"I think we still need to go farther…"
Erevi lifted her head, looking ahead as she suddenly spoke.
"But clearly, today isn't suitable."
The forest was filled with frozen streams and hardened black lakes. era Reed and Jojen Reed were wrapped in thick cloaks made from wolf pelts.
Each of them held a long spear. It could be used to probe whether the next step would be safe, and also to catch prey.
"Let's stop here. Rest for the night, and set out again tomorrow."
Hearing Erevi's words, Kal looked up at the sky. Because of the trees, it grew dark earlier in the forest than elsewhere.
The king gave the order. The siblings traveling with them imdiately stopped. After finding a suitable campsite, they split into two groups—one to gather firewood, the other to see if they could find so ga.
But just as they found a flat, wind-sheltered clearing, a large golden-furred dog shook off the snow on its body and dragged a deer into view.
"We won't freeze tonight," era said, delighted at the prey brought back by His Majesty's dog, and hurried forward to help.
Jojen shook his head, took an axe from a nearby pack, and walked off to the side.
Watching the siblings busy themselves—and the dog, who sohow brought back a whole deer and was now staring at era as she skinned and prepared it—Kal and Erevi did not join in.
Kal did not lack food. If he wished, he could take out a freshly cooked al from his inventory at any ti.
But that didn't stop him from treating this as a rather novel outing.
While waiting for dinner, Kal pulled Erevi to sit on a large rock.
The next mont, a thick wooden log appeared in his hand.
The bark was gray-white like bone, its grain dense, the wood inside also pale.
It was a piece he had cut from a weirwood tree while passing through a grove in the haunted forest.
And this particular section bore a carved, twisted human face. The eyes had been stained red with sap, as though they were weeping blood.
He set it casually on the ground and looked at Erevi.
"I think we're close. Try again."
A greenseer could enter a weirwood and use it to observe distant places, even perceive the past and present within its reach.
Naturally, the weirwoods themselves were connected to the greenseers.
In matters of magic, there were always traces that could not be concealed.
For instance, era and Jojen, whom Kal had brought along.
A different system of power proved especially effective against such things.
Especially since Erevi had already gained so understanding of the magic of this world—particularly when she studied the runes tied to ancient ways while researching the road stones.
Those runes were originally the magical craft of the Children of the Forest.
So even if the Three-Eyed Crow did not welco Kal's arrival, there was little it could do.
Erevi closed her eyes and reached out, touching the log as she carefully sensed sothing.
"Yes, we're very close. If nothing goes wrong, we might reach it tomorrow."
"That's good news. Worth celebrating."
Kal nodded in satisfaction.
It had been nearly a month since they left Castle Black. During this ti, besides wandering aimlessly beyond the Wall with era and Jojen, Kal and Erevi had also secretly built several road-stone structures across the land.
The haunted forest was vast, and the Three-Eyed Crow had seemingly been trying to stop them.
But unfortunately, the ga was over.
Kal put the log away, took out three bottles of elven red wine, handed one to the Reed siblings, stuffed another into the dog's mouth, and shared the last one with Erevi.
Thus, the group sat around the campfire, slling the aroma of roasted venison, leisurely enjoying wine that did not belong to this world.
Kal added spices and salt, cooking with evident interest.
Night had already fallen. The forest was silent.
Suddenly, the sound of wings flapping broke the stillness. Several crows, from who knew where, landed near the camp, their black eyes watching.
The dog's ears twitched. It glanced at the crows, then lay back down, drooling at the roasting at.
era didn't react, as if she hadn't heard anything.
But Jojen shuddered slightly, as if sensing sothing, and abruptly turned his head.
"You've co at just the right ti. The at will be ready soon."
Kal held a small knife, carefully carving the venison, sprinkling fine salt and spices.
After speaking, he set down the knife and looked into the darkness of the forest.
To his eyes, nothing was hidden—not the crows in the trees, nor the figure concealed deeper in the woods, riding a moose, hooded and watching them.
"If you can still taste the food of the living."
As his words fell, several fireballs appeared out of thin air and shot into the forest.
In an instant, they surrounded the mysterious figure.
The sudden flas startled the moose, and its rider hurried to calm it.
Faced with the magic fire and rising heat, the one called "Coldhands" hesitated only two seconds before stepping toward the camp.
He had no doubt that if he disobeyed, those fireballs would reduce him, the moose, and even the crows to ashes.
At least, the politeness in that man's tone did not match his actions.
"May I know your na, friend?"
Kal looked at the mysterious figure riding the massive moose and smiled.
"Coldhands…"
The man on the moose barely moved, his lips trembling.
"Perhaps you've co to invite us?"
Kal glanced at his blackened hands.
Coldhands seed to hesitate, looking toward Jojen, who had already stood and was staring at him.
"The one who was ant to co… is not you. You stopped Bran Stark…"
He spoke to Jojen, but his words were ant for Kal.
"And you… my friend, a drear, a greenseer, said—you should not exist…"
Coldhands turned his gaze fully to Kal.
"This is not for him to decide. Existence itself is truth."
"If he does not understand truth, I can explain it to him myself."
…
The air was bitterly cold, filled with dread.
Shadows stretched across the hills. Darkness lurked. Snow weighed down every tree.
Coldhands' hands were bound, dragged behind the moose as he stumbled along.
"They're coming!"
He shouted, trying to draw his sword—only to rember he had beco a prisoner the night before.
Fortunately, he had not been mistreated.
He could not eat food ant for the living. The blood-soaked heart of the deer had been his al.
"Where?!"
The rider had changed—era and Jojen now sat atop the moose.
Hearing the warning, era imdiately beca alert.
"They're close… I don't know… nearby…"
Coldhands shouted again.
The next mont, a flash of lightning erupted in the forest.
Where it struck, trees snapped, snow cascaded down, and a mist of powder filled the air.
"All done. No need to be so tense."
Kal clapped his hands, casual as ever.
In the distance, the dog barked, followed by wolves' whines and screams.
Then silence returned.
"Climb from here. About two or three leagues ahead—there's a magical trace."
Erevi pointed toward the hill.
Soon, they reached a cave halfway up the slope, surrounded by weirwoods.
"The cave is protected by magic. Likely ant to block wights… and to conceal sothing."
"What we're looking for should be behind this."
"Do we go in, or go around?"
Kal shrugged. "We ca for this. And it seems we don't have a choice."
Erevi, however, said coldly, "We could break the magic and collapse everything underground."
"I have no doubt that if we go in, that 'crow' will try the sa on us."
"Good idea."
Kal's eyes lit up.
Just as they were about to decide, a swarm of crows burst from the cave.
"No, don't!"
A small girl ran out, holding a torch, shouting.
Her voice, however, did not sound like a child's—it was that of an adult woman.
Before she could reach them, her body stiffened and she fell into the snow.
Erevi lowered her hand—she had cast a binding spell.
"So this is what you were looking for?"
Kal shook his head. "No. She's one of the Children of the Forest… though she looks a bit like a goblin."
He walked over, picked her up, and examined her.
She was smaller than Arya—barely half his height.
Her skin was mottled like a doe's, her eyes large, golden-green, with vertical pupils like a cat's.
She had large ears, three fingers, clawed thumbs, and tangled hair woven with vines and dead flowers.
"…Cute."
He coughed lightly.
Erevi frowned. "That's not what you described."
Kal shook his head. "First ti seeing one."
He set her down.
"Who are you?"
The spell was released. The girl trembled.
"I… I am one of the Children of the Forest… Your Grace."
Kal crouched.
"You speak the Common Tongue."
"…Do you have a na?"
"And inside that cave… is the Three-Eyed Crow there?"
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