The northern reaches of the vampire domain stretched endlessly beneath the gray winter sky.
Towering pine forests rolled over the mountains like a sea of emerald cloaked in white, their branches bending beneath the weight of freshly fallen snow. Ancient cliffs rose proudly from the earth, their frozen faces scarred by time, while rivers of crystal ice wound silently through the valleys before disappearing into the distant wilderness. It was a land where beauty and danger existed side by side, untouched by the hands of ordinary men.
For months the trio had seen nothing but stones walls and large pillars and the endless sound of steel colliding against each other as they trained beneath the earth.
Now, every breath carried the scent of pine instead of damp rock.
Every gust of wind felt unfamiliar.
Even the silence was different.
It wasn't the suffocating silence of Blood's underground training grounds.
It was alive.
Birds called from somewhere beyond the treetops, snowflakes drifted lazily through the air before settling upon the untouched forest floor.
Small woodland creatures darted between bushes, disappearing almost as quickly as they appeared.
The world seemed... peaceful.
Moving through the trees Gray, Marie and Zil walked in slow strides, each preoccupied with their own thoughts.
"Hey guys something has been bothering me ever since the old guy left us".
Zil said breaking the silence they maintained as the journeyed north as Blood had advised.
Marie sighed turning towards him.
"What are you talking about and it better not be something stupid".
"Well it's not.....
"It's just that for a while now I've been wondering how the old guy knew we where going to Luna city enough to prepare us for what we may encounter on our way there ? ".
Silence followed.
The question lingered in the cold air longer than anyone expected.
Gray instinctively reached into his coat, his fingers brushing against the crimson pocket watch Blood had handed him before disappearing into the crimson mist.
Blood had never explained anything.
Not why he had given him the watch.
Not why Luna City.
Not even how he knew about their parents.
Only...
"Head north."
Gray lowered his hand.
"...You're right."
Marie folded her arms.
"Now that you mention it..."
"He never asked where we intended to go."
"He simply told us where we would end up."
The three exchanged uncertain glances before the conversation died naturally.
The only sound that remained was the steady crunch of snow beneath their boots.
For several minutes, no one spoke.
The forest stretched endlessly around them, its towering pines swaying gently beneath the winter wind.
Occasionally, narrow trails branched away from the main path, disappearing between the trees. Some looked as though they had been used recently, while others had long since vanished beneath fresh snow.
Gray studied one of them quietly.
"...This forest is bigger than I imagined."
"It is."
Zil answered almost immediately.
Gray looked toward him.
"I thought the Dark Regions were mostly cities."
Zil blinked.
"...Cities?"
He laughed.
"Not even close."
He stretched both arms behind his head as they continued walking.
"The Dark Regions are massive."
He gestured toward the endless mountains surrounding them.
"What you're looking at right now is only a tiny part of the northern vampire domain."
Gray's eyes wandered across the landscape once more.
"...Only a part?"
"Yep."
"The vampires control enormous territories. Forests, mountain ranges, frozen lakes... even entire valleys belong to different noble families."
Marie listened quietly.
"So Luna City belongs to one of those families?"
"It does."
"The Bloodvines."
"They're one of the strongest military families in the entire vampire domain."
Gray remembered that the same man they had to meet at the city also had that name.
"So... they protect the city?"
"More than that."
Zil pointed farther north, where distant mountain peaks disappeared into falling snow.
"Luna City is the largest city in the vampire domain that sits near one of the busiest trade routes in the Dark Regions."
"Merchants from all over pass through it."
"Vampires."
"Werewolves."
"Witches."
"Even other dark races."
Gray looked surprised.
"They all trade together?"
"When they're making money?"
Zil chuckled.
"They suddenly become a lot friendlier."
Marie smiled faintly.
"So the stories about the races constantly fighting each other aren't completely true."
"Oh, they still fight."
Zil shrugged.
"Just... usually somewhere else."
Gray looked confused.
"But wouldn't that cause a lot of conflict between the races even during trading at Luna city?".
Zil stopped smiling.
"That's why one of the great vampire families controls that city"
"And believe me no race in the dark regions would want to get on their bad side not even the vampires".
Gray asked one last question.
"But that doesn't stop some few crazy individuals, does it ?".
Zil chuckled lightly.
"Yeah because trade brings wealth".
"And wealth attracts enemies".
He said pointing towards the north.
"Caravans carrying rare ores, monster materials, herbs, enchanted relics..."
"Everything passes through Luna."
Gray frowned slightly.
"So... no one would dare cause trouble there?"
Zil shook his head.
"Not unless they had a death wish."
"The Bloodvines don't just protect Luna City."
"They keep the peace between races."
Marie glanced toward the endless forest stretching around them.
"So they're feared."
"They're respected."
Zil corrected calmly.
"Fear fades."
"Respect lasts."
Gray remained silent.
His crimson eyes wandered once more across the endless wilderness surrounding them.
Now that he truly looked...
He began noticing details he had overlooked before.
Far beyond the forest, snow-covered mountain peaks pierced the clouds like the fangs of some ancient beast. Frozen rivers shimmered beneath the pale winter sun, weaving through valleys before disappearing into forests so vast they seemed to have no end.
It was difficult to believe that all of it belonged to a single domain.
This forest really does get's bigger and bigger huh ?"
"Yeah."
Zil answered with a grin.
"And it's going to take a while before we reached the path the old guy was talking about ."
Marie looked toward the distant mountains.
"So do people live out here?"
"Of course."
Zil pointed toward a thin trail cutting through the trees.
"See that path?"
The siblings nodded.
"That's one of the old merchant roads."
"It eventually connects to the main highway leading into Luna City."
Gray frowned.
"...Merchant road?"
"Yeah."
"You'd be surprised how many caravans travel through these forests every day."
He looked around before continuing.
"Some transport enchanted ores from the Frost Mountains."
"Others carry medicinal herbs that only grow in the northern valleys."
"And some..."
He smiled faintly.
"...Carry enough gold to make even a noble think twice."
Marie tilted her head.
"That sounds dangerous."
"It is."
"That's why most caravans hire mercenaries."
"Or travel under the protection of one of the noble families."
Gray looked ahead quietly.
"So this forest isn't as empty as it seems."
"Not even close but anyways we should hurry and pick up the pace if we want to get there fast"
Zil said as the trio continued to walk north.
***
The sun had climbed higher by the time they reached the foot of a frozen ridge.
A narrow stream, its surface covered by a thin layer of ice, wound lazily between snow-covered rocks. Tall pines surrounded the small clearing, sheltering it from the biting northern wind.
Letting out a sigh Marie and dropped her pack onto the ground as she sat on the ground.
".....Finally".
Zil glanced at her .
"We have been walking for some hours now but I guess even you could get tired"
Marie frowned slightly.
"You know we don't have excessive stamina like you so stop judging.
Laughing Zil sat down next to her.
"Yeah sorry about"
Marie looked around the clearing before nodding.
"We should rest for a little while."
Without waiting for an answer she got up and knelt beside the stream and broke a small section of the ice with the end of Scarlet Thread's sheath. Crystal-clear water flowed beneath it.
"It looks clean."
Gray walked over and filled one of the small flasks Blood had given them before handing it back to Marie.
The three settled beneath the shelter of the pines.
For a while...
No one spoke.
The wind whispered softly through the branches overhead.
Snow drifted lazily from the trees whenever a breeze passed.
It was peaceful.
Far more peaceful than the underground chamber they had called home for months.
Zil leaned back against a tree trunk and closed his eyes.
"...You know..."
"I still wake up expecting the old man to hit me."
Marie raised an eyebrow.
"That's oddly specific."
"I'm serious."
"I'll hear a stick snap somewhere and immediately think, 'Here comes another impossible training exercise.'"
Gray couldn't help smiling.
"He probably would."
"Exactly!"
Zil sat up.
"Do you remember that one time we had to spar for countless hours until we hit the ground ? "
Marie stared daggers at him.
"Yeah.... all because someone couldn't keep his mouth shut".
"Well it wasn't my fault he couldn't take a joke".
Gray let out a quiet laugh.
"Yeah I remember , you even faked amnesia just to make an excuse to ran away from training."
"Yeah I still have nightmares from those times."
Marie smiled faintly
"He still found out and gave us extra training."
"I know !"
The clearing filled with quiet laughter.
It wasn't loud.
It wasn't forced.
It simply came naturally.
For the first time since leaving the underground chamber...
The burden of training seemed a little farther away.
Gray looked toward the endless mountains beyond the trees.
"...It's strange."
The other two looked at him.
"It feels quieter out here."
Marie followed his gaze.
"In a good way?"
Gray thought for a moment before answering.
"...I don't know."
Zil stretched his arms above his head before standing.
"Well, whatever the answer is, we won't find Luna City sitting here."
He slung his pack over one shoulder.
Marie rose next, brushing the snow from her cloak.
Gray stood last.
For a brief moment, he looked back at the small clearing they were leaving behind.
Then he noticed something.
Silence.
The cheerful calls that had accompanied them throughout the morning had vanished.
The small woodland creatures that had darted between the bushes only moments ago were nowhere to be seen.
Even the wind seemed quieter.
An uneasy feeling settled over the forest.
Zil's hands kept twitching as his eyes narrowed slightly
"...Something's wrong."
Gray nodded once.
"I noticed."
Marie stared at them.
"What do think it is"
No one answered him.
The three continued forward, their pace noticeably slower than before.
Snow crunched softly beneath their boots.
Gray's crimson eyes swept across the trees.
Blood's voice echoed faintly in the back of his mind.
"Control your mind".
"So that nothing escapes your line of sight"
Gray's gaze narrowed.
A pine tree stood a few meters from the path.
Its trunk bore four deep grooves.
Not scratches.
Claw marks.
Fresh ones.
The bark around them still oozed pale sap that had yet to freeze.
Gray stopped walking.
Marie followed his gaze immediately.
"...Those weren't made by wolves."
"No."
Gray stepped closer.
The marks were far too high above the ground.
Whatever had left them...
Had been enormous.
Zil's usual face slowly darkened.
"...Guys."
He pointed farther ahead.
Broken branches littered the snow-covered ground.
Some had snapped clean in half.
Others looked as though something massive had forced its way through the forest without slowing down.
Gray crouched beside the trail.
Half-hidden beneath a thin layer of snow...
Wheel tracks.
Deep.
Uneven.
He brushed away the snow with his hand.
"A carriage."
Marie looked up.
"It left the road."
Gray shook his head.
"It didn't leave."
His eyes followed the gouges carved into the earth.
"It was forced."
The three exchanged silent glances before breaking into a cautious jog.
The tracks became easier to follow.
Broken crates appeared first.
Then torn pieces of cloth.
A child's wooden toy lay abandoned beneath the snow.
No one touched it.
The air felt heavier with every step.
Then...
The trees opened into a small clearing.
Gray was the first to stop.
His crimson eyes widened almost imperceptibly.
An overturned carriage rested against a massive boulder, its wooden frame splintered beyond recognition.
One wheel had been torn completely away.
The horses were nowhere to be seen.
Four enormous claw marks stretched across the side of the carriage as though something had tried to tear it apart.
Blood stained the snow.
But...
There were no bodies.
No voices.
No movement.
Only silence.
Gray slowly tightened his grip around Graveveil.
Marie drew Scarlet Thread.
The crimson threads around the blade fluttered faintly in the winter breeze.
Zil slid the Beast Fang Gauntlets over his hands.
"...What happened here?"
No one answered.
Because the forest....
Remained silent.