Vismont.

Nights in Xeno were quite dark, and nights in the small Vismont village were no exception.

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Here, only the main road was lit with torches and still very sparsely at a hundred meters apart. If it weren’t for the two moons, people would basically be blind at night.

On the side near the main plaza, the best-lit place in the territory, a certain group of top sellers were already packing up, but there were not a few people still lurking around, hoping they magically released more products.

Anyway, the Alteran products have sold out and everyone was very happy with the earnings. Rowan nodded and walked to Silvia, the main proponent of inter-territory relationships in the team.

"What do you think?" He asked, referring to their next point of action.

They weren’t given the order to partner with Vismont. And although it wasn’t prohibited, their party definitely wouldn’t take the initiative for cooperation. He hoped to know the stance of the territory in case of accidents.

"If they approach us with very advantageous deals while we’re here, we may consider. Of course, if they’re doing anything inhumane, then naturally there would be no partnership regardless of profit."

Rowan nodded and he looked around to find the people who had been here before, for more referencing. But as he did a headcount, he noticed two people missing.

"Where’re the twins?" He asked and it was the girls Sunny and Cassie who stepped forward to answer him.

"They seemed to have seen someone they know." They said, "They looked to be quite in a hurry…"

Rowan frowned and looked in the direction. He was a bit worried. After all, this territory was not nearly as safe as Altera, and the ruling class were forceful people who only sought to take advantage.

This was actually the standard in most territories he knew and knew of, but after a month in Altera, it was obvious how his view had changed.

"I will look for them." He finally said, before turning to the Alteran crowd.

"I have already rented a few houses in community C. Gather your bearings and rest well. We will travel back on daybreak tomorrow."

"Yes!"

…

Rowan found the twins an hour later after following a couple of clues. The two of them had dark expressions on their faces, looking uncharacteristically somber.

This was unusual because these twins had been some of the most energetic people he had ever encountered.

However, he did not ask, they weren’t close enough for him to pry, and it seemed like they encountered a very personal issue.

"I have been looking for you." He said and the two looked apologetic.

"We’re sorry," they said and he didn’t nag them.

Without anyone speaking, Rowan led them to one of the residences he rented for the team. It was the usual unit available, except that they had brought blankets from Altera to keep themselves somewhat comfortable. This was in contrast to the others who probably only had a roof over their heads.

They had seen how it was for most—they would be already better off than most if they brought a tent. The others barely had a shed built above their heads.

While there were indeed carpenters in the territory, they were sadly not accessible to most.

Anyway, their abode might be really bare and basic but this was already a luxury for nearly everyone else in this village.

He remembered when he and the other Alterans saw the accommodation and frowned in distaste. This was until they belatedly realized that it was how the better-off people had been living.

It was very impolite of them to complain so much.

Some people were outwardly ashamed of how queasy they had become..., but then became proud because their home was just so much better than others, spoiling them in turn.

However, the twins didn’t seem to notice the living arrangements at all, obviously dwelling in their own worlds with low moods.

Before leaving the two to their own devices, Rowan gave them both a pat on their shoulders.

"Just call if you need something." He said and left without waiting for a response.

Leo and Luke’s eyes met, and they sighed, lying down on their respective blankets, directly on the hard cold floor below.

But they were so numb, they didn’t even feel it.

…

Crow, Dog, and Sunny had a small house to themselves. Lighting up the protected torch in the rooms, they formed a circle in the middle of the room and sat.

"What do you think he’ll do?" Dog asked his friends, "Do you think he’ll target us and our goods?"

"He probably will. Be careful of his guards. They may find fault soon."

"But they can’t hold a candle to Rowan, could they?"

"Who knows? Those people have such dark minds, don’t underestimate them."

The group nodded in solemn moods, their heads wondering how to defend themselves from possible attacks from the snakes.

At this time, there was a sudden knock on the door, startling them for a moment.

When they didn’t respond immediately, the knocking turned a little more urgent, followed by a familiar voice. "Sunny? Dog?"

"That voice…"

They quickly open the door to see their neighbor auntie from when they lived here. She was very kind to them, one of the few people who didn’t snarl at their group.

Occasionally, she would even send them some fruits her son harvested.

Their faces brightened at the sight of a friend. "Good that you came, auntie. We actually kept some stock of our products—" but Dog’s soliloquy was stopped when the middle-aged woman gripped his arm with teary eyes, shaking in fear.

"P-Please come with me… my son has fainted, and I… I don’t know who to call—"

They frowned and immediately went with her to see. Bull scoffed. "As expected of a hypocritical lord and his ruling class. People don’t even look for them when there’s trouble."

The young men and woman looked at each other and nodded, coming after the woman to help her out.

They had completely forgotten the defense strategies they had been discussing literally 1 minute prior.