What she didn't know was that Louisa couldn't hear any of this. She was too deep in her sorrow to actually feel anything except sadness.
Sienna continued mumbling and making solemn promises, unaware that her promises were falling on deaf ears.
And just as she opened her mouth again, Louisa's body suddenly swayed, then she collapsed.
Sienna froze, then sighed as she scooped her up to bed. Louisa's eyes had turned puffy, and her face was stained with tears. She looked so fragile.
She drew the blanket over her, sat in silence for a while before getting up to do what she loves doing.
Training.
At this point, this was what she was using every bit of her time for. She felt her stats were too low.
She summoned her character board, her eyes scanning the familiar number.
[Character Profile]
[Name: Sienna Song
Race: Human
Age: 19
Level: -
Survival EXP: -
Karma Points: 36 (+12)
Attributes: —
Strength: 37
Agility: 32
Stamina: 33
Physique: 33
Skills: Keen Eyes (Passive)
Tier: Bronze
Effect: Can view the stats of Awakened whose level is lower than yours.
Locked Tier: Silver
Locked Effect: Can view the stats of any Awakened.
Requirement to unlock: Check 100 people's stats OR spend 1000 Karma.
Weapon:—
]
Her training had paid off; every attribute had risen. She was no longer the weakling she'd been a month ago. But she still hadn't reached the "average human" threshold.
She needed to lock in to get those points.
As for the Silver Tier Keen Eyes... Well, maybe she could purchase it later on. Her karma was still increasing from that post she had made, even without checking it out, she was hearing the dings.
Sienna put on more weights and started doing all sorts of grueling drills—push-ups with chairs stacked across her back, squats using the edge of the bed as balance, and sprints from one end of the room to the other until her legs nearly buckled.
Finally, when sweat was dripping down her temples, she stopped to catch her breath. She sat down, chest heaving. Once she felt slightly better, she sprang up again, but this time, she brought out several heavy items from the space, put them into the travel bag, and then tied it to the closet rail—a makeshift punching back.
Her fists blurred against it until her knuckles throbbed. This continued for a long while until the alarm beeped.
Wiping the sweat off her forehead, Sienna swiped to silence it and then headed to the shower.
Meanwhile, Louisa stirred awake at this moment. She held her head, frowning in pain. Memories of what had happened flooded her mind, and she almost broke down into tears again.
"What do I do now?" she whispered dazedly.
Snowball was also awake, grooming itself on the dresser. When she saw Louisa was up, she meowed and walked to her lap.
Louisa's lips subconsciously curled as she let her rub her fur against her. Her hand petted the smooth white fur while the cat continued to purr in her tiny voice.
This was the scene Sienna returned after showering.
She paused, said nothing, and instead prepared Snowball's meal. At the word "food," the cat leapt down and buried its face into the dish, tail swishing happily.
Sienna stroked her back with a tender look then washed her hands and brought out another hot meal from her space—this one for her and Louisa.
"Let's eat."
Louisa got out of bed a few seconds later and hesitantly made her way to the dining table. The tantalizing aroma wafting to her nose made her stomach growl and her thoughts race. Seeing Sienna already eating, she picked up her fork.
After dinner, Sienna set down a pack of pain relievers in case Louisa had a headache.
Louisa murmured a quiet thank-you before slipping back into bed.
Night fell. Sienna added extra layers of clothing for all of them. She knew the temperature would keep dropping, and in fact, she had guessed right.
When their eyes snapped open the next morning, Sienna didn't feel much, thanks to being bundled up, but when she checked the temperature, it was -45°C!
And it was still dropping. She imagined by the end of the day, it'd have reached -50°c.
She turned on the TV again, and the newscaster's grave voice filled the room.
[The world has never seen such rapid drops in temperature before. The cold front that swept across the northern hemisphere yesterday continues to worsen. Experts are calling it an "unprecedented anomaly." Some regions are already reporting fatalities due to exposure. Citizens are advised to remain indoors, preserve heat, and stock up on rations if possible. All flights remain grounded until further notice.]
There were pictures displayed of frozen highways littered with abandoned cars, houses buried beneath layers of snow, broken bridges, and few people trudging along tirelessly; one even fainted on the spot. Another scene was shown, with some people crying, others screaming into cameras, their voices muffled by the howling winds.
And it was only the second day!
Sienna sighed.
Reading is different from experiencing it. The author of that book was truly crazy. Some colder countries probably had it easier; however, Country C was known for its scorching summers and mild winters. No one here was prepared for this kind of cold. Insulation was poor, heating systems weren't built to handle extremes, and people hardly owned more than one thick coat.
The next few days would be hell, no, hell is hot, after all.
Sienna got out of the room and walked to the lobby. Surprisingly, there was no staff there. This was for the best. Her pace tightened as she walked to the garage and looked around.
Rows of cars stood covered in a thin frost, breath fogging in the frigid air. Cameras blinked red from the corners, and she slowed her pace, her eyes scanning around.
After circling the levels twice, she finally found an angle just beyond a broken pillar light where the surveillance didn't reach. The parked trucks there cast long shadows, creating a patch of darkness, which was just what she needed.
Her lips curled slightly as she strode to her car, unlocking it with a casual motion. From the cameras' perspective, it was just a girl checking her vehicle in the cold. She bent over the hood, opened it, and pretended to inspect the engine. Her body blocked most of the view.
Then, in a second, she tapped her fingers against the metal.
And just like that, it vanished into her space.
Sienna raised her head, brushing her hair aside nonchalantly. Leaving her car out there would be detrimental. Even though it was a modified one, it wouldn't survive this coming cold. She couldn't bring it into her space the day before as she didn't want to look suspicious.
With that, she walked back inside, tightening the jacket around her.