Everyone was busy. Vivian Young was quietly sorting through the family's jewelry and luxury goods. These trinkets, once symbols of status, would be worth less than a loaf of bread in the apocalypse. She simply packed and categorized them, even adding some disguises like fake noses and wigs, just waiting to liquidate them later. Exchanging them for more supplies was the only thing that made sense.
Meanwhile, Sue Lawrence's voice was so hoarse she could barely speak, but she was still making one call after another.
"Hello, is this the ready-meal supplier? Lawrence Group. We need fifty thousand assorted ready-meals. The faster the delivery, the better. We'll cover all shipping costs and pay in cash!"
"Forty thousand packs of sanitary pads, three thousand packs of diapers, one thousand units each of baby formula and rice cereal. We want the highest quality batches..."
"Boss Norris, triple the amount of groceries you're delivering to the villa tomorrow! We're hosting guests. Fresh produce, frozen goods, dry goods—we'll take as much as you've got. Name your price!"
"Is this the pharmaceutical company? We need all categories of medication—from cold medicine to antibiotics, from trauma dressings to first-aid kits. We're looking to buy in bulk. We can negotiate now and sign the contract with a deposit today!"
Sue Lawrence's throat was raw from all the calls, so Vivian Young quickly had her drink some soothing herbal tea.
Fortunately, it was winter in the north.
This extended the shelf life of their supplies, which wouldn't spoil as quickly when stored in the mine.
'It's a shame we don't have a space-type superpower,' she thought. In her past life, humans only started awakening superpowers after the apocalypse began.
Meanwhile, Jason Sterling felt that nothing had gone his way since he'd been reborn.
He had thought that by ditching Sue Lawrence, that "dead weight," he would thrive. But reality had slapped him hard across the face.
Out of the eight million from selling the company, Sue Lawrence had forcefully taken 6.4 million. After splitting the remaining 1.6 million among the group, he was left with only two hundred thousand. And while Tiana Lynch could offer some advice, they hadn't secured the Lawrence Family mine they so desperately wanted. Instead, the Lawrences targeted them at every turn. His company's assets had shrunk dramatically, and the properties in his name were so aggressively lowballed that a thirty-million-dollar valuation only yielded a little over ten million in cash.
This sum was paltry in the face of the coming apocalypse. Jason Sterling claimed he wasn't upset about the money, but he was seething with frustration.
It wasn't the money he was upset about. It was the suffocating humiliation. He was supposed to have the upper hand from being reborn, yet he was being thwarted at every turn. His indignation was at its breaking point.
At least they had finally managed to buy an abandoned mine. Even though they had sunk twenty million into it, they could finally start stockpiling supplies. This allowed him to breathe a small sigh of relief.
"Jason, good news! Amazing news!" Tiana Lynch burst through the door, an exaggerated look of joy plastered on her face.
Jason Sterling, who had been overwhelmed by one setback after another, immediately brightened at the prospect of good news. "What is it? Spit it out!"
"I told you our luck wouldn't be bad this time around!" Tiana Lynch said, deliberately building the suspense. Once she had Jason Sterling hanging on her every word, she lowered her voice, her tone dripping with self-satisfaction as she angled for credit. "Maeve Walsh has awakened a superpower! A full month earlier than in our past life!"
"What?" Jason Sterling shot to his feet, the gloom on his face instantly evaporating. He began to pace around the office excitedly. "Really? That much earlier! What superpower is it? Is it still the Thunder Element?"
"No!" Tiana Lynch stepped closer, her voice dropping to a near-whisper, her eyes glinting with greed. "It's a Space Ability! It's exactly what we need most right now!"
"A Space Ability?!" Jason Sterling's eyes lit up, practically glowing. He rubbed his hands together and paced back and forth, so excited he nearly jumped for joy. "This is fantastic! A true godsend! With a dimensional space, we can store fresh food and medicine. We won't have to worry about running out of room in the mine or supplies spoiling! This has to be kept secret. Absolutely no one outside our group can find out!"
"Don't worry, I already told Maeve Walsh to keep her mouth shut no matter what, even if it kills her!" Tiana Lynch declared, patting her chest in assurance. Inwardly, however, she was already plotting how she and Jason Sterling could keep firm control over the Space Ability.
The pair hurried to the conference room. Before they even reached the door, they could hear a cacophony of cheers and screams from within, so loud it was painful. The faces of Jason Sterling and Tiana Lynch darkened in unison. The moment they pushed the door open, they were both seeing red.
Maeve Walsh was standing in the center of the conference room like a peacock spreading its tail, ostentatiously showing off her Space Ability to Miles Finch, Tia Norris, Donovan Lawrence, and the others.
With a wave of her hand, several tables and chairs in front of her vanished into thin air with a WHOOSH. The onlookers gaped in astonishment, a wave of shocked gasps echoing through the room. Then, with another smug flick of her wrist, the furniture reappeared, completely untouched.
Donovan Lawrence, that fool who had also been reborn, jumped to his feet and applauded. "Maeve! You're incredible! The first one to awaken a superpower! With you around, we'll definitely make it through the apocalypse without a hitch!"
Miles Finch's eyes widened in disbelief. "So the apocalypse is real! It's not just a rumor!"
Tia Norris's eyes filled with envy. "Maeve's already awakened... I wonder if I'll awaken a cool superpower, too?"
The group crowded around Maeve Walsh, cheering ecstatically. They were completely oblivious to Jason Sterling and Tiana Lynch, whose faces were as black as thunder. Only Adam Zane stood apart, staring blankly at his left hand and muttering to himself. 'That's weird. Ever since that punch from Sue Lawrence, my left hand has felt so limp and weak. My speed and power are way down. Did she cause some kind of lasting damage? That woman packs a serious punch, she's actually not weaker than me...'
He glanced at Maeve Walsh's Space Ability, and his mood brightened. 'Fists are useless anyway. Once I awaken my superpower, I'll tear anyone who gets in my way to shreds!'
"Maeve Walsh!" Jason Sterling's voice was laced with ice, carrying an unsuppressed rage. "Didn't I tell you to keep this a secret? Who gave you permission to show off here!"
The smug look on Maeve Walsh's face froze. She quickly adopted an innocent expression. "But aren't we all on the same side? We're facing the apocalypse together. We can't have secrets from each other, can we?"
Jason Sterling's face turned livid. Tiana Lynch gritted her teeth, a vicious glint flashing in her eyes.
'On the same side?' In her and Jason Sterling's eyes, these people were nothing but cannon fodder for the apocalypse, to be used and then discarded. How were they worthy of knowing such a vital secret!
"So what if we don't have Sue Lawrence? We'll thrive in the apocalypse without her!" Maeve Walsh, drunk on the crowd's praise, grew even cockier. She planted her hands on her hips and declared triumphantly, "I have a Space Ability now! I'll take care of our entire stockpiling plan!"
The people around her, completely taken in by the grand future she painted, all nodded in agreement. "Right, right! We'll leave everything in Maeve's care! A Space Ability is just too convenient!"
"No kidding. In apocalypse novels, a storage space is standard-issue for the protagonist. With Maeve here, we've got a head start!"
"From now on, Maeve is our most important person to protect! We'll all watch over you!"
Listening to the flattery, Maeve Walsh was grinning from ear to ear, completely oblivious to the disgust and calculation in the eyes of Jason Sterling and Tiana Lynch.
Tiana Lynch said with feigned pity, "It looks like we're all set for the apocalypse. It's just... whenever I think about poor Sue with nothing at all, I feel so, so sorry for her..."
At these words, Mia Keller was suddenly reminded of something. When no one was looking, she quickly pulled out her phone and sent a message to Sue Lawrence: "Sue! She's gone crazy! Totally crazy! Maeve Walsh has definitely lost her mind! She made tables and chairs disappear and reappear in front of everyone, claiming she's awakened a Space Ability! If they sent her to a mental hospital, she'd go straight to the high-security ward, right?"