>>5403831The land itself is difficult to navigate. There’s no road or clear path ahead. You and the others are forced to climb over branches, heavily wooded brush, and hilly terrain, which tires you out. This had been going on for a few hours now. You had no idea the woods were this large before you stepped foot in them.
“It shouldn’t be too much longer.” Elias mutters. “The wisp senses and follows Lady Anemone’s own magical aura. It tracks onto her, while allowing us to avoid the paths in the woods inhabited by Demonic Beasts. Or even worse, the paths that loop in on themselves.”
>“Loop in?”“I mentioned Lady Anemone has the ability to twist this forest with her illusion magic. Without the proper guidance, one could find themselves back from whence they came, even if following a straight line.”
Another hour of walking passes. Followed by another. At this point, you and the others are beginning to get the creeping sensation that something has gone awry.
“That damn thing up there has us walking in circles!” Corrine complains loudly. She must have had her hair snagged on a tree, as it currently sports leaves and branches. “Are you sure we can trust it?!”
>“She has a point…” You say to Elias. “It’s beginning to get dark, and you’ve been saying we’re nearing the village for hours now. What’s going on?”“N-nothing to fear. The amount of people walking through the woods right now must be…throwing the wisp off. Fortunately, we should be arriving momentarily…” He trails off, unconvincingly.
The party walks on for another half hour, before Nero interrupts with a shout. “For fuck sake! I put a carving into that tree three hours ago! We’re fucking lost!”
>You roughly grab Elias’ shoulder, forcing him to turn around and face you. “Remember when I said if you were trying to pull a fast one there’d be hell to pay? Well spit it out! What’s going on?!”The man looks pale and shaken, and stammers in his effort to answer you. “I-I’m sorry! This has never happened before, honest! I-it’s Lady Anemone. She’s actively warping her illusion spell and the wisp can’t keep up with it! She must be trying to throw Ivan’s group off the trail!”
>“I thought this damn spell of yours was supposed to be special!”“I-it is! But if the enemy has a Sage or a Talon with them, they’d be able to track down Anemone’s scent just like we are. For anyone who knows what they’re looking for, her magical aura would be extremely potent!”
>“So what do you suggest?” You seethe.“I-I can’t keep this up much longer. I’ve had this spell up for too long…not to mention I’m physically exhausted. We should set up camp and try again after some rest. If Anemone is still manipulating the fog, it means Ivan’s group must be lost out here somewhere too.”
>A): Agree to set up camp>B): Refuse, force the man to keep going 