Chapter 13
The Camp entered a period of water shortages.
"No matter what, I still have to thank you," Jun Shutong insisted.
Lu Li said nothing more and simply accepted her gratitude.
"Here, take this as my thanks." Jun Shutong pulled a bag of chocolates from a drawer and tossed it to him.
After catching the chocolates, Lu Li gave Jun Shutong a surprised look.
It was a large bag containing quite a few pieces. Jun Shutong's thank-you gift was no small offering.
"Then I'll gladly accept." Lu Li did not refuse the gift. After all, it had been a long time since he had eaten anything sweet.
Lu Li hid the chocolates under his clothes and slipped back to his quarters while everyone was still focused on the fire.
It was eight in the morning on the fifth day after the Pokémon arrived.
Since the Camp had switched to two meals a day, breakfast and lunch were combined into a single meal served at ten in the morning.
Getting up too early would only make him hungry, so Lu Li deliberately stayed in bed a little longer.
Lu Li sneaked over to the Aquarium to fetch some water and washed up briefly. When he reached the Camp, he received some devastating news.
The tap water in the restrooms had finally stopped running. That meant the Camp was entering an era of water scarcity.
Perhaps the news had hit too hard, because Lu Li noticed that the survivors' eyes had lost much of their light.
Before this, they had all held on to some hope that the Federation would come to rescue them. But once the water stopped, all except a stubborn few had to start contemplating a future without Federation aid.
In the meeting room, all the Camp's able-bodied young and middle-aged adults gathered once more. This time, the discussion centered on water supplies.
"There might still be water at the Aquarium. Should we..."
Before the middle-aged man could finish, Fatty Lei interrupted him. "Are you going to fetch it? Or is someone else going? Fighting those water-dwelling Magical Beasts for water-have you lived long enough already?"
The others in the meeting room nodded, their faces full of agreement.
The Aquarium was occupied by large numbers of Water-type Magical Beasts. They would not dare fight those monsters for water even if they had ten times the courage.
Having already stolen water once, Lu Li quietly tried to make himself less noticeable.
There was no way he would tell them he had used water from the Aquarium. He was not naive enough to gamble on human nature during the apocalypse.
Jun Shutong sighed. "Then we can only step up our search for bottled water."
Someone else spoke up. "We can't get to the supermarket in the mall, and we're unlikely to find bottled water elsewhere."
Lu Li, who had remained silent at the side, suddenly said, "Vending machines!"
Seeing everyone turn toward him, Lu Li reminded them calmly, "I remember the mall having vending machines."
"We've already cleared out the vending machines on the fourth and fifth floors. If we want to find more, we'll have to look on the lower floors," Fatty Lei said.
A young man who had worked in the mall said, "There are quite a few vending machines on the roof, too, and even a large supply of alcoholic drinks."
Fatty Lei rejected the idea without a second thought. "Forget the roof. I don't want to become food for bird Magical Beasts."
Bird Magical Beasts chose their human prey by body size. If they ran into one while hauling water, he would definitely be the first to die.
Fatty Lei knew himself very well. How could he not know what he was like?
Big and slow.
He was practically a bird Magical Beast's favorite meal!
Jun Shutong suddenly asked, "Lu Li, do you have any other ideas?"
Lu Li fell into thought as well.
With the infrastructure damaged, the best solution would actually be to find a new water source. But that option had been ruled out from the start.
In a world where they could encounter wild Pokémon every few steps, traveling long distances was suicide for ordinary people like them. Even if they found a water source, fetching the water would still be a problem.
Pokémon would be even more densely concentrated in the water. Besides, it was not as though the mall had no water source-the one there had simply been taken over.
The same problem remained even if they did not relocate, leaving them with no choice but to collect water themselves. Yet the bird Pokémon overhead prevented them from relying on the sky for resources.
"Conserve water, then... search for water supplies around the mall. That's the only option we have left. I remember there being a Water Station over in District One that sells large bottles of water wholesale."
Jun Shutong shook her head. "But District One is at least six hundred meters from the mall. We might not even make it there alive, let alone bring the water back."
Of course she knew there was a Water Station in District One. She even knew where the other Water Stations nearby were located.
But the fact remained that they could only huddle inside the mall to stay alive. Going outside to search for supplies was far too risky, especially when they had to travel so far.
"Then there's nothing we can do." Lu Li spread his hands, showing that he had no solution either.
He was not going to risk his life for the Camp. After all, he already had Feebas. As long as he could lie low until Feebas evolved into Milotic, this hell-difficulty apocalypse would become normal mode.
"All right, everyone, go eat first. We'll head out after the meal." Jun Shutong looked exhausted, once again feeling lost about the future.
After everyone else left, Lu Li looked at Jun Shutong with complicated feelings.
Anyone with too strong a sense of morality and responsibility was destined to find true happiness elusive, especially in a world like this.
Lu Li could not help offering some comfort. "As they say, there'll be a way forward when we reach the mountain. You don't need to think too far ahead. Just focus on getting through today and tomorrow."
Jun Shutong looked up at Lu Li, a trace of bitterness crossing her face.
"I'm a Law Enforcer. It's my duty to keep civilians safe. But... I don't know what to do anymore. I really don't know what I should do." As she spoke, Jun Shutong lowered her head onto the desk and began to sob quietly.
Lu Li took a step toward her to offer comfort, but after a moment's hesitation, he stopped.
"You've already done more than enough," Lu Li said gravely.
Under Jun Shutong's management, the Camp was a rare haven in this apocalypse. Those at the top did not ruthlessly exploit those beneath them, the strong did not wield power over the lives and deaths of the weak, and the elderly and children were well cared for.
A Camp like this might have seemed like a burden to those capable of surviving the apocalypse on their own, but for the elderly and children, it was a utopia amid the end of the world.
Though this utopia could crumble at any
moment.
In truth, Lu Li had a crueler suggestion that he had left unspoken. If Jun Shutong abandoned the elderly and children who could not survive on their own, she could live quite comfortably with her gun.
But if Jun Shutong really were that sort of person, he would have died the day he arrived at the mall.
Seeing her like this, Lu Li did not disturb Jun Shutong any further. He turned and left the office.
Breakfast that day consisted of two eggs and corn. After collecting his meal, Lu Li returned to his quarters, nibbling on the corn as he leisurely sprinkled fish food into the tank.