The crack of the gunshot reached the base camp as a dull, echoing thump.
It rolled over the tents like distant thunder, strange and heavy enough to make people stop what they were doing.
The sky above them was perfectly clear, not a cloud in sight, yet the sound had come from somewhere deep inside the forest.
In the spectator stands, conversations gradually died down.
"What in the gods' names was that?" a wealthy merchant demanded, nearly spilling the rest of his wine as he turned in his seat. "Did a cliff just collapse somewhere?"
"It sounded like thunder," an older retired soldier muttered, narrowing his eyes toward the forest. "But that's impossible. There isn't a cloud in the sky."
"Could it be some kind of beast?"
"A beast doesn't make a sound like that."
"Then what does?"
The questions quickly multiplied, with no one having an answer.
