Apocalyptic World: Surviving with my husband and my cute little babies-Chapter 103: Juicy gossip

Ethan raised his brows slightly, trying to gauge the 13-year-old boy’s intentions. Noticing Daniel’s serious demeanor, he replied calmly, "As long as it’s within my capability, go ahead and tell me."

Daniel felt a wave of relief as he saw Brother Ethan nod. He quickly shared his agenda, saying, "Brother Ethan, can you teach me combat?"

Ethan was surprised; he had been considering how to train Daniel, and since the boy had already suggested it, it would be a shame not to take the opportunity. However, he wanted to ensure Daniel was serious about his request.

"Are you truly willing to learn?" he asked, his expression thoughtful as he studied the boy’s face for any signs of hesitation.

"Yes," Daniel replied with determination. He understood that the world was changing, and protecting those he cared about—especially his sister—was his responsibility.

"If you’re serious about this, then I agree. I want you to begin training with Oslo and Xander first. They’ll cover the basics with you. Once you’ve mastered those, I’ll step in to help you advance," Ethan said, his tone both firm and encouraging.

Daniel nodded in agreement, feeling grateful for the support.

Sensing the growing dangers of the outside world, Andrei also spoke up. "Brother, I want to join too. Can I?"

"Alright, I’ll convert the 26th floor into a training facility," Ethan informed them, continuing with a serious tone. "No matter how hard the training is, I hope no one will give up."

Daniel and Andrei nodded once again.

Seeing their enthusiasm, Elena then looked at the kids. "How about you kids? Let’s do some basic exercises daily!"

She believes simple exercises promote a healthy body and overall well-being, crucial for adapting to unpredictable weather. Therefore, she plans to encourage everyone to exercise, with no exceptions.

"Sis Ewe, I don’t want to exercise," little Mia protested.

"Why not, Litte Mia?" Elena asked.

"I want to wearn mawtial arts!"

"Before you can do that, you need to exercise first to build your foundation," Elena explained, gently patting her head.

"Eh, is that so? Then let’s exerwise!" Little Mia replied, stretching her small arms.

Everyone chuckled at little Mia’s newfound motivation. Afterward, they assisted Andrei and Daniel in feeding the marine animals.

Elena noticed that the animals had multiplied since her last visit, growing faster and larger than usual. With the excess food, she planned to sell it to the military in exchange for jades and antiques.

Once they finished, they decided to leave the pond area. Elena teleported them back to the refilling station, and they strolled near the lake to take a break and enjoy a snack.

They had sandwiches for the adults and a delightful assortment of cakes and chocolates for the little ones.

Elena was about to stand up when she spotted their cat, Mimi, drenched again. Determined to find out why she always ended up here, so she decided to investigate.

"Is that Mimi?" Ethan asked, uncertain as he noticed how disheveled the cat looked.

"Yeah, but why is she wet again?" Elena replied, frowning.

"Swimming, maybe?" Angela suggested, glancing at the adorable cat.

"No, Mimi doesn’t like water," little Mia disagreed, shaking her head.

Mimi was feeling down, but her spirits lifted when she saw them.

’Did they come to help her catch the big, delicious fish?’

She approached Ethan and complained, "Meow~meow."

’Big guy, you’re back! Help me catch that big, delicious fish.’ Pointing her paws toward the lake.

"Wife, let’s take Mimi. Maybe she wants us to help her dry off," Ethan suggested.

"Meow~meow," Mimi protested.

’No, we still need to swim to catch that big, delicious fish.’

Elena didn’t respond immediately; instead, she watched the cat with growing suspicion, feeling that something was off. "Mimi, let’s go to the lake and swim."

Hearing that Elena was going to swim, the little kids perked up excitedly, thinking they would join her. But their enthusiasm quickly faded when she added, "It will just be me and Mimi. You can stay here. I’ll take her to the lake for a bit and be back."

Elena walked toward the lake, with Mimi excitedly following her, tail held high. Ethan was puzzled but decided not to interrupt and watched, curious about what would happen next.

"Dolphie, come out!" Elena shouted, watching Mimi closely. The cat was now so excited that her tail flicked back and forth, and she crouched low, ready to pounce at any moment. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

Dolphie immediately swam across the lake, eager to reach Elena. Overjoyed to see their benefactor, the creature made cheerful sounds.

However, when Dolphie spotted Mimi, their demeanor changed. With a splash, they tossed a handful of water at the cat, clearly annoyed by the unexpected visitor.

Elena finally understood how Mimi got wet every time and why the cat kept coming here.

Dolphie swam in a circle from a distance; their playful splashes were still evident. The kids watched with a mix of disappointment and curiosity, puzzled by why their aquatic friend had suddenly turned on Mimi. Especially, Little Mia felt a pang of concern for her cat.

Elena knelt down beside Mimi, her hands on her hips. "What can you say now, Mimi?" she asked playfully.

"Meow~meow~~meow," the cat replied, her tail flicking in annoyance.

’Why did you let it leave?’

She raised an eyebrow at Mimi, who seemed to be sulking. Seeing the cat’s irritation, she then rolled her eyes.

’This cat needs to learn a lesson.’

"How did you get Dolphie angry? Do you have any bad intentions for Dolphie?" Elena asked, her tone playful yet firm.

"Meow~meow~meoww," Mimi replied, her ears twitching in protest.

’I just want to subdue it.’

"Starting today, you are banned from Eastern Lake. For now, your job is to help Poochi take care of the baby animals."

"Meow~meow," Mimi protested, her eyes wide with disbelief.

’For what reason?’

"That’s the final decision," Elena declared, her voice steady. "Protesting is futile; otherwise, no tasty food for Mimi anymore."

"Meow~meow~meow," Mimi said, her tone accusatory as if to say, ’So tyrant.’

Feeling defeated, she turned away from Elena and returned to Little Mia, her tail drooping. As she settled beside little Mia, she couldn’t help but glance longingly at the lake, where the big, delicious fish swam just beneath the surface

"Sis Ewe, why is Mimi sulking?" little Ma asked with concern.

"Maybe she’s sad because she’s not getting enough swimming time in the lake," Elena suggested, quickly crafting an alibi.

"Eh, but Mimi doesn’t like water," Little Mia replied, tilting her head in confusion.

"She probably likes it now," Elena insisted, trying to sound convincing.

"Yay! Mimi, let’s take a bath every day, okay? I have a portable swimming pool at home. We can swim there!" Little Mia exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

Mimi remained silent, her sadness deepening as she watched the others.

After wrapping up their adventure for the day, they postponed and planned to explore the sector when not busy. Just as they were about to leave, Daniel spoke up.

"Sister Elena, I want to be marked now. Lucy is stable, and Aunt Liza is taking good care of her. I’ll just visit her every hour."

He felt a sense of urgency to assess the situation outside. The last time he remembered was during the tsunami in City C, and now that they were in City A, he wanted to witness the fierce typhoon for himself, just as Andrei had described.

Elena didn’t decline this time. She summoned the Golden Tablet and instructed, "Alright, drop a blood here."

Daniel felt a warm sensation in his head as a tear-shaped mark appeared on his wrist. Elena then instructed him that his role would mirror Andrei’s: to feed the marine animals.

With that, they vanished from the space.

******

They appeared in Elena’s unit living room and were just about to open the door when they heard a heated argument in the corridor.

Confused, Elena and Ethan exchanged glances, wondering who could be so close by, especially since no outsiders were allowed on their floor.

Leaning against the door, Elena and Ethan listened intently. They heard voices belonging to a man and a woman. One of them said ’sorry,’ but the other nonchalantly accepted the apology.

Curious about the commotion, the kids wanted to eavesdrop as well, but Elena gently instructed them to return to the living room and watch cartoons instead.

"Why are these kids so gossipy," Elena whispered to her husband, leaning on the door.

"I think I heard Oslo’s voice, " Ethan said, uncertain.

Now, Elena was intrigued. After a second, she finally knew the woman. "I think I heard Lydia."

’What’s going on? Why are they arguing?’

In the corridor, Lydia asked for forgiveness for the incident that happened at the hotel. A few months earlier, she had booked a hotel to rest during a trip. As she walked to her room, she noticed a strange man following her.

Alarmed, she alerted the guard, who promptly arrested the man. Despite his claims of being a good person, Lydia, judging by his appearance, remained convinced he was nothing more than a hooligan.

Oslo was undercover, dressed like a punk, gathering information nearby. When he returned to the hotel to rest, he inadvertently followed Lydia to her room, as they were on the same floor. He was shocked when the guard arrested him.

Although he wanted to prove he was a good guy, he couldn’t retrieve his badge from his room because his key was missing.

They went to the police station, where Oslo found someone who could attest to his identity. The guard apologized for the misunderstanding. Just as he was about to confront Lydia, an urgent mission called him away, prompting his departure.

The other policeman informed Lydia of the situation, and she wanted to apologize, but by the time she arrived, Oslo was already gone.

Lydia felt embarrassed when they met again and apologized. Oslo nonchalantly accepted her apology, which made Lydia slightly angry. Now, they were arguing in the corridor.

"You’re apologizing, so I accepted it. What do you want then?"

"Why do I feel like you just accepted it because you had no choice?"

"To be honest, yes. You almost put me in jail. Should I be happy about then?"

The chief reprimanded him for this, and Oslo felt so ashamed that the mission almost failed.

"So you’re blaming me? Why did you dress like a stupid punk?"

"Look at your behavior; this isn’t how you ask for forgiveness. I was dressed like a punk because I was undercover at the time. Get it?"

Elena was confused as the two continued arguing, neither backing down.

’This sounds fishy; they definitely know each other.’

Meanwhile, Ethan recalled the nearly failed mission and understood why Oslo was angry. This Lydia was the reason for his mishap back then.

’Well, fate really is wonderful. They meet unexpectedly.’

"Wife, let’s stop listening."

But Elena just nodded and kept listening, eager to be the first to know this juicy gossip.