Magic Space: Struggling to Survive in the Apocalypse-Chapter 35: Flood, High Temperature 1

「June 1st.」 The thunderstorm stopped, the cold snap receded, and the temperature began to rise.

The temperature rose from minus twenty degrees to five degrees above zero. Behind the gray, hazy sky, white sunlight filtered through gaps in the clouds, reflecting off the glass. Holding out a hand, one could even feel a hint of warmth.

’But something still feels wrong,’ Evelyn Ford thought. ’Corinth isn’t at a high altitude, and the cold snap has passed. So why does it feel hard to breathe, like there isn’t enough oxygen?’

Her chest felt tight and her head was a little groggy—symptoms of oxygen deprivation, the kind one would experience at high altitudes. Evelyn shook her head and took out a thermometer to check her temperature.

37.5°C. A rising temperature. It really was a sign of hypoxia.

’This life is really different from my last one.’ In her previous life, the temperature hadn’t dropped to minus twenty degrees during the downpour. It was common knowledge that at standard atmospheric pressure, pure water freezes at zero degrees, while water with impurities becomes a slushy mix below four degrees. And yet, when the temperature had previously plunged to nearly minus twenty, all that had happened was a cold snap and a blast of frigid air.

’Unless... the atmospheric pressure has been disrupted and the planet’s longitude and latitude have shifted. And there’s only one reason for that: crustal and tectonic plate movement.’

’Corinth is a coastal city. If the tectonic plates are really moving, will the sea level rise and the ocean pour in? Or will Corinth itself sink and become a new sea?’

Evelyn suppressed the anxiety in her heart and opened a window to clean off the grime splattered on the outside by the floodwaters. The murky flood was still flowing slowly, and an indescribable stench filled the air. Evelyn quickly held her breath, and only after closing the window did she exhale heavily.

The bodies of animals and people floating in the water had been soaking for so long they were bloated like giants. If they started to explode, it would probably be impossible to even leave the apartment. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Evelyn gave her apartment a thorough cleaning, using up a whole bottle of disinfectant. She lit mugwort incense in the living room, bathroom, kitchen, and on the balcony. Then, an idea struck her. Evelyn took a few flowerpots out of her space, along with a bag of fresh soil. After mixing in some rooting powder, she filled the pots with the soil and planted a few flower seeds.

She sprayed them with nutrient solution, then moved the pots to the balcony.

With the rain gone, drinking water became the biggest problem. Survivors started to go out in groups to scavenge for supplies. Some waded directly into the water to retrieve beverages that had been submerged in the flood.

「June 2nd.」 The temperature rose to ten degrees, and even more people went out. Even Lauren Keller and Nana Doyle came up to ask Evelyn to go scavenging with them.

All the survivors in the residential complex were out and about. Those without inflatable boats used bathtubs or makeshift rafts. Some even clung to car tires, struggling to paddle their way out of the complex.

In just two short months, the population of the complex had been cut in half. Everyone looked wretched and exhausted. Hunger had left their eyes vacant, their faces sallow, and their hair greasy. You didn’t even have to get close; you could smell the stench from two or three meters away.

During the two months of continuous downpour, the government had only distributed supplies once. A few rescue teams had come during the first week of the storm, but after that, there was no further official news. Evelyn’s radio had only picked up a signal one time.

The survivors who had once held out for rescue had now given up hope. They were forced to accept a harsh reality: the two-month-long storm was the beginning of the apocalypse. And now, the apocalypse had officially begun.

Evelyn didn’t go out with Lauren and the others. ’Right now, everyone is swarming out to scavenge. Not only will it be hard to find anything, but even if I do, it’ll just attract trouble. Starving people lose their minds. They’re capable of anything.’

Young women and children were the easiest prey.

Evelyn stayed home, busy steaming buns. She couldn’t cook anything with a strong aroma for now; she had no desire to become a target for everyone.

To look no different from anyone else, Evelyn would change into her dirtiest clothes whenever she opened her door. Aside from brushing her teeth, she hadn’t washed her face, hair, or body in a long time. Her short hair looked a bit greasy, but it was safer that way.

The best camouflage was to blend in with the crowd.

She had so much food in her space she couldn’t finish it in two lifetimes, but Evelyn would never bring it out to be charitable. ’The human heart is something you should never test.’

She once read a story about a time of drought. A kind, wealthy merchant shared his grain with the villagers, but this only fed their greed over time. One day, he had not a single grain left to give, but the villagers refused to believe him. They were convinced the merchant was simply unwilling to help them anymore. The furious villagers stormed the merchant’s home, killed his family, and demanded he hand over his grain.

The white-flour buns were fragrant and soft. Evelyn packed them in bags and stored them directly in her space. She still had plenty of the boxed meals she’d made earlier, at least enough for another year. ’I might as well steam more of these big buns,’ she thought. ’After all, steaming them doesn’t require turning on the range hood.’

The scavengers gradually returned, their salvaged goods a motley collection. When Evelyn saw a gas canister, her brow furrowed. Although she had hoarded plenty of them herself, the things still unnerved her. ’If one of those explodes, it’s all over. It would affect a huge area. Even if you don’t die, you’ll be maimed.’

Another person’s raft was piled high with bottled mineral water. In truth, anything that had been submerged in the flood was no longer safe to consume. The water was full of germs. But no one could afford to be picky anymore. People who were starving to death wouldn’t just eat flood-soaked food; they would grab handfuls of dirt and swallow it.

Around seven in the evening, the group from Building D returned. Evelyn stood on her balcony, watching through her binoculars for a while. Lauren Keller and Nana Doyle were at the very back, while Officer Graham and Walter Owens were at the front. Everyone had bloodstains and wounds on their faces and bodies. And it looked like two people were missing from the group.

A few minutes later, a commotion erupted outside. After a moment, Officer Graham’s voice rang out.

"We ran into several groups of robbers! Every one of us was cut. Mr. Summers was stabbed in the chest, and Bob Zane was slashed across the neck."

Officer Graham had brought back the bodies of the two men who had died. Their families wept in the hallway for a while before carrying them to the roof and setting them on fire.

The stench of burning flesh drifted down from the roof, making it even harder for Evelyn to breathe.

The next morning, Lauren Keller came looking for Evelyn. Mrs. Doyle, Nana’s mother, had fallen ill from an unknown cause.

Evelyn walked into Lauren’s apartment and saw two cans of food on the table. She glanced back at Lauren, who smiled uneasily.

"Mrs. Doyle is sick and can’t eat anything, so I gave her a can. Nana has lost so much weight, and she’s still a growing girl. Her period is half a month late, so I was worried she was malnourished and gave her one too."

Evelyn offered no comment, but Lauren read the unspoken judgment in her eyes: ’Foolish.’

Nana Doyle crouched by Mrs. Doyle’s bed, staring in terror at the listless woman lying there.

Evelyn went over to examine her, lifting Mrs. Doyle’s clothes to feel her abdomen.

"You’re four months pregnant. The fetus has died in your womb, which is why you’re having abdominal pain so severe you can’t get out of bed."