Chapter 376: Chapter 376: An Unexpected Order

Ronan Rhodes sighed. Under Sophie Thorne’s quizzical gaze, he struggled to get the words out. "My uncle... he told me to buy a few portions for Miss Summers, too..."

The previous incident of trying to force gifts on the Summers family had left a bad taste in Ronan Rhodes’s mouth, and he couldn’t believe that before long, Roman Rhodes was at it again.

Ronan couldn’t stop himself from screaming internally, ’What a love-struck fool! It’s so cringey!’

Sophie Thorne couldn’t help but laugh out loud. "Don’t you worry about it," she replied. "I’ll handle the purchase. I was already planning to buy some seafood for Melody, anyway. I’ll contact Miss Summers ahead of time and let her know it’s from your uncle. You can rest easy."

...

Meanwhile, Melody Summers was still waiting to haul in her second net.

While she waited, the customers who had bought seafood from the first batch started flooding the store page with reviews.

Unsurprisingly, The Arcadia Shop once again garnered a wave of exclusively positive reviews:

[User xxx: Five stars! This is definitely freshly caught! You can taste the difference!]

[User xxx: When I placed my order, my dad bet me that it was impossible to get freshly caught seafood these days. He ate his words the second it arrived. Now the whole family is sitting at the dinner table, waiting for a seafood feast. Thank you, Arcadia.]

[User xxx: [Image] [Image] [Image] The shrimp and crab were delicious just by steaming them. We braised the golden pomfret. The texture of the meat was first-class, absolutely top-tier.]

[User xxx: As someone who grew up on the coast, I can tell if seafood is fresh from a single bite. This is, without a doubt, the freshest you can get. It tastes exactly the same as the fish I used to catch and eat right on the boat.]

[User xxx: I’ve been a sashimi enthusiast for fifteen years. The seafood I bought from this store has that deep, fresh sweetness that you only find in the absolute highest quality product... I don’t even know how to describe it. All I know is that my only regret is not buying more.]

[User xxx: It’s pricey, but absolutely worth it. Every piece was premium quality—large and succulent. Even before the apocalypse, high-end seafood like this was never cheap.]

[User xxx: It’s a long story. I got chewed out by my employers right after I managed to snag this seafood. They said it was obviously a scam, that fresh seafood was impossible to find these days... Does anyone else feel my pain? They’re the ones who told me to buy anything I see, no questions asked! What’s even more insane is that after it arrived, they completely changed their tune. Now they’re telling me that if seafood is ever listed again, I have to buy it immediately—five portions, no less. They flip-flop faster than you can turn a page. I swear, I can’t stand this crappy job for one more day. As for how the seafood was? Sorry, I didn’t get a taste. They wouldn’t even let me suck on a shrimp shell. They pulverized the shells in a high-speed blender to make dog food.]

[User xxx: The shop owner must be a magician. I’ve never regretted a single purchase from this store. My only regret is not buying more!]

[User xxx: The seafood is terrible, don’t buy it. I’m begging you, please don’t buy it. I can’t compete with you all.]

[...]

Melody Summers was in high spirits after reading the reviews.

The Arcadian Space was truly magical. Not only were its fruits and vegetables all top-quality, but its seafood was so high-grade that no one could resist it.

Putting down her phone, Melody Summers rolled up her sleeves and began to haul in the second net.

The moment the net broke the surface, she could see it was another huge, bulging catch. Melody’s heart swelled with delight. ’The resources in The Arcadian Sea are just incredible! To get so much from a single haul!’

Just as before, Melody Summers and Albus dumped the contents of the net onto the deck. Unlike the first haul, this one was mostly fish and shrimp, with fewer crabs.

The shrimp and most of the fish were red, covering the entire deck in a brilliant crimson carpet.

The most plentiful catch was Akiami shrimp. Each one was as thick as a finger, with a red, crystalline shell so translucent you could almost see through it. Melody Summers casually picked up a few and gave them a squeeze, finding the meat incredibly firm and plump.

The Heterocarpus shrimp were a size larger than the Akiami. Through their translucent shells, she could see their heads were full of rich tomalley.

The scampi were the largest of all the shrimp. They looked like they were wearing armor, with two massive pincers up front. Every single one was full of energy, squirming and twisting on the deck.

The Aristeid shrimp had the most intense color—a brilliant, dazzling red, like blood-soaked sunset clouds. ’These would be incredible as sashimi,’ Melody thought.

What Melody Summers hadn’t expected was that the net seemed to have passed right through a school of Gagyu fish, hauling up several dozen of them.

Gagyu fish, also known as red sea bream, were stunningly beautiful, their bodies shimmering in a gradient of gold and red. Because of the change in water pressure, their eyes were bulging, making them look a bit like oversized goldfish.

Besides those, Melody Summers also found two massive hairtails, each as wide as her hand, along with three red scorpionfish and three monkfish.

Compared to the other beautiful fish, the monkfish were exceptionally ugly. They gave off a vibe of, ’Well, no one can see me in the pitch-black deep sea, so I’ll just grow however I feel like.’

But as ugly as monkfish were, they were incredibly delicious. The head was full of pleasantly chewy, collagen-rich meat, and its liver was a delicacy, often called the "foie gras of the sea."

Melody Summers set aside some of the best-looking specimens to take home and share with her family. Then, she began sorting the rest of the pile, dividing it into smaller portions for boxing.

Once the sorting was complete, Melody Summers followed the same procedure as before and listed the new batch of seafood blind boxes:

[Freshly caught! From the net to your door! Seafood Blind Box, 300,000 yuan per box.]

[All items are fresh from the haul. Freshness and quality guaranteed!]

[This haul contains mostly shrimp and fish, with fewer crabs. Contents are random; specific requests are not supported.]

[Please open your balcony window ten minutes after payment. We will use a drone to deliver the product to your balcony. If all windows are fitted with security bars, we will deliver directly to your door. Please collect it promptly. We are not responsible for lost or stolen items.]

After editing the text, Melody Summers clicked "List Item."

Among the wealthy, news about how to make money doesn’t always travel fast, but news about food, drink, and entertainment spreads like wildfire.

In the few hours Melody had spent waiting to haul in her second net, the buyers from the first batch had been showing off their purchases in group chats and on social media. Lured in by the photos, a new wave of curious customers flocked to her store page.

As a result, the speed at which the second batch of seafood sold out was simply staggering. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Melody Summers had barely published the listing when she refreshed the page and saw two stark words: "Sold Out."

Melody Summers glanced at the order list and saw many repeat customers, a clear sign that they had been more than satisfied with their first purchase.

Melody Summers rolled up her sleeves and got to work packing the orders.

But as she was preparing the shipments, she came across a startling order—the name in the recipient field was none other than her mother, Winnie Summers!

Melody’s heart skipped a beat. She felt a sudden sense of panic, the kind you get when your cover is about to be blown in front of your family.

At first, she thought it was just a coincidence—someone with the same name. But then she saw the delivery address: The Metropolis Residences, 4-1606.

Now Melody was completely baffled. ’There’s no way my family would be willing to spend this kind of money...’ she thought.

Filled with curiosity, Melody clicked on the buyer’s account profile. Looking through the order history, she realized it was Sophie Thorne’s account.

Seeing this, Melody breathed a sigh of relief.

’What a true friend Sophie is, making sure to share seafood with my family,’ she thought. ’It makes stuffing all these extras into her order right now completely worth it.’

Melody had just been wondering how she was going to bring home the seafood she’d set aside without arousing suspicion. Now, with this order, it was a perfect solution, delivered right when she needed it. It was like someone handing you a pillow the moment you felt sleepy.

She swapped the standard box for a much larger one and stuffed all the seafood she had set aside into it. The big box was packed to the brim.

Then, Albus manipulated the space, depositing the box of seafood right at the door of apartment 1606. A few seconds later, Melody saw Grace Sutton open the door and bring the box inside. Only then did she finally breathe a sigh of relief.