Something had changed. The dissonance affecting Eugene’s senses was slowly growing more prevalent as he moved forward.

However, he couldn’t clearly tell where this dissonance was coming from. He had repeatedly checked with Akasha, but it didn’t seem to be a spell. Was this a side-effect of the demonic power? But if it were something like that, there was no way that Eugene wouldn’t be able to recognize it.

“...Sir Eugene,” Mer suddenly spoke up. She had been gazing up ahead with an expression that looked like she had taken a mouthful of sand. “This really isn’t a spell, right?”

“Yep,” Eugene replied, glancing down at Akasha, which he was holding in his hand. Akasha’s power enabled him to understand spells by allowing him to see through the secrets of the magic behind them. This forest wasn’t under the effect of any spells.

“...However, something is strange,” Mer continued as she gazed around at their surroundings with narrowed eyes. “It feels like we’re being herded somewhere?”

“We are?” Eugene asked in surprise.

“It’s not just you, Sir Eugene. Whether it’s mana or demonic power… all the ‘power’ in this forest is being gathered in one location,” Mer deduced.

Eugene glanced down at the compass he was still holding in his other hand. This was the compass that pointed towards the densest concentration of demonic power, but the location it was currently pointing at wasn’t the center of the forest. If one were to rely solely on this compass, one would arrive at a completely different location than expected.

And if one didn’t have this compass? They would be able to find their way through the forest with a different method, but those who had trained in the martial arts often grew over-reliant on their trained body and senses. Relying on such a method to make progress would usually end up being a mistake for first-timers. Only after a few such failures would their now-honed senses assist them in finding the right path, even in a densely tree-packed forest.

However, when in an artificially ‘tangled’ forest like this, it was even possible for one's senses to be influenced. It was so subtle that Eugene almost hadn’t noticed it, but for someone like him, who was quick to grasp any situation, this whole situation felt like a blatant trap.

‘...The problem is that I might not be the only one caught in this,’ Eugene thought regretfully.

Spell or not, this ‘trick’ had been cast over a wide area.

‘To attract all of the energies in this forest…. Is that in order to neutralize the Knights of the Black Lion stationed around the center of the forest? What about the Captains who...