White Forest O'lik Daraxt 1

She didn't know how many days have been passed since Dan Oh joined Hwon's entourage in the Journey to the north. She could not count the number of times the sun had risen and set again, all she knew was when it was day and night here. Having passed through so many forests, mountains, rivers, valleys and hills the group now enters an area of watery plains that looks so vast as far as the eye can see. All colors, sounds and lights seem to disappear in this place. Only silence filled the air around here, all around here looking so gray.

"Here it is, the white forest" muttered Woon quietly to the other traveling companions Who accompany him.

"Why did you call it as a forest? There's not a single tree here, I think it's more appropriate to call it a swamp here" commented Dan Oh in a whisper. Somehow the tense and creepy atmosphere in this place makes the girl feel afraid to make a loud noise, she is worried that if her voice is too loud, it will wake up a creature that is somehow and somewhere would get up from its place.

"take a closer look..." muttered Woon soundly.

Dan Oh didn't understand the prince's words at first but she kept her eyes focused and looked around with her squinting eyes. She is trying to catch anything she might hadn't realized before.

The girl realized that in the pool of swamp water that looked dark there were dozens of large gray logs that had pointed noses and closed eyes. The log was filled with dark green moss. The wooden face had wide and large teeth in the shape of yellowish brown bars like dried foliage while its ears stuck out and were pointed. Its muscles and hairs are formed from the moss-green roots that surround the entire body. The log also has pointed and very sharp fingernails. The length of each chunk may reach ten to thirty meters. Its skin looks wrinkled but also very strong.

"Wha... What's that?" Dan Oh approached and held onto Woon's sleeve tightly. She had a goosebumps at the scene in front of her. She was like witnessing dozens of giant corpses from creepy trees.

"O'lik daraxt," Siera replied quietly. They were the only tree gentiles that took sided with Binju the black witch's power. They are currently fast asleep in the swamp, but if anyone goes into the swamp or steps on the swamp even for just a little, then O'lik daraxt will immediately open its eyes and it will be a nightmare for anyone who meets them in a waking state.

"Never reveal anything about your secret intentionally or unintentionally here, they can hear you," the princess explained to Dan Oh.

"What do you mean?" asked the girl confusedly and scared. Siera looked at the girl seriously and brought her face closer to Dan Oh then whispered in her ear.

"The tree here is a slave of Binju" she whispered slowly almost inaudible. Dan Oh just nodded.

"Watch your steps, do not touch the swamp" Gwi gave a stern warning in a soft tone. All the members of the entourage nodded quietly, not wanting to wake O'lik Daraxt and get in contact with them.

By passing through this white forest was something they were really eager to avoid, yet this was the only path they could take to heading toward north. They all continued to be vigilant and walked tensely. Dan Oh walked slowly while continuing to cling on to Woon and holding the prince's sleeve, she hid her face onto Woon's back. She didn't want to look towards the swamp that seemed to be sucking herself in at any moment. The two of them walked in the front row

Meanwhile Gwi turned his head towards Siera behind him and extended his hand to the princess. He tried to help the princess pass through the walkway so she would not stumbel and fall. He also thoughts that it was possible if princess Siera was also feel horrified when she look the direction of O'lik daraxt who were asleep like the earth girl in front of him.

"I'm not afraid," said the princess slowly looking at the werewolf without an expression. Gwi lowered his hand and turned around, continuing his footsteps carefully but suddenly he felt a pull on the back of his shirt. The princess was holding his back shirt with her two fingers. This light gesture that may not have any meaning for Siera is able to bring a smile on the lips of the handsome werewolf.

Meanwhile at the very back Ryu seemed panicked and clung to the female commander in front of him. He held onto both of Key's shoulders tightly. Ryu doesn't realize that the woman's cheeks are red because of her embarrasement. He makes the woman being nervous. The young guard was only focused on his surroundings, he kept turning around out of fear that any of O'lik daraxt would wake up without his knowledge. Ryu wasn't focused on his footsteps, he wasn't aware that there was a root looming from the ground and made the man stumble and lose his balance.

"wooh woooh....!" suddenly Ryu's loud voice came from the back row. The man fell on to the ground and one of his hands plunged into the swamp accidentally.

"ups.," he said softly and immediately stood up straight. His five opponents turned around and looked around warily. But at that moment only the silence that they saw, there was not a single movement from within the swamp. Even just a gust of wind, the movement of leaves or the sound of small animals is not at all heard in this place. It's feel like a silence before the storm.

"nggggeeeeeeekkkk" suddenly they heard the sound of tree trunks clustered together. Not far from where they were one tree trunk had just opened its eyes, then followed by two other trees and then all the trees woke up together.

"Run!" commanded Woon to everyone. They ran with all of their might trying to get out of this forest, but no matter how fast their footsteps, it would not be easy to get through this forest quickly, this place was too vast.

"Kratak kratak..." Suddenly a voice appeared from behind them. All the logs had stood towering and lined up to form a forest of seemingly endless gray trees. When all the trees stood up, the top of the creature was not visible from the ground. O'lik daraxt's height appears to tower through space.

"Dodge it guys!" cried Woon suddenly.

There was a branch of wood that moved quickly towards the horde of entourage from the front. Like a rapidly spreading root, the wooden branches coiled around each other and formed a pointed tip that slid ready to pierce whatever hit and block its path.

" Jlebb!!" the tip of the pointed branch pierced the ground where Woon's entourage stood with a loud bang. The six of them nimbly dodged the wooden branches that suddenly appeared and attacked them blindly.

Not having had time to breathe a sigh of relief with the attack, suddenly there was a creeping root that emerged from the ground and grabbed violently towards the six of them in turn.

"plakk!!" The tip of the root hit the ground hardly because Gwi had just managed to avoid hits attack by jumping highly, but then another root attacked him and hit the werewolf's body until it was thrown hard into a tree standing upright nearby. The roots of the tree attacked like a giant snake raging and moved its head around crazily. Gwi was thrown so far from where he originally stood.

"Gwi!!" cried Princess Siera frantically to see her loyal bodyguard had fall. Gwi tried hardly to get back to his feet while holding his stomach that hurt from being hit hard by the root.

"ksksksksksk!!!" The root immediately changed the direction of its movement quickly towards princess Siera's. The giant root was preparing to hit the princess' body.

"Clakk!!" Ryu's axe make a loud sound after managed to split the root quickly and just as the root almost hit Siera's body. The piece of root fell stiffly to the ground near the princess' feet. Without the awareness of the group of human, the root pieces just moved slowly and re-entered the swamp.

"Stay focus and be careful everyone," Woon said to all his colleagues who were standing far apart as they avoided each other's rampaging wooden rod attacks earlier. Woon looked for a moment towards Dan Oh to ascertain the girl's condition, she seemed fine, then turned his gaze towards Gwi who was now able to stand up perfectly. Each member of the group exchanged glances and made sure that his partner was in all good condition.

"hhngggg..... Dem... Dem...". Suddenly there was a loud bang on the ground. Like something very big and heavy was walking closer. The group of O'lik daraxt who had awakened from their sleep was walking around a small group of humans who were not even as tall as the soles of their feet. All the members of the entourage immediately gathered and approached their friend together. They stood on their backs and were on alert for any follow-up attacks that might be imminent soon.

"So the descendants of the Hwon kingdom are actually still alive?" came a hoarse and heavy thunderous voice emerging from above the sky. It appears that one of O'lik daraxt was talking. The gray trees kept approaching them. They had wrinkles of wood all over their trunks and long roots hanging all over the trunk. The long and pointed part of their hands and fingers clearly hung in front of Hwon's royal entourage. The trees stopped its steps and stopped about five meters from the group of humas whose standing on standby.

" I heard that Hwon Kingdom was the owner of the first crystal, is the crystal yours my prince?" asked the tree to Woon in a big and hoarse voice.

"What's your business?" asked the prince in a flat voice.

The tree crackled loudly while flashing its smile making part of its face seem more pointed with the eye part disappearing in between the two wooden protrusions that looked out. The tree that questioned prince Woon was the largest tree and appears to be the leader of the O'lik Daraxt gentiles. The creature grinned and revealed its sharp and creepy teeth.

"Hand over the crystal, then we will let you out alive," the creature's leader told prince Woon.

"I won't! I know you are Binju's slaves" the prince balked at the creature's request and spoke in a threatening tone.

"Then there's no other option," said the tree flatly.