Morning arrived in Raven Hollow with a pale gray sky.
Ethan stood outside his house with a backpack slung over his shoulder. The cool air smelled of rain and pine trees. He looked back at the town one last time.
Everything felt normal.
Too normal.
But beyond the town lay Darkwood Forest, and beyond that the Blackstone Mountains—the place marked on the mysterious map.
Footsteps approached behind him.
"You ready?" Maya asked.
She carried a large backpack filled with books, notebooks, and supplies.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Ethan replied.
Lucas appeared a moment later, struggling with an enormous backpack.
"Why did I pack so much food?" he groaned. "This bag weighs more than I do."
Maya smirked.
"You insisted on bringing twelve snack bars."
"They're emergency snack bars," Lucas said seriously.
Ethan laughed.
"Well, let's hope the emergency isn't just hunger."
He pulled out the rolled map and looked at it one more time.
The path led straight through Darkwood Forest.
Legend said the forest was strange—animals avoided it, and travelers often claimed they felt like they were being watched.
"Comforting," Lucas muttered when Ethan mentioned that.
The three friends started walking.
Soon the houses of Raven Hollow disappeared behind them.
Tall trees surrounded them, their branches blocking most of the sunlight. The deeper they walked into Darkwood Forest, the quieter everything became.
Too quiet.
Even the birds seemed to avoid this place.
Maya checked the map again.
"We're still on the right path," she said.
"There should be some ruins somewhere ahead."
Lucas kicked a rock along the trail.
"You know," he said, "I always imagined treasure hunting would involve more treasure and less creepy forests."
Ethan suddenly stopped walking.
"Did you hear that?" he asked.
The others froze.
For a moment there was nothing but the whisper of wind through the trees.
Then—
CRACK.
A branch snapped somewhere in the forest.
Lucas slowly turned around.
"Okay… that was definitely not me."
Maya narrowed her eyes, scanning the trees.
"Probably just an animal," she said, though she didn't sound completely sure.
Ethan nodded slowly, but something felt wrong.
Unseen by the three friends, high in the branches of a nearby tree, Silas watched them carefully.
He spoke quietly into a small radio.
"They're entering the forest."
Victor Draven's calm voice responded.
"Follow them."
Silas grinned.
"My favorite part."
Back on the trail, Ethan and his friends continued walking deeper into the forest.
After another hour, the trees suddenly opened into a small clearing.
In the center stood the remains of an ancient stone structure.
Broken pillars leaned at strange angles, and moss covered the cracked walls.
"This must be the ruins on the map," Maya said excitedly.
They approached cautiously.
Carved symbols covered the stone floor.
Maya knelt down to examine them.
"These are the same symbols as the map," she said.
Lucas stepped onto one of the stones.
Suddenly—
CLICK.
Everyone froze.
Lucas looked down slowly.
"Uh… guys?"
A loud mechanical rumble echoed through the ruins.
Small holes opened in the walls.
Maya's eyes widened.
"TRAP!"
A second later—
WHOOSH!
Arrows shot out from the walls.
"RUN!" Ethan shouted.
The three friends dove behind a fallen pillar as arrows flew across the clearing.
Lucas panted heavily.
"Well… that answers one question."
"What question?" Maya asked.
Lucas pointed to the ruins.
"The ancient civilization definitely had a security system."
The arrows finally stopped.
Silence returned to the clearing.
Ethan slowly stood up and looked around.
"That was close."
Maya brushed dust off her jacket.
"And this is just the beginning."
Lucas groaned.
"Great."
But hidden deep in the forest, Victor Draven listened to Silas' report.
A slow smile spread across his face.
"Perfect," Draven whispered.
"Let them survive the traps.
"Soon they will lead me straight to the Forbidden Treasure."