Standing by the car, Hope had changed from her normal clothes into a revealing outfit. She was dressed in ck stockings with ultra-short shorts and a ckce crop top. Her loose clothing earlier had hidden it, but now Felix could see she was quite curvy. As she felt his stare, Hope blushed. "I... I thought this might make it easler to get information from the young men in the vige. It''s better than using money, right?"


    Felix immediately shut down the idea. "Change back now. You''d cause an instantmotion dressed like that in the vige. We''re here on a mission, not to attract too much attention."


    An outfit like that would turn heads even in the city streets, let alone among young vigers. It was asking for trouble. "Oh... right."


    Finally reaching Pine Valley, they parked and were struck by the view. The houses were uniformly built and remarkably neat, which was likely because of government development ns. With terraced'' fields stretched along one side, the sight was breathtaking enough to make any woman want to take photos.


    On the other side, there were mountains. It was all greenery up to their peaks. Combined with the terraced fields, it created an otherworldly atmosphere.


    "It''s beautiful." This was Hope''s first time seeing such a view. If not for the mission, she would have taken photos.


    "Here, give me your phone. Remember, we''re investigators posing as tourists, so stay natural.


    H


    Hope snapped out of her daze at Felix''s words, and they entered the vige.


    They stopped a middle-aged man carrying arge sack.


    "Hi there. We''re on a road trip and passing through. It''s getting dark. Is there any ce we could stay for the night?" Felix asked.


    "Lodging? You''ll need to ask our vige chief, Mr. Caine. Go this way and turn the corner. You''ll find him," the man said.


    Did they actually need the chief''s permission to stay? Felix was not sure if this was standard practice, but something felt off. Following directions, they found an old man sitting on a small stool, puffing on a pipe. "Sir, are you the vige chief?" Felix asked.


    Though somewhat surprised, Ralph Caine nodded. "I am. And you are?"


    Felix quickly exined with a smile, "We''re on a road trip, going wherever the road takes us. It''s getting dark, and we''re wondering if we can stay in the vige tonight."


    Tourists? Ralph tapped his pipe before saying, "You can stay, but you can''t go out after sunse If you don''t follow this rule, please leave."


    As her eyes blinked with innocent curiosity, Hope asked, "Mr. Caine, why can''t we go out at night?"


    But Ralph remained silent, his expression saying "Take it or leave it".


    "Thank you, Mr. Caine. Would 500 dors be enough for lodging? Including a meal."


    After standing up, Ralph headed out. "Follow me"


    At a house on the vige''s east side, they found a woman washing vegetables in the yard. She looked up with a smile and said, "Mr. Caine, wee."


    Her eyes werepletely white, which meant she was blind.


    "Grace, we have two travelers who need lodging. They''re paying 500 dors and just need one meal. I''ve brought them here."


    Grace Leigh immediately became excited. "Thank you, Mr. Caine, thank you! Dear guests, please wait a moment. I''ll heat the water and start cooking. I hope you won''t mind my simple fare." The effect 500 dors would have on such a household was obvious, so her excitement was understandable.


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