The Outergod's Avatar-Chapter 39: The Maw Forest

"Hey, Izikel. Wake up."

Lyzah’s voice cut through the haze of his dreams like a blade through silk. She shook him once, firmly but not unkindly.

"We’re here."

Izikel stirred, groaning as he blinked awake. The canvas above him was painted in shades of amber and dying blue. The wagon had stopped.

Rubbing sleep from his eyes, he sat up slowly and squinted into the late afternoon light. Trees towered around them, stretching toward the heavens like ancient watchmen, their dense leaves casting shadows over the forest floor. The sun was setting, but it was still warm .

Around him, soldiers moved with the slow, practiced rhythm of exhaustion. Some had already dismounted, letting out soft sighs as they found spots to rest beneath the trees. Others unpacked supplies or unbuckled armor with stiff fingers.

Izikel stepped out of the wagon and stretched with a wince. His back popped, and he yawned loudly.

"I’m so tired."

Lyzah rolled her eyes. "Tired? From what, exactly? You’ve been sleeping the whole way here. You’re absurdly lazy, you know that?"

Izikel didn’t rise to the bait. Her jabs were nothing new. Instead, something else caught his attention — something strange and beautiful.

A few paces away, near the base of a tree, protruding from the earth like jagged roots, was a cluster of crystalline spires. They shimmered in the fading light, their deep-blue glow pulsing faintly as if alive. The sight was mesmerizing — not just for its beauty, but for its familiarity.

"What... are those?" he asked, stepping closer.

Sophia followed his gaze. "You really don’t know?"

"They look like... the Divine minerals. The kind we use back in the village for trade."

"They are the same," she said. "Well, before refinement. Raw Divine crystal. They form naturally out here."

Izikel crouched, studying the spires. The edges were sharp and flawless, and light seemed to move within them, flowing like liquid trapped in glass.

"I thought these things came from caves. Mines. Or Hidden vaults."

"They’re born here," she said, "drawn up from the ground by divine energy. That’s why people come to this forest — despite the danger. But only fools try to harvest them."

A new voice joined the conversation.

"Or the desperate," said Raynoel, emerging from nowhere like a wraith. His armor made no sound, and his eyes were cold and watchful.

Izikel stood, a little startled. "Raynoel."

The veteran soldier nodded once. "Many have tried to harvest the crystals as they are. Few returned. Most don’t even die cleanly."

Izikel looked around. More of the glowing spires dotted the forest edge, hiding in the roots of trees or nestled among the rocks. Some looked small, like coins pushed into soil. Others were massive and twisted like frozen lightning.

Raynoel stepped past him and narrowed his eyes at the forest.

"These crystals can’t be mined with ordinary tools. Steel and iron only shatter against them. You’d need something infused with magic or forged by the old ways. But the real danger isn’t the crystals..."

He turned to Izikel.

"It’s what guards them."

Izikel tilted his head with a curious expression

Raynoel’s voice was dark and grim,

"The Maw Beasts"

"They infest this place like ticks. Blind, but don’t let that fool you. Their hearing is beyond anything natural. They can pick up a footstep from a mile away. And once they catch your scent..." He trailed off. "They don’t forget."

A heavy silence followed. Even the rustling leaves seemed to quiet, as if the forest itself was listening.

Izikel glanced at the crystal again, suddenly feeling like it was a trap — like bait laid out in a hunter’s snare.

"So... using a pickaxe would be suicide," he muttered.

Raynoel smiled grimly. "That’s one way to put it. You’d better tread carefully, my lord. A single careless sound can end everything. Many things could go wrong out here."

The words hung in the air like smoke. Was that a warning? Or a threat? Izikel couldn’t tell. Raynoel turned on his heel and strode away, calling a few soldiers to follow him deeper into the camp.

Izikel watched him go, his thoughts a storm.

He looked again at the glowing crystals, so casually ignored by the men around him — as if they were cursed. A single cluster could buy a home, a business, maybe even a large land back in the village. And yet, here they lay, untouched. Forbidden fruit rooted in soil soaked with danger.

He stared deeper into the forest. As twilight faded, the blue glow intensified. It was like the forest was dotted with stars, each one glittering with silent temptation.

’This world is terrifying’

"Lord Izikel," came a voice. It was Felvin, carrying a small bundle. "It’s time to eat."

Izikel hesitated, then nodded. "...I’m coming."

Dinner was a quiet affair — dried meat, stale bread, and water. No one complained. Hunger had long dulled Izikel’s sense of taste. Afterward, the camp settled into rest. Some slept. Others sat with their backs to trees, whispering in low voices or sharpening their weapons.

Above them, the moon rose — not three, as was sometimes seen in this world, but one. A silver disc hanging alone in the sky. A special night.

Under the glow of the lone Lunar Moon, the Saints began to move.

Fifty men remained behind to guard the camp. The rest prepared to cross the forest path. Armor was fastened, weapons checked, final prayers whispered to whatever gods listened.

Izikel stood at the forest’s edge again, heart pounding.

"It’s even worse at night," he said. "Are we really going into the forest?"

"We’re not going into the forest," Sophia replied, adjusting the strap on her shoulder. "We’re taking the straight path that cuts through the edge. Quicker than circling around."

"But... wouldn’t it be safer in the daylight?" he asked. "At least we’d be able to see."

"That’s why we move at night," she said. "The Maw Beasts are blind — it gives us the edge. And besides..." She gestured to the men, now lined in formation, eyes shining like wolves in the dark. "We are children of the Lunar Moon. This is our time."

Another soldier nearby, older and scarred, gave a sharp nod. "Every man here can spot a rabbit in the dark, my lord. We train for this."

The company moved forward, slow and silent. The moonlight was pale and ethereal, casting silver shadows over the path ahead.

Izikel matched their pace, careful with every step. No idle chatter. No jokes. Every snapped twig beneath their boots was a threat, every breath held just a little too long.

The forest loomed around them like a living thing. And somewhere in the dark, hidden behind beauty and stillness, the Maw Beasts waited.