Why are you crying?

It was already midnight when they returned to camp.

Not long after the two returned, Jiang Yu finished her classes for the day and drifted into the dormitory on unsteady feet.

The Aberrants' rooms were all on the same floor: hotel-style suites with a bedroom and living room, fully equipped with smart technology and fairly comfortable to live in.

Sheng An, Hao Jingye, and the others had also moved into this dormitory building.

"You're... finally... back..." Jiang Yu said, expressionless, her eyes dead.

Hao Jingye jumped in surprise. "What happened to you?"

Jiang Yu smiled faintly. "Studying."

Hao Jingye's expression turned complicated. "Is it really that awful? Aren't you just learning a few things?"

Jiang Yu turned her head away.

-She didn't want to talk to a straight-A student.

Ahead of her, Sheng An beckoned. "Come here."

Jiang Yu obediently went over.

Sheng An asked, "How's your studying going? Can you transplant the seedlings before the Apocalypse? Can you get the experimental fields laid out?"

Jiang Yu's voice was listless. "I don't know. We transplanted a batch today. Old Zhou and the others are planning the experimental fields. Once I'm proficient with the farming equipment, we'll start farming properly..."

She scratched her hair, greasy because she hadn't had time to wash it, and broke down. "Sister Sheng, I really can't take it anymore. Farming is so, so, so, so exhausting, and I have way too much work!"

She had to study and farm. It had only been two days, and she was already exhausted half to death.

This wasn't the rebirth she had imagined!

Jiang Yu clutched her head and lost it. "Aaaaaah-"

She was going crazy!

Nobody had better interrupt her breakdown!!

Just then, a deep voice suddenly rang out:

"Comrade Jiang is working hard for our country, and we all see it. With greater ability comes greater responsibility. Thank you for your hard work, Comrade Jiang. Rest assured, the country certainly won't let you go unrewarded."

Jiang Yu froze.

Who was that?

She looked around blankly, then lowered her head.

Sheng An was sitting on the sofa, with a computer in front of her. There seemed to be figures moving on the screen.

Jiang Yu instinctively leaned closer, trying to see clearly.

And then-

She came face-to-face with a group of old men on the screen.

Jiang Yu blinked.

They were the familiar faces she had seen on television, the country's leaders...

-This was her second time meeting them.

The first time had been at her home, when they had exchanged greetings.

Jiang Yu: "???"

Jiang Yu: "!!!"

Her pupils suddenly jolted, and her face filled with horror.

Holy shit, I haven't washed my hair again!!

On the other end, an elderly man hesitated for a moment before slowly saying, "Sheng An, perhaps we should send over a few professional psychologists after all. Comrade Jiang... seems to be under quite a bit of stress?"

This was the leader's first time witnessing the mortifying spectacle of a young person losing it at home.

So the leaders were questioning her mental state?

Jiang Yu: "..."

Her eyes first went blank, then slowly refocused, before trembling as she fell apart.

"Awoo-"

With a howl, Jiang Yu charged back into her room.

"What's wrong with Comrade Jiang?" Old Zhang asked, utterly puzzled.

Sheng An waved a hand. "Don't mind her. She'll be fine in a bit."

"All right. We trust you to handle things, anyway."

Before Jiang Yu returned, Sheng An had been discussing the work of the Doomsday Special Affairs Office with the leaders.

Now Old Zhang resumed their earlier topic. "Once the Apocalypse arrives, the number of Superpower People will increase, but none will be as significant to us as the Aberrants we have now."

Sheng An nodded. "Understood."

Every additional Superpower Person they gained now would give them another source of strength when the Apocalypse arrived, allowing them to preserve more resources and save more people.

"Your Doomsday Special Affairs Office is critically important. There are nineteen days left. Recruit as much talent as you can." Old Zhang rubbed his brow.

It wasn't only Jiang Yu, Sheng An, and the others who hadn't been sleeping well.

The leaders were in the same boat.

Everyone had so very much to do, and time... was running out.

Sheng An nodded in agreement.

After discussing a few other arrangements, the brief video conference ended.

Jiang Yu rushed out of her room with soaking-wet hair and craned her neck to look, only to find Sheng An closing her computer.

Jiang Yu: "??"

She sounded incredulous. "It's over?"

Sheng An glanced at her freshly washed hair and nodded. "It's over."

Jiang Yu clutched her head. "Aaaah, damn it!"

Another video call with greasy hair!

And after I finally washed it, the leaders didn't even get to see!!

-This is so unfair.

Jiang Yu was utterly dejected.

"Time for a late-night meal." Hao Jingye opened the door.

The logistics staff wheeled in a hot pot cart, with plate after plate of delicious, expensive ingredients.

Distracted, Jiang Yu asked in confusion, "Why are we eating so well?"

Their usual meals were good too, but their late-night snacks were never this extravagant.

Besides, the camp cafeteria favored healthy food. One look at this lavish late-night hot pot spread made it clear it had been ordered from outside.

Sheng An found a seat and sat down.

Hao Jingye sat opposite her and grinned. "Courtesy of the hundred and fifty thousand our future teammate generously paid us."

-This was the "brokerage fee" they had earned from Li Wanyun.

If they didn't charge her, she thought they were scammers, so they had no choice but to charge her a hefty sum.

Jiang Yu looked shocked. "She's that rich?"

Sheng An had already started eating.

As he swished food through the hot pot, Hao Jingye replied, "Five billion. Add what the country gave her, and she has ten billion in total."

Jiang Yu: "???"

She set down the bowl and chopsticks she had just picked up, overcome with envy. "Why did the country give her five billion?"

That's not fair!!

Without lifting her head, Sheng An said, "She's going abroad to procure supplies for the country."

(Li Wanyun: ...Thanks a lot.)

Jiang Yu: ...And I farm for the country?

She ate her beef with her head hanging. Farming just didn't sound nearly as impressive...

She sighed. "My space is so useless, especially compared to a Space Esper's. Other people can use their spaces to stockpile supplies. Mine can only be used for farming."

Farming. Just hearing the word gave her a headache now.

Look at the other "Aberrant" with a space, heading out to spend ten billion. How carefree was that?

Then look at her.

Lugging a hoe around, digging the ground, and getting nagged by Old Zhou and the others for doing it badly...

-Comparisons really could drive you mad!

Sheng An suddenly looked up at her, her lips curling as amusement colored her voice:

"Who says your space is no good? I told you before, your space is more valuable than a Space Esper's."

Under Jiang Yu's gaze, she continued cooking food in the hot pot, eating as she said casually, "There are all kinds of Superpower People, including Earth-Type Superpowers and Plant-Type Superpowers. If other people could enter your space..."

Jiang Yu's eyes lit up.

Hao Jingye quietly added, "Then you could bring people inside. An Earth-Type Superpower could use their power to till the soil. After the seeds were planted, a water esper could water them, and a Plant-Type Superpower could use their power..."

Hearing this, Jiang Yu grew excited all over.

Right! Why hadn't I thought of that?!

Noticing her expression, Sheng An's lips lifted slightly as she continued, "Then your space would produce harvest after harvest. We'd probably need trucks to haul it all away. It could serve not only as an experimental field, but also feed an enormous base."

Jiang Yu beamed at the picture she painted.

Exactly!

Her space could work with Plant-Type Superpowers, Earth-Type Superpowers, and water abilities!

That would make its output practically unbeatable.

Her face flushed with excitement, her eyes shining.

Sheng An and Hao Jingye exchanged a glance, seeing understanding in each other's eyes.

Then Sheng An sighed. "Unfortunately, other people can't enter your space."

Jiang Yu instinctively began, "Act-"

Her voice cut off abruptly.

Sheng An looked at her expectantly.

Jiang Yu tightened her grip on her chopsticks.

No, I can't reveal my trump card.

-This is my cheat ability.

How can I reveal everything about it?

What if they bypass me and take my space away?

No!

Absolutely not!

I have to hold back. I have to keep this secret.

Sheng An blinked. "What were you about to say?"

Jiang Yu lowered her head and ate the hot pot, her voice lifeless. "I was going to say it's such a shame that Earth-Type Superpowers and Plant-Type Superpowers can't enter my space..."

Sheng An smiled faintly. "Yes, such a shame. That means all that vast black soil can only be planted, tended, and harvested by you, bit by bit."

At those words, Jiang Yu's hands shook, her legs trembled, and tears streamed down her face.

Hao Jingye asked, "Why are you crying?"

Jiang Yu raised her head, her eyes blurred with tears, and only after a long while managed to squeeze out two words-

"Too spicy."

Sheng An and Hao Jingye exchanged a glance.

Hao Jingye: Shouldn't we push her a little more?

Sheng An remained expressionless: Let's see how long she can hold out.

-No Plant-Type Superpowers had appeared yet, so there was no great hurry.

That night, Jiang Yu polished off a whole pot of hot pot while crying.

It wasn't that she was turning her misery into strength.

It was just that farming was hard physical labor.