Chapter 549: Extra 4: Affection and Ruthlessness 4
Thanks to the Life-saving Pills, Maisie Joyce’s condition stopped deteriorating.
On the fourth day, Sweetie brought Sean Raines and Levi Young.
Looking at the wound that covered half of Maisie Joyce’s back, they couldn’t help but marvel. ‘She’s truly a woman of incredible willpower! If it were anyone even slightly weaker, this injury alone would have killed them!’
Out of admiration for Maisie Joyce’s fortitude, and even more so because of the pain and self-blame burning in Claire Chapman’s eyes, Sean Raines and Levi Young approached her treatment with extreme caution. Six days later, once they confirmed Maisie Joyce would no longer mutate, they decided to take her back to the Bloodfall base for continued medical care.
“Her condition isn’t as severe as it could be. It’s not like what happened with Nora Lowell and Leo Joyce; she still has a very high chance of being cured. But you need to be mentally prepared. While the treatment medicine will kill the virus in her body, it will also kill the active cells that constitute her superpower. To the human body, that kind of cell is also a type of virus. So, there’s more than an eighty percent chance she will lose her superpower,” Levi Young explained earnestly.
A strained smile touched Claire Chapman’s lips.
“I don’t think she’ll mind. As long as she survives, losing her superpower isn’t such a big deal.”
Sean Raines shook his head and added, “For a Superpower User, the psychological blow of losing their power is far worse than any physical effect. Do you understand? You’ll have to comfort her then. Don’t let her get hung up on it and spiral.”
After a long silence, Claire Chapman finally said, “I understand.”
Sean Raines patted his shoulder. “Get ready. We’re heading back to the base tomorrow.”
Claire Chapman looked at Maisie Joyce, still unconscious in the room. Though her complexion was still poor, a bit of life had returned to her. “Okay,” he said softly.
Although Maisie Joyce’s condition was far less severe than Leo Joyce’s, the virus had still infected her lungs, so there was no room for one hundred percent optimism. She spent a long time in a stupor, and in the rare moments she could smell anything, her nose was filled with the scents of all kinds of medicine.
Paige Summers gave special approval for a new house to be built for her right inside the experimental zone. It had a convenient passage that led directly to a laboratory, making it easier for Levi Young and Sean Raines to provide treatment.
「Two years passed.」
The situation in the south underwent another major shift.
In those two years, not only did Bloodfall United City’s position become further consolidated, but it also became widely known that the united city had peacefully absorbed Southreach.
Without Maisie Joyce, Keith Preston and his cohort were completely incapable of managing an operation as large as Southreach. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have launched a series of foolish campaigns against Bloodfall United City out of desperation after Maisie Joyce had voluntarily sealed herself away in the underground prison.
In truth, they couldn’t be entirely blamed. In the past, due to a series of events—Leo Joyce’s disappearance, Maisie Joyce’s subsequent rise to power, and the suppression of the city’s major families—Maisie and Claire Chapman had conducted a major purge of Southreach. Anyone ambitious and resourceful had been more or less cleaned out, whether openly or behind the scenes. Maisie’s plan had been to cultivate a group of capable subordinates truly loyal to her and to Southreach, so she had shown no mercy to the former. As a result, the people who were left were loyal enough, but they were a notch below in terms of ability.
But back then, how could she have known that the saying about fortunes changing in an instant was no empty platitude? In the blink of an eye, she went from being the City Lord of Southreach to being infected by the virus.
And seeing her taken away by Claire Chapman in front of everyone was the last straw for Keith Preston and the others. It utterly shattered the last fantasy they secretly harbored of ruling Southreach themselves. Many of Southreach’s Superpower Users who admired and trusted Maisie Joyce saw this and immediately broke through the city lockdown, seeking to defect to Bloodfall United City!
Chaos descended upon Southreach.
Marcus Monroe naturally wouldn’t let such an opportunity pass. He quickly dispatched his troops, ostensibly to posture and maintain a presence outside Southreach, but covertly to help people escape from within. Before long, Keith Preston could no longer hold out. In order to prevent Southreach from becoming a ghost town, and to secure a better outcome for himself, he requested to negotiate with Marcus Monroe while he still had some cards left to play.
Out of consideration for the ordinary people in the city, Marcus Monroe was also unwilling to escalate the situation to open conflict. With both sides amenable, negotiations began quickly and went very smoothly.
Keith Preston’s official title wouldn’t change much, but his authority was certainly diminished.
After such a long period of rigorous, comprehensive training, Bloodfall had no shortage of elite soldiers and commanders. Furthermore, the other bases within the united city also had plenty of talented individuals, and the mutual exchange of personnel was a welcome development for everyone. So, Marcus Monroe quickly incorporated Southreach into the united city’s domain, appropriately filling the city’s positions. Whether in political or military affairs, Bloodfall now held immense control over Southreach.
Thus, the south was officially unified.
From then on, Bloodfall United City’s development progressed by leaps and bounds.
Thanks to Paige Summers, Bloodfall United City slowly became abundant in resources, allowing them to invest more energy into other areas and commit to making life better.
As various policies that truly benefited the people were enacted, talent was no longer squandered, and superpowers were no longer the sole measure of a person’s ability.
No matter which skill a person was proficient in, as long as it was useful and practical, they could find a suitable position for themselves within the united city.
Schools were established, tier by tier.
Elementary and middle school provided a foundational education, followed by universities that taught various technologies. The subjects offered were vastly different from those before the apocalypse. To fit the needs of the new era, specialized combat departments were created, dedicated to teaching various combat skills for the apocalypse, including the use of superpowers.
In those two years, everyone had changed.
Claire Chapman was no exception.
When he wasn’t by Maisie Joyce’s side, he was passionately devoted to his work out in the field.
He killed countless Mutant Beasts and brought back just as many specimens for experimentation. He even started studying pharmacology under Levi Young’s guidance, and despite his amateurish knowledge, he managed to bring back many rare seeds for medicinal herbs, some of which were thought to be extinct.
It could be said that he made an indelible contribution toward the establishment of Bloodfall United City’s central Research Institute!
In two years, he had grown tanner and more muscular. A short buzz cut made him look even more weathered, erasing the last traces of his youthful good looks. Now, his superpower had entered the Ninth Rank. He appeared silent and reserved, yet he radiated a powerful aura!
What happened to Maisie Joyce had undeniably had a massive impact on him.
But Maisie Joyce herself had not changed in the slightest—at least, not on the surface.
For her, those two years passed differently than for everyone else.
Closing her eyes, opening them again, long periods of deep slumber.
All of her body’s sensations were dulled by sleep.
When she could finally stay awake for long stretches, it felt as if the past two years had been little more than a few long sleeps…