Chapter 167: Chapter 167: Change, Indifference

The sky grew dark. Faintly, you could see lightning forking across the sky. The rain was much heavier than before, spattering the water’s surface and sending out endless layers of ripples.

She stood up, and the water pooled on her raincoat scattered to the ground. She patted her raincoat, her hands instantly becoming soaked. "Time to head back."

With that, she leaped down from her high vantage point, landing steadily on the deck before heading toward the warehouse.

"Hey, wait for me!"

Louis Grant shouted from behind her. In a few quick movements, he leaped down from the pile of cargo and hurried after Stella Sterling.

The moment they stepped inside, the heavens opened up in a torrential downpour. Fish continually leaped from the water’s surface. The air was thick and heavy, creating an incredibly oppressive atmosphere.

The rain was too heavy, so the few base members who had been standing on deck also came into the warehouse.

"How is this rain even heavier than before?!"

"Yeah, it actually hurts when it hits you!"

"It’s so depressing. Who knows when days like these will ever end!"

Everyone stood crowded inside, watching the sky that had abruptly darkened. The rain was falling with more urgency than usual.

A foul, fishy stench wafted through the air. The space was already cramped, and now it felt even more suffocating and unbearable.

Every so often, a flash of lightning would illuminate the faces of the people huddled in the dark.

Confusion, fear, misery, frustration—each face wore a different expression.

Stella Sterling squeezed through the crowd, making her way toward her small room.

Many more people had boarded the ship in the last two days, making it difficult to even move through the passages.

BUMP.

In the darkness, someone bumped into her. She stood her ground, but the person who had run into her stumbled backward.

However, with so many people packed in, the woman didn’t fall. Instead, she bumped into another person and managed to steady herself.

"Watch where you’re fucking going! Are you blind or just spineless? If you’d knocked me over and I got trampled, would you have taken responsibility for that?"

An angry voice cursed from the darkness, followed by a woman’s flustered apology. "Sorry, I didn’t mean to."

The man only swore a few more times and didn’t do anything else. He just moved to the side, still grumbling under his breath as if venting his frustrations.

Stella Sterling paused for a moment before preparing to move on.

Just then, the woman who had bumped into her steadied herself and turned in Stella’s direction, apologizing again. "Sorry about that. I couldn’t see where I was going. Are you okay?"

Stella Sterling didn’t answer, simply continuing on her way in silence.

Lydia Magnus found it strange. ’I wonder who I bumped into.’

’That person didn’t curse me out like anyone else would have. They must be good-tempered.’ She breathed a sigh of relief.

Just then, a massive bolt of lightning split the sky, illuminating the entire ship.

And in that flash of light, Lydia Magnus saw the woman in front of her who was walking away. "Stella, is that you?" she blurted out.

Though her face was much tanner than Lydia remembered, the features were so familiar that Lydia Magnus recognized her in an instant.

Stella Sterling, who had wanted to just walk away and avoid any interaction, had no choice but to stop. She looked at the woman before her, whose face was alight with excitement and joyful surprise.

Stella’s expression was complicated. She didn’t say a word.

Lydia Magnus, however, didn’t notice anything unusual about her reaction. For the past two years of the apocalypse, she had been trapped in her home most of the time.

Now, seeing her good friend, she excitedly took two steps forward and threw her arms around Stella Sterling.

"This is wonderful, Stella! I never imagined I’d see you here! It’s so great that you’re still alive. This is just... this is so great."

Lydia Magnus was so overjoyed she started rambling, repeating how wonderful it was, completely oblivious to Stella Sterling’s stiff posture.

For the past two years, almost no one had been able to contact the outside world. Nobody knew what had become of their friends and family.

She had heard bits and pieces about how chaotic the outside world was, and that many people had died.

She and Claire Xavier had stayed in their villa, forced to be cautious and wary of trusting any outsiders. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Being able to see Stella Sterling now was something she had never expected.

At this moment, seeing a familiar friend from her past, she felt nothing but warmth and excitement.

She had been living in a state of constant tension and anxiety lately.

Now, she could finally relax. If there weren’t so many people around, she would have hugged Stella and cried her eyes out, telling her everything she had been through over the past two years.

But even though she held back her sobs, her eyes still welled up and turned red.

Stella Sterling frowned. ’It’s taking all my willpower not to just cut this woman down right here.’ Despite the thought, she just gave Lydia Magnus a slight, uncomfortable push.

Her voice held the trace of a smile, but it was distant. "So it is you, Iris Langley."

Lydia Magnus didn’t notice anything strange about her and nodded vigorously. "Yes, yes, it’s me! I can’t believe we’re both still alive. And I have to thank you. It’s a good thing you warned me, or I never would have survived this long."

"What about you? How have you been? Oh, but now isn’t the time for that. We’re both alive, and that’s all that matters! Since we’ve run into each other, let’s stick together from now on. That way, we can look out for each other."

She spoke with delight. The people around them merely glanced in their direction before looking away, paying them no mind.

It was clearly a reunion of old acquaintances in the post-apocalyptic world—not an uncommon sight.

Louis Grant, who had been following Stella Sterling, now approached. He raised an eyebrow as he looked at the two women standing together.

’Didn’t Quincy Sterling say she didn’t know this woman?’

’So she was lying to me. She doesn’t seem like the type to meddle in others’ business, so there must have been a reason she decided to save that woman earlier.’

’But why would she pretend not to know her?’

’Judging by the reaction of the woman I don’t know, they must have a good relationship. But Stella’s reaction... that’s certainly interesting.’

Lydia Magnus chattered on excitedly, but Stella Sterling merely smiled without saying anything.

Finally, even the slow-to-notice Lydia Magnus sensed that something was off.

She called out uncertainly, "Stella?"

The smile remained on Stella Sterling’s face. Instead of responding to what Lydia had been saying, she changed the subject. "Are you here alone?"

Standing nearby, Louis Grant grew even more confused. ’Didn’t Quincy Sterling see everything that happened earlier?’

’And did that woman just call her Stella? So ’Quincy Sterling’ really is a fake name!’

’It figured. It always sounded like a fake name anyway.’

’She was so half-hearted about it, too. Even for a fake name, it was way too random.’

He figured she must have just made it up on the spot. ’She couldn’t even be bothered to come up with a convincing fake name.’

After a moment’s thought, he walked over to the two women.