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The trees seemed to close in around me, their branches twisting and turning like gnarled fingers. The air was thick with the smell of damp earth and decomposing leaves. A low-lying mist hovered, obscuring my vision and making navigation on the winding path ahead challenging. It was as if the forest were alive, watching every move I made, waiting for me to let my guard down.

A strange energy pulsed in the air, a low, almost inaudible hum impossible to ignore. Sometimes, the mist would dissipate, revealing glimpses of strange and deformed trees that seemed to have been shaped by ancient magic.

Whispers in the wind, voices that seemed to call my name. It was as if I had stumbled upon a secret world, a place where the veil between the living and the dead was thin and permeable.

The sun began to set, casting long shadows on the forest floor. "Let's camp here," Aaron whispered, uneasy. "It would be imprudent to hunt witches in the middle of the night." Nodding, I anointed the grass around h