Hours passed peacefully. Occasionally they encountered evidence of recent activity: a freshly cut tree, an old hunting blind overlooking a stream, and smoke rising faintly from a distant charcoal burner deeper within the woods.
If not for the stories they had heard in town, the forest would have seemed perfectly ordinary. That itself began troubling Atheline.
"Perhaps we’re chasing superstition."
Lilith considered the possibility.
"It’s possible. Generations exaggerate stories, and eventually no one remembers how they began."
He nodded.
"I suppose we’ll find out soon enough."
Not long afterward, they encountered the first person they had seen since leaving the road. An elderly woodsman emerged from between the trees carrying a bundle of freshly cut firewood across one shoulder.
His beard was streaked with gray, and years of labor had bent his back slightly. He stopped upon noticing them.
"Travelers?"
Atheline smiled politely.
"For a while."
The woodsman adjusted the weight of the logs.
"You’re a long way from town."
"We enjoy walking."
"So do I."
His gaze shifted farther down the trail.
"Just don’t wander too deeply."
Atheline tilted his head.
"Why?"
The old man answered without hesitation.
"You’ll lose your bearings."
Lilith asked calmly,
"Even with a map?"
He scratched his beard thoughtfully.
"Hm... I’ve never tried. I know better than to test it."
He gave them a friendly nod before continuing toward town. The conversation lasted barely a minute, yet both rulers noticed the same thing: the woodsman had warned them about getting lost.
They continued deeper into the forest. By mid-afternoon, the trees had grown noticeably older. Their trunks widened until several required three or four people to encircle them. Great roots rose from the earth like natural walls. Moss covered nearly every stone.
The little fox suddenly stopped walking. Her ears twitched; she sniffed the air twice, then hurried back beside Lilith instead of running ahead as usual.
Atheline noticed immediately.
"She senses something."
Lilith nodded.
"But she isn’t frightened."
She slowly extended her own senses. Aether flowed gently through the surrounding forest. Nothing hostile revealed itself; everything felt... Normal.
They paused beside a clear stream to rest. While filling their waterskins, Atheline unfolded the divine map once more. The glowing point marking the vague coordinates remained frustratingly imprecise. It still encompassed a region spanning many kilometers.
He sighed.
"This doesn’t help."
Lilith sat beside him.
"The Goddess never intended it to."
"I know."
He smiled ruefully.
"It would simply be convenient if divine guidance were slightly more specific."
She laughed quietly.
"I imagine even gods have their reasons."
He carefully folded the map again.
"So... Our first lead."
"What do you think?"
Lilith looked toward the endless forest surrounding them.
"I think... we’re close."
"Based on what?"
She closed her eyes briefly.
"Instinct."
He blinked.
"That’s surprisingly vague."
She smiled.
"I learned it from you."
The afternoon slowly gave way to evening. Golden sunlight filtered between towering branches as long shadows stretched across the forest floor. They had covered considerable distance, yet nothing extraordinary had happened.
Atheline was beginning to wonder whether the lead had been mistaken when Lilith suddenly stopped walking.
"What is it?"
She slowly pointed ahead.
"Look."
Barely visible beneath layers of moss... something protruded from the earth. It wasn’t natural stone because it had been shaped.
The two approached cautiously. After clearing away vines and fallen leaves, they uncovered the top of an old carved pillar. Time had worn away nearly every detail; only fragments of decorative patterns remained.
Atheline brushed his fingers across the weathered surface.
"This wasn’t placed here recently."
"No."
Lilith examined the craftsmanship.
"It’s ancient, older than the current kingdom." She looked around. "If there’s one... there may be others."
They searched the surrounding area carefully. Within the next hour, they found three more. Each lay half-buried beneath centuries of soil and vegetation.
They appeared to mark something. Perhaps an old road, a boundary, or perhaps something else entirely. The final pillar had toppled long ago; its base still remained embedded in the ground.
Lilith knelt beside it.
"There."
Atheline followed her gaze. Faintly carved into the stone was a symbol unlike any modern language.
A circle.
Within it... Three interlocking crescents surrounding a tiny star. Neither of them recognized it, yet the moment Atheline looked upon the weathered emblem... A strange feeling settled over him.
Recognition, as though he had seen the symbol somewhere before... long ago.
He frowned.
"I know this."
Lilith looked at him.
"From where?"
He searched his memories, but nothing came, only the lingering certainty that it wasn’t unfamiliar. After several moments, he slowly shook his head.
"I... can’t remember."
The forest grew quiet around them at that moment. The breeze that had accompanied them throughout the day faded away. The little fox pressed herself lightly against Lilith’s leg while staring deeper into the trees.
Lilith rose slowly.
"We’re not at the destination."
"No."
Atheline looked around the fading forest.
"But... we’ve found the first sign that someone was here long before anyone living today."
She nodded.
"And that means the clues weren’t leading us toward a place. They were leading us toward a trail."
Lilith and Atheline left the clearing of ancient stone markers behind and continued forward.
The weathered pillars remained standing silently among the trees, half-swallowed by moss and roots. Yet despite their age, neither ruler doubted they had found something important.
The symbols carved into the stone had not been natural decorations.
The little fox trotted several paces ahead before stopping to wait for them, her now-brown fur blending naturally into the woodland floor.
Atheline glanced at the map once more. The X marking the Goddess’s vague coordinates remained frustratingly broad.
He folded it away.
"I suppose we’ll have to trust our judgment."
Lilith nodded.
"The markers point deeper into the forest; they’re the best lead we have."
Without another word, they continued forward.
The deeper they ventured, the older the forest became. Trees thick enough to house entire rooms rose hundreds of feet into the air, their immense branches intertwining until only scattered beams of sunlight reached the ground.
Roots twisted across the forest floor like enormous serpents, forcing them to step over natural walls of ancient wood. Even the air felt different.
Atheline ran one hand along the bark of a massive tree as they passed.
"It’s hard to find forest preserved this well."
Lilith examined the surrounding vegetation.
"That’s true. There are almost no signs of logging or even the usual beast tracks. It has remained untouched for centuries."
The little fox suddenly stopped, ears standing upright. A soft growl escaped her throat