The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 253

Chapter 253

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Nicole tossed the painting into her bag, then pulled it back out a moment later. “If this painting means that much to you, then maybe it belongs with you after all. Think of it as a gift.”

The man stared at her in shock. “But the food…”

“You don’t need to pay it back.”

Nicole turned and walked away without another word.

What he didn’t know was that the painting was fake. The storage space hadn’t absorbed it at all.

Still, judging from his reaction, he had probably been duped himself rather than trying to scam anyone on

purpose.

Three hundred pounds of potatoes for two extra rooms was already an incredible deal.

Giving the forgery back at least left him with something to hold onto emotionally.

“Wait.” The man hurried after her. “I have a friend who collects fine porcelain. He wants to trade for food, too. Are you interested?”

As a result, the two of them spent another three days running around outside.

Those three days paid off enormously. The third floor of the storage villa was complete.

The moment the third floor appeared, the entire storage space gained another nine feet in height, expanding its total volume by nearly a third.

Overcome with excitement, Nicole threw her arms around Zeph. “Seriously, how lucky am I?”

It was the first time she had hugged him on her own initiative. Zeph immediately wrapped his arms around her waist. “You planned this well.”

Nicole looked up at him. “Thanks for sticking with me these past few days.”

Zeph raised a brow. “Wasn’t I supposed to?”

Nicole smiled, but refused to fall into his trap. 1

The storage space had grown a lot, but the danger behind those trades was just as real. The gangs robbing people blind were ruthless, and their eyes worked like scanners.

Nicole and Zeph had shown up at the trading street too many times. Before long, someone marked them as easy prey and began secretly tracking them with weapons in hand.

Unfortunately for the stalkers, their surveillance skills were nothing compared to Zeph’s counter-

surveillance

If those men were human scanners, then Zeph operated like a full-scale intelligence system.

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They thought they were hunting their targets. They had no idea they had already become targets themselves.

Right after completing a trade, Nicole and Zeph suddenly split up.

Zeph walked off, carrying a large backpack, while Nicole headed in the opposite direction, empty-handed, moving faster and faster.

“Boss, which one do we follow?”

They had finally found a juicy target. No way they were letting it get away now.

“Split up. You two take the girl. The other three come with me.” 1

The group pulled out weapons and hurried after them.

“Hurry up, that chick just went into the office building.”

Even bundled up in layers, her figure still stood out. They could tell from the way she walked that she

was attractive.

They figured they would catch her, lock her up, and let the boys have some fun for a few days.

The two men rushed into the office building, charging upstairs in excitement.

“Carter, you got the first pick last time. This one’s mine.”

“Bull!” Carter Swanson snapped. “You only gave me the last one because you thought she was ugly. This girl’s hot. Whoever catches her first gets her.”

They saw Nicole as easy prey. In their minds, she had already cornered herself. Neither bothered staying

cautious anymore.

Afraid the other guy would get there first, they sprinted up the stairs faster and faster.

“Pfft…”

At the sharp turn in the stairwell, Carter couldn’t stop in time. Something sharp punctured straight

through his body.

The man behind him almost slammed into him, too, but managed to plant his feet and stop at the last

second

Then he saw a blood-soaked blade protruding from Carter’s back, and his pupils instantly shrank in

terror

A figure slowly stepped out from beside the wall and kicked Carter’s corpse aside.

As the body crashed to the floor, a cold smile spread across Nicole’s face.

She was beautiful and deadly

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