The Weakest Kobold In The Dungeon Gets A Level [Book 1 Complete] Chapter 52: Book 2, Chapter 3: Wounds Upon The Surface

Read chapter 52 of The Weakest Kobold In The Dungeon Gets A Level [Book 1 Complete] by KennyTheAwkwardDonut on NovelPedia.

Nik turned in a circle and tilted his head, eyes narrowed. He’d seen the stars and walked between worlds, but this was somehow more baffling. He'd walked through a doorway from the Emberwood Forest only to find himself among more of the crimson-barked behemoths. This wasn't the same forest, though. There was an eeriness to it that was alien. Birdsong rang out in the distance; a back-and-forth call and answer, warbled between tiny winged beasts that lingered out of sight. However, the notes sank low, discordant and prolonged. Wrong. They felt wrong. Breaths later, he was joined by others, who appeared through a flickering doorway. It flashed into life as the threshold was crossed, and then faded from existence behind the entrant. The pattern repeated until each of the friends who had come with him found themselves within the tower’s own twisted version of the forest that it rose from. Eric put an arm around Beatrice as she pressed herself into his side. “What on earth is with the birds here? It's creeping me out, and we just got here.” “Not exactly the natural music you normally hear with the sunrise, that's for sure,” David said as he stepped up beside them. “Let's move forward. And keep your guards up; I don't know what we need to do to claim the domain, but I don't think the tower will make it easy.” Nik moved as he issued the command. The sounds of the forest continued, always sounding like they came from everywhere at once. They continued on a path that Nik felt would lead deeper into the tower. As damaged as his resonance was, it was only pulling him in one particular direction. He'd learned to trust that connection. Even with it being as faint as it had been since the merging of the tower worlds, he trusted it still. At some point as they traveled on, the trees had started to twist slightly. Nik almost failed to notice the change, but it was obvious now as the severity of the deformation increased with each trunk they passed. Then Nik noticed Harper making notes in a small leatherbound journal. His eyes went over to Wolf, who was effectively glued to her side at all times. When the two of them made eye contact, Wolf shrugged. “She studies the tower, it’s what she does.” “Who knows what small details might help us in the future, with this tower or any that follow after. Besides, we’re in new territory here. Pioneers should always document every little detail; my father taught me that,” Harper said while she glanced between her notebook and the path ahead. Nik shook his head. “Maybe just quick notes, and then make some more when we’re somewhere safer. I feel like you’re going to trip on… something…” His words trailed off. The eerie birdsong had grown in volume. It got louder still as twisted bits of bark shook, cracked, and fell away. Where sap should have seeped from the wounds upon the surface of the trees, blood trickled down in its stead. The song had become a wailing melody of clashing screams, and Beatrice had to scream to be heard over its howl. “It’s coming from the trees!” cried the pointy-eared druid. Nik closed his eyes and reached deep into his core to the broken pieces. There was nothing new to be found there, only the light tug that urged him onward. “Keep going! Don't stop moving!” he shouted over the cacophony, and hurried his pace. The grating sound of the trees reached a crescendo, and he fought to keep his course straight. The blaring notes pounded through his head, distorting his vision and upsetting his sense of balance. He slowed only for a moment to yank a stumbling Wolf back to his feet. The shifter was fast, but he was struggling with the effects of the song even more so than Nik. Wolf’s voice was barely audible from directly beside his ear. “There’s something ahead!” In the distance, a vague outline almost blended into the scenery that surrounded it. As they got closer, the image solidified into a winding staircase. Made of the same wood as the trees around it, the stairs spiraled into the canopy