Seeing Suzy’s bewildered expression, the woman gave a soft sigh and hooked her fingers toward her, gesturing for her to come inside. "Get in here."
With that, she turned around, clutching her iron pipe.
Noticing that Suzy hadn’t moved, she glanced back over her shoulder. "Aren’t you coming?"
Suzy blinked. "If I go inside now, what if another earthquake hits in a moment?"
"It won’t. Don’t worry," the woman said, waving her hand dismissively. "The quakes won’t affect this spot—they only occur within the active seismic zones."
"Is that so?" Suzy muttered under her breath, staring at the woman’s back for a moment.
Losing her patience, the woman didn’t bother offering further explanation, simply dropping a parting remark: "Suit yourself." With that, she strode straight into the house.
Considering that the woman had just helped her, Suzy hesitated for two seconds before following her inside.
Treading closely behind, Suzy stepped into the residence and quietly surveyed her surroundings.
The house remained remarkably intact, having cleverly dodged the destructive force of the earthquake. The interior was kept exceptionally tidy by the woman. The curtains were drawn open, letting the light outside stream through the windows. The space was bright and clearly well-lit.
Seeing Suzy step inside, the woman pointed toward a spot, gesturing for her to take a seat.
Suzy glanced at the chair and sat down.
When she looked up, she found the woman sitting opposite her.
"Where are you from?" the woman asked, her eyes fixed on Suzy.
Suzy went quiet for a moment before replying, "I don’t really remember. I have no idea what happened—I just opened my eyes and found myself standing right in the middle of that seismic zone."
She rubbed her head with an expression of distress, looking entirely innocent.
The woman stared at her for a few seconds without a word. She didn’t say whether she believed her or not; she simply kept her gaze locked on Suzy.
Only after a long beat did she offer a flat "Oh."
"Are you all by yourself?" the woman pressed on.
Suzy nodded. "Yeah, just me."
"Then who were you staying with before?"
"Just myself," Suzy said.
Hearing this, the woman threw her a surprised look.
Alone?
For a single person to survive in the post-apocalyptic wasteland for so long, braving so many disasters all on their own, was nothing short of remarkable.
Taking another look at Suzy, the girl’s cheeks were rosy and her complexion was full of life—she clearly didn’t look like someone who suffered from chronic starvation.
From the looks of it, she possessed ample supplies and was living quite comfortably despite the apocalypse.
Could she be some rich family’s pampered daughter who ran away? The woman pondered secretly.
People in the apocalypse were divided into social strata just like before. Some lived in absolute squalor, some scraped by in tight poverty, while others enjoyed an abundance of food with plenty to spare. For the latter group, life after the apocalypse felt barely any different from life before it.
The woman now suspected Suzy belonged to that very circle. If she’d been living a rough life, her clothes wouldn’t be this clean and her complexion wouldn’t look so healthy. She’s probably a young lady from a wealthy family, the woman reasoned to herself.
"Where are you planning to go next?" The woman’s tone softened slightly.
Her question struck right at the heart of Suzy’s concerns.
Suzy tested the waters: "Do you happen to know the way to A City?"
"A City?" The woman was visibly taken aback.
She hadn’t expected Suzy to bring up A City out of nowhere. A City was immensely far from X City—a distance of over a thousand kilometers!
However... something seemed to cross the woman’s mind. She recalled hearing about a major base located in the direction of A City.
Could this girl... be connected to some big shot at that base? Is she claiming she wants to go to A City just to keep her real base a secret?
A subtle glint flashed in the woman’s eyes, though she kept her suspicions to herself.
"I do," the woman replied. "Are you planning to leave right now?"
Suzy cast a glance out the window. "Yeah."
It was still early; she could easily make her departure now.
Without another word, the woman stood up, walked over to a cabinet, and pulled out a sheet of paper. "I happen to have a map here. You’ll probably find it useful."
Suzy accepted the paper handed to her and looked down. It was indeed a map, albeit a hand-drawn one.
The edges of the paper were slightly curled, but the lines drawn on it were crisp and clear, using different colored pens to mark the major roads and several key landmarks.
The woman pointed to a spot on the paper. "This is where we are right now. Follow this road heading north, and after walking for about two days, you’ll reach the highway entrance."
"The highway itself is broken, but there’s an adjacent frontage road that’s still passable. Keep following that frontage road toward the northwest, and it’ll lead you in the direction of the base... I mean, A City."
She paused, adding, "Though the journey isn’t peaceful. I’m not sure if you can make it all the way on your own."
Suzy carefully folded the map and slipped it into her pocket. Just as she opened her mouth to thank her, a faint pattering sound echoed from outside the window.
It was raining.
She turned to look outdoors—the sky had darkened without her realizing, and the overcast gray clouds hung even lower. The sun outside was gradually fading away as fine threads of rain fell from above, striking slanting blows against the windowpane.
"It’s raining," Suzy murmured.
The woman walked over to the window, shut it tight, and stuffed an old rag into the frame’s crevice to seal the draft. "This rain won’t be stopping anytime soon. Take a seat for now and wait until it lets up before leaving."
The moment the words left her mouth, a set of footsteps sounded near the entrance.
The hurried footfalls grew steadily closer, mingling with the patter of rainfall.
Suzy’s body tensed up, her expression turning alert and serious.
The woman, however, realized who it was and walked quickly toward the door.
The door swung open, and a young man squeezed his way inside. He wore a dark gray, long-sleeved jacket with its collar turned up high, obscuring half of his face.
He was soaked from the rain, the fabric across his shoulders a noticeably darker shade than the rest of his coat.
Stepping inside, the youth bent over to wipe the mud off his shoe soles by the door before straightening up. He pulled his jacket collar down, revealing his face.
The moment Suzy caught sight of his face, she froze.
He looked no older than seventeen or eighteen, with skin so pale it was nearly translucent—as if he were someone who rarely saw sunlight. The faint blue of his veins was subtly visible beneath his skin.
His features were remarkably refined, featuring a straight brow bone, slightly sunken eye sockets, and pale brown eyes that carried a distant, detached gaze. His nose bridge was straight, and his thin, pale lips curled downward slightly at the corners. When he wasn’t smiling, his entire demeanor exuded a cold, sickly air.
With his hair dampened by the rain, a few stray locks clung to his temples, their tips curling slightly. Against his porcelain-white complexion, he looked like a painting rendered in soft, washed-out hues.
Seeing him enter, the woman’s tone grew noticeably gentler than before: "Mark, you’re back?"
The youth nodded softly, taking off his wet jacket with gentle movements and hanging it on a hook beside the door. Switching out his shoes, he turned around, his gaze falling squarely upon Suzy.
"Who is she?"
The young man looked at the woman, a trace of confusion lingering in his eyes.