Teaming Up with My Enemy to Rule the Apocalypse

Caught off guard by the question, Sierra Sullivan was a little unsure how to respond.

A lot had been going on lately, and she hadn’t been at her place most of the time, so she really hadn’t noticed Dominic Crawford next door.

Thinking back now, she realized she hadn’t heard any sound or seen any sign of him at all.

’Could it be that Dominic hasn’t been around for the past couple of days?’

"Who’d you hear that from?" Jayce asked Nathan Thorne.

Nathan Thorne looked hesitant and didn’t answer right away.

Seeing this, Jayce didn’t press him, just waited quietly.

After a moment, Nathan Thorne sighed.

"Alright, I didn’t hear it from anyone. I saw it myself on my way over. I saw Dominic Crawford walking beside Simon Hughes, and Simon had his arm around Joy Warren..."

At this, an angry expression crossed Nathan’s face.

It was hard to tell if he was angry with Simon Hughes, Joy Warren, or perhaps even Dominic Crawford.

But regardless of who his anger was directed at, it was clear he was furious—so much so that his expression was twisted with rage.

Sierra Sullivan, for her part, hadn’t expected Nathan to have seen it with his own eyes. It was quite a surprise.

After a moment’s thought, Sierra asked, "Did he see you?"

Nathan was uncertain. "I don’t know... Maybe... Maybe he did!"

’If Nathan is this uncertain, then he probably was seen.’

For a moment, Sierra was at a loss for words.

Even though she’d long known that they and Dominic Crawford were no longer on the same path, watching him go down this road step by step still stirred complicated feelings in Sierra’s heart.

The three of them fell silent, just quietly watching the people come and go.

Nearly everyone who came to The Little Green Shop wore expressions of curiosity and appraisal.

But when they left, they were almost all beaming.

Clearly, they had all managed to get what they wanted, and they were very pleased with the prices.

The shelves, which Jayce and Candice had stocked full, gradually emptied as time passed.

Customers who arrived later grew anxious when they saw the shelves were nearly bare.

’They’d rushed over as soon as they heard the news. Were they still too late?’

Just as they were about to ask if there would be a restock, they saw a little girl walk over to a shelf and begin to cause various fruits and vegetables to grow.

Once the vegetables or fruits were ripe, she placed them on the shelf.

The whole sequence of actions was incredibly smooth, as if she’d done it countless times before.

Seeing the shelves gradually being refilled, everyone in line breathed a sigh of relief.

’As long as there’s still stock, we’re good!’

They didn’t mind waiting in line.

What they feared was finally getting to the front of the line only to find everything was gone. That would be truly devastating.

But now, everything was fine!

Candice Tate clearly found this whole process to be great fun.

Without any need for Jayce to step in, she darted around the shop like a professional stocker.

Whenever a shelf was running low, she would stop and restock it completely.

And so it went, with Yvonne Shelby constantly selling items and Candice Tate constantly restocking them.

Time passed, but the items on the shelves never seemed to dwindle.

If it weren’t for the growing pile of Contribution Points in the box, Yvonne Shelby might have thought her frantic activity was just an illusion.

This frantic pace continued for three or four hours.

When the customers finally stopped coming, Yvonne told Candice she could stop restocking.

After selling off the last items on the shelves, Yvonne immediately had the door closed.

The moment the door was shut, they turned on the lights inside.

The lighting wasn’t very bright, but it added a warm, cozy atmosphere.

Sierra Sullivan looked curiously at the box in front of Yvonne Shelby. "Aunt Shelby, we were busy for so long today. You must have earned a lot of Contribution Points, right?"

"I think so too!" Yvonne’s face was wreathed in smiles. "But I don’t know the exact amount. Let’s count it."

Contribution Points came in paper notes of various denominations, not too different from the paper currency of the past.

This made them relatively easy to sort.

As she counted them note by note, Sierra even had the illusion she was counting real money.

’And I have to admit,’ she thought, ’it feels really satisfying to count it all.’

Yvonne Shelby tallied up all the Contribution Points and was silent for a long time.

Nathan was the impatient type, and seeing Yvonne’s prolonged silence, he couldn’t wait any longer.

"Aunt Shelby, why aren’t you saying anything? What’s the grand total?"

Yvonne Shelby looked up, her gaze first landing on Nathan, then sweeping over Sierra and the others.

"The total is three thousand Contribution Points."

"What?!"

Nathan cried out, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Just from seeing how many people came that afternoon and how the shelves had to be restocked again and again, Nathan knew they would definitely earn a good amount of Contribution Points.

But he had never imagined it would be this much!

That was three thousand!

’They made three thousand in less than a day... What would a whole month look like?’

"Aunt Shelby, you’re incredible!" Nathan praised sincerely. "Truly capable people are capable no matter the circumstances! You were amazing before, and you’re just as successful now!"

Yvonne Shelby smiled and shook her head. "Oh, stop flattering me. I didn’t really do much. Without all of you, no matter what ideas I had, it would be a case of trying to make bricks without straw. Today’s success is thanks to you."

Jayce patted Nathan’s shoulder, then beamed at Yvonne. "Mom, let’s not just stand here complimenting each other. Success is what matters most. Nothing else is as important."

"You’re right!" Yvonne agreed with a nod. "It’s a shame the restaurants around here don’t have anything good to eat, or we’d have to go out and celebrate properly. But for now, we might as well head home. I’ll cook something delicious for all of you."

"That sounds great to me!" Nathan immediately agreed. "Looks like I’m in for a real treat tonight!"

Chatting amongst themselves, they opened the door and headed out.

After locking the door, they all walked toward Yvonne Shelby’s home together.

That evening, when Kevin Everett returned, Yvonne told him all about what had happened that day.

Kevin Everett’s words were sweet as honey as he praised Yvonne again and again.

Seeing that Yvonne was starting to get embarrassed, and since Sierra and the others had eaten their fill, they quickly stood up to take their leave.

On the way back, the smile vanished from Nathan’s face, and he grew serious once more.

"Aunt Shelby’s prices are so low, yet she still took in three thousand Contribution Points in a single day. That means the other shops must be making even more. Our business is booming, and that’s bound to affect their sales. Aunt Shelby might have already drawn some unwanted attention. We need to be careful and stay vigilant."