Chapter 31: Base Leader, This Is What You Wanted

"Dad!" Jayce’s expression turned incredibly serious. "Sierra and I aren’t kids anymore. We know what we’re doing!"

Sierra nodded along. "Sir, we’ll be sure to protect ourselves. We’ll come back safe and sound. Plus, we’ll bring back plenty of supplies."

Kevin Everett, who had been frowning in concern just a moment before, found his worries completely vanishing after hearing their words. All that remained was excitement.

"Good!"

"That’s the spirit! I won’t stand in your way. Go on, do what you must!"

"I won’t be able to help with anything you might face once you leave the base, but before you set out, I’ll make sure you have everything you need!"

"This is the time for you young people to venture out. Leave the rest to us."

Kevin Everett was genuinely thrilled.

With the world as it was now, these were the most perilous of times.

If no one dared to step up, and no one dared to leave the base, then their current stability was nothing more than living on borrowed time. Before long, they would be completely devoured by the Aberrant Beasts.

If there were more people like Jayce and Sierra, maybe they would have a chance to defeat the Aberrant Beasts!

Yvonne Shelby had been listening to them quietly, without interjecting.

Seeing that they had made up their minds and Kevin Everett had already agreed, Yvonne Shelby could only suppress the countless worries in her heart. Her expression betrayed none of it.

’Before a decision is made, of course you can voice your concerns.’

’But once a decision is made, you shouldn’t waver, and you certainly can’t hold them back!’

Yvonne Shelby stood up. "You all keep talking. I’m going to make dinner."

Kevin Everett stood up as well. "I’m heading to the study. You two make yourselves comfortable."

Sierra knew Kevin Everett was likely going to give some orders, so she just nodded.

After Kevin Everett left, Sierra glanced toward the kitchen. "Jayce, aren’t you going to help your mom with dinner?"

Jayce shot to his feet. "I’ll go right now. You just relax here. Call me if you need anything!"

"Okay!"

Not long after Jayce had left, a little girl walked over without a sound.

This was the same little girl who had been crying and shouting just a moment ago.

Sierra recognized her at a glance.

’That’s Tim Everett’s daughter!’

’Which means, Jayce’s niece!’

The little girl walked over step by step, but she didn’t say a word.

She was quite thin, and her eyes looked exceptionally large on her tiny face.

Seeing that the girl wasn’t speaking, Sierra held her tongue and simply watched her quietly.

In a moment, the little girl came to a stop right in front of Sierra.

Now that she was closer, Sierra could see the girl’s face clearly.

The little girl’s large eyes were brimming with hatred.

"You’re a bad person!"

She spoke in a low voice, her words seething.

Children aren’t like adults.

Even if adults dislike someone, they’ll usually put on a brave face.

But children don’t hide their feelings. They tend to make their dislike perfectly clear.

Hearing the little girl say this, Sierra smiled.

"Thank you."

Sierra’s "thank you" left the little girl looking completely stunned.

"I said you’re a bad person!" she repeated.

Sierra nodded. "I know. It’s true, I am a bad person!"

’I have no desire to be some "good person"!’

The girl was only young, after all. Sierra’s completely unconventional response left her speechless.

Sierra raised an eyebrow. "Is there anything else?"

The little girl bit her lip. "Why did you bully my mommy!"

Sierra shook her head. "You’ve got that wrong. I never started anything with your mom. She tried to bully me, and that’s why the rest of it happened. It’s called ’play stupid games, win stupid prizes.’"

Sierra didn’t care if the little girl could understand; she just laid out the plain truth.

The little girl might not be old, but she had grown up in modern times, constantly scrolling on her phone. She knew a thing or two about the world—both things she should and things she shouldn’t.

At these words, she was a mixture of angry, surprised, and sad. The rims of her eyes turned red.

Sierra just watched her quietly and didn’t say anything more.

After a moment, tears suddenly began to stream down the little girl’s cheeks.

"My mommy didn’t mean it. Can you please stop bullying her?"

Sierra stared at the little girl for a moment, then spoke softly. "Your mom put you up to this, didn’t she?"

The little girl didn’t answer, but the expression on her face betrayed her.

Sierra scoffed. "Tell your mom I have no interest in her and can’t be bothered with her. She just needs to stay far away from me in the future!"

With that, Sierra paid no mind to the little girl’s reaction, stood up, and headed for the kitchen.

Although Yvonne Shelby used to be very busy and had no time to cook, that didn’t mean she couldn’t.

On the contrary, she had made a point of taking time to learn.

Whether it was Chinese food or Western food, she could make it all.

And she was very good at it.

Sierra knew the saying: ’It’s a skill you might not need to use, but you can’t afford not to have.’

’A wise way to think.’

’And look, now it’s coming in handy!’

The moment Sierra appeared at the kitchen doorway, both Yvonne Shelby and Jayce looked over.

"Sierra? Why are you here? The kitchen’s full of smoke and fumes. Go wait over there!" Jayce said immediately.

Yvonne Shelby glanced at Jayce, her eyes full of surprise.

It wasn’t jealousy.

’I’m not the type to get jealous of my daughter-in-law.’

’It’s just... I never expected this!’

’My youngest son, my little tyrant who fears nothing and disdains everyone, is suddenly this considerate?’

’Is this really my son?’

’Has his soul been swapped out or something?’

Sierra gave Jayce a helpless look.

’Of course, I’m happy that Jayce cares about me.’

’But is it really okay for him to say that in front of Yvonne Shelby?’

Just as she was thinking this, she saw Yvonne Shelby look over. "That’s right! Sierra, go sit over there! The two of us can handle things here, we don’t need your help!"

Hearing this, Sierra blushed a little, quickly agreed, and turned to leave.

’How am I supposed to tell them I had no intention of helping in the first place!’

’I just came over because I was done wasting my breath on that little girl!’

But when Sierra turned around, she didn’t see the little girl anymore. She figured the girl must have gone back to her room.

Sierra breathed a sigh of relief and slowly ambled back to the living room.

「An hour later.」

Everyone had just finished dinner when there was a knock at the main door.

The person who came was someone Sierra had seen before, Dominic Crawford.

When Dominic Crawford saw Sierra, he smiled and nodded in greeting before pushing two large boxes forward. "Commander, here are the items you requested."