"Here are the keys, sir. Make sure to return the truck in five days," the owner of the vehicle said, his voice carrying a mix of formality and curiosity.
"Thank you," Lucian replied, his eyes lingering on the large truck he had rented.
After consulting with the renovation team and adding last-minute adjustments, Lucian had spent 250,000 Starlight on the upgrades. He also transferred 4,000,000 Starlight to Leonielle for the guns and another 350,000 to Clay for additional medicines. That left him with only 1,879,935 Starlight—It wasn't much, but it would have to do; he planned to purchase the remaining supplies within the city.
Sliding into the driver's seat, he started the engine and made his way to the nearby public market.
Vendors shouted, children ran past stalls, and the scents of fresh produce, grilled meats, and the salty tang of the nearby sea filled the air. The streets were alive with people, completely unaware of the looming apocalypse.
Lucian parked carefully and slung a cross-body bag over his shoulder, carrying only his essentials—phone, wallet, keys. He stepped out and entered the bustling market.
He headed first to the wet market, where he methodically purchased 80 kilograms of every part of pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, lambs, and beef, explaining to the curious vendors that it was for a company recreational camp for 4,000 employees over fifteen days.
The city's proximity to the ocean made sourcing seafood effortless. Lucian roamed the fish and seafood section, repeating the same reasoning, while loading 80 kilograms of various fish—tilapia, mackerel, bass, tuna, sardines, milkfish, salmon, eel, carp—and 50 kilograms of squid, octopus, kelp, shrimp, crabs, and more into his truck. The total for this massive seafood haul came to 358,672 Starlight.
Next, he moved to the vegetable section. With careful attention, he selected 70 kilograms of 50 types of vegetables—potatoes, cabbage, carrots, squash, eggplants, and more—spending another 206,981 Starlight. By now, the truck was packed to the brim.
Lucian gave the market staff a polite excuse that he would return after delivering the items to his company. In reality, he drove to a secluded location where he could safely transfer everything into his space.
Lucian didn't return to the public market. Instead, he drove toward a well-known mall that catered to wholesale buyers.
Before entering, he made a brief stop at his private space. The effort of loading and unloading the previous haul had left him drenched in sweat, and with the virus already spreading through the country, even his system offered no guarantees. He carefully disinfected himself, wiping away the grime and changing into fresh clothes.
Stepping out of the space, Lucian was dressed in khaki pants, a black short-sleeve turtleneck, and black running shoes. He pulled on a black cap and mask, obscuring his face and keeping his presence low-profile, then slid into the mall with practiced ease.
With 1,314,282 Starlight remaining, Lucian let himself dive into a spree of wholesale shopping.
Lucian first headed to the food section, moving with quiet efficiency. He picked up all the items he had meticulously listed the day before and added a few extras—cookies, cereals, and some of the favorite snacks of his omegas. He didn't overdo it; for most items, he limited himself to seven boxes or sacks at most, spending a total of 750,345 Starlight. He avoided buying anything else, intentionally keeping his purchases modest enough not to draw attention.
As the staff loaded his purchases into the truck, he instructed them that anything that wouldn't fit should be sent to the warehouse address he had provided.
Once that was done, Lucian walked around the mall, looking at everything carefully. When the apocalypse eventually hits, this place will be a goldmine. People would rush for food and essentials, leaving items like hardware, clothes, and specialty goods largely ignored. Lucian, however, would take full advantage, collecting what others ignored without spending extra.
Since he was already at the mall, Lucian decided to order fast food from five popular establishments.
At the first fast food place, he ordered 50 combo sets, each containing their signature crispy fried chicken, steaming rice, spaghetti, golden fries, and a sundae, spending 15,750 Starlight.
Next, he moved to a well-known pizza shop, carefully selecting 5 boxes of 10 different flavors to satisfy every possible taste. He picked classics like pepperoni, Hawaiian, and margherita, along with capricciosa topped with pizza sauce, mozzarella, ham, artichoke, mushrooms, and olives. He also added indulgent options such as BBQ chicken overload, meat lovers' pizza stacked with sausages, bacon, and pepperoni, garlic butter prawns with chili, a four-cheese blend, garlic and cheese, their famous supreme overload, and the unusual yet surprisingly tasty sweet corn pizza, and the total cost was 28,350 Starlight.
Lucian then went to a popular milk tea shop. He selected 15 different flavors, ordering five large drinks of each, totaling 8,250 Starlight. Afterwards, he visited a fried chicken chain, famous for its crispy skin and juicy meat. He bought 10 boxes in six flavors, each containing 10 pieces of chicken. The golden, sizzling pieces were loaded into boxes carefully, and the total was 21,000 Starlight.
Finally, he stopped at a renowned fast-food stall known for its specialty double-patty burgers. He ordered 100 pieces, each stacked high with cheese, lettuce, and sauces, paying 30,500 Starlight.
After all these purchases, Lucian had 460,087 Starlight left.
By around 2:30 pm, Lucian had finished collecting all the goods and placing his orders. After leaving the mall, he drove to a secluded area and carefully transferred everything into his space.
With time still on his side, he decided to pick up all the jewelry and antiques he had ordered the day before. The remaining items from his previous purchases were arranged to be sent directly to his hotel address.
As he finished collecting the last piece, he waved his hand casually, and a notification pinged sharply in his mind.
DING
[System detects mass conversion]
• 20 Jade
• 30 Gold
• 80 Silver
• 100 Copper
[Do you want to convert this? ]
Yes / No
Lucian didn't hesitate and chose [Yes].
DING
[Congratulations! You have received 120 Survival Points and 120 EXP]
DING
[Name: Lucian Wang]
Level: 2 (150/300 EXP)
Strength: 16/50 [+]
Agility: 11/50 [+]
Endurance: 19/50 [+]
Speed: 13/50 [+]
Charm: 20/50 [+]
Skill Points: 0
Inventory Slots: 2/3 [+]
• Teleportation Pill (1)
• System Manual
Survival Points: 170
Quest: [1 Available]
Space: (Level 1)
"Collecting jewelry and antiques really makes leveling up easier," Lucian said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "If I remember correctly, I saw a news article about an antique bazaar in City D tomorrow."
He grabbed his phone and quickly searched for it online. When he found the article, his eyes lit up with excitement. With that confirmed, he began rearranging his schedule in his mind to fit the new plan.
After circling the city, around 4:30 pm, Lucian received a bank notification along with a message from Boston.
[105,000,000 Starlight has been deposited into your account.]
[Mr. Wang, we finally sold all of your shares; only the properties remain unsold.]
[Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Boston. As a token of appreciation, I'll be sending you 5,000,000 Starlight as a bonus.]
[Mr. Wang, you don't have to.]
[It's no big deal. By the way, I've received information that the new virus has entered our country. You should use the money to stock up—food and possibly weapons.]
After sending the bonus and ignoring Boston's reply, Lucian turned his focus back to the task at hand. With the newly added funds, he headed straight to a hardware store, ready to continue his extensive shopping spree without hesitation.
Lucian started in the gardening section, selecting tools that could double as weapons if needed. He picked up 10 each of shovels, hoes, trowels, sickles, rakes, shears, sprayers, bolos, and wheelbarrows. He also bought 30 plant boxes and vases in every size, 40 sacks of various types of soil and fertilizer, and 50 bottles of insect repellents. Even though his space had plenty of room, he knew it would be a long time before he reached level 20 and unlocked the planting skill, so for now he planned to grow plants on his balcony. He also stocked up on a variety of seeds—fruits, vegetables, and flowers—thinking of one of his omegas, who was a florist.
Next, he moved to construction and hardware supplies. He bought 5 boxes each of nails and screws in different sizes, 5 boxes each of glues, tapes, bolts, and sealants, 10 hand tool sets, 5 ladders, and another 5 pieces each of axes, saws, power drills, and chainsaws. He added 20 rolls of nets and wires, protective plastics, anti-radiation sheets, waterproof sheets, and UV-resistant sheets. For larger construction needs, he purchased 70 sacks each of concrete, lime, gravel, plaster, and sand, along with 150 pieces of steel, cement blocks, bricks, pipes in various sizes, planks, plywood, and rebar.
Lucian wanted to buy even more, but by now he had drawn the attention of some noisy and curious customers. To defuse suspicion, he calmly explained that he was an intern at a construction company and that this was a test from his boss. Most people accepted the explanation and even cheered him on.
Though his social battery was nearly depleted, Lucian knew he had no choice but to interact politely, especially with vendors and staff. He wasn't subtle in his shopping, so people naturally became curious. Since there was a chance he might encounter them again during the apocalypse, he always gave the same explanation—that he was buying for the company or others—so no one would suspect he was stocking up for himself.
Leonielle had warned him that the rich were always the primary targets during a crisis. Lucian was capable of fighting, but being outnumbered would be dangerous—especially since he planned to bring his omegas home. As their alpha, it was his responsibility to protect them at all costs.
After finishing the main purchases, he quietly informed the sales supervisor that he was also ordering 100 sets of solar panels, 30 generators of various types, and 50 water tanks and barrels, all to be delivered directly to his warehouse.
By the time he was done, he had spent around 5,508,976 Starlight. While waiting for the staff to load everything into the truck, Lucian surveyed the store carefully, noting items he planned to scavenge later.
Around 6:45 pm, the staff had finished loading all of Lucian's purchases. Most malls and large stores in the city closed at 8:00 pm, but he still had one more stop to make. Before heading out, he disinfected his body once again and changed into a gray long-sleeve tracksuit, white shoes, and a white cap and face mask to conceal his identity. Once ready, he drove thirty minutes to a well-known outdoor gear store.
He explained to the owner that he and his friends were planning to climb the highest mountain in Blue Star, and he had been tasked with purchasing all the necessary camping and climbing equipment. He also told the staff there would be twenty people, so they helped him select items in bulk.
Lucian carefully cross-referenced his survival list as he picked out gear: 40 sleeping bags, 10 thermal tents, 40 thermal and waterproof sleeping bags with snowboards, 100 pieces of thermal underwear in various sizes and genders, 40 assault jackets, cold-resistant jackets, wool hats and gloves, knee-high non-slip rain boots, hiking boots, crampons, ultraviolet-resistant snow goggles, 200 ice screws, climbing ropes, harnesses, screw gates, safety devices for ascending and descending, 50 climbing helmets, portable heaters and stoves, ice hammers, outdoor hiking bags, 100 multifunctional wilderness survival kits, and more.
The store owner joked that it seemed excessive for just twenty people. Lucian calmly explained that his friends were picky and he wanted to buy enough options so they could choose what suited them best without multiple trips.
Impressed by the volume of his purchase, the owner offered him a discount and included five boxes of compressed biscuits and ten moisture-proof mats. Lucian completed the transaction, paying a total of 2,256,907 Starlight.
After receiving all the items and transferring them into his space, Lucian decided to make a stop at the city night market, famous for its wide array of cuisines from across Blue Stars.
There, he continued his extensive hoarding. He purchased around 50 pieces each of Eastern dishes—jianbing, rou jia mo, dumplings, steamed buns, pork, chicken, squid, and lamb skewers, deep-fried scallion pancakes, roasted duck, xiaolongbao, wonton soup, and tanghulu. He also grabbed 30 pieces each of kimbap, rice cakes, japchae noodles, corn dogs, red bean paste bread, takoyaki, dango, mochi, okonomiyaki, taiyaki, karaage, onigiri, yakisoba, and more.
Not forgetting Western foods, he bought roughly 50 pieces of pancakes, hotdogs, tacos, burritos, churros, fries, burgers, crepes, cakes, breads, milkshakes, sundaes, and ice cream. He even added five boxes of beer to his haul. The total cost for all the night market purchases came to 145,769 Starlight.
After calculating his remaining funds, Lucian still had 92,548,435 Starlight. Back at the truck, he decided to place additional online orders for delivery to his warehouse, spending 5,649,941 Starlight. With 86,898,494 Starlight left, he turned his attention to the final task on his itinerary for the day.