Chapter 149: Chapter 149: Candice Tate Wasn’t Born to the Two of Us, So of Course She Doesn’t Look Like Us
Sierra Sullivan and Jayce agreed and slowly walked toward the dining table.
Nathan Thorne, however, was completely different from the two of them.
The moment he saw the food on the table, Nathan Thorne’s eyes lit up, and he immediately broke into a trot.
After staring at the spread for a few seconds, Nathan Thorne turned to Sierra Sullivan and Jayce. "You guys eat way too well!"
’Compared to this, what was that garbage I was eating back at Dawnlight Base!’
’Calling it pig slop would have been an overstatement!’
’Are we even living in the same apocalypse?’
’How can there be such a huge gap between one person’s situation and another’s!’
Nathan Thorne was filled with indignant grief, but he quickly channeled it into his appetite and began to chow down.
To be fair, Nathan Thorne was quite handsome.
And his personality was rather charming...
Right now, as he shoveled food into his mouth with eyes gleaming, he looked so pitiful that he could easily evoke the tender affection of his elders.
Just like Yvonne Shelby, whose gaze was now fixed on Nathan Thorne, full of tender affection.
"Slow down! Don’t choke on your food! There’s plenty more if you run out!"
"I can’t promise much else, but I can guarantee there’s always enough to eat!"
"If there’s anything special you’d like, just let me know, and I’ll make it for you tomorrow!"
Hearing Yvonne Shelby’s words, Nathan Thorne’s eyes welled up with tears. "Aunt Shelby, you’re the best! Why are you so good to me! WAAAAH!"
He uttered these touching words without missing a beat, continuing to stuff food into his mouth.
Yvonne Shelby was so amused by his antics that her eyes crinkled into a smile and she laughed out loud. "And you call this being good to you?"
"Of course it is!" Nathan Thorne nodded earnestly. "If anyone dares to say a bad word about you, Aunt Shelby, I’ll never let them get away with it. You’re the best person I’ve ever met!"
Sierra Sullivan was speechless. "..."
’I was going to just tolerate this.’
’But after hearing that, I just can’t hold it in anymore!’
Just as Sierra Sullivan was about to speak, she heard Jayce’s voice.
"Can’t all that food shut your mouth? Say one more useless word, and believe me, I’ll throw you out of here!"
Nathan Thorne ignored what Jayce said, turning to Yvonne Shelby with a wronged, pitiful expression. "Aunt Shelby, I was just speaking from the heart, and Jayce gets this upset. Is he worried I’m going to steal you away from him? I really don’t mean it like that! I’m just so touched by your kindness, I truly have no intention of stealing you from him!"
Yvonne Shelby shot a reproachful glare at Jayce. "Just eat your food! Why are you running your mouth! Nathan Thorne is our guest. Is that any way to treat him? Say another word of nonsense, and I’ll get angry!"
Jayce was speechless. "..."
"Alright, alright! I’ll shut my mouth! I won’t say another word, happy now?"
As he spoke, Jayce shot a helpless look at Sierra Sullivan.
’It’s not that I don’t want to deal with him, I’m just completely powerless!’
Jayce’s antics made Sierra Sullivan’s eyes curve into a smile.
Everyone at the table was sharp.
Who couldn’t see through Nathan Thorne’s little act?
Yvonne Shelby, a former business magnate, naturally saw it most clearly of all.
She knew Nathan Thorne was clowning around, but she smiled and played along anyway.
Nathan Thorne, in turn, knew Yvonne Shelby was playing along, so he was careful not to overstep, working hard to liven up the atmosphere.
All this laughter and banter was much better than awkward, polite formality.
Even Jayce’s interjection had been perfectly timed to make the atmosphere all the more congenial.
Just as Sierra Sullivan was thinking this, she heard a small, sweet voice.
"Why is that big brother more of a baby than I am? Even I don’t whine like that anymore!"
It was Candice Tate!
Sierra Sullivan froze for a second, then couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
’How could I have forgotten? There’s a five-year-old at the table!’
Clearly, Nathan Thorne, with eyes only for the feast before him, hadn’t noticed Candice Tate at all.
So when he suddenly heard Candice Tate’s voice, Nathan Thorne froze solid.
After a few stiff seconds, Nathan Thorne slowly turned his head to meet Candice Tate’s big, curious, and utterly baffled eyes.
Being stared at by such clear, bright eyes, Nathan Thorne’s face flushed crimson. He was so embarrassed he wanted to find a hole and crawl into it.
Jayce watched Nathan Thorne with amusement. "What’s with you? Why the long face all of a sudden?"
Nathan Thorne shot Jayce a glare but said nothing.
’What could I even say?’
’I’ve been utterly humiliated!’
’Jayce definitely did this on purpose!’
’He knew there was a kid here and didn’t give me a heads-up!’
’He let me, a grown man, make a fool of myself in front of a little kid!’
Getting glared at, Jayce could only feel wronged.
"What are you glaring at me for? She’s a whole person sitting right here. Is it my fault you didn’t see her?"
"I—"
Nathan Thorne wanted to explain, but in the end, no words came out.
’I can’t exactly admit that I was so focused on the food that I didn’t even see a whole child sitting there!’
Seeing Nathan Thorne fall silent, Jayce didn’t press the issue and let him off the hook.
With Nathan Thorne no longer talking, the dinner table finally fell quiet, and everyone focused on their meal.
It wasn’t until after dinner, when they had moved from the dining table to the living room, that Nathan Thorne finally asked about Candice Tate.
"Is this your and Sierra Sullivan’s daughter?" Nathan Thorne asked curiously. "She’s really cute, but she doesn’t look much like either of you!"
Sierra Sullivan gave him a cool glance. "Candice Tate isn’t our biological daughter, so of course she doesn’t look like us."
"She’s not your daughter?" Nathan Thorne’s eyes widened.
"Of course not," Jayce said with an exasperated laugh. "Who told you Candice Tate was our biological daughter? Who said that? When?"
Nathan Thorne thought back carefully and realized that, yeah, no one had actually said that.
Perhaps because he had already been embarrassed so many times today, Nathan Thorne was surprisingly calm and no longer felt awkward.
"My mistake..."
"However," Sierra Sullivan said with a smile, "you’re not entirely wrong. While Candice Tate isn’t our biological daughter, she lives with us now, so there’s no real difference."
Nathan Thorne wasn’t a total fool; he understood what that implied.
’Candice Tate’s parents and relatives must all be gone.’
’Otherwise, who would let their own child live with other people?’
Nathan Thorne nodded. "If she’s as good as your own kid, then she’s as good as my own."
With that, Nathan Thorne looked at Candice Tate. "Candice Tate, if anyone bullies you from now on, you just tell me, and I’ll take care of them for you! I’m a Superpower User! A really powerful one!"
Seeing Nathan Thorne’s gesture, Sierra Sullivan smiled to herself.
’He meant well, of course.’
’But his pride was in for a little bruising.’
Sure enough, in the next moment, Candice Tate blinked her big eyes and said in her sweet, childish voice, "I’m a Superpower User, too! I can protect myself!"
"Oh, really?" Nathan Thorne was a little surprised, but he didn’t think much of it. "So you’re a Superpower User, too, Candice? What’s your Superpower? And what level are you?"
"I have a Wood Element Ability, and I’m Third Level!"
