Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again.-Chapter 421: Sheldon’s apology.

Sunshine chuckled.

Hades was amused.

And the rich folks laughed, they were obviously loving Lisha and her act. Some of them were wishing Zulu would join her and the two could entertain them with their jokes and bickering.

Lisha rolled her right hand. "The ordinary solar or heat suits only protect you from feeling roasted. They do nothing about the discomfort. Think of them like... umbrellas in the sun. They give you shade but that is all."

Murmurs rose. Some nodded. Some frowned. One lady fanned herself aggressively, agreeing wholeheartedly with the idea of discomfort.

Sunshine stepped forward, opened a box, and pulled out three bodysuits_ gold, silver, and crimson. They shimmered like liquid metal and gave off a sci-fi kind of aura. Like something seen in a movie about another world in another dimension.

Even Hades had to admit they looked incredibly cool.

Gasps filled the room.

"These," Lisha announced, "are different. They are not only heat resistant but also have a cooling effect. Imagine walking into a fire and feeling like you’re strolling through a high end air-conditioned spa. Its like others are sweating in a warehouse but you are on the beach sipping mimosas."

Someone almost fainted from excitement.

"Only a few pieces are available," she added. "Therefore...the highest bidders will get to take them home."

A hush fell.

Then chaos began.

"Ten thousand dollars!" someone shouted immediately.

"Twenty!"

"Thirty thousand, and I want the gold one!"

"Fifty!"

A lady elbowed a man in the ribs. "You don’t need a suit, Harold! You don’t plan to leave the house or this base until the apocalypse ends! The ordinary one will be just fine for you."

"Well, maybe I want to start now." Harold snapped.

Another man yanked off his suspenders and waved them like a battle flag. "One hundred thousand!"

"So uncouth." An older distinguished woman fanned herself with a hand fan.

"Two hundred!" shrieked someone in emerald-green satin. "I want the silver one! SILVER IS MY COLOR!"

A man actually climbed onto a table. "Five hundred thousand for the crimson! I want ten of them, two toddler size, one for a teenager and the rest all adult."

Champagne glasses toppled. Pearls snapped.

Someone’s feather boa flew into the air like a distressed bird.

Lisha beamed, enjoying the chaos a little too much.

"Do I hear one million?" she asked sweetly.

"ONE MILLION!" three voices screamed in unison.

"Two million!"

"I’ll go three!"

"Ten gold bars!" someone yelled.

"You don’t have gold, Gunning. You may be rich but we walk in different circles. Maybe your family should sit this one out." a woman scolded.

"Then I’ll steal yours with Zulu’s help." Hilda Gunning replied.

"You will not—!"

Soldiers and base police were already at work, cooling tempers and separating two women fighting over which color looked more "post-apocalypse chic."

A man tried to slip a gold bar into Sunshine’s hand discreetly, whispering, "Just give me one behind the curtains. No one has to know."

Sunshine slapped his hand away with a polite smile.

The bidding climbed into ridiculous, astronomical numbers. By the time the last suit was sold, people were sweating harder than they would in the coming heatwave. But they were smiling. Victorious. And slightly unhinged.

Sunshine calculated all the money she had made and all the gold she had collected. Altogether, one hundred sixty eight million dollars!

Her knees went weak.

Hades whistled. "Should I say fear works wonders or is it greed?"

"I’m suddenly okay with the flapper dress." Sunshine declared. "And I am glad they are greedy or afraid." With this money, she could afford more Exo suits.

And she would also auction the suits. In fact, from now on, auctions would become a regular activity. Maybe one or two a week.

Lisha flung her feather headband into the air. "Great night and once again, I prove that I am a genius. Zulu could not have accomplished this."

Jon broke away from the glittery chaos and said to Hades. "I do hope that you saved some specially for us Hades."

Sunshine patted his arm sympathetically. "No Jon, you were supposed to get one here."

"What!?" Jon shouted. "But...but...I am different from them. I am special to you Hades."

Hades grabbed on to Sunshine’s arm. "Jon, don’t mislead my wife." He shook her arm, "Suni, ignore his words. He is not special to me at all." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

She rolled her eyes and waved back at Rori. Furthermore, she detached from husband and Jon to seek out her mother-in-law and mingle.

Her plan for an early exit was paused. She was many millions of dollars richer... emotionally exhausted, physically done, but very, very satisfied.

Ten minutes later, she was certain that if one more feather from her dress tickled her arm, she was going to set the entire house on fire.

She tugged on Hades’ arm and he lowered his head, "I am leaving." The words had to be whispered because the music was a bit loud.

He nodded and cut his conversation with Jin short to take his wife home. They navigated a path through the guests with care and then escalated their speed the moment they broke free. The tassels of Sunshine’s flapper dress jingled angrily with every step she took. Hades chuckled softly as he followed behind her.

Just as they reached their car, a loud voice cut through the air.

"Mrs. Quinn! WAIT!"

Sunshine’s shoulders stiffened. She exchanged a look with Hades_ one that said if this is someone coming to bargain for a refund, I’m burning Jon’s house down.

But it wasn’t an unhappy customer.

It was Sheldon.

He reached them, breathless, his tie crooked, his hair sticking in different directions. "Sorry about my appearance, it was crazy in there." He looked like a man who had been having a little too much fun.

Sunshine’s smile faded instantly. No more party smile. No more polite nods. Her arms folded across her chest like she was preparing to scold a teenager caught smoking cigarettes. "Sheldon," she said coolly. "Dr. Sing informed me that you interrogated him like a chicken thief suspect."

Sheldon winced and cast his eyes downward. "I had a feeling that this would reach your ears soon. I did not mean to be so rough with him. I’m sorry. Truly sorry." He clasped his hands together like he was praying for mercy. "It hit me hard when he told me that my hybrid seeds were trash."

Sunshine raised an eyebrow. Hades seemed mildly entertained. It was because he had never heard Sheldon apologize, ever.

Sheldon swallowed. "You have got to understand, I invested two hundred million in this project. While I did it for profit, I still wanted to end world hunger. So, when I heard about seeds being sent to Busker, I thought you were messing with me."

"I do not have time for games, especially with you." Sunshine said simply.

The silence that followed was heavy, but not cruel. Sheldon’s shoulders sagged, shame weighing him down. "I’m sorry," he repeated softly. "I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did." He turned, ready to slink away like a scolded cat.

"Wait."

He stopped immediately_ as though someone had pressed pause on him.

Sunshine stepped forward. "The seeds are not entirely useless."

Sheldon’s head lifted, eyes wide, hopeful.

"I’m willing to buy them, at a fair price," she said.

Sheldon blinked rapidly, like a shy child suddenly being praised in front of the class. "R-really? But... why?" He was hoping for her to spill the secret on how she had modified the seeds. He had already bribed someone that smuggled out a handful of seeds for him. He compared what she sent out to his and noticed some differences.

"You don’t need to know," Sunshine said. It was the kindest way she could say none of your business.

Sheldon nodded quickly, too quickly_ like he feared the offer might evaporate if he breathed wrong. "Okay. Yes. Great. Thank you. Um... really, thank you."

Hades stepped beside Sunshine and clapped Sheldon lightly on the shoulder. "Good. Now you can focus on building those malls in Westbrook."

Sheldon froze mid-breath. "I can...?"

"Yes," Hades said. "Westbrook town is going to be the trading hub for Fortress Four. Tell all your rich friends that licenses and construction permits will start being availed tomorrow.

You can even buy say....weapons from my wife. Of course, buyers need to have permits issued by us. But my wife has a lot of unique things that might catch your eyes."

The transformation was instant.

Sheldon’s eyes widened. His face lit up with a kind of pure joy that suggested someone had just handed him permission to live his dream.

"In that case, I will see you tomorrow." He nodded once, turned and sprinted. And not gracefully. He almost slipped on the gravel, caught himself, then broke into the strangest mix of a run and a skip_ a man fueled by hope and adrenaline.

Sunshine watched him go, shaking her head. "I do not buy the apology act."

"Neither do I. " Hades answered.