The forest got quieter the deeper they walked.
Lucen didn't like it.
The cold had teeth now. Wind moved wrong, like it curled between trees looking for something warm to bite.
Even the snow felt heavier. Not deeper. Just… more there. Denser.
His boots sank less with each step, like the ground had turned from powder to stone.
"Feels staged," he muttered.
Varik didn't answer.
Lucen adjusted his gloves. Checked his mana bar.
[138 / 148]
Not bad.
He stepped over a frost-covered log. Tall, rotted out. Didn't think twice.
Then his system pinged hard.
[Environmental Trigger Detected]
[Warning: Summoning Glyph Activated – Type Unknown]
Lucen blinked.
"What?"
The ground beneath the log flared blue.
A circle pulsed outward, fast, wide. Sharp lines carved themselves into the snow.
And then everything went quiet.
The air stopped moving.
Varik stopped walking.
Lucen said, "You knew, didn't you."
Varik tilted his head slightly. "You stepped on it."
