18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 412

Rocking gently, Stella kept her eyes shut and continued to sleep. Jasper pulled back the curtains, revealing a world swallowed by darkness. But if he craned his neck, he could make out the distant stars twinkling faintly. The stars were beautiful, but the world was in a terrible state.

After tucking Stella in with a warm blanket, Jasper closed his eyes to rest. They awoke in a haze, greeted by the faintest hint of dawn. Cooper, perched on the windowsill, gazed curiously into the distance, letting out an excited, "Woof!"

The sea was calmer today, the boat rocking less. Stella unbuckled her safety belt and joined Jasper, looking out at the thin mist hovering over the water like a mysterious veil. The sun, a fiery red orb, shimmered with golden light, slowly piercing the fog and painting the sea and sky in hues of red.

It was beautiful, yet utterly cruel.

After a good sleep, Rosie seemed much refreshed, quietly eating her breakfast sandwich and sipping on warm oatmeal. Stella muttered softly, "The waves are still pretty rough. Guess both yachts and cruise ships are out of the question. Can we use a submarine?" Jasper shook his head. "Subs are meant for the deep sea. With the land just submerged, we don't know the depths. We could easily run aground or damage the vessel."

With no other options, they settled for watching a comedy, munching on popcorn as they slowly lost track of time. When Rosie got up to stretch and peered through the glass at the world outside, her gaze suddenly fixed on a distant point. "A mountain! There's a mountain!" Human beings aren't exactly cut out for ocean survival, so the mention of land was thrilling. Stella joined her, and sure enough, there was a faint outline of a mountain in the distance.

A mountain standing alone in the midst of the ocean.

The sun cast its light upon the peak, giving it an ethereal glow. Feeling a call to the divine, Stella grabbed the binoculars to take a closer look. The mountain seemed massive, oddly familiar as if she had seen it somewhere before. Good Lord, I was the "Roof of the World"!

continued to drift, they would soon leave their home country behind. It looked close but was deceptively far. After two hours of drifting and still no closer, the waves grew fiercer, heralding a storm. As expected, wave after

pieces, a cycle of destruction against the mountain. Glaciers turned to ice chunks, ice chunks to granules,

with clear, gradually changing layers. As the glaciers fell into the sea, the "Roof of the World" was hacked into innumerable fragments by

Creating monstrous waves.

broken and silently sank into the

it all, feeling as if she'd been stabbed in the heart. She had never climbed the "Roof of the World," but for humanity losing its land, this mountain was a symbol of spirit, a beacon in the dark. As long as it stood, there was hope for the land. But battered by relentless natural

expectations, Stella still harbored a flicker of hope, which was now extinguished. She stared in

...

saw a survivor, a person clutching a makeshift raft adrift at sea. From this distance, it was hard to discern their complexion, but it

incredibly fortunate. She didn't voice her thoughts,

retreated to Arcadia for rest. Over the years, she had pondered whether to reveal the truth to Rosie. Although they had been cautious, with Jasper always there to cover, Rosie had grown up and was very

to find. Stella even suspected that Rosie might already know the truth but simply chose not to speak of it. Despite Rosie's soft-spoken nature, her thoughts ran deep. She kept much to herself, rarely

a wolf in

advantage; not only was she less likely to be deceived, but she was also the type to turn the tables on others. Stella,