realized, on the morning of the third day.

With a fairly good field of vision, they discovered a path that didn't look like an animal trail. The exposed soil surface they stepped on appeared like inevitable bald spots in the forest. Judging from Martin's hunting experience, this is closer to the traces formed by human beings who often step on them.

The team's mood was lifted, and they even let out suppressed cheers, which were immediately restrained by Barrow not-so-sternly. They no longer care about hiding their whereabouts, they just want to find the heretic's lair as soon as possible and end this long-preluded mystery.

By eliminating the time of distracted searching, the team's speed is greatly improved. Following the trail, they soon encountered the first special thing they found here.

In the dark green, a sharp-eyed guard saw a strange-colored object leaning against the roots of a thick tree in front of him from a distance. Suspected to be dazzled again, he resisted the urge to speak out directly. When he got closer, he realized that it was a group of lush mushrooms.

This is the first time I have seen something like this in the forest. All kinds of mushrooms are blooming on a small flower stand, including some exquisite varieties with hanging curtains like ladies' lace skirts.

He half-knelt down beside him, wanting to touch this dreamy masterpiece.

"I advise you to stay away from that thing."

A cold voice came in from behind, stopping the hand reaching for the fungus "flower stand", and the impulse of hunting was extinguished.

The owner of the voice grabbed his shoulders and pulled him away, forcing his eyes that were glued to the various mushrooms to observe again from a few steps away. The outline of the "flower stand" that was not seen at first glance became familiar as the field of vision changed.

It is indeed in a "leaning" posture, with half of it resting on the ground and the other half against the trunk. The top of the cage is integrated with the bark under the connection of the wide basal stipe, and the mouth is filled with a soft hemispherical cover. .

【Mouth? 】

The thought was like an ice cube sliding into the back of his collar, making him shudder and look again at this gorgeous mushroom trellis. A terrifying suspicion quickly turned into a fact, culminating when the thing was pried from the tree trunk.

It was firmly bonded to the tree trunk. Kraft spent some effort to cut off part of the woody connection surface. Using a lever technique, he used a thick-backed machete to pry up the part that was probably the head. It felt like tearing it off. The sticky tape pulls out dense network-like filaments.

Before being completely separated, the brittle structure collapsed first, and half of the cage-like outline cracked into several pieces, rolling to the ground together with the mushroom bushes growing on it, exposing the light yellow inner surface, and the nose could be vaguely distinguished. The sinuses in the lower part are filled with flocculent silk balls.

"Looks like we're in the right place."

The back of the knife struck the remaining outline, and what made up the frame collapsed, turning into a mixture of broken bones and mushrooms, still rich in bright colors rarely seen in this era.

At this time, the brighter the thing, the more creepy it makes those who see it, as if something peeking at them in the forest has revealed a corner, which they can't find the right words to describe. As a result, the conversation in the team was extinguished for a few seconds when they saw this thing. Their minds were struggling to understand and accept the existence of such a thing.

"Be careful." Martin took a deep look at the thing and calmed his breathing. "Take off the sets of full-body armor on the horse. It looks like we are almost there."

The attendants tried their best not to look at it, and some of them helped the knight quickly put on the armor.

If you don't count the shock just now, this process is incredibly smooth. They successfully reached the surrounding areas of the pagan stronghold without encountering even the slightest obstacle, not a single outpost or a hidden arrow.

Not to mention Martin, even Kraft felt that it was unusually smooth. As expected, it was most likely that they would be passive and have no chance to use their full body armor, but at this time they were able to march towards their destination without any problems.

After passing several mushroom "flower stands" again, at the end of the trail, a forest clearing opened by humans appeared in front of them. With a building with a spire visible as the center, and scattered huts built around it, you can Nowhere in the Westminster region do you see anything like religious villages or towns.

Except it shouldn't be here.