Reborn Before The Apocalypse: The Last Safe Hotel

Chapter 002 – Last Haven System

*****

Ronan didn’t waste another moment.

After he had made up his mind to divorce Celeste, he checked the time on his phone.

“6:10.”

If Celeste were on night duty, she would probably return soon.

Ronan quickly entered the washroom, cleaned himself up, and then changed his clothes.

He had just reached for the bedroom door when…

[Ding!]

A strange notification echoed through the room out of nowhere, startling him so badly that he nearly jumped.

Ronan immediately looked at his phone, but the sound had not come from it.

Before he could investigate, a feminine, mechanical voice sounded inside his mind.

[System initializing.]

Ronan froze. “Who’s there?”

He looked around the room, his instincts immediately on high alert. There was no one else inside.

Then, without warning, a translucent blue interface materialized before his eyes. A miniature woman dressed in a futuristic jumpsuit appeared inside it, her expression completely emotionless.

Ronan’s hair stood on end. He instinctively reached out and swatted at her, only for his hand to pass straight through the image.

[Congratulations, Host. You have activated the Last Haven System.]

Ronan stared blankly at the floating figure, unable to react for a second. ‘Am I… hallucinating?’

[The Host is not hallucinating.]

His eyes widened.

The miniature woman continued speaking in the same mechanical tone.

[The Host has fulfilled all requirements to activate the Last Haven System. The system has been assigned to assist the Host in constructing a haven for humanity.]

Ronan frowned. “What… what exactly is going on? What is this ‘last haven’?”

[The Host is not authorized to know everything at the current stage. However, the system can reveal the Host’s primary mission.]

The interface changed.

……

[Mission: Construct a safe haven before the apocalypse begins.]

[Required Facilities: Defensive Perimeter, Food Production, Medical Center, Energy System, Comfortable Residential Sector.]

[Completion Condition: Shelter and feed at least fifty survivors.]

[Time Remaining: 29 Days, 22 Hours, 59 Minutes.]

…..

Ronan stared at the mission in disbelief.

“Why would I build a safe haven for other people?” His expression darkened as memories of his previous life resurfaced.

In the apocalypse, survival itself had become a luxury.

People had frozen to death when the power grid collapsed, starved when their food ran out, and eventually turned against one another.

And now, this…

Ronan still didn’t understand what this system was.

But one thing he didn’t understand even more was whether it was trying to harm him or turn him into a saint.

Almost as though it had heard his thoughts, the miniature woman reappeared.

[The Host is not required to become a saint.]

Ronan raised an eyebrow.

[The Host will operate the haven more strictly as a business.]

Ronan’s expression changed.

The system then explained its function.

Once the apocalypse began, Ronan could charge survivors for food, rooms, medical treatment, warmth, and protection.

The money they paid would retain its value within the system, allowing him to purchase resources and upgrades for the haven.

The more money he earned, the more he could invest in the hotel, expanding its facilities, strengthening its defenses, and improving its amenities.

Ronan’s eyes widened as the implications sank in.

He wouldn't be sacrificing himself to save humanity that might end up betraying him. He would be running a business while building one of the safest places in the apocalypse.

For the first time since waking up, he felt the suffocating weight of his previous life begin to disappear.

In his first life, he had struggled desperately just to survive.

This time, he had a system, and he had thirty days to prepare.

If he played his cards right, by the time the apocalypse arrived, he wouldn't merely be trying to survive. He would be the one everyone else needed to survive.

A surge of excitement coursed through Ronan's body, and a grin slowly spread across his face.

“I’m going to be invincible in the apocalypse.” He laughed. “Alright, System. I accept the mission.”

[Mission accepted.]

The miniature woman disappeared, but her voice remained inside his mind.

[The Host does not need to speak aloud to communicate with the system. As long as the Host thinks about the system, the system can hear him.]

Ronan barely reacted.

Compared to everything else he had experienced that morning, telepathic communication was hardly worth mentioning.

His mind had already moved to the most important problem.

Money.

“How am I going to raise enough money to build all this?” He mumbled to himself, realizing he would need, at the very least, several million dollars.

Suddenly… Ronan's eyes widened.

“Wait.” He stared at the phone in his hand. “Isn't the Premier League starting today?”

A knowing smile slowly appeared on his face.

During the apocalypse, football discussion had become one of the few things people could still use to distract themselves from the endless hunger, violence, and despair.

Thanks to his strong brain, Ronan remembered the results of countless matches from that season.

In his previous life, that knowledge had been useless.

This time… he had exactly thirty days to turn it into a fortune.

“The capital problem is solved.” Ronan chuckled. “This time, I'll accumulate enough wealth before the apocalypse begins and make those who killed me pay dearly.”

He grinned darkly. Just then…

“Useless fool! Didn’t I order you to have breakfast ready before dawn?” A furious voice suddenly rang outside his room, followed by a loud bang against the door.

Ronan's smile disappeared, and his eyes turned cold.

The voice belonged to Helena, the woman who had joined in mercilessly killing him.

An intense murderous intent surged through him, but he quickly suppressed it. Killing her now would be too easy.

She deserved to experience the despair of losing everything first.

Ronan calmly opened the door.

Helena stood outside with her hands on her waist, glaring daggers at him.

“I hope you don't still call yourself a man!” she snapped. “It's past six in the morning, yet you're still sleeping while men your age are already out making their daily millions!”

She continued berating him without giving him a chance to respond.

But Ronan merely stared at her. In his previous life, he would have lowered his head and apologized while enduring every insult.

This time, he felt nothing but disgust.

Before he could speak, the front door opened.

Celeste walked inside.

She was beautiful, elegant, and visibly exhausted after a night at the hospital. The moment Helena saw her, her expression immediately softened.

“Daughter, you're finally back. How was work?”

Celeste ignored the question and rubbed her temples. “Mother, why are you shouting this early in the morning? I'm exhausted.”

Helena immediately pointed toward Ronan.

“It's because of this lazy fool you call a husband! He does nothing all day except eat and sleep.”

Celeste finally looked at Ronan.

For a moment, their eyes met. However, there was no warmth in hers, no concern, and no affection.

Just the same familiar indifference he had endured for years.

“Can you keep it down?” she said coldly, glancing back at her mother. “I want to sleep.”

Ronan stared at her for several seconds.

In his previous life, he would have made excuses for her.

He would have convinced himself that she was merely tired, that she didn't mean it, that perhaps one day she would finally treat him like her husband.

Now, those excuses seemed laughable.

He had wasted years begging for affection from someone who had never given him any.

Ronan turned to leave.

“Where do you think you're going?” Helena immediately snapped. “I told you to prepare breakfast for my son. Are you deaf?”

Ronan stopped. Then he slowly turned around.

“Is your son crippled?”

Helena froze.

Ronan's voice remained completely calm. “Can't he prepare his own breakfast?”

Silence descended over the house.

Helena stared at him as though she had just seen a ghost.

Even Celeste, who had been heading toward her room, stopped in her tracks and turned around.

For three years, Ronan had never spoken back. He had tolerated every insult, every demand, and every humiliation.

Yet today…

“Did you just speak disrespectfully to my mother?” Celeste asked, her expression hardening.

Helena finally recovered. “You… you actually insulted me?”

Her voice trembled with outrage.

Then, as though she had just suffered the greatest injustice in the world, tears immediately filled her eyes.

“Celeste, daughter, I told you! I told you this man was only pretending to be obedient! He has finally revealed his true colors!”

“He even wants to beat me now!” One accusation followed another.

But Ronan didn't even glance at her. His eyes remained fixed on Celeste.

“I want a divorce.” The words fell calmly.

Instantly, the house became completely silent again.

Celeste stared at him in disbelief.

For a moment, she genuinely wondered whether she had heard correctly.

Ronan? The same Ronan who had spent years desperately trying to please her, the same man who had endured everything her family had thrown at him… wanted a divorce?

Helena's shock, on the other hand, lasted only a second before her face erupted with delight.

“Hahaha!” She burst into laughter. “Did I hear that correctly? You want a divorce?”

She almost looked as though she had just received the greatest news of her life. “God has finally answered my prayers!”

“Daughter, what are you waiting for? Take him to City Hall and dissolve this marriage immediately!”

Celeste remained silent, staring at Ronan.

Something about him felt different. She couldn't explain what had changed, but for the first time in three years, the man standing before her felt like a stranger.

After several seconds, she finally forced herself to regain her composure.

“We'll discuss this later. I'm exhausted and need to sleep.” She turned toward her room.

“No, daughter!” Helena hurried after her. “You can sleep later. Divorce this useless gold digger first and get him out of our house!”

Ronan watched them disappear down the hallway and turned away.

He wasn't interested in arguing. The divorce would happen eventually.

Moreover, unlike his previous life, he had far more important things to worry about.

He stepped outside and pulled out his phone.

“I should still have about a thousand dollars in my account.” A faint smile appeared on his lips. “It isn't much, but it's enough to start.”