Chapter 260: Chapter 260: Lydia Magnus’s Dream
At that moment, the long-haired man walked over. "We meet again, my neighbor."
Stella Sterling nodded at him. "It seems you’re doing quite well for yourself at Meridia Base now."
Back then, he had looked so sloppy and disheveled that Stella Sterling had wondered if he wasn’t valued at the base.
She had even considered coming back to poach him once her own faction was stable, since he was, after all, a technical talent recruited by Meridia Base.
But she had forgotten all about it later, only remembering now that she saw him again.
"I am doing pretty well. I was even thinking back then that, for old times’ sake as neighbors, I’d look out for you once I made it big. I just didn’t expect you to leave."
The long-haired man said, then glanced at Stella Sterling and Lydia Magnus. "You must be here for the Apocalypse Summit, too."
"We should be seeing each other again soon. Let’s talk then."
With that, he left. The fat man he had completely ignored shot him a harsh glare before turning to leave as well.
After the initial moment of happiness, Lydia Magnus’s gaze toward Stella Sterling turned complicated. She turned to her boyfriend and asked him to wait for her somewhere else.
Stella Sterling watched her without making a move.
But what Lydia Magnus said next surprised her. "I’m sorry, Stella!"
She raised an eyebrow, confused as to why the other woman was suddenly apologizing.
After all, in this life, their paths had diverged. Because she had changed her fate from the past life, she hadn’t gotten entangled with Lydia Magnus in the early days, so this time, the other woman hadn’t done anything to wrong her.
This apology truly came out of nowhere.
Then, she met Lydia Magnus’s complicated and guilty eyes, and a sudden guess formed in her mind.
The next moment, she heard Lydia Magnus say, "Before, I never understood. We were always so close, but ever since the apocalypse began, you’ve been so distant with me."
"For over a year now, I’ve been having strange dreams from time to time."
"In the dreams, the apocalypse happened too, and in the beginning, we relied on each other to survive. But later... I... I..."
As she reached this point, Lydia Magnus found it difficult to continue, unable to voice the words, but her eyes reddened—
’In my dreams, I ended up betraying Stella for a bit of food, handing her over to those people.’
’In the end, my dream-self paid with her life, too.’
’But I still feel so despicable. Stella was my best friend. How could my dream-self have done something like that?’
She didn’t know why she was dreaming of such bizarre things, things she had clearly never experienced.
After the apocalypse came, she hadn’t relied on Stella to survive. On the contrary, it was because of Stella’s warning that she had managed to spend some time safely in her villa.
And she had always been with her boyfriend.
So what was the deal with those dreams?
She connected it to Stella’s inexplicable distance toward her and couldn’t help but feel it was related to the events in her dreams.
As she said all this, she stared intently at Stella Sterling, trying to read something from her expression.
But Stella had remained perfectly calm. Her indifferent smile seemed somewhat foreign to Lydia.
She was startled to realize that Stella was no longer the person she had once known so well. Now, she couldn’t see what Stella was thinking at all.
After she finished speaking, she said "I’m sorry" once more.
Hearing this, Stella Sterling just smiled without saying a word.
She had already heard that apology from Lydia Magnus’s lips in her past life.
So, it didn’t stir any strong emotions in Stella Sterling’s heart now.
She was only surprised that Lydia Magnus would actually dream of events from their past life.
’It seems that as I’ve changed things, many people in this world have been affected.’
Lydia Magnus, however, was still speaking. "Stella, do you think the things in my dreams are real? Could they have happened in another parallel world?"
Stella Sterling answered nonchalantly, "It’s all just a dream."
"Is it really just a dream?" Lydia Magnus muttered to herself. Then she stared at Stella Sterling and asked the question that had been weighing on her heart. "Your change in attitude toward me... is it because you also—"
’Could it be that Stella... she’s had the same dreams, too? Is that why she holds a grudge against me?’
’She even considered another possibility in her heart—could Stella be...?’
"A dream is just a dream. You don’t have to take it seriously."
Stella Sterling shook her head, giving her a strange look. "I don’t know why you’re having such bizarre dreams. I haven’t dreamed about any of the things you mentioned."
"I’ve said it before. Even friends reach a point where they drift apart. When you’re not together anymore, you naturally grow distant. It’s perfectly normal."
After saying this, she stood up and straightened her clothes. "It was still nice seeing you again."
With those words, she turned, ready to leave.
A pang of sadness hit Lydia Magnus’s heart.
She silently watched Stella Sterling’s retreating back. No matter how distant Stella had been before, she had always felt they were still friends.
This time, for some reason, after she had said all those things, she felt that there was truly no going back for them.
Watching Stella Sterling’s back, she repeated in her heart, ’I’m sorry, I’m sorry.’
Over the past year, the dreams had become more frequent and more real. She felt that what happened in them was true.
And she felt that Stella knew, too.
But the other woman hadn’t taken revenge on her. She hadn’t done anything at all, merely distanced herself. She had even saved her a few times.
She understood Stella’s intentions.
Stella had already done all she could for her. She really shouldn’t bother her anymore or appear before her again.
And she no longer had the right to ask the other woman to be her friend.
From now on, it seemed they could only be strangers.
On her way, Stella Sterling pondered why Lydia Magnus would have dreams of their past life.
’Are there others like Lydia Magnus?’
However, Stella Sterling only dwelled on it for a moment before she figured it out and stopped thinking about it.
No matter what happened with others, as long as she herself continued to grow stronger, she wouldn’t have to fear anything.
Besides, it was good that Lydia Magnus knew. Now that she knew, Stella wouldn’t have to find excuses to deal with her whenever they met.
If Lydia truly remembered the events of their past life, then she should know that Stella would not want her appearing before her again.
So, from now on, Lydia should proactively keep a certain distance from her.
From now on, they would truly go their separate ways.
