Chapter 226: Not Full
"Who are you?" Roman Rowe asked reflexively. He thought the man looked familiar—there weren’t many people in these apocalyptic times who were both handsome and powerful.
"Julian Lynch," he said.
Lily Hart had already taken the grilled sausage and started eating, her expression showing she only had eyes for food, not men.
The sight made Roman Rowe feel amused and a bit wistful... and also a little relieved...
He said with a smile, "It’s pretty good, huh?" With that, he picked up the sausage he had taken a big bite out of earlier and resumed eating.
His movements were casual and familiar, and Lily Hart said nothing, projecting an air of ’do whatever you want.’
Only after he had finished the entire sausage did it finally click for Roman Rowe. His voice suddenly shot up, "You’re Julian Lynch?"
Julian Lynch nodded calmly. "Yes, that’s me."
"You-you-you! What are you doing here? Did you just abandon your base?" Roman Rowe asked in confusion.
"I was invited to Central Command for a meeting to discuss Cathaya’s development for the latter half of the year. My base has its own management," Julian Lynch stated matter-of-factly.
Lily Hart chimed in, "You’re a Base Commander?"
Julian Lynch nodded. "Correct. In the southwestern region of Cathaya."
"Oh," Lily Hart said.
The moment she said that, she received two exasperated looks, as if they were quite... dissatisfied with her reaction.
She blinked innocently a couple of times. "What’s wrong?"
Roman Rowe acted like a hype man. "You don’t get how significant this base is! Julian Lynch’s is the only base in the entire southwest."
Lily Hart was starting to understand. "It was difficult to establish?"
Roman Rowe nodded emphatically, launching into a dramatic explanation. "The region is sparsely populated, but it’s teeming with mutated plants and animals, not to mention terrifying swamps and miasma! Once you go in, you don’t come out!"
"Oh? That badass?" Lily Hart raised an eyebrow, her expression intriguing.
Finding no satisfaction from her reaction, Roman Rowe could only turn to Julian Lynch. "Right, Julian?"
Julian Lynch nodded in agreement. At the time, he had led a team of only a hundred superpower users into the southwest.
He established the only base in the region, taking in all the survivors from the southwest. Only he and those closest to him knew the hardships they had endured.
"What are you all talking about?" Frost Shaw had walked over at some point, smoothly joining the conversation.
Roman Rowe turned and quickly chimed in, "We were talking about—"
"Julian Lynch?" Frost Shaw stared at the man outside the RV, her voice laced with surprise.
"Frost Shaw, you’re here too?" Julian Lynch was perfectly composed, his tone as familiar as if greeting an old friend.
Roman Rowe glanced back and forth, suddenly feeling like the third wheel. "You two know each other?"
"I’ve been to the Southwest Base before." Frost Shaw’s eyes remained fixed on Julian Lynch as she spared a moment to answer Roman Rowe.
Lily Hart sensed a strange, subtle tension between them. She clapped her hands.
"CLAP—" The sound successfully drew all three gazes to her. "Well, since we’re all here, why don’t we have breakfast together?"
’Though technically, at eleven o’clock, it was almost time for lunch.’
Julian Lynch let out a soft chuckle. "Anything works for me." It was as if their roles had been reversed, and he was now the host.
The calm aura about him was clearly forged by time, blended with a wild, natural charisma that was utterly captivating.
Frost Shaw gave a noncommittal nod. Roman Rowe, completely lost, just scratched his head and chimed in, "Sure! I’m starving!"
By the time the four of them were seated at the dining table, Lily Hart found the atmosphere a bit awkward. Roman Rowe was as clueless as ever.
Frost Shaw was even more silent than usual, and Julian Lynch remained expressionless, occasionally adjusting his black-rimmed glasses.
Lily Hart couldn’t help but ask, "Are you nearsighted?"
At her question, Julian Lynch tilted his head slightly and casually removed his glasses with one hand. ’Damn, he’s even more handsome now.’
He exuded an unapproachable aura. Without the glasses, his placid eyes seemed especially cold.
The glasses had been suppressing not only his handsome features but his entire presence.
Lily Hart nodded to herself. ’No wonder. It’s probably to make the survivors at his base feel that their Base Commander is more approachable.’
Julian Lynch put his glasses back on and unconsciously crossed his arms. The posture...made his biceps look incredibly powerful, the kind you probably couldn’t even wrap both hands around.
Lily Hart cut off her train of wild thoughts, slowly pulling her gaze away. ’Mustn’t be distracted by a handsome face.’
Roman Rowe, who had witnessed the entire exchange, copied the pose and crossed his arms. He had a decent amount of muscle himself.
But compared to Julian Lynch, he paled in comparison. Refusing to be outdone, however, he crossed his arms with great fanfare.
Lily Hart swatted him, finding the sight incredibly irritating. "What are you doing?"
Roman Rowe tilted his head up haughtily. "Nothing." As he spoke, he hitched his crossed arms up a little higher.
Lily Hart looked away from him and brought the conversation back to the original topic. "So, what does everyone want to eat?"
"Anything works for me," Julian Lynch said, repeating that same punchable phrase.
’He had traveled all the way from the distant Southwest Base, and he’d long since heard the legendary stories about this lottery shop.’
’He had come this morning specifically to experience it for himself. He hadn’t expected to get a decent prize on his very first try.’
’At least, the looks from the people around him were full of envy.’
’He planned to take this sausage grill back to the Southwest Base and provide it to the survivors there, free of charge.’
’They could get one just by lining up. Seventy-five sausages a day wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.’
’It was just as magical as the rumors claimed—you really could get anything from those tickets.’
’In the short two hours he’d been here, he had already witnessed a wide array of prizes being won: fruit, vegetables, small potted plants, water cups, and so on...’
’Useful or not, it seemed you could win just about anything.’
’He’d also noticed the buildings behind the shop. He would have to check them out one by one after he was done here.’
As an unceasing variety of breakfast dishes appeared on the table, Julian Lynch realized he had still underestimated Lily Hart.
’Does this woman know Magic?’
’But Frost Shaw and Roman Rowe both looked completely unfazed. Clearly, they’d seen this sort of thing so many times it was no big deal!’
’He’d heard the stories, but the shock of seeing it with his own eyes was something else entirely.’
"Let’s eat," Lily Hart said, lazily picking up a soup dumpling. She seemed completely uninterested in the miraculous display.
’Then again, Boss Hart can conjure up anything,’ Julian Lynch thought to himself.
Without realizing it, his mental address for her had shifted from "Lily Hart" to "Boss Hart"—a subtle change in perceived status.
Julian Lynch had a massive appetite, polishing off half the table’s breakfast by himself.
The main reason was that the Southwest Base was too far from Central Command to receive much notice, and living conditions there were incredibly harsh.
Even food was a rarity, to say nothing of clean water.
Now, seeing water readily available, he had unconsciously downed two large glasses, followed by two large glasses of soy milk.
By the time he realized it, it was too late. He looked at the empty plates before him, still feeling... not quite full.
"My apologies. I’ve never had such a delicious breakfast before." Julian Lynch’s apology was delivered with his typical calm sincerity.
It was as if he were simply stating a fact.
Lily Hart waved a hand dismissively. "Don’t worry about it. The most important thing is to eat your fill."
Then she asked him, "Are you full yet?" Her question was utterly sincere, her only concern that he had enough to eat.
Julian Lynch honestly shook his head.
Roman Rowe nodded in understanding.