The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 241

Chapter 241

If Zeph’s reflexes hadn’t been fast enough, Cola probably would’ve clawed him.

The dog lunged forward and shoved Zeph aside with his powerful body before throwing himself possessively against Nicole.

At the same time, he bared his teeth viciously at Zeph and barked loudly, as if saying, “Back off. Don’t touch my human!”

The violent reaction genuinely startled Nicole.

If not for their bond as handler and dog, plus the fact that Cola had eaten plenty of Zeph’s food over the months, she seriously suspected the dog would’ve latched onto Zeph’s arm and refused to let go.

For all his fierce temperament, Cola normally never provoked people unless someone started trouble first. This was the first time he had openly shown aggression toward one of their own.

Back when Nicole first started sparring with Zeph, Cola had misunderstood and thought she was getting bullied. Several times, he had tried interfering to protect her, but even then, he had never snarled like this.

“Cola.” Nicole’s expression darkened.

The dog wasn’t just jealous; he was possessive.

Cola flattened his ears and whimpered pitifully while continuing to shove Zeph away with his paws, making his resistance painfully obvious.

Not only was he snarling, but he kept trying to snarl harder.

When Zeph cautiously reached out to calm him, Cola rejected him outright.

The dog’s emotional state was clearly wrong, so Nicole hurriedly brought him home.

“Cola, what’s going on with you?”

Nicole started getting worried.

Mutations sometimes made animals more violent and unstable, but the moment they got home, Cola immediately switched back to wagging his tail and lifting his ears, as if nothing had happened.

Nicole grabbed one of his ears. “Were you trying to bite Zeph just now?”

The second Zeph got mentioned, the snarling came right back.

The way Cola acted like he and Zeph were mortal enemies felt strangely familiar somehow, but Nicole couldn’t quite remember where she had seen that kind of behavior before.

Since Cola was basically a permanent member of the 18th floor now, there was no point in hiding things after he had witnessed everything firsthand. So Nicole decided to explain it to him.

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“Cola, Zeph and I are dating now.”

Instant snarling again.

Nicole rubbed his head soothingly. “Relax. Whether things work out between us or not, you’ll always come first in my heart.”

Cola turned his head away angrily and refused to look at her.

Lies!

Someone had once promised him something similar before, too. Afterward, he had ended up in an illegal slaughterhouse.

If he was truly that important, then why did there need to be anybody else?

The dog looked frustrated at his own human for being so hopeless, while desperately trying to hold onto something slipping away from him.

From that point on, Cola followed Nicole everywhere without leaving her side for even a second. His eyes stayed filled with grievance, sadness, and deep unease.

When the rabbits approached, he snarled them away, too.

The dog had become one giant ball of aggression.

That evening, just as the walkie-talkie crackled, Nicole reached for it, only for Cola to snatch it first and start chewing on it viciously.

By the time she wrestled it back, the casing had already been gnawed to pieces, though thankfully, it still

worked.

“Nicole, come over for dinner.”

“Not today. I’ll handle the food myself.”

There was a brief pause on the other end. “Because of Cola?”

Nicole sounded troubled. “I don’t know what’s wrong with him. He’s really emotional right now.”

Because of his work background, Zeph interacted regularly with police K-9 bases. Those places not only had professional handlers but even canine behavioral specialists.

He already had a rough idea what the issue was.

“How about I talk to him?”

Nicole immediately rejected the idea. “I’m worried you two might actually fight.”

Zeph calmly explained, “Cola was abandoned by his previous owner and sold to an illegal

slaughterhouse. That probably left severe psychological trauma.

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“Normally, even if people can’t keep a pet anymore, they rehome it. Selling it to a slaughterhouse usually means something much uglier happened beforehand.

“Try calming him down first. If that doesn’t work, then I’ll talk to him.”

Zeph’s words instantly triggered something in Nicole’s mind.

She looked at the dog clinging tightly to her pant leg with the expression of someone facing a mortal enemy. Suddenly, everything clicked.

“I understand now.”

After hanging up, she crouched down and hugged Cola.

“Cola, did your owner sell you to the slaughterhouse because of a man?”

The dog instantly froze. His body trembled twice.

“Was that man Edward?”

Edward seemed to have a mild dog allergy. In lighter cases, he sneezed nonstop. In severe cases, he

broke out in rashes all over his body.

Cola repaid kindness fiercely. In her previous life, Nicole had only fed him for a short while, yet he had willingly risked his life protecting her afterward.

Unless something truly extreme had happened, there was no way Cola would’ve intentionally peed all

over his former owner.

Edward, on the other hand, got bitten every single time he approached.

Considering Edward’s habit of flirting with literally everyone, seducing Cola’s former owner honestly wasn’t surprising at all.

Edward had a charming personality, and he was handsome and smooth with his words. Add in the constant emotional manipulation, and it was easy for girls to fall headfirst for him, sacrificing everything

for him, and even giving up a dog for him.

Sure enough, the second Edward’s name came up, Cola exploded in fury, baring his teeth like he wanted

to tear someone apart.

Nicole gently soothed him.

“Cola, in my last life, you protected me with your life. In this life, no matter who I meet, you’ll always be the most important one to me. I would never abandon you because of anyone else.”

The dog stared deeply at her. He almost looked like he was crying.

He started pawing anxiously at his own face before stubbornly turning his head away and refusing to communicate anymore.

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For an entire day and night, he refused to eat or drink.

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Nicole hadn’t expected things to get this serious. The dog had literally started a hunger strike in protest, and the situation stressed her out badly.

Finally, Zeph knocked on the door.

“Let me talk to him.”

Nicole hesitated for a long moment before finally making space for them, waiting nervously outside in the hallway.

The moment Zeph entered, Cola stood up and bared his teeth defensively.

Zeph shut the door behind him and immediately gave a calm command.

“Attention!”

Muscle memory kicked in instantly.

The dog snapped upright automatically, chest out and posture perfect.

Only after obeying did Cola realize something was wrong. By then, Zeph had already walked directly in

front of him.

Sitting down on the floor face-to-face with the dog, Zeph said calmly, “Cola, I know you’re loyal and want to protect her forever, but that doesn’t conflict with me having feelings for her too.”

Cola’s snarling only grew more vicious.

When Zeph tried reaching out to pet him, Cola smacked the hand away, every muscle in his body tense.

“Cola, I’m not here to break you two apart. I’m here to join you.”

The dog’s pupils shook in horror.

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