After Surviving the Apocalypse, I Built a City in Another World

PROLOGUE

In an Unknown Land filled with gloom, death, and—paradoxically—the prosperity of natural resources, there was a place called the Grave of Villages.

It was located right at the heart of the human territory, in the geographical center of this world.

The number of villages destroyed in the area through the millennia was immense, and so were the villages continuously built in the place due to the available resources.

It was also one of the better hunting grounds for low to mid-level fighters because the monsters were not too weak, but not too strong for people above the Villager level. In the terminology from their hometown, it was a perfect 'grinding spot'.

At this time, this was where a small group of foreigners—men from another realm—were staying to train in the most efficient way available to them.

"This place is really creepy," one person said as he chewed on his barbeque, some of the sauce falling on his shoes.

His name was Turbo, a combat medic, though at this time his main enemy was wasted sauce. The man was not bad-looking (he was even known to be a bit of a male fashionista back home) but his blonde hair had turned taupe from all the grime accumulated from their endless adventures lately.

All his previous cleanliness had long gone down the drain, which had irked him so much when they first arrived at this place but, fortunately, he adjusted well. "I mean, seriously..." he mumbled, looking around.

Even if it was dark, they had enhanced vision and the two moons provided enough illumination for them.

What crept him out was that this place had great resources, but the monster mobs were consistent at certain times.

It was as if the resources were there to attract food for the mobs…

He shivered.

No wonder villages—which only had fighters around level 10 or so—would almost always give way after a while. The consumption of energy and manpower probably couldn't keep up with the barrage of enemies coming at them.

The others didn't say anything, though they understood his sentiment. It was just that they weren't here to stay, only to train, and so that was what they ought to focus on.

Seeing that his teammates were being boring, Turbo looked around and realized someone wasn't there.

He frowned. "Where's the captain?" The dark-skinned man beside him looked at a nearby hill, nodding in that direction.

"I saw him go over there."

"Surveying?" he asked. "It's our third day here..." "Just focus on your own food, Turbo." A voice next to them sneered, before taking away the remaining barbecue stick.

"Hey!" The blonde frowned and glared at the newcomer, who was crossing his arms as he stood above them, arrogantly holding someone else's food. 

Jake was a man with quiff hair that he somehow managed to maintain despite their lack of resources. He ate the food he 'borrowed' in a few bites, making the other gasp.

The man didn't seem affected by the stares and met Turbo's eyes. He pointed at him using the now-empty stick.

"Don't talk behind the Captain's back! Don't you know he has eyes everywhere?" The others were prepared to beat him up but then he looked in a direction, shoulders slightly slumped. "He… probably just wanted to be alone for now."

He would've looked cool and introspective... had he cleaned up the remainder of the sauce on his mouth.

So he still received that small beating regardless.

...

At this time, the aforementioned 'Captain' stood still above the hill, his form illuminated by two moons. His handsome silhouette formed a contrast to the otherwise desolate view. His body was tense and alert, ready for whatever major changes would occur in a while.

However, he also knew that night would be quiet for a bit longer, so he allowed himself a moment of respite. He knew that he wouldn't be able to rest for a long time after the fight began, after all.

The man took out a phone from his void space, his sharp eyes immediately softening as he saw the image of his beloved.

A small smile crept up his lips, making his features even more prominent. Normally, the man had an undeniable aura of masculinity and strength—the type of person who demanded attention wherever he went.

At this moment, however, he was alone, somber, and simply looking intently at the photos on his palm. He now revealed a rare vulnerability that had only ever been visible to one person.

Unfortunately, that person wasn't there with him.

But, unlike the others who had lost hope, he refused to believe he wouldn't be able to go back to her.

He would reunite with her—he felt it in his bones.

Even if he didn't, he would find a way to make it happen.

As he stared at her lovely image, his striking blue eyes shone like sapphires even in the night. They not only reflected the light of the two moons, but they also shone with the light of determination and longing.

"My wife…" He said, tone filled with tenderness. "Wait for me…"

However, the screen abruptly went black. He frowned, his face paling as he saw that his phone's battery was dead.

In this world where there was no electricity, would he be able to see her image again?

His jaw hardened at the thought of not seeing her again while he remained in this hell. The softness in his eyes transformed into one of annoyance and bitterness.

If any one of his teammates were there, they would fear for their lives. This happened to be the sight that one of his subordinates, his right-hand man, ended up seeing.

The newcomer was also quite dashing, with prominent features, lean muscles, and shoulder-length hair flowing with the wind. He had pale skin not fit for a soldier, but his sharp demeanor would shut up anyone who dared point it out.

His edge faded as he felt the atmosphere surrounding the Captain turn cold—literally. He shivered a bit, but he quickly gathered himself and walked to the man he respected the most.

"Captain Garan," he said, getting straight to the point. "They're here."

With his words, the remaining vulnerability in the man's eyes was replaced by his characteristic sternness. His well-defined jaw tightened in seriousness, as he turned to move, walking past his right-hand man.

"Let's go," The ebony-haired man said, his deep resonant voice echoing across the eerie hill.

They joined with the few dozen soldiers from their homeland—an air of gravitas that demanded everyone's respect oozing off of him.

They stood in a formation, waiting for the arrival of creatures they never thought they'd see outside of horror movies.

Soon, the black wave of such grotesque monsters appeared in their line of sight, sending shivers down their spines.

The Captain, however, was unmoved, and his stability affected his people. He did not say anything to them—as he had already told them everything he could in their hundreds of battles together—but his very presence calmed down whatever anxiety they were feeling.

Instead, he walked forward, posture erect, with his every movement exuding strength and discipline. He walked toward the approaching mob and their grotesque forms soon came into view.

Within a few blinks, a monster faster than the others quickly reached him. Garan raised his arms and the air around him shifted. The temperature dropped, and a small patch of land under him froze solid, and the ice quickly spread to ensnare the monster's feet.

ROAR!

The monster desperately struggled to escape, causing some cracks within the ice. Garan quickly took out a weapon from his space, not intending to give it a chance to free itself.

The sharp edge fell with impressive force, beheading the monster. He used the same movement to defend against a new monster that similarly closed the distance between them.

Meanwhile, the rest of his team had also sprinted to the mob, their hands gripping various weapons, while at the same time, a supernatural aura emanating from them.

As they met with the monsters head-on, different elements—whether it was fire, earth, water, or wind—illuminated the dark skies. From afar, one would think that this small group of people was going to drown in a sea of ravenous monsters.

However, Garan believed in his people. He knew they could still handle a low-level mob like this.

With this thought, he quickly moved deeper into the mob to kill more of these beasts.

His eyes were shining with determination with every swing of his sword, and every stab of his ice ability.

This was the time for them to fight and become stronger. Only in this way could they have the ability to return home.

And he would definitely go back to her—whatever it took.

The Sun Is Dying

[Terran Star, Modern Era Year 2212]

"Home, hmn?" A soft velvety voice uttered as she listened to the sound of newscasters reporting news after news of criminal cases, scandals, and natural disasters.

Dainty hands raised the electronic tablet and, after a finger pressed the screen, the display on the screen changed with a click.

[BREAKING NEWS: The Terran Cosmic Research Center reports an unprecedented drop in the Sun's hydrogen level. Scientists at the TCRC warn that humanity's window for preparation has been dramatically shrunk to a few decades at best.]

[This is a major departure from the previously accepted knowledge of at least a thousand years.]

[In response to this urgent situation, 47 countries, including our own Eden Country, have publicly announced the acceleration of spaceship development.]

[These cutting-edge spaceships are meticulously designed to carry the over 10 billion Terran inhabitants, along with genetic material of all known species.]

[In a bid to preserve the planet's already dwindling biodiversity, the ships will also carry live specimens of the most vital animal and plant species carefully chosen to sustain an effective ecosystem during the migration—

The sound and lights were abruptly cut by another click, followed by a soft sigh.

The owner of the voice was sitting lazily on her chaise lounge, her relaxed posture revealing confident poise, and her well-manicured hands rubbing her forehead to ease an upcoming headache. She closed her eyes and rested the back of her neck on the backrest, her dainty hands moving to pat her big belly. 

She sat alone inside a classically decorated room, her long dark hair gracefully cascading down her back, and its deep brown hue reflected hints of copper under the light of the afternoon sun.

Slowly, her eyes opened, revealing striking green orbs that emanated with wisdom. However, as she recalled the contents of the report, her eyes narrowed slightly, and heart felt heavy.

She had an intuition: They don't have enough time.

Unless there was a miracle, they would all die.

Just a pity for her children who might not get a chance to experience the world, even if it was just for a while.

"You shouldn't watch such depressing news so early in the morning, missy." A pleasant-looking woman sounded from the kitchen. On her hands was a silver tray with a warm cup of milk. The woman carefully placed the items on the side table and stood professionally a few meters away, ready to be called.

"Thank you, Nanny," the young woman said, her feathery voice landing on the old woman's ears, causing her to smile unconsciously. 

The pregnant woman did not sit properly but only lifted her upper body so she could get a sip of her warm milk. It was technically just her being lazy (moving while pregnant was no longer as easy as breathing as before), but—amusingly—she still looked graceful as she did so. 

The nanny stared at the girl she watched grow up, from a thin orphan to the present beauty of infinite charm.

The woman's luscious hair framed her oval face, accentuating her beautiful features. Her unique emerald eyes were further emphasized by the beauty mark under her right eye.

The girl's pregnancy added a soft femininity that made her more attractive. She couldn't help but recall how she was only a few years prior, how this same girl was so much of a tomboy that everyone in the family got a few grey hairs on their heads every time she went out. 

Motherhood could change anyone and this stubborn girl, it seemed, was no exception.

"Well, I was hoping they would get news of that guy, but they showed me the galaxy's potential death instead," she said. Her words were joking, but the slight crack in her voice betrayed her pain.

Nanny did not smile with her. "Missy..."

Althea raised her hand to stop the topic. She knew she was the one to open it, and she regretted it the moment she uttered anything.

She knew the pain she felt when she found out her husband went missing months ago.

Nearly half a year ago, her husband was called on a top-secret mission by their government. It was expected that he'd be gone for a month.

It was normal to be out of contact for such a long time. However, after two months, he did not return nor did they have any news at all.

A sense of dread stabbed her every day until she finally couldn't handle it anymore and started calling the higher-ups.

Fortunately, she had some connections thanks to her contributions so she didn't get dismissed on the first call. However, they delayed the meeting continuously until a brave media reporter—an old friend of theirs—revealed the results of his investigation. 

Apparently, hundreds of soldiers went missing not long after their mission started. 

Worse: They had already been presumed dead. The government kept it under wraps due to the extremely odd circumstances in which they disappeared. 

It felt like she was submerged in cold water. She almost had a miscarriage and it could be said to be the worst day of her life so far.

She did not even know she was pregnant.

Fortunately, her brother was next to her and she was taken to hospital in time for treatment. Otherwise, she'd have followed her family to the grave.

After recovering, she and her brother spent most of their business profits finding out the news, tapping several illegal channels by the way.

Eventually, their reporter friend hinted at some clues. However, it was extremely difficult to get news without risking life. They even lost contact with him at some point, and it was likely he had been imprisoned for revealing so much.

This did not deter the siblings, however.

Her brother helped her control public opinion, slowly revealing the clues they had and eventually, the government gave in to public pressure. The answer was frankly not something any one of them had expected.

An odd fluctuation in space was discovered months ago, and weird animalistic monsters came out in droves.

There were a total of 300 soldiers from 10 countries that went on that mission, but not a single one returned.

Not even a piece of the dozen tanks and bombers they sent were recovered.

Until now, no one could explain what had happened.

Shortly afterward, the sun's problem was confirmed, and it got more difficult to get an answer from the government. She and the other families funded their own searches but to no avail.

Now, the sun's problem exploded—no pun intended—this problem had been completely set aside. It was too fantastic as well (monsters? portals?) so people just assumed it was something the government said to distract them. 

Just like that: Other than their families and friends, no one remembered those missing soldiers anymore.

"I'm sure the master is fine," Nanny said, "He will definitely come back to you."

And she said so with certainty.

Although Garan was often away, her experienced eyes could see how much that man loved his wife. He was the type of man who could jump off a cliff if she wanted a flower hanging dangerously on the side.

They all refused to believe he was gone, firmly believing that he was fine somewhere.

Althea, for one, could tell that he was alive... even if he was far away. 

They'd find each other soon, she could feel it. 

At this thought, she couldn't help but pat her stomach again. She looked down on her stomach with a complicated expression on her face. 

He didn't even know she was pregnant...

Beginning of the End

"Hmm." Althea hummed. And although her tone seems non-committal, her bright eyes expressed her firm belief. Then, she turned her head to the older woman. "I'm glad you're here, nanny."

Althea said so sincerely. Now that their parents were dead, her husband was also missing, and her brother would inevitably have his own life…, she didn't know what would have happened if Nanny wasn't here.

The older woman smiled warmly.

It was at this time that they heard the sound of the front door unlocking. They simultaneously turned their heads to look at who entered, and they ended up seeing a familiar redhead smiling at them.

"Sister, Nanny."

Althea's eyes warmed at the sight of her brother. "Ansel? You're back," she said, finally putting down her small feet to give the newcomer space to sit next to her.

Ansel naturally sat down next to her, handing her the small box of snacks he brought for her. 

He had grown his dark red hair a little below the ear. A few buttons were also left open to show off his collar, and his overall temperament emitted a playboy charm.

Of course, this was for outsiders. In front of her, her husband, and Nanny, he just looked like a childish little boy dependent on his older sister.

"Good morning sister." He grinned, showing his perfect teeth. "Long time no see~"

Althea laughed at him, habitually patting his hair. "You were here two days ago." 

"Forty-eight hours, to be exact." He said childishly, squeezing his voice a bit. 

Althea helplessly shook her head as she looked at the cute snacks he brought with him. 

It was a box of varied fruit pastries that she liked. It happened that it went well with milk. She hurriedly ate one and took another with her other hand, familiarly putting one in Ansel's mouth. 

He naturally opened his mouth to take it, looking like that cute little hamster that he was when he was a kid.

Ansel might be her adoptive brother, whom she had grown up with since she was around 9 years old, but they were closer to being real siblings than other blood relatives. 

After all, they—including her now-husband—had been through precarious situations together as children. 

It was this event that made Ansel imprint on her a bit, and he often acted like a child around her (to her husband's great disdain). 

Looking at him opening his mouth again for another snack, it was obvious that growing up so big didn't do much with his maturity. 

It was much like how former high school classmates, even after decades, would act like teenagers again when they were together at a reunion. Ansel would act like a kid when he was around her. It didn't matter if he was ten or twenty years old.

She looked at the next cute pastry that she got her hands on. It was a cute little smiling cartoon dog. She couldn't help but chuckle. 

"A store opened so early?" She asked as she placed it in her mouth. She took a quick glance at the floating digital clock above the television. It wasn't even 8 a.m. yet. 

"Well, the owner is an ex." He said, shrugging.

Althea rolled her eyes. This guy changed girlfriends every few weeks. His exes could literally line up along the neighborhood. More than once, she and her husband saw him making out with a different girl around the house.

Nanny (who was now rolling her eyes) had nagged him about it every day. Of course, depending on the vulgarity, her husband would sometimes drag him off to 'train' (e.g. beat him up) in the backyard afterward.

She tried to remember what 'independence-strengthening' activity she threw him to before this started but she couldn't figure out how he turned out to be such a player. Fortunately, all his exes were mysteriously still his (platonic) friends, otherwise she'd have beaten him up herself. 

Sensing her judgemental stare, Ansel shrugged. "I can't help it; I'm too charming." 

Instead of dignifying him with a response, Althea just wore an exaggerated disgusted expression and patted her stomach, as if comforting them. "Don't look down on your uncle too much," she told her unborn children, "He just lacks attention."

Ansel fake-gasped and held his heart as if in pain. He leaned over to whisper to the bulging stomach. "Your uncle is too charming, he can't help it. Here, let me bless you with my amazingness.

"My little nephew and my little niece. Are you behaving well today?

"Uncle already bought you toys…"

"Uncle…" Ansel continued on his soliloquy and Althea rolled her eyes. 

"Stop teaching them bad things. Prenatal education is too important. You know, Mom once said—" Her voice was cut off as a thought came to mind: It would be so good if their parents were here. 

She felt a little emotional to the point that she teared up a little. Damned pregnancy. Making her think of weird tangents. Again. 

But alas, the hormones couldn't be controlled. "Mom... Mom used to say that my birth parents must have given me the best prenatal care since I turned out so well." 

Ansel frowned, his goofy expression morphing into a serious one. Althea was sad, but Ansel's heart was torn to pieces. Those were his biological parents after all. 

The three of them, along with Nanny, didn't speak for a while... letting a moment of silence pass by in remembrance of the loved ones they lost. 

...

Ansel's parents were both very kind people. Mom was a professor of History at a top University, while Dad worked at a pharmaceutical company as a top researcher.

They gave all three of them the best they could provide, whether it was material things or love. Unfortunately, they were some of the people who perished during the weird radiation wave that shook the entire globe, taking down the plane they were in.

It was one of the tens of thousands of planes that were flying at that moment. It was also the first sign that the sun was dying quicker than expected, although it wasn't announced to the public at the time. Althea had always felt that her husband's top-secret mission was related to this event. 

After some time, Althea calmed down and wiped her eyes, feeling guilty for reopening the wound. She pursed her lips and looked at her brother, realizing he was wearing a formal attire. "The deal is today?" 

Ansel paused for a bit before nodding with a weak smile. He took the change of topic in a stride. They were very used to Althea's mood changes. At first, it made him panic when she suddenly sobbed, but at some point, he just learned to live with it and not let the stress kill him. 

"Yes, and they even increased their order," he said. Althea nodded. She and Ansel started their own company two years prior, with her as the source of technology and formulas and him as the management helm. 

She always had a special affinity for plants since she was a child. She not only liked growing them but she was also fascinated by their effects and combinations.

She often poisoned herself by accident because of this and was frequently at the hospital. 

If she wasn't so young (and cute, according to her husband), the orphanage's headmistress would've kicked her out for all the excess spending…

Anyway, one day (during her probably 37th time at the hospital due to poisoning) a visiting doctor happened to see her by chance.

He was very amused when he found out about the cause and effect and gave her a huge encyclopedia of Terran plants, their effects, and their effective combinations.

She later found out that the old man—may he rest in peace—was one of the few pioneers reviving a branch focusing on botanical medicine, and he was at the hospital for a check-up when they first met.

Had Ansel's incident not happened when it did, it was estimated the old doctor would have adopted her instead. Still, they had been in contact until his death a few years back. With his backing, Althea's career in the field could be said to have risen like a rocket.

While it was a little controversial, she showed that she deserved such help, showing great talent in the field. She started specializing—and excelling—in the Biology and Botany fields as soon as she entered college at the age of 17.

Now, she took her thesis project, along with a few other formulas, and formulated beauty formulas and health products.

In the past two years, she had come up with formulas to treat acne scars, improve stamina, improve eyesight, and improve the smoothness of the skin.

Their parents were supportive and used their life savings to invest. Except for the villa they were living in—which was an inheritance from her mother's family—they had pretty much sold everything else.

Fortunately, the products took off months before their death so their parents were at least rest assured that they would be able to do well when they were gone.

She knew her parents very well: even in their deaths, they would definitely be thinking about the three of them.

Just a pity they wouldn't be able to see their grandchildren. They have been looking forward to it even before she got married.

"This deal would make us a lot of money," Ansel said, pulling her back to the present. He looked smug, causing her lips to twitch.

The deal Ansel was referring to was with a country South called Delo Country. It was a closed country that refused businesses abroad.

This was their second big client next to the military, a deal that had given the company quite a bit of prestige. It was not illegal in their Eden country to deal with these people, so she had no qualms about this deal.

If anything, because it was a bit secretive on the other party's side, they were willing to pay twice the market price for it.

"Although it's just a small partial payment for now, I'll definitely get even better deals," Ansel said with confidence. She nodded, knowing his capabilities quite well. "When is your flight?"

"In a few hours…" He said, tentatively looking at the time. He then turned his head back to look at Althea, opening his arm for a hug. "Anyway, time for me to go now~"

She naturally entered his arms. "Be careful." 

"Of course, I quite like my life," he said with a cheeky grin. 

Althea laughed as she separated from him, patting his head again. "Good for you," she said, and she watched him go out to the lawn and into his unnecessarily large car. 

Before the gate closed, Ansel opened his window to wave at them one last time. "See you soon! Sister, Nanny!" he said, before finally driving away. 

Only... it wouldn't be as 'soon' as they'd like.

…

That afternoon, after receiving a call from Ansel about his safe arrival, pregnancy lethargy attacked. 

"You should take a proper rest in your bedroom," Nanny said, gently patting her awake. She blinked, realizing that she had snoozed a bit on the sofa.

"Hmm... I should," she said, lazily sitting up and stretching her arms as far as she could. The movement messed with her hair and Nanny fondly combed it down with her wrinkling hand. "Hm, I'll prepare you dinner so you can eat when you wake up."

"Okay, thank you. Goodnight, Nanny." She said, voice lovely and sweet, making the old woman chuckle in response.

"Goodnight, Miss."

Althea went to bed to take a long nap, and it was fine for a while. She even dreamt about her childhood with her husband. She was running after him in their game of tag, and—as always—he'd find a way to let her win. 

However, just before she caught up to him, she was abruptly woken by a mysterious force that she couldn't describe. It was like there was an earthquake, but only the air shook.

She sat up so quickly that she felt dizzy. Closing her eyes to calm her nerves, she looked around to see what woke her up.

Confused, she opened her phone to look at the time—8:34pm—and quickly realized that there was no signal.

Before she could make sense of anything, she heard toe-curling screams outside—coming from different directions.

An odd feeling of foreboding crept up her spine. She immediately got out of bed, and she ran to the only other person in the house, hand unconsciously on her stomach as she moved. 

"Auntie? Are you all right?" She asked, gently knocking on the door. 

As she did so, she could hear weird scraping sounds followed by a low growl. She worried for Nanny, but her instinct told her something dangerous was in there. 

She looked around to find anything she could use. She saw a broom resting against the wall, and she decisively grabbed the shaft. With a deep breath, she placed her soft hand on the handle and turned the knob to open the door—

Only to see a weird but familiar-looking creature standing in an odd posture, body parts bending at weird angles, and skin festering with pus.

It heard her arrival and turned, and her green eyes met with its lifeless ones. Bile rose up her stomach, but she pushed it down because it was at this moment that she realized who it was.

Her heart dropped and her soul shook. Tears welled in her eyes as her body shivered in trepidation. 

"Nanny..." 

24 hours

Nanny's neck turned at an indescribable angle the moment she opened the door, the eyes that used to look at her with love and warmth now didn't have anything. No emotions, no anger, no love, no life.

This wasn't her nanny anymore.

Althea was in a daze for a while, her tears flowing. Even when she saw the creature walk towards her in unnatural staggered steps, she couldn't move at all.

It was only until the creature was only an arm's length away that she finally got back to her senses and her body moved by instinct, hitting the creature with the metallic broomstick.

Bang!

The body fell, its neck turning 180 degrees. She watched as the body twitched weakly, and she almost wanted to go to check up on her.

But the head turned back at a creepy angle and the familiar-unfamiliar lifeless eyes stared at her hungrily.

Without bothering to bend back its legs, it dragged itself in her direction, opening its mouth in hopes of getting her meat.

She didn't even have the time to mourn the loss of another loved one. Her body moved on its own and she gripped the metal shaft on her hand. She hit the head of the monster with all her strength, to stop her Nanny's body from being soiled any further.

[+5 experience, +5 copper coins]

[Ding!]

She flinched at the sudden sound, looking around for its source.

[Congratulations, Terran survivor #99598, for activating the Universe Assistance System]

She could not even give a response.

[Your planet XZ8912, locally known as Terran, is the only planet in the G239 and U834 galaxies to have intelligent civilizations. It was therefore judged to be an important endangered planet by the Universe.]

[Galaxies G239 and U834 will be deemed uninhabitable in less than 24 hours due to the current condition of its central star.]

[In less than 24 hours, to preserve remaining life, all surviving indigenous creatures will be immigrated to the Great Continent of Xeno.]

[Please note that items in the system-provided backpack can be taken with you.]

To be honest, Althea and her big brain failed to understand what the mechanical voice was saying.

"What is Xeno?" She asked, but there was no response. "Hello?"

No answer.

"What are you talking about? Migration? What do you mean the planet will perish?"

Still no answer.

She frowned, eyes ending up on the woman who had just made her favorite dessert a few hours prior.

She took a deep breath in an attempt to stop her tears, to keep her words coherent. "Tell me, please: Why did she become like this?"

None.

Well, this was obviously one of those one-way no-reply messages…

She shook her head and stared at the body, for a while not knowing what to do.

She looked at the screen that appeared in front of her, following wherever she was looking, like that holographic screen that had just launched a few months ago.

On the bottom left, there was a logo of a backpack, an icon of a head, and a logo of a sword. On the top right, there is a moving counter currently showing [23:45:03].

She remembered that in 24 hours, a so-called migration would happen, and surmised the counter was about that.

She then looked at the backpack icon and clicked on it. A virtual box appeared in front of her, floating. It was around 1 cubic meter in size.

"All items in the 'backpack' will be taken with you." She repeated the voice's words, absentmindedly looking at the phone and the shaft, and wondering how she could test this backpack space.

She placed a hand on each item and visualized their location in the space. She blinked and looked at the backpack and, sure enough, the items were indeed arranged properly in the floating box in front of her.

Normally, she'd be very interested in this but her sights inevitably landed on the body next to her.

She heaved out a sigh and straightened up her spine—as if it could give her the confidence to face whatever chaos was about to come—and walked in front of the corpse.

While she couldn't give her a burial—a useless practice for a planet that was about to perish—she decided to place the body on the bed in the end.

At the very least, it would be a more respectable way to go than carelessly sprawled on the floor.

Properly arranging the body and closing her eyes, Althea made it appear that she was just sleeping.

Althea bowed her head, silently thanking the older woman for all the care she had given.

"May you do well and find a good family in your next life, Nanny," she said, pausing. "I love you."

...

[23:25:32]

She left the room and ended up in the living room. She grabbed the remote to see the news, but unfortunately, all the channels were black.

Althea, still a little shaken, slowly walked towards her favorite chaise lounge, lied down, and stared at the ceiling. She allowed herself a moment of respite before thinking about her next step.

She took a deep breath and looked at the other logos on her 'screen'. She clicked on the logo of a person and another set of texts appeared about a meter in front of her.

[STATS:

Name: Althea Witt

Age: 25

Level: 0 (5/50)

Life: 100/100

Spirit: 100/100 (-5%)

Physical: 20 (-5%)

Agility: 17 (-20%)

Defense: 9

Mana: 100

Physical Potential: B

Mental potential: SS+

Skills:

Active: None

Passive: None

Elemental Affinity: Wood, Water, Earth

Titles: None

Overall rank: S

Current Status: Gestating: two life forms, weakened state ]

Well, that explained all the minus signs…

Her sights shifted to the last icon, the icon of the sword. After clicking it, a virtual doll version of herself appeared in front of her.

[EQUIPMENT LIST

Head: None

Ears: None

Body: Basic night dress +0 Defense

Arms: None

Legs: None

Hands: None

Feet: Cotton Slippers +0 Defense, +0 Agility ]

This was like a game. Although she wasn't much of a gamer, her brother was. They often asked her to play with them when they were young. This sight was not unfamiliar to her.

But her sight couldn't help but stay on the stats. Only then did she start feeling her body and realized that she felt energized despite all the shock.

Not to mention, her strength and speed were not like that at all.

She totally blew nanny's head with a hit, right? Although she had practiced self-defense techniques, she was sure she was neither that quick nor that strong.

She was not sure if this was adrenaline… or was her body was somewhat improved? 

Temporarily putting that aside, she proceeded to explore the rest of the system.

She stared at the final icon: the wallet. 

[Wealth: 0 gold, 0 silver, 5 copper]

"..."

It seemed that her millions of digital money were useless.

She sat back up, trying to make an effective procurement plan. She had 24 hours to take what she needed.

First of all, she had no idea where they were going to get transferred to, nor did they know of the resources that they would have access to.

Hence, she needed to prepare well and make sure she had everything to maximize her chances of survival in that small space of 1 cubic meter.

And what is that 0 gold, 0 silver, 5 copper in her stats? Money? Money used in that other world?

Althea gently patted her stomach, as if they needed to be calmed down, because calming them down would calm her down.

It was just that... as she patted her stomach, her whole body froze.

Is her stomach larger?

Beginning of a Money Making Journey

No…nononono…

Her children… didn't turn to monsters, right?

However, just before she could enter her pregnancy-mood-swings-panic-dread, a gentle kick hit the walls of her stomach.

This made her pause and instinctively place her palms on her bulging stomach.

The next kicks then turned much gentler and soothing. It was as if her babies were telling her not to overreact.

For the first time since all this started, she finally smiled.

Everyone may be gone, but at least her children were still with her.

She had to be well-prepared, at least for them.

The first thing she did was go to the kitchen and heat herself some food. She was not a good cook, but she was surrounded by them: her father, auntie, and her husband were all fabulous cooks.

Auntie—god bless her soul—stored a few plates of ready-to-eat food in case she woke up in the middle of the night from hunger.

She also took all the food in stock and in the pantry in her space backpack, filling up a few square centimeters of space.

It was just that other than rice and a few canned foods, most of these foods were perishable.

What actually bothered her the most was the money. The fact that these values appeared here meant that it was possible to obtain such currencies while they were still in their home planet.

Obviously, digital money—which was most people's assets nowadays—was useless, so she could only check if paper money or any other valuables would suffice.

She also needed to check what happened to her children, as well as some medicines so she should at least pass by a hospital.

However, she wondered, if the physique changed, would those medicines have any use?

She stopped herself from thinking too much and accomplishing nothing. After a beat, she formulated her next point of action and stood up, heading to her room. 

She walked to her room's safety deposit box to see if cash could be converted to the system currency. 

Her delicate fingers pressed a few buttons and the box opened, revealing a few stacks of cash she put away in case of emergencies.

She held the paper in the palm of her hand. But she paused, unsure what to do. She just tried whatever and transferred it to the space.

Nothing happened.

She looked at the jewelry, took a handful of silver and gold jewelry—most of which were gifts from clients and friends—and placed it in the space.

At first, it just stored there, but after a thought, she placed them back out. She repeated the same process but with the intent to 'sell'.

[Ding! A total of 230 grams of silver, 100 grams of gold. Would you like to convert it to coins? YES | NO ]

She clicked YES.

[Received: +1 gold coin ,+2 silver coin, +30 copper coins]

She stared at the remaining precious stones. Except for the jewelry her husband and family gave her—which was secure in the backpack—the rest was converted to System currency.

[Ding! 121 carats of Class E precious gems, 8 carats of Class A gems. Would you like to convert it to coins? YES | NO ]

She pressed NO. Separating each type of gem, she transformed the colorful ones first and only got a total of 51 silver coins.

The few carats of diamonds, on the other hand, earned her a whopping 5 gold coins. It seemed that gems high up on the Mohs scale had a much higher value in that other world.

Then her sights fell on the safety deposit box itself–

[Ding! 50kg of Non-aether Class C Precious metal detected. Would you like to convert it to coins? YES | NO ]

She clicked yes.

[Received: +69 silver coins]

An eyebrow rose in interest as she perused the room and looked at the few antiques in the family collection.

She stared at them for a moment and it felt like they were staring back at her, scrutinizing. 

She apologized to the ancestors and tried to get the antiques converted as well.

Unfortunately, like paper money, they were judged to have no value.

She regretfully took out all the useless stuff from the backpack—(she never would have thought she'd say this about money)—from the backpack to save space.

She took a look at her wallet again.

[WEALTH: 6 gold coins, 122 silver coins, 30 copper coins]

This was the first time she regretted being so 'modern'. She should've stocked herself some hard currency had she known this would happen…

In any case, she didn't know how far this little wealth could get her, but she was not going to take any chances. Not to mention, she had to fill up the entire 1 cubic meter to feel comfortable.

Stretching her body, she turned her head to look at the floating clock on the top of her head.

[22:54:03]

At the sight of the numbers, she stood up and looked out the window, to the dark scenery outside.

In her neighborhood, this was a time that should've been filled with stillness, silence, and peace.

Instead, it echoed with horrendous screams and yells for help. However, she knew in her gut that no one would have the energy to help others right now. She could only help herself.

She went towards the door, taking out the handy broom shaft from the space.

She rested long enough.