After preparing every last supply she could think of for Leonard, it was already quite late.
Suzyâs storage space was overflowingâpacked with more items than anyone could imagine. Everything she could think of was there... and even plenty she hadnât.
She had even filled two large bottles with spirit spring water for him, nearly draining her own carefully hoarded reserves.
The two of them busied themselves with various odds and ends, and before they knew it, the night had grown deep.
Suzy yawned, covering her mouth. "Uncle, Iâm heading back to my room. You should get some rest too."
Leonard nodded, gesturing for her to go.
Suzy slept straight through until the middle of the night. When she woke and checked the time, it was already two in the morning.
She took out a glass of water from her storage space and drank it in one go.
Just as she was about to lie back down, a faint, rustling noise drifted in from the living room.
It was an odd soundâdifficult to describe.
A flicker of suspicion crossed her mind.
Could it be a mouse?
That seemed impossible.
The safehouse had been sealed so thoroughly that it kept out even insects. There was no way a rodent could get in.
A thief? Even less likely. The doors and windows were secured like a fortress. If someone could break in, sheâd almost admire them.
Still... the noise persisted.
After a momentâs hesitation, Suzy decided to check.
She opened her bedroom door, stepped past the entryway, and noticed a dim light still glowing in the living room.
Peeking inside, she nearly didnât recognize her own home.
The living room was completely empty.
Every single piece of furniture had vanished.
And the "culprit" was standing by the fridgeâapparently in the middle of restoring the scene.
"Uncle... what are you doing up in the middle of the night?"
Suzyâs sudden voice startled Leonard so badly that he nearly jumped out of his skin.
He turned around, utterly embarrassed.
Great. Caught red-handed by his own niece.
Suzy glanced from Leonard to the stripped-bare room.
Leonard let out an awkward laugh. "Haha... Iâll put everything back right now."
In no time at all, every piece of furniture returned to its placeâarranged even more neatly than before.
He cleared his throat. "I just thought I should practice using my storage ability more, so..."
"So you stayed up all night stuffing the entire living room into your space?"
Leonard had just taken out the final sofa when he suddenly collapsed onto it.
"Uncle? Whatâs wrong?"
He turned his head weakly, groaning, "My head... it hurts. I feel like Iâm going to throw up... ughâ"
"Thatâs normal," Suzy said calmly. "I forgot to mentionâoverusing your storage ability can cause dizziness, nausea, and even vomiting."
Leonard groaned louder. "Suzy! Why didnât you tell me sooner?!"
She sighed, exasperated. "I didnât expect you to stay up all night playing with it in the living room."
She understood how fascinating it must feel to gain such an ability for the first timeâbut this was a bit much.
Leonard lowered his head silently, his face burning with embarrassment.
This was beyond humiliating.
Suzy suggested he drink some of the spirit spring waterâit might help him recover.
She didnât have much left herself. What sheâd already taken out had all been given to him, so now heâd have to use his own supply.
Fortunately, it worked.
Leonard retrieved a bottle from his storage space and took a few gulps. The churning nausea and urge to vomit subsided almost instantly.
The cool, sweet liquid spread across his mouth, soothing and refreshing. Remembering its benefits, he took a few more eager sips.
"Feeling better?" Suzy asked.
Leonard nodded. "Much better."
Only after watching him restore everything in the house did Suzy finally return to her room.
Leonard didnât linger in the living room either.
After so many attempts, his mental energy was completely drained. Though the nausea had faded, the headache still lingered.
This time, he obediently went back to his room to rest.
The living room fell silent once more.
But Suzy tossed and turned, unable to fall back asleep.
The rain outside was relentless, hammering against her windows in a steady, noisy rhythm.
With a quiet sigh, she sat up, switched on a small lamp, and picked up her phone to check on the situation at the Kale family home.
And what she saw... was unexpectedly interesting.
The Kale residence was still brightly lit, even at this hour.
The generator Wendy had prepared was enough to keep things running for quite some time.
But it seemed Wendy had no intention of returningâSuzy didnât see her anywhere.
And without Wendy...
The entire household had descended into chaos.
"Tommy, maybe we should go take a look too," Vanessa urged softly.
Tommy waved his hand dismissively. "Ah, whatâs the point? It has nothing to do with us. And Nessa, youâre pregnantâyou shouldnât be getting caught up in this. Just stay here and rest."
He still hadnât grasped how serious the situation was.
To him, whether there were supplies or not didnât really matter. His parents would never let him go hungry anyway.
He had long grown used to George and Fiona arranging everything for him.
Besides, even if he went, what difference would it make? If the supplies were truly gone, his presence wouldnât magically bring them back.
"...Alright," Vanessa said, no longer insisting. She obediently sat beside himâbut a flicker of something dark passed through her eyes.
It didnât take long before George and the members of the Sanders family arrived at the storage room.
The moment George saw what lay inside, his vision swam, and he nearly blacked out.
The storage room was in complete disarray.
Boxes were scattered everywhere, toppled and crookedâand the most obvious thing was that nearly all of them were empty.
Only a handful still contained supplies, and even those held very little.
"H-how is this possible?!"
George was truly on the verge of breaking down.
How could so many supplies just vanish into thin air?
They had clearly been there before Wendy left.
This made no sense!
He had personally come to inspect the storage room back thenâhe had seen the boxes filled to the brim with supplies.
That was precisely why he hadnât felt the slightest bit anxious. With that much stock, their family could survive for years. What was there to worry about?
It was that very confidence that led him to allow Tommy to bring Vanessa into the houseâand even take in the rest of the Sanders family.
His sense of security had come entirely from those supplies.
And now... he was being told they were all gone.
It wasnât just the Sanders family that was finished.
He was finished too.