In the blink of an eye, Shawn Monroe had been living at Bloodfall Base for half a year.
Central City had actually sent people to deliver the promised Crystal Cores long ago, but they then proposed a new deal, saying they needed more mature grain.
After Bloodfall Base expanded, its planting area had also grown. On top of that, with Paige Summers’s recovery, her Planting Space had returned to its former state. Grain was truly not in short supply; even after sending a batch to aid Southreach, they still had a surplus.
Marcus Monroe thought it over for a moment and agreed to the deal.
But he never expected the consequence of this deal would be Central City continuing to default on part of the final payment, leaving Shawn Monroe with Bloodfall as collateral!
Marcus Monroe felt he really couldn’t figure Shawn Monroe out.
They were half-brothers, but the two had never spent much time together. In his memory, Shawn Monroe was an arrogant and self-willed person. He had changed somewhat after the failure at The Dead City and his arrival in Central City, but it wasn’t a change for the better. Instead, he had become more sullen and his methods even more unscrupulous.
But the Shawn Monroe of today seemed to have been completely transformed.
To be frank, Shawn Monroe’s last six months at Bloodfall Base had been anything but good.
At first, he was called a guest, but in reality, he was isolated. He was given a house, told to eat at the main cafeteria, and his movements were heavily restricted. While he didn’t have to worry about food or clothing, with his status in Central City, he’d never had to worry about such things anyway. But here, he couldn’t even find someone to talk to!
After two months of this, he finally couldn’t take it anymore and actively requested to be treated like any other member of the base.
Marcus Monroe didn’t hold back.
The base was in the middle of an expansion, so there was all sorts of dirty, exhausting work to be done. If Shawn Monroe wanted to work, he could do that. If not, he could go back to how things were.
In the end, Shawn Monroe did it without a single complaint.
Not only did he do it, but he was also very obedient, doing whatever he was told and doing it well.
Afterward, he joined the base members in clearing out Mutant Beasts and trained alongside everyone...
After this series of events, even the other base members couldn’t help but look at him in a new light. Not all of them knew his background; some only knew he was from Central City and thought he looked like a pampered young master. They never expected him to be so resilient.
Gradually, Shawn Monroe earned the goodwill of some of the people.
Of course, this just meant they were more polite to him. At the end of the day, he wasn’t one of them, and the other members understood this well enough not to say much to him.
But he didn’t seem to mind.
However, whenever people talked about anything related to Paige Summers, he would listen with extra attention. He even tried countless times to "accidentally" run into Paige within the base.
Marcus Monroe wasn’t sure if Shawn knew that someone was specifically assigned to watch him, and that every one of his actions was reported back to Marcus without fail.
Learning of Shawn Monroe’s behavior, Marcus Monroe’s feelings grew complicated.
Besides the displeasure of having his woman coveted, there was also a sense of confusion and vigilance.
When a person becomes too attached to a certain idea, it evolves into an obsession. And a person with an obsession can be difficult to predict using normal logic.
Marcus Monroe decided to have a talk with Shawn Monroe, but before he could find the time, Paige Summers beat him to it. "I want to talk to Shawn Monroe. He’s been here long enough."
Marcus Monroe raised an eyebrow. "I can go."
Paige Summers smiled and said, "The one who tied the bell must be the one to untie it."
Marcus Monroe mulled it over for a long while before finally nodding.
He had to admit, if he went to talk to Shawn Monroe, it was unlikely to produce any results. It might even end with him resorting to force. It was far more appropriate for Paige to go. Besides, they were on their own turf; there was no need to fear him trying anything funny.
He quickly arranged for Shawn Monroe to be brought to the reception room.
When Paige Summers ambled over, Shawn Monroe was already sitting there, gazing out the window with a complex, indescribably conflicted expression on his face.
She gave a faint smile.
’Actually, I never really thought Shawn Monroe was truly in love with me, at least not to the point of desperation. I have a vague feeling there’s another reason for all this.’
This was also why she wanted to talk to him.
"Long time no see. How have you been?" Paige Summers asked casually as she sat down across from him.
Shawn Monroe turned his head and stared at her intently, as if trying to read something on her face.
But there was nothing.
Not even the slightest hint of the affection he was hoping to see.
"I’m not okay," he said in a low voice. "Not being able to see you, I’m not okay at all."
Paige Summers’s lips curved slightly as she leaned back against the sofa.
"Actually, I’ve always been curious... I remember our few meetings in The Dead City. You probably did take some interest in me then. At the time, it was nothing more than curiosity mixed with a bit of a hunter’s thrill, wouldn’t you say? I don’t think you’d deny that back then, you were far too proud and arrogant to consider any woman your true love."
"...Yes." As she spoke, Shawn Monroe was also reminded of his glory days in The Dead City. Back then, as the Young City Lord, his only thought was to take over The Dead City from his father, make it stronger, and elevate his own status. Women, to him, were merely a diversion.
Paige Summers nodded. "Later, things changed. Marcus Monroe took The Dead City, and I was with him. At that point, you must have been too busy hating me to have any other ideas. As for after you got to Central City, it should have been the same. Not until Nora Lowell betrayed you. Back then, you were probably consumed with thoughts of how to get revenge on her. You couldn’t possibly have had time to think about me."
Shawn Monroe, "..."
He couldn’t refute any of it, because it was all true.
Paige Summers smiled. "Later, you discovered I actually had some power of my own, so you went to great lengths to find me and propose a partnership... We cooperated quite smoothly, until you had that accident in Norgate, and Nora Lowell became a Zombie!"
Hearing this, Shawn Monroe’s body stiffened for a moment.
That was an experience he was most reluctant to recall.
Nora Lowell as a Zombie had been both hateful and terrifying.
Her greenish face, bulging eyes, a body completely devoid of humanity, and her violent behavior toward him... every time he thought about it, a chill ran down his spine!
Paige Summers paused for a moment before continuing, "It’s true that I saved you back then, but we knew each other, after all. And you, Shawn Monroe, are definitely not the type to pledge your life to someone just because they saved you. So, let’s be honest with each other. Why exactly are you so fixated on me now?"
After a long silence, Shawn Monroe gave an incredibly bitter smile.
"Your analysis is perfectly logical. It seems I can’t hide it any longer. Fine, I’ll tell you. The truth is, after I was injured in Norgate, I was unconscious for a long time. And while I was in that state, somewhere between dream and reality, I had a dream..."
In a low voice, he recounted the events of the dream one by one. Paige Summers listened, her expression unchanging, but inwardly, she was utterly astonished!
The scene Shawn Monroe had dreamed of was exactly the same as the one described in the original novel!
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