Chapter 289: Chapter 289: Leaving
He had no reason to act like the other man.
That guy had already been rejected. He had no chance.
’But I still have a chance!’
And so, Gordon Ford calmed down.
Miles Sanctus, however, looked at him in confusion, not understanding why the man had suddenly changed his attitude.
’Could it be that he’s realized the gap between us? That he’s accepted reality and doesn’t dare oppose me?’
Thinking this, his expression softened slightly, though he cast a somewhat displeased look at Stella Sterling.
However, he ultimately suppressed this displeasure, burying it deep in his heart.
’Now isn’t the time to settle scores with her. In the future, I’ll make Stella Sterling understand that as my woman, she should keep her distance from other men.’
Although that’s what he was thinking, he put on a smile and said, "Why didn’t I see you at the gathering today?"
Miles Sanctus was someone who always acted superior; he never needed to curry favor with anyone.
As a result, his acting was poor.
He didn’t realize that while he was smiling, the coldness in his eyes hadn’t completely faded.
It looked incredibly fake.
Stella Sterling raised an eyebrow. "I don’t see how that has anything to do with you."
As usual, Stella Sterling offered him no courtesy whatsoever.
But today, Miles Sanctus was clearly more mentally prepared than he had been yesterday.
So, when he heard Stella Sterling’s blunt words, his expression didn’t change. He simply said, "You are the one in my heart, so naturally, I pay attention to your every move. I came here specifically to find you."
"Oh."
Stella Sterling nodded, but after that single word, she gave no further reaction.
Miles Sanctus didn’t mind. The more challenging a woman was, the more interesting it was to conquer her.
Besides, with Stella Sterling’s beauty and strength, she had every right to be proud, and she was worth him putting in some effort to pursue her.
He glanced at Gordon Ford and said bluntly, "I wish to speak with Miss Sterling alone, so please do us the favor of leaving."
Gordon Ford shot him a look, then ignored him, his gaze focused mostly on Stella Sterling.
At this, Miles Sanctus dropped all pretense of politeness and attacked Gordon Ford directly.
With his status, he shouldn’t have to swallow his anger. But because they were at Meridia Base, and he wanted to make a good impression on Stella Sterling, he had been holding back.
’But if this guy is going to be shameless, then he can just die.’
’With my status, I’m sure Meridia Base wouldn’t dare make trouble for me over a single person.’
But his attack missed.
Miles Sanctus was a bit surprised.
The two of them began fighting in an instant. Stella Sterling just watched from the side, not intervening.
Miles Sanctus was clearly at a disadvantage, unable to beat Gordon Ford.
His expression grew uglier and uglier. He had intended to teach this man a lesson and vent his anger, but he never expected to be the one getting suppressed instead.
Stella Sterling was watching from the sidelines; this was a major loss of face.
He wanted to draw his gun, but just as he began to move, he felt the barrel of a pistol press against his forehead.
He was shocked. He looked up at the man, only to see him looking back with a placid expression.
But inside, he was anything but calm. ’This person’s speed... I couldn’t even react.’
’A person like this... what base is he from?’
He stared at his opponent, not panicking. "I seem to have underestimated you. I didn’t expect you to have some skill."
"But that’s useless here."
Then he fixed his gaze on Stella Sterling. "Miss Sterling, my feelings for you are genuine. I’m in this conflict because of you. Aren’t you going to offer an opinion?"
Stella Sterling had just wanted to watch the show, not expecting to be dragged into it. She looked indifferent. "What does this have to do with me?"
"If you get killed because your skills are inferior, what’s that got to do with me?"
After saying this, Stella Sterling turned and left, no longer caring what happened to them.
Miles Sanctus’s face went cold, becoming even uglier than before.
He tilted his head to the side, glaring at Gordon Ford. "You just wait."
After speaking, he glanced in the direction Stella Sterling had gone, then left with a dark expression on his face.
Having been thwarted by two people in a row, he was now in a foul mood.
Gordon Ford didn’t make any other moves. He watched Stella Sterling’s retreating figure and holstered his gun.
He sighed. ’It’s been years. She’s much more ruthless than before.’
Then he left as well.
’Our relationship took a step forward today, but there’s still a long, long way to go.’
From what happened today, he could sense that perhaps he wasn’t completely absent from her heart, but he didn’t understand why her attitude was like this.
Stella Sterling returned to the quarters Meridia Base had arranged for them.
She didn’t give what had just happened a second thought.
She had no intention of helping Gordon Ford, nor was she particularly worried about him.
’If Gordon Ford can’t even handle a small thing like that, it just proves he wasn’t the right one for me from the start.’
’Someone too weak can’t walk side-by-side with me.’
As for Gordon Ford, her current thought was still to just let things happen naturally.
She wouldn’t run away like she used to, but whether or not to be with him was something she still needed to consider.
’I do like him, but liking someone doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be together.’
Besides, he had his own things to do, and she had hers. Neither of them had time to be all lovey-dovey.
And it was impossible for her to give up her own work.
’So, I’ll just leave it like this for now.’
While thinking, Stella Sterling took some of her favorite dishes out of her personal storage space and began to eat heartily.
’It’s so inconvenient being away from home. You can’t just eat what you want, and you have to hide from people.’
It wasn’t that she had to eat her favorite foods every meal. She had always cherished food and wasn’t a picky eater—as long as there was something to eat and it was filling, that was enough.
The problem was, the rations they provided here weren’t nearly enough to fill her up.
It wasn’t that Meridia Base was stingy; all things considered, they were being very generous by hosting them under these circumstances.
A normal person would have been full.
But unfortunately, she had a huge appetite, and a normal portion was never enough for her.
Helpless, she could only sneak extra meals for herself.
In the following days, Gordon Ford came to see her again, and Basil Xavier visited as well.
Stella Sterling didn’t avoid them, interacting with them like normal friends.
Meanwhile, Gordon Ford was becoming more and more shameless, occasionally throwing out a flirty comment or two.
Unfortunately for him, Stella Sterling was not thin-skinned either and could handle it with ease every time.
Gordon Ford left Meridia Base again that same day.
「The next day」
Stella Sterling also led her people away from here.
