Chapter 3


    Ste was startled, hastily scanning with her mind. Arcadia was there, so were the supplies. She


    attempted to use her mind to retrieve items and found herself holding a coal ball. She scanned with


    her mind again, realizing that the light timer was at zero.


    Ste understood then. Arcadia could only stay for two hours. Two hours. It was better than


    nothing.-


    After her shower, it was already past midnight. Ste nced at Arcadia, a new two hours were


    added to her ount, and she breathed a sigh of relief.


    Unable to sleep, she resorted to mtonin. She dreamt again of being chased and hacked at by a


    group of people, the rusty knives descending heavily onto her. Ste woke up in a cold sweat.


    At five in the morning, it was still dark outside. She entered Arcadia and checked the stockpiled


    supplies to calm her nerves. Instead of going back to sleep, she grabbed her car keys and headed


    to thergest farmers'' market.


    The sky was just beginning to lighten, and the outside of the farmers’ market was bustling with


    crowds of vehicles and people.


    Ste went to the vegetable section to buy fresh produce still dewy from the morning. She got


    100lbs each of various vegetables like zhini, pumpkin, radish, eggnt, and string beans, and


    200lbs of potatoes and sweet potatoes. She bought 100lbs each of ginger and garlic, which could


    be nted and also used as seasoning. In the freezing weather, a bowl of ginger soup could be


    lifesaving. She spent around 4000 dors on all these.


    Next, she went to the grains section. She bought 100 bags of 50lbs rice, 50 bags of 50lbs flour,


    500lbs of pasta. She also bought 200lbs each of various beans and 50rge jars each of soy oil,


    olive oil, and sunflower oil. These alone would be enough for her to eat for 30 years.


    She then stocked up on spices and condiments like ketchup, vinegar, and yellow mustard, and


    boughtrge amounts of sugar and salt. She knew that salt was crucial for survival. In her past life,


    she saw someone used one pack of salt to trade for 30lbs of pasta. If it wasn’t for the limited space


    in Arcadia, she would love to stocked tons of salt.


    N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    Ste then went to the meat section. She ordered 200lbs each of various meats including pork,


    beef,mb, and rabbit, and 100 each of chicken and duck. She also bought 50 geese.


    The owner was shocked, "Ste, are you joking?"


    His wife worked at the ughterhouse, and Ste had referred many clients to earnmission,


    "For family wedding feasts. Could you give me a discount?"


    "Of course! I''ll give you a 30% discount!"


    Buying meat was very expensive. The price of pork had only recently dropped, but beef and mutton


    prices hadn''t fallen, so getting goods from someone familiar was the most cost-effective.


    The total expenses were about 30,000. Ste didn''t haggle over the price, but she did make another


    request - two bone-chopping knives and ughtering knives. Self-defense weapons were


    necessary, but she neither had time nor resource, so she had to do this out of expediency.


    The owner was scared, "What are you going to do with them?"


    "Don''t worry. I''m not going tomit a crime."


    Considering the profit and personal rtionship, the owner readily agreed.


    Then she went to the fish stall and ordered 100 fish.


    She bought 3000 chicken eggs and 1000 duck eggs, and also bought a small home-use egg


    incubator.


    Thinking of Arcadia''s garden, Ste bought vegetable seeds of dozens of varieties, all of which had


    short growth cycles.


    She also bought some fruit tree saplings, including apple trees, grapevines, and orange trees, three


    of each kind.


    Ste also bought a pair of breeding rabbits. Rabbits could be raised on vegetables and reproduced


    quickly, which could definitely meet her meat needs.


    After spending so much money, she felt very pained, but thinking about the supplies that were


    continuously umting in Arcadia, she felt an indescribable satisfaction and confidence.


    She spent the whole day at the farmers'' market, and when she came out, the streets were brightly


    lit and bustling with crowds of vehicles and people. The most exciting part of the day was just


    beginning.


    Ste went to a restaurant and ordered pork ribs, meatballs, and scrambled eggs. She enjoyed a


    hearty meal and didn''t forget to take away the leftovers.


    There was still time when she got home, so she busied herself organizing Arcadia, filling therge


    room with supplies, cing the vegetables and fruit tree saplings in the living room, and raising the


    breeding rabbits on the balcony.


    Ste made a clever move and exited Arcadia when the timer had 10 minutes left. As soon as she


    left Arcadia, the two breeding rabbits were kicked out.


    Ste was first frustrated, then overjoyed. It seemed that other living things couldn''t stay if she


    wasn''t there. This meant that others couldn''t take her stuff away.


    Feeling good, she sat down to check what she was missing. She had bought everything she could


    think of, and her ount bnce was around 20000 dors.


    Arcadia was down to just the living room and the bathroom, and there was still a lot to prepare if she


    wanted to survive the uing super storm. She decided against hoarding bulky supplies any


    longer.


    She opened up her food delivery app and scanned through well-reputed restaurants that she had


    always wanted to try but could never justify. Jumbo shrimp in garlic sauce, chicken Alfredo, sushi


    roll, lobster bisque, and over twenty other dishes, she ordered ten of each.


    Donuts, french fries, bagels, burritos, beef patties, toasts, kebabs, barbecue, smoothie, and dozens


    of other items.


    She spent over $10,000, and to ensure freshness, she chose to pick everything up herself at the


    scheduled time. It was tiring, but she wanted to witness the city''s final bustling moments.


    In the afternoon, she received a notification that school was cancelled for at least three days due to


    the uing hurricane. The return date was to be announcedter.


    The students cheered and celebrated, inviting friends to party and live it up before the storm hit.


    Having experienced a dozen hurricanes every year on the southern coast, they had always hoped


    for school cancetions. This time, their wish was granted.


    Ste was no different, but they didn''t realize that this time, it was real. They would never have to go


    to school again.


    With a mixed feelings, she sat down for barbeque and a cold beer, continuing her pickups in the city.


    Upon returning home, Ste had a nagging feeling that she had forgotten something important. But


    what could it be?