Chapter 177: Chapter 177: I Want to Go Back to the Base
Although Sierra Sullivan and Jayce’s visibility wasn’t great, they had been coming out every day and were long used to it.
They didn’t even need to see where the two-mouthed birds were, capturing them with precision based on muscle memory alone.
Sierra would trap the two-mouthed birds, and Jayce would slay them in the shortest time possible.
Having teamed up so many times, it had become second nature to them.
Within moments, over a dozen two-mouthed bird corpses lay at their feet.
Sierra ignored the birds’ bodies, simply collecting the fallen heads into her dimensional space.
The birds weren’t large and had barely any meat on them. They were too much trouble to butcher, so there was no point in keeping the bodies.
But their heads contained Crystal Cores. Although they were small, every little bit helped, so it was worth collecting them.
After dealing with the two-mouthed birds, Sierra and Jayce didn’t head back immediately. Instead, they tried to press forward.
But after advancing only a meter or two, they gave up completely.
They couldn’t see their surroundings at all, and there were no landmarks to use as a reference.
Even though they were high up in a tall building, they couldn’t be sure there weren’t other Aberrant Beasts besides the two-mouthed birds.
If they were careless and got surrounded, they would be the ones at a disadvantage.
The two of them slowly retreated toward the master bedroom.
Just as they were about to reach the doorway, they were attacked again by two-mouthed birds.
This time, there were even more of them.
Maybe it was because they had killed so many of the creatures. These two-mouthed birds were known to be communal and vengeful. In any case, every time the two of them came out, they were mobbed by the flock.
The others, however, rarely had this problem.
Once they finished dealing with this new wave of birds, the two of them returned to the master bedroom without further hesitation.
Nathan Thorne was waiting anxiously at the door. When he saw them return, he immediately asked, "How is it? How is it?"
Sierra shook her head. "Visibility is even lower than before, less than a meter. We still can’t leave."
Even though he had already suspected as much, a look of disappointment still crossed Nathan Thorne’s face when he heard Sierra’s words.
It had been nearly a month since he’d left Dawnlight Base.
Before the apocalypse, he wouldn’t have worried about being away from his family for a month, or even a year.
But in the apocalypse, things could change in an instant. Unforeseeable, even insurmountable, dangers could arise at any moment.
Even with his father as the base commander, his safety wasn’t one hundred percent guaranteed.
Just thinking about it weighed heavily on Nathan Thorne’s heart.
After a moment of silence, Nathan Thorne spoke again.
"I’m going to go train my Superpower."
Watching Nathan Thorne’s retreating figure, Sierra felt a mix of emotions.
She remembered when she first met Nathan. She’d thought he was an arrogant, spoiled heir.
He had no real skills, just a lot of petty schemes.
’How much time has passed since then?’
’He’s like a completely different person now.’
’People really do change!’
’And they grow up faster when they’ve been through a lot.’
’You inevitably lose things in the process of growing up, but in the end, you always gain more.’
Sierra didn’t dwell on these thoughts for long. She quickly adjusted her mindset, found a place to sit, and began cultivating her own Superpower.
Another five days passed in the blink of an eye.
Over the past few days, they had tried to contact Kevin Everett at Red Sun Base with their walkie-talkie.
But whether it was the sandstorm interfering with the signal or something else, they never managed to get through.
If they just knew what was happening at Red Sun Base, they wouldn’t be quite so worried.
But since they couldn’t get in touch, they had no idea what was going on there, and they couldn’t help but worry.
After so many days of the raging sandstorm sweeping through the windowless living room, a thick layer of sand now covered the floor.
It was deep enough to swallow your ankles.
The gale-force winds brought not only sand, but also a few mutated animals.
Even Dunescrawlers.
Fortunately, Dunescrawlers were afraid of fire. Since some of the group had a Fire Ability, they could just toss out a few fireballs and wipe out most of the creatures without a direct confrontation.
The few that remained were afraid of both fire and death, so they didn’t dare approach the master bedroom.
A dozen or so people cooped up in a twenty-square-meter room. Even with no shortage of food, water, or supplies, it was inevitable that they would start to feel the strain after so long.
Especially since they were all worried about their loved ones.
Even though no one said anything, Sierra could clearly feel the group’s mood growing more and more agitated.
Finally, after another five days passed, someone couldn’t bear it any longer.
That person was Joy Warren.
That day, just after they had finished breakfast and before anyone had even put their bowls down, Joy Warren spoke up.
"I’m not waiting any longer. I’m going back to the base."
Although she knew someone would eventually break and bring this up, Sierra never expected the first one to be Joy Warren.
Dominic Crawford was also very surprised, but he was more nervous and worried. "But the situation now isn’t right for going back. It’s too dangerous out there!"
Joy Warren’s stance, however, was firm. "I know it’s dangerous, but I have to go back."
She paused for a moment.
"My mom isn’t in good health. Before the apocalypse, she was always on medication, constantly in and out of the hospital. We don’t have access to that now... She’s just been toughing it out at home. I haven’t been back in so long, and I’m worried about her. My mom is my reason for living. If she’s gone, then even if I stay here and survive, my life will be meaningless."
Hearing Joy Warren’s words, Dominic Crawford opened his mouth, but couldn’t manage to say a single word.
He was worried about Joy, just as she was worried about her mother.
He couldn’t force her to stay here under the guise of it being for her own good.
With barely a moment’s hesitation, Dominic Crawford made his decision. "Then I’ll go back with you! I’ve had enough of being stuck here anyway."
Nathan Thorne immediately looked at Dominic Crawford, his eyes wide, clearly wanting to say something.
But he forced the words back down before they could escape.
He looked like he was about to burst from holding back what he wanted to say.
Since Nathan Thorne wouldn’t speak up himself, he started frantically signaling to Sierra and Jayce with his eyes.
Sierra, of course, saw Nathan’s signals, but for a moment, she didn’t know what to say either.
Dominic Crawford was a grown man, older than her even. He knew what he was saying.
’Could she really stop him just because she wanted to?’
Sierra thought for a moment, then looked at the others. "What’s on everyone else’s mind? Let’s all share our thoughts and what we plan to do."
