Another day passed since the little griffon was killed. A day of brisk walking north, where the forest grew denser and older with every step.
It was no longer just towering trees, but twisted entities, their trunks covered in purple and gray moss that pulsed with a faint, strange light under the dim sunlight that barely seeped through the thick, intertwined leaves above.
The Forest of Ancient Whispers, as Celia called it, a name that was not just a designation, but an accurate description of the atmosphere saturated with anticipation and heavy silence, broken only by incomprehensible sounds, as if breaths caught between branches or memories echoing in the air.
Theo was moving through this surreal scene, his body immersed in endless training.
Maintaining a continuous mana flow was no longer a conscious challenge, but began to become an internal rhythm, a whisper of energy beneath his skin harmonizing with his cautious steps.
He felt how this flow, as Celia instilled it in his mind, made him more sensitive to his environment.
He no longer saw the forest only with his eyes, but felt it, felt the faint mana emanating from the strange moss, felt the silence not as an absence of sound, but as a heavy presence, as if the very ground beneath his feet held ancient and painful memories.
Celia, like his silent shadow, followed him, her eyes coldly scanning the place, but her real focus was on Theo, on his subtle development.
"Better," she said suddenly, her voice cutting through the silence like an ice blade. "You're starting to feel it, not just think about it, but feeling alone isn't enough, you have to learn how to read these whispers, how to distinguish between a peaceful tree's mana flow and a lurking predator's mana flow."
Theo stopped, pointing to his eyes and then to his ears, in silent questioning of how to distinguish.
"Ordinary senses deceive, especially in places like these," Celia replied, as if reading his unspoken question.
"Shadows can hide a monster, and silence can be more dangerous than a roar. Mana does not lie, the mana flow of a hungry creature differs from the flow of a frightened or curious creature. The flow of a magical creature carries a unique presence."
"Today, you will focus on this. Close your eyes intermittently as you walk, rely on the 'flow' to guide your steps, to identify obstacles, to feel any other presence."
It seemed crazy, walking blindfolded in a forest like this, but Theo nodded.
Trusting Celia was not an option, but a necessity for survival.
He began to apply the command, closing his eyes for a few seconds at a time, trying to mentally map his surroundings based on what he felt through the mana flow.
It was confusing and difficult at first. He stumbled a few times over roots he hadn't 'seen' with the mana flow, and almost collided with a tree trunk, but he continued, forcing himself to trust this new sensation, to hone his ability to 'see' without eyes.
While Theo struggled with his new training, Celia resumed her lessons on the dangers lurking in this cursed land. "The Basilisk," she said in a calm voice that carried weight. "Do you remember what I said about its gaze?" Theo nodded. "But it's deeper than just a killer gaze. These creatures are not just natural monsters that evolved here. Many of them, I believe, are a legacy of Eilandar. Specifically, from their reckless experiments in manipulating life and dark magic."
She looked around at the distorted forest. "It is said that the sorcerers of Eilandar, in their quest for power and immortality, tried to merge the essence of primal beasts with pure mana, or even with captive souls."
"The Basilisk, with its magic-resistant skin and deadly gaze, may be the result of one of these experiments gone out of control, a beast created to be a weapon, then left to proliferate in the dark ruins after the fall of its creators."
Theo felt a chill run down his spine, it wasn't from the forest air, manufactured monsters?
"That's why," Celia continued, "fighting it requires more than just strength or speed, you must understand its artificial nature, its weaknesses that may not be obvious. Yes, avoiding its gaze is vital, even the young ones, as I mentioned, their gaze can cause paralysis, severe dizziness, or a magical illness that makes you weak and helpless."
"And its venom, even if not immediately fatal in the young, can cause excruciating pain or tissue necrosis if not treated quickly."
She paused and pointed to a cluster of nearby bushes. Their leaves were gray and brittle, as if made of stone. "Signs," she said. "Basilisks, especially young ones who haven't mastered controlling their gaze yet, may cause partial petrification of plants or small animals they stare at. The closer we get to a lair, the more these signs increase."
They continued walking, and Theo was now not only focusing on training his mana senses, but also looking for these ominous signs.
He already noticed some petrified branches here and there, and a small mouse frozen in a desperate running pose, half stone and half starting to decompose.
The forest grew darker, and the trees more twisted.
Crumbling stone structures began to appear occasionally, remnants of walls or columns covered with moss and roots, silent testimonies to the lost civilization of Eilandar.
The smell of decay and dampness grew stronger, mixed with another faint but distinct smell, the cold, strange scent of reptiles.
"We're close," Celia whispered. "Stay focused. Close your eyes now for longer, feel the place."
Theo obeyed, closed his eyes, and allowed the mana flow to be his guide.
He felt the cold emanating from the ancient stones, he felt the stagnant and slightly distorted mana in the air, and he felt another presence.
It wasn't large, but it carried a strangely cold and regular mana signature, like a living machine.
It was still, about thirty meters ahead, near the larger source of cold.
He slowly opened his eyes, they had reached the remains of what looked like a small watchtower or an ancient shrine, half collapsed and covered with partially petrified ivy.
The creeping smell was stronger here, and more shiny black scales were scattered on the cracked stone ground.
Near the dark entrance of the collapsed tower, Theo saw another source of ominous signs, a wild rabbit, completely frozen in a posture of fear, its glassy eyes staring in eternal terror towards the entrance.
Then, from the deep shadows of the entrance, a swift, low movement slithered out.
It wasn't large, perhaps Theo's arm's length, but its shape was unmistakable.
A long serpentine body covered in shiny black scales like obsidian, a small triangular head with large, yellow eyes that glowed with a cold, unnatural sparkle.
It had no legs, but it moved with astonishing speed on the stone ground.
'Basilisk'
The small creature stopped at the tower entrance, raised its head slightly, and its yellow eyes rotated around its surroundings, as if scanning the area.
It didn't seem to have noticed Theo and Celia, who were hidden behind a collapsed wall at a relatively safe distance.
"Small," Celia whispered, confirming Theo's observation. "But don't underestimate it, even its bite can be dangerous, and its gaze, even if it doesn't kill, will disable you enough to finish the job, remember the training, don't rely on your eyes. Feel its movement, its mana flow."
"Its skin is resistant, but not entirely impenetrable, especially at the joints or belly if you can flip it. Most importantly, don't let it focus on you."
Theo felt adrenaline begin to flow, mixing with the continuous mana in his body.
This was the real test of today's training. Facing a beast he had to fight almost blind.
He slowly drew his daggers, the cold metal touching his skin.
He took a deep breath, then closed his eyes for a moment, focusing on the cold mana signature of the small Basilisk. He felt it move slightly, exploring its immediate surroundings.
He nodded to Celia, then began to move, not directly towards the Basilisk, but sideways, low, using the scattered rubble as cover.
He kept his eyes only partially open, focusing his gaze on the ground in front of him or on the rocks he was moving behind, relying primarily on his mana sense to track the Basilisk's location and movements.
The Basilisk was still at the entrance, seemingly unaware of their presence yet.
Perhaps its focus was on something else, or perhaps its mana sensing ability was still weak in its youth.
Theo approached until he was about ten meters away, behind a cracked stone pillar.
He felt the Basilisk begin to move again, slowly slithering outwards, towards the petrified rabbit, perhaps to feed on it or for some other incomprehensible reason.
This was his chance.
He closed his eyes completely this time, trusted the mana flow, and darted from behind the pillar, not with a direct attack, but with a swift motion to throw a small stone he found beside him towards the opposite direction of the Basilisk.
He heard the sound of the stone hitting the ground, and felt the Basilisk's mana suddenly change, transforming from calm exploration to sudden alert.
He felt it turn quickly towards the source of the sound.
In that moment when the creature's attention was diverted, Theo partially opened his eyes and lunged towards the Basilisk from the side, his left dagger ready to apply 'drain touch' not for damage, but to try and disrupt the creature's mana flow further, while his right dagger targeted the middle of its long body.
The Basilisk was faster than he expected, turning in a fraction of a second, its yellow eyes gleaming with a dangerous glint.
Theo did not stare directly into them, but focused on the shiny black scales.
But even a侧視, the feeling of the cold focus of those eyes, was enough to send a wave of dizziness and nausea through his body, his knees almost betraying him.
"Resist!" Celia screamed in his mind. "Don't let it affect you!"
Theo forced himself to ignore the dizziness, and completed his attack.
He passed the left dagger close to the Basilisk's head, and felt a slight disturbance in the creature's mana.
At the same time, he thrust the right dagger towards its body.
The dagger bounced off the hard scales with a faint metallic sound. They were stronger than he imagined, but the blow angered the Basilisk.
It opened its small mouth to reveal tiny fangs, and hissed sharply, then lunged at Theo with astonishing speed.
Theo retreated quickly, relying on the mana flow to guide his steps backward and dodge the swift lunge.
He felt the air displaced as he narrowly avoided the poisonous fangs. The dizziness still left him slightly unbalanced.
"The environment!" Celia reminded him.
They were now fighting among the scattered ruins of the tower.
Uneven ground, full of scattered stones and cracks. Theo remembered Celia's words about the Basilisk's limited speed on difficult terrain.
He began to move erratically, jumping over rocks, and sliding around collapsed pillars, forcing the Basilisk to constantly change direction, trying to slow it down.
The Basilisk chased him with an angry hiss, its body slithering with astonishing agility between the obstacles, but it was clear that it was not as fast as it was on flat ground.
The Basilisk tried to spit something viscous and green towards Theo, but Theo managed to dodge it by ducking behind a low wall.
'Poison'.
Theo realized he couldn't keep dodging forever.
He had to find a way to hurt it.
He closed his eyes again, focusing on the Basilisk's mana flow as it moved behind the wall.
He felt it stop for a moment, perhaps looking for him.
In that moment, Theo jumped over the wall, not attacking, but landing heavily with both feet on the middle of the Basilisk's long body.
He hoped to pin it down or inflict internal damage.
The attack surprised the Basilisk, and it hissed in pain and anger, twisting violently under Theo's feet, trying to free itself or bite him.
Theo felt the hard scales under his boots, and the astonishing strength of the twisting muscles.
He couldn't hold it for long.
The Basilisk slipped out from under him, turned quickly, and its yellow eyes stared directly into Theo's face this time.
There was no time to completely dodge the gaze.
Theo felt an icy wave sweep through his body, and a feeling of paralysis began to creep into his limbs.
His legs froze for a moment, and he felt his arms become heavy as lead.
The dizziness returned with greater intensity, and his stomach almost turned over.
"Theo!" Celia's cry was sharp this time, carrying a rare concern.
He saw the Basilisk open its mouth again, ready to deliver a fatal bite while he was helpless. But before it reached him, something silver flashed in the air. Celia's dagger. She hadn't moved from her spot, but her wind-elemental dagger flew with incredible speed, piercing the little Basilisk's head with pinpoint accuracy, pinning it to the stone ground.
The Basilisk's body stopped moving immediately. The yellow eyes faded, losing their cold sparkle.
The effects of paralysis and dizziness slowly began to fade from Theo, leaving behind a feeling of weakness and cold.
It took several minutes for him to regain full control of his limbs.
He looked at the Basilisk's corpse pinned by Celia's dagger, then at Celia who was now approaching him, her face cold as usual, but her eyes held a sharp evaluative gaze.
"You failed," she said simply, her voice devoid of any blame or pity, just a cold fact. "You let it focus on you, you relied on the luck of dodging instead of a clear strategy, and your last attack was reckless and ineffective."
"If I had been a fraction of a second slower, you would be dead now, or worse. The paralysis you felt is just a glimpse of the Basilisk's true power. Learn from this mistake, Theo. Relying on others to save you is not always an option."
Theo stood in silence, feeling shame and frustration engulf him.
He had failed, almost died because of a simple mistake, because of a moment of recklessness. Celia's words were harsh, but they were true.
"Collect the scales and fangs, and the venom sac if it's still intact," Celia ordered him coldly, pointing to the corpse.
"Even failure can provide resources. Then we will continue. We have a long way to go, and the dangers will only get worse."
Theo began the now familiar task, collecting the useful parts of the dead beast.
He felt weak, not just physically from the effects of the gaze, but mentally as well.
But beneath the frustration, a new determination was forming.
He would not fail again, he would master seeing without eyes, he would master the flow, he would become
more efficient, more ruthless.
He would not give any beast, or anyone, another chance to threaten his life.