Chapter 55: Anjali And Divya

With his well-informed intelligence and keen judgment, it could be said that he would be highly sought after in any Shelter outside.

Yet he was only disseminating news in such scattered Survivor groups.

All of this compelled Vikram to take him seriously.

After much thought, Vikram still decided to ask Divya.

After all, although she didn’t speak much in the group, she was even more informed about some news than Vikram himself.

[Vikram: Are you there?]

[Divya: Scoundrel!]

[Vikram: Are you jealous of me?]

[Divya: You think too highly of yourself. I’m just stating facts.]

Seeing that the beautiful Divya seemed genuinely a bit angry today, he wisely decided not to push his luck.

Then he stated the purpose of finding her.

[Vikram: I was just joking earlier, don’t be angry. I have something serious to talk to you about this time.]

[Divya: You can ask questions, but you have to agree to one condition first.]

[Vikram: Tell me.]

[Divya: There are so many beautiful women in the group; you can have any one you want, go for them yourself, but I warn you, don’t even think about my best friend.]

[Vikram: I haven’t even met your best friend, how could I be interested in her? You’re so beautiful, I actually have quite a few thoughts about you.]

Although she knew Vikram was just joking, Divya was still quite happy to hear someone praise her beauty.

However, remembering his usual behavior, she immediately said:

[Divya: Stop being so glib. I’m serious. If you promise not to have any ideas about my best friend, then I’ll share the information I know with you.]

[Vikram: Alright, alright, I promise.]

[Divya: Speak. What do you want to know?]

[Vikram: I want to ask about Kashif Ali.]

[Vikram: Were all those intelligence reports really analyzed by him alone?]

[Divya: They should have been. I don’t really know what kind of person he is. He joined the group chat earlier than I did.]

[Divya: The first time I saw him speak, he was already providing information to the group members. It can be said that the accuracy of his information is almost spot-on.]

[Vikram: A Survivor with such abilities would definitely be fought over by other Shelters. How could he remain in such a small group chat and still provide so much information for free?]

[Divya: I don’t know... maybe it’s because he is Lakshya Verma’s uncle?]

[Divya: And don’t underestimate this group chat, okay? There are still many big shots here. For example, our Deputy Group Leader, Director Aditya—he manages a Shelter with ten Survivors.]

[Divya: There’s also Shalini, who speaks very little. It’s said that she is a member of the Savage Wolf Shelter.]

[Vikram: The name of that Shelter sounds familiar.]

[Divya: Of course it sounds familiar. That Shelter suddenly flourished during the seven-day development period before the extreme cold. Now it’s considered somewhat famous in our region.]

[Divya: At present, Savage Wolf Shelter, Brown Wood Shelter, and Aurora Shelter are known as the three major Shelters in our area.]

[Divya: Countless people outside are now racking their brains, trying to enter these three Shelters.]

[Divya: It is said that the most powerful one, Aurora Shelter, has an area of more than one hundred square meters, and the members inside are no longer worried about food or drink.]

[Vikram: What’s so impressive about that? I’m not worried about food or drink either.]

Seeing Vikram speak so arrogantly, Divya initially wanted to refute his boast.

However, she suddenly remembered that the person in front of her was a Survivor who had been able to exchange food for soil very early on. It seemed that he truly was not worried about food or drink.

Divya thought carefully for a while and realized something she had never seriously considered before.

She had once been attracted by his frivolous, teasing manner of chatting, but she had never thought about how he could possibly begin planting crops so quickly in a single-person Shelter.

After all, even Aurora Shelter, the most powerful Shelter in the region, had not shown any signs of successfully growing crops yet.

"Doesn’t that mean his single-person Shelter is more advanced than the Shelters that house a dozen people? At the very least, planting crops requires proper lighting... could his Shelter already have electricity?"

This thought stirred countless ripples in Divya’s heart. The more she considered it, the more uneasy she felt. It all seemed far too unbelievable, and she began to suspect she might have misunderstood something.

After hesitating for a while, she finally asked cautiously:

[Divya: You really used that much soil just for planting?]

Seeing that Divya had been silent for so long, Vikram guessed she must have realized that his Shelter was unusual. He simply smiled.

[Vikram: Of course. If I don’t use it for planting, what else would I do—eat it?]

Noticing that Vikram wasn’t trying to hide anything, she pressed further.

[Divya: Is your Shelter really just you alone?]

[Vikram: Yes. Why? Want to come over and experience a romantic Wasteland survival with me?]

Ignoring his teasing, she continued seriously.

[Divya: You’re telling me all this... aren’t you afraid I might tell other people?]

[Vikram: Of course I’m afraid. But since I already asked you to provide me with soil, I believe you wouldn’t be that cruel... right?]

[Divya: Then give my necklace back to me. Otherwise, I’ll tell the group members right away.]

[Vikram: Sigh... I trusted you so much. Go ahead and tell them if you want. In the apocalypse, death is inevitable sooner or later...]

Vikram’s tone suddenly sounded as if he had aged fifty years, deliberately acting as though Divya’s betrayal had deeply wounded him.

Divya knew he was pretending, yet hearing him speak like that still made her feel strangely uncomfortable. She couldn’t quite bring herself to cross that line.

[Divya: Alright, stop acting. I’ll keep it a secret for you. But you have to share some of the crops you grow with me.]

[Vikram: Deal. I knew I hadn’t trusted the wrong person. Love you!]

On the other side, Divya’s cheeks instantly flushed red. She quickly closed the chat window, completely unaware that Anjali had been peeking from behind her the entire time.

"Ah!"

"What are you doing?" Divya spun around in surprise.

"Hehe!"

"I knew I didn’t trust the wrong person, love you~"

Anjali covered her mouth and exaggeratedly mimicked Vikram’s tone from earlier.

Suppressing the urge to smack her, Divya forced herself to remain calm and replied indifferently, "I wasn’t the one who said that. Why are you being so annoying?"

"I know you didn’t say it," Anjali grinned mischievously. "But then why is your face so red?"

When Divya heard this, she instinctively covered her face. Only then did she realize she had been tricked. The Shelter relied solely on a small pile of firewood for lighting — there was no way Anjali could have seen her expression clearly.

"Hmph. Just as I thought... something suspicious is going on," Anjali said with a knowing look.

"Alright, Anjali. Have I been too nice to you lately? You actually dare to test me?"

"Do you believe I can kick you out of this Shelter in a matter of minutes?"

Seeing that Anjali — a girl who was practically living under someone else’s roof — still dared to tease her, Divya immediately put on a stern expression. As she spoke, she didn’t forget to give Anjali a light smack on the backside.

"Ouch! I’m sorry, Divya the beauty! I didn’t mean it! I was just afraid you’d get tricked by some scoundrel," Anjali said, rubbing her sore spot while hurriedly explaining.

"Tricked? I’m much smarter than you. I know my own limits. I don’t need you looking after me."

"Oh really? Then why haven’t you asked for your necklace back yet?"

"You... how do you know my necklace is with him?"

Divya had never mentioned Vikram to Anjali before. Even the last time she fell ill, she had only said she met an extremely annoying man named Vikram.

"Come on, I’ve been standing behind you for ages. I saw everything. And you still claim you’re smart? I think you’re just being stubborn."

"You dare talk back? You’re asking to get hit!"

"Ouch! I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I won’t say anything anymore, okay?" Anjali dodged Divya’s swinging hand while pleading for mercy.

"Wait... you said you saw everything?"

"Yes."

"Then... about his Shelter..."

"Of course I saw that too. So, how much hush money are you planning to give me?"

"You still want hush money? The only thing you’ll get is another slap!"

"Divya, you heartless woman! You haven’t even had any romantic progress with him yet, and you’re already taking his side and trying to beat me up for him?"

"I’m not doing this for him. I’m doing this to teach you a lesson, you little troublemaker."

Smack!

"Ah!"

"Well? Are you convinced now? Still planning to argue with me?" Divya said proudly, looking down at her defeated friend.

"I’m convinced, I’m convinced... You’re the boss."

"Huh? What did you just say?"

"I didn’t say anything. You must have misheard."

Seeing Divya glare at her, Anjali quickly corrected herself.

"I’ve already promised him I won’t tell anyone. You’re not allowed to tell anyone either. Understood?"

"Understood, Miss Divya the Beauty."

Divya felt relieved. She trusted this best friend completely. Once Anjali gave her word, she would never spread rumors.