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Due to the perilous nature of the world beyond the walls, it is generally accepted that a human (or even a witch) who travels beyond the walls has more or less taken their fate into their own hands. It is not uncommon for even sentinel-ranked witches and above to go "missing" and perish beyond the walled cities that make up Salem. The daemons do not discriminate-- there are no "safer paths" once the cities walls are breached -- the entire, largely unexplored world beyond the four cities stands as a frightening, expansive, and dangerous wilderness...

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"Salem," as we know it, is the union of the four main walled cities and any nearby towns or villages which accept its authority (often in return for stability or protection in some form).
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Outside of these areas, however, laws and punishments, if there are any, are determined by whatever small communities are living there. Though there are many nomadic peoples and tribes with laws comparable to those of the Council's (at least on a summarized level), there are also communities that are defined by raiding, theft, and murder. Banditry and piracy is not uncommon in the wilds, especially along known trade routes that have been warded from wraiths and other dangerous creatures. Violent cults and cultures are also not unheard of, especially in the harsher environments of the world.
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wildlife and mythical creatures

Salem has a wide variety of unique environments and a broad diversity of plant and animal species. In addition to most species which are found on modern, real life Earth, there are also more fantastical species like qilin and dragons which have a degree of sentience and may even be capable of performing magic.

Like dogs and horses, some magical species (such as gryphons) have been known to take well to human care and direction, and may be domesticated or made companions. Many societies across Salem rely on such creatures in their day to day lives. This said, untamed animals can be incredibly dangerous.

daemons

Daemons (sometimes called abominations (archaic), antimas (academic), and other area-specific variants) are dark creations that are brought into being when the infinite energy of the mana realm blasts into the outer strata. They are wispy and shadowy in nature, but generally have red eyes and harder bodies beneath the shadowy exterior.
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The ruptures through which they're created, sometimes called "nests" or "rifts" by hunters, are voids of dark black energy that cut through the two dimensions, spurring uncontrollable energy and rendering free mana in the surrounding area highly unstable.
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Spells cast by inexperienced witches will likely fail completely against daemons due to the pressure, gloom, and the overall aura of fear which they radiate. Casting becomes even more difficult when closer to a rupture, because the mana itself is less stable. This adversely affects: alchemy (potions, transfiguration), enchantment(abjuration, charms, augmentation), spellsinging, pure illusions, stellar starcalling, and plantshaping, making their spells unlikely to succeed.
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Daemons and ruptures seem to have corrupting energy, and will usually mutate the natural environment around where they appear, giving the flora and fauna painful and dangerous alterations. Certain types of daemons may also have magical powers...
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Though incredibly rare, it has been documented that some daemons may have an incredibly advanced level of intelligence, though none have yet managed to speak fluently with witches...Communication with wraiths is a taboo topic, and research into it has been banned by the Council of Salem.

RSM lamps and rupture stages

Ruptures are of three types: active, dormant, and healed.
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Active ruptures spawn daemons quickly at first, though this rate decreases significantly after the first wave is born. Over time, ruptures will spawn fewer and fewer daemons until they cease to spawn any at all and become dormant. Dormant ruptures, for the most part, no longer spawn new daemons, but have been known to randomly reactivate, making them a constant risk. Dormant ruptures will go through a healing process naturally, sealing themselves up and repairing the tear between dimensions. Unfortunately, it takes several hundred years for the healing process to complete.
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Witches have not yet discovered how to heal ruptures, but they can accelerate the process of going from active to dormant, therefore lessening monster activity. This process is known as "stabilizing" and is carried out by using RSM-lamps or "restabilizers" which are expandable lamp-like structures with long, orange-liquid-filled glowing cylinders at the top. Witches sent to stabilize a zone must defeat all wraiths and surround the rupture with RSM-lamps and activate them, after which it will take about five-fifteen minutes for the rupture to become dormant.