After I Fully Prepared for the Apocalypse, the Ungrateful Cried with Regret

Nina Jacobs had witnessed the strength of Caleb Carter’s Gold Element Superpower; almost no one could dodge his pressure point attacks. However, she hadn’t expected his area-of-effect skills to be just as dazzling. That Thousand Blades Killing Domain, in particular, was practically invincible against the other superpowers in the arena.

”Soul Slayer is undeniably formidable. I heard that if it weren’t for the Stellarys Team, Caleb Carter would have been a goner,” Mason Quincy said.

”I know about that,” Walsh said.

”It’s not surprising that you know.” Mason Quincy didn’t overthink it. Since Stella had been publicly praised, everyone in the entire base knew about it. Now, no one in the base dared to mess with Stella.

”Well, thank you for telling us anyway.” Walsh felt that Mason Quincy was a very warm-hearted person.

”You guys... sigh! Let me take you through the back door. It’s best to lay low if you can.” The day’s selection tournament had concluded. Mason Quincy hesitated for a moment before pulling Walsh aside. He had just spotted several people loitering near the exit, and they were none other than members of Cloud Piercer.

”Is that really necessary?” Walsh asked.

”How is it not? Last time at the trading market, someone refused to let them cut in line. That guy ended up locked in a public restroom for two days and nearly froze to death!” Without another word, Mason Quincy pulled Walsh toward a different direction from the main exit.

Walsh wanted to refuse, but seeing that Nina Jacobs and Wayne Warner didn’t object, he had no choice but to helplessly follow along. The so-called back door turned out to be a service corridor used by staff to transport goods. Preferring to avoid unnecessary trouble, Nina followed Mason down the passage.

”The exit is just up ahead. Don’t worry, they’ll never think to look for us here. This is my secret passageway, heh heh heh,” Mason Quincy said as he walked.

Only then did Nina realize that Mason hadn’t possessed an invitation letter at all; he had disguised himself as a staff member and snuck in through here. However, she didn’t call him out on it. Walking through the staff corridor was indeed much smoother.

”Mason, you didn’t go set up your stall at the market today?” a cleaning staff member greeted him, looking completely accustomed to his presence.

”Nope, got nothing to sell!” Mason Quincy replied cheerfully.

”True. It’s hard to find supplies in this freezing weather.” The man lowered his head and continued sweeping, acting as if he hadn’t seen Nina and the other two.

”You have a stall at the trading market?” Nina Jacobs asked casually. She had heard that the trading market in the City D Base was zoned, and every stall required an application.

”Ah! I was quick and managed to snag a spot. It’s a bit of a waste, though. Once my small stash of goods is sold out, I’ll have nothing left to offer. That’s why I came here to kill some time,” Mason Quincy replied. The stall application lasted for a month, and it would be up for renewal in a few days. He had no intention of renewing it.

”Where exactly is your stall?” Nina Jacobs asked after a moment of thought. Stella also had a lot of surplus or useless items that needed to be disposed of. Right now, they were just piling up, which was quite a waste.

”Row 6, Column 6, Number 6. Sounds catchy, right? My luck has always been good. Six, six, six, hahaha!” Mason Quincy laughed at his own joke.

”It is quite memorable,” Nina Jacobs said. The exit was just ahead. She narrowed her eyes and stretched out a hand to stop the group.

”Why did we stop?” Mason Quincy turned his head and asked in confusion.

”It seems you jinxed it.” Just as Nina’s voice fell, a stone slab from the eaves ahead suddenly crashed onto the ground right at the exit.

Mason Quincy stared in astonishment. If they had taken just one more step, the stone slab would have hit them dead on!

”Could it be...” He looked ahead. When he saw several figures step into view, all the color instantly drained from his face.

”Did you think taking this route would guarantee a safe escape?” Michael Miller stared at the group in front of him.

”Are you here to corner me?” Walsh looked at the crushed stone on the ground and recalled Mason’s warning. Surprise flashed in his eyes; he hadn’t realized someone could genuinely be this petty. ”The base has a security patrol. If you mess around, you’ll be punished,” he stated earnestly.

Walsh worked at Nina Jacobs’s house during the day, and after work, he returned to the shared residence of the security captains, Eric Stone and Kurt Garrison. In his eyes, any act of harming others would be severely cracked down on by the security patrol.

”Punished?” The lackeys standing behind Michael Miller laughed.

”Are you talking about this stone slab that unexpectedly fell by accident? Or something else?” one of the men asked with a smirk.

Mason Quincy was already so terrified that he shrank to the side like a frightened quail. Seeing that Walsh wanted to retort, he quickly pulled him back. ”Just keep your mouth shut. Hurry up and apologize to Mr. Miller and his guys.”

He then turned with an obsequious smile. ”Mr. Miller, these guys are new to the base and don’t know the rules. Please don’t be too angry. I’ll make sure to give them a good talking to later.”

”Get lost. Who the hell do you think you are? You were the one trying to sneak them away, weren’t you?” Michael Miller glared at Mason with a tyrannical gaze.

”If you were trying to sneak out of here, it proves you know exactly who we are. Newbies? I think you just need to be taught a lesson!” another lackey-looking guy shouted.

Nina Jacobs also noticed that after these men appeared, all the bystanders in the vicinity scattered. It seemed that what Mason Quincy had said earlier was entirely true. The people in the base were genuinely afraid of this gang.

”Come on, buddy. Let’s go over there and have a little chat,” one of the men said as he stepped forward and slung an arm around Mason’s shoulders.

To outsiders, this looked exactly like a friendly scene between two brothers, but Mason Quincy had already taken a solid punch to the abdomen.

”Mr. Quincy!” Seeing Mason not even daring to cry out in pain, Walsh charged forward to intervene. Soft Wood Element branches materialized around him, instantly drawing a burst of mocking laughter from the gang.

”The base strictly forbids fighting with superpowers. Don’t tell me a newbie like you doesn’t even know that? When the security patrol arrives, guess who they’ll punish—you or us? Hey, Quincy, we didn’t do anything at all, did we?” Michael Miller asked.

”N-No...” Blood was already seeping from the corners of Mason Quincy’s mouth.

Satisfied, Michael Miller patted him on the shoulder. Immediately after, another fist swung hard into Mason’s abdomen!

A miserable shriek rang out, but the sound didn’t come from Mason Quincy—it came from the man beside him. The man felt as if the bones and sinews in his arm had been shattered into pieces. Wayne Warner had merely blocked the blow with a single palm, yet the impact forcefully shattered the man’s hand bones!

”Oh my, we didn’t do anything at all,” Nina Jacobs said.

Mason Quincy stared in astonishment at Wayne Warner and Nina Jacobs standing beside him. The words Do you have a death wish? were clearly written all over his face.

”So as long as no superpowers are used, anyone can just beat people up as they please?” Nina Jacobs asked.

”Woman, I was planning to deal with you last.” Michael Miller had noticed Nina a long time ago. She hadn’t seemed afraid from the very beginning. He thought making an example out of Mason would put fear in her eyes, but to his surprise, she still dared to let that Strength Element Superpower User launch a sneak attack on them.

”Captain? What are you doing here?” a familiar voice suddenly rang out from a short distance away.

The members of Stella had just exited the arena. As they passed a corner, they accidentally spotted several familiar figures. One of them was unmistakably Nina Jacobs, who hadn’t returned in five days.

Captain?

Looking at the group walking toward them, Mason Quincy felt that those people looked somewhat familiar. ”St-Stella?” he subconsciously blurted out the name. Who on earth were they calling ’Captain’?

”It looks like our captain has run into a bit of trouble,” Holden Shaw said as he slowly approached.