Chloe Lane’s expression changed when she heard that. She gave Stella Sterling a thumbs-up. "You’re the only one who dares to say things like that."

"Why can’t I say it? It’s just the truth."

Stella Sterling shrugged, looking completely unconcerned.

Chloe Lane looked at Stella Sterling, figuring she just didn’t know what the leader of Sanctyr Base was really like.

’Then again,’ she thought, ’this woman is no simple character either.’

’Oh well. Sanctyr Base is formidable, but I just did some asking around. Caeluna Base is not weak either. In fact, it’s quite mysterious, and I heard their weapons and equipment are extremely advanced.’

’So it’s perfectly normal for her not to be afraid of them. After all, when you have strength, you can speak with confidence.’

’Unlike me. Even though the Sanctyr Base leader’s behavior ticks me off, I still have to tread carefully when I’m around him.’

Looking at Stella Sterling, Chloe Lane lowered her voice to warn her. "That man is very aggressive. Once he sets his sights on something—or someone—he won’t give up easily. He’ll stop at nothing to get what he wants, so you’d better be careful."

"Honestly, if you weren’t interested, you could have been more diplomatic about it. The way you spoke, you completely and utterly offended him."

Stella Sterling looked at her, seemingly lost in thought.

After a moment, she patted Chloe’s shoulder. "I appreciate your concern, but this is just how I am. As for offending him? If he’s offended, he’s offended."

"You said it yourself—he doesn’t give up on anyone he targets. So even if I had been more diplomatic, it would have been pointless. That being the case, why should I have to compromise?"

Chloe Lane stared at her, stunned, then broke into a smile. She hadn’t gotten to her current position by being timid, after all.

So she dropped the subject. "You’re a very interesting person. It’s a shame we’re only meeting now. I hope we’ll have the chance to become friends."

With that, she turned and left to mingle with the other guests.

"I didn’t take you for a merciless person, Miss Sterling. Did he offend you?"

After the others had dispersed, Mr. Cheney quietly approached Stella Sterling’s side.

Although he hadn’t had much contact with her, they’d known each other for a few years, and he had dealt with Stella on numerous occasions.

The first time he’d met her, she hadn’t seemed like someone to be trifled with, but as long as you didn’t get on her bad side, she was actually quite reasonable.

"Not at all. I just can’t stand the sight of him."

Stella Sterling shook her head.

The next part of the event was for networking between the bases, which didn’t particularly interest Stella Sterling. After exchanging a few more words with Mr. Cheney, she went straight back to her seat.

Seeing the delicacies she hadn’t finished earlier, she slowly began to eat again.

She much preferred enjoying fine food to making small talk with people she didn’t know.

As for networking with the other bases, Stella thought, ’If only Stephen Lawrence were here.’ She much preferred leaving these matters to him while she operated from behind the scenes.

Afterward, Meridia Base had servers bring out a great deal more food to treat their guests. This was the real lunch.

Once she finished eating, Stella Sterling left the conference hall. The summit was scheduled to last another three days. However, she figured the upcoming sessions would mostly involve detailed discussions about cooperation and trade deals, as well as planning how to dispatch scholars from the various bases to collaborate on technical matters.

’As for that,’ Stella decided, ’I’ll just leave it to Julian Fletcher and his team. They can just report the general outcome to me later.’

As for herself, she planned to use the next few days to catch up with some people.

After leaving the conference hall, Stella Sterling was about to go look for Julian Fletcher and his team.

But on the way, she ran into Louis Grant, who was walking briskly ahead.

Louis Grant was a bit chubbier than before. He was headed somewhere with his head down, moving quickly.

Stella Sterling overheard him muttering to himself, "That Stella Sterling... She comes back to Meridia Base and doesn’t even bother to find me. So much for friendship."

Louis Grant was heading in the same direction as Stella.

Their destination was the area where Meridia Base was hosting the entourages brought by the various base leaders.

He’d heard from Vivian Larkin that Stella Sterling had come to attend the Apocalypse Summit as part of another base’s delegation.

As far as he knew, the delegates’ staff were situated in a separate reception hall up ahead. He figured he should be able to find Stella Sterling there.

As they passed each other, Louis Grant didn’t notice Stella Sterling at his side, nor did he realize she had heard every word of his muttering.

Stella Sterling didn’t call out to him. Since she was heading there anyway, she simply fell in behind him and followed along.

After walking for a short while, Louis Grant suddenly stopped up ahead. He whipped around and said to Stella with annoyance, "Hey, I mean, if you’re going to follow me, do you have to be so obvious about it? I..." 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

His words trailed off as he abruptly stopped speaking.

He had gotten a clear look at the person behind him.

His eyes scanned Stella Sterling’s face, his expression slowly shifting from confusion to certainty. "You’re... Stella Sterling."

Though it was phrased as a question, his tone was quite sure.

The woman before him was different from the Stella Sterling he remembered, but her facial features were the same. More importantly, the aura she exuded was identical.

Besides, he had just heard from Vivian Larkin that Stella had returned and was even more beautiful than before.

So there was no doubt about it. The person in front of him was none other than Stella Sterling herself.

From the first time he’d met Stella, he had known she was a great beauty, and it seemed his initial judgment was spot on.

But he was very surprised. Stella Sterling had left Meridia Base to wander the wastes; she should have had a much harder life.

Yet somehow, he felt that not only was her complexion better than before, but her entire demeanor seemed more relaxed and at ease.

’Did she find some hidden paradise this past year?’

Stella Sterling looked at him. "Do I know you?"

At her words, a look of grievance crossed Louis Grant’s pale, chubby face. "Don’t you dare tell me you’ve forgotten me. You even remember Vivian Larkin, and you only met her a few times! We went through thick and thin together, you and I. If you’ve really forgotten me..."

He didn’t finish his sentence, but from the look on his face, he was genuinely getting upset.

Stella Sterling covered her mouth and let out a soft chuckle.

She was very happy to see her old friends again.

Perhaps it was because the power she commanded was growing, and her own personal strength was increasing, but she no longer felt as tense as she had when she first returned.

As a result, her mindset when facing these old friends had also changed considerably.

She felt much more relaxed and at ease.