Apocalypse Rebirth: Crazy from Day One

Every little bit counts, and besides, there would be plenty of uses for this gasoline down the line. Stella Sterling cherished every drop!

Siphoning the gas from over a dozen cars was her biggest haul of the night.

Stella Sterling walked away, thoroughly satisfied, and quickened her pace to catch up with the others.

"Miss Sterling, you look like you’re in a good mood!"

Felix Lawrence said with a smile as he saw Stella Sterling catch up.

He’d been under a lot of pressure lately, afraid of coming back empty-handed and letting down everyone’s expectations.

Now that they had secured these supplies today, he could finally breathe a huge sigh of relief.

He felt much more relaxed!

"Not bad!"

Stella Sterling’s tone was light. If there weren’t so many people around, she might have even hummed a little tune.

Felix Lawrence chuckled softly. "We still have to distribute this food when we get back. You contributed some of your own to help everyone get through that last rough patch, so you’ll get a bigger share when we divide it up!"

Stella Sterling nodded without refusing.

’It’s not like I need it,’ she thought, ’but I can’t let anyone know that. Turning down a larger share of food would be far too suspicious in times like these.’

Back in the building, Felix Lawrence did as he had said. He first returned food to those who had previously lent from their own supplies.

The rest was then divided among the more than 100 people present.

Everyone had done their part, so everyone got a share—even the children, who were only a few years old, received their portion.

Felix Lawrence was fair and impartial, and no one had any objections to his methods. The distribution was handled quickly, and everyone happily returned to their own apartments with their allotted supplies.

"Scavenged so much, but what was the point? After paying back what was owed, the rest just got split evenly among everyone anyway!"

As she was heading upstairs, a man muttered in Stella Sterling’s direction.

He had seen Stella Sterling haul back two huge bags earlier and had been incredibly envious. But now, seeing that everything was divided equally, he felt a sense of vindication. He couldn’t resist blurting out his thoughts when he saw her.

Stella Sterling stopped and turned to look at him. "Yeah, it’s all the same. So what were you whining about before?"

’If I really wanted to,’ she thought, ’aside from the food I was owed, I could have just kept everything I found for myself.’ 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

’After all, my arrangement with Felix Lawrence is only temporary. I don’t have to listen to him!’

’I only agreed to the equal split because I took pity on these people and they’ve been working hard digging the ice tunnel. I took a small loss on the deal, but I didn’t say anything.’

’But I never expected this bastard to use it as a reason to mock me!’

"Wh-what are you talking about? I wasn’t whining!"

The man started to tremble under Stella Sterling’s gaze.

Stella Sterling sneered. "So you have the guts to say it but not to admit it?"

"You’re right. Why should I share all the stuff I found with someone like you? Now I’m the one who feels it’s unfair!"

As she spoke, Stella Sterling walked toward him. The man had a bad feeling. "Wh-what do you think you’re doing?"

"I-I-I’m not happy. So of course I’m going to take your stuff."

"You dare? Aren’t you afraid Lawrence will come after you?"

"Then by all means, go tell him to come find me."

Stella Sterling let out a cold laugh and snatched the bag the man was holding!

The man tried desperately to hold on, and his wife and child wanted to help.

But they weren’t as fast as Stella Sterling. After snatching the bag, she took a few steps back, pulled out about half of its contents, and stuffed them into her own bag.

Only then did she toss the rest back to the man. "Look, now I have more than you again. You must be satisfied now, right?"

"I’m lending you this half bag to keep you alive. When it’s time to dig the ice cave, you’d better work hard. Otherwise, if you eat my food and don’t pull your weight, I’ll have to beat some sense into you!"

With that, Stella Sterling gathered the food that had been returned to her and the portion she’d been allotted, laughed heartily, and strode quickly up the stairs.

Everyone who witnessed this scene quickly scattered, afraid Stella Sterling might come to rob them next.

After Stella Sterling left, some of the others looked at the man with schadenfreude, while others looked on with pity. But no one said a word, and they all hurried back to their own apartments.

The man’s wife, however, stared at him reproachfully. "Why did you have to provoke her? She collected so much but was still willing to share it equally with everyone. Isn’t that a good thing? What in the world got into you today?!"

The man was filled with regret, but it was too late to say anything. If he had known this would happen, he never would have opened his big mouth.

"N-No, this won’t do! I worked hard for that! Why should she just get to steal it? She’s breaking the rules! I’m going to tell Lawrence! I’ll have Lawrence sort this out!"

"Don’t you dare! You were the one in the wrong first. Lawrence might not even listen to you. Besides, she left you with half a bag. You should be grateful. If you really piss her off, just think about what happened to the others who crossed her!"

His wife’s words reminded the man of the fates of those who had crossed Stella Sterling before. The lucky ones just got a beating. As for the unlucky ones... no one even knew where their bodies were buried.

Her reminder brought him back to his senses instantly. He said to his wife, "You’re right, you’re right. We can’t afford to anger her. From now on, you have to hold me back. If you see me about to do something stupid, just kick me!"

Having acquired some extra food for no reason at all, Stella Sterling’s mood improved even more!

’I wouldn’t mind if a few more people like that came along,’ she thought. ’It would give me a legitimate reason to take action against them!’

’After all, I’m not some kind of villain who does evil for fun. If they weren’t such scumbags, I’d feel bad for taking their stuff!’

After half a month of digging, they had finally reaped some rewards. Stella Sterling decided not to shortchange herself, pulling several dishes from her personal storage space to treat herself to a lavish meal.

She didn’t even forget about Stephen Lawrence in the medical room. She took a can of food from today’s haul and tossed it to him.

"Here."

Stephen Lawrence looked at the can, both flattered and alarmed, an unstoppable unease rising in his heart. ’This isn’t my last meal, is it?!’

’She’s suddenly being so generous, giving me this much food... It’s making me nervous!’

Stella Sterling rolled her eyes and kicked his chair. "Eat it or don’t. Suit yourself!"

As she spoke, she reached out to take it back.

Stephen Lawrence quickly clutched the can, a torrent of flattery pouring out of him. "My lady, my beautiful lady, I was wrong! I’ll eat it, I’ll eat it! How could I not? Thank you for your generosity!"