Dark in the Dollhouse Chapter 40: Chapter 40: Inner Ring

Read chapter 40 of Dark in the Dollhouse by Haspberry on NovelPedia.

From the shadow of a branch of a withering tree, a figure clad in a veil of darkness arose. From under him, lines of black stretched out as six other puddles of darkness bubbled into existence. Soon, six other figures rose out of the puddles. Similar dark veils hid the whole of them. The figure who rose first raised his shadowy hand and after a moment, he snapped his fingers. A loud sound of shattering glass rang out as specks of black fell to the ground, unveiling the seven people from their dark covers. “Seriously Varco, do you always have to be so fantastical?” Ludwic said with a sigh. Varco chuckled as he retracted his raised hand and tipped his hat instead. “I’ll take that as a compliment.” Sariel looked around and her brows furrowed in confusion. “Just where in the Inner Ring are we? I don’t think I’ve been here before.” Varco put his hands in his pockets and looked up as well. A gloomy atmosphere spread out as a bunch of spiralling dark grey clouds spanned above their heads. Not a shred of the familiar blue could be found. On the land, withering trees with sharp and jagged branches covered the area. They glimmered with a deadliness akin to that of a well sharpened blade. The ground underneath felt like a slow quicksand as they felt their feet ever so slowly sinking in. It was only the Inner Ring, and yet it felt so different compared to the Middle Ring. Varco smirked as a line of darkness bubbled and formed out from his right hand. He clenched his fist, shattering the darkness and revealing a sharp wooden sword. “Hup!” he shouted as he swung the sword upwards. A screeching gust of wind burst out as the branches in front of them were sliced down from their trunks. Cackling, Varco looked back. His purple eyes glimmered as he glanced at Sariel. Sariel didn’t flinch nor show any signs of discomfort. She was completely still and emotionless as her blue eyes stared at Varco with an unwavering intensity. His smile widened as he replied, “Welcome to the Bladed Forest my friends. We’re in a part of the Inner Ring not known to many people, as it pretty close to the Forsaken Deep. I advise you to watch your feet and don’t stand at one place for too long, lest you want to sink. There aren’t many corbeasts here, but you should be careful of the trees. Their branches can grow rather quickly and stab you like a knife through the back,” he turned around with a laugh and began walking forward. Sariel sighed as she grumbled, “So the ground and the trees are our enemy? Great.” “What an intriguing place this... To think the Resting Death had a place like this hidden from the rest of Ekad,” Zane commented as he adjusted his glasses and put a hand over his holster. “Hey, don’t pit all of Resting Death into this now. Although I knew about this, it’s my first time coming here. Only Boss and Silvia are actually familiar with this place. Maybe Celine and Nessia too but I can’t say for sure,” Riyo said as he grabbed his curved sword by its hilt, ready to strike at any moment. The rest of the members quickly got into position as a sense of vigilance arose in all of them. Varco hummed as he walked forward, periodically hacking away with his wooden blade as he cut away the approaching branches. For a while, they just continued on like this with Varco at the forefront doing all the work. He kept cutting away the branches without a sweat and a remnant left. “You’re not leaving any work for us, Boss,” Riyo said with a chuckle as he trailed behind, his vigilance not down in the slightest. “Oh?” Varco let out as he glanced back with a relaxed smile. “Well then, you’re in for a treat, because if I am right, we should be approaching the heart of the forest right about now. Hehe, that is where the real fun will begin.” Wygor let out a loud laugh. “Haha! I like the sound of that. I’ve been itching to get some action done myself. What do you say, Romina?” “I’m fine either way. But I’d rather not waste energy, so don’t speak to me unless necessary,” Romina rep