Chapter 301: Chapter 301: The Same Kind of People
As soon as those words were spoken, Evan Sterling knew it was over.
’Stella Sterling was already mad, and now Mom’s saying this is just making things worse.’
’Mom, really... Even if she’s more attached to Yara, she can’t just ignore the other one. She can’t be this obvious about it, not even on the surface.’
He took a deep breath and continued to defend his mother. "Mom, even if you’re worried, you can’t make decisions so impulsively. Stella is all by herself. What if she runs into danger while you have her out searching?!"
Stella Sterling simply watched them, offering no further comment.
’I don’t believe a single word they say.’
’I know exactly what kind of people they are.’
’Anything they say or do now feels fake. It’s laughable, watching them pretend to care when they clearly feel nothing for me.’
’The Sterling family’s acting skills are seriously lacking.’
Tired of the show, Stella Sterling cut them off impatiently. "You’re so loud. Are you finished?!"
Their voices cut off abruptly. For a moment, no one spoke. Evan Sterling felt both awkward and humiliated.
’Even if Mom and Dad were in the wrong, they’re still our parents, and I’m her older brother. How can she be so disrespectful?’
’It’s just like Mom and Dad said. We didn’t grow up together, so there’s no bond.’
’Look at her. If we had raised her, she’d never have this kind of attitude.’
Evan Sterling changed the subject. "Alright, let’s not dwell on the past. The fact that we’ve been able to reunite in this apocalypse is wonderful. We’re just missing Yara, and then our whole family will be together. That’s something to celebrate!"
Wanda Larkin finally remembered the matter at hand, a flicker of embarrassment on her face. She’d nearly forgotten about it.
Recalling her earlier words, she added with a guilty conscience, "That’s not what I meant before. It’s just... your brother wasn’t with us then, and you were the only one nearby. You were the only person we could think of, the only one we could rely on!"
’Even though I’m explaining myself,’ she fumed internally, ’the old Stella Sterling was never this difficult. I’ve already humbled myself before her, and she’s still acting like this?’
’Thinking back, her attitude toward us had changed drastically even before the apocalypse. I just don’t get it.’
’She used to be so agreeable. How could she change so much after just living on her own for a little while?’
She was afraid she’d lose her temper if she said any more.
After delivering an explanation that even she found unconvincing, Wanda Larkin quickly changed the subject. "Right, right, let’s not mention the past. The greatest fortune is that our family is together again. From now on, we’ll live a good life together and build this base into something great. In this apocalypse, no one will be able to bully our family!"
Wanda Larkin spoke with rousing excitement, but aside from her, everyone else remained calm, showing no signs of excitement.
However, while Evan Sterling felt no excitement, he knew he had to pretend. He put on an enthusiastic expression. "Exactly! In this apocalypse, our family has to stick together to keep from being bullied. We have to unite our strengths and act as one!"
"Stella, you don’t know the half of it. I may be highly valued at Sanctyr Base, but at the end of the day, working for someone else is restricting. And I have to take a lot of crap!"
"The leader of Sanctyr Base is rather extreme and arrogant. He won’t listen to advice. It’s exhausting working for a person like that."
"That’s why I’ve wanted to leave Sanctyr Base for a long time; I just never had the opportunity. But now, Stella, since you’re the leader of Caeluna Base, that changes everything. This is the perfect chance to make my exit!"
Hearing this, Stella Sterling looked at him and said teasingly, "So that’s what you’ve been thinking all along."
"Of course! You’re my sister. It goes without saying that if I have the ability, I’m going to help you, not some outsider. Besides, I’m researching a new technology that will be a complete game-changer once it’s successful. When the time comes, I’ll bring my whole team over. You just need to give us a space!"
The more Evan Sterling spoke, the more carried away he became, as if the matter was already settled. He didn’t even bother asking if Stella Sterling agreed. The sight of it made her want to laugh.
’The Sterling family is all the same,’ she thought. ’So unbelievably presumptuous.’
Stella Sterling wondered, ’I have the same blood in my veins. Does that make me a selfish person, just like them?’
’Come to think of it, whether in my past life or this one, I’ve never really been a good person.’
’Aside from the people I care about, I’m the kind of person who will do whatever it takes to survive.’
’Of course,’ Stella Sterling thought, ’I rely on my own skills and methods. I don’t think I’m shameless and clingy like them.’
When Evan Sterling saw that Stella Sterling wasn’t speaking, just staring at him with a strange expression, he started to feel strange, too.
He didn’t understand why she was looking at him like that.
’Was it something I said?’ He mentally reviewed his words but couldn’t find anything wrong with them.
’Not only was there nothing wrong, but I played the family card and then followed up with the benefits card. With a one-two punch like that, how could Stella Sterling not be tempted?’
He had been completely confident in himself, but seeing Stella Sterling’s reaction, he was starting to have doubts.
Just then, Wanda Larkin chimed in, "Exactly. Let your brother help you. A girl like you, running such a huge base... it’s easy for the people under you to bully you or hide things from you. But with your family here, no one will dare. Besides, it’ll be so much easier for you to manage with your brother’s help."
Evan Sterling nodded. ’Mom finally said the right thing for once,’ he thought.
’Right now, the plan is to get on good terms with my sister. First, we fix the relationship, then we establish a foothold, step by step. After that, things will be much easier for us here at Caeluna Base.’
’The moment I learned the status of this sister I’d never met, I made my decision.’
’Sure, I’m highly valued at Sanctyr Base and my life is pretty good, but at the end of the day, I’m just working for someone else. I have to listen to them, be managed by them.’
’But here at Caeluna Base, it would be completely different.’
’The person in power at Caeluna Base is my sister. Being in this base would be like being in my own home. No one would be able to tell me what to do.’
’The situation is completely different. And once I’ve established a firm foothold, I can even take over this base, step by step.’
’Once I’ve got my footing, I’ll cultivate my own faction, bring in my own tech team... and with Mom and Dad here to put pressure on my sister, this base will be mine sooner or later.’
