Regret Came Too Late

The people of Northbrook had long been hardened by la.

Even if the world forget about them, they knew how to fend for themselves. They'd hail the gods on makeshift carts to sell in the neighboring city

It wasn't enough to make them rich, but in kept food on the table. Hard work was just part of the deal.

But this year, the relentless downpours had caught everyone off guard. No one had been prepared for the sheer force of the storms.

dece kept her stance low-key, and even when

she was injured, she didn't make a fuss. The gathered fruit farmers exchanged glances, hesitating Then, a few younger ones finally booke the

"Three days. Just three days, She's a streamer. Maybe she really can help "

The others still looked uneasy, but in the end, they nodded.

Mandy red or tocheck Grace's injuries, but she shook her head. "I'm fine."

Not a chance. Her

back the flap of a tent belonging to some of the younger farmers and stepped inside, issing instructions

apples are sweeter. We're switching the shipment to Northbrook apples. If they're okay with that, we'll ship. If n Mandy frowned "Why send that message? We've got over to thousand orders lined up. If we just ship them out,

of Northbrook, slapping a "Southbrook" label on their apples is an it. Back then, Southbrook treated them like outcasts, pushing them our of the circle of prosperity like a bunch of bandes. "And now if they let their apples ride on Southbrook's reputation, it's no different than groveling Like they said, they'd rather let their

stubbornly to their principles, no

liker the people of Northbrook. Their elders never bowed their heads. Naturally, neither would the younger generation.

call them foolish, but having a code to live by wasn't such a bad thing. At least they weren't like the people of Southbrook, who repaid kindness

no idea how disgusting they

he was a highly educated man from a top university. But instead of chasing a cushy city job, he chose to come here, determined "It was his idea to start growing apples in the first place. Back then, Brookfield wasn't split to Southbrook and Northbrook yer. But

kept getting

the chief told them to let it

soon after, Southbrook completely shut us out. They blacklisted our apples. The chief went to negotiate for our rights, but before the meeting even started, he was

man who had given