Master Albert leaned toward the King.
"Your Majesty… the forest is restless today."
The King merely nodded.
"That is why we must bring down the Golden Stag. The Kingdom's fortune depends on it."
The Princess lowered her gaze.
The Hero clenched her fist.
Florian the Wolf Mage sniffed the air with a low growl.
Floralys's expression darkened, as if she sensed some deep, ominous tremor beneath the earth.
The King stepped forward and blew the hunting horn.
Its call thundered through the forest.
The fog shuddered.
The horses snorted and stamped.
The hunt had officially begun.
The companies moved slowly into the forest — each with their own goals, their own hopes, their own fears.
But among the trees, something was already watching.
Something that did not belong to the world of the living.
Something that awakened at the sound of the horn.
The hunt had begun.
And tragedy was already on its way.
The Hunt Turns to Horror
We left the city of Greenwood at five in the morning and headed deep into the forest.
The nobles and knights rode on horseback, while the hunters followed on foot.
Naturally, we adjusted our pace to the hunters, so the procession moved slowly but steadily through the legendary Greenforest.
We had been following the trail of the Golden Stag for hours.
As time passed and no danger appeared — no monsters, no demons, not even a hint of anything unusual — more and more people began to relax.
Many believed the hunt would proceed without incident, free of demons.
We had traveled about twenty miles — roughly thirty‑two kilometers — into the forest.
Far from the city, far from the castle; the hunters claimed the Golden Stag had been seen in this region a few weeks earlier.
The time must have been somewhere between eleven and noon.
Everyone was tired and hungry — it was time to rest and eat.
The King decided we would stop.
We dismounted, barely had time to take a breath, when the demons made their move.
It all happened in a single instant.
A massive teleportation wave swept through the forest.
The air trembled, the light warped, and before anyone could react, the wave engulfed us.
There was no chance to dodge it.
Our formation — strong and orderly just moments before — was torn apart in the blink of an eye.
The wave scattered us across the vast forest as if we were nothing more than leaves in the wind.
Everyone was thrown into a random location.
The lucky ones landed in small groups, but most found themselves utterly alone in the wilderness.
We thought we were going on a hunt.
But the truth was that we were the prey.
Out of nowhere, a hundred Fire Demons and five hundred Impspawn appeared, launching the hunt immediately.
The Fire Demons' cruelty knew no limits.
The beautiful, ancient forest burst into flames within moments — fires ignited in hundreds of places at once, as if the gates of hell had opened among the trees.
The hunt became a nightmare.
Calm turned to chaos.
Hope turned to fear.
And this was only the beginning.
Moments Before the Teleportation Wave — from Young Wolf's Perspective
"When are we finally eating? I'm starving!" Ironclaw grumbled, shifting restlessly on her horse.
"That's because you kept stuffing your face with those biscuits from your backpack," Andras replied, glancing at her sideways.
"Biscuits are snacks. I need meat for lunch!"
"I packed dried meat in your bag too," Noelle noted.
"I ate that already."
Andras sighed.
"Then you'll survive until noon. You're not going to starve to death."
Christina rode up beside them.
"The King has ordered a stop and lunch."
"Finally, a break," Andras stretched. "My butt is killing me from all this riding."
"Yes! Lunch at last!" Ironclaw cheered.
"We still have to make that lunch," Noelle reminded her.
"Come on, let's tie the horses to those trees," Christina said.
The knights halted to set up a temporary camp, and everyone dismounted.
Not only the knights — the horses needed rest and feeding as well.
"Noelle, what's for lunch?" Ironclaw asked hopefully.
"Whatever the hunters managed to bring down."
Ironclaw shuddered.
"Ugh… that gave me chills."
Andras snapped his head toward her.
"You sense something, Ironclaw?"
The next moment Andras's eyes widened.
His magical perception flared violently — like an invisible force had slammed into him.
What the hell? My magic sight is reacting! A teleportation circle? Am I about to be teleported?! Damn it… this is a teleportation wave! You can't dodge it, you can't block it!
Andras shouted at the top of his lungs:
"This is a trap! Demons! Wolves, claws out! Swords and shields ready! Prepare for battle!"
The Wolf Knights reacted instantly.
Their swords and shields were in hand in a heartbeat, formation tightening around Andras.
Christina and Floralys also moved without hesitation.
"Silver Knights, battle formation! Demons incoming!" Christina commanded.
"Green Eagle Knights, prepare for combat! Demons!" Floralys echoed.
The Silver and Green Eagle Knights managed to form up in time.
The Royal Knights and the Red Wildrose Knights, however, were thrown into confusion.
They saw no demons, no threat — panic and fear spread among them like wildfire.
Eris reacted immediately as well.
Her gaze darted through the trees like lightning, trying to pinpoint the source of danger.
The King watched in alarm, but he too saw nothing.
Before anyone could ask a question — before the King could even speak — the teleportation wave appeared.
The air trembled.
The light warped.
And the wave swallowed everyone.
The hunt became a nightmare in a single heartbeat.
Moments Before the Teleportation Wave — from Wildfire's Perspective
The massive Fire Demon — his entire body wreathed in roaring flames — watched with satisfaction as the seven demon shamans performed the final gestures of the ritual.
The forest around them vibrated with demonic energy, the air shimmering with heat, as if the world itself were holding its breath.
They intended to cast the teleportation wave across a vast portion of the forest — and such a spell required an unimaginable amount of power.
The shamans knew they would pay with their lives.
Demonic magic always demanded blood, and today, their blood would fuel the spell.
The blazing giant's name was Wildfire — right hand of Salamander, leader of the Fire Demons.
One of the most ruthless figures in the entire demonic campaign.
The three clan leaders — La Kratos, Na Gonos, and Ta Uris — approached him, their warriors marching behind them.
In total, one hundred Fire Demons and five hundred impspawn awaited the command to strike at the humans.