The sky was grey with the first day of snowfall for the winter season. The air was already at that point that it chapped one's lips, causing one to lick without a moment's notice. The gardener was walking by the pasture fence, nearing the stable when he looked over at the lord's steed, still grazing. Their droppings had dried and the gate remained closed. He scrunched his eyebrows in confusion as he proceeded to investigate lightly.
It would be later that he would inform the lord in his study. "Master, I am uncertain of this, but I believe the stable hand has disappeared. His work has been neglected, and no one has seen him in some time."
"The stable hand? I see... He has always been rather diligent in his work, caring much for the animals. It would be unlike him to simply abandon his duties." Vindor pondered for a moment, his face grimacing at the thought. "I was informed that the gate had been left open the night prior. I fear he may had wandered into the forest and gotten lost."
"I question why he would do that."
"Indeed, but the gate had to have been used by someone. Thank you for informing me of this, Gedrey. You may leave now."
"You are most welcome, master."
Vindor would arrange for a search party of house guards to look for the missing stable hand. They would find the remains of the young man within a couple of hours. The torso had been torn from the spine, separating the body into two. Blood had frozen all around, and the skin had practically been peeled off.
Quite the commotion had stirred, with Erik catching wind of.
Before he knew it, his father had organized another search party, but this time, they were armed and equipped, and it was not a missing worker they were looking for, but a monster in the woods.