Chapter 49
Suzy tapped into her chat window with Manager Lin.
They had spoken not long ago.
Manager Lin checked in with her regularly about the progress of the safe house. Every few days, he would send updates, along with photos from the construction site. He was meticulous, responsible, and efficient.
Suzy began typing without preamble.
[Suzy: Manager Lin, can the construction speed be increased further?]
Barely a minute passed before Daniel Lin replied.
[Manager Lin: What completion date are you hoping for?]
Suzy’s fingers flew over the screen.
[Suzy: Ideally, within half a month. I can increase the budget.]
The response came almost instantly.
[Manager Lin: That can be arranged.]
Her last sentence had clearly made the difference.
Money solved problems.
[Suzy: Thank you for your hard work.]
After sending the message, she transferred money to his personal account as a gesture of goodwill.
She trusted he would deliver.
She had been monitoring the safe house closely these past weeks—subtly urging, occasionally pressing for faster progress. The crew had already completed most of the structural reinforcements: thickened walls, reinforced steel doors, impact-resistant windows. What remained now was the interior modification and systems installation.
If she injected more funds and they brought in additional workers, the timeline could shrink significantly.
Before, she hadn’t pushed too hard—partly out of concern for budget control.
But now?
The apocalypse was accelerating.
There was no point in saving money anymore.
After finishing her exchange with Manager Lin, Suzy began reviewing all her outstanding online orders.
Thankfully, most of the goods she had purchased earlier had already arrived in batches over the past few weeks.
Now it was about filling gaps.
Nearly three-quarters of her large supply shipments had been delivered. The remaining quarter was still in transit and would reach C City within days.
And these were only her own purchases.
They didn’t include what Leonard Kale had been stockpiling on his end.
She didn’t even know the exact quantity Leonard had acquired—but judging from his personality, he had likely secured enough food to sustain two people for decades.
Possibly a lifetime.
Suzy decided not to place additional large online orders. From now on, she would focus on local procurement to avoid delays.
She opened her notes app and began rapidly adjusting her upcoming plan—reallocating priorities, compressing timelines.
She had only typed halfway through when a notification popped up.
Manager Lin had accepted the personal transfer.
Right beneath it, he forwarded a video. Suzy tapped it open.
It was the meteor phenomenon she had seen earlier.
Several passersby had filmed it and uploaded it online. The video was trending heavily.
In the comments section, countless users were making wishes beneath the streaking red fireballs.
"If this is a sign, let my exams go well!"
"Please bring me good luck this year!"
"Beautiful omen!"
Suzy stared at the screen.
Knowing the truth, the entire comment section felt chilling—almost grotesque.
She closed the video and read Daniel’s message.
[Manager Lin: Have you seen this video?]
[Suzy: Yes.]
She didn’t know why he was asking, but she answered plainly.
He casually chatted about it afterward—remarking on what an extraordinary sight it was, speculating whether it was a meteor shower.
After a few exchanges of idle commentary, the conversation ended.
Suzy stared at the chat window for a long moment before locking her phone.
Unknowingly, the car had already pulled into the residential complex where she and Leonard lived.
"We’re here," Adam reminded gently.
Suzy unbuckled her seatbelt.
"Adam... do you want to come upstairs for a bit?" she asked casually.
He paused—visibly. Turning his head slightly, he looked at her with narrowed eyes.
She met his gaze, waiting.
Adam glanced at the time. After a brief silence, he finally replied, "It’s late. I won’t come up. You should get some rest."
"...Alright. Bye."
She gave him a small wave before stepping out of the car.
Adam remained where he was, watching her figure disappear into the building entrance.
Only after his phone vibrated with her message—I’m upstairs—did he finally start the engine and drive away.
***
Suzy slept exceptionally well that night. For once, her mind wasn’t racing.
The Next Morning
The first thing she did upon waking was close her eyes and sense her space.
It felt... different.
A second later, realization struck—the upgrade was complete.
Delight surged through her. She immediately entered the space to inspect the changes.
It was now officially Level Two.
Stepping out of the small wooden cabin, she paused. The space had expanded dramatically.
Where once it had felt spacious, it now stretched wide and open—roughly the size of two full soccer fields. The storage room had grown larger as well, and even the spiritual spring pool had widened.
The environment itself remained the same—clear skies, soft grass, that tranquil stillness untouched by time.
But as she wandered behind the cabin, something new caught her eye.
Two neatly cultivated plots of farmland.
Dark, rich soil. Perfectly squared.
They looked almost like farming tiles in a simulation game—orderly and inviting.
Her heart leapt.
With a thought, the vegetable seeds she had purchased earlier appeared in her palm.
She scattered them carefully across the soil, then drew water from the spiritual spring and sprinkled it over the fields.
Satisfied, she left the space.
This upgrade hadn’t introduced dramatic structural changes. It was more of an optimization—expanded capacity, smoother operation.
The only entirely new addition was the farmland.
But Suzy was more than content. What mattered most to her was space.
The larger the area, the more supplies she could store.
And in the upcoming world order, capacity meant survival.
After washing up quickly, she prepared to head out.
Time was running out. She needed to buy everything she possibly could while the world still functioned normally.
She had already secured essential daily necessities and staple foods.
Now, her remaining funds were substantial. So her attention shifted to premium ingredients.
Australian rock lobsters.
Top-grade wagyu steaks.
Imported truffles.
Rare matsutake mushrooms.
The order list grew longer and longer.
For efficiency, she rented a light cargo truck.
Each batch of purchases was loaded into the truck bed. Once it was full, she would discreetly store everything into her space—then drive the now-empty vehicle to the next supplier.
Before heading out, she had contacted several reputable local restaurants and placed massive orders: one hundred banquet tables’ worth of dishes.
All to be packed. She would collect them later.
It wasn’t just restaurants.
Milk tea shops.
Dessert boutiques.
Street food stalls.
With enough money, anything was possible.
She even paid certain shops to close for the day and dedicate their entire production line to fulfilling her personal order.
For three straight days, she bought like someone racing against the end of the world.
Because she was.
On the third day, Leonard returned. Suzy drove the cargo truck to pick him up.
When Leonard climbed into the passenger seat, he looked completely out of place.
"...Suzy," he said slowly, glancing at the steering wheel, then at her delicate face. "Why are you driving this?"
The contrast was almost absurd.
His niece—pretty, pale, soft-featured... Behind the wheel of a light freight truck.
Suzy grinned. "Get in."
An hour later, they arrived at their residential complex.
It was eight in the evening.
The temperature outside was still thirty-six degrees Celsius. And that was after sunset.
Daytime had been worse.
The moment they stepped out of the vehicle and away from the air-conditioning, a wall of heat slammed into them.
It felt like walking into a giant steam chamber.
The air was thick. Humid. Oppressive.
Leonard hated heat more than anything. Within moments, sweat beaded across his forehead.
"This weather is getting stranger by the day," he muttered.
Suzy nodded in agreement. Sweat had already formed along her temples as well.
Ever since the meteorites fell, temperatures had risen steadily.
Seven days after impact, conditions would shift again.
Today was only the third day.
They hurried back inside, turned on the air conditioning, and only when cool air flowed over them did they finally feel able to breathe.
"Uncle," Suzy said after a moment, "in a few days, we should return to A City."
Leonard immediately straightened, brows furrowing.
"We’re not staying in C City?"