Chapter 322: Chapter 322: Envious
He didn’t know if the members of Caeluna Base ate this well every day, or if this was just an occasional treat.
Or perhaps they had only prepared meat dishes simply because he was a guest.
But regardless of the reason, Basil Xavier was astonished.
He already knew that Stella Sterling had established a large base.
And rumors had been circulating that Caeluna Base was very powerful.
But as for just how powerful Caeluna Base truly was, no one knew for certain.
Everything up to this point had been based on their own speculation.
As for the strength of Caeluna Base’s weaponry, no one could guess without engaging them in direct combat. Only the people of Caeluna Base themselves truly knew.
But after arriving at Caeluna Base this time, he saw that its internal development was in no way inferior to Meridia Base’s. In fact, in some aspects, it was even more complete and comprehensive.
He was already deeply shaken.
’In just over a year, how on earth did Stella Sterling manage to build this from nothing?’
’It’s simply unbelievable!!!’
He had also been thinking during dinner. While he couldn’t know the specifics of Caeluna Base’s strength, seeing how good their food was gave him a glimpse into the depth of their resources.
But that was precisely why the shock he felt was all the more intense.
’How did they gather such a large amount of food?’
’In the beginning, it would have been nearly impossible to achieve this relying solely on Stella Sterling’s personal abilities.’
’There are too many questionable points, and so many things about Caeluna Base have shocked me so far.’
He glanced in Gordon Ford’s direction.
"Of course. My base emphasizes self-sufficiency. We have a ranch where we raise quite a few animals, and we also grow our own grains and vegetables."
"Besides, our base doesn’t have that many members. What we grow ourselves is enough to feed everyone."
"Of course, we don’t eat things like meat all the time, but we do provide it to our members every now and then to help them stay healthy."
Stella Sterling didn’t seem to notice Basil Xavier’s somewhat peculiar gaze.
She spoke in a relaxed tone, offering him an explanation.
Many vegetables and grains couldn’t be grown in the current environment.
But Stella Sterling had discovered that if she just put them in her ’space’ to grow for a while, their survival rate became much higher when she took them out to be replanted.
That was why their base could now grow a wide variety of grains—even more than Meridia Base.
After hearing this, Basil Xavier thought for a moment and nodded.
Caeluna Base was also a large base, but it had one major difference compared to other large bases.
Namely, its population was extremely small.
All told, there were currently fewer than 300 people.
And that was everyone.
Compared to other large bases, this number could be considered incredibly small.
Take Meridia Base, for example. The forces of the armed department, managed by Ethan Young alone, numbered in the tens of thousands.
Then there were the technical personnel in various other fields, who numbered in the thousands.
Beyond that, there were also many ordinary civilians who depended on Meridia Base for survival.
These people were the most numerous group in Meridia Base, numbering in the hundreds of thousands.
These people survived in Meridia Base by accepting missions or helping with supply runs.
At the same time, these people also served as a reserve pool for the armed department of Meridia Base.
And their descendants were the new blood, the future backbone of the base.
Meridia Base truly had a massive population. So even though the base itself was vast, the residential areas were densely packed.
In fact, it wasn’t just Meridia Base. Crescentia Base was much the same, though its population wasn’t as large.
Furthermore, from what he understood, other large bases also had large populations.
Even some medium-sized bases had tens of thousands of people.
Then there were others that called themselves bases but weren’t really bases at all, just factions established by various groups of people.
But even those factions had populations ranging from several hundred to several thousand.
He had never before encountered a base with a population as small as Caeluna Base’s.
In terms of population, Caeluna Base could be considered second-rate.
And yet, despite its small population, its territory was huge, and it was also powerful.
This was evident from the rescue operations Caeluna Base had conducted during the recent string of disasters.
Though their population was small, every single member was an elite, and they were incredibly efficient.
Despite its small population, Caeluna Base was already becoming the dominant power in the surrounding region.
Even now, many ordinary people on the outside were supporters of Caeluna Base.
Caeluna Base might have few people now, but not a single base dared to look down on it.
Being powerful but not populous also revealed another advantage.
Namely, their daily food consumption wasn’t high.
Unlike Meridia Base and Crescentia Base, with their massive populations, no matter how much food they stockpiled, the amount consumed each day by so many people was immense.
This led to a situation where the daily food ration for each person within the base was limited.
And the food was very plain.
Ingredients like meat were exceptionally precious; ordinary resident members would never get to eat it.
It was all reserved for the base’s high-ranking officials, and even they only got a taste of it every now and then.
Things were much better here with Stella Sterling. The population wasn’t that large, so even if everyone ate their fill, the consumption wouldn’t be that high.
Thinking this way, Basil Xavier could understand why the food at Caeluna Base was so good.
For a moment, he even felt a bit envious of the people in Caeluna Base.
’Such a large place with only a little over 200 people... their living space must be very spacious too.’
’And they eat so well!’
A thought suddenly crossed his mind: he wanted to come to Caeluna Base and be an ordinary member.
’They have it so much better than I do!’
But in the end, these were just fleeting thoughts.
"I have some vegetable seeds here. They’re very resilient. You can take them back to your base to plant. They might just survive, and if so, you’ll have another food source."
Stella Sterling suddenly said to them.
She had plenty of these seeds. Her relationship with both Crescentia Base and Meridia Base was amicable.
Giving them some to take back was no loss to her.
She could use these things to maintain good relations with them, and it would help many people as well.
