Like so, the news was out with countless people from different territories close to Pyno, getting the news first.

Some other regions still hadn't heard a thing.

But it wouldn't be long before they all did.

Of course, whether people would believe the news or not was an entirely different matter on its own.

As for those in Pyno, they had other things to worry about, other than this 'old news.'

.

-Illu Village, Arcadina-

.

~Shahhhhh!!!!!

The heavy rains fell in company with the strong winds, blowing the littles sprouting foliages from the already blooming trees.

Several patches of muddy soil could already be seen; as now, the numerous rainy days had quickly rinsed out the snow from the land.

But even with the craziness of Springtime, the birds and other creatures had long woken up from their winter slumber and were in full throttle, singing in their caves and nests as well.

Some animals went out to hunt for food, while others stayed hidden away from the rain instead.

And amidst the chaos brought about by the weather, several men in black sheltered themselves within the nearby village while keeping an eye on a particular road.

The rain created a steady beat and melody, slowly drawing them into concentration as they just stared out the windows of the mud hit they were standing in.

The sky was a little darker due to the gloomy atmosphere the rain created.

The clouds above took over, restricting the sun from shining its glory down below.

~Shahhhhhh!!!

The men listened to the heavy cries of the rain and didn't move an inch from their positions.

What were they looking at?

What were they waiting for?

No one in the village knew.

But because these strangers had a permit from the new ruler, everyone just thought it was probably official business.

These visitors had treated them with respect and didn't even want to disrupt their lives, which made the villagers a little relaxed too.

Some brought potatoes, fruits and other foods to these people to eat while here.

And what made them happy was that if these people did take the food, they would pay the market price for it too.

Of course, everyone else was curious and wanted to see and understand these kind strangers.

Even though these villagers had their own ways, naivety and mentality, they could still recognize when people with bad intentions were in their village.

.

Typically, villages were considered the weakest and were usually met with bandits and all sorts of people every now and then.

Additionally, in the time of Alec Barn, Noble's and countless others would still by villages during their travels and distress, rape or do anything they wanted to villagers.

But for some time now, all that had begun changing.

Some novels still do so in hiding.

But the key thing was that they did it in 'Hiding.'

A Nobel could be stripped of their title for such an offence now.

So who would risk all they worked for and built just because of their little friend down there?

Even if they had to do it, they would make sure they were never caught!

Times were still changing, as countless secret groups had formed to oppose these new rules by the new Monarch.

Change was a difficult thing to accept.

So of course, there were people that, till this very day, remained adamant about it all.

Arcadina was too large, and it would take several more years to firmly implant the change needed.

But even though the change was still at its early stages, some villages and regions had already started noticing a difference just a few months ago or more.

That said, they already liked this new Monarch very much.

And just looking at how these strangers from the Monarch acted, made them have a deeper understanding of just what sort of person he was.

His men could have thrown them out of their homes and forced them to sleep outdoors in the rain all for these past few weeks because that's what other nobles or people in power typically did.

But rather than doing all that... Instead, they were so respectful, asking permission and looking for any enmity home in the village to live in.

As one might know, they as villagers often died from animal attacks, illness, collecting spring water below the slippery ice hill and many other reasons.

So if there were no other person in the deceased's family, the home would just remain vacant with the village chief going over some burial cleansing rituals to cleanse the house again.

At the same time, some people left their village homes and moved to the towns or cities, reporting never to live there again.

Thus, there were a handful of homes still vacant in the village.

.

The villagers stayed indoors during the heavy rains, wondering what those strangers were up to.

Of course, no one would go out during the heavy rainstorm because to them, their bodies were their primary tools for survival, so they took illness very seriously and didn't even want to catch a cold.

Thus, they could only wander in silence while knitting by the indoor fire, cooking or doing some other meaningful household tasks.

As for the visitors that stared into the roads and their surroundings as if in a daze, they suddenly awoke from their wait when they saw the scene on the roads below the village hill.

In this heavy rain, if one wasn't fully focused, they wouldn't notice them at all since the heavy rain created a blurry coat to the eyes.

The men in black all smiled and hastily prepared to head out too.

Hahahhaha!

The Baymardians were here!

~Vrrrmmmmmmm!!!

The numerous thick vehicles drove amidst the rain, making their way to the village steadily.

Yes.

They got the message requesting assistance.

And after meeting those here, they would then leave the village and head towards the outskirts of Profus city.

Why?

Because at present, Mr. Death was awaiting their arrival.

Finally, it was time to take care of Baron Cain!

.

~Vrrrmmmmmmm!!!

The vehicles dashed towards the village as fast and carefully as they could.

Of course, due to the heavy rain, no villager heard them stop by.

Only the village chief's household that had been diligently keeping an eye on these people were shocked by the scene.

They stared out their windows calmly, only to see these visitors hop into the vehicles and leave.

Of course, they personally thanked the village chief for his care before leaving too.

The village chief and his household watched the vehicles leave the village in a daze.

"Pa... Was that what I think it was?"

"I... I... Think it is." The village chief said incoherently, causing his 23-year-old son to exclaim in shock.

"A train! A train! I was actually able to see a train!"

~Smack.

"Aouw!... Pa...what was that for?"

The village chief looked at him silly: "That's a bus and not a train. Are you stupid?"

His son rubbed his nose awkwardly before glancing at the leaving vehicles again.

To think that they would have Baymardians come into their little village.

This was a bit too shocking and was indeed quite a lot for them to take in.

The village chief just looked on ahead, feeling a deep stir of emotions within him.

He felt that things would once again change... And now, he looked forward to that day when Arcadina would have such amazing things too.

He just hoped that by then, he would be alive to witness it all.

Well, even if he wasn't, he had already made up his mind to visit Baymard at least once before he died.

Yes... He wanted to see these changes for himself.

With that, the village chief, his son and a few others in their household calmly stepped back into their homes, still deep in thought about the scene they had just witnessed.

Like so, the strangers had left Illu village.

~Vrrrmmmmmmm~~

The vehicles drove steady, moving through the carriage trails deep in the forest regions until they finally reached the outskirts of Profus city.

And thanks to the men in black that they picked up, the Baymardians could dodge any forest paths that would have enemy spies scouting about there.

Of course, they did run into a few and took care of them quickly.

Today, they were ready to shed some blood!

.

~Shwahhhh!~~

Death listened to the rains while resting his head against the walls of a massive cave.

He and his men had long claimed ownership of this cave, killing all beasts within the place and feasting on their flesh for meals.

Death had his eyes closed as if sleeping.

But soon, he calmly opened them with a deep look in his eyes.

"Speak. What's the matter?"

Instantly, a few people stepped out of the shadows and knelt before him.

"Master... They're here."

"Oh?" Death calmly stood with a deep grin on his face.

With that, he walked out of the deepest part of the cave and came face to face with his 'helpers.'

Good. They could finally reclaim Profus city.