18 Floors Above the Apocalypse
Chapter 35

As soon as Stella stepped into the apartment building, it didn't take long for people to notice the dog. Suddenly, their mouths watered at the prospect of a meaty meal. Cooper, the dog, bristled and bared his teeth. His eyes were filled with a killer's intent. Stella brandished her sword. "Who wants to eat my dog? Step forward." Shock rippled through the crowd. Since when was there a dog on the 18th floor?

The audacity! They didn't even have anything to eat, and yet the people of the 18th floor wanted to keep a dog! Were they feeding the scarce food to a dog instead of them? In an instant, anger surged in their hearts.

"Nonsense, that's a stray from outside." An astute observer recognized Cooper. "He often hangs around outside the complex. I've seen him several times."

"That's right, I've seen him a few times too. Once, he almost bit my kid."

"Let's kill him, and we can all share."

With a swift motion, Stella sliced the nearby trash can to pieces with her sword. "If you want to eat meat," she challenged, "you'll have to ask my knife for permission." Recalling her swift, head-chopping skills, the crowd took a few steps back in fear. Yet, some were still discontent. "Lady, this dog ain't yours, you can't be so domineering." "If he's with me, he's mine."

"Look, we're all struggling here. How about this, we kill it and give you half, and we split the rest."

Others nodded in agreement. "That sounds fair. She takes the biggest share, and we'll be happy with some soup."

"I don't like dog meat," Stella sneered, swinging her knife towards the man who proposed the idea, "But your meat should be pretty good!"

"Ah...!" The man stumbled back in fear, falling onto the floor, and wetting his pants in terror.

Damn, Stella was ready to kill.

Fortunately, he wasn't critically hit, but his arm was slashed open and was bleeding profusely.

Seeing this, even the most disgruntled among them didn't dare to ask for meat again and could only watch as Stella led the dog upstairs.

Just as Stella managed to fend off those who wanted to eat Cooper, Hector was ready to stir the pot. "Stella, you're really cold-hearted!" He burst out of his room, fuming at Stella. "Are you satisfied now? Ken is dead!"

The others stood by the door, staring at Stella with vicious eyes. No one tried to intervene.

Before Stella could say anything, Cooper lunged and bit Hector's leg. Caught off guard, Hector let out a deafening scream and swung his stick at Cooper's head.

Agilely avoiding the blow, Cooper's eyes were filled with murderous intent.

This was the man! Before, he hated Cooper and said Cooper was always dirty and stinking of fleas, that it wasn't a surprise that someone would want to throw him into a butchery. Because of this man, Stella had cut off his food supply and ignored him ever since. Holding a grudge, the dog attacked again.

Hector was shocked and scared. He waved his stick frantically.

Stella stepped in, forcing Hector to step back with a swift strike of her knife.

"Stella, you're hitting me for a dog?" Hector was angry, and his face revealed a savage anger. "Have you gone mad? It's just a dog."

"It's a dog, but you're not a man."

"You think you're justified in killing Ken?"

Stella couldn't help but laugh at Hector's twisted logic. "Did I injure Ken? Was it me who refused to take him to the hospital and just watched him die?"

Hector's face turned ugly. "If it wasn't for your cold-hearted refusal to lend us money..."

"Have you no shame?" Stella looked at them coldly. "If I were you, I would have taken a knife to the man who injured Ken to avenge him. But you're all cowards. Not only did you not avenge him, but you also blamed his death on me and bullied women. Is it really that good to be a freeloader?"

"Who...who the hell is a freeloader?"

"How many times have you freeloaded? You know it yourself." Stella mocked, "And who gave you the courage to keep causing trouble in front of me?" With that, she plunged her knife into Hector's leg.

Hector screamed and fell to the ground, and the others rushed to help him. "Stella, we can talk this out, you're going too far."

Stella headed upstairs. "This time I stabbed your leg, but next time, it'll be your heart. Cherish your life while you still can."

No one dared to stop her, and their faces were filled with resentment. Sadie, who had her hair shaved, stood behind the door, fuming at the useless men.

As soon as she reached the 17th floor, Stella was stunned by the sight before her. The door at the staircase was covered in spikes.

More specifically, countless iron nails were welded onto the door, and their sharp ends were pointing outwards.

Not just one door, but all three of them. Not even a mouse could sneak in now.

And the four of them were busy at work. Sparks were flying from the welding, creating a dazzling light.

When she came upstairs, Cody lifted his protective mask. "Stella, what do you think of our fortress?"

They had found welding acetylene while collecting materials in the office building. They had brought back rebar and nails to turn the 18th floor into an impregnable fortress. This way, they could sleep soundly at night without worrying about intruders. Stella could only give Cody and Lukas a thumbs-up for their creativity.

It was rumored that the 18th floor had supplies, and Hector and Sadie must have contributed to that rumor. Rather than living in fear, it was better to build a hard protective shell layer by layer.

The power of a team was perhaps reflected in this kind of creativity.

Stella was quite pleased. At least she knew she couldn't have come up with such an idea.

"Wow, you brought a dog back?" Cody's eyes lit up, excitedly saying, "Lukas, we have dog stew to eat tonight."

Cooper decisively turned around, huffing and growling.

Stella squatted down to soothe the dog, shouting angrily at Cody, "This is my dog. If you dare touch a hair on its body, I'll stew you first."

"When did you get a dog?" Cody was surprised. "This one clearly looks like a stray."

"Isn't it the stray from the entrance of the complex?" Lukas felt it looked familiar. "Stella used to feed it."

"It saved my life once." Stella's face was serious as she laid down the law. "I didn't bring it back for you to eat. If you dare to lay a finger on it, I'll deal with you."

Having found dried beef, sausage, and ham from the office building, Cody and the others were not particularly meat-craved. However, in this special environment, many people slaughtered their pets for food, so who would waste precious food to keep a dog? Food was a life-saving commodity, and every day many people starved to death.

Cody and Lukas didn't understand, but it wasn't only them. Even Angela couldn't get it.

Unexpectedly, Jasper remarked, "This dog has a decent physique. If trained properly, it could easily handle two or three grown men at once."

"You indeed have a good eye," Stella couldn't help but admire him. "Earlier, he was being cornered by seven or eight people outside, but surprisingly, he didn't let them get away with anything. He even capsized their rubber boat."

Suddenly, both Lukas and Cody felt like they were even worse than a dog when it came to physical strength.