The first sign came just after dawn. One of the workers found a set of footprints near the eastern edge of the farm, where the rows of vegetables ended and the land gave way to a narrow dirt road. The footprints were fresh, pressed deeply into the damp soil, and clearly did not belong to any of the workers. Rian crouched beside them, studying the marks without touching them. His expression slowly hardened as he followed the trail with his eyes. "How many times have we seen this?" Rian asked. The worker scratched his head. "This is the third time, Boss. Yesterday there were footprints near the irrigation ditch. The day before that, someone had moved one of the bamboo stakes." Rian remained silent. The farm had grown rapidly over the past few weeks. Three hectares of land were now filled with vegetables that looked almost too perfect to be real. Their size alone attracted attention, but Rian had tried to keep everything else ordinary. Apparently, ordinary wasn't enough anymore. Jojo stood several meters away, pretending to be an ordinary orange cat wandering between the vegetable rows. His ears, however, were pointed toward Rian. Later that morning, when they were alone inside the small storage shed, Jojo finally spoke. "We have a visitor." Rian sighed. "I figured that much." "Not a customer." "That's the part I don't like." Jojo flicked his tail. "Neither do I. Customers bring money. Strangers hiding behind fences bring headaches." Rian rubbed his face. He had hoped the expansion of his farm would solve his problems. Instead, success seemed to create new ones faster than he could count his money. Still, he couldn't simply accuse someone without evidence. So Rian changed the way the farm was monitored. He instructed the workers to pay attention to the outer boundaries, especially at night. Nothing dramatic—no weapons, no confrontation. They were simply told to report anything unusual and never approach a stranger alone. Rian also placed several inexpensive motion sensors around the property. They weren't sophisticated, but they were enough to give him a warning if someone entered the farm after dark. For several nights, nothing happened. Then, on the fifth night, one of the sensors suddenly beeped. Rian woke immediately. He grabbed his flashlight and stepped outside. The farm was quiet beneath the pale moonlight. Rows of vegetables swayed gently in the night breeze, their leaves whispering against one another. For a moment, he saw nothing. Then— A shadow moved near the eastern fence. Rian froze. "Someone's there." Several workers emerged from the nearby guard post. They moved carefully toward the fence, following Rian's instructions not to rush blindly into the darkness. The figure noticed them. He turned and ran. "Stop!" The man sprinted toward the dirt road, but the loose soil betrayed him. One of his feet slipped, sending him crashing onto the ground. Two workers caught up before he could stand. Rian arrived seconds later, breathing heavily. The stranger was a man in his thirties, wearing a dark jacket and a cap pulled low over his face. His clothes were dusty, and his hands were covered in soil. Rian stared at him. "You've been watching my farm." The man refused to answer. Rian's stomach tightened. "Who sent you?" Still nothing. One of the workers found a cheap phone inside the man's pocket. The screen was still lit, showing several recent messages. Rian didn't immediately take it. Instead, he looked at the man. "I don't care if you're curious about my vegetables. But you've been coming here repeatedly. That's trespassing." The man's expression finally cracked. "I'm just doing a job." Rian's eyes narrowed. "A job for who?" The man hesitated. That hesitation told Rian more than the answer would have. Finally, the man lowered his head. "Pak Wandra." The name meant nothing to Rian at first. "Who?" The man swallowed. "Pak Wandra. He supplies vegetables to several restaurants around Semarang." Rian's expression changed. Restaurants. His mind immediately went to the chefs who had contacted him after his successful partnership with Ria Jaya Market. Several of them had been interested in his produce, but Rian had deliberately postponed negotiations until his expanded farm was ready. Now he understood why someone might be interested in him. Competition. Jojo, standing behind the workers, stared silently at the captured man. Rian slowly exhaled. "So this isn't about my land." The man shook his head. "No." "It's about my vegetables." The man didn't answer. But he didn't need to. Rian looked across the enormous farm, rows upon rows of crops stretching beneath the moonlight. For the first time, the farm didn't feel like his escape from poverty. It felt like a battlefield. And somewhere beyond it stood a man named Wandra who had apparently decided that Rian's success was a problem. Rian clenched his fists. He had spent his entire life struggling just to survive. He wasn't going to surrender his farm now. Not without a fight. From behind him, Jojo's deep voice finally reached him—but only Rian could hear it. "Congratulations, human." Rian glanced at the cat. "Congratulations for what?" Jojo's tail swayed lazily. "You've officially become someone's competition." Rian stared at him for a moment. Then he sighed. "Why does that sound more terrifying than being poor?" Jojo blinked. "Because, Rian, poverty only takes your money." His green eyes narrowed toward the darkness beyond the fence. "Competition tries to take everything else."

Chapter 16 — The Shadow Beyond the Field