18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 562

A thick tangle of seaweed hid the creature's identity, leaving Amelia with nothing but the sharp pain in her calf as a clue to what had just bitten her. None of them had expected a snake to lurk in these crystal-clear waters, especially after they had been so cautious.

"Probably using the seaweed as camouflage," Stella mused, trying to make sense of it.

She meticulously cleaned Amelia's wound, disinfected it after studying its shape, made a small incision with her knife, and then squeezed the blood out with force. Whether the sea snake was venomous remained a question, but they weren't taking any chances.

Arcadia was stocked with several kinds of antivenom, but Amelia and the others hadn't gotten a clear look at the snake. Using antivenom haphazardly could be as dangerous as the poison itself; it wasn't something to be administered lightly.

"Only if it's absolutely necessary," Stella reminded them, as she applied a poultice of crushed herbs to Amelia's wound and bandaged it up. To keep Amelia from panicking, Stella offered soothing words, her tone casual, "Most sea snakes aren't venomous. Don't worry. If you feel off, just let me know, okay?"

Amelia had a military upbringing. She had survived a decade of brutal disasters, which had honed her resilience beyond that of an average person. She'd heard that venom could kill quickly and without much suffering a mercy compared to the alternatives: heatwaves, famine, dehydration, hailstorms, toxic fog, tsunamis... Every disaster imaginable was a worse way to go.

Adjusting her mindset, Amelia assured Stella, "I'm fine, sis."

She remained sanguine about life and death, determined to fight for survival but accepting of whatever end might come. As they conversed, Stella discreetly passed her a piece of guava-flavored candy. Touched, Amelia remembered mentioning in passing how she loved these cheap childhood sweets, a treat her grandmother would secretly buy her every weekend. Peeling off the wrapper, she savored the candy, letting the familiar taste flood her with a sense of happiness, as if her grandmother had

longer seemed so terrifying. It meant rejoining her family, at least. Still, she did regret not fulfilling her promise to her

fate. She would strive to live, but if there was no way out, she wouldn't be consumed by regret. She had experienced it all. Yet,

couldn't help herself. Stella asked gently, "Can you

learn more. What sort of strength and determination had it taken

the special forces and an admirer of Daniel, Stella's father, began sharing her experiences,

they knew it, two hours had passed. While Stella appeared to be just listening, she was carefully monitoring Amelia's condition. "How are you feeling now?"

the wound site. Relieved that the sea snake

team. Initial shock had given way to profound respect and now, deep gratitude. Medicine was precious in a disaster-ridden world; not

the Kindle Chests. To their disbelief, they had stumbled upon not one, but two! The chests were not far apart, likely remnants of a duo of submarines that had once traversed the area before

to work her magic. The diving trio, Jasper, Cole, and Stella, faced the currents, their seasoned skills overcoming the challenge. But then, a megalodon approached-a behemoth over

crew to know that living beings could seek refuge within it. The more they knew, the greater the

began a deadly game of hide-and-seek with the megalodon. She fled, it pursued, round and round they went. The megalodon, irate and massive, became dizzy with the chase and began ramming the Kindle Chest. It was big, but the Kindle Chest was much bigger. No matter how hard it hit, the chest barely shook. Frustrated, the megalodon went berserk and eventually