Chapter 1

"Flu cases are on the rise. Please take precautions, avoid crowded areas, don't gather unnecessarily, and keep warm…"

"Hayley, are you even listening to me?!"

Hayley Reid jolted, staring at everything in front of her in disbelief.

In the middle of the old, 300-square-foot living room with worn-out renovations was a couch, packed with middle-aged men and women.

In the center was a plump, 70-ish woman with graying hair. She was Eleanor Reid, Hayley's grandmother.

Eleanor glared at Hayley, her jowls bouncing with every movement.

Hayley froze. This was the exact scene from two weeks before the apocalypse, when her "beloved" grandmother, father, and stepmother forced her to give up her house for her brother and his soon-to-be wife.

The last thing she remembered was being stuck in a zombie siege at the eastern base a moment ago.

"Ever since your mom passed, Lucy treated you like her own. Everyone says she's wonderful! Now, Philip is getting married and wants to borrow your house. Why won't you let him? You're so ungrateful!" Eleanor hissed.

"Mom, Hayley's not ungrateful. I'm sure she'll come to her senses," said a plump woman next to Eleanor, pretending to mediate. This was Lucy Reid, Hayley's stepmother.

"Hmph!" Eleanor snorted. "Clear out the house immediately. Philip said the place has been rented for too long, and the furniture is too worn. He needs new furniture before he gets married. You'll pay for it. After all, he's your brother. You should help out a little!"

Hayley, standing in the middle, suddenly laughed out loud.

They wanted her house and expected her to buy new furniture on top of that? Ridiculous.

Even more ridiculous was the fact that she actually went along with it last time!

Hayley's mother, Cynthia, died in a car accident when she was 14. Soon after, Lucy moved in with her son, Philip. On the surface, Lucy seemed perfect—she was attentive and caring.

Hayley, going through her rebellious phase, was prickly with everyone but secretly craved warmth and family. Lucy's gentle, understanding ways fooled her. She supported Hayley in everything, no matter what, and Hayley almost genuinely saw her as a mother.

She gave them everything, even the only house Cynthia had left her. She hesitated for only a moment before agreeing.

The apocalypse soon hit, and Hayley was abandoned repeatedly. When it came time to escape on a rescue vehicle, they shoved her aside to save their skins. That was when Hayley truly understood how fake their love was.

True family didn't exist for her.

She had been nothing but a tool in their eyes, and they had squeezed her dry. Once she was useless, they kicked her aside.

Not a single person there had ever seen her as family.

She wanted to slap her past, foolish self so hard.

Bang!

Hayley tossed a few bags of cheap fruit from the old coffee table straight into the trash, then plopped herself down in front of them.

A young man, who had been glued to his phone on the armchair, immediately dropped it and yelled righteously, "Hayley, what the hell are you doing? These are imported apples Mom got especially for you! She said they're your favorite. How could you just throw them away?"

Hayley sneered. Her favorite? Since when?

She gave Philip a cold glance. "You think you have the right to talk to me about my house?"

Facing her icy gaze, Philip felt a shiver run through him and didn't dare to look at her.

Hayley's eyes carried a murderous energy—the kind she had honed over ten years of surviving the apocalypse alone after they abandoned her.

Philip instantly backed down.

Lucy quickly tried to smooth things over.

"What's wrong, Hayley? Are you not feeling well? If that's the case, we can come back another day. I know you're not happy with this request, but Philip is your brother. Sue's family wants a house in the city center, and you know how impossible that is now. Even with money, you might not get one. They're even doing lotteries for them. So, I'm begging you… Help your brother out. Later, when you get married, we'll try to make it up to you—"

"Why should we make it up to her?"

Bernard Reid, who had been quiet, finally spoke. He glared at Hayley.

"You really think this house is yours? You should step aside and let Philip have it! When you get married, your husband can buy you one. Stop fighting Philip for it!"

Hayley didn't even bother getting angry this time.

In her past life, she had wondered why Bernard treated her, his biological daughter, so badly, while spoiling his stepson. As it turned out, Philip was his real son—his own flesh and blood! Before he married Cynthia, he had already married Lucy in his hometown and had a son.

To him, Hayley was nothing.

And after the apocalypse, he treated her even worse.

Hayley held up four fingers. "Four hundred thousand."

Everyone froze.

"What are you talking about?"

"This house was Mom's premarital property. She legally gave it to me later, so I own this house. You want it? Pay up. Four hundred thousand is already a bargain."

"You're selling the house to us? You must be joking! We don't have that kind of money!"

Hayley lifted her smartwatch. "I'm giving you five seconds to decide. If you don't agree, I'll sell it to someone else. Five…"

"We're your elders! How could you talk money with us?!" Eleanor snapped.

"Four."

"You ungrateful little…! I'm gonna teach you a lesson!"

Hayley ignored Eleanor, speeding up. "Three…two…"

"Don't you dare!" Bernard jumped to hit her.

Hayley kicked his chair out from under him. He landed hard, looking like an idiot. She looked down coldly at him and went on, "One."

"You've lost it! How dare you hit your father!"

Hayley didn't care about their rage. She grabbed her phone and dialed a number. "Mr. Cruz, I'm selling the house. Put it up for 400 thousand…"

The house had been rented out through an agent until Hayley turned 18, which was why it hadn't been sold earlier.

"You want it, huh?" Hayley smiled, glancing their way. "Sure. I'll—"

"Don't say another word! We agree!" Lucy jumped in, panic in her voice. "Sell it to us!"

Lucy knew that the house was actually worth 600 thousand, so getting it for 400 grand was already a steal.

Plus, city-center houses were limited now, with all the residency and lottery rules. Hayley's house was hot property. Even if things didn't go exactly as they expected, the most important thing was getting it for themselves instead of letting an outsider have it.

Even if they had to pay 400 thousand to get it, they would make a quick 200 grand reselling it.

Hayley watched Lucy's reaction and smirked before hanging up.

She had decided to sell the house to them. She was losing a bit, but that was the quickest option. Time was money, and she needed both.

Most importantly, once the house was sold, they wouldn't have extra cash. She knew they only had 400 grand on hand.

In her past life, the government had warned them to stockpile supplies three days before the apocalypse. Hayley was curious to see what they would be able to afford by then.

-

Ding!

[You have received 400 thousand in your account.]

Half an hour later at the bank, Hayley saw the money hit her account. Lucy and the others weren't thrilled but paid up. The real estate agent kept calling Hayley's phone; afraid she'd sell the house to him, the family didn't dare complain.

"The property office is closed for a few days. I'll handle the transfer when they open," Hayley told them.

"No worries. We trust you!" Lucy said, squinting and smiling sweetly. "The transfer can wait. We'll arrange a time later."

Lucy acted generous, but Hayley knew better. The woman was just guarding against her future daughter-in-law, scared that her name would be on the house's deed.

Right now, the deed still carried Hayley's name, which gave her room to stall.

Hayley grinned. This was great!

Philip suddenly said to her, "Since we've bought the house, pack your stuff and get out! And toss out all of your junk. I'll get new furniture with Sue."

Right after paying, their attitude changed.

"Give Hayley a few more days. She's a responsible girl; she'll probably pay you a bit for storage and even replace some furniture. You should be more understanding of your sister," Lucy said.

"Mom, why do you still care about her? This little money-grubber doesn't deserve your kindness! I want her out! And Hayley, get your stupid dog out of the house! If I see it again, I'll chop it to pieces!"

Hayley froze when she heard Philip mention the "stupid dog".

Summer was still alive!

She didn't waste another second with them and ran home.

As soon as she opened her bedroom door, the quiet German Shepherd that was pacing nervously jumped into her arms.

"Woof, woof!"

"Summer!" Hayley almost cried, hugging it.

Summer was a retired military dog, a gift from Hayley's mother on Hayley's tenth birthday. After Cynthia died, Summer had been her comfort through the hardest times.

Lucy's family hated the intuitive dog and had tried several times to get rid of it, but Summer always came back. They wanted to give Summer away, but Hayley had insisted on keeping it, even getting into fights with them over it.

To stay the "kind stepmother", Lucy let Hayley keep Summer but insisted that it be kept locked up in Hayley's room.

After Hayley moved into Cynthia's old house, Summer finally had room to roam, though Lucy's family still locked it up when they came over.

During the apocalypse in Hayley's past life, Lucy's family ate the old dog while Hayley was out scavenging. She had blamed herself for not protecting it.

"Summer," Hayley whispered.

"Woof, woof!" Summer licked her hand.

"This time, I swear, I'll never let you get hurt again!"

"Woof, woof!" Summer barked happily.

Once Summer was settled, Hayley began packing.

The house, rented out for years, had become old and worn. However, the furniture Cynthia had bought back then was expensive. Hayley had been living with her when she was still alive. The furniture was practically useless now, but it still carried a lot of memories.

Being back, Hayley felt a little nostalgic.

Then, a voice rang in her head.

Ding!

[Super Lord System activated! Within one hour, for every 200-dollars' worth of item you carry, gain 35 cubic feet of inventory!]

Hayley froze. Here came the perks!

[Countdown: 59 minutes and 59 seconds!]

Skeptical, Hayley picked up her phone from the table to test it.

Ding! [Phone detected, worth 1,000 dollars. Reward: 175 cubic feet!]

With that, a 175-cubic-feet space appeared in her mind. Her phone vanished from her hand and reappeared there.

She now had an inventory!