Sure enough, Vienna didn’t find a single suspicious clue.

Jude spotted the loan apps I had deliberately left in plain sight and turned to Vienna with a sly smile.

“Vienna, it’s already the apocalypse. Why bother using your own money? You might as well borrow. The more, the better. The world is ending, and no one’s going to ask for it back.”

Vienna’s eyes lit up instantly. Without another word, she picked up her phone and started tapping away.

Jude wasn’t just Vienna’s assistant. He was her lover.

Every time Vienna went on a business trip, he followed right behind her. Eventually, the two of them ended up in bed together.

He had always been skilled at sweet-talking women, and Vienna fell for that kind of man completely. Whatever he asked for, she was all too willing to give.

The moment she learned about the apocalypse, her first thought was to bring him over.

“Honey, life during the apocalypse is going to be hard. I want to bring Jude here. You won’t say no, will you?”

In my last life, I had refused. And Vienna kicked me out of the house without hesitation.

She left me to endure three hours of near-death, surrounded by a sea of zombies before I finally had no choice but to agree.

After Jude moved in, he didn’t just treat me like a servant. He didn’t even spare my daughter, forcing her to be his personal massage therapist.

Whenever I wasn’t watching, he found ways to take advantage of her.

My daughter was still so young. If she were thrown out, she would have died without a chance.

I had no choice but to endure it all. In the end, just to please Jude, Vienna still shoved me out the door and savored every second of watching me torn apart by zombies.

Vienna and Jude clung together, smug smiles nearly spilling from their faces.

“Vienna, so this is what it looks like to be bitten to death by zombies. How tragic!”

Vienna answered him with a bright smile, but when her gaze landed on me struggling in the swarm, her eyes turned cold as ice.

Even now, I still remember that expression, so chilling it froze my heart.

This time, I didn’t stop Jude from moving in because I knew I had more important things to do.

Besides, Jude was brainless. With him constantly whispering sweet lies, Vienna was bound to act recklessly and commit even more outrageous crimes.

I could watch them both willingly plunge into the abyss together.

They started by messaging every contact on WhatsApp, borrowing money from all their friends, then maxed out every platform they could, online banking, Paypal, none of it satisfied them.

So they went further, downloading all kinds of shady loan apps, not even sparing the loan sharks.

I quietly watched the two of them spiral into madness.

In my past life, my soul had drifted for a long, bitter time, and I knew with absolute clarity the apocalypse would end in three days.

By then, order would return, and everything would finally be settled.

The heat was suffocating, the air thick enough to burn. Vienna refused to step outside, and she couldn’t bear to let Jude suffer either.

She handed me all the borrowed money, her tone impatient.

“Go out and buy more supplies.”

Then she turned away and began ordering the most luxurious takeout she could find nearby.

After I left, the deliveryman knocked on the villa door.

Lobster, abalone, king crab, and all kinds of premium delicacies were soon laid out across the dining table.

Just that one meal cost forty to fifty thousand, but Vienna didn’t even blink as she paid.

With a grand wave of her hand, she turned to Jude and declared, “When the end comes, this money will be nothing but paper. We might as well enjoy it while we can!”

Watching the two of them gloat through the surveillance feed, I sneered and closed my phone.

I didn’t go all out against them. Based on the amount the two of them could eat in three days, I bought enough staple food, vegetables, and meat to ensure they wouldn’t starve.

Then, I used the rest of the money to order an expensive armored vehicle.

Just imagining Vienna’s face when the apocalypse ended in three days, and that armored vehicle arrived at the door almost made me laugh out loud.

But as soon as I stepped back into the house, I was greeted by a sharp, stinging slap.

Vienna jabbed her finger at my nose, her voice shrill with rage.

“Where the hell did you go?! You’ve been gone for so long and still came back with so little. Did you steal the money?!”

I pretended to be weak and pulled out the order receipt for the armored vehicle.

“Wife, I thought the apocalypse might be dangerous. In case you and Jude want to go out, having a vehicle would be more convenient.”

She snatched the slip from my hand, wrapped her arms around Jude, and pinched his cheek with a bright smile.

“In a couple of days, let’s head into the zombie horde and broaden our horizons!”

Jude nodded, but the look he gave me turned cold and vicious.

It was exactly as I remembered, the same look he wore when he coaxed Vienna into locking me outside.

Vienna’s expression turned sinister.

“Now that everything’s settled, there’s no point keeping you around.”

“Honey, our supplies are limited, and there’s hardly enough for Jude and me. You’ll just have to make a little sacrifice…”

The night deepened, and suddenly, zombies began to appear.

Heavy banging shook the courtyard walls.

“Ah! Daddy, help me!”

My daughter’s terrified screams pierced the night. I rushed to the window and froze.

A wooden stake stood in the yard, newly erected.

My daughter, who should have been safe and happy in the villa next door, was tied to it, her face pale with fear.

Outside the gate, more and more zombies pressed forward, ready to break through.

I panicked and lunged for the door, but Jude grabbed my collar.

He pressed down hard on the back of my neck, forcing me to stay inside the villa, my cheek crushed against the cold glass as I watched everything unfold in the yard.

Vienna leaned close, her breath brushing my ear.

“Don’t get so worked up, honey. You’ve never really seen what the apocalypse looks like, have you? A perfect chance to show you.”

Just then, my daughter’s cries pierced the night again.

I struggled with everything I had, my voice raw as I begged.

Jude took the chance to slap me hard across the face.

“Shut up! We’re just using your daughter for an experiment. Is that really worth all this drama?”

I was certain this twisted idea had come straight from him.

Vienna smiled and gave Jude an approving thumbs up.

Jude’s grip tightened as he grabbed my chin, forcing my eyes open.

“Don’t be scared. Watch. Watch closely.”

“Whatever those things out there are, and how deadly they might be, we don’t know. Your daughter makes the perfect test subject.”

“If they don’t like kids or don’t eat people, maybe your precious girl will get to live.”

Rage surged through me. I fought back with every shred of strength and sank my teeth deep into Jude’s finger.

He screamed in pain, his voice echoing through the room as his other hand yanked my hair. The two of us grappled, crashing into the wall.

Vienna finally let go of the hand she had been using to restrain me.

I seized the moment and bolted straight for the kitchen.

Originally, I hadn’t planned to tear everything apart so soon.

But now that they had laid a hand on my daughter, I swore I would fight them with everything I had.

In my past life, after they locked me outside, Vienna wanted to fool around with Jude on the couch.

My daughter, not knowing I had already been torn apart by zombies, knelt by the door, crying and calling for me.

Vienna, irritated by her sobs, dragged her to the small dark room under the stairs and locked her inside.

“Cry, cry, cry, that’s all you know! If you cry again, I’ll never let your daddy come back!”

My daughter, terrified, hiccupped and bit her lip, not daring to make another sound.

Satisfied, Vienna went back to fooling around with Jude, only for the two of them to die a sudden, ridiculous death in the end.

Before she starved to death, she kept whispering apologies.

“Daddy, I’m sorry.”

“Daddy, I promise I’ll be good from now on. I won’t cry ever again…”

My greatest regret was never being able to protect her.

And now, they dared to lay hands on her right in front of me.

Vienna lunged at me, her face twisted with rage.

I grabbed a small kitchen appliance and swung it with all my strength.

It struck her hard, leaving several bloody welts across her skin.

She let out a shriek and completely lost control, charging into the kitchen without a second thought.

The sound of the courtyard gate splintering open echoed through the house.

Jude clapped his hands gleefully, his eyes glinting with malice.

“The real show is starting. Let’s guess, do those things out there like eating humans?”

“Will your daughter manage to escape their claws tonight?”

Panic surged through me. Without thinking, I grabbed a kitchen knife and swung it straight at Vienna.

“You lunatic! Are you fucking serious?!”

Vienna barely dodged, the blade slicing into her calf and leaving a deep, bleeding gash.

Jude staggered back, his smug grin replaced by wide-eyed fear.

Out in the yard, my daughter’s cries grew louder, her voice cracking with terror. More and more zombies crowded around the windows, pressing against the glass.

My heart clenched so tight it almost stopped.

But what made my blood run cold was when Vienna, right before my eyes, yanked open the basement hatch.

“Open your eyes and look. See what’s in here!”

The basement was overflowing with supplies.

Food. Water. Daily necessities. It was almost completely filled, every last item part of the stockpile I had hidden in the villa next door these past few days.

How could this be here?

What was going on?

What the hell had she done?!

I clutched my head, unable to believe what I was seeing, my mind spinning in confusion.

I had locked all those supplies in the other villa and never breathed a word to anyone. How had they ended up in this basement?

Could it be that even after being reborn, I still couldn’t escape the same fate, devoured, with nothing left behind?

Vienna threw back her head and laughed. “Idiot! You really thought you were clever, didn’t you? Want to know why everything’s here with me?”

“Apollo, let me tell you because I—”

I didn’t care to hear another word from her mouth. Clutching the knife, I rushed out.

Vienna and Jude lunged for the door and slammed it shut behind me, locking me out.

By the time I stumbled back into the villa next door, clutching my daughter in my arms, my body was covered in cuts and bruises from the struggle.

The storage room where I had hidden all our supplies was empty, stripped bare by Vienna, leaving only a few boxes of water and instant noodles behind.

I forced myself to stay calm as I cleaned and dressed my wounds.

When I looked up at the rooftop across from us, I saw Vienna standing there, a megaphone in her hand.

She raised two fingers slowly, her smile vicious.

“Apollo, didn’t expect it, did you? I’ve been reborn twice! Three days later, the apocalypse won’t end!!”