After I Fully Prepared for the Apocalypse, the Ungrateful Cried with Regret

Nina Jacobs had previously considered this matter for Tomorrow Base as well.

The establishment of Tomorrow Base was completely unknown outside of Keldorn, let alone registered with the Drakonian Command Headquarters. And an unrecognized, unregistered base could be targeted by other organizations at any time. It might even spark conflicts and be forcibly annexed by them. However, if a base was officially registered, it would be under the protection of the Drakonian authorities, and no organization or individual could just seize it at will.

Originally, she had wanted to wait until the extreme cold passed before sending someone to Arisdale Base to submit the paperwork and report on the situation regarding Lornwood Base. But now, new intelligence had been discovered within Tomorrow Base—crucial intelligence concerning Oakhaven Base and even national security. She felt it would be better to take this opportunity to bring Tomorrow Base into the public eye. If things went smoothly, they might even secure an official rating for the base.

Felix Finch agreed with this idea.

”Unfortunately, helicopters are now the most unsafe mode of transportation,” Felix said, slightly worried. He wanted to go personally, but the base still needed him to hold the fort, and his son, Freya Finch, was also at the base. Under the extreme cold, traveling was harder than ever, and he wouldn’t feel at ease no matter who he sent.

”I will map out a route for them, passing through as many bases as possible along the way,” Claire Warner chimed in. ”Or they could detour to City D Base to find Nina Jacobs. I heard Nina is also planning to head to Arisdale Base.”

It felt a bit strange to refer to herself in the third person. After speaking, Claire immediately sat down and began studying the map. Whether looking at the paper map or the system map, taking a detour to City D Base seemed to be the optimal solution. Although the distance would be longer, the travel time would actually be shorter since the roads leading to bases were mostly clear. If the dispatched team arrived at City D Base, she could travel with them to Arisdale Base.

As for the personnel selected, they were all people whose backgrounds Nina knew inside out. She had also just learned that Holly Morgan had successfully advanced to become an Intermediate Superpower User a few days ago. Together with Felix, Tomorrow Base now had two Intermediate Superpower Users. According to this standard, the requirement for a Tier Three Base should be met. However, since the population of Tomorrow Base was quite small, it might still pose some difficulty.

”We need to ensure every type of Superpower User is included in the expedition team. Apart from these few, I’ll leave the rest of the selection to you,” Claire said, checking the time. The duration of the ”Facial Adjustment” skill wasn’t enough for her to stay at the base for much longer. Before leaving, she took out a significant amount of travel supplies from her storage grid. This included several high-performance vehicles, gasoline, solar-powered batteries, various insulated sleeping bags, and more.

”I’ll make the arrangements. And... thank you,” Felix replied.

He had interacted with Claire a few times, and his impression of her was that she was decisive, clean-cut, and swift. So much so that when he stood behind her, he always felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity, as if Nina was standing right in front of him. Was this why Nina had asked Claire to handle things on her behalf?

”You’re welcome. I’m leaving shortly and will be back in a couple of days.” Before Felix could say another word, Claire turned and left the underground warehouse.

”It’s getting late outside, is she...” Cordelia wanted to ask her to stay, but Claire had already pulled on her hood and stepped alone into the freezing cold.

Were all of Nina’s friends this much like Nina? Cordelia missed her a bit as well. But right now, they had to start preparing for the trip to Arisdale Base as Claire had instructed.

In City D Base.

When Leo Hale returned with the Hydrokinetic Cat, Lexy, he found Nina already sitting in the living room, playing with her two younger sisters.

”Nina? Where did you go yesterday? You didn’t come back last night,” Leo asked. Taking Lexy to the base’s Water Authority had become one of his regular jobs over the past few days.

Because of City D Base’s large population, water consumption was always high. To maintain a balanced water supply, Water Element Superpower Users could go to the Water Authority on regular days and earn points by dispensing water. During the extreme cold, the base had also switched to hot-water heating systems, which only increased the demand for water. And Lexy just so happened to be a cat who felt uncomfortable if she wasn’t constantly releasing water. Therefore, Nina handed this task over to Leo.

”The car broke down halfway, so I just slept outside,” Nina replied. Holding Anna Hale, she saw Lexy trotting over and gently placed her sister back on the soft mat.

”Did Lexy do a great job again today?”

”Of course. A regular Water Element Superpower User can earn ten points a day, but Lexy, just one cat, managed to earn over forty points! Plus, she did it in record time.” Speaking of Lexy, Leo grew excited. When he first brought Lexy to the Water Authority, everyone was extremely wary. After all, everyone knew that Mutated Animals ate people. But the idea of letting a mutated cat supply water was officially approved by the base, so no one dared to say anything. Later, Lexy displayed her astonishing Water Element Superpower. The fact that a single cat’s water output could rival that of several Water Element Superpower Users quickly spread throughout the Water Authority. Now, everyone was much warmer and friendlier when they saw him and Lexy.

”Lexy is now a kitty who can support herself with her own abilities,” Nina looked down and praised.

Sending Lexy to the Water Authority to supply water wasn’t actually about earning points. The family’s points were already more than they could ever spend in the base. Although Myra Lawson never mentioned it, the base automatically deposited plenty of points into their family’s points card every month.

MEOW.

Seeming to sense her owner’s praise, Lexy sat gracefully on the floor and let out a soft cry.

”Oh, right. Yesterday, someone delivered a lot of stuff next door. I heard Holden say they just dropped the items off and left without a word. You didn’t know about this, did you?” Leo asked, accepting a glass of warm water from Vera Coleman.

”Yes, Nina, your Uncle Hale also said he didn’t know anything about it. None of us dared to touch those things, so they’re still next door,” Vera chimed in.

Nina wasn’t surprised. She just went next door to take a look, then had Yvonne Willow use her Space Superpower to move everything over. Most of those items were Crystal Cores. As for some of the supplies, she left them inside Yvonne’s space, while leaving a portion of the food supplies for Stella.

”Feel free to keep them. Consider it a windfall,” Nina said. Seeing the note in the box, she had already confirmed it: this was the ”sincerity” Amelia Vance had sent over.

”There’s actually such a good thing? Just what kind of windfall is this?” Leo was overwhelmingly curious. There were no fewer Crystal Cores there than what the base used to gift them. Who could be so generous?

”It’s nothing. Just something in the past,” Nina simply replied.

Meanwhile, the investigation she had tasked Chase Gallagher with had also yielded some results. Liam Grant and Renee Strong had indeed broken up. Currently, only Liam and his sister, Hannah Grant, were living in their previous residence.

”What about Simon Abbott?” Nina asked.

”Simon moved out after they broke up. Currently, he lives alone with a young woman named Joris. The two of them appear to be a couple,” Chase answered.

”Joris?” Nina had never heard this name in her past life. And from the sound of it, Liam and the others had gone their separate ways? Yet she vaguely felt that things were not that simple.

Chase then pulled out a smartphone and handed it to Nina. Although smartphones had lost their communication functions, their camera and recording features were still very useful.

”This person is Joris. I heard she and Simon were online chat friends a long time ago, and they only met up later on,” Chase said.