Chapter 100: Chapter 100: I Want Things to Be Like Before, I Want to Go to Kindergarten

Sierra nodded in agreement. "I think so too. Candice will definitely become the most powerful Wood Ability User in the future!"

Candice didn’t try to refuse the compliment or act shy.

Her cheeks were flushed, but her face was full of determination.

"I will! Don’t worry, Sister, I’ll definitely become the most powerful Wood Ability User! Then you can eat whatever you want!"

"We don’t have to wait until then. Candice can already do that now!"

"Wait! Hold on!" General Aldridge interrupted their conversation. "Candice, what did you just call her?"

General Aldridge pointed at Sierra as he asked.

Candice blinked, her big eyes filled with confusion and bewilderment. "I called her Sister!"

As she spoke, Candice glanced over at Sierra.

’Is there something wrong with calling her Sister?’

’I’ve always called her that!’

Sierra patted Candice’s head, silently reassuring her, before turning to General Aldridge. "General Aldridge, what’s wrong? Is there a problem with Candice calling me Sister?"

"Her calling you Sister, taken on its own, is no problem at all. But then why is she calling me Grandpa?"

Sierra was speechless. "???"

She had been wondering what could have happened to make General Aldridge so serious.

She never expected that this was what he was going to say.

’Is he upset about being called old?’

The thought had barely formed in Sierra’s mind when General Aldridge spoke again.

"I don’t really care if I’m being called old. After all, I’m not someone who fusses over such things. But there’s one point you need to understand."

"What is it?"

"Originally, Jayce is supposed to call me Mr. Aldridge, and it’s fine for you to follow suit. But now, with a single word from this little girl, my seniority has been bumped up a whole level. This is the kind of good fortune others couldn’t ask for, and it’s just landed right in my lap. I should be really, really happy about it."

Though he said he was happy, there wasn’t a trace of a smile on his face. It was obvious that neither the title nor the generational promotion was something General Aldridge wanted.

Sierra had heard Candice call him Grandpa earlier but hadn’t thought anything of it.

After all, General Aldridge was over forty, and Candice was only five. Calling him Grandpa really wasn’t a big deal.

But thinking about it now, there did seem to be a bit of an issue.

Soon, however, Sierra thought of a solution.

"General Aldridge, we can just stick to our own forms of address."

’Why mix them together?’

’Wouldn’t it be fine if we just kept them separate?’

General Aldridge looked at the soft and adorable Candice, then thought about his own age.

If Candice really called him Uncle, he wouldn’t know how to respond to that, either!

Thinking about it that way, the title of Grandpa actually seemed quite fitting.

Once he’d worked it out in his head, he naturally let it go.

General Aldridge patted Candice’s head, then asked Sierra, "You said before you had something to ask me. What was it?"

"It’s not a big deal. I just wanted to ask why no one in your building lives in the hallways."

"That’s because you people don’t know how to make use of space." General Aldridge chuckled. "Everyone says I’m General Aldridge, a big shot who pulls strings everywhere, but I didn’t have such a good life from the very beginning. I came up from hard times, too. Back in the day, a tiny two-hundred-square-foot room held eight bunk beds and sixteen people, and I still thought it was pretty spacious."

"Look at this building. With all this space and these high ceilings, how many people could it house if you renovated it properly? The environment might not be as nice as it is now, and it would be more crowded, but it’s a lot better than living in the hallway, right?"

Sierra hadn’t expected that the seemingly brash General Aldridge could be such a detail-oriented person.

What he suggested was indeed a good idea.

And as for how to renovate?

They just needed to find people with Gold Element and Earth Element Abilities!

There were always more solutions than problems.

Just as Sierra was thinking about this, she heard General Aldridge speak again.

"With the way things are now, it’s actually safer underground than on the surface. Even if you hadn’t come to me, I was planning to find Kevin Everett to discuss the next step: how to expand the base’s area underground."

"This is something that absolutely must be done. Otherwise, where will all the survivors live? We have to rescue as many people as possible in the shortest amount of time. If we don’t, by the time we get there, it’ll be too late to even collect the bodies."

The words might have sounded crude, but they were undeniably true.

Sierra nodded earnestly, committing every one of General Aldridge’s words to memory.

As General Aldridge spoke, his expression was grave and his voice had risen.

Candice stared at him, not daring to smile casually anymore.

It wasn’t that she was afraid, just a little curious.

Seeing this, General Aldridge ruffled Candice’s little head again. "Candice, can you give Grandpa more watermelon in the future?"

Hearing this, Sierra almost couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Just a moment ago, he was so bothered by Candice calling him Grandpa.

Now, he was calling himself Grandpa.

’Isn’t his ability to accept things a little too fast?’

Candice nodded emphatically. "Yes! I can give Grandpa other fruits, too! I’ll work hard! I’ll work hard to get really strong! So everyone can eat!"

General Aldridge froze for a moment, a touch of emotion in his eyes. His hand stroking Candice’s head grew even gentler, but he didn’t speak.

He wanted to say that Candice was too young, that these things were not her responsibility, that she shouldn’t have to think about them.

But the words caught in his throat, and he couldn’t say them.

In a fallen nest, no egg remains unbroken.

Although Candice was young, she was a Superpower User—and a Wood Ability User with exceptional talent.

Even though she was only a five-year-old child, she had to make good use of her talent, work hard to improve her Superpower, and help more people.

It was a power that others could only envy, and a pressure and mission that no one else could share for her.

"Candice is so amazing!" General Aldridge praised her sincerely. "Everyone will be grateful to you."

Candice shook her head. "I don’t want everyone’s thanks."

"Then what do you want?" General Aldridge asked with a smile.

"I want..."

Candice lowered her gaze.

Just as Sierra was about to go and comfort her, Candice lifted her head again.

Her small, innocent face was now filled with a serious expression.

"I want things to be like they were before! I want to go to kindergarten! I miss my teacher, I want to be able to go outside and play, I want blue skies and white clouds, flowers and grass, and I miss the little flowing rivers... I also miss the cats and dogs in the neighborhood and the park, and the little birds flying around..."

Listening to Candice’s words, Sierra’s eyes instantly began to sting with a sharp ache.

It felt like she had been punched hard in the gut.