"Yesterday, he woke up!"

"Why is your family this lucky?"

"My grandma couldn't believe it, either. She heard her own grandma talk about it so much, and it happened for her too."

"How was it for you?"

"I mostly stayed by the side. But the atmosphere was indeed weirdly tugging at me constantly. The defender stared at me at some point, and I stopped breathing! But one thing that surprised me was his eyes were surprisingly cold."

---

"Your grandma came by yesterday. How was it?" The nurse asked.

"Her eyes were surprisingly cold. I don't think she likes me."

Seeing such detachment in this young child, Catherine, although she wanted to, couldn't reply.

"Did you want to say she treats everyone like that?"

"You really should be less perceptive, Philly."

"I don't think she'll be coming back. But, to be fair, I'm surprised she came at all."

"It was your brother, I heard."

"Like always," Phillip Smith smiled.

---

"You lying!"

"No! I told ya, my mom heard from the Lord. Do you not believe him?"

"How could this place have been an island back then? How?"

"The ground has legs and moves! It could only be that!"

"No! You're lying!"

"I'm right!"

As the two kids bickered within the central plaza, someone was peeking at them and smiling.

---

"Why are you here again?" Bernard asked.

Yet, Ben didn't reply and only took another glance at the well before running away.

Seeing his friends escaping, Bernard sighed.

However, it wasn't difficult to find his friend again since Bernard knew where he was going. Ben's routine wasn't surprising.

"Why do you like the sea so much?" He asked after he caught up with Ben.

"Other stuff, the sky, people, they changed. But the waves are the same."

"Yesterday, it looked different. The storm was scary."

After smiling, Ben asked, "How was it?"

"We've been careful. It seems you were right. My father is happy, though. We got a better offer without the lies."

---

"How was it?" Higgs asked from below the tree shade.

"Lord!"

The man cleaning the area abandoned the broom and sat down by Ben.

He quickly opened the stone table by the tree and retrieved documents from within it.

"From last time, the sea level dropped 38 meters."

"That should be enough, then. It's getting too far and thin out there. I would advise against keeping track further."

"The air is thinning faster. And within the wastelands, it's too cold. People began to move in the Ring too."

"Expected. Were the warnings sent successfully?"

"Yes. Last year."

"That's fine then. It'll take a bit longer for the Ring to become uninhabitable. But our village should prepare. In around a dozen generations, the outsiders might find it too difficult to come all the way here. But before then, we should get a spike of immigrants."

"Will the chaotic energy be the next one?"

"Unlikely, it should be the last. But by then, it won't be that chaotic, though. It won't have anything to fight against."

"We'll keep track as much as we can."

"That's fine too, just be careful and prepare."

As Ben fell into slumber again, he still felt a hint of surprise. Despite all this time, his routine still fell into place.

'Time's merciful.'

---

"Look who came."

"Look, Sarah. It's the weird uncle addicted to stars." Marillia talked to her baby girl.

"It's late and somewhat cold. Are you sure it's healthy for the girl to be out here?"

"Dad's friend from outside is a Doctor. He looked at Sarah, and she had Bernie's body type."

"How often to be optimal, then?"

"Twice a month, for a few hours on cloudless nights, until Sarah is 15 years."

"It's difficult to pinpoint such a gift. But since the father had it, it was a no-brainer to confirm it, right?"

"Yes. And we also got a good discount."

Taking a deep breath, Marillia looked at the sky.

"It's indeed beautiful. No wonder you come here so often."

The dim-lit village below them and the clear starry sky created a breathtaking atmosphere.

"I can't waste such an opportunity. The big city shield never allowed me to spend much time doing this, and I couldn't leave easily at night."

"Don't you miss being out?"

"If I could, I would do more, not gonna lie. However, I can only push my luck so much before turning insane. And I'm not that good at making money. Traveling ain't cheap."

"Nothing is cheap!"

"Did you think a child would be cheap?" Ben giggled.

"It's insane, but look at her sleeping face. It's worth it."

The night was barely bright enough to allow Ben to see the sleeping baby.

"Despite struggling at it, your smile doesn't lie."

"Mom has been yelling at me a lot lately. But look, it's a whole new life. And so fragile!"

"I wouldn't call it fragile, though. Stubborn is a better word."

"Stubborn, is it?" Mari whispered, getting lost in her thoughts.

---

"Don't be stubborn! I told you, we don't have any more free space. You need to make do with what we gave you."

Despite being much weaker, the Village chief still stood his ground fearlessly.

"Make it happen!" The middle-aged man yelled.

"If you want for more, go ask it. We follow strict protocols."

"Why are you yelling so much?" Ben woke up after he felt the middle-aged man's energy fluctuate.

"Lord, that's the leader of the last batch of immigrants."

Looking at the self-assured man in front of him, Ben felt this reek energy emitting from him.

'Still growing this strong, bold.'

"I'm Bar Qhechan. Is this how you greet..."

But Ben didn't allow the man to finish his smug reply.

"Not in the mood," Ben whispered, closing his eyes again.

The man's face became struck in fear once his instinct fired up. However, he didn't even have time to run. Immediately after Ben closed his eyes, the roots from the tree tied his feet and pulled the man underground.

"Everyone else that would be a problem for you also became manure. I would still be careful with the others since many in this group were willing to sacrifice others for their strength. And I say this because, in this day and age, it isn't easy to find so many people to sacrifice to grow this strong. Do you understand me?" Ben added with his eyes still closed.

"Yes! Sorry for disturbing you, but I didn't know what else to do."

"That's fine. I already told your people before. Just yell with enough intention, and I'll feel it. No need to tiptoe around such danger. Those people have all incredible legacies, but their time to shine is past."

"I'll make sure we teach this for the next in line."

"You all need to get used to this. More people are bound to come and try us out. And they won't be coming here to sightsee."

---

"Do you pity me? Is that why you came back? Did you come to sightsee how much of a joke I am?"

"You might be crazy, but we're friends, right?"

"You left me alone!"

"I mean, I told ya, didn't I? I needed a nap."

"A 100 years nap?"

"That's not much. Do you think it's that easy to live this long?"

"You seem quite good at it."

"For someone so old? Are you making fun of me?"

"For a fellow Earthling, you act like you're meant to be here. It's incredible how your carefulness fits so well."

"You're indeed making fun of me."

"I'm still bitter that you didn't accept my proposal."

"You're too bold. We might be peers, but my body can't keep up. I'm too old."

---

"I'm too old to be this bold, but I hope you can welcome us. The world has become quite chaotic."

"He might not reply right now, but I'm sure he can hear you."

"I do understand. It's not that easy to maintain an ancestry ground like this. I'm amazed. The descriptions out there don't do this place justice."

"Well, I'll show you the rest. Let's go. I'll show you your place next. It might be crowded, but at least we're safe here."

---

"It was so crowded!"

"Joji, who was the director?"

"Lucas Stone. It was an incredible piece of art."

"I look forward to streaming it later. You hyped me up this time."

"It's not often that someone shocks me this much."

---

Shocked, Ben Higgs opened his eyes.

It had been a while since new residents arrived, so he thought this was it. However, it seems someone surprised him.

But their arrival wasn't what stunned him. It was instead the technique used to get here.

Ben could feel from this far away the leader pulling and bending space and time around.

Choosing to close his eyes again, Ben waited patiently. But before he could calm down, the residents from Hope City noticed the instability.

A group of people ran to the tree with fear-struck faces. Despite being insulated for ages, the stories from outside still arrived here with the immigrants. And those stories of terror became very popular and remained a common discussion topic.

Once he felt the anxiety of the people around him, Ben opened his eyes again.

"Don't worry. I was a bit surprised by an incoming group. Get prepared since a sizeable clan will arrive in a couple of days. They just left the crumbling Ring."

The group received this news well since it meant they would finally get an update from outside. Despite their shrinking personal space, anything different that happened was worthy of celebration.