Chapter 83: Chapter 83: Insatiably Greedy?

The proposal was tempting, to say the least. All the incentives he offered were grand and lofty; each one sounded incredibly exciting.

But he hadn’t offered a single tangible benefit. It was all just empty promises.

’Silas Hawthorne... can he really be trusted?’

Sue Lawrence completely calmed down.

But the biggest problem facing her now was that Silas Hawthorne’s Superpower Level was higher than hers, and he might have a Superpower User by his side who could conceal their Superpowers. Furthermore, the man could currently mobilize the military, the Hawthorne Family was one of Veridia’s most influential families, and his background was unfathomable. And by comparison...

Although the Lawrence Family was prominent in Stellaport, their influence was limited to that city. Now, since the start of the apocalypse, Stellaport was doomed. The only survivors would be top-tier families like the Hawthornes.

The Lawrence Group was nothing now. At best, they were just surviving by relying on the state.

The small room fell silent in an instant.

Silas Hawthorne didn’t seem to be in a hurry, merely waiting quietly for Sue Lawrence’s response. After some careful consideration, Sue said calmly, "That’s a rather empty check you’re writing. What are the immediate benefits?"

As if he knew she would say that, Silas Hawthorne immediately took out his phone, pulled up a page, and handed it to her.

"As we roll out missions on a larger scale, we’ll be implementing a Points system. Missions like clearing snow are worth only one Point. Going out to find supplies like you did yesterday only earned you two Points. Even the most dangerous missions only award ten Points at most. But if you’re willing to help, I’ll give you 100 Points per job. In the future, you can use them to trade with the state for anything you want."

’Trade for supplies?’

"Does that include robots? I think your sleds and robots are pretty nice."

"Of course."

Silas Hawthorne nodded.

"What other benefits are there?"

’Points?’

’That alone isn’t enough.’

"A pass to all of Veridia’s bases."

Silas Hawthorne stated frankly, "But it’s limited to you and you alone."

"I want six slots."

Sue Lawrence began to bargain immediately. An opportunity like this was rare, so of course she had to secure the best possible terms for herself.

"..."

Silas Hawthorne couldn’t help but stare at her.

’Almost no one dared to bargain with him during a formal negotiation. Most people were too intimidated; one look at his cold expression and they’d back down. But Sue Lawrence not only haggled, she immediately demanded six times his offer. Six slots? What is she thinking?’

"I can give you one more, for a total of two. That’s my limit."

Sue Lawrence leaned back, her tone lazy. "To be honest, my family doesn’t have to stay here."

’We have that abandoned mine, after all. It’s already been converted into an apocalyptic Safe House. We sank hundreds of millions into it. It may not have this many advanced robots, but the environment inside is the same as it was before the apocalypse. We can farm crops, raise chickens and ducks, we have pure freshwater, and it’s climate-controlled. To survive the apocalypse, there’s no better place.’

At that, Silas Hawthorne’s eyebrows twitched.

He suddenly realized he had overlooked something very important.

’Of course. If she could transport supplies to his side, why couldn’t she have stockpiled some for herself?’

’In other words, she had already prepared a fallback plan for the Lawrence Family.’

"I would argue that acting alone in the apocalypse will be very difficult. It’s better for everyone to unite; only then can we truly survive it."

’There is strength in unity.’

Sue Lawrence maintained her smile. "I don’t have your grand perspective. Saving all of humanity and all that is too lofty and far-removed for me. I’m just an ordinary person, an ordinary mother, an ordinary daughter. All I’m after is for my family to survive. Nothing more."

Silas Hawthorne fell completely silent.

Because what Sue Lawrence said was just too pragmatic.

’With the apocalypse upon them, everyone was displaced, crammed into this one air-raid shelter, not even able to eat a decent meal. In a situation like this, who would listen to you talk about grand principles, about sacrifice, about country? No one.’

’You have to ensure survival first; all that other stuff comes later.’

"Ms. Lawrence, you’re very pragmatic."

"Thank you for the compliment. If you were dragging a family along, with elders above you and children below, you’d be pragmatic too."

Silas Hawthorne narrowed his eyes.

’Is she accusing me of neglecting my family?’

’This woman really has some nerve.’

But he truly did need Sue Lawrence’s Ability.

A Taker, and one he had never seen before at that—a Taker who could strip away Skills.

He had witnessed the generational loss of knowledge, culture, and technology, and he lamented it. Thousands of years of accumulated civilization had been severed by a single cataclysm. Those who had barely managed to survive the apocalypse could only live like animals. They lost the skills they relied on, no longer knowing how to build houses with mortise and tenon joints. Without cement and steel rebar, they couldn’t even construct sturdy buildings. That was the greatest tragedy of all.

Silas Hawthorne thought for a moment and finally decided to be more frank.

"Alright, how about this. I’ll give you one more. Three slots."

"Six."

Silas Hawthorne: "..."

He leaned back slightly, resting against the back of his chair, and watched her with a calm expression. His handsome face was a complete blank, making it impossible to tell whether he was angry or not.

Sue Lawrence said slowly, "Of course, I’m not included in those six slots."

"Heh..." 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Silas Hawthorne laughed in exasperation.

’It wouldn’t include Sue Lawrence, but she would have to have this privilege regardless. It was her Ability he needed, after all. If she couldn’t enter any of the bases, who was she supposed to use her Taker Superpower on? The zombies?’

’Hmm, that might not be impossible, actually.’

Silas Hawthorne’s expression suddenly grew serious.

"Six slots. Fine. But on one condition: you must be on standby at all times. Whenever I need you, you must remain by my side, without exception."

Sue Lawrence’s eyes narrowed.

’Does Silas Hawthorne plan on doing these missions himself? But she had a feeling that the missions he was involved in were completely different from things like clearing snow.’

"Of course. Any other conditions?"

Six slots. It was enough for her entire family, along with Mia Keller, to freely enter and exit any future base in Veridia. In other words, they could go wherever they pleased.

It would be unbelievably convenient.

"Not at the moment."

’So there will be more in the future.’

"What about in the future? What kind of conditions are we talking about? I won’t agree to everything."

"It’s simple. They will only concern your Ability. We won’t pry into anything else."

"Done!" Sue Lawrence nodded. Silas Hawthorne finally breathed a sigh of relief. In his mind, the matter was settled. But who would have known that Sue Lawrence would suddenly add, "You’re done stating your requirements. Now it’s my turn to state mine."

Silas Hawthorne: ????

’Weren’t the six slots a demand? What is she proposing now, some kind of tyrannical clause?’

Silas Hawthorne’s face instantly turned cold. To think he had actually started to admire this woman, Sue Lawrence. He’d thought she was smart, sensible, and highly capable, even possessing a rare Superpower. He never would have expected her to be just another greedy, insatiable opportunist.