After a few hours, the two men sent by Vicente returned from the Crow Woods, where they had disposed of Jesse's body, while their leader released Peter in the center of the village.
As the day slowly took over the dark sky, marking the end of that long night, the four people involved in the previous action convened together at the Fuller residence.
Meanwhile, Nina was sleeping peacefully in her room, as her brother had too many things going on in his mind to rest.
After everyone had finished their respective business from the previous night, Vicente looked at those three and said, his gaze piercing. "What we did tonight will be something that will happen many more times in the upcoming future.
Many more will die at our hands as we strive to grow. Eventually, some of us may fall by the wayside.
The reward of battles for some warriors is death, and it will happen to some of us sooner or later.
This is not a safe journey but a thorny path full of problems.
Your families may eventually bear the consequences.
Are you sure you want to take this course? Once you enter it for good, there is no turning back."
Seeing the determined look in Vicente's eyes, Rory clenched his fists, recalling the misfortune of his friend's life, and readily agreed.
"We will leave the village someday. My mother will be fine if we stay away, so I will take the risks."
"Count me in as well," affirmed one of those two young men. "I would rather live at a thousand for 10 years than to live at 10 for a thousand years!"
His companion also nodded in agreement without saying much.
"Very well, fellows, I welcome you to my family. As your Don, I will provide you with resources and opportunities, but most primarily, protection," Vicente smiled. "In return, I expect your loyalty and strength.
Today, we are just a handful, but our numbers will be much more.
Do you trust me?"
"Yes!" They chorused.
"Starting tomorrow, we will focus on expanding this family. For now, we will solidify our agreements with the local suppliers and enhance our firearm development.
With the help of you two, I aim to discover the limits of these weapons."
Both of them nodded eagerly, ready to help Vicente with this endeavor.
"For the rest, don't talk about the existence of weapons or our group with anyone else. Just observe for people who exhibit the potential to join us.
Once we have identified more reliable people, we will invite them to our group."
"Okay!"
...
After Jesse's death, three months passed in the blink of an eye.
During that time, Peter returned to his mother, and searches about Jesse ensued throughout the village.
Jesse's wife accused Vicente of being involved in her husband's disappearance, but she could do nothing against him because of the lack of evidence.
She possessed neither the resources to act against Vice nor did she have enough power to cause trouble for this boy who now commanded dozens of men under him.
Even after the villagers eventually discovered Jesse's body days after his death, nothing but rumors about Vice and this man's relationship would circulate through the village.
Either way, many regarded that Vice was just a child, and very few believed he really had any involvement with this death.
But among the few who did, some were precisely those suppliers who had talked with Jesse earlier.
They intended only to fulfill their current contracts with Vice and then do business with Jesse. But with such a person's death, they were convinced that the child was not a good-for-nothing player and he was somehow involved in the murder.
Nonetheless, even these misgivings and suspicions did not hurt Vice's group in the short run. He had secured contracts that would last from 2 to 5 years, so even if some suppliers wanted to distance themselves from him, he would not allow it.
After signing a Magic Agreement, it wasn't simple to break it.
Thus, Vice had been steadily growing his operations, with more of his trusted people joining his ranks and working for him and further advancements in the development of new weapons.
During these months, Vicente and the two men who had used the firearms that night had been performing many tests. They had eventually discovered the limit of their weapons.
Since a 1st-stage blacksmith crafted these weapons, these weapons were 1st-grade items. But still, the maximum potential of these items was restricted to the Junior Apprentice level.
After those two men managed to infuse all of their power, it resulted in damaging the weapons and helped Vicente to understand that, for the moment, the limit of these weapons only allowed one to infuse about 75% of the mana of someone who was at Junior Apprentice level.
Luckily, he understood this limit could be improved if they used more talented and higher-ranked blacksmiths.
Even though it was an earthbound project, by involving the magical powers of the blacksmiths from this world, Vicente was sure that these items could become magical artifacts with the classic limitations of any magical items that would be made on this world.
Because of this, Vicente planned to hire more powerful blacksmiths in the future. At the same time, he had already increased the arsenal at his disposal by three times.
But for the time being, only he and his three family partners would wield these weapons, as they hadn't yet recruited anyone else in order to expand their group.
Amid all these developments, the new term at the Academy of Stars had finally begun, and Nina had started her studies.
Since the little girl spent almost half the day in the academy learning, it allowed Vice to have more room to busy himself with his plans for his family.
...
"Vice, here are your things. See you later," a middle-aged woman chirped as she smiled warmly at Vicente while standing across the bakery counter.
After receiving his change and the bag of freshly baked loaves of bread, Vicente bid farewell to this lady from whom he regularly brought the bread.
He walked out of that shop while several gazes of the people from the vicinity fell on him. Among them, many looked at him with different eyes than they would look at a mere child.
Everyone in this village already knew what had happened to Vicente's family and how he had assumed responsibility for his late father's affairs.
However, the rumors about how he led and his ambitions in managing the family business had overtaken those about his and Nina's misfortune.
Thus, the village no longer perceived Vicente as a typical 12-year-old boy.
"I heard he and his group are targeting all the local merchants," a customer commented on this to the establishment's owner, casting a disapproving glance in Vice's direction. "He wants to steal everyone's business in the village."
"Don't say that. He's just trying to expand his business. Is it really wrong for him to do that?" That woman asked, attempting to offer a balanced thought.
"The rates he charges are absurd. How are we supposed to compete with that?" That disgruntled person expressed in an irritated tone. "And he's just a 12-year-old brat. What will happen when he grows up?"
A 13-year-old, who had been silently observing the man, muttered, his sharp gaze remained fixed on Vicente. "If he grows up..."
If Vicente were to turn towards him, the young Fuller would have recognized him as the young man who used to bully Rory years ago.