18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

When Stella and Jasper strolled into the workshop, the staff member's face lit up. "The test results are in, and I was just about to notify you guys."

To their delight, everything had passed inspection.

Working around the clock, racing against natural disasters, they produced more boats, life pods, and submarines, all in a desperate effort to save as many survivors as possible.

After making sure all the delivery paperwork was sorted, Stella signed off with a flourish and stamped her approval.

With documents in hand, she headed to the points redemption center. The clerk's eyes practically popped out as he double-checked the figures before inputting the nine-digit score into the system. Impressive. Stella was now the wealthiest scavenger in history.

Actually, except for the top brass at the base, she was the richest person around.

The clerk, with a cautious smile, reminded her, "You've got a ton of points on your card; you might want to spend some of them soon."

Feeling flush with wealth, Stella strutted through the streets with the confident swagger of someone who owed nothing to anyone, making her way straight to the official marketplace.

Her luck must have been out the door, for upon entering, she was greeted by Julia's sour face.

Julia's heart nearly leapt out of her chest at the sight of Stella.

This time, Stella was far from disheveled; her face was clean and pale, looking like she had spent a fortune on skincare. Even though Julia was over a year younger, the harshness of the disasters seemed to have left Stella largely unscathed. Next to Stella, Julia, who usually prided herself on her superiority among colleagues, instantly looked like a haggard housewife.

And just her luck, the chatty coworker couldn't help but gossip, "Julia, is this your sister? She's so young and pretty, and she looks just like you."

"I don't know her," Julia managed to say, frustration coloring her tone. "My mom only had me. Don't spread rumors."

"Oh my gosh, you two look so alike, though," the coworker blurted out, oblivious. "But you know, she resembles Aunt Sonya even more."

Lillian had just visited the marketplace the day before to bring Julia some sweets, sharing with all the colleagues, so her image was fresh in everyone's mind.

The term 'bringing sweets' was just a euphemism for cleaning up Julia's messes. Julia had managed to offend more than a few customers in her short time there.

The keen-eyed marketplace staff could tell something was amiss between Julia and Stella, suspecting there was a history of bad blood between them.

Three women in one drama; whether it's the end of the world or just daily life, grievances and grudges are always there.

Despite their usual cheerful demeanor, they wouldn't hesitate to stick a knife in when push came to shove, especially since Julia had stepped on her toes more than once. Lola wasn't about to let such an opportunity slide by. With exaggerated surprise, she exclaimed, "Oh my, I would have thought you two were twins!"

Julia, fuming, gritted her teeth, "I told you, I don't know her. What are you implying?"

Tricia, from not too far away, shot a look sharp enough to cut, "What are you all gaping at? Didn't you see we have customers?"

Quick on her feet, Lola warmly approached Stella, "Welcome! How may I assist you today?"

Stella cut to the chase, "I want a submarine."

"A what?" Lola was taken aback, momentarily at a loss.

"Not selling?" Stella retorted, "But your advertisement on the screen says otherwise. Are you sure you're not selling?"

"Selling, yes, of course," Lola recovered, "But, you know, a submarine requires a nine-digit score."

Without so much as a blink, Stella affirmed, "I can do that."

The lavishness of the customer caught Lola off guard, and she quickly called over her supervisor, Tricia.

Tricia was composed, politely stating, "We do indeed sell submarines, but we'll need to verify your points card first."

She had seen all sorts of customers, those who came in claiming they wanted to buy planes and submarines, only to find out their points cards barely had a single digit.

As such, any purchase over seven digits required a points card check to avoid any mix-ups.

Stella had no objections and handed over her sleek black card. Indeed, seven-digit points meant a silver card, eight digits a gold card, and nine, a black card. The pristine black card changed Tricia's expression.

But she recovered quickly, leading Stella with warmth and thoroughness, "Right this way, please."

Not just Tricia, the entire staff was in shock; they had never seen a black card in all their years at the marketplace.

"Did you see that? The first black card at the base has really appeared."

The staff buzzed with conversation, while Julia nearly fainted.

A black card? Why did Stella have one?

Tricia swiped the card to confirm the points, asking, "Stella, as a strategic weapon, purchasing a submarine requires an application. Are you certain you need one?" Stella was there specifically for that purpose.

"Please wait a moment."

Tricia stepped into the back office to contact the strategic department via intercom.

Half an hour later, she emerged with a smile, "Stella, the submarine is cleared for sale. When would you like it?"

"Anytime is fine for me, but I can't pilot it."

"No worries. With the purchase comes a training package. You'll be proficient within a week."

Stella couldn't have asked for more. "Let's make the transaction."

A submarine was just a carrot to motivate scavengers; nobody expected a real deal to come through.

Taking a deep breath, Tricia swiped the black card, deducting the points. "You still have a considerable balance. Anything else you'd like to purchase?"

The life pods weren't satisfactory, and she didn't have enough points for planes or ships. For now, Stella had no other needs, "No, I'll consider more purchases later."

Tricia handed over the submarine's manual, "You can start your training on board tomorrow. Here's the manual; familiarize yourselves with it first."

The deal had gone through so smoothly, it was almost hard to believe.

But this was just the beginning. Mastering the submarine and securing it was the true seal of the deal.

They scheduled the training, and Stella, without as much as a glance at Julia, thanked Tricia and left.

Lola, who had been itching to tease Julia, thought better of it, considering Stella was a black card customer who had bought a submarine.

Once Stella was out of sight, Lola couldn't help but ask, "Tricia, they're the scavengers from the rumors these past few days, aren't they? The ones who brought back loads of rare metals?" "Let's not gossip. Back to work," Tricia dismissed, even though she recognized Stella as the customer who had clashed with Julia. All dolled up, she looked surprisingly young and radiant. Tricia couldn't help but feel that aside from resembling the commander's wife, Stella had a hint of the commander's presence about her.

It wasn't so much about looks but an innate aura of authority.

Shaking off the odd thought, Tricia went back to her duties, the day's work far from over.

"Too much spotlight, too much trouble," Stella muttered under her breath, avoiding the gazes of passersby as she and Jasper hurried out of the bustling trade center with their two dogs in tow. Just as they reached the entrance, a voice pierced through the crowd, "Mr. Jasper, Stella?"