Depends on who we are talking about.

(This chapter starts in Norma's perspective)

She breathed slowly, trying to both calm herself and avoid alerting whatever was making those noises. It hadn't been too long since she came in, but the movements around felt indescribably threatening. 'Is this what it feels like to be in one of those monster dungeons? I don't understand how those people can do this.'

It had taken a lot of courage to take the step through the gateway. By the time she had gathered enough, there was no trace of Matthew, nor his servant beings. She cursed herself for not being brave enough to go in quickly.

Now that she was here, it was like a nightmare. The plant life was alive, constantly shifting, growing, and consuming around her. She had yet to encounter any form of animal in this place, a fact she was quite happy with. The noises alone left her near paralyzed with fear, from guttural moans to strange clicking.

As she wandered, she whispered to herself in order to keep sane. "Why would you do something like this? The most you have ever been in the wild was that one trip in the woods, and you still talk about how much you hated that. Why didn't you just accept this as the way to prevent you from talking like it probably was?"

She felt the need to defend herself from herself. "Well, we don't know that we weren't supposed to enter. It's a god we are talking about, they usually like to leave trials in place in order to judge if people are worthy. That means, all we have to do is brave this out, and we should earn the chance to speak with him."

She countered her defenses, "Oh yeah, and who's to say he will judge us worthy? For all you know, he just won't show up and you are going to die in this forest. Ugh, why did you have to push for something like this? Why did you think you could speak to a god? You're a simple noblewoman for heaven's sakes, you're not your sister or older brother." She put her hand to her mouth to silence herself. 'You know we don't talk about him anymore, not after what he did.'

It was in this self-imposed silence that she realized something important. The noises had stopped. The creatures no longer made their calls, the plants no longer creaked or slid. The entire forest had turned to a level of silence she had never before experienced.

A deep, otherworldly voice shattered this silence from behind her. "Why do you stop? It was quite entertaining, to hear you argue with yourself so furiously." She was frozen in fear. The voice seemed to have an echo or a chorus to it. As if it was not just the speaker, but also a few people whispering in unison.

She slowly **** herself to look to the origin of the voice. There she saw something that made her blood run cold. There was a break in the otherwise impenetrable wall of foliage. Within it, she could not make out a form, but there was a single, glowing eye gazing at her. It was familiar, and she quickly connected it to the symbol that had appeared in the sky to deliver the spell Matthew had cast.

She stumbled backwards, falling down as she tried to get a bit more space from this presence. Even as far away as it was, it made her feel claustrophobic, as if it was right in her face with walls in all other directions. Her hands hovered in front of her, as if trying to shield herself from it. 'All of this fear, this terror within me, and I just saw a glimpse of it. Then, this must be him, right? Or at least a high servant. I don't know what to do, I hadn't thought this through, why did I do this?'

The eye rose a good 4 inches and tilted slightly to the side. "Why do you cower, little one? Did you not come here to speak with me?" It chuckled a deep chuckle, some of the whispers echoing a mad maniacal laugh. "To try and speak with a god, even an infant one, and be so woefully unprepared. At least it seems your instincts are teaching you how powerless you are here."

She clasped her hands and pleaded with it, "I am sorry to intrude in your realm, I was wrong to assume I could ask things of you. I apologize for my arrogance, but please, let me go!"

The presence responded with an amused laugh, "Such fear for a person who has been faced with no threats. I have no intention to harm you, so would you kindly cease your cowering and pleading?"

"O-of course!" She scrambled to stand up, not wishing to test the being's patience. 'I cannot afford to mess up here. Millana is already trying to make an alliance with them, they neutralized Lana, and it looks like Kyle will be next. I need to get a non-aggression pact at the least, or perhaps none of us will be the next lord of these lands. Father knows it too; he is already giving them so much because he must know it is better to be on such a faction's good side.'

Interrupting her thoughts was an important question from the eye, "So, what is it you came here to speak about, child of Norman?"