Ben, Elena and Luiza continued talking about everyday things both in the village and in Ben's life, as well as the city where he lived (whose name he decided to replace with any other name, like New York), his family and close friends.

Ben also shared a bit about his parents and things like what they worked with and what great parents they were. Elena and Luiza couldn't help but glance at the strange watch that Ben had on his wrist, but they didn't want to ask about it, maybe for fear that they were being too curious about his life, or whatever. Anyway, the device is something recognizably beautiful.

Elena thought it was time to go home before her father noticed her missing. She said goodbye to her friend and Ben, before leaving through the gate and not being seen anymore, leaving Luiza and Ben in that big house, which was similar to the others, with the plaster of the walls in good condition, roof and wooden roof. that appeared to have been recently replaced and a chimney.

….

Luiza guided Ben to where the guest room would be and where he would stay until he was needed, according to the words of the owner of the house. It was a simple room with a solid wood bed, a headboard and a thick mattress wrapped in white sheets, with blankets and a pillow on top. A wooden window with a thin white curtain, a small bookcase with drawers next to the bed were also there. And finally, a white chest of drawers next to the door with a mirror hanging on the wall just above. Ben made his remark about the room he would be staying in until who knows when, and found the room nothing but reasonable.

-This is your room, Benjamin. Make yourself at home. Luiza said, showing Ben the room, with a slight smile.

- It's perfect. Said Ben, already getting in and putting his sweatshirt on top of the bed, excited.

- I'm glad you liked it. The bathroom is over there, down the hall, in case you want to shower and N1 and 2 is in the toilet outside. Whenever lunch and dinner are ready, I'll call you. Luiza said, giving Ben the guidelines for his stay there.

- OK. And…I almost forgot, thank you for having me in your home. The Elder told me that the village doesn't see outsiders very often. Ben said, his hand scratching the back of his head and a goofy smile on his face, showing humility. Luiza approached Ben to say something to him.

-The Ancient is right about the outsiders, but that doesn't mean we can't help them whenever and however we can. Luiza said, before placing her right hand on Ben's shoulder, making him even more attentive to Luiza's words.

- Especially when it comes to good and kind boys like you. Luiza gave Ben an approving smile, who nodded in response. Luiza saw Ben's green eyes shining with kindness, his posture betraying him as someone whose nature is worthy, as a descendant of the Tennyson family should be.

-Well, I think you want some privacy. As I said before, make yourself at home. Luiza said, before walking out the door and into the kitchen.

Ben closed the bedroom door and sat down on the bed, to throw his body back and stretch his arms. Ben closed his eyes and sighed heavily, as he received too much information at once and his brain needed to reorganize itself. He sat back down and looked at the Omnitrix on his left wrist.

"Oh man, you're making us look like weirdos." Ben said in his mind, looking at the legacy of Azmuth that was catching the attention of everyone approaching Ben.

Ben decided to touch his index and middle fingers on the square panel of the clock, so that a holographic disk appeared above the clock, bypassing it, emitting a sound of activation that Ben was already longing to hear.

The disk was divided into two parts, the bottom being empty and the top showing five silhouettes of faces that corresponded to the genetic samples of five of his one million aliens: Gravattack, NRG, Heatblast, Spider-monkey and Diamonhead.

However, Ben noticed something strange about Spidermonkey. The Arachnachimp's mouth appears to have been replaced with something resembling chelicerae and furthermore, something indicates that NRG's containment suit has undergone some changes.

Ben began to wonder why this was happening. Perhaps activating the Master Control could have caused some physical changes in the aliens or the Celestialsapiens messed with the universe again, as even Azmuth's appearance has already been altered thanks to their influence. The theory that Master Control might have done this seemed more consistent to Ben, and there was only one way to know what those changes were. Believing that it would be a good idea to know the date of that day, Ben decides to leave the room and look for Luiza. ….

Ben thought that the villagers had some vehicle of information, like newspapers or radios at home, and that he just needed to find someone who could provide newspapers around there. The village might not receive frequent visits from outsiders, but that didn't mean it was isolated from the rest of the world.

Ben saw Luiza in the living room and soon went to see if his assumptions were right.

- Excuse me, Luiza? Ben called the landlady, who was cleaning the china on the wall shelf. - Yes, Benjamin. Luiza replied.

- Does anyone here in the village supply newspapers? If so, who is it and where is he or she? Ben asked.

- Yes. His name is Duke, he's the one who keeps us up to date on what's going on outside the village, as well as providing all sorts of products and services. Near the statue, there is a narrow path between the cemetery and a house, go through it and open the gates. That's where he usually stays for that part of the day. Luiza gave Ben instructions on how to get to wherever the said whose was, and he just needed to follow them.

- OK. I will not take too long. Ben said, walking out the front doors of the house.

- Alright. Luiza nodded.

….

As he left through the gates, Ben continued down the hill towards the statue. Almost close to the church, Ben already saw two girls close to his age walking near the church, and as usual, they saw the stranger boy approach and kept their eyes on him for a while discreetly. Ben had draped his white sweatshirt over his back and tied the sleeves across his chest before leaving Luiza's house, which meant the boy's athletic build was on display. The girls were whispering among themselves, talking about how the outsider boy was handsome and had such a different style from the boys who lived in the village. Ben passed a little closer to them as he went on his way, and saw the girls smiling at him in a friendly, almost sensual way, and waving their hands, wiggling their fingers. Ben returned them with a quick nod and a friendly crooked smile on his face, his hands in his pants pockets as he walked. They waited for Ben to move away a little and started whispering to each other.

One had white skin, long flowing black hair with frayed bangs covering her forehead. She wore a white button-up shirt, and a navy blue embroidered skirt with a white flower print, and black leather mini boots. Her face was thin, upturned nose, brown eyes and pink lips.

The other also had white white, but with short blonde hair that touched the nape of her neck and a side fringe. She was wearing a red vintage-style dress with shoulder straps and white buttons, and black sandals. Her face was round, small nose, blue eyes and red lipstick on her lips.

-He has beautiful green eyes. The raven haired girl whispered, and actually saw beauty in Ben's emerald green eyes.

- The eyes, the face… and everything else. The blonde said, with the same mischievous look as her friend as she watched the outsider boy walk by. And Ben, who had already noticed that the girls were watching him with his peripheral vision, was obviously enjoying it.

Arriving in a completely different world, being received as a guest by someone as nice as Luiza, being admired by girls who only saw them for the first time in their sights and all this in less than an hour? Ben felt that his luck was tending to increase by the minute. That's considering he hasn't done anything he would deem "heroic".

"I'll still thank Paradox for that." Ben said in his mind, as he headed towards where the so-called Duke was.

Ben followed the path that Luiza had told him, opened a red iron gate and saw a bigger one, but it was already open and it was made of wood, adorned with two circular objects and two crows' wings attached to each one. From there, Ben could see rather… sinister place.

The place looked like an altar dedicated to ceremonies and sacrifices, which consisted of a circular surface higher than the ground with three steps, where there were candles lit on top. There was also a kind of octagonal dome made of carved stone and a pedestal with apexes and edges also in the shape of an octagon, also made of carved stone. Around the dome were small posts whose positions were compatible with the apexes of the dome, with cup-like objects on top. Perhaps those things were used to light a fire during the night.

Ben got closer to the altar to look around, and see a walkway fenced with the same posts that were on the altar, and other gates identical to the one he went through before arriving there.

"Okay… this place is starting to look more like Anur Transyl." Ben said to himself in his thoughts, giving his opinion about the macabre place where he was.

-Admiring the architecture? A voice caught Ben's attention, making him look to see who it was. The voice came from a blond-haired man whose waist circumference prevented his white button-up shirt and black suit from closing all the way. The obese man was inside a carriage with open doors, where there were small drawers, maps, bunches of garlic, fishes, sausages hanging on the doors and a lamp that served as lighting. There were also barrels, baskets full of fruit, chests, crates and a lot of trinkets, porcelain vases, candelabra and even a globe on the table. Ben took a good look at these details before looking at the man as he approached.

"Dude… a salad once in a while might be a good idea." Ben thought, watching the man's bearing in the carriage.

-I assume you are the Duke, right? Ben asked, half expecting a "yes".

- Himself. I assume you are the foreign boy who arrived in the village earlier today. And welcome to the Duke's Emporium... Benjamin Tennyson. Ben was surprised by the fact that the merchant knew his name, but he hadn't identified himself to him at any time, and the only people who knew his name were the Ancient, Elena and Luiza.

- How do you know my name? Ben asked, curious and a little suspicious.

- News around here travels very quickly, even more so when it's about outsiders. Duke replied, friendly smile on his face.

"Perhaps the Ancient told him my name, or someone overheard my conversation with her and went off telling everyone who I am." Ben thought.

-Where are you from, Benjamin? Duke asked, curious about the boy's homeland.

- I'm from New York, USA. Ben replied, lying about his background.

- I understand. People from so far away to show up here is very rare. I imagine that your means of returning to your land are a little, let's say... not very viable, is it? Duke asked, reminding Ben of how and by whom he was brought there, this being his only way to get back to Bellwood.

- Yes, you are right. I was actually wondering if you had local newspapers. Ben already asked what he wanted, so he could go back to the village soon.

- Of course. I have it all and can provide you with anything you need, for a small amount obviously. Duke replied, taking a newspaper that was inside the carriage.

- Could you come a little closer? Duke asked, extending his arm for Ben to take the newspaper from his hand.

- Thanks. Duke said.

- It has. How much does it cost? Ben asked, reaching into his pocket for some coins he'd brought with him.

- It's on the house. A courtesy I usually give to outsiders who rely on my services for the first time, when it comes to cheap things like a newspaper obviously. Duke responded, taking Ben by surprise at the merchant's generosity in providing the newspaper for free.

- Wow, thanks. Ben thanked, with a slight smile.

- It was a pleasure. Duke said, returning Ben's thanks, a satisfied smile on his face.

- By the way, you must have heard about the leader of the village and its four lords. By this time, they should already know about the arrival of an outsider in the village. Did you happen to see one of them? Duke asked something that caught Ben's attention more. The information he got from Elena had been useful, but now he would have the chance to learn a little more about said Mother Miranda and her four Lords.

- Yes, they told a little about them as soon as I arrived and that I should meet them in person. Ben answered.

- I understand. But I will give you more details about these Lords that maybe you should know, after all, you are a newcomer. Duke said, offering Ben a chance to understand a little bit of what's going on there.

- Okay. Ben nodded, ready to hear what Duke had to say.

- Well, Mother Miranda is the leader and protector of the village, and under her command, there are four Lords.

The first of these is the countess who lives in the castle, Lady Dimitrescu. She is the one with the greatest wealth of all the inhabitants of the village and, between us, a beautiful waist, by the way. That comment made Ben chuckle a little.

- The second lives in the big house she has on a misty top and away from the village, Donna Beneviento. She makes clothes and dolls for those who live in the village. Some people say that one of her dolls looks so realistic that it looks like alive. The third is called Moreau, a man of somewhat unusual appearance who lives near a water reservoir, next to the mills. Most fishermen in the village avoid fishing there, as the Lord who lives there is not very… open to visits. Ben listened carefully to what Duke was saying, nodding his head to show that he understood everything.

-And the fourth and last is Heisenberg, who works in a factory not far from here. A man known for his somewhat... eccentric ingenuity. He has a rift with Lady Dimitrescu, perhaps over inter-bloodline issues or hierarchy within the Family.

Ben was learning a lot about these so-called people that maybe it could have something to do with the murderous man-eating monsters, or they were having monster problems too. Ben didn't know whether or not it would be appropriate to ask about man-eating monsters or anything like that, but he found it strange that all that information was being told to him just because maybe he had a right to know.

He thought it best not to ask any more questions before he had to pay to be answered.

-Well, I really won't have problems recognizing them if I see one of them around. And they also rely on your products and services when they need them, right? Ben asked.

- In fact. I offer everyone an exclusive first-class service, everyone is satisfied. Duke replied, a satisfied smile on his face. Ben had already received enough information for that moment, and thought he'd go back to see if he could find out more.

-Well, that's all. And thanks for the paper. Ben said as he walked away from the carriage, heading towards the portal, smiling in thanks.

- You're welcome. Check back often... Mr. Tennyson.

Ben was already close to the statue of Maiden and saw a wooden bench next to a gate of one of the houses, where he decided to sit down so he could read the newspaper he just won as a courtesy of Duke.

….

Now that Ben knows a lot about who the village's bigwigs are, he just needs to see them to recognize who's who. But he still had to hear about certain legends that actually involved monsters, because if on the one hand there are the saints, on the other hand, there are also the cursed ones.