Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm

Chapter 445 Putting Down Roots

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It took the three guys a day to set up the solar panels and backup generator. While they were doing that, Chen Zi Han and I were setting up the kitchen and pantry with all of our food supplies. This was the first time in a little over a year that I fully and completely stocked a house with the intent and purpose of staying there long term. 

In fact, since my first life back in Canada, I had only done this once before, and that was when I moved into the ranch. The feeling of putting down roots was so profound that I paused for a second and just looked around. 

There were plants all around on different shelves and tables, bringing life to the place. Cupboards were filled with breakable china dishes that I had never been able to use before but always kept… just in case. Blankets were thrown on every couch, ottoman, and chair, ready to be used as we curled up in front of the TV or fireplace. I even placed a sectional facing one of the glass walls with a few throw pillows and blankets on it just in case I wanted to stare out the window and marvel at the beauty of nature. 

Chen Zi Han and I found another room near the front of the house to act as a study/library. I added the leather furniture that Liu Yu Zeng picked out and filled the built-in bookshelves with every book I had in my space. 

The best part? There was still room for plenty of books.

That night, after we finished eating the chicken pot pie that Chen Zi Han made, we curled up in the family room and put on a movie. Cuddled between Wang Chao and Liu Wei, I drifted off to sleep to the sound of aliens invading. 

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The days became months, and slowly, spring turned into summer and then fall. 

I walked out of the house and went to track down my men, who had taken this time to start training. I was legitimately surprised to learn that Liu Yu Zeng remembered my request that he start training if he wanted to always be by my side. I had a little over a year to go before I would have to rejoin the rest of the world and say goodbye to this life… or at least a temporary goodbye. 

But I needed to deal with a few things before I could retire up here and never deal with people again. I think my biggest problem was how much my men spoiled me and catered to me. It made it all that much harder to leave.

"Dinner!" I called out, and my voice echoed all around me. 

"Be right there!" Wang Chao called. Turning around, I headed back to the cabin, knowing that the guys would be back as soon as they were done for the day. Breathing out, I noticed my breath turning foggy. I would need to start preparing everything for winter, but for the first time, the idea of snow coming didn't freak me out. 

No, this place truly was paradise. 

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I waited until all the guys had left our house before doing one final walkthrough. I had put all the perishables into my space, but I didn't want to miss something and take the chance of it going rotten before we got back. 

"Don't worry," said Wang Chao, pulling me into his arms as I stood in front of the wall of glass, staring out over the mountains. "We will be back," he promised. 

"I know," I said with a sigh. It had been two years since we moved into the cabin. In just over two weeks, it will be the anniversary of when I transmigrated here for the first time, and I needed to put my plans into gear. 

I had no intentions of saving humans; in fact, I was hoping that there wouldn't be that many to save. But even after all this time, I can still picture that healer getting shot in the head trying to give me my freedom. I needed to go save her; I needed to deal with all my demons if I wanted to truly live my life on my own terms. 

Besides, I haven't seen Violence or any of my other personalities since I moved up here, and I was kind of missing them. 

"We will be back," repeated Wang Chao. "Even if we have to destroy every last creature on Earth, we will be back."

"I know," I answered. Come Hell or high water, we would be back. And when that time came, I was going to put down roots.

----

The streets were empty as we drove down them, with the only sounds of the motorcycles cutting through the silence. Tumbleweeds drifted across the highway as weeds encroached on the once-smooth pavement.

"I will have to admit," said Liu Yu Zeng, his voice coming across the speakers of Cerberus' cab. "When I first thought of a zombie apocalypse, this was what I had in mind."

I hummed in agreement as I studied the forest on either side of us. I could feel the zombies staring at us, but not one of them made a move. Unperturbed, we continued following the road. We had two weeks to get to one of the smaller suburbs outside of City A, and given the road conditions, we were going to need every minute of those two weeks. 

"Ever get the feeling you are being watched?" asked Liu Wei from where he drove behind me. Unlike before, where all four bikes would go in front, my men opted for more of a cage formation where I was completely surrounded by them. 

Wang Chao and Ares, who were driving out front, snorted at his remark. "Yeah, almost as if we were surrounded by zombies," he smirked. 

"No," said Chen Zi Han slowly, "I feel it too. And it is not zombies."

His remark caused everyone to go back to being quiet as tension mounted inside of my men. If it wasn't the zombies keeping an eye on us, and I knew that there were zombies doing just that, then who was staring at us?

"Stop!" shouted a man as he walked out in front of Wang Chao, holding up his gun. "This is a robbery."