18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 564

When Stella walked in, Daniel's face lit up with a warm smile. "Stella, you're back."

Stella nodded, "Yeah."

There was a brief, awkward pause before Daniel continued, "You've lost some weight."

Team missions often meant you couldn't just feast all the time.

But Stella was upbeat, "I'm doing alright."

She led him inside and asked with genuine concern, "How have you been feeling lately?"

"Your Aunt Sue has been giving me acupuncture daily, and the medicine you left has kept me in check. I'm almost back to my old self."

Stella took him to Arcadia for a follow-up. The CT scans showed the pneumonia was gone, but some damage was irreversible. They'd have to be careful moving forward.

After running all the necessary tests and treatments, Daniel couldn't hide his good mood. "How was your trip?"

"Eventful but safe."

Stella gave a brief rundown of the mission, including how they'd salvaged 26 crates of fabric.

The fate of the 21 trucks' worth of essential supplies they'd collected before the land sank would depend on how the military handled these materials. Deciding whether to hand them over could wait.

Daniel had returned early, so the special team's salvage report hadn't reached him yet.

But it was clear that these supplies were key for Australia's recovery. Whoever collected them deserved generous compensation, including those who gathered resources on land.

Over the past month, his workload had lightened, but his concern for his daughter and son-in-law had only grown.

Seeing Stella safe now, he could finally relax.

Not one for emotional displays, Daniel said, "I've learned to cook a few dishes. Come over for dinner tonight."

Stella didn't argue, "Do you need anything? I can bring it."

"No need, Rosie drops off supplies every few days."

of Bran's antics, Stella braved the question, "Dad, Bran hasn't been too

much of a

Stella struggled, her toes curling in embarrassment, "he can

a few times. He's quite measured in his words. He's a sharp and entertaining young man. If he

Measured?

silent. What

Rosie returned

over, hugging Stella tightly. "You're finally

the scent of sweat,

was like sunshine, utterly warm

the work on

tough at first, but I'm used

you work the

to set an

last conversation. Rosie

apocalypse for years, wouldn't easily respect

just jealousy but also

attitudes made for a

Despite her age, she worked as hard as anyone, ensuring no one could

farming techniques inside and out, challenging the old

potatoes, and corn. Everything's sprouted, and we've already harvested the greens once. We've

for the base, it was

planting cycles, integrating greens with root crops like sweet

they could harvest greens

her venture, Rosie's eyes shone with excitement mixed with a hint of anxiety.

calm,

the food factory to farm maggots. They're keen but want a stake in it, offering land and maggots and help constructing a breeding

the base. Ordinary survivors could only envy, while the

Stella's status, the 20-acre greenhouse, and the prospect of live

if

presenting them

for a moment, "Have you

Daniel. He's

exact share with

military wasn't just