Nora Lowell emerged from behind Woody Warren, still dressed in black. The dark clothing only served to accentuate her crimson lips, pearly teeth, and remarkable aura. Though her expression and tone were placid, her words held an undeniable hint of accusation.

Paige Summers shot her an annoyed glance.

’I’d thought the story had changed, that my relationship with the heroine didn’t have to be so tense,’ she mused. ’I figured we could at least get along peacefully for the time being.’

She never expected the other woman to be so unfriendly from their very first interaction.

She frowned and turned directly to Woody Warren. "Boss, I have some business to attend to for the next few days. I had Young Master Monroe ask you for time off for me, did you get the message?"

’In this situation, I wonder how he’ll respond.’

Fortunately, Woody Warren didn’t seem to mind at all. He just waved a hand dismissively. "Yes, yes, it’s all taken care of. Don’t pay any attention to Nora. She just gets worried seeing me so busy... But I’m actually delighted! You wouldn’t believe it. With you gone, I was fretting about the business. Figured I had nothing better to do, so I made those two table and chair sets. And guess what? Somebody loved them and ordered over twenty sets on the spot! Haha!"

Seeing that he truly held no grudge, Paige Summers broke into a smile.

"Since people like them, I’ll draw up a few more designs in different styles. The shop will be rolling in money!"

Hearing this, Woody Warren’s eyes lit up, and he eagerly pulled her toward the back of the shop.

Nora Lowell watched their retreating backs, a sour feeling churning in her stomach.

’These past few days with my uncle, the name I’ve heard most is "Paige Summers." How well-behaved she is, how sensible, how talented... My uncle not only went on and on about it, but he was also worried about her sudden departure, afraid something bad might have happened to her...’

’Even if it’s for the sake of the shop’s business, my uncle pays far too much attention to her. It’s almost as much as he pays to me, his only living relative.’

’It’s ridiculous!’

’She’s just some little girl he’s only known for a short while, and her strength is so pathetic...’

Nora Lowell took a deep breath, suppressing the jealous thoughts.

A moment later, a look of relief washed over her face.

’So what if she’s capable? This is the apocalypse. What’s truly needed are people with outstanding superpowers and real strength, not someone who makes little trinkets for amusement!’

She thought of the Crystal Cores her uncle had given her the day before yesterday, and her heart began to burn with excitement.

’Although the amount shrank considerably after I traded them for High-level Crystal Cores, they’ve still sped up my Cultivation quite a bit. At this rate, it won’t be long before I can advance.’

’Compared to that, nothing else is important.’

Nora Lowell returned to her room to focus on her Cultivation.

An hour later, Paige Summers came out from the back room.

She was beaming, clearly in a great mood.

Before she even got in the vehicle, Blue had noticed. As they were heading back, he couldn’t help but ask, "Sounds like you had a good chat with Master Warren?"

"Yeah!"

Paige Summers stroked the small backpack in her hands.

Despite Nora Lowell’s terrible attitude, Master Warren was still the same wonderful man.

When he heard she couldn’t come to the shop often because she was planning to spend more time hunting and training, he insisted on giving her more than half of her salary as a wine server from The Citadel—a full one hundred and sixty Second-order Crystal Cores—and wouldn’t let her refuse.

The Crystal Cores were secondary; it was his concern for her that moved her the most.

The warmth spreading through her chest was real and true!

So she hadn’t held back, drawing him numerous blueprints for supposedly popular retro-style furniture. As much as she was able, she sincerely hoped he would be able to live a better life.

Lost in thought, they soon arrived back at her residence.

Blue didn’t come inside this time and left directly.

Paige Summers shrugged. ’That kid looks like I have some dirt on him. He’s so naive. Doesn’t he know that the more he acts like this, the more it makes me want to tease him?’ A glint of amusement flashed in her eyes as she slowly closed the door and returned to her room.

That night, as she was cultivating, she advanced to the next rank. It didn’t come as much of a surprise.

She was now a genuine Third Rank Superpower User.

Although it was nothing in the eyes of true experts, Paige Summers still felt a surge of encouragement.

Of course, she understood this was just the beginning. The higher one’s superpower rank, the more difficult it became to advance. In other words, the corresponding Crystal Cores were much harder to come by. It wasn’t that she couldn’t use low-level Crystal Cores; for instance, she could still absorb a bit of energy from Second-order Crystal Cores, but the amount was tiny. She reckoned a hundred of them probably wouldn’t even match the energy of a single Third-stage Crystal Core. As for First Order cores, they were now completely useless to her.

It was a worrying thought.

She decided to discuss it with Marcus Monroe; it would be best if the final payment for her work could be converted into Third-stage Crystal Cores.

Having just advanced, she was full of energy, so she went to her workshop.

She had intended to continue drawing, but after staring at the blueprints for a while, the thought of the hunt in three days gave her a new idea.

’The most important thing for a weapon is practicality.’

’I still know too little about mutant animals and plants.’

’It’s better to hold off on the design. After I come back and have more experience, I might have better ideas.’

’Besides, I still need to make a metal Crossbow for myself.’

Time flew by when she was focused on Artifact Making. Paige Summers spent nearly two days completing a metal Crossbow and another half-day or so getting used to it.

Only five of the Crossbow Arrows were coated with the original poison; for the other twenty-five, the Poisonous Liquid was diluted to the point where its effect was similar to an anesthetic. To test them, she had specially asked Blue to help her buy some docile Mutant Animals. Perhaps he had already heard of her reputation for "concocting poisons," or maybe he had been ordered not to ask questions. In any case, the task was completed quickly and without a single inquiry.

Paige Summers was happy with that.

The appointed time arrived. Early in the morning three days later, Martin Warren came to pick her up in a car. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Amidst his smooth-talking, the two of them quickly reached the city gate. After finding a place to park the car, he led her to another off-road vehicle with a high chassis.

The moment she climbed aboard, Paige Summers froze.

She knew it was impossible that just the two of them would be going hunting, but aside from two unfamiliar faces in the vehicle, there was also someone she absolutely had not expected to see!

"What, surprised?"

The vehicle quickly drove out of the city. The stern-faced man sitting opposite her spoke in a low voice, and Paige Summers nodded honestly.

"I thought you were very busy, Young Master Monroe. I didn’t think you’d be likely to participate in this kind of ’activity.’"

"PFFT!" Martin Warren, in the passenger seat, couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing. Even the other two men in the vehicle quickly lowered their heads to hide their smiles.

’Oh man, this girl is hilarious!’

’An "activity"... How long has it been since we’ve heard such a quaint term? It feels like the whole trip has suddenly taken on a different flavor, as if we were back before the apocalypse, heading to a school dance or a company dinner.’

But Paige Summers was completely baffled, not understanding what she had said that was so funny.

She looked around, bewildered and innocent, only to find everyone laughing even harder. Even Marcus Monroe’s lips twitched in a rare hint of a smile.

’Is this... because men and women think so differently?’

Her thoughts ran wild as she shrugged and offered a small smile of her own.

In any case, the atmosphere in the vehicle had become much more relaxed.

She didn’t mind being the butt of the joke.

’After all, these people had truly lived through twenty years of the apocalypse. They carried burdens I couldn’t know but could only guess at. No matter how cheerful they act, their hearts must be heavy. Compared to them, my only advantage as a "paratrooper" is probably my ability to be more optimistic!’