Chapter 47: Chapter 47: The Cooldown Continues

Vincent and Elliot Lawrence weren’t Reincarnators, so they ultimately lacked the ability to predict the future.

Although Sue Lawrence had warned them early on about the dangers of extreme heat and acid rain, the extreme cold was imminent. The temperature had been dropping day by day, and the news was filled with cold weather warnings from all over. A wave of panic buying had already swept through the supermarkets. Shelves of rice, flour, and oil were mostly empty, and even cotton-padded clothes and heat packs had become hot commodities.

The father-son duo were practical-minded. Believing the most urgent task was to fend off the bone-chilling cold, they focused solely on stockpiling winter supplies.

But Sue Lawrence knew with crystal clarity that the extreme cold was merely the prelude to this apocalyptic catastrophe. The extreme heat that would follow would bake the earth until it cracked, the acid rain would corrode everything, and then there was the radiation—localized, yet deadly. Not a single one of these threats could be taken lightly.

However, it was already late at night, and the factories wouldn’t open until the next morning. By her calculations, they had only seven days left to make their final preparations.

"Don’t worry, we have enough time." Sue Lawrence met her family’s anxious gazes, her tone firm. "The temperature is dropping gradually. It won’t suddenly become unbearably cold. We still have time."

After all the preparations over the past few days, she had long since become the family’s backbone. As she finished speaking, the tense expressions on Vincent Lawrence and the others visibly relaxed, and they all nodded in agreement.

"The residential solar generator and the latest model hydro-generator I ordered will be delivered tomorrow," Vincent Lawrence said in a low voice, a thoughtful and steady look in his eyes. "Whether we end up needing them or not, it’s never a mistake to be over-prepared."

Sue Lawrence immediately broke into a grin, praising him sincerely, "That’s my dad! You think of everything. So reliable!"

The praise from his daughter brought a smile to the old man’s eyes, but he just waved his hand. "Alright, everyone get to bed early tonight. We need to rest up. We’ve got a busy day tomorrow."

"Right!"

After a hasty dinner, the family gathered in the living room, their eyes glued to the television screen.

The news was dominated by reports of extreme cold in the northernmost nation of Ursia.

A temperature of negative forty degrees was usually commonplace for Ursia, but this year, it had arrived a full week early. The severe cold, which had never been specially reported in the past, was now headline news. Forty centimeters of snow had buried the roads. Cars parked outdoors were frozen and wouldn’t start. In some cases, engines had cracked from the cold, totaling the vehicles completely.

The living room was so quiet they could hear each other breathing. Only after the news ended did they get up and return to their rooms.

"Mommy."

A small, childish voice called out from behind her. Sue Lawrence turned to see her son, Leo, standing at the bedroom doorway. His little hands were clutching the hem of his shirt, his eyes filled with a look of dependence and hope.

"Can I... sleep with you tonight, Mommy?"

Sue Lawrence had been run off her feet these past few days. She spent her days coordinating supplies and her nights sneaking out to transport them. If she hadn’t awakened her Space Ability, she probably wouldn’t have even had time to sleep.

Seeing her son’s soft, cuddly appearance, Sue Lawrence’s heart melted. She stepped forward and pulled him into a tight hug. "Of course you can, my little treasure."

After his bath, Sue Lawrence tucked her sweet-smelling, soft-skinned son into bed. She wrapped him snugly in layers of thick blankets before lying down beside him. Inhaling the scent of his body wash, she couldn’t resist lowering her head and pressing her cheek against his smooth skin. The soft, warm contact seemed to melt away much of the exhaustion from the past several days.

"Haha! Mommy, that tickles!" Leo giggled as she nuzzled him, his little body squirming under the covers.

The two of them laughed and played for a bit before Leo obediently turned over. He wrapped his chubby little arms tightly around Sue Lawrence’s neck, nuzzled his head into her shoulder, and closed his eyes, quickly drifting off to sleep.

Sue Lawrence took a soft breath. In the darkness, her gaze fell upon her son’s peaceful, sleeping face.

His long eyelashes, like raven feathers, cast faint shadows beneath his eyes, and his chubby cheeks glowed with a healthy flush.

She raised her hand, her fingertips gently brushing across her son’s cheek. She vowed silently in her heart, ’Leo, this time, Mommy will never let you suffer the slightest bit, and I will never, ever entrust you to anyone else.’

* * *

「Meanwhile, at the Stellaport military air-raid shelter.」

Theodore Frost stood ramrod straight in the biting wind, his gaze heavy as he watched truck after truck, laden with supplies, enter the base.

The wide brim of his military cap was pulled low, casting a shadow over his face and obscuring his sharp, hawk-like eyes. A heavy greatcoat was wrapped tightly around his imposing frame, and the military belt at his waist cinched a lean waistline. Black, high-top leather boots encased his long, sturdy calves. Every detail bespoke the iron will and fortitude of a soldier.

Anyone who saw him like this couldn’t help but be struck by the thought that the empire’s rise, just as it appeared in the Agence France-Presse photos, was filled with an unshakeable power.

"All the equipment and supplies from the armory have been moved to the underground warehouse."

Theodore Frost turned to Silas Hawthorne beside him, his tone dismissive. "Most of the items donated by these Stellaport entrepreneurs are more for show than for use. Only the half of their assets donated by the Lawrence Family has any real weight. That two million from the Sterling Family is just a drop in the bucket. It won’t even make a ripple."

Silas Hawthorne ignored the commentary, his brow furrowed slightly. He asked only about what concerned him most. "Have all the air-raid shelters been connected?"

"Don’t worry, it’s all been taken care of," Theodore Frost confirmed with a nod. "If we still want to dig deeper and expand the space, that’s not a problem either."

"Regardless, we must guarantee the power supply to the lowest level," Silas Hawthorne’s voice was firm and allowed no room for argument. "The power absolutely cannot go out."

At his words, even the typically unflappable Theodore Frost’s expression grew serious. "Rest assured, the leadership has already requested the latest high-tech generators from their superiors. The approval has already come through, and they’ll be shipped here soon."

The two fell silent for a moment. A biting wind, carrying flurries of snow, swept past, and Theodore Frost couldn’t help but shiver. Only then did Silas Hawthorne speak again. "Continue organizing snow removal for the next few days. No matter what, we must prioritize keeping the main transportation arteries clear."

"Sir!" Theodore Frost raised his hand in a salute, his voice firm and resonant.

The night grew deeper, but the city lights remained as bright as ever.

Snowplows moved in formation, traversing back and forth along the main roads. Their headlights sliced through the darkness as they pushed the accumulating snow to the side of the road.

But the snow and wind came faster. By the next morning, snow accumulation in the city had reached 30 centimeters, and the temperature had dropped to negative sixteen degrees Celsius.

As dawn broke, the city, which had fallen silent for a night, roared back to life.

Snow was cleared and plows opened the roads. People, bundled tightly in down jackets, hurried to work. Supplies brought in by the municipal government were swarmed by waiting citizens the moment they were unloaded. The panic buying was even more intense than in the days prior.

Early in the morning, after washing up, the Lawrence Family sat in a circle in the first-floor living room, twisting spider silk.

Three strands per person. With six family members, they could only twist eighteen strands a day. They had been at this for over twenty days, yet the bundle of silk they had saved up was less than three millimeters thick. The silk was just too fine, making it incredibly laborious to twist.

"At this rate, when are we ever going to have enough to make a single piece of clothing?" Elliot Lawrence couldn’t help but complain.