Chapter 57: Breakfast

The five of them returned to the buffer room.

After taking off their protective suits, they tossed them into a laundry basket by the wall.

Lukas removed his gloves. The Crystal Core had shrunk to about the size of a grain of wheat.

Blinking, he reluctantly held the tiny Crystal Core out to Charles, but his gaze never left it, unwilling to look away even for a second.

Charles glanced at him and couldn't help laughing.

"I really don't know what to do with you."

As he spoke, he slipped the Crystal Core right back into Lukas's hand. Lukas immediately beamed with delight and carefully tucked it away.

The group returned to the first floor. Charles pressed a button, and the steel shutters covering the doors and windows slowly lifted, allowing sunlight to flood back into the house.

Elena volunteered to carry the large steel basin and began washing the freshly harvested lettuce for Charles.

Meanwhile, Lukas had completely exhausted himself from using his Esper ability. Looking as though every ounce of strength had been drained from his body, he collapsed limply onto the sofa.

After Elena finished washing the vegetables, Charles took out vinegar, dried meat, blocks of cheese, and half a loaf of toasted flatbread from the refrigerator.

He tore the lettuce into bite-sized pieces and divided them evenly among five bowls.

Then he drizzled vinegar over each serving, sprinkled on the dried meat, shaved the cheese into thin strips, and broke the flatbread into crisp little chunks before scattering them evenly over the salads.

Finally, he picked up a wooden spoon and gently tossed each bowl until everything was well mixed.

Before long, five bowls of simple salad were served on the wooden table.

"Lukas, breakfast's ready," Charles called.

The boy, however, was already fast asleep on the sofa and didn't respond at all.

Charles simply smiled and shook his head. He headed downstairs, returned with a small blanket, and gently draped it over Lukas.

Then he found a silicone food cover and placed it over the boy's untouched bowl of salad.

Xia Jiuwei picked up her wooden spoon.

The fresh lettuce carried a subtle natural sweetness, while the sharp tang of vinegar blended perfectly with the rich, creamy cheese. Every now and then, she bit into a crispy piece of flatbread, adding another layer of texture.

It wasn't long before every bowl on the table had been emptied.

After breakfast, Charles headed downstairs once more.

This time he came back carrying a pair of chest waders, along with a shovel, a handsaw, and several other tools.

Looking at the saw, Xia Jiuwei couldn't help asking,

"What are those for?"

"Maintaining the hydroelectric plant," Charles replied while organizing the equipment.

Xia Jiuwei looked down at the saw, then at the waders, her expression growing increasingly puzzled.

"Are you sure you brought the right tools?"

"Those don't exactly look like the kind of things you'd use to repair a generator."

Charles paused and looked over at her.

"I think you've misunderstood."

"We're not working on the generators today."

"We're clearing the debris barrier upstream."

"The debris barrier?"

"Yeah."

Charles nodded.

"The river carries all kinds of things downstream every day—branches, garbage... even bodies."

"If we don't clear it regularly, the hydroelectric generators can easily run into problems."

Xia Jiuwei fell silent.

After a few seconds, she cautiously asked,

"So... we're not actually going to the hydroelectric plant today?"

The disappointment in her voice was unmistakable.

Charles froze for a moment.

He looked at Xia Jiuwei's crestfallen face, then glanced at Lu Nian'an standing beside her.

Perhaps it was just his imagination, but the air around them suddenly seemed several degrees colder.

He quickly added,

"We're still going."

"It's just that, rather than repairs, today's trip is more about delivering supplies and doing a routine inspection."

The moment he finished speaking, the inexplicable pressure vanished.

Xia Jiuwei instantly perked up again and happily grabbed Lu Nian'an by the hand as they headed toward the garage.

The two of them climbed into the vehicle first, while Charles continued carrying supplies back and forth between the house and the garage.

Besides the tools, he loaded a small sack of whole wheat kernels, potato flour, and a variety of sealed preserved foods.

It wasn't long before the cargo area was packed full.

Bang.

The tailgate slammed shut.

Charles suddenly remembered something and called into the house,

"Elena! When your brother wakes up, make sure he eats his breakfast."

"Okay!"

Her reply came almost immediately from inside.

After giving his instructions, Charles picked up two rifles and placed them beside the front passenger seat.

As the garage door slowly rolled open, he first went outside and collected each of the traps he had set the night before.

Once the vehicle had driven out, he carefully reset every trap in its original position.

Only after confirming everything was in order did he return to the driver's seat.

Looking through the rearview mirror, Charles watched the house behind them.

Only after the steel shutters slowly descended once more, sealing every door and window, did he finally press down on the accelerator.

The nearly silent electric off-road vehicle quietly pulled away from the sanctuary that had sheltered them throughout the apocalypse.

The vehicle headed in the opposite direction from where they had hunted the mutant deer before.

The highway followed the river, winding steadily through the mountains.

Through the windows, snow-capped peaks occasionally came into view on either side.

Before long, however, a pitch-black tunnel appeared ahead.

The headlights pierced the darkness, yet failed to illuminate anything beyond the entrance.

Charles instinctively took a deep breath.

His grip on the steering wheel tightened before he decisively stepped on the accelerator.

"Don't be so nervous."

Xia Jiuwei's voice suddenly came from the back seat.

"You've still got us with you, remember?"

Charles blinked.

The tension that had been gripping him eased almost immediately.

"It's nothing."

He smiled faintly.

"I was ambushed by a group of people in a tunnel once."

"Guess it left me with a bit of trauma."

The off-road vehicle entered the tunnel.

Beyond the reach of the headlights, everything was swallowed by darkness.

Looking out the window, Xia Jiuwei caught a few blurry figures flickering past in the darkness with her violet eyes.

She reached over and tugged lightly on Lu Nian'an's sleeve.

"Look. There are people over there."

Lu Nian'an turned toward where she was pointing.

But by the time she leaned closer to the window, the vehicle had already emerged from the tunnel.

The rest of the journey wasn't particularly long.

About an hour later, an enormous dam gradually came into view.

The massive concrete structure stretched across the entire valley, wedged between towering mountain cliffs.

In front of the dam stood a weathered building that looked as though it had been abandoned for years.

From a distance, it resembled an old hotel.

The vehicle soon came to a stop outside the building.

Charles rolled down the window and called out,

"Mark! Chloe! Are you there?"

Less than a minute later, the hotel's heavy front doors slowly creaked open.

They had been reinforced with thick steel plating, producing an unpleasant metallic groan as they moved.

Soon, a man and a woman stepped outside.

Both had black hair and emerald-green eyes.

Their faces immediately lit up when they saw Charles.

However, the moment their eyes fell upon Xia Jiuwei and Lu Nian'an, their expressions instantly turned wary.

"Don't worry."

Charles spoke first.

"They're friends of mine."

Even so, Mark and Chloe didn't completely lower their guard.

They even took a few cautious steps backward, retreating toward the hotel entrance.

Seeing this, Charles sighed inwardly.

He removed his weapons, raised both hands where they could see them, and walked over.

After spending a few minutes explaining the situation, the couple finally relaxed.

"Sorry about that."

The man was the first to extend his hand.

"I'm Mark."

Then he gestured toward the woman beside him.

"And this is my wife, Chloe."

Their demeanor visibly softened as they walked over to greet Xia Jiuwei and Lu Nian'an.

"We used to be maintenance workers for this reservoir," Mark said with a smile.

"We've been living here ever since the apocalypse began."

Chloe continued,

"Charles told us you'd like to see the hydroelectric plant."

"We serviced it just a few months ago, so everything's still running smoothly—but we'd be happy to show you around."

After exchanging introductions and handshakes, everyone helped carry the supplies Charles had brought into the hotel.

Once everything had been unloaded, Mark and Chloe climbed into the off-road vehicle as well.

The vehicle followed the road toward the base of the dam.

In less than a minute, they arrived at the entrance to the hydroelectric plant.

The old visitor entrance had long since been sealed off, replaced by a massive iron door.

After getting out of the vehicle, Mark and Chloe walked over to the entrance first and carefully inspected the gap beneath the door.

Only after confirming that the dead leaf wedged in the crack hadn't moved did they finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Chloe took a key from her pocket and inserted it into the lock.

With the sound of metal scraping against metal, the heavy iron door slowly swung open.

She looked back at the others and beckoned them inside.

"Come on in."

"I'll show you around the hydroelectric plant."