Chapter 175 - Fourth world 25.

The men in dark vests appeared again near the herb market. There were seven of them, all armed, and their leader carried a short iron staff wrapped with red cord. He was not especially tall, but the others made room for him with the careful obedience of people who had learned that disobedience came with a price. He stopped in front of an old farmer whose cart held bundles of medicinal plants, tapped the staff against one of the baskets, and demanded payment for the right to sell in the village. The farmer said he had already paid the market fee that morning. The leader replied that the fee had changed. When the farmer asked who had authorized the change, one of the men shoved the cart hard enough to spill several bundles onto the ground.