At the thought, Stella Sterling threw a few punches, her fists cracking in the air. Even the snowflakes falling beside her seemed to twist out of their path.

Seeing this, Stella Sterling laughed, her spirits high.

"Stella?"

Just as she turned to leave, a voice called out from behind. Stella Sterling heard it, but she didn’t pause for a second, continuing to glide forward.

’Strange... did I get it wrong? But that silhouette looked so much like her!’

Not far away, a petite figure stood in the snow, muttering to herself as she watched the departing silhouette.

"Lydia, what’s wrong?" a tall man asked, walking over to the petite figure.

Lydia Magnus breathed on her hands as she turned around, a layer of ice coating her long eyelashes. "I thought I just saw Stella," she said, "but she didn’t turn back when I called. I guess I was mistaken!"

She shook her head, her voice trembling from the cold. "Come on, let’s get in line. We’ll take whatever we can get. If only I’d listened to Stella and stockpiled more!"

...

On her way back, Stella Sterling encountered the large group from her Orilon Complex. It was an impressive sight—several hundred people marching in a vast procession.

She kept her distance, avoiding a direct encounter, and returned to the complex without any trouble.

"My hands are practically frozen... It’s so cold."

Back home, Stella Sterling muttered to herself as she stripped off her layers. She peeled off the twenty-odd heat packs stuck to her clothes; they had all lost their warmth, now feeling as cold and heavy as stones.

Enduring the biting cold, she threw them all into the trash. Seeing her reddened hands, she quickly applied lotion to them and her face.

Stella Sterling hadn’t planned on a long supply run today, so she’d left the heat on. The apartment was warm when she entered, and the warmth slowly seeped into her, chasing away the bone-deep chill.

The notice had come early today, so Stella had gone out early. It was only about nine in the morning now that she was back.

Once she had warmed up a bit, she glanced at the red bag on the table, which held the noodles she’d received. She decided to make a bowl for breakfast.

It was a simple breakfast. A dozen minutes later, a fragrant bowl of tomato and egg noodles was ready. She paired it with a bottle of milk and savored her meal.

Simple as it was, it was still nutritious and tasted fantastic. Stella Sterling was quite satisfied with her cooking.

At this hour, the other residents of the complex were still waiting to collect supplies. There had been a long line behind her when she left, and who knew how long it would take for everyone to get their share.

As a result, the sprawling complex was unusually quiet, inhabited only by Stella, the elderly, and some children.

The only sound in her apartment was the THUD THUD of Stella’s punches. Even though her skills were already good enough to handle ordinary people with ease, she showed no signs of complacency.

’For now, I just have to deal with people inside the complex. The occasional trouble outside is manageable. My current strength is enough for that.’

’But in the future, I won’t just be facing ordinary people.’

’There’s always someone better out there. I just haven’t run into a true expert yet. When I do, my current abilities won’t be enough to cut it.’

’Besides, the environment is only going to get harsher. I need to have a strong constitution.’

CRACK CRACK CRACK

In the fitness room, the workout continued.

She hadn’t been reading her medical books lately. Over the past month, she had finished several of them, committing their contents to memory. She had mastered the theory; what she lacked now was practical application.

But she had no opportunities to practice. She had considered using her own body for it.

But she was as strong as an ox, perfectly healthy, so there was nothing to practice on.

As for injuring herself just to practice treating the wound, Stella had no masochistic tendencies and couldn’t bring herself to do it. So, she’d had to abandon the idea.

The most she could do was find time each day to practice her needling and acupoint identification on a training mannequin she’d bought. As a result, her acupuncture skills had become quite good.

Unable to make real progress with her medical studies, Stella could only redirect her energy into physical training, using the time she’d previously spent on books for exercise instead.

Stella was so engrossed in her activities that she didn’t hear the persistent knocking at her door. By the time she finished, the knocking had long since stopped, and she remained completely unaware anyone had been there.

Poor River Larkin. He had knocked for a long time with no answer, unsure if Stella Sterling was even back. Terrified that the three Bell brothers might return and catch him, he had no choice but to give up. He went back downstairs to his own apartment and bolted the door.

His life had been suffocating these past few days. He didn’t dare leave his apartment. The three Bell brothers took turns staking out his door, pounding on it relentlessly and giving him no peace.

But he was powerless against them, and his original plan was now impossible. Besides, given the current chaos in the complex, his idea to ruin the brothers’ reputations and have them driven out was no longer feasible.

But that wasn’t the immediate issue. The real problem was how he was going to get rid of them. He couldn’t let this situation continue.

But the three clearly had no intention of letting him off the hook. With them at it day after day, he didn’t even have a chance to slip out and find help.

If not for the supply distribution today, the trio would likely still be camped outside his door.

He’d seized the opportunity to slip out after they left. Instead of joining the main group, he quickly collected his supplies and hurried back.

Before they returned, he’d wanted to find Stella to devise a plan. After all, the three Bell brothers were her enemies, too. In fact, he’d only gotten on their bad side because of her.

If she would team up with him against the brothers, it would solve his immediate problem, and Stella could get her revenge at the same time.

He just hadn’t expected to knock for so long without an answer. River Larkin wasn’t sure if she wasn’t home or just wasn’t opening the door.

BANG BANG BANG!

A thunderous knocking erupted. The door rattled, hit so hard it sounded like it might break, as if someone was trying to beat it down.

"They’re back again!"

He sighed but didn’t dare open the door. He knew it was the three Bell brothers, back to cause more trouble. He was just glad he had returned early and hadn’t been cornered by them.

Their quick return meant they hadn’t joined the main group from the complex either. The first thing they did when they got back was come for him.

Thankfully, the apartment doors were sturdy. As long as he didn’t open it, he was relatively safe.

River Larkin let out a breath. Watching the door tremble, he dragged his sofa in front of it, his brow furrowed in worry.