Zombie Apocalypse: I Have Safe Zone Superpower-Chapter 491: Loopholes

With that, Dante took out a small wooden box and slid it across the desk toward Ivy.

The box made a soft, hollow sound against the polished surface.

Ivy stared at it for a moment, confusion flickering across her face, before slowly reaching out.

The wood felt cool beneath her fingertips, smooth with age. When she opened it, her breath caught.

Inside lay a diamond bracelet, dazzling even under the muted office lights.

She froze. The bracelet was heavy, solid, its craftsmanship unmistakably exquisite.

’If I’m not mistaken...’ her thoughts raced, ’this isn’t just decoration.’

The diamonds were dense and flawless, their weight alone telling a story. ’

At the very least, this has to be worth one... maybe two million dollars.’

As if sensing her thoughts, Dante let out a low laugh.

"This bracelet isn’t just jewelry," he said calmly.

"It’s important." He paused. "It’s an identification key to the Blackthorn vault."

Ivy looked up sharply, confusion deepening.

Dante leaned back slightly and continued, his tone turning reflective.

"When Silas grew bored with life, he ventured into business." A faint smile crossed his lips.

"At the time, he made an absurd amount of profit and handed it all to Alice and me."

"We didn’t know much about business," he admitted.

"So we bought a few buildings and invested in some stocks we thought looked promising. After that, we forgot about them for two or three years."

He shook his head in disbelief. "Who would’ve thought we had a Midas touch?"

His eyes darkened slightly.

"Every property we bought became a key figure in its respective index. The places we owned a storefront in became popular or have redevelopment plan.At one point, people were willing to pay nearly a million dollars just for a year’s rent."

"And the stocks..." Dante let out a short laugh.

"The ones we casually invested in increased nearly a hundredfold."

Ivy slowly raised her head, her lips parting. "If the original investment was around ten million..." she murmured, barely audible, "...that would be one billion dollars."

Dante nodded.

"And that wasn’t the end," he continued. "We reinvested the profits into other properties, hoping for quiet, stable returns."

His expression turned ironic. "Some of those areas were later demolished, but we had already created special funds under our children’s names and placed portions into model stocks."

"Those stocks skyrocketed again," he added. "Five hundred million dollars again gave us a hundredfold returns in just 2 years."

Ivy felt lightheaded. ’Five hundred million... hundredfold?’ Her mind reeled. ’That’s... fifty billion if it keeps compounding like that.’

Now she finally understood. Even though Dante and Alice came from military backgrounds, their wealth was anything but ordinary.

Her hands trembled slightly as she looked at him.

Dante continued evenly, "After that, Silas became addicted to investing. He bought properties here and there. If I’m not mistaken, he accumulated quite a portfolio himself."

He paused.

"Most of it was sold later, exchanged for food, land, real estate, silver... whatever could retain value after the collapse."

He gestured toward the bracelet. "What I’m giving you is the identification to open the Blackthorn offshore vault." His gaze was steady.

"If my calculations are right, there should still be around fifty billion dollars’ worth of assets from the last year. That amount has already been converted into gold and silver."

"So don’t worry," he added. "Even if prices fluctuate, their value will remain."

Ivy almost had the urge to grab Dante and shake him. ’How can he just hand something like this to me?’

But then the reality of the apocalypse settled in, heavy and unavoidable.

She sighed softly. "Even so... from what I know, that vault might already be destroyed." 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Dante frowned. "That, I can’t be sure of," he replied. "But I do know one thing."

His voice lowered. "The vault is hidden far away. Unless there’s an earthquake or a tsunami, everything inside should still be preserved."

Hearing this, Ivy felt a warmth bloom in her chest. She carefully put on the bracelet.

It fit perfectly, cool against her wrist, glittering softly. She looked at Dante, her eyes sincere. She truly appreciated the gift.

Dante waved a hand dismissively. "It’s nothing."

He watched her leave, then exhaled quietly.

’I never thought she’d be so open-hearted... so kind,’ he reflected.

Shaking off the thought, he turned back to his work.

Meanwhile, Ivy returned home. The moment she saw Helena seated inside, her brows furrowed. "What happened?"

Helena looked up and silently handed her a mask.

Ivy hesitated before taking it. "Why?"

"There’s a milk fragrance in the air," Helena said calmly.

Ivy’s expression sharpened instantly. She put on the mask without delay. "Who spread it?" she demanded.

"Were they trying to kill me? Or trigger my jinx?" Her voice dropped. "They know my temporal storage can’t be entered because of updates."

Helena shook her head. "It was a stranger," she replied. "A girl named Raya."

Ivy frowned. "Vlad’s Sister?"

Helena nodded.

Ivy’s expression turned cold. "How is that possible?" she murmured.

"How could Raya know milk is my weakness?"

Helena smiled faintly and gestured for Ivy to sit. Once Ivy did, Helena spoke softly,

"I’ve been wondering... what if the alien, the one experimented on, has returned?"

Ivy froze. "What do you mean?"

Helena’s gaze turned distant. "I often ask myself why you were taken... if that alien truly hated you, it wouldn’t have let you live." She paused. "Unless we’ve been overlooking something."

Ivy narrowed her eyes, thinking deeply. "If that alien really is on Earth," she said slowly, "why wait twenty years before triggering the apocalypse?"

Helena nodded, acknowledging the question.

Ivy exhaled. "Honestly," she said quietly, "I don’t think the alien is here at all."

Helena looked at her in confusion.

"If I’m right," Ivy continued, "then that alien is controlling everything happening on Earth through some special means."

Helena couldn’t help but look at Ivy closely, her brows knitting together.

"Are you hinting," she asked carefully, "that his method of control might be someone like Raya?"

Ivy nodded slowly. "That’s what I think."

"But there are still too many loopholes. I can’t piece everything together at once."