Apocalypse Villainess? Nah, I'm Nice

This unrequited affection was no good for either of them.

So, though she was usually more reserved, she subconsciously chose to be more direct now that they were alone.

Levi Young’s face paled slightly, just as she expected. After a moment’s hesitation, he said, "I’ll go with you."

"There’s no need. It’s more convenient for you to do your research here. I’m counting on you for the antidote—I really don’t want to end up a baby! I’ll try to make it a quick trip." She paused, then added, "For now, don’t tell anyone about this. We can talk about it when I get back."

After a long moment, Levi Young finally nodded. He drew another sample of her blood, then said softly, "Be safe. I’ll... be waiting for you."

Hearing the deep reluctance in his voice, Paige Summers felt a mix of pity and helplessness. She could only manage a slight smile and an "Mm."

She decided to set off at once, before it got dark.

Paige Summers put on a disguise, applying a little makeup to make herself look more mature before heading out.

She had Sweetie wait for her outside the city to avoid attracting too much attention.

The guards at the gate gave her a long, suspicious look as she left. Fortunately, as low-ranking soldiers, they weren’t privy to much information, so she managed to slip past them.

Once outside the city, Sweetie found her quickly.

Paige Summers asked, "Is Ben around? Do you know where he went?"

Sweetie shook its head twice.

He wasn’t here. It didn’t know.

Paige Summers nodded, not too concerned.

With Ben’s abilities, ordinary people couldn’t hurt him. Besides, now that he had leveled up, he would be even smarter and probably wouldn’t go looking for trouble. It would be incredibly easy for him to hide if he wanted to.

Settling onto Sweetie’s back, she gave it a gentle pat. "Let’s go. To Norgate!"

Although she was worried about Marcus Monroe, she honestly didn’t think he was in any real danger.

So Paige Summers didn’t rush the journey.

Instead, she had another matter to attend to.

After all this time, the crops in her space had nearly filled it to capacity. If she didn’t do something soon, it would be completely full.

She was wondering what to do about it when she happened to pass a small base, and an idea struck her.

Marcus Monroe had once told her that most of the bases between Central City and Norgate had Jovitas contact points, and she knew how to reach them.

This way, she’d have no shortage of places to play the generous benefactor.

Besides, doing this had many benefits!

She started making brief stops at every base she came across. At each one, she would contact the local Jovitas people and give them a batch of crops and a small number of seeds.

In response to their astonished questions, her answer was always the same: "I was sent here on Red S’s orders. The food is for everyone, and you can try planting these seeds. They have a very high survival rate. Also, this is top secret. You must not tell anyone!"

She was already traveling quickly, passing through several bases each day.

She did the same at every base, large or small.

Along the way, she received countless expressions of gratitude for Marcus Monroe. Some people weren’t vocal about it, but it was clear they held him in the highest esteem.

Paige Summers couldn’t help but feel a bit smug.

Marcus Monroe had used Jovitas for his own convenience, but he had also contributed a great deal to it. She would feel terrible if Black S or his subordinates came to resent Marcus—or if he lost his position—all because of her.

By doing this, she was sure to help him win people over.

Even if Black S had his complaints, he wouldn’t be able to resist the allure of all this food!

What’s more, the more people who planted the seeds, the more data she could gather later. It would help her get a comprehensive understanding of how the seeds from her space performed in different types of soil. She might even make some unexpected discoveries!

All in all, it was a win-win situation.

This side project took some time, so it wasn’t until over half a month later that she arrived near Norgate one afternoon.

Looking out, she could see that Norgate had changed considerably.

The city walls had been fully repaired. They were much sturdier and had been built higher.

Vehicles passed by on the road from time to time, all heading toward the city gate.

The security at the gate looked just as tight as it was in Central City.

Paige Summers hesitated for a moment but decided to enter the city and take a look. ’Marcus Monroe might be inside.’

She hadn’t expected, however, that such strict security would cause its own set of problems.

After the Central Army occupied the city, everything had become regulated.

They had brought in scanners from Central City. Anyone who wanted to live in the city needed to get an ID card, and you needed to be verified every time you entered or exited.

Normally, this wouldn’t have been a problem.

But as luck would have it, the city guards here had been transferred from the Power Corps—and they had all participated in the original siege of Norgate. They had seen Paige Summers in person!

The result was that even though she passed the scanner test without issue, Paige Summers was still detained.

A small squad immediately surrounded her, ready to take her down without mercy if she resisted.

Paige Summers quickly got the message and raised her hands, showing she had no intention of fighting.

The squad leader ordered, "Tie her up and take her to the back!"

"The back" was a temporary holding cell.

Suspicious individuals were usually taken there first to be interrogated before any further action was taken.

Paige Summers said at once, "There’s no need to tie me up. I’ll walk on my own. Also, is Marcus Monroe in the city? I’m here to see him."

The guards exchanged confused glances.

Of course they knew who Marcus Monroe was, which only made the situation stranger!

’She’s obviously an imposter,’ they thought. ’But if so, why would she be asking for Marcus Monroe?!’

The squad leader, however, stared at her for a moment, a guess forming in his mind.

’This girl looks a lot like Paige Summers. Could she be a close relative? But even if she is, she can’t just forge her ID papers!’

With that thought, his severe tone softened slightly. "Fine, we won’t tie you up. But you behave yourself, or we won’t be so nice!"

"Of course."

To prove her sincerity, Paige Summers meekly entered the temporary holding cell and sat down quietly on a stool.

She noticed the squad leader had already sent someone to make a phone call and had a pretty good idea of what was happening.

’Looks like Marcus Monroe really is in the city.’

Sure enough, not ten minutes later, the holding cell door was thrown open with a BANG, and Marcus Monroe rushed in!