The Weeping Woods was a place of mystery and horror. They stood as guardians that protected the town of Stratford for centuries, but that was until the wolves attacked.

These humanoid-shaped ancient trees produced terror-inducing sounds that imitated people crying out loud in misery. This was what had kept the beasts from approaching the town in the past.

Adam stood at the edge of the forest, dressed in a black hooded cloak. He curiously gazed at the trees that were packed closely together, creating a maze of shadows and narrow pathways.

A cold gust of wind blew, causing the branches to creak and groan, producing sounds that echoed through the woods like the wails of lost souls.

How did these trees develop such a strange shape? The youth thought to himself in amazement. The following moment, he weaved hand signs and cast a spell after creating the magic circle. Rank 2 Spell: Shadow Cloak!

Shadows swirled around Adam and formed a layer around him, completely concealing him in the darkness.

Adam lowered his head and took a look at himself, nodding in approval. Hmm not bad! The last expert's memories contained many spells that used the power of shadows. I'm beginning to like this magic...

He slightly crouched his legs and vaulted toward the nearest tree branch. Upon landing, he observed the spell yet again.

I see... Shadow Cloak only conceals the visual by blending in with the shadows. Sound and smell can still be sensed by others. Well, this is not entirely bad for a Rank 2 Spell.

He then jumped toward the next tree branch, trying to produce as little sound as possible as The made his way into the depths of the Weeping Woods.

Kenley had mentioned to him that these forests used to be in the territory of the Howlett Family. He believed that this family was the first victim of the werewolf case since they had completely stopped showing up since the first beast wave.

The family members used to come to Stratford very often and had a very good reputation amongst the townsfolk. Their absence led the people to believe that they might have already perished at the hands of the werewolf.

However, Adam had to confirm this with his own eyes. That is why he had chosen to venture into the woods alone at night. He wanted to visit the Howlett Estate.

Snowflakes fell thickly around him, muffling the sound of his footsteps on the branches. The trees were tall and ancient, their branches creaking and groaning every time he landed on them.

No beasts or werewolves in sight till now, he thought to himself. But this place is strangely eerie. It feels as if the fear is seeping into my skin...

Furthermore, he was also receiving slight warning signals within his mind. This was what his sixth sense-which he had grown to deeply trust over the years-was telling him.

Adam's expression turned solemn. Something's not right in this place. The whole forest seems... suffocating.

The forest was alive with strange noises. He felt as if the very woods were mourning. The sound of the cold wind sweeping through the forest seemed like the chorus of weeping souls.

Truly an apt name, he thought. I wonder why the Howlett Family decided to settle down here. Were they crazy?

After traveling for almost a mile, Adam was finally able to hear the distance howls of the wolves.

He landed on a thick branch, gazing into the distance with a grim expression. He weaved a series of complex hand signs and sacrificed a few material components before casting two more spells.

Rank 2 Spell: Invisible

Rank 2 Spell: Silence

These two spells belonged to the School of Illusion. Furthermore, it took Adam a great deal of effort to procure the material component for the Invisible spell-eyelashes of the Faint Clam. Now Adam was completely invisible. Moreover, with the help of the Silence spell, no sound would be created within or pass through the radius of the twenty-feet sphere.

All that remains is concealing my smell. Unfortunately, I don't have any spells to help with that, the youth sighed before cautiously venturing deeper into the woods.

The trees began to close in, the path narrowing and becoming more treacherous. The oppressive weight of the forest bore down on him.

He couldn't help but think to himself in slight alarm, The deeper I go into these woods, the greater the sense of danger I feel. This place is definitely hiding something dangerous. Or else, it's impossible for a Rank 2 Magus such as myself to feel this way.

Adam's spiritual intuition, or rather his sixth sense, greatly surpassed the Magi of the same rank thanks to his possessing the white lotus.

So if he was able to sense something that alarmed him, there was bound to be something perilous up ahead.

Suddenly, a particularly loud howl echoed through the trees. Although this one was quite closer than before, Adam wasn't surprised because he had already sensed it through his

Sphere of Resonance.

Countless packs of wolves, each containing at least six or more of these ferocious beasts, patrolled the forest. They were not mindlessly wandering through the woods, instead, it seemed like they were guarding something.

Their movements seem very coordinated. Adam's expression turned extremely solemn. Are they being controlled? Or are they intelligent enough to be doing this on such a large scale? Probably not...

As he continued to silently move toward the depths of the forest, the number of wolves increased significantly. The youth was greatly shocked by the sheer number of these creatures.

He finally arrived at a clearing, and what he witnessed there caused him to be greatly

surprised.

At the center of this clearing stood a large estate that now lay in ruins. Snow-covered debris and splintered wood marked the remnants of what used to be a sturdy manor.

Its walls had been torn apart, and its roof had caved in, leaving behind only a skeletal structure. Countless wolves prowled the perimeter of this destroyed manor.

The Howlett Family's estate! The youth thought to himself.

It seems like they were indeed the first victims of the beast attacks. But if so, then where did the

werewolf come from?

More and more questions popped into his mind the more he thought about it. Suddenly, his pupils constricted when he saw a figure emerge from the building.

A werewolf! Adam thought in alarm. This was the first time he had seen such a creature.

The werewolf stepped out of the building, looking around with its bloodthirsty eyes. Its

nostrils flared seveal times.

Seemingly, it had caught scent of something... or rather someone.

Suddenly, the werwolf turned its head in a particular direction, a perdaotry growl escaping its

lips. And the direction it was looking toward...

Was none other than the branch Adam was standing on!