Of course, Paige Summers didn’t listen to Claire Chapman. She was thinking about the best way to handle the situation.

Just then, the woman surrounded by the Flying Knives suddenly spoke up. "Could you stop these... knives? We can compensate you!"

This was the way of Aegis Base. If you were strong enough to take something, no one would blame you. But if you were unlucky enough to pick a fight with someone tougher, you had no choice but to accept the consequences. The siblings had lived here for more than two years. It wasn’t that they lacked connections, but their opponents were clearly high-level Superpower Users, and they felt completely out of their depth. If this could be resolved peacefully, that would be for the best!

At the word "compensation," an idea sparked in Paige Summers’s mind, and Claire Chapman’s assault slowed.

’Indeed, this stalemate isn’t going to solve anything! We still haven’t found any gasoline, and our people need to rest. Since we don’t plan on spending the night, the best strategy is to sort this out and leave quickly. Having these two locals offer compensation is the perfect opportunity!’

Paige Summers’s eyes darted thoughtfully. "We can stop. But how do we know you’re telling the truth? What if you go back on your word...?"

The woman hastily replied, "We won’t, we won’t!" Gritting her teeth, she whispered to the man beside her, "Brother, take out that Crystal Core."

The man let out a dejected "oh," pulled a pouch from an inner pocket, and placed a Fifth Order Crystal Core from inside it on the ground.

Paige Summers raised an eyebrow. A Fifth Order Crystal Core wasn’t particularly precious to her. They had killed countless Mutant Beasts on their journey, and even with the low drop rate for Crystal Cores, they had acquired a good number of them. But for the two people before her, it was clearly a painful loss... With a faint smile, she signaled for Claire Chapman to retract her superpower. In the same motion, she darted forward, snatched the Crystal Core, and retreated before the siblings could even react.

Seeing her speed, the sister, Rachel Forrest, was filled with a sense of relief. ’Such agility,’ she thought, ’is simply unfathomable!’

Her face went from pale to ashen. Forcing a smile, she pulled her brother, Leo Forrest, and said to Paige Summers’s group, "We were reckless today! Since this matter is settled, we’ll be taking our lea—"

"Not so fast." Paige Summers tossed the Crystal Core up and caught it. "This Crystal Core isn’t actually very useful to me. I wouldn’t mind giving it back."

"This..." Rachel Forrest hesitated.

Paige Summers continued to smile innocently. "I just need a small favor. It’ll be easy."

"Gasoline?" Back in the room, Rachel and Leo Forrest had finally been coaxed inside by Paige Summers. When she heard the request, Rachel Forrest wanted to spit blood. ’Gasoline is hard to come by in the base, but to trade a Fifth Order Crystal Core for it? This woman is ridiculously rich!’ But on second thought, she began to understand. For her, getting gasoline just took a little effort. For an outsider, however, it was a different story. Not only would it cost more Crystal Cores, but they’d also have to wait... Her mind started turning. "Gasoline is a hot commodity in the base," she said, testing the waters. "Even for us, it’s not that easy to get ahold of..."

Paige Summers read her expression and sneered inwardly, but her face showed only regret. "I see. In that case, I won’t keep you. I’ll just find someone else." With that, she stood up, gesturing for them to leave.

Rachel Forrest met her gaze for a moment and immediately understood Paige’s unyielding stance.

Her eyes lingered on the Fifth Order Crystal Core for a moment before she sighed and switched to a sincere tone. "Come on, sweeten the deal a little. You can’t expect us to do this and end up with nothing, right?"

Paige Summers tried to hold it in, but finally let out a chuckle. ’Now, this is more like it. I hate it when people are in a weaker position but still put on airs and try to push their luck.’ "I won’t have you working for free. Bring the gasoline, and we’ll buy it at market price. If you bring a large amount, I can add a bonus."

Rachel Forrest breathed a sigh of relief and nodded. The terms were pretty good. ’I can get the gasoline for less than market price, so this way I’ll get my Crystal Core back and even make a small profit on the side.’

Once they came to an agreement, everything went smoothly.

After Paige Summers’s group had washed up and rested for a couple of hours, Leo Forrest came to lead them to the gasoline. The whole party soon left the inn and drove to a warehouse.

It had to be said, Rachel Forrest was impressively efficient. In such a short time, she had gathered four large barrels—nearly two hundred liters of gasoline!

’No problem driving straight to Central City now!’ Utterly satisfied, Paige Summers was exceptionally generous. She not only returned the Fifth Order Crystal Core and paid for the fuel but also gave Rachel Forrest two extra Fourth-stage Crystal Cores as a bonus.

Rachel Forrest was delighted by Paige’s genuine big-spender attitude. While they loaded the gasoline, she sized up the group, an idea stirring in her mind. ’Even though we’ve built up some connections in Aegis Base, the base hasn’t grown at all in the last two years. In fact, its territory keeps shrinking. If this keeps up, there’s no future for us here. It’s not that my brother and I don’t want to leave, we just haven’t found the right partners to go with.’

’This group might look like they’re being protected, but in reality, just from seeing the ones who fought, I know they’re incredibly strong! And that casual generosity... could they be backed by a major power? With the amount of gasoline they need, their destination can’t be some small base.’

’The more she speculated, the more exceptional their background seemed. If she could use this chance to get in with them, the benefits would be huge!’

As they finished loading the gasoline and were about to get in their vehicle, she quickly pulled Paige Summers aside and asked tentatively, "What do you think of me and my brother?"

"What about you?"

At this, Rachel Forrest stopped beating around the bush. "My brother is a Fifth-rank Water Ability User who focuses on offense," she said directly. "I’m a Fifth Rank Original Superpower User who focuses on defense. When we work together, our combined combat and survival abilities are definitely on par with a lone Sixth-level Superpower User..."

With her laying it all out like that, Paige Summers naturally understood her intent. "You want to join us?"

Rachel Forrest nodded emphatically. "I guarantee our strength and our character are reliable! You can test us on the road. If you’re not satisfied, you can kick us out at any time. No complaints, I swear!"

Paige Summers rubbed her nose. ’Their strength is decent enough,’ she thought, ’but someone who tries to steal your car the moment you meet them talking about their ’reliable character’ is just ridiculous.’ So, under Rachel Forrest’s expectant, sparkling gaze, she politely but firmly refused.

As their vehicle pulled away, Rachel Forrest’s deeply disappointed face was still visible in the rearview mirror.

Claire Chapman asked, puzzled, "What’s with that woman? She looks like we just abandoned her!"

"Heh, something like that. She wanted to come with us, but I refused."

"I see." Claire Chapman stroked her chin, lost in thought.

Paige Summers thought that was the end of it, but it turned out she was far too naive.

Less than two hours after leaving Aegis Base, she noticed a small car tailing them. It was Rachel Forrest, whom they had just left. She was leaning out of the passenger window, waving vigorously at them!