Days flew by as Kael made his way through the relentless forest. The woods he had once known, the same ones he'd grown up in, were becoming harder to recognize with each passing step. The deeper he went, the more the land seemed to change around him, growing wilder and more untamed.
His eyes followed the trunk of a nearby tree, tracing its rough surface all the way to the top. The trees in the Titanwoods reached high into the sky, their branches stretching as if trying to touch the clouds, each one seeming to compete with the next to see which would reach the heavens first.
Their crowns covered nearly the entire sky, letting only the faintest slivers of sunlight break through.
'I guess everything can seem majestic if it's big enough.'
Kael's gaze lingered on the canopy high above before shifting back to the ground ahead.
'Looks like the trees soak up whatever little rain makes it through. No wonder the ground's this dry.'
He crouched down and pinched a bit of soil between his fingers, rubbing it lightly as it crumbled to dust. Some of it scattered with the wind, the rest slipping back to the forest floor.
The Titanwoods were well known across the western continent for their unique environment. The forest was home to colossal trees that stretched high into the sky, but the ground below was barren and dry. This made it easy for merchants and travelers to pass through, but the terrain came with its own challenges. Predators that survived in such harsh conditions often had highly developed eyesight, and with almost no undergrowth or cover to hide behind, staying out of sight wasn't easy.
Luminaires without a mote to mask their presence were strongly advised against traveling through these woods.
Kael straightened his back and looked ahead, squinting into the distance.
'And this is what it's most known for.'
The wind surged suddenly, kicking up loose dust and dry leaves. He lifted an arm to shield his face as the gust swept through the trees, howling like a living thing. The Titanwoods were infamous not just for their scale, but for their irregular, brutal winds that tore through the forest without warning.
"This won't do," he muttered, lowering his arm.
He spotted a tree nearby and walked toward it, coat and hair thrashing in the wind as he moved. Still, his steps were slow and unhurried.
Reaching the base of the massive trunk, he sat down and leaned back against it. The trees here were thick enough to carve homes into, and while they weren't much help for hiding, they made excellent shields from the wind.
'Guess I'm stuck here for a bit. Annoying… But there's nothing I can do about it.'
Kael let out a slow breath, closed his eyes, and rested his head against the tree behind him. The bark was cool and solid.
The wind picked up, rising with each breath he took. What had once felt like a quiet, ancient forest now came alive with movement. The towering trees that just moments ago had stood so regal and unmoving were now bowing and swaying under the force of the storm. Their massive trunks groaned in protest, the deep creaks echoing through the woods.
High above, the crowns bent under the relentless wind, branches twisting and straining before snapping forward and bending again. Leaves tore free and spiraled through the air, while others clung on as branches bowed to their limit, some nearly breaking.
Kael opened his eyes and watched the forest locked in its quiet struggle.
For all its beauty and power, the Titanwoods didn't care who walked its paths. And now, all he could do was wait.
Hours passed slowly, but eventually, the winds began to die down, and the trees finally stood tall again, no longer forced into a constant sway.
"Finally."
Kael rose to his feet and brushed off the thin layer of dust that had settled on him. He glanced at the massive tree that had shielded him from the worst of it.
Storms like this were a regular part of life in these woods. Each tree here was ancient, many stretching back hundreds, even thousands of years, and had withstood countless beatings like the one just now. Kael never doubted their endurance, but that didn't mean he liked relying on one.
He looked at the trunk for a moment longer, then reached out and placed his fingertips against the bark. With a mental command, he activated the Obsidian Shard mote.
The moment it triggered, his awareness deepened. It was hard to describe, more feeling than thought, but an intuitive understanding of the tree settled into him. At first, he felt only the outer layer, the bark beneath his fingers. Then it sank deeper. He sensed the tree itself, the water moving slowly through its trunk, drawn upward toward the sky. He felt the small fractures deep inside, damage from years of battles against the wind, he felt every fiber strain and rub against each other as it swayed ever so slightly.
Kael's brows pulled together.
'Quite impressive.'
The bark was dense, nearly as hard as iron, and the core was even tougher. He let his senses reach deeper still, following the tree's presence downward, tracing it into the earth.
The roots stretched deep into the earth, some reaching more than five hundred meters down. Dozens of trees had their roots tangled together beneath the surface, twisting and weaving into one another until they formed a vast, interconnected web that anchored them firmly into the ground.
Kael lifted his hand from the trunk, his gaze lingering on it for a moment longer before turning away and continuing on his way.
It was a simple mote, but it had its uses. Even if it didn't shine in battle, it excelled in granting understanding. And while it offered no direct boost to Kael's combat strength, the knowledge it provided was something he valued even more.
He'd devoured hundreds of books over the years, but there was a clear difference between knowing something in theory and understanding it on an instinctive level. Most people might sigh in disappointment if they awakened to such a mote, but Kael felt nothing but gratitude. Power mattered, yes, but even though wisdom without strength was often meaningless, Kael still found himself drawn to knowledge more than power.
As Kael moved between the colossal trees, his thoughts drifted back and forth before finally settling on a story he had read long ago.
A long time ago, way before people ever dared to travel deep into the forest, there was an explorer who became completely obsessed with the Titanwoods. He went farther than anyone else, pushing into the heart of the forest just to study its towering trees. He gathered samples, sketched the weird plants growing under the thick canopy, and wrote everything down in detail. He even came up with his own theories about the powerful winds that tore through the region, trying to make sense of how they worked and why they were so unpredictable.
One day, while taking cover against a massive tree to shield himself from the raging winds, he heard low uneven pants, barely audible over the storm. The sound came from just tens of meters away, near a neighboring tree. Heart pounding, the explorer struggled to catch a glimpse of the source.
Then, he saw it.
A colossal creature stood on two legs, its massive hands wrapped tightly around the trees as if bracing against the storm. Its pale fingers were unnaturally long, curling effortlessly around the thick trunks, holding on with an eerie stillness. Its mouth stretched nearly to its ears, tongue lolling out like an exhausted dog. Human teeth gleamed in the dark. The creature's face was unsettlingly human-like, yet its black, empty eyes stared straight ahead. Its greasy black hair moved wildly in the wind, yet it remained unfazed by the rocks and dust scraping against its skin.
Upon seeing the creature, the explorer's face drained of color, and panic hit him like a wave, overriding all rational thought. Before he could stop himself, he sprang to his feet and ran into the storm, away from the colossal being. He ran and ran, never daring to look back. The raging winds tossed him like a ragdoll, slamming him against tree trunks and pelting him with debris. Jagged rocks tore into his flesh, carving deep wounds across his body, but he didn't stop
He had no idea how many hours he had been running. His body moved on instinct alone until his legs gave out beneath him, sending him sprawling onto the ground. Gasping for breath, he frantically scanned his surroundings, searching for any sign of the creature.
Only after what felt like an eternity did his panic begin to subside. Slowly, his breathing steadied, and his senses returned to him. He took in his surroundings, in an attempt to understand where he had ended up.
Towering trees loomed all around him. But ahead of him, the forest broke. Instead of more trees, a massive, dark wall rose before him, piercing through the canopy and seemingly breaking the clouds. It stretched endlessly in both directions, disappearing into the distance as far as the forest allowed him to see.
At its center, a massive crack split through the wall's surface. Summoning what little strength remained, he dragged himself forward, using his arms to pull his battered body toward the crack. He had long lost track of time, but that no longer mattered. He needed shelter, anything to shield him from the storm if it were to rise again.
Soon enough, he realized his wounds were too severe. He could stop the bleeding but he couldn't heal his broken bones. Yet, he refused to let his passion fade. With the time he had left, he wrote down everything he knew, every encounter, every detail of the forest, and all the speculations his mind could conjure.
It was only decades after the explorer's death that travelers stumbled upon his remains. His notes and research spread like wildfire among merchants and wanderers, revolutionizing the way they navigated the Titanwoods. Thanks to his relentless dedication and unyielding passion, paths were carved.
He became known as one of the greatest researchers of his time, his work saving countless lives and forging vital trade routes that connected distant cities. In the present day, many explorers followed in his footsteps, mapping safer roads than the treacherous one Kael now walked. Yet, despite the advancements, the original explorer was never forgotten, his legacy honored and respected by those who came after him.
At the heart of the explorer's research was a single, key discovery. The massive wall the explorer had stumbled upon in his desperate bid for survival was not a wall at all, it was the remains of a tree. A titan that had once stretched hundreds of kilometers into the sky, long dead for millions of years. Its lifeless trunk was all that remained, and the massive crack in its surface had only formed after its death.
This was the landmark Kael had gambled on as their meeting place.
His reasoning wasn't baseless. Kael had an exceptional understanding of how noble families operated, and more importantly, his grasp of human nature was nothing short of extraordinary. Though the noble family's note had only specified that the meeting would take place within the Titanwoods, Kael was certain it had to be along this particular route. Of the countless paths that wove through the Titanwoods, only this one met all the necessary criteria.
'There's no other option.'
Kael turned his head as a dull crack sounded from his neck.
"Ah… sat down for too long."
He rubbed the side of his neck, working out the stiffness.
The path to the Titan Tree wasn't just treacherous, it was downright dangerous. Ordinary travelers would never take this route willingly. Which was exactly why Kael was certain this had to be the meeting spot. Its isolation made it ideal for secrecy.
And while the risks were obvious for the average person, it was different when it came to noble families. They often went out of their way to understand the land around them, not just for establishing trade routes, but for defense as well. Knowing the terrain meant knowing where to stand when danger came, which positions to hold, and which to abandon.
That alone was enough for Kael to believe they would choose this route.
As for why he believed the giant tree was the actual meeting point, the answer was simple. The explorer who had died here was one of the earliest known ancestors of the Eireindaile family.
Noticing the faint clouds of mist escaping with each breath, Kael pulled on his gloves and stepped deeper into the forest.