Chapter 7 : The Stranger in the Woods

The next few days felt strangely quiet. Too quiet. Even the journal remained still, refusing to flip its pages like it used to. Zeeshan and I tried to act normal, but we both knew something was off.

On the third night, I heard a knock on the window.

It was 1:47 a.m.

My heart nearly stopped.

I tiptoed to the window and pulled the curtain aside.

There stood a man in a black coat, face hidden by a shadowed hood. In his hand… he held a page from the journal.

Without thinking, I rushed outside.

"Who are you?" I asked, trying to sound braver than I felt.

The man didn't answer. He simply dropped the page on the ground and walked away, vanishing into the forest behind the house.

I picked up the page—it was torn, burnt at the edges, but one symbol on it glowed faintly.

Back inside, Zeeshan examined it with me. "This symbol… it wasn't in the journal before," he whispered.

The moment the page touched the journal's cover, the book vibrated and opened itself. New pages formed instantly, writing themselves with golden ink.

A map appeared.

Zeeshan leaned in. "Is that… the forest?"

The journal shimmered again, revealing a message:

"Find the Guardian before the shadows do."

Neither of us spoke.

We both knew what that meant.

Whatever that man gave us—it wasn't just a clue.

It was a warning.