Let's Train Heroine

The crackling of a small fire provided a brief respite from the biting cold as the four women huddled around it. They had set up camp just beyond the village in a clearing surrounded by towering trees, their shadows stretching like long fingers into the fading light. Rina stood apart from the group, sharpening her sword with slow, deliberate strokes, her face illuminated by the flickering flames.

The evening was eerily quiet, save for the soft rustling of leaves and the distant call of a lone owl. Despite the stillness, there was an unsettling energy in the air, as if the very forest were watching them.

"Do you feel it?" Julia asked, her voice low. She was sitting on a log, her hands resting on her magic sword, its silver blade faintly shimmering in the firelight.

"I'd be more worried if I didn't," Hima replied. She sat cross-legged on the ground, her staff leaning against her shoulder. The magician twirled a strand of golden hair absentmindedly as she glanced around the camp. "This place gives me the creeps, but at least we've got each other to keep warm, right?"

Olive sat a few feet away from the fire, her dark eyes watching the surrounding trees like a hawk.

"What do you think? Whatever we saw earlier...it wasn't just a coincidence." Hima asked.

Julia frowned, her eyes drifting to the treeline. She could still feel the weight of that shadowy figure's presence, as if it had left some part of itself lingering in the air. "No. It wasn't a coincidence. There's something out there, something intelligent. That thing—it was watching us."

"Then why didn't it attack?" Rina asked without looking up from her sword. The rhythmic sound of the whetstone against metal punctuated her words. "If it wanted us dead, it had the chance."

Julia shook her head. "I don't know. Maybe it was testing us, trying to see what we're capable of. Or maybe it was waiting for something..."

"Waiting for what?" Hima asked, raising an eyebrow.

"That's what we need to figure out." Julia's voice was firm, but the uncertainty gnawed at her. She was used to leading, to having a plan, but something about this situation felt beyond her control.

Rina sheathed her sword with a metallic click and walked over to join the group, her armor gleaming in the firelight. She sat beside Julia, her expression as serious as ever. "We can't just sit around and wait for it to come to us. We need to take the fight to whatever's out there."

"We don't even know what we're dealing with," Olive said quietly from her spot in the shadows.

"Olive's right," Julia agreed. "We need more information. But we can't wait too long, either. If that thing is responsible for the disappearances, more lives are at stake."

The silence that followed was heavy, each of them lost in their thoughts. The fire crackled softly, the only sound in the stillness of the night. Above them, the stars began to emerge, twinkling faintly in the dark sky, but even their light seemed distant, muted.

Hima broke the silence with a sigh, leaning back on her hands as she looked up at the sky. "So, any brilliant ideas on how we gather information without getting our heads bitten off?"

Julia hesitated, weighing her options. "We could split up," she suggested. "Olive can scout the forest while the rest of us stay here, ready to act if something happens."

"No," Rina said firmly, shaking her head. "We stay together. I'm not letting Olive go out there alone."

Olive's expression didn't change, but she looked at Rina, saying that she can handle herself.

"I know you can," Rina replied, her tone softening slightly. "But I don't trust this place. We're stronger together."

Julia nodded. "Rina's right. We can't afford to take risks, not here. We'll scout the forest together tomorrow at first light. For now, we rest."

"Rest?" Hima raised an eyebrow, a playful smirk returning to her face. "How can you think of sleeping when we've got some creepy forest creature lurking out there?"

"We'll take shifts," Julia said, ignoring Hima's sarcasm. "Olive, you take first watch. Wake me when it's my turn."

Olive gave a curt nod, already focused on the surrounding darkness. Julia trusted her implicitly; Olive had a way of blending into the shadows, making herself nearly invisible to enemies—and sometimes even to her own allies. If anything stirred in the night, Olive would be the first to know.

As the others settled in, Julia lay back on the rough ground, her magic sword resting beside her, close enough to draw in an instant. She stared up at the canopy of trees above, their branches swaying gently in the wind. Despite the warmth of the fire, she couldn't shake the chill in the air or the feeling that they were being watched.

The minutes stretched into hours as Julia drifted in and out of a restless sleep.

At some point, Julia awoke to the faint sound of movement. Her eyes snapped open, her hand instinctively gripping the hilt of her sword. Olive stood at the edge of the clearing, her back to the fire, her head tilted as if listening to something.

"Olive?" Julia whispered, her voice low enough not to disturb the others.

Olive didn't respond immediately, her dark silhouette blending into the trees. Julia sat up, her heart beginning to race, but just as she was about to speak again, Olive turned and walked back to the campfire, her expression unreadable.

"There's something out there," Olive said quietly.

Julia was on her feet in an instant, her sword drawn. "What did you see?"

"I didn't see it," Olive replied, her eyes scanning the treeline. "But I heard it...whispering. Faint, almost like it was calling to me."

"Whispering?" Hima's voice came from behind them, startling Julia. The magician was already awake, her blue eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Like what? A voice?"

Olive hesitated, her lips pressing into a thin line. "I couldn't make out the words. But it was there, just beyond the trees. It's watching us."

Julia exchanged a glance with Rina, who had also woken at the sound of Olive's voice. Rina's face was hard, her muscles tense, as if ready for a fight at any moment.

"We need to move," Rina said, her voice steady. "If it's watching us, it's only a matter of time before it attacks."

Julia shook her head. "We can't just run blindly into the forest. We need a plan."

"The plan should be to get out of here," Hima muttered,"I don't like the idea of being out here when something is playing with our heads."

"We're not leaving," Julia said firmly. "Whatever's out there, it's connected to the disappearances. If we leave, more people will die."

Olive nodded in agreement, though she still seemed unsettled. "It wants something from us. I don't know what, but I can feel it. It's not going to stop until it gets it."

The fire crackled between them, casting long shadows on their faces. For a moment, no one spoke, the weight of the situation pressing down on them like a suffocating blanket.

Finally, Rina broke the silence. "Then we find it. And we end this."

Julia met her gaze, her resolve hardening. "At first light. We go into the forest together, and we find whatever's haunting this place."

Hima let out a soft laugh, though there was no humor in it. "Well, I guess it's better than sitting here waiting to be eaten. I just hope you've got some tricks up your sleeve, Julia."

"I do," Julia replied, her voice steady, though she couldn't ignore the gnawing fear in the pit of her stomach. "We're not going to let this thing win."

Julia is afraid, afraid that this time again, she might encounter something that would make her huge price but she doesn't know want to leave yet.

Julia, felt that whatever here, she need to find it and destroy it. She need to do it because if she didn't then there would be even bigger problem in future.