Chapter 281: Chapter 281: Heavy Rain
Owen Warren, on the other hand, was eating his zombie-exclusive meal with a look of helpless disgust. He seemed impatient, but he was handsome nonetheless.
Leo Colby was as composed as ever, his every move restrained—the very picture of a mature man.
Stan Sterling was elegant, while Seth was natural. Each of them had their own unique charm.
Lily Hart’s mood improved even more. Every man around her was a handsome guy. She could do nothing all day but look from one to the next; it was a feast for the eyes.
Suddenly, the pitter-patter of rain could be heard from outside. It sounded like it was starting to rain.
In all her time since the apocalypse began, this was the first time Lily Hart had seen it rain. She asked, "Does it rain often?"
She got up, walked to the table, and leaned out, holding out her hand to catch the raindrops. They felt cool and refreshing in her palm as a gust of wind blew by, carrying the scent of damp earth.
No one found her question suspicious; they seemed to have long grown accustomed to the strange questions Lily Hart would pop up with from time to time.
Frost Shaw said, "Not often, but we get a few heavy downpours every year."
Leo Colby added, "That’s right. Luckily, it’s just normal rain, so it won’t harm people."
Even though there were bases now, many survivors still lived exposed to the elements.
"Heavy downpours? How heavy are we talking?" Lily Hart asked curiously.
"Just a torrential downpour that lasts a few hours," Roman Rowe explained hesitantly.
"Ohh," Lily Hart said, understanding. Seeing that everyone had finished eating, she told them to clear the dishes so they could all get to bed.
Everyone quickly and efficiently took the dishes to the kitchen, then said their goodbyes and went their separate ways.
They were mainly saying goodbye to Lily Hart. As for the other men? Pfft.
Lily Hart also closed up the RV and went upstairs to sleep, completely shutting out the pitter-patter of the rain.
She slept soundly until dawn, completely unaware of what was happening outside. It was only when she turned on her Light Brain that she discovered...
Several people had sent her messages.
Frost Shaw: [The rain outside is getting heavier, so we won’t be coming over for breakfast. Be careful, and watch the water level.]
Leo Colby: [The rain hasn’t stopped. This feels a little abnormal. Stay safe.]
The messages from the others were more or less the same, all telling her that it was still raining and that she should be careful.
Only after reading them did Lily Hart realize. ’Huh? It’s been raining all night?’
She rolled out of bed, went to the window, and pulled back the curtains. Sure enough, it was still raining.
It was even heavier than the night before. Accompanied by rumbling thunder, large raindrops hammered relentlessly against the ground.
She could also see the survivors camped outside the Central Command.
Some had tents where they could take shelter, but others had nothing but a single blanket and were soaked to the bone.
More survivors were leaving in groups to find houses that could offer shelter from the rain.
Lily Hart couldn’t help but worry. ’When is this rain going to stop?’
’Wind and rain means half the customers!’
Feeling glum, she washed up and went downstairs, too lazy to even tie up her hair, letting it hang loosely down her back.
She opened up the RV, but unlike other days, there was no crowd of customers rushing forward.
There were no longer any factories producing umbrellas or raincoats; everything was a scarce resource now.
Anyone who wanted to stay dry had to get creative.
Even from the Central Command, not many survivors were heading out to kill zombies.
No one wanted to get soaked, which gave them a perfect excuse to take the day off.
Lily Hart wanted to rest too, but she decided not to close up shop. If someone really wanted to buy a scratch-off, they were welcome to.
She got up to look outside. With no drainage system, the water from the overnight rain was pooling on the ground.
The water level had already risen to a finger’s depth. Luckily, her RV was parked on higher ground and wasn’t affected for the time being.
But if the rain kept up, it would inevitably creep higher.
Because of the pooling water, many survivors were packing up their bedding and relocating, trying to find a building further away for shelter.
They would return after the rain stopped.
As Lily Hart watched the survivors roll up their bedding and leave one by one, she suddenly perked up and slapped the table.
She shot to her feet and yelled, "Everyone, everyone, wait! Don’t go! I have a place where you can shelter from the rain!"
「Ten minutes later.」
In the night market canopy behind the hotel, Lily Hart stood watching as survivors crowded in.
She marveled at her foresight in buying such a large, rain-proof canopy.
It couldn’t stop the floodwaters from seeping in, but at least it provided cover from the wind and rain.
It was large enough to accommodate nearly all the survivors from the area, and being huddled together kept everyone warm.
Lily Hart also moved her two automatic scratch-off machines inside, inviting everyone to play if they wished.
’Talk about killing two birds with one stone.’
Seeing this, Frost Shaw returned to his convenience store. He grabbed the largest shopping cart and filled it with instant noodles.
He covered the top with a tarp, and then he and Roman Rowe pushed the cart over under an umbrella.
After being drenched all day, who wouldn’t want a cup of hot instant noodles?
Of course they did! The moment the cart arrived, its contents were snatched up in a frenzy. Frost Shaw and Roman Rowe had to make two more trips.
Inside the crowded canopy, survivors huddled together in small groups. Some were slurping down instant noodles, while others chewed on bread.
Outside, the rain fell in a torrential downpour, SPLASHING and ROARING, punctuated by occasional claps of thunder.
But it seemed that as long as they were inside here, they had nothing to fear.
It was already eleven in the morning, but the rain showed no sign of stopping; in fact, it was only getting heavier.
Water even began to pool inside the canopy. The survivors instinctively went to find nearby bricks and sandbags to build a crude barrier.
Inside her RV, Lily Hart was also growing worried. She rested her chin in her hands and gazed in the direction of the Central Command.
’With rain this heavy,’ she thought, ’I wonder how the Central Command is handling it.’
The Central Command, for its part, was worried sick.
Elder Shaw had been woken by a clap of thunder that morning, only then realizing it had been raining all night.
He saw that it was still early and tried to go back to sleep, but he couldn’t shake a bad feeling.
A few years ago, a torrential downpour had caused a major collapse at the Central Command.
Furthermore, a river ran through the Central Command. They implemented flood control measures every year, precisely because they feared a disaster if the rain became too heavy.
Elder Shaw tossed and turned. ’It should be fine,’ he thought. ’We’ve been keeping up with the work on that for the past few years.’
Ten minutes later, another clap of thunder cracked through the air, and someone began pounding on his door.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Just as he was drifting off, Elder Shaw was jolted awake again. He hastily threw on some clothes and got out of bed.
Outside the door was his assistant.
"Elder Shaw!" the assistant cried out urgently. "A building in the residential district has collapsed!"
It wasn’t just the building that had collapsed; Elder Shaw’s world came crashing down as well. ’And I was just thinking everything would be fine!’
He rushed to finish dressing and headed outside, asking, "What’s the situation? Are there any casualties? Has everyone been evacuated?"
The assistant stammered, "There are... about a hundred..."
"What?" Elder Shaw exclaimed in shock.
’They may just be ordinary people, but they’re still people! Those are living human lives!’
Besides, the buildings in this residential district had all been built in the last few years. How could they be as fragile as paper, collapsing from a bit of rain?
Elder Shaw’s thoughts inevitably turned to some unsavory possibilities, and his expression darkened as he continued to ask for details.
He went to the residential district to see the situation for himself. It wasn’t just one or two buildings that had collapsed—it was an entire block!
No fewer than six or seven three-story buildings had collapsed. The people inside had all been sleeping; they never stood a chance of escaping.
Elder Shaw was in a foul mood. He remembered these buildings being constructed just last year. No matter how poor the construction, how could it possibly be this bad?
...
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