The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 245

Chapter 245

Zeph took Poppy to plant the third batch of potatoes, while Nicole worked the soil inside her storage space with her mind.

After going over their supplies again, she realized the food she had stockpiled was enough for her and Cola to survive on for the rest of their lives. On the other hand, Zeph’s reserves would only support the four of them for around five years.

And that was assuming nothing unexpected happened.

What if Cola’s appetite kept growing? The deep freeze already forced everyone to consume more calories just to maintain body heat. If humans started mutating too and became heavy eaters someday,

their current supply might not last nearly as long as expected.

The more she calculated, the tighter things felt. 1

Not to mention, surviving well in the apocalypse required far more than just food. They still lacked too many things.

Which meant she had to start trading supplies.

Nonrenewable resources were untouchable, so the only option was growing more food.

That was why she planted nothing but potatoes. They matured quickly and produced absurdly high

yields.

For the third crop of cold-resistant potatoes, she only planted 100 pounds. The rest went straight into storage space. Once the survivors’ own potato harvests started hitting the market, she could quietly release hers in batches and trade for other supplies.

Meanwhile, Cola kept eating as usual while continuing his silent protest.

Any time Nicole and Zeph sat too close together, he would wedge himself between them and physically separate the two.

As a human, Nicole could feel the anxiety radiating off him.

Being sold to an illegal slaughterhouse and wandering through endless hardship as a stray were

memories Cola never wanted to revisit.

He dreamed constantly, crying out in his sleep while his body twitched and trembled.

Every time he woke up, his mood turned awful. He didn’t want to see Zeph at all. The second they met, he would bare his teeth like he had a personal grudge.

Zeph never got angry with Cola, though. He simply increased the training intensity.

“Come on,” he said calmly. “Maybe one day, you’ll finally beat me.”

The exhausted dog instantly revived like he had been injected with adrenaline and staggered back to his

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feet.

He could still train!

When Cola finally completed the session, Zeph rewarded him with jerky.

“Good boy.”

For one terrifying second, Cola’s tail actually looked ready to wag. He froze immediately, resisting with every ounce of willpower.

The enemy was trying to win him over. That jerky had definitely been laced with something!

Cola spat it back out and firmly rejected the offering.

After training, Nicole was too tired to move. With the charcoal heater and space heater warming the living room, she gradually drifted off on the couch.

When Zeph returned, he quietly grabbed a blanket from the bedroom and draped it over her.

Nicole’s eyes snapped open instantly. Her gaze turned cold and guarded, a knife already clutched tightly

in her hand.

If she hadn’t recognized him in time, the blade would’ve already gone in.

Zeph calmly took the knife from her hand and set it on the table. “Had a bad dream?”

Nicole wiped the cold sweat from her forehead. “Yeah.”

The nightmare had drained every ounce of energy from her. For a brief moment, the way she looked at Zeph felt distant and unfamiliar. 1

Zeph frowned slightly. “Am I making you uneasy?”

It wasn’t exactly that, but he was definitely part of the reason.

Nicole had spent most of her life alone. No one had ever truly stayed by her side while she grew up, and she had survived three years of apocalypse completely on her own. Now, all of a sudden, there was a

man beside her who treated her well in every possible way.

For someone who had never really been cared for before, it was difficult to adapt to.

Still… It wasn’t all bad.

There was someone to help with work, someone willing to handle the chores, someone to keep her

company when the loneliness crept in, someone she could talk things through with whenever trouble

came.

Honestly, it was tempting.

Humans were emotional creatures after all. Living alone was possible, but over time, the spirit would

slowly dry out and hollow itself out.

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