Ivy set the report aside and leaned back, her expression calm but firm.
"It will be dangerous," she admitted, "but danger is sothing we can never eliminate. We can only manage it."
Annie’s brows furrowed. Ivy could clearly see her worry; she always wore her heart a little too openly when she wasn’t paying attention.
"That’s why," Ivy continued, "the luring zone will have triple-layered barricades and watchtowers. If a zombie breaks out of the fighting path, the guards can shoot it before it reaches the city’s edge. And as for people turning mid-fight..."
She paused, tapping the table with her finger. "Everyone entering that zone will undergo a mandatory health check. No exceptions. If they show the slightest symptom, they won’t be let in."
Annie slowly nodded, reassured but still uneasy. "Still... it sounds like a lot of pressure on you."
Ivy laughed. A lot of pressure? Indeed. However, she knew that if she didn’t take necessary action for her base people now... There was a high chance that all of them would die.
Survival of the fittest. In her last life, only 1/3rd of the population had survived the natural disaster and zombie apocalypse.
According to strong bases, ’weak’ people died when disaster after disaster arrived, filtering out those who could survive the new reality.
But from Ivy’s perspective... it wasn’t the weak people who died... it was the unfortunate ones.
So people were lucky enough to hoard enough food, while so were unlucky enough to be struck in open ground without any way to defend against the incoming natural disaster.
Half of the population could have survived if they had these resources.
However, what those strong bases said was indeed true. Those who survived were strong individuals. So were excellent schers, so were strong, while so were lucky enough.
Ivy wanted to make sure that her tenants consisted of the second category. Strong heat.
Humans have good adaptability, and as long as their base assists the humans in surviving, maybe... maybe this ti the outco would be a different one.
"Don’t worry, I won’t stretch myself thin. I will make sure to let others work more."
Annie stared at Ivy in admiration and opened her mouth to praise her when Ivy’s next words made her freeze.
"By the way, how is your family now? Has your mother severed ties with you?"
Annie froze, a flash of helplessness speaking volus about her current predicant.
"That... I..." Annie stuttered like a guilty child when in reality... it wasn’t even her mistake.
"So you haven’t?" Ivy’s words sounded more like a fact than a question.
"I haven’t..." Annie sighed and murmured honestly; she was never good at lying. Though she was indeed good at acting... in front of Ivy, she refused to put up any facade.
"Why? Is she demanding more, or has she suddenly changed?" Ivy’s question made Annie surprised, and a glimr of hope flickered in them.
"No... she refused to sever ties, and yes, she has suddenly changed."
Ivy arched a brow. What an unsurprising outco.
’So Annie’s mother was smart from the beginning. And she was only holding back from scheming against her daughter because she didn’t feel the need. However, now...’
"Miss Ivy, do you know the reason?" Annie looked at Ivy with an expectant expression, and suddenly Ivy felt as if she were Doraemon and Annie were Nobita.
Shaking off the weird thought, Ivy replied with a serious expression,
"There are two possibilities. First, either she has truly changed for good because she saw how much you were struggling, which I think... isn’t possible at all. And second... she is scheming against you. She is waiting for you to lower your guard and tell her everything."
Annie didn’t rush to deny Ivy’s theory. Knowing her mother, she even felt as if... whatever Ivy was saying was simply the truth she had been too afraid to face.
Annie’s lips trembled faintly. "Miss Ivy... do you really think she would...?"
"Yes," Ivy replied without hesitation. "Without a doubt."
Annie’s breath hitched.
Ivy leaned forward, her gaze sharp yet oddly gentle.
"Think about it. A person doesn’t suddenly transform into a loving parent without a trigger. She rejected your offer, didn’t she?"
Annie nodded slowly.
"Then she wants sothing far more valuable than food," Ivy concluded.
A cold understanding settled over Annie’s shoulders. Her fingers tightened around the hem of her shirt as she whispered,
"So she’s waiting... hoping I’ll be stupid enough to trust her again."
"Exactly," Ivy said, her tone blunt but not unkind. "People like her thrive on hope. Yours."
Annie felt a dull ache in her chest... not shock, but the confirmation of sothing she had suspected deep down. Sothing she didn’t want to admit.
"...Then what should I do?" Annie murmured. "I don’t want her to hurt and my brother again."
"Just increasing the intensity of your play and making her feel that this ti you aren’t lying," Ivy said with a smirk.
Annie frowned and asked,
"What type of intensity? I have already shown my helpless side and even showed her the bruises unintentionally. What more could I do to make her believe my play?"
"Eh? It’s simple; just hire so actor to act like a thug and make your mother think that the loan you have taken isn’t sothing that can be repaid until she too starts to work." Ivy suggested.
Annie thought for a while and nodded.
"If my mother has truly changed, then she will join and start to work too. If she doesn’t... then it ans that she hasn’t changed at all!"
Ivy nodded in satisfaction; however, suddenly she thought of a possibility and frowned.
"Hey, wait, there is another possibility."
"Ember, co here and testify for ! Tell Ivy whether this woman is Gwen or not!" Felix’s slightly trembling voice echoed in the living room, attracting the attention of both Ivy and Annie.
They looked at the entrance, where an uninterested Ember was being dragged by Felix.
However, the mont Ember saw Annie, her eyes widened.
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