War God of the Apocalypse

Chapter 3: Preparing for the Apocalypse.

 Will Wilds sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the banking application on his phone while the memory of his previous death lingered in his mind. He could still remember the bitter taste of the poison, the weakness spreading through his limbs, and the way Isolde had watched him struggle without showing the slightest remorse. His fingers tightened around the phone as anger stirred in his chest, but he forced himself to breathe slowly because revenge would mean nothing if he failed to survive the coming apocalypse.

 He had been given a second chance, and he wasn't going to waste it.

 His account balance showed approximately five hundred million, enough money to secure a substantial amount of supplies before the world descended into chaos. However, money alone wouldn't guarantee his survival, and he had learned that lesson the hard way in his previous life. He needed food, medicine, winter clothing, weapons, and a secure shelter, but he also needed to make every decision count because he had barely a week before the apocalypse began.

 Will opened the Herem System interface, studying the translucent panel that appeared before his eyes.

 [Host: Will Wilds]

 [System Points: 100]

 [Ability: Spatial Storage]

 [Current Storage Capacity: Equivalent to an average bedroom]

 [Storage Effect: Time does not pass inside the storage space.]

 He examined the information carefully, his brows drawing together as he considered the advantages and limitations. The storage space could preserve food indefinitely, allowing him to gather supplies without worrying about spoilage, but its limited capacity meant he couldn't simply throw everything inside and hope for the best.

 "System, are there other functions I can unlock with these points?" Will asked quietly.

 The panel flickered, and a new notification appeared.

 [Herem System: Meaningful connections create opportunities, and opportunities generate rewards.]

 [Current Objective: Establish a genuine connection with a compatible individual.]

 [Reward: Undisclosed.]

 Will stared at the message, his expression hardening slightly. The wording was vague, and he didn't appreciate being given an objective without knowing what it required or what he stood to gain.

 "Define a genuine connection," he demanded. "Does helping someone count, or do I have to earn their trust first?"

 [Herem System: A connection cannot be measured by an action alone. Intent, trust, and the significance of the interaction will be considered.]

 He rubbed his thumb against his chin, thinking through the explanation. The system wasn't offering him a simple exchange where he could perform a random favor and collect points. It seemed to require something more meaningful, although he couldn't yet determine how its judgments worked.

 The uncertainty bothered him, but he couldn't afford to waste time arguing with an interface that might reveal its rules through experience. If meaningful connections could provide useful rewards, he needed to understand how to pursue them without compromising his survival plans.

 Will closed the panel and began organizing his preparations.

 He started by ordering meals from several restaurants, selecting rice dishes, meat, noodles, soups, and other foods that could sustain him during the first weeks of the apocalypse. He spread the orders across different establishments to avoid attracting unnecessary attention, then inspected each delivery before transferring the packages into his spatial storage.

 The warm containers disappeared from his room one after another, leaving behind empty bags and the lingering smell of spices. Will checked the storage interface after every few deliveries, making sure he wasn't wasting precious space on items he could easily obtain later.

 Next came winter clothing, medical supplies, flashlights, batteries, sleeping bags, portable cooking equipment, and other essentials. He added disinfectants, bandages, painkillers, and basic medical tools, remembering the survivors he had watched die from injuries that would have been manageable before hospitals became inaccessible.

 As he confirmed another order, a notification appeared at the edge of his vision.

 [Herem System: Objective progress remains unchanged.]

 Will's hand paused above the screen, and irritation crept into his expression.

 "So you expect me to build a meaningful connection while I'm trying to prepare for the end of the world?" he muttered.

 [Herem System: Survival and meaningful connections are not mutually exclusive.]

 He almost laughed at the response, but the sound died before it left his throat. The system wasn't wrong, although its timing was inconvenient. He had spent his previous life trusting the wrong people, and the betrayal had cost him everything. If this system expected him to trust strangers merely to obtain rewards, he would have to be careful about how he approached its objective.

 He wasn't going to trade his life for a few points.

 His phone began vibrating on the desk, and the name displayed on the screen immediately erased the remaining trace of amusement from his face.

 Isolde Bells.

 Will stared at the caller ID for several seconds before answering, his jaw tightening as he remembered the woman who had stood beside Jason while the poison worked through his body.

 "Will, where have you been?" Isolde demanded as soon as the call connected. "I've been trying to reach you, and you haven't answered my messages. Have you arranged the money we discussed, or are you still wasting time?"

 Will leaned against the desk and looked at the growing list of supplies on his screen. Even now, she spoke as though his resources belonged to her and his time was hers to command.

 "I'm taking care of a few things," he replied evenly. "I'll explain when I have everything sorted out."

 "What things are so important that you can't even tell me about them?" Isolde snapped. "Winter is coming earlier than expected, and people are already talking about joining Elite factions. We can't afford to wait until everything becomes chaotic before making arrangements."

 Will's gaze shifted toward the window, where the afternoon light fell across the room. The weather had not yet reached the terrifying extremes he remembered, but warnings were spreading, and he knew how quickly ordinary concerns could become desperate struggles for survival.

 "I know what's happening," he answered. "I've been looking into our options."

 "Then we should join an Elite faction as soon as possible," Isolde insisted. "They have resources, weapons, and people who can protect them when things get worse. Ordinary people won't stand a chance if the situation becomes as bad as everyone fears."

 Will listened without interrupting, his fingers tightening around the phone. In his previous life, survivors had flocked to the Elites, believing that strength and resources would guarantee their safety. Some had survived for a time, but others had discovered that joining a powerful faction could mean surrendering their freedom to people who viewed ordinary survivors as expendable.

 He had no intention of placing himself under someone else's control again.

 "Have you considered which faction we should join?" he asked, keeping his tone casual.

 "Sector B, Zone 2 seems like a good choice," Isolde replied. "There should be more opportunities there, and if we get into the right group early enough, we won't have to worry about being abandoned when the cold arrives."

 Will's fingers stopped moving against the phone.

 Sector B, Zone 2.

 He remembered the frozen streets, the desperate survivors, and the bodies left where they had fallen because nobody had enough strength to move them. In his previous life, the cold had devastated that area far more severely than many people expected, turning shelters into traps and forcing survivors to fight over whatever warmth remained.

 Isolde was proposing that they head straight into a place he knew would become a nightmare.

 "Sector B, Zone 2 might be worth considering," he said after a brief pause. "I'll look into it and see what makes the most sense."

 "Good, because I don't want us making a decision at the last minute," Isolde replied. "We need to secure a place before everyone starts panicking, and I need to know that I can rely on you."

 Will lowered his eyes, concealing the coldness that had settled over his expression. She spoke as though their future had already been decided, as though he would follow her wherever she wanted and provide whatever she needed without question.

 He remembered the poison burning through his body, the helplessness that had followed, and Jason standing beside Isolde while they watched him die. The memory tightened his stomach, but he forced himself to remain calm because anger would not help him survive the next few days.

 "I'll make the necessary arrangements," he assured her. "Once I've sorted everything out, I'll let you know where we should meet."

 "Don't keep me waiting too long, Will," Isolde warned before ending the call.

 He lowered the phone and stared at the dark screen, feeling his anger settle into something colder. He had expected the conversation to irritate him, yet hearing her speak with the same entitlement reminded him how easily he had once allowed her to control his decisions.

 He couldn't let that happen again.

 A notification suddenly appeared in his vision, and Will frowned as he read it.

 [Herem System: A potential connection has been identified.]

 [Individual: Isolde Bells.]

 [Connection Status: Unstable.]

 [Potential Challenge: Determine whether the connection can develop into genuine trust.]

 Will's expression changed as he read the final line. The system had identified Isolde as a potential connection, even though he knew she had betrayed him in his previous life. He couldn't tell whether the system was evaluating their present relationship, the possibility of change, or something he had yet to understand.

 "You're asking me to trust her?" he muttered, his voice low with disbelief.

 [Herem System: The system does not determine whom the host must trust.]

 [Notice: A meaningful connection may develop, deteriorate, or end. The host's decisions will influence the outcome.]

 Will studied the message, his thoughts moving rapidly. The system wasn't telling him to forgive Isolde, and it wasn't promising a reward for blindly accepting her demands. Instead, it seemed to be presenting their relationship as a situation whose outcome remained uncertain.

 That made the objective more complicated than he had expected.

 He knew what Isolde had done before, but this version of her had not yet repeated the betrayal in this timeline. He couldn't afford to forget his memories, yet he also needed to understand whether the system's rewards depended on genuine relationships rather than the convenient appearance of one.

 He decided that he would not sacrifice his survival plans to satisfy the objective. If the system wanted him to build meaningful connections, he would have to discover what that meant without making the same mistakes that had killed him.

 Will closed the interface and returned to his supplies, but his mind remained occupied by the notification. The system had given him a powerful advantage through spatial storage, and now it was drawing his attention toward a problem he couldn't solve with money or telekinesis.

 He needed to learn its rules before he could rely on its rewards.

 After checking the remaining orders, he gathered his belongings and reviewed the route toward Sector D, Zone 3. The location offered a better chance of surviving the first wave of extreme cold, although reaching it would require careful planning and a willingness to abandon the future Isolde expected.

 He couldn't tell her where he was going. If she discovered his destination, she might attempt to follow him or demand access to whatever resources he secured there. Jason could also become involved, making it harder for Will to keep his plans private.

 His phone vibrated once more, displaying a message from Isolde.

 Don't forget what we discussed. We need to make arrangements for Sector B, Zone 2 soon.

 Will read it twice before locking the screen. He felt a brief pull of resentment at the thought of how much time he was still spending managing her expectations, but he forced himself to focus on the immediate problem.

 He had less than a week before the apocalypse, and the roads could become difficult to navigate long before the cold reached its worst. If he delayed too long, the supplies he needed might disappear, and the shelter he remembered could become inaccessible.

 He slipped his phone into his pocket and prepared to leave, checking the locks and making sure he hadn't overlooked anything important. His room looked almost unchanged, but the spatial storage now held a growing stockpile of food and essential equipment that could mean the difference between survival and death.

 As he stepped outside, cooler air brushed his face, and he paused to study the street. The temperature had not yet fallen to the level he remembered, but the change was enough to make him more alert, and he scanned the surroundings with the caution of someone who knew how quickly ordinary life could collapse.

 A final system notification appeared before the interface faded from view.

 [Herem System: The first stage of the host's survival preparations is underway.]

 [Reminder: Resources can sustain the host, but future opportunities may depend on the connections he chooses to build.]

 Will stared at the message for a moment before dismissing it. He still didn't know what the system ultimately expected from him, but he understood that ignoring it entirely could mean abandoning an advantage he might need later.

 He adjusted the bag over his shoulder and started toward the main road, determined to reach Sector D before the situation deteriorated. He had no intention of telling Isolde the truth, and he certainly wasn't going to allow Jason to discover where he was going.

 However, as he approached the road, the sight of vehicles stretching into the distance made him slow his steps. Horns blared from every direction, drivers shouted through open windows, and people moved between the cars with growing impatience as the traffic ground to a halt.

 Will stared at the congestion, his expression hardening as he realized that his journey might be far more difficult than he had anticipated. He had secured his supplies, chosen his destination, and concealed his intentions, but he had not expected the roads to become this crowded so soon.

 He tightened his grip on his bag and searched for an alternative route, aware that every minute spent standing still brough

t him closer to the disaster he was trying to escape.

 The apocalypse had not officially begun, yet the world was already changing around him, and Will knew that reaching Sector D would be his first real test of whether a second chance was enough to save him.