Chapter 27: Chapter 27: You Just Be Kind, I’ll Handle the Rest

Jayce stared coldly at the man, saying nothing.

He was waiting for Sierra to speak.

Whatever Sierra wanted to do, he would do it with her.

She could do as she pleased, and he would always be there to back her up!

Sierra Sullivan was also looking at the man, her face expressionless. "You’re at my door. Behave yourself. Can you do that?"

The man nodded furiously. "Yes! Absolutely! I can! I won’t ever do it again!" 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

"One more time, and you’re dead," Sierra Sullivan said, her voice cold. She scanned the others present. "That goes for the rest of you, too."

Whatever they were thinking, they all nodded obediently.

The Water Arrow in Jayce’s hand was still glinting menacingly. How could they dare refuse?

Things were different now from before the apocalypse!

Now, if you offended a Superpower User, you could be killed with no repercussions.

Seeing that everyone had quieted down, Sierra Sullivan gave a satisfied nod and turned to Jayce. "Let’s go back."

Jayce grunted in agreement and took a step back.

Just as Sierra Sullivan was about to close the door, the girl who had been bullied spoke up.

"Wait!"

The girl scrambled to her feet and stumbled through the crowd, making her way to Sierra Sullivan and Jayce.

"Ma’am!"

The girl looked at Sierra Sullivan with pleading eyes.

"Can you let me come in? I... I’m scared!"

When Sierra Sullivan didn’t answer, tears welled up in the girl’s eyes.

"I promise I won’t touch anything if you let me in. Just give me a corner to curl up and sleep in!"

"Ma’am, can you please help me? I’m really scared! What if after you close the door, that man..."

The man, who had just begun to relax, felt his heart leap back into his throat when he heard her words.

The man’s eyes bulged as he glared at the girl, looking like he wanted to eat her alive. "What nonsense are you spouting! I just promised I wouldn’t touch you! Why are you still running your mouth!"

’This damn bitch, she’s trying to get me killed!’

With that thought, the man scrambled to his feet and gathered his belongings. "I’ll go to another floor!"

Though he said this, he didn’t leave right away. Instead, he looked pleadingly at Sierra Sullivan and Jayce.

’He couldn’t leave unless they gave him permission!’

Sierra Sullivan gave a slight nod. As if granted amnesty, the man grabbed his things and scrambled downstairs without a second glance back.

’He couldn’t afford to provoke them, but surely he could hide from them?’

’He’d have to keep a low profile on another floor!’

’Who knew if there were other Superpower Users in this building.’

’He’d run into reasonable ones this time; they only gave him a warning, so he’d managed to keep his life!’

’If he met some with bad tempers next time, he wouldn’t even know what hit him!’

After the man left, Sierra Sullivan raised an eyebrow at the girl. "He’s gone."

The girl’s expression stiffened for a moment, but she quickly reverted to her pitiful act.

"Ma’am, he may be gone, but..."

As she spoke, she glanced at the others.

She didn’t say a word, but her meaning was clear.

The people she glanced at were furious.

’What did this have to do with them?’

’They hadn’t said or done a thing. How did they suddenly become the objects of her fear?’

The girl’s eyes were wide and pleading. "Ma’am, please just let me in! I... I’m very capable! I can do chores, I know how to cook, I can even give you shoulder and back rubs! Ma’am, you’re so amazing, can’t you just help me?"

Sierra Sullivan let out a soft chuckle. "I save you, and you take me for a fool. That’s rich. In that case, you can fend for yourself."

Ignoring whatever else the girl might say, Sierra Sullivan took a step back, slammed the heavy door shut, and bolted it.

The heavy slam of the door made everyone present jump.

As the door shut, the flashlight beam vanished completely, plunging the space back into darkness.

The girl stood at the door, staring blankly at the closed entrance, still trying to process what had just happened.

’They already saved me, so why wouldn’t they let me in?’

’I was already acting so pathetic, so why did they just slam the door on me?’

The girl’s hands clenched into fists. The look on her face wasn’t sadness, but pure resentment.

’She wasn’t ugly, and she had a great body. Why should she have to cram herself in the hallway with all these people?’

’Why did that short-haired girl get to be protected by a Superpower User?’

The more the girl thought about it, the angrier she became.

Just then, someone in the darkness let out a snicker.

That brief sound was like flipping a switch.

One after another, mocking laughs echoed through the hall.

The girl’s face burned with humiliation, but inside, her anger only grew.

Her gaze, fixed on the door in front of her, grew even more venomous.

’Just you wait!’

’Sooner or later, I’m going to be the one living in there!’

...

Back inside, Sierra Sullivan sighed.

Jayce immediately wrapped an arm around her. "Sierra, what’s wrong?"

Sierra Sullivan gave a self-deprecating laugh. "I never learn. Played the bleeding heart again."

Jayce sat up straight and looked at her earnestly. "Sierra, don’t say that. You’re not a bleeding heart, you’re just kind. There’s nothing wrong with being kind!"

’No matter what the world turns into, it will always need kind people.’

’Sierra can afford to be kind. He’ll be the villain for her.’

Sierra Sullivan didn’t say any more, nor did she give the girl outside a second thought.

’I’ve already helped her. No point dwelling on it.’

’If she tries to repay my kindness with malice, I’ll just kill her.’

「Two more days passed.」

The twenty thousand survivors were finally settled.

Providing daily food and water for so many survivors was a huge problem.

The base distributed free supplies once a day. Each person could receive five hundred milliliters of water and two hard, dry, coarse-grain biscuits.

There was plenty of food in the granaries, but the problem now was retrieving it.

Supermarkets big and small, as well as various warehouses and granaries, were all full of food and drink.

But transporting it back was the challenge.

The sandstorms varied in intensity, and the number and variety of Aberrant Beasts were constantly increasing.

Ordinary people couldn’t travel outside at all, let alone fight Aberrant Beasts.

After settling the survivors, the base immediately issued a new policy. It called for capable individuals to join official personnel in leaving the base to search for other survivors or transport supplies.

Of course, people wouldn’t be asked to risk their lives for free; there were rewards.

Although the base was newly established, it already had a system in place.

Completing missions for the base earned corresponding Contribution Points.

Contribution Points were equivalent to money and could be used to exchange for supplies from the officials.

These included, but were not limited to, food and water.

You could also rent housing or purchase protective gear and weapons.

Sierra Sullivan knew this day would come eventually and had been waiting for it.

After hearing the news, she discussed it with Jayce and decided to take this opportunity to leave the base and see the outside world.

She couldn’t stay cooped up in her room forever, like a delicate flower in a greenhouse.

Jayce had no objections to Sierra Sullivan’s decision.

"Since Sierra wants to go, we’ll lead our own team to scavenge for supplies."