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00:00Leave her alone. Let's rest and get our bearings.
00:03Over the following days, we mapped the base.
00:05Around 5,000 survivors.
00:07The majority were civilians with no cultivation ability and no magical animal.
00:11A small fraction had some level of training and bonded mates.
00:14The base ran a strict allocation system.
00:16Resources distributed by contribution level and cultivation tier.
00:20Victoria established herself quickly.
00:22The tier 4 bear was enough to pull in followers,
00:24and she assembled a decent-sized crew within the first week.
00:27She used them to push people around.
00:30The kind of entitlement that survives context changes because it was never really about context.
00:35One afternoon in the base cafeteria, she walked in with her group and found us eating.
00:39You have some nerve.
00:41These rations are for people who actually contribute,
00:43not passengers who coast on the strength of their magic animal.
00:46Leo set down its jerky strip. Its eyes went flat.
00:48Repeat that.
00:49Victoria was visibly unnerved, but committed.
00:52I called you a passenger.
00:54Your fox got lucky hitting tier 4. That doesn't make you anything special.
00:57I set my chopsticks down, stood up, and said,
00:59Then let's settle it.
01:00If you win, I don't set foot in this cafeteria again.
01:03If I win, you leave the base and stop terrorizing everyone in it.
01:08Victoria's expression lit up.
01:09She'd wanted this for days.
01:12Deal!
01:12Don't cry when you lose.
01:14People crowded in from three directions.
01:16On the first day of school, the teachers handed out magical animals based on grades.
01:21Valedictorian and class president Victoria didn't even hesitate.
01:24She walked straight up and grabbed the SSS tier white fox.
01:27I was dead last in the class rankings.
01:29I got assigned a single F tier brown bear.
01:33Then the ice apocalypse hit.
01:34Because I'd bonded with the brown bear, I shared its innate ability.
01:37Cold resistance.
01:39Victoria's white fox never had the chance to grow.
01:41On day one of the apocalypse, it froze to death.
01:43That wasn't the worst part.
01:45Fueled by jealousy, Victoria rallied the others and jumped me.
01:48They killed my bear.
01:49Then they roasted steaks right in front of me, while they ate.
01:52I was so overwhelmed with grief and died.
01:55When I opened my eyes again, I was back.
01:57Back to the day they handed out magical animals.
01:59As the dead last student of the werewolf academy, I was always picked last.
02:03And sure enough, the only magical animal left was the brown bear.
02:07I was reaching for it when Victoria suddenly shouted from across the room.
02:10Wait!
02:11She sprinted over, clutching a small white fox kit, and shoved it into my arms without a word.
02:16Then she picked up the brown bear from its crate.
02:18You take the white fox.
02:20I want the brown bear.
02:22The entire classroom went silent.
02:24Even Mr. Harris, our homeroom teacher, frowned.
02:27Everyone knew the white fox had the purest bloodline of any familiar in this batch.
02:31Its ancient lineage concentration was 80%.
02:33The brown bear's was barely 20, and it was considered a low-tier species.
02:37Mr. Harris leaned forward.
02:40Victoria, choosing your bonded animal isn't something to joke about.
02:43This determines your ceiling for the rest of your life.
02:47Sir, Riley needs this white fox more than I do.
02:50My grades are strong.
02:52I can train fast no matter what magical animal I bond with.
02:56But Riley's talent for cultivation is average.
02:59If she's also stuck with a low-blood-blood brown bear, her future is basically over.
03:06The class erupted in applause.
03:09Mr. Harris nodded approvingly.
03:10You are kind.
03:11A pure and selfless heart will carry you further than any familiar ever could.
03:17Then he turned to me and frowned.
03:20Why are you just standing there, thank Victoria?
03:23I blinked.
03:24I held the white fox kit out toward her.
03:27It's fine.
03:27You don't have to swap.
03:29I actually kind of like the bear.
03:31Victoria pulled the brown bear closer to her chest.
03:33She looked at me the way someone looks when they've been wronged.
03:37You don't have to test me.
03:39I genuinely want to trade.
03:42I'm serious.
03:44Keep it.
03:45Before I could finish, something sharp bit down on the web of my right hand.
03:50I looked down.
03:52The white fox kit had bitten me.
03:55Then the fox pressed its tiny tongue against my skin and licked it clean.
03:59The fox had initiated a blood pact with me.
04:02So Riley wasn't being noble after all.
04:05She said she didn't want the white fox, but she went and blood-pasted it the second she got the
04:08chance.
04:09She was just scared Victoria would take it back.
04:11Never seen someone play both sides that hard before.
04:14After the blood pact locked in, the white fox went drowsy and fell asleep in my arms.
04:18I sat there, listening to the whispers and feeling my face go red.
04:22They didn't know the truth.
04:24I genuinely did not want this fox.
04:26Because I knew something none of them did.
04:29In two weeks, this beautiful, high-bloodline white fox was going to be completely useless.
04:35Well, almost none of them knew.
04:37Victoria knew, too.
04:39The moment she gave up the white fox and fought me for the brown bear, I understood.
04:43She'd been reborn, just like me.
04:45I stared at the bear tucked against Victoria's chest.
04:48I'd been so close to it in my past life.
04:50We'd trusted each other completely.
04:52Now, Victoria had taken it.
04:54I could deal with losing the cold resistance.
04:56What I couldn't stand was thinking about whether the bear would be fed properly.
05:00Whether it would be treated well.
05:02I was staring at it when the bear slowly turned its head and met my eyes.
05:06Then it blinked.
05:07Once.
05:08Twice.
05:10Not once.
05:11Not three times.
05:12Twice.
05:13My chest lit up.
05:15Two blinks was a signal.
05:16A code we'd created together in our past life.
05:19The bear was using it now to tell me...
05:21It remembered.
05:22It had been reborn, too.
05:24I was still exchanging glances with the bear when something warm and soft wrapped around
05:29my fingertip.
05:30I looked down.
05:31My white fox had woken up.
05:33I'm not useless.
05:34The voice was haughty.
05:36Also undeniably baby soft.
05:38And stop staring at that chunky little lowlife.
05:41I poked the fox gently.
05:42Are you talking?
05:44The white fox gave an imperious little sniff and rolled over in my arms.
05:48I thought about what to call it.
05:50White fox felt too generic.
05:52Little fox felt too soft.
05:53I was going to call it...
05:55Your Highness.
05:56My name is Leo.
05:58It announced.
05:59You can call me Your Highnesses if you want.
06:01I flicked its forehead.
06:03Who taught you to be this dramatic?
06:05Up front, Mr. Harris was explaining how to draw binding circles on the board.
06:10Most bonds were initiated by humans since magical animals were naturally proud creatures.
06:16Young kits were gentler than adults.
06:18But it was still extremely rare for a familiar to seek out a bond on its own.
06:22Everyone began attempting their bonds.
06:25Everyone except me, since I'd already been forcibly claimed by a fox.
06:30Leo, I said quietly, why did you bond with me?
06:34I didn't like that other girl.
06:37She smells.
06:38Smells?
06:39I kept my voice low.
06:42Victoria is literally the most popular girl in school.
06:45Half the guys here would say she smells amazing.
06:48Those guys are blind, Leo said flatly.
06:52Achoo!
06:53They can't see the rod underneath.
06:55And me?
06:57Leo buried its nose in my sleeve.
06:59Its voice came out slightly strangled.
07:02You're fine.
07:03You're kind of sweet.
07:05I started scratching under Leo's chin while the class droned on.
07:10White fox fur had a reputation, and it delivered.
07:13Impossibly soft, dense like a cloud.
07:16I scratched its ears, squeezed its belly, and eventually couldn't help reaching for its tail.
07:23They say you should never touch a fox's tail.
07:26But Leo was basically a kid, so the usual rules didn't apply.
07:30The moment my hand settled on the tail, Leo went completely rigid.
07:35Through the white fur, I could see its skin flush faintly pink.
07:39Stop it!
07:40What is wrong with you?
07:41It sounded exactly like someone who'd just been caught off guard, and was deeply, mortifyingly flustered.
07:48I pulled my hand back, keeping my expression neutral.
07:51Calm down.
07:53You've got a very active imagination.
07:55Leo's eyes welled up immediately.
07:57It snapped its head away and refused to look at me.
08:00Across the room, Victoria successfully completed her binding circle.
08:04A flash of pleasure crossed her face.
08:07She directed it toward the bear.
08:09The circle activated, spinning fast around the bear.
08:12Inside the light, the bear quietly reached out and made two small adjustments to the formation.
08:18The standard equal bond shifted, without a sound, into a master-servant bond.
08:23The bear was the master.
08:25Victoria was the servant.
08:27It was a technique we'd discovered together in a ruin, years ago, in another life.
08:32The bear was now using it to put a leash on Victoria.
08:36The bear caught my eye across the room, satisfied, proud of itself.
08:41Under the table, I gave it a thumbs up.
08:44You are so manipulative, Leo muttered into my ribs.
08:48I was pinching its soft, borderline boneless little cheek.
08:52Me?
08:53How?
08:54You touched my tail and then stared at that chunky lowlife for five whole minutes.
09:00You were making eyes at it.
09:02Leo's voice was escalating toward genuine grievance.
09:05I added another item to my mental description of it, prone to completely unhinged jealousy.
09:12After class ended, Mr. Harris handed out cultivation supplies.
09:16One week's worth per student.
09:18I kept a single mana crystal for myself.
09:21I fed everything else to Leo.
09:23Nineteen crystals.
09:25Leo crunched through them like chips.
09:28We hadn't even left the classroom.
09:30The class watched in disbelief.
09:32Is she serious?
09:33That's a week's worth of cultivation resources?
09:36And she just fed all of it to the fox?
09:38Did she even listen in class?
09:39Magic animals have slow growth cycles.
09:41You're not supposed to rush them.
09:43The mana crystals are supposed to be for her own cultivation.
09:45The white fox bonded with her for nothing.
09:48Some students should note.
09:50Mana crystal applications are limited.
09:54The school won't give you more if you waste them.
09:56He was clearly talking about me.
09:58I smiled pleasantly.
09:59Understood, sir.
10:00Honestly, in my past life, I'd always been generous with the bear.
10:04Most students kept a 4 to 1 ratio for themselves.
10:07I split everything 50-50.
10:09Equals deserved equal shares.
10:11But this?
10:12Nineteen for Leo.
10:13One for me.
10:14This was something else entirely.
10:17It wasn't generosity.
10:18It was self-preservation.
10:20Because Leo and I had a blood pact.
10:22A standard equal bond meant one partner's death didn't affect the other.
10:25A blood pact was different.
10:27If Leo froze to death on day one of the apocalypse, the same way the white fox died in my
10:31past life, I died too.
10:33Leo's survival wasn't kindness.
10:34It was my only chance to live.
10:37The mana crystals were an investment in not dying.
10:40After class, students scattered to train on their own.
10:43I carried Leo toward the exit, and Victoria stepped half in front of me.
10:47I know you've been reborn too, she said.
10:50This time, the cold resistance belongs to me.
10:54Then I hope you enjoy it.
10:56You and your useless little fox can look forward to freezing on day one.
10:59I gave you a chance to be useful to me.
11:02You threw it away.
11:03Leo peeled open one eye from inside my arms, completely unimpressed.
11:10Victoria's composure shattered instantly.
11:12She stumbled backward.
11:17What is wrong with you?
11:18Get that disgusting thing away from me!
11:20I turned and walked away, barely holding in a laugh.
11:23The mana crystal problem was serious, though.
11:26I needed a massive supply, and I needed it fast.
11:28I was thinking about it, absently pulling at Leo's fur, when I remembered.
11:32Before the ice apocalypse hit in my past life, a news outlet had exposed a small mana vein.
11:38Based on timing, nobody should have found it yet.
11:42When I reached the rough coordinates I'd memorized,
11:45Victoria was already there.
11:49She'd brought twenty-plus workers, and they were already mine in a vein.
11:53I stood at the outer edge and watched them haul out crystal after crystal.
11:58Leo pressed its nose to the window.
12:01I covered Leo's eyes.
12:02Low-quality crystals here.
12:04Let's go find something better.
12:06Then, from somewhere inside my head, a voice crackled to life.
12:10I stopped walking.
12:12Sis, is that you?
12:14You can do telepathy now.
12:16Well, Victoria spent serious resources on me.
12:19I can project thoughts directly.
12:22Sis, take Leo and find somewhere to rest.
12:25Once they're done mining and clear out, I'll call you back.
12:29I finished the mental exchange and came back to the present moment.
12:32A very large, very imperious fox face was approximately two inches from my nose.
12:39Leo had both front paws planted on my shoulders.
12:43What were you doing just now?
12:45You were mentally cheating on me.
12:47I grabbed it by the scruff and I squeezed one soft cheek by way of reprimand.
12:52Leo, watch your voculary.
12:54I'm not wrong.
12:56I can smell the bear on your thorns.
12:58Was that the chunky low knife?
13:00I raised an eyebrow, sharp nose.
13:02For your information, Leo continued voice climbing.
13:05When a white fox makes a blood pact with someone, that person is their bonded maid.
13:09For life.
13:10You can't have secret meetings with a brown bear.
13:14Yeah, you're a child.
13:16Do you even know what to partner means?
13:18Leo's eyes immediately filled with tears that refused to actually fall.
13:21It waved its tiny paws in what appeared to be an angry, thrashing, swimming motion.
13:25I leaned forward and stuck my tongue out at it, a small, damp nose pressed against my cheek.
13:31Before I could react, the culprit had already retreated, voice very small.
13:36I kissed you.
13:37That means you're mine now.
13:39Nobody else is allowed to kiss you there.
13:41Leo had just made a move on me.
13:43A very small, very smug, very baby-toothed move.
13:46I pulled myself together and went to find somewhere to wait.
13:49I reclined in the car with the air conditioning running, watching a nature documentary on the
13:54center screen.
13:54The documentary put me to sleep almost immediately.
13:58When I woke up, it was dark.
14:02Right on cue, the bear's voice appeared in my head.
14:05Sis, come now.
14:07They're gone.
14:08Leo was staring up at me, suspicious and accusatory.
14:12My conscience flickered.
14:13This was exactly the energy of someone who'd just been caught.
14:17We were just talking.
14:18I'm not listening.
14:19I'm not talking to you for the rest of the day.
14:22Just as the bear had said, the area was empty.
14:25All that remained was a concealment formation to hide the vein's location.
14:29The bear deactivated it from inside and poked its head out.
14:33Sis, over here.
14:34It had grown enough to speak clearly enough.
14:37The white fox in my arms took one look at the bear and immediately bared its teeth.
14:41Leo's going through a phase.
14:44The bear took the lead.
14:45That thing is a fake, nice snake in the grass.
14:49Get your hand off me.
14:50I'm going to bite it.
14:51I am biting it today.
14:53Riley, don't hold me back.
14:54It went on like that for a while.
14:57I didn't address it.
14:59I looked at the bear.
15:00Its aura drifted quietly around it, steady and calm.
15:04I released Leo and let it jump to the ground.
15:06Leo hit the dirt, spun around, and stared at me.
15:10Its expression said it had not expected me to actually let go.
15:13It shuffled forward at approximately the speed of a very indignant caterpillar.
15:18Every few steps, it looked back at me.
15:20On its fourth look back, it hesitated.
15:23You're not stopping me?
15:25What if your little buddy gets actually hurt?
15:28I glanced at the bear's aura.
15:31After absorbing a solid hall of mana crystals, it was running at easily 50 times Leo's current output.
15:37Whether Leo would be the one doing the hurting was very much an overwatch to me.
15:42It's fine.
15:43Show me what you've got.
15:45If you win, you'll have my full and undivided attention forever.
15:50Leo glanced at the bear, felt the weight of that aura, thought about it very carefully.
15:56Slowly, reluctantly, it walked back and sat down next to my feet.
16:00Fine.
16:01You showed good remorse this time.
16:03I'll let the secret meeting go.
16:06But don't let it happen again.
16:08Inside the vein, the bear had divided the crystal stockpile into three piles.
16:12One very small pile for itself, a medium small pile, and a pile roughly the size of a small hill.
16:20Leo's eyes went green, literally luminous.
16:23This is all I need, sis.
16:25A voice in my head.
16:26Okay, that chunky thing is definitely not in two.
16:30Sis, this one's for your cultivation.
16:33And that one's for my little sibling.
16:35The bear pointed to the medium pile and the mountain.
16:38Riley, it does not have feelings for you.
16:40I have been worried for nothing.
16:42Run everything through the romance filter, don't you?
16:45I do not.
16:46I flicked Leo on the forehead.
16:48I said simply,
16:49Mana crystals.
16:50Leo went quiet and well-behaved immediately.
16:53If we take all of this, won't Victoria figure out it was you?
16:58She does everything I say right now.
17:01Full compliance.
17:03Victoria stared at the hollowed-out vein with all the color drained from her face.
17:07You used all of it?
17:09You used every single crystal?
17:11The bear sat on its haunches, eyes wide and guileless.
17:14Under the rules of its master-servant bond, it only had to give basic responses.
17:19The truth was not required.
17:21I don't know.
17:21I was asleep all night.
17:22Maybe the vein just ran dry on its own?
17:25Victoria shook with rage.
17:27She brought her entire crew back and tore the cave apart.
17:30Not a single crystal shard remained.
17:33She stared at the bear for a long time.
17:35Something felt wrong.
17:36She could tell.
17:37But the bond formation read completely normal.
17:39The bear's cultivation aura showed no irregularity.
17:43She had no choice but to swallow it.
17:45Useless, she snapped.
17:47I just left you for a moment, and you couldn't even hold off a bunch of stones.
17:51The bear let its ears droop.
17:52Internally, it was ecstatic.
17:54It sent a message to me.
17:56Sis, she tried to hit me just now.
17:58The bonds punished her for it.
18:00Hidden in the brush nearby, I pressed my face into Leo's fur to muffle my laughter.
18:06Good.
18:06She tried to steal from us.
18:08The traitor earned it.
18:08I tugged one of its ears.
18:10Don't call the bear that.
18:11It's our teammate.
18:13It looked away.
18:14But its tail quietly curled around my wrist, warm and soft and completely involuntary.
18:20Once Victoria and her crew were gone, we slipped into the cave.
18:23The bear had already bundled the crystal stockpile with vines.
18:27Multiple bundles.
18:28Organized and ready.
18:29Sis, these should keep the little one fed for a while.
18:33Leo's eyes locked on the pile and did not move, and started crunching.
18:37The sound echoed through the cave like someone eating gravel.
18:40We loaded the crystals into the car.
18:42They filled most of the trunk.
18:44The bear couldn't come with us.
18:45It had to stay and keep up the performance.
18:47Before we left, it said,
18:48Sis, the apocalypse is ten days out.
18:51Stock up on supplies.
18:51Be careful.
18:53Don't let her spot the cracks in your act.
18:57The bear grinned in its easy, unbothered way.
19:00She does whatever I tell her.
19:01We're fine.
19:02We drove back.
19:03Leo sat in the passenger seat with a crystal in both paws, crunching contentedly,
19:07like a squirrel that had found an entire winter's worth of food in one afternoon.
19:14Watching it, I thought about the bear in my past life, always saving the best of everything
19:19for me.
19:20The shape of that care was different now, but the feeling was the same.
19:24Back in the city, I skipped my apartment and went straight to the largest supermarket
19:28ever.
19:29I loaded two carts with everything useful.
19:31Compressed ration bars, canned goods, bottled water, instant food.
19:38Leo rode in the cart, pointing.
19:40More of those chocolate ones.
19:41And the meat jerky, the spiced kind.
19:44I loaded both.
19:45The store staff watched me with visible unease.
19:48I didn't slow down.
19:49In ten days, none of this would matter to them anyway.
19:52Beyond food and water, I grabbed thermal underlayers, sleeping bags, flashlights, batteries,
19:57lighters, a few sharp kitchen knives, a hand axe, anything with practical value in sustained
20:02sub-zero conditions.
20:04Two full cartons.
20:05I drove home to my apartment and spent an hour hauling everything upstairs.
20:08The living room, the bedroom, the balcony.
20:11All of it stacked floor to ceiling.
20:13Leo sprawled across a pile of chocolate bars.
20:15Its tail swayed slowly.
20:17I collapsed onto the couch, completely winded.
20:22Not bad.
20:23You actually know how to shop.
20:27These are retinif only.
20:29Our survival supplies.
20:30The next several days, I took Leo to different locations every day and kept stocking up.
20:35The pharmacy, cold medicine, fever reducers, antibiotics, bandages, antiseptic.
20:41The outdoor supply store, a tent, climbing rope, anti-slip boots.
20:45A hardware store for gas canisters and basic tools.
20:49My apartment ran out of space.
20:50I rented the unit next door and the one upstairs.
20:54Both became storage.
20:55Victoria texted a few times, cheerful and fake, asking how I was doing, casually mentioning
21:01that her brown bear had broken through to tier two.
21:04I sent her three-word replies.
21:07I already knew.
21:08Everything the bear showed her was deliberate.
21:11Every breakthrough was calculated theater, designed to keep her compliant.
21:16Leo's growth was outpacing everything I'd projected.
21:19It ate crystals, slept, and woke up noticeably larger each time.
21:23It had started out the size of a kitten.
21:26Now it was halfway to the size of a medium dog.
21:28Its fur had deepened to a white so pure it was almost blinding.
21:33And its eyes had shifted from pale to a vivid, saturated crimson.
21:38The kind of beauty that made it hard to look away.
21:41Its cultivation aura was also deepening fast.
21:44Something close to tier three was stirring at the edges.
21:47I was combing through Leo's fur when it went still.
21:51Something's happening.
21:54In my bloodline, there's pressure building.
21:57My pulse jumped.
21:59The white fox in my past life had never awakened any ability at all.
22:04It died before it had the chance.
22:06Was this what happened when you gave a white fox proper resources and a blood pact?
22:11An early awakening?
22:12Don't force it, I said quietly.
22:15Let it come on its own.
22:17Leo closed its eyes.
22:19A soft white light kindled across its fur.
22:22The mana crystals around it began losing their glow,
22:24all that energy pouring steadily into Leo's body.
22:28A small spiral of concentrated mana formed around it, rotating slowly.
22:34Its fur stood up along its spine.
22:36Its tail filled out further,
22:38the individual hairs catching the light like fiber optic threads.
22:42An hour passed.
22:44The light faded.
22:45Leo opened its eyes, and there was something new in them.
22:48I awakened.
22:50What did you get?
22:51Leo tilted its chin up, tail flicking with casual superiority.
22:56A small, perfectly formed spike of ice materialized from empty air and dropped to the floor with a clean, crystalline
23:04tap.
23:04Ice manipulation and void storage.
23:07I stared.
23:08Ice manipulation.
23:10In an ice apocalypse, an ice affinity ability wasn't just useful.
23:15It was like being native to the environment everyone else was trying to survive.
23:19And void storage.
23:21One of the rarest abilities in existence.
23:24In my past life, people with spatial abilities could name their price at any base.
23:30Every faction wanted them.
23:31Leo, I said, and pulled it into a hug.
23:35I kissed the top of its head without thinking.
23:37Leo's ears went crimson.
23:39Its entire body locked up for half a second.
23:42Then it twisted away, deeply offended.
23:46Stop doing that.
23:48Its tail, however, had already wrapped around my wrist again.
23:52The same involuntary habit.
23:54I smiled and squeezed its cheek.
23:56My little highness is absolutely terrifying.
23:59We're going to be fine out there.
24:02Leo made a dismissive sound and climbed back into my lap to resume eating crystals.
24:08Three days out from the apocalypse, the temperature had already started dropping.
24:12Daytime lows were hitting negative 15.
24:15People on the street moved fast, buried in their puffer coats.
24:19News coverage was starting to pick up on the anomalous cold snaps.
24:23Experts offered competing theories.
24:26Extreme weather pattern.
24:27Turn, greenhouse rebound effect.
24:29Nobody said what was actually happening.
24:32Nobody saw what was coming.
24:35Victoria called.
24:36She sounded casual and then deliberately didn't.
24:39Riley, my bear just hit tier 3 peak.
24:42Almost to tier 4.
24:43I'll be able to take care of myself once things get rough.
24:47A pause pointed.
24:48How about you?
24:49Has your little fox even hit tier 1 yet?
24:53It's fine.
24:54Tier 3, roughly.
24:57Silence on the other end.
24:59Then a short, dismissive laugh.
25:01Riley, you don't have to make things up.
25:04White fox maturation timelines are long.
25:06There's no world where it's already tier 3.
25:09Another pause.
25:10Look, if things get too hard, you can come to me.
25:13You can work for me.
25:15I'll keep you alive.
25:16I hung up.
25:18Leo was lying next to me, expression flat.
25:21She thinks tier 3 peak is impressive.
25:24It said.
25:25When I hit tier 4, I could end her or run her.
25:28I scratched behind its ear.
25:31Don't get careless.
25:32Victoria is reckless, but her family has real reach.
25:35When the apocalypse hits, she'll have numbers.
25:38We play it smart.
25:39Leo pressed its nose down onto its paws, still eating crystals.
25:43Those last 3 days, I didn't go out.
25:46I stayed home with Leo, and we trained together.
25:49Leo had already gotten a solid handle on its void storage.
25:52The space inside wasn't enormous, roughly the size of a basketball board, but more than
25:57sufficient for supplies.
25:58We loaded the majority of what I'd stockpiled into the void.
26:01My own cultivation was moving faster than I'd expected.
26:05The blood pack shared mana flow between us, and with the crystals on top of that, I'd
26:09pushed to tier 2 mid-level.
26:11Not close to Leo or the bear, but solidly mid-range for a human practitioner.
26:17The night before the apocalypse, the temperature had already dropped to negative 30.
26:21Outside, the snow came in heavy, diagonal sheets, and the wind sounded like something screaming.
26:27I stood at the window and looked at the city disappearing under white.
26:31In my past life, I had been so afraid, so completely alone.
26:35This time, I had the bear, and I had Leo.
26:39That was enough.
26:40Leo came and pressed against my leg.
26:42Its head reached my hip now.
26:44Stop stressing.
26:46It said.
26:46I'm here.
26:48Nobody touches you.
26:49I crouched down and pulled it close.
26:51I know.
26:52We're going to make it.
26:53The bear checked in through telepathy.
26:55Sis, Victoria, and her people have retreated to her family's underground facility.
27:00Good supplies.
27:01Good infrastructure.
27:02I've already made some adjustments now.
27:05We'll figure out what that means once the apocalypse hits.
27:08Good work.
27:09Stay safe.
27:10I didn't sleep.
27:12When morning came, the world outside had ended.
27:14Negative 50 degrees.
27:16The window panes had cracked from the cold.
27:18Ice flowers blooming across the glass.
27:20Outside, cars had frozen into sculptures.
27:23People who had been caught in the streets were down and still.
27:26The power grid was gone.
27:27Communication networks were gone.
27:29The city was silent.
27:30The ice apocalypse had arrived.
27:32I layered on everything I had, pulled on my hat and gloves, held Leo against my chest,
27:37and walked out of the apartment.
27:38The wind hit my face like something solid.
27:41A burning cold that cut through even the layers.
27:43But Leo and I both had cultivation auras as a buffer.
27:46Leo's ice manipulation shaved off another layer of the cold on top of that.
27:50We could bear it.
27:51The streets were a wreck.
27:53Abandoned vehicles everywhere.
27:54Frozen bodies half buried in the drifts.
27:57Mutant beasts prowled the snow between the cars.
27:59Eyes sharp and predatory, tracking us as we passed.
28:03The apocalypse had done something to the wildlife.
28:05The extreme cold triggered genetic shifts, and what came out the other side was faster,
28:10meaner, and far more adapted to the temperature than anything that had existed before.
28:15Leo dropped out of my arms.
28:16Its body expanded in one smooth motion, doubling in size.
28:20The white fur settled, dense and wind-resistant.
28:23Its eyes locked onto the nearest creature with the calm of something that had already decided
28:27the outcome.
28:28You're looking at my person.
28:30Bad call.
28:31Its tail swept sideways.
28:33Six ice spikes launched simultaneously.
28:36They punched through the throats of the closest mutants before any of them could react.
28:40The bodies dropped and were still completely ridiculous, completely dramatic, completely reliable.
28:45We moved toward the city center.
28:47That was where the survivor base was.
28:48In my past life, the government had organized several large-scale shelters in the weeks after
28:53the apocalypse hit.
28:54The central base was the biggest and the safest.
28:57Two hours on foot.
28:58Then the base appeared through the blizzard.
29:00A ring of steel walls rising over ten meters.
29:04Soldiers posted on the upper walkways with rifles, scanning the perimeter.
29:08A crowd of survivors was already queued at the gate.
29:11We joined the line.
29:12The couple ahead of us had a baby pressed to the woman's chest.
29:15The baby was crying.
29:17The woman's face was hollow.
29:19The man looked like he hadn't slept in days.
29:21The woman said to the soldier at the checkpoint,
29:23She hasn't eaten in three days.
29:25The soldier's expression didn't move.
29:28Entry requires a resource payment.
29:30Ten pounds of food, five bottles of water, or one warm garment.
29:34No exceptions.
29:35The man's voice cracked.
29:37Everything we had was taken by a mutant pack.
29:40We have nothing left.
29:43Please.
29:44Policy is policy.
29:46The woman started crying.
29:48The baby cried loudly.
29:49I'd been there before.
29:50I knew what it felt like when every door was shut and there was nothing left to bargain with.
29:55I reached into my pack and pulled out two cans and a water bottle.
29:59I held them out to the couple.
30:01Use these for your entry fee.
30:03They turned around.
30:04The woman looked at me.
30:06You're a good person.
30:07You're a good...
30:08I smiled and didn't say anything.
30:10Leo made an irritated noise beside me.
30:12You're going to keep doing this, aren't you?
30:15Helping complete strangers.
30:17We might need a stranger's help someday, too.
30:20Leo said nothing more.
30:21But it didn't argue.
30:23When we reached the checkpoint, the soldier looked at Leo and went wary.
30:27Handed over five pounds of rations.
30:30Is that enough?
30:31The soldier checked it.
30:33Nodded.
30:33You can go in.
30:34We were almost through the gate when a familiar voice called from behind us.
30:39Riley!
30:40I turned.
30:41Victoria was pushing through the crowd, surrounded by a cluster of people, with the brown bear walking calmly at her
30:47side.
30:47She was wearing an expensive puffer coat, her face perfectly composed and confident.
30:52Her group had weapons.
30:54I didn't expect you to make it this far.
30:55She looked me over with a slow, deliberate appraisal.
30:58I guess that fox of yours isn't completely decorative.
31:01Leo's fur went electric.
31:03Its body expanded, hackles lifting, lips pulling back.
31:06Say that again.
31:07Victoria took a step back without meaning to.
31:10Then collected herself and shifted behind the bear.
31:13The bear stepped forward and positioned itself between them.
31:16It glanced at me.
31:17Its expression said, I know.
31:18I tried to stop her.
31:20She wouldn't listen.
31:21I looked back at it and gave a small signal.
31:23Not now.
31:24Too many people.
31:25What happens to us in there has nothing to do with you.
31:28I said and pulled Leo toward the gate.
31:30Hold on.
31:31Victoria's voice sharpened.
31:32Riley, you think a tier three fox is enough to hold any ground in there?
31:36This base runs on strength.
31:38My bear is tier four.
31:39That makes me the top of the food chain here.
31:41You have two options.
31:42Fall in line and work under me or I make sure you can't move in this base without running
31:46into a wall.
31:47The crowd around the gate had started paying attention.
31:49Tier four was rare in the early apocalypse.
31:52People recognized what that meant.
31:54I let the moment sit for exactly one breath.
31:57Then I looked at Leo.
31:58Leo understood without being told.
32:00Its cultivation aura detonated outward.
32:03Tier four pressure rolled across the gate plaza like a physical force.
32:07The snowflakes still drifting in the air simply stopped moving.
32:10The cold deepened noticeably.
32:12Several people stumbled back.
32:14Victoria's face lost its color.
32:16That's not possible.
32:18How is your fox already tier four?
32:21Leo tilted its chin up to a frankly insufferable angle.
32:25You assumed your bear was the ceiling, embarrassing the stake.
32:28The bear chose that moment to release its own tier four aura alongside Leo's.
32:33Two tier four signatures layered together.
32:35The crowd scattered back from the gate, half of them barely staying upright.
32:40Victoria stood there, mouth open, staring between Leo and the bear.
32:44The bear, which was supposed to be hers, aligned with the girl she'd been trying to humiliate.
32:50She tried to form words, couldn't find them.
32:52I walked through the gate with Leo and the bear on either side of me,
32:55and left Victoria and her group at the entrance with whatever was left of the impression she'd
33:00tried to make.
33:01Inside, we were brought to a registration desk.
33:03Name, cultivation tier, magical animal.
33:06The soldier processing our forms looked at Leo's tier four listing, then at the bear's,
33:10and spent a long moment saying nothing.
33:12Then the professionalism kicked back in, somewhat overcorrected.
33:16Ms. Riley, with two tier four familities, you qualify for our highest tier accommodations.
33:21We'd like to offer you a room in the VIP wing.
33:23Independent room, heating system, full resource allocation.
33:26That works.
33:27Can I get an additional room for my companion?
33:29Of course.
33:30Absolutely.
33:30Right away.
33:31A soldier escorted us to the VIP wing.
33:33It was its own building, near the center of the base.
33:35Inside, functioning radiators, hot water, a private bathroom, a small kitchen, a sitting
33:41area.
33:42The soldier handed me a keycard and stepped back with the careful deference usually reserved
33:46for people who could level buildings.
33:48I opened my room and started pulling supplies out of Leo's void storage.
33:52Organized the space, stacked what we needed.
33:54Leo jumped onto the couch and stretched its full length, tail hanging off the edge.
33:58Finally, that walk was miserable.
34:01The bear appeared in the doorway, eyes warm.
34:04Victoria and her group got assigned to general housing.
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