As she walked toward the place where she had first encountered the wolves, the wind stirred once more among the trees.
Fuuuh… srrrsshh…
Leaves brushed against one another, their layered sounds like whispers that never ended. Thin branches trembled, occasionally knocking together with a dry crack.
Krek… krek…
The tall tree trunks swayed gently. Their shadows stretched, then shrank, across the dark ground. The wind slipped through the foliage, carrying a cold that crept across Alicia's skin.
"Cold… dark…" she murmured faintly.
She moved slowly through the forest, her steps restrained by the pain still lodged in her leg.
"If I remember correctly… it was this way… right?"
"Or… was it that way…?"
The uncertainty in her voice was unmistakable.
The dark forest and the chill of the night air made her chest feel tight. With every step, the muscles in her thigh trembled faintly, as if they might give out at any moment. Alicia winced softly, swallowing the pain so it wouldn't escape as a sound.
She wanted to get out of this forest—quickly.
But she couldn't run.
And worse still—she didn't even know the right direction.
Alicia kept walking, without any clear destination.
Then—
her steps slowed.
Her gaze caught on something on the ground.
Moonlight slipping through gaps in the trees reflected off something darker than the soil around it.
"…Blood?"
She stopped completely.
Alicia swallowed, then approached carefully.
The stain had dried, its color darkened to a brownish black. Beside it lay a small object, reflecting a dull glint of light.
A small knife.
Alicia's breath hitched.
That knife… was hers.
The short blade she always used to cut medicinal plants.
Its tip was still smeared with traces of blood, and rough scratches marked the handle—scars from when she had stabbed it, panicked, into the wolf's eye.
"Ah…"
A thin sound slipped from her lips.
Her hands trembled slightly as she stared at it.
"So… it really was here…"
Her chest felt tight, yet at the same time, something within her loosened.
It was her own blood.
And that knife was proof that the horrifying events of that afternoon weren't just a nightmare.
She was still alive.
At the very least… she hadn't completely lost her way.
With her breathing not yet fully steady, Alicia moved again. Slowly, she followed the faint traces on the ground.
Step by step—limping though she was—she forced herself onward. Her shoulders hunched slightly, as if bearing the weight of fear creeping back into her chest.
She didn't know how long she walked.
Until suddenly—
the scenery ahead changed.
She stopped dead in her tracks.
Her eyes widened.
Before her stretched an open clearing. Grass grew thick and lush, shimmering under the moonlight. Here and there, clusters of medicinal herbs flourished, their leaves reflecting a soft bluish glow, as though gently luminescent in the heart of the night.
Beautiful…
Alicia stood transfixed.
Her breath caught in her throat.
For a moment, the pain in her leg, the fear, and the exhaustion pressing down on her chest all seemed to fade, swallowed by the sight before her.
She didn't blink.
Her body stood frozen.
How could it be… that in the midst of such a dangerous forest—
a place this beautiful could exist?
Several moments passed before Alicia finally came back to herself. She moved her leg slowly and stepped into the clearing. The grass brushed against her calves, soft and cold, while moonlight illuminated every careful movement she made.
She crouched down and began picking some of the medicinal herbs she recognized. Her hands moved cautiously—not only because her leg still hurt, but because she was afraid of damaging plants that looked so precious.
When she felt it was enough, Alicia sat down on a flat stone nearby.
Normally, medicinal herbs needed to be processed with special techniques or alchemical magic to fully draw out their effects. But now, she had no such luxury.
She wasn't capable of using alchemy techniques yet.
Breathing softly, Alicia picked up two small stones and began to crush the herbs in the simplest way she could.
Krak… kruk…
The leaves broke down slowly, releasing a fresh, bitter aroma. Greenish liquid seeped out, cool against her fingertips.
When she judged it sufficient, she gathered the crushed mixture into her palm.
With a hint of hesitation, Alicia pressed it against the wound on her leg.
"Ah…!"
She let out a small wince.
A sharp pain flared for a moment, then gradually shifted into a cool, soothing sensation, as if the heat inside her wound were being drawn out little by little.
Her breath, which she had been unconsciously holding, finally eased back into a steady rhythm.
Srrk…
Alicia tore a still-intact edge of her shirt. Her hands trembled slightly, but she carefully wrapped the wound, making sure the crude remedy stayed in place.
The bandage looked makeshift, but it was enough to reduce friction and keep the poultice where it belonged.
When she finished, Alicia stood up slowly.
Her leg still hurt, but not as badly as before.
She let out a short breath, then surveyed her surroundings with renewed caution.
Between the moonlight and the shadows of the trees, her eyes caught something on one of the trunks.
A scratch.
Alicia stepped closer.
"A scratch…?" she murmured, her brow knitting slightly.
She stared at the mark for a long moment, trying to piece together her fragmented memories.
Then—
her eyes widened.
She remembered.
That scratch… was a mark she herself had made earlier, to keep track of her path so she wouldn't get lost.
The realization made her chest tremble faintly.
This beautiful place…
was where she had first found such an abundance of medicinal herbs earlier that afternoon.
With that understanding, Alicia turned around and began walking in the opposite direction from the scratch.
She kept moving, even though she wasn't entirely sure if she'd chosen the right way.
Not long after—
rust… rust…
A faint sound came from behind a bush.
Alicia flinched.
Her face went pale, her breath caught, and her legs stiffened reflexively.
She slowly turned toward the sound.
From the bushes emerged a small animal.
A squirrel.
"Hah…?" she exhaled softly. "A-a squirrel…?"
Her shoulders relaxed a little.
"Heh… don't scare me like that…"
But just as she was about to turn away—
another movement appeared from a different direction.
A low shape crawled out of the shadows.
A medium-sized wolf stood not far from her. One of its eyes was blind and clouded, leaving behind a dull, unfocused glimmer. Its breathing was heavy, accompanied by a low growl vibrating deep in its chest.
Grrr…
Its nose twitched, sniffing the ground around it, as if searching for the source of a scent.
Alicia froze.
It felt as though her blood had stopped flowing.
Her body went rigid, and a chill ran from the tips of her feet up to the back of her neck.
With trembling hands, she slowly reached for the small knife she had just recovered. Her fingers clenched tightly around the handle—so tightly her nails turned white.
The knife felt cold.
Holding her breath, Alicia stepped backward, one step at a time. Her eyes never left the wolf before her, afraid to miss even a single movement.
Her heart hammered violently in her chest.
Thud—thud—thud…
The sound of it felt deafening.
And then—
as if mocking her—
the events of that afternoon repeated themselves.
As Alicia backed away carefully, the sole of her foot landed on something lying on the ground.
Clak…
The sound of a snapping twig rang clearly through the forest's silence.
Alicia's face drained of color.
Her blood seemed to freeze solid.
Cold sweat immediately soaked her back, making her clothes cling to her skin.
"Ah…"
Her breath hitched.
The wolf stopped sniffing.
Its head lifted slowly.
The one eye that still functioned turned straight toward her.
That gaze was sharp… and filled with killing intent.
Grrr…!
The low growl deepened, rougher than before.
In an instant, the wolf lowered its body, muscles coiling tight.
Then—
it lunged.
"—!"
Alicia's eyes flew wide open.
Fear locked her body in place.
Before she could even think—
the dark blur shot toward her, fangs bared, claws raised—
and at the very moment the wolf leapt straight at her.