In Teyvat, it all begins with rescuing the grass god.

"They broke into my home, stole my belongings, and seriously injured my family members."

"If it were handled so simply..."

"Won't any thief, big or small, dare to break into my house from now on?"

Rhodes stared at Candice and said calmly, "They must die, and I will let everyone in the village know that if anyone dares to cause trouble in my house again, I will kill one, and if two come, I will kill both."

As soon as these words came out.

Atia, who had initially held onto a sliver of hope, was now utterly despondent. He closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh.

From the moment he saw Rod today, he knew things couldn't end well.

I definitely can't save those three fools who are blinded by money on my own.

Now it's up to Candice.

According to the trial procedures in Aru Village, if a villager violates the rules, Rhodes should hand the criminal over to the guardian Candice, who will then determine the crime and impose punishment.

This is why Candice repeatedly emphasizes that she will not show favoritism.

But look at it now.

Rhodes wanted to bypass the Guardians and take matters into his own hands, executing criminals whose crimes did not warrant death on the spot as a demonstration of his authority.

This is not in accordance with the rules of Aru Village.

If Candice agrees to Rhodes's request, it would be tantamount to her, the guardian of the village, breaking the village's rules.

Given Candice's personality.

They probably won't agree right away.

Unfortunately.

Things took an unexpected turn for Atia.

After carefully listening to Rhodes's request, Candice hesitated only slightly before saying, "These three people have indeed broken the village's rules, so according to the rules, they will no longer be protected by the village. In that case, whether they live or die is none of the village's business."

Then, she changed the subject, saying in an irrefutable tone, "But everything must be done after the village's trial of them is over, Mr. Rhodes, do you understand?"

"very good."

Rhodes did not insist on using vigilante justice in his home and agreed with Candice's suggestion.

It's enough to establish authority; there's no need to go against the village rules.

(I rewrote the second half; the previous version felt increasingly inappropriate the more I read it. I also copied a comment from a senior member in the comments section (ω).)

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 56 Just cry out

(I rewrote the second half of chapter 55 yesterday. If you haven't seen it, please refresh the page. I really felt that it wasn't written well and didn't fit Candice's character. I've revised it overnight.)

The theft incident quickly passed.

of course.

This means that the matter is over, but it doesn't mean that the subsequent impact of the event can be simply forgotten.

After Candice declared the three thieves, who were originally guards, permanently expelled from Aru Village, Rhodes twisted each of their necks 360 degrees in front of all the villagers who came to watch.

This is the first time someone has dared to take action immediately after the trial.

To the villagers' even greater surprise, Candice made no comment, simply stating calmly, "They are no longer under the protection of Aru Village."

As soon as these words came out.

Add to that Rodna's sharp, hawk-like gaze sweeping across the entire arena.

Don't mess with them.

These three words quietly entered the minds of the villagers.

in the next few days.

Discussions about this incident have never stopped in the village; it's the topic of conversation for the villagers during their leisure time.

However, Rod, the person involved, has not shown his face since that day.

At Rod's house.

Adbay, who was seriously injured while protecting Cole, has been staying here to recover for the past few days.

However, his demeanor did not show any signs of serious injury.

He was leaning against the headboard, looking radiant, drinking the medicine that Cole fed him, sip after sip.

Outside.

After seeing off the doctor who had been brought from Kavan Station, Rod shook his head and walked in.

Adbay's hands are useless.

The Black Flame Serpent is no joke.

Fortunately, Cole retained her sanity while fighting the three thieves; otherwise, if she had given in to the demon's resentment and unleashed her full power, Adbay would have been burned to ashes on the spot.

But even so.

Adbay's hands still suffered irreversible damage.

Moreover, this is not just a matter of his hands being rendered useless; it also marks the end of Adbay's academic career, leaving him with no possibility of engaging in academic research again.

"Why are you doing this?"

Rod has been asking this question several times a day for the past few days.

In his memory, Adbay was a scholar who utterly despised the desert people, just like old Roy who would rather die than teach them.

But why is he suddenly willing to risk his life to protect Cole, a desert person suffering from the Demon Scale disease?

only.

Each time, Adbay's response was a cold snort.

It seems that he still holds a grudge about how Rhodes had angered him so much back then.

"Ugh--"

Rod was helpless.

The past was before and the present is now.

Previously, she wanted to get Adbay's attention so she could find an opportunity to obtain plant grafting and hybridization techniques from him.

Now that Adbay almost lost his life for Cole, even if Rod is cold-blooded, he wouldn't be so inhuman as to continue harming him.

After thinking about it for a while.

Undeterred, Rhodes continued, "I know you don't want to talk to me, but I suggest you consider Cole's feelings."

"After you got hurt."

At this point, Rod paused, glanced at Cole who was silently feeding him medicine like a machine, and said helplessly, "She feels guilty and is very worried about you."

Hearing the name Cole.

Adbay's stern face finally softened a bit, and it was the first time he had spoken to Rhodes since moving in.

That's just a bit unpleasant to hear.

What he said was, "What's it to you if I'm a nutcase?"

"Why don't you need me to take care of this?"

“I killed those three thieves, I cooked your food and drinks, I even paid for your medical expenses, and I also had to take care of the chicken coop and pigsty every day, and water and fertilize the fields.”

Rod pointed to his eye sockets and said, "Look, you've got dark circles under your eyes."

"Serves you right! You deserve it!"

Don't you know your own level?

"With this level of skill, you dare to keep this and that here? Bah! You'll work yourself to death!"

Adebay launched a scathing critique of Rhodes's proudest research into farming.

He is very eloquent.

Rod was sweating profusely from talking.

You guessed right.

This guy clearly has a wealth of knowledge about the biological theory.

He had never been to Rod's house.

Yet he was able to pinpoint the situation where some mushroom chickens in the coop had died mysteriously.

Compared to Rhodes, who's only half-baked.

Adbay is the real expert in this field.

Therefore, his criticism is warranted.

Rod didn't utter a single rebuttal, but listened attentively and honestly.

All said.

Live and learn.

Knowledge is boundless. With such an expert here, what does it matter if he's willing to offer Rhodes some guidance?

He cursed for quite a while.

When Adbay got tired of yelling, he coughed and cleared his throat.

Ke Lai, who was by the bedside, understood and immediately poured a cup of hot tea and fed it to Adbayi.

After drinking.

Looking at Cole, who was still depressed, Adebay changed his sarcastic tone when he spoke to Rhodes and forced a smile, saying, "Little guy, what are you blaming yourself for? Look, I'm not blaming you at all. You don't need to torture yourself like this."

"I"