Chapter 57: Are You the Rescuers Sent by the Base?

The main purpose of this mission was rescuing survivors and, incidentally, gathering supplies.

To handle both objectives, Dominic Crawford set out with his team and Sierra Sullivan.

This time, they brought four Space Ability Users, and Silvia Blackwood was among them.

After their previous interactions, Silvia Blackwood was no longer as reserved as before.

As soon as she got in the vehicle, Silvia Blackwood chose a seat near Sierra Sullivan and started talking to her with a smile.

Silvia Blackwood was a very pretty girl with a round face, and she loved to smile. Just looking at her bright smile was enough to lift one’s spirits.

As they were chatting, Silvia Blackwood suddenly held out her hand.

In her fair, delicate palm lay a dried date.

"Sierra Sullivan, have one!"

Before the apocalypse, no one would have thought twice about a single dried date, let alone go out of their way to offer it to someone.

But things were different now.

The apocalypse had been going on for a month, and no one knew when it would end.

Survival was getting harder and harder. The Aberrant Beasts were multiplying, and supplies were dwindling.

Even a small dried date was an incredibly precious item.

Sierra Sullivan looked at the plump, red date, but for some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to take it.

First off, she had plenty of dried dates like this in her personal space.

’Not only do I have dried dates, but the fruit on my two jujube trees are all big and red. I can just pick them myself when I get back tonight!’

She had more supplies than she could ever use, so how could she accept Silvia Blackwood’s offering?

Even a small dried date was very precious to Silvia Blackwood.

Seeing Sierra Sullivan hesitate to take it, Silvia Blackwood started to get nervous.

"Sierra Sullivan, this is my own! It’s not something I held back from the base’s supplies!"

Hearing this, Sierra Sullivan knew Silvia had misunderstood.

"I don’t think it’s from the base. The reason I’m not taking it is because..."

Sierra Sullivan swallowed the rest of her explanation when she saw Silvia Blackwood’s eager expression.

"Alright!" Sierra Sullivan reached out and took the date. "Thank you!"

Silvia Blackwood beamed instantly, her smile incredibly bright.

’She’s the one giving something away, yet she looks this happy!’

Infected by Silvia Blackwood’s smile, Sierra Sullivan began to smile too.

Even though she wasn’t hungry at all, Sierra Sullivan ate the date, bite by bite.

The date was very sweet.

’Sweeter than any date I’ve ever eaten before!’

Sierra Sullivan opened her backpack, took out a bar of chocolate, and handed it to Silvia Blackwood. "I ate yours, so you should try some of mine."

"Huh?"

Silvia Blackwood was a bit surprised and taken aback, but she immediately began waving her hands in refusal.

"No, no!"

"Why not?" Sierra Sullivan retorted. "You gave me something, and I ate it without hesitation. Are you afraid I poisoned this for you?"

"Of course not!"

Silvia Blackwood’s face turned red as she spoke.

"That’s not what I meant..."

Sierra Sullivan cut off her explanation. "If that’s not what you mean, then take it! Or I’ll get mad!"

Seeing Sierra Sullivan’s firm attitude and serious expression, Silvia Blackwood had no choice but to accept it, her face still red.

"Thank you!"

Silvia Blackwood examined it carefully for a moment before putting it in her backpack.

Seeing this, Sierra Sullivan grew curious. "Why don’t you put it in your space?"

"This is my personal item, so I can’t put it in my space," Silvia Blackwood explained. "Every time we go out on a mission, they inspect our spaces to make sure they’re empty. After we get back, we have to take everything out and turn it in to prevent anyone from hoarding things for themselves."

Sierra Sullivan had no idea about this. After hearing the explanation, she became even more curious.

"But the space is yours, so how can anyone else know what’s inside? How can they be sure you haven’t hidden anything? I’m not doubting you, of course..."

"I know!" Silvia Blackwood said hurriedly. "I know you’re not doubting me, Sierra Sullivan. You’re not a Space Ability User, so it’s normal that you don’t know about this. It’s actually pretty simple. The base has a machine that can see what’s inside our spaces. They scan us before we leave and scan us again when we return to make sure no one is hiding anything."

Sierra Sullivan was genuinely stunned by this explanation.

’Something like that actually exists!’

’Has technology advanced to a point beyond my comprehension?’

Seeing the shocked look on Sierra Sullivan’s face, Silvia Blackwood couldn’t help but laugh. "You were so calm when facing those gods and demons before, Sierra Sullivan. I never thought you’d be shocked by something like this!"

"Isn’t it normal to be shocked when you learn something you didn’t know!"

Sierra Sullivan wasn’t embarrassed at all. On the contrary, she was quite frank about it.

As the two chatted, the vehicle continued to drive onward.

They were now heading to a residential complex an hour’s drive from the base.

That one-hour drive time was based on pre-apocalypse conditions.

But now, with the poor road conditions and low visibility, Sierra Sullivan figured the trip would take at least twice as long.

In fact, it took even longer than she had estimated.

After nearly three hours, they finally arrived at Veridia.

Veridia was a residential complex where residents had moved in two years ago. Although it was still new, its occupancy rate was quite high.

A total of thirty vehicles had come on this trip.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to bring more; they simply didn’t have any more to bring.

As for how many survivors they could bring back, all they could do was their best and leave the rest to fate.

The vehicles stopped inside the complex, and a loudspeaker started blaring.

The complex had sixteen buildings in total. Going building by building to search for survivors would take far too much time.

By using a loudspeaker, any survivors who heard it would come out on their own.

Inside their vehicle, Sierra Sullivan, Jayce, and the others were already putting on their headgear.

They would definitely be getting out of the vehicle, so they had to be fully prepared.

They couldn’t let a moment of laziness put them in a dangerous situation.

The moment they stepped out of the vehicle, a gale swept in from all directions, carrying sand and dust.

In these conditions, visibility was already poor.

Not to mention they were wearing goggles, which obstructed their vision even more.

Sierra Sullivan had to use her Superpower to control the sand and dust around them, forming an invisible barrier.

While this was effective, it also consumed a lot of energy.

Once they reached the entrance to the apartment building, Sierra Sullivan quickly dropped the barrier.

Before they could even go inside, they heard the sound of a door opening.

"Are you the rescue team from the base?"

It was the voice of an old man, aged and hoarse.

As Sierra Sullivan’s group headed up the stairs, they saw an old man standing at the top of the second-floor landing, his expression urgent.

Dominic Crawford nodded. "Yes, we are. How many other people are in your home? Pack your things quickly and get to the vehicles!"

"Everyone in my family is here! But I can’t move them by myself. You have to come and help!"