Her voluptuous body rustled between her sheets. She rolled over to the walls of the carriage she was in. When she shifted her legs to a more comfortable position, something hard hit her foot.

Her years of training as a monk and the experience she had gained through traveling woke her up promptly. She raised her upper body while her forearm wrapped around her chest. A single wooden puppet was standing as it was looking to her with white shallow eyes.

A swift front kick greeted the puppet and it crashed through the walls, dispersing its limbs everywhere. Then her head flitted to the wizard girl she was sleeping with.

There, she saw another puppet, with mouth upside down, it held a sharpen wooden nails, aiming at the snow-white neck of Liliana.

She flung her arms with practiced accuracy and blew the heinous puppet. With the shills running through her spine, Shen reached out for the unconscious Liliana.

“Liliana wake up!” Shen said while shaking the girl left to right. Her panicking voice entered Liliana's ear, then she opened her eyelids sluggishly.

“What...?” Liliana said, her eyes went here and there, before landing at the back of the startled Shen. “B-behind you!” Her finger was quick to point the puppet behind the monk as she trembled in fear.

Shen's hand, once again, moved like lightning and destroyed the puppet with one hit.

“D-Darwyn! We have to check Darwyn!” Liliana said frantically. She stood up wobbly, her balance was off and her mind was still cloudy, and yet, the concern she felt for Darwyn gave her strength.

“W-wait Liliana, we should get change first, no?” Noticing that it seems colder than usual, Liliana's eyes fell unto her body. Her smooth skin was exposed with only little clothes covering it. Her face went red as she nodded at Shen's suggestion.

The two wore their clothes as fast as they can. Their hair was not even brushed properly as some of its strands stuck out like a sore thumb.

Liliana and Shen jumped out of the carriage, the cold air filled their lungs, waking their spirits and mind. Liliana fixed her pink scarf before puffing out hot air. “I'll check Darwyn.” She said at Shen who was looking around at the countless doll that was standing still.

Shen gave a quick smile of an agreement to Liliana.

Liliana started sprinting with all she got. Her feet went nimbly, avoiding the rocks and heighten soil. At one point she almost stumbled but she regained her footing in no time and arrived at the tent of Darwyn.

The gazes of the puppets surrounding them followed her movement, all have creepy eyes and eerie smiles. Her shuddering hand unfastened the tent.

The sight of Darwyn laying his big body on the ground peacefully eased the burden on her chest. But why is he wearing armor though?

She placed her hand on his plate armor and tried to shake it. “Darwyn!” Despite using all of her strength, the man didn't even budge.

Then curling her finger into a fist, she pounded the armor, causing it to make a dull metallic sound. “Darwyn!”

A low “What?” broke out from the helmet that she was so familiar with. “T-the puppets! They are back!”

Without uttering a word, Darwyn lifted himself, banging the head of Liliana with his visor.

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“Ow!” She fell down on her back as she was holding her red forehead. Darwyn ignored this and carried her with one arm and left the tent. Flailing her limbs, Liliana shouted with “At least apologize to me dammit!” she was clearly angered.

Darwyn scanned for the area and saw Shen at her fighting pose. She was facing a wooden golem, standing over 10 feet tall.

Its arm, a literal log, whistled through the air as it tried to attack Shen. She twirled sideways gracefully before launching a sundering kick to the golem's leg, chipping off pieces of woods.

Using the giant golem's body as a platform, she propelled herself into the air, even to the head of the golem, she twisted herself and did a roundhouse kick, taking off the head of the golem.

But still, it was not enough as the golem was still standing, well and alive. She stopped her rotation in the air and threw a countless punch as she descended down on the ground and after that, she did a sweep kick that was strong enough to slip the wood golem.

She jumped high, and as if imitating a crane, she landed with just one of her feet on the golem's body. A crack appeared from her foot, then it crawled, following the holes bored by her fist earlier.

For her final move, she twisted her hips as if further burrowing her foot. The wood golem exploded like there was some kind of explosive implanted to its body.

Shen calmed her breathing while clasping her hand together with closed eyes.

“Amazing...!” Liliana squealed in awe while Darwyn put her down. “Is that the only one?” Darwyn asked Shen.

Shen wiped the beads of sweat from her forehead as she smiles wryly. “I doubt that.”

“Then, what about the horse?”

Shen's fingers pointed to a certain direction. Darwyn followed it and saw the butchered horses drowning on its own blood. “Tsk.” It was the first time Liliana heard Darwyn clicking his tongue.

Clasping her staff near her chest, a thought that it could be them that died entered her mind. If they didn't have Shen, then...

“W-what should we do!” She didn't even hide her scared expression as she looked around restless.

“Wha!” A big, bulky hand held her head.

“Calm down.” His voice, was low and cold, much like the temperature, but it shook the anxiety that was threatening her. She inhaled deeply, then exhaled.

“Something close to nature must be the one behind this.” He was confident that it was not a celestial, fiend, or undead that was haunting them. Because he could detect those anomalies after all.

“Is there a place that we didn't properly explore yesterday?” Darwyn asked as he gazed at the two.

“It's the barn!” It was Liliana who said that. As a wizard, she has top-notch memory, as it was useful when memorizing spells.

“I see, then we will go to that then.” Taking off his sword and shield, Darwyn once again spoke “We should hurry, their numbers are not getting any smaller.”

The puppets multiplied each second and more wood golem came behind the trees. It was still dark, the moon was still halfway from setting while the sun was nowhere to be found.

They wasted no second as they ran. They could see dozens of puppets appearing from the abandoned houses that passed through them.

Liliana was visibly tired while trying to keep up with the two. She didn't eat any food so her energy was not replenished, she was not physically trained just like the two of her party members. Liliana raised her chin, trying to grasp the air with her mouth.

Noticing her jagged breathing, Darwyn looked behind and saw the terrible state of Liliana.

“Hop on me.” He said. Liliana remained quiet but she jumped and laced her thin arms around Darwyn's neck.

While bobbing up and down, Liliana brushed the hair that was sticking to her sweaty neck, then she checked her back.

Dozens of puppets were following them. They are not hindered by their small legs as they rattled their way towards them rapidly.

“Raia...Ab...Pruina...! Cold Spray!”

A blue haze of frost fell into the ground, freezing everything it touched. The ground was covered in thin ice, making it slippery to the chasing puppets.

“Adventure for a breakfast, truly an adventurer thing to do.” Swinging the back of her hand, Shen dismantled a puppet that flung itself to her.

“This rarely happens” With a cleave of his sword, Darwyn destroyed several puppets at once. His body moved intensely and the poor Liliana on her back swayed with great motion.

“Kya! T-tell me first before you attack okay?” Liliana said. It was strange, if it was the usual her, she would have shouted and complained, but this time, she didn't have the strength to properly retort.

“I will,” Darwyn said shortly.

The barn was in a ruined state just like all the structures in this place. When they arrived, the party felt a rumble at their feet.

The ground spurted its soil in the air, then revealed a giant tree-like monster. A Treant. A guardian and a protector of the forest, why was it here?

It was huge, bigger than the wood golem, and certainly bigger compared to them. The Treant's dark and rotten body quacked.

Its branch arm whipped the party. Darwyn raised his shield and blocked the incoming attack, he was pushed slightly. He felt the shock throughout his body and he worries that Liliana was affected by it too.

“Are you alright?” His eyes were fixated on the Treant. Liliana muttered weakly with “Somehow.”

“Get down, I will handle this one. Take a look inside the barn. And if there's something in it, you either deal with or wait until I'm finished on this one.” His voice overbearing with authority ordered the two.

“B-but...”

“Please do.” Shen grabbed the hesitating and dragged her into the barn. The Treant's attention was captured by the two as it faced them.

“I will be your opponent.” He dashed towards the Treant and bashed his heavy shield unto its leg. The wood was shattered, spreading its rotten barks to the ground.

Maybe if it has something like a lung, it would let out a terrifying scream when it widens its razor-sharp mouth. The Treant glared at him while convulsing in an eerie manner.

It was not the nature of Treant to attack people or other beings. Just what happened here. He thought.

Either way, he has to defeat this monster as soon as he can. He has not only one, but two life to protect. Taking one step closer to the Treant, his unwavering resolve matched the anger of the sentient tree.