I woke up before the sun rose.
Not because I had rested enough, but because my body could no longer truly relax. It was as if my mind had understood that this was not the moment to sleep deeply.
I opened my eyes and spent a few seconds staring at the simple ceiling of the inn where we had stopped for a few hours. The silence in the room was not comforting. It was temporary.
I sat up in bed and ran a hand over my face. My muscles were stiff. It didn't hurt, but it didn't feel light either.
When I went down to the main hall, Elara was already sitting at one of the tables, eating in silence. Liriel was near the window, watching the empty street. Vespera leaned against the wall, attentive as always. Rai'kanna and Lyannis were speaking quietly near the door.
No one seemed truly rested.
"Was there any noise during the night?" I asked.
Vespera answered first. "No. And that bothers me more than it would have if there had been."
Liriel looked away from the window. "The silence is lasting far too little between one attack and another."
Elara finished eating and wiped her hands. "It feels like they're giving us just enough time to keep walking."
Rai'kanna nodded. "No long pause. No real rest."
Lyannis added, "It's a forced rhythm."
We left shortly after.
The morning air was cold and clean, but the feeling was the same as the previous days. The constant expectation that, at some point along the path, we would encounter more monsters.
We followed a trail that passed between abandoned farmland. In several stretches, you could see crops left behind, tools scattered on the ground, clear signs of a hurried escape.
"This is spreading fast," Elara said.
"Very fast," I replied.
Liriel lightly touched a fallen fence. "They're not attacking only villages. They're sweeping through everything they find along the way."
Vespera analyzed the marks on the ground. "And they keep going in the same direction."
Rai'kanna crossed her arms. "Always north."
Lyannis took a deep breath. "As if everything is being pushed there."
We kept walking for almost an hour until we began to hear familiar sounds. Distant roars. Wood breaking. Short screams.
We quickened our pace.
This time, it wasn't a village.
It was a small trading post along the road. A place where travelers stopped to rest, exchange supplies, and continue their journey.
Now it was partially destroyed.
The monsters were scattered among broken wagons and wooden structures.
We advanced without needing to say anything.
I went straight to the center, clearing space. Elara followed me, ready to intervene. Liriel illuminated the area, making it easier for everyone to see. Vespera moved along the sides, preventing any monster from escaping onto the road.
Rai'kanna and Lyannis covered the rear.
The fight was quick, but intense.
And in the middle of the battle, I noticed something different.
They were not acting as they had before.
It wasn't just disorganized destruction.
Some groups came in sequence, as if there were a calculated interval between them. They didn't attack all at once.
They were arriving in small waves.
It seemed minor, but it forced us to keep fighting without pause.
When the last one fell, I stood still for a moment, observing the place.
"Did you notice?" I asked.
Elara nodded. "They didn't attack together."
"They came little by little," Vespera said.
Liriel added, "Enough to keep us constantly busy."
Rai'kanna took a deep breath. "This is intentional."
Lyannis looked at me. "He's pacing it."
I remained silent.
The more I thought about it, the clearer it became.
The objective wasn't to destroy everything quickly.
It was to prolong it.
To maintain constant pressure.
We resumed our journey shortly after, without wasting time.
The sun was already high when we crossed a denser wooded area. The path was narrow, surrounded by tall trees that blocked part of the light.
There, the silence returned.
But this time, it didn't last long.
The monsters emerged from within the forest, not in great numbers, but scattered, forcing us to react in several directions at once.
It wasn't difficult to defeat them.
But it was exhausting.
Because there was no way to predict where the next one would come from.
When we finally crossed the forest, we came out the other side breathing heavier than we should have for that number of enemies.
Elara leaned against a tree for a second. "This is getting irritating."
Liriel looked back at the forest. "They don't want to win."
Vespera cleaned her blade. "They want to delay."
Rai'kanna agreed. "And exhaust us."
Lyannis finished, "A lot."
We started walking again.
And for the first time, I realized something that hadn't been so obvious before.
It didn't matter which path we chose.
We always encountered monsters.
As if, somehow, they knew which way we would pass.
I stopped in the middle of the road.
"He knows where we are."
They all looked at me.
"It's not a coincidence," I continued. "There are always monsters on the exact path we choose."
Elara frowned. "Then we're being watched."
Liriel nodded slowly. "Or guided."
Vespera looked around, alert. "That's worse than it sounds."
Rai'kanna crossed her arms. "He's not just moving the monsters."
Lyannis concluded. "He's moving us too."
We stood in silence for a few seconds.
A faint wind passed along the road, lifting dust.
I took a deep breath.
"Then let's keep walking."
Elara looked at me. "Even knowing that?"
I nodded.
"Because that's exactly what he wants."
And we started walking again.
Not because we were reacting.
But because, at that moment, it was the only thing we could do.
And deep down, I had already understood something that was beginning to truly bother me.
The army wasn't shrinking.
It was only changing shape.
