Just as Elara and Seraph were discussing the "convenience" and "danger" of healing abilities, a lazy, somewhat hoarse voice drifted from beside them.
"Indeed."
Everyone turned to see Codename B, who had woken up at some point. She still looked languid and weak, her entire body seeming boneless as she leaned against Simon's broad, sturdy chest. A slender, unlit cigarette was still clutched between her fingertips, and her face held a faint, ineffable sadness, almost like a fleeting wistfulness.
"Everyone wants the ability to bring the dead back to life. But such an opportunity… to be needed by everyone, to be fought over by everyone, to be 'utilized'… in fact, it's equally rare to see."
As she spoke, she glanced thoughtfully at Elara with her mysterious purple eyes.
Elara was somewhat bewildered by her cryptic statement. But she instinctively followed Codename B's lead, "Indeed, in this world, one must first survive to have the chance to be utilized by others, or to utilize others."
"Well… not necessarily," Codename B scoffed, a hint of mystery and… an almost imperceptible pity in her tone.
She didn't continue the topic. Instead, she yawned, stretched languidly, and urged, "Alright, enough chitchat. Let's… hurry to that temporary base. I feel… if we don't go soon, we might miss a… 'good show'."
Just as Codename B uttered "not necessarily," Kane, who had been sitting in the corner silently wiping his dagger, suddenly looked up sharply. His stern brow furrowed slightly, and a flicker of confusion and… vigilance crossed his eyes. It seemed Codename B's words had struck a nerve within him.
But Codename B paid no attention to Kane's reaction. She merely smiled tiredly, looking even more exhausted and frail than Alan had when they first met, with his exaggerated dark circles.
Speaking of Alan…
A thought suddenly, inexplicably, popped into Elara's mind. Did Alan still have his signature dark circles?
She subconsciously glanced towards the researchers, who were happily discussing something not far away.
Coincidentally, Alan, who was intensely debating something with Sarah and Enzo, also felt Elara's gaze, looked up, and their eyes met.
He gave Elara a bright, genuine smile.
That smile, clean and clear, like a breeze sweeping over a hillside, instantly made his face—which had previously looked a bit haggard because of the dark circles—become lively and handsome.
On that radiant face, there was… absolutely no trace of dark circles left.
Just as Elara was somewhat surprised by this discovery, Codename B's weary voice pulled her attention back.
"I'm tired, Simon."
The moment her words fell, the man who had been guarding her like a loyal knight immediately exerted his arm, lifting her entire body from the ground and cradling her securely in his arms.
"We should go," Simon said, holding the woman in his arms, his voice low and hoarse, speaking succinctly to the group.
Just as everyone packed their things and prepared to get back into the vehicles to head to the final temporary base, Vespera, who had been quietly by Amily's side, suddenly pulled away from her mother's hand and quickly ran to Elara. She then reached out her small hand and tightly grasped Elara's.
"Mm... mm... ah..."
She looked up at Elara, her small face now delicate and lovely, and struggled to produce some incoherent hums from her throat, yet they were clearly filled with emotion, as if she had something important she desperately wanted to tell her.
Elara, seeing her eagerness, first froze, then, as if realizing something, her eyes widened in disbelief.
"Vespera... you... you can make more sounds now?"
"Mm!"
Vespera heard Elara's question and immediately nodded hard! A huge, brilliant smile spread across her pointed little chin!
"That's wonderful! Vespera! You're truly amazing!"
Elara was overcome with emotion. She crouched down and tightly hugged the little girl, genuinely happy for her!
She looked up towards Amily, not far away, and saw that the strong mother could no longer control her emotions. She covered her mouth with her hand, weeping tears of joy, completely incoherent.
Over the years, she had sacrificed so much for Vespera.
Because Vespera was born unable to speak, she had endured bullying and isolation from her peers since childhood. To protect her daughter from further harm, and to give her a better life, Amily had worked several jobs simultaneously, from dawn till dusk, pushing herself to her limits.
Just as their lives had finally started to improve, allowing Vespera to attend a relatively friendly school… the apocalypse arrived.
And who could have imagined that this apocalypse, a disaster for the entire world, would actually… become a turning point in their mother-daughter fate. That it would give Vespera the chance to speak again!
At this moment, all the hardship, all the grievances, transformed into hot tears, pouring from Amily's eyes.
Throughout the rest of the journey, the entire convoy was immersed in a genuine joy and an atmosphere full of hope.
When their convoy finally reached the abandoned industrial park in the southeastern part of the city, a considerably sized temporary military base, enclosed by high walls and barbed wire, appeared before them.
From the outside, this base seemed to have no major abnormalities.
Soldiers stood guard with weapons on tall watchtowers. The base entrance was fortified with sturdy roadblocks and defensive structures. Some individuals who appeared to be new survivors were queuing at the entrance, waiting to be inspected and gain entry to the base. Temporary registration and quarantine areas were also set up nearby. Everything seemed orderly, reflecting the efficient and rigorous style characteristic of the military.
"Wow… it looks… pretty professional," Jorah exclaimed, poking his head out of the car window, looking at the considerable military base before him. "Much more organized than that messy trading post."
However, Elara, Cassian, and the soldiers, upon seeing this "professional" scene, all subtly frowned.
Because they keenly noticed that the soldiers standing at the entrance, guarding and inspecting, though standing straight and well-equipped, all wore an… ineffable, grim, and numb expression on their faces.
Their eyes were hollow and watchful, as if they were merely mechanically following orders, completely lacking the reassuring demeanor that a regular army should have, even if feigned, when accepting survivors.
The entire base entrance was shrouded in a… suffocatingly oppressive, eerie atmosphere.