"Look, isnāt that the person who was taken away? We didnāt see her yesterday, so I thought something had happened to her!"
Stella Sterlingās appearance made the expressions of the others on the ship change.
Two groups of people had been taken away yesterday. One group came out right away, but the other woman was never seen again. They all assumed some problem had been found with her and she had already been "dealt with."
Seeing her so suddenly, they thought their eyes were playing tricks on them.
Many people on the ship pointed and whispered at Stella Sterling. Drakeās group saw her too.
"Sheās out too? Did she finally change her mind and decide to obediently hand over her gun and listen to Meridia Base?"
"Of course. If she didnāt hand over the gun, was she really going to get off the ship and leave? Out here on this vast expanse of water, danger can appear at any moment, not just at night but even during the day. How could anyone survive without joining the base?"
Drake watched Stella Sterling, his expression unreadable, his thoughts a mystery.
However, although the others were a little surprised to see Stella Sterling, they didnāt have much of a reaction. After all, they had no grudge against her, so they didnāt really care what happened to her.
But one group was different. The moment he saw Stella Sterling, Timothy Chaseās face darkened.
"How is she still alive and still here? What the hell are the people from Meridia Base even doing?"
"Sheās just one woman. Why are you so obsessed with her?"
Timothy Chaseās brother shot him a helpless look and chided him.
Timothy Chase looked resentful. "Brother, I just canāt stand that woman. Besides, she gives me a very dangerous feeling. It would have been best if we could have used someone else to get rid of her, but Meridia Base is completely useless."
Leo Chase also looked in Stella Sterlingās direction. That woman gave him an inscrutable feeling as well.
āBut so what if thatās the case?ā
āThey didnāt have any major feud with her. No matter how formidable she was, all they had to do was not provoke her.ā
Just then, Stella Sterlingās gaze shifted toward them, and their eyes met in mid-air. For some reason, Stella Sterling gave them a slight smile.
This smile made Timothy Chaseās expression darken even more.
āThat smile was definitely filled with ill intent!ā
āThis woman is provoking us!ā
Timothy Chaseās face was grim. They hadnāt interacted much before, aside from one unpleasant incident that hadnāt escalated further.
The woman hadnāt paid them any mind, so why was she looking at them like that now?
āCould she already know that I was the one who reported her to Meridia Base for having a gun?ā
At this thought, Timothy Chaseās heart sank.
But he quickly glared back fiercely at Stella Sterling.
āSo what if she knows? The fact that she can walk around freely on this ship must mean she compromised with Meridia Base and handed over the gun.ā
āWithout a gun, that womanās threat level is greatly reduced. Iām not afraid of her.ā
āBesides, I refuse to believe sheād dare to start trouble. If she did, the people from Meridia Base wouldnāt tolerate it.ā
With this in mind, he looked at Stella Sterling with a mocking expression.
āSo what if she knows? She canāt do a thing to me. If she has the guts, she should come and teach me a lesson. Letās see if Iām scared!ā
Seeing his expression, Stella Sterling scoffed but didnāt walk over to confront him directly.
Instead, she approached a member of Meridia Base and whispered a few words to him.
The man turned his head to glance at the Chase brothers, then looked back at Stella Sterling, and finally nodded respectfully. "Understood, Miss Sterling. Weāll get right on it!"
Captain Young had already given the order today to be respectful and polite to this Miss Sterling, so he took her words very seriously. Besides, if what Miss Sterling said was true, then those two were indeed unfit to stay with Meridia Base. They would only cause more trouble later on.
Stella Sterling nodded. She didnāt say much more, just briefly mentioned what the two Chase brothers had done over the past couple of days, leaving the rest for the Meridia Base members to handle.
Then, she paid them no more mind and walked toward the deck.
Meanwhile, members of Meridia Base were already walking toward the two Chase brothers to escort them somewhere else. The two glared at Stella Sterling but didnāt dare to resist.
The rain outside began to fall harder. Stella Sterling noticed the water level had risen again.
After staying outside for a while, she went to check on Basil Xavier.
When she came out, she found an argument still going on in one area.
Today, Meridia Base had rescued another group of survivors.
A good number of new people had come aboard. The ship was already crowded, and being cooped up together on the water all day made people restless and irritable. The slightest friction could easily lead to a dispute.
A few of the newcomers had gotten into an argument with some of the original passengers over something trivial.
This had already started when Stella Sterling went in to see Basil Xavier, but she hadnāt paid it any mind. After all, such things were common.
Even the Meridia Base members generally didnāt intervene unless it turned into a major brawl. Minor squabbles happened all the time; they couldnāt possibly manage everything, nor could they be expected to.
After all this time, they were still arguing, and it was getting more heated. She was still planning to ignore it, but then she heard an anxious voice cry out from the crowd, "Claire, are you okay?"
"How could you pull a dirty trick like that? Youāre despicable!"
Hearing this name, Stella Sterling paused and turned to look in that direction.
She saw a thin, disheveled woman supporting another woman much taller than her, glaring angrily at the people around them.
The face had changed drastically from the beautiful, otherworldly one in her memory, but she still recognized her in a single glance.
āLydia Magnus... sheās on this ship too. What a coincidence.ā
āIn her past life, they were together at this time. But in this life, because of her rebirth, many things have changed. She had no idea what Lydia Magnus had been through these past two years.ā
āBut looking at the other womanās much thinner face now, it seemed her past two years hadnāt been easy either.ā
"What nonsense are you spouting? When did I lay a hand on anyone? Do you have proof? If you donāt have proof, donāt make baseless accusations, or Iāll report you!"
"Yeah! How dare you newcomers be so arrogant, falsely accusing people. People like you should be thrown off the ship!"
The men surrounding Lydia Magnus grumbled one after another, their gazes cold as they looked at the bleeding woman.
She glared at them, so furious she felt like she would explode, but there was nothing she could do. She finally ignored them and said to Claire Xavier, "Iāll find someone to bandage you up. There must be someone on this ship who knows medicine. Just hang in there!"