SS.01 Chapter 2

Anna walked towards the door where she heard the whimpering sound, stopping and started to knock as she spoke to let the child know she was a living person.

"Is someone there?" Her soft mellow voice sounded like a clear drop of water in the forest. It was very pleasing to the ears and could make anyone feel relaxed.

"I know someone is inside. Don't be afraid, I will help you." Anna added, hearing what is happening inside, feeling anxious as the boy inside seemed to cower.

"I will open the door, do not get close or you might get hurt, okay?" Anna uttered softly, but before she could start, small footsteps were moving towards the door.

Click. The door was unlocked, making Anna sigh in relief before slowly opening the door. She didn't forget to remove the mask on her face to prevent the boy from being frightened.

When the door was finally opened, Anna stepped in before closing the door again and saw a small child who ran back to hide below the table.

She removed her hood, showing her face as she kneels on the ground, and softly spoke, "Hey, baby it is okay. Big sister will take care of you from now on."

The boy looked around three to four years old, making Anna's heart feel pained. Such a young boy lost his parents that turned into zombies. Luckily, she found him, or else he might starve to death.

"Come on. Baby, don't worry I won't hurt you." She added while watching the boy hesitate until finally coming out of the table and standing in front of her. "My name is Anna, what about you?"

"Dave." The boy whose face was very cute and had blue eyes honestly spoke as he looked at the door before looking back at Anna. "Daddy and mommy said Dave should not open the door. But if someone comes to take me, Dave will go and be obedient."

Anna felt sad. She put her sword down on the ground before scooping the boy into her arms, embracing him tightly. Her eyes were red, yet it seemed incapable of drawing out any tears.

"Don't worry, from now on, you will call me mommy. I will protect you." She softly spoke while lightly caressing his back.

Dave didn't respond right away, hesitating again before he nodded and gave Anna a warm embrace, leaning his head on her shoulder before noticing a small cat on the other side. "Cat."

Anna chuckled. Releasing the boy from her embrace, she grabbed the little cat on her shoulder and gave it to the child. "This cat's name is Red, you will hold him from now on, okay?"

The little cat rolled its eyes after getting a name, it was the same name his previous master gave to him. It felt Anna was almost the same as his previous master, too lazy to think of a name. Yet it didn't speak, afraid that the little boy would be frightened to hear a talking cat. It watched Dave nod happily and it jumped on his shoulder.

"Alright, let me look for your clothes. Are you hungry?" Anna saw the child shake his head, she looked over the bedroom which had some traces of food, biscuits, and water. They were probably prepared by his parents.

Anna picked up her sword before going to the closet. Leaving the child sitting in his bed with the red cat in his arms. One thing she was happy about was the ice crystal necklace on her neck was a hidden space.

The most incredible thing was, it was twice the size of a stadium. To be exact, her space was about 600-acre. It was equally divided into two, one as a storage room, the other was a huge planting field with a clear lake in the middle.

It was more like a small world, but Anna couldn't get in. She could only use her mind to do some changes such as picking up some fruits on the trees around the field, plowing, and planting automatically.

Now that she had Dave with her, Anna decided to collect some resources. She needed seeds to plant vegetables and fruits for him to eat nutritious food since she didn't need to eat at all. But of course, she still needs to consume some in front of other people to prevent them from being suspicious of her.

With this, Anna happily took Dave's clothes and stuff. She still looked around to get a bag as a pretense to cover her space. She continued packing up, also going to other rooms with the child to look for the things they may need to use.

"Mommy will tell you a secret, but would my baby promise not to tell anyone no matter what happens?" Anna decided to let Dave know what she could do. They are now together, so it would be an issue if she could pull some stuff out of thin air.

Watching Dave nod in response, Anna first revealed her frost ability, creating an ice statue of a cat, making the child's eyes shine in amazement before she showed her ability to take in and out some stuff out of thin air.

"Isn't mommy amazing? Only my baby Dave should know about this. Okay?" Anna got another nod, she couldn't help but take him to his arms again and gave a smooch on his soft cheeks.

Taking the child in his arms, Anna started again, taking everything in the house. This includes the clothes in the store on the first floor, while she looked for a dark hooded shirt and pants to replace her clothing.

However, she created a mask for herself and Dave to hide their faces. Aside from that, Anna used her ability to create a thin cloth inside their garments, to protect their bodies from being scratched by those zombies.

She noticed that her clothes created by her frost ability were pretty tough the first time a zombie attacked her. Anna was not harmed and with this, it will serve as well-protected clothing for both of them.

Although she is not sure if her skin was also tough, it would be better to have it as insurance. Anna also looked for food in the kitchen, making sure that Dave could fill his stomach before leaving.

Fortunately, the stove was made for gas, not electricity. Otherwise, she wouldn't be able to cook something for the child. She also found out that the main apocalypse started a month ago.

At first, Dave wanted to preserve food. It was very heartbreaking to watch a little boy this young have learned to think about saving food. She picked up some fresh fruits inside her space and gave them to Dave and persuaded the boy to eat his fill as she would look for food and never let him starve.

It was only around eight in the evening, Anna took a wristwatch from the couple's study room where she found a map of the City, checking for the nearest stores but her main target was the supermarket and vegetable market.

With her sharp hearing, Anna closed her eyes and concentrated to hear the noises in the direction of the supermarket. She carefully checks which way is better and safe to walk before checking her target.

When she was done to confirm that there were no people in the supermarket, Anna didn't hesitate to move. She took the mountaineering bag that includes Dave's clothes and food, on her back.

She created a baby carrier with the exact size for Dave and placed him in front. Dave surrounded his little arms on her neck, while his legs wrapped on her thin waist.

Her light movements didn't make a sound as she used her speed to run towards the supermarket. Anna would sometimes make a detour to avoid the zombies while her ears were concentrated on the noises in her surroundings.

Once they arrived in the supermarket, Anna found out it was unlocked and the shelves were a mess. She didn't touch anything and decided to leave it for other people. She moved and started to look for a supermarket's warehouse where she could take more resources.

Luckily, she found the right place. It was still locked but it was easy to open using her thin sword. Anna didn't unlock it right away. She listened first and confirmed nothing else was inside before breaking the lock.

As soon as the door was opened, Anna stepped in and closed it again. Looking at the huge warehouse full of resources, she was completely delighted. There is no need to check what those are since they might be able to use them in the future.

Without waiting for a second, Anna took everything in her space, leaving nothing, nodding with satisfaction before departing silently. Her next goal was the mall.

"Baby, just sleep if you feel sleepy. Mommy will protect you." Anna uttered softly, gently rubbing the child's back as she continued moving, as nimble as a cat with light footsteps.

When they arrived at the mall, it was completely closed. But she could hear heavy breathing inside, an indication that there are living people hiding inside. Still, she didn't stop to look for a way to enter.

They got in and closed the door, Anna heard another breathing nearby, but before she could utter a word, there was a sound of countless clicking followed by voices. "Stop! Otherwise, we will shoot!"

Anna froze on the spot. She slightly lifted her head that was still covered with a hood, to see who spoke. One of her hands remained to hold at Dave, while the other one held her sword.

"I'm just here to look for resources with my child." Her clear mellow voice rang, clearly implying she was a woman. "I just need to look for some things that my baby needs."

She couldn't see their faces as the hood on her head was preventing her from doing so. If she lifted her head higher, they would notice that she was wearing a mask. It may make them feel wary about her.

Anna heard a sigh of relief from those people. Despite the darkness of the place, her sharp and clear eyes could see their lower clothing.

They were wearing soldier uniforms and fully armed. Relying on her hearing, Anna figured that there were many of them. If she wasn't mistaken, they were fifteen.

She heard them taking down their guns, but their heartbeats were clear that they didn't relax their vigilance towards her.

Anna felt a bit puzzled since soldiers should be protecting people and not being cautious towards a civilian. Anyway, she wasn't a civilian and was even holding an exquisite sword as its appearance was based on those things she saw from the internet in her world.

It would be strange if those soldiers wouldn't feel suspicious of her. Especially being alone and carrying a child in this kind of environment.

She didn't look disheveled and her clean clothes indicated she was able to protect herself and the child. Though her clothing was a bit big for her, it also revealed the beautiful curves of her body.

"You can move then. The first and second floors are safe. You can go directly to the supermarket to get your child something to eat." A deep masculine voice rang in her ears, it sounded a bit cold and indifferent but Anna didn't care.

"Thanks." She uttered softly before placing her sword at her back, between her and the backpack. Anna bowed slightly to give her thanks as she used to before starting walking forward but she halted after realizing she didn't know where to go.

"That.." Anna hesitated, feeling ashamed as she asked, "Could you please point out where the supermarket is?"

"Are you not from this city?" The man's voice sounded again, but Anna only shook her head in response. He thought for a second before saying, "I'll go with you."

"Major, I'll go instead." A young man intercepted, offering his service.

"No. All of you take a rest. We will need to move tomorrow." The Major instructed and without waiting for a response, he started walking in a direction while using a flashlight to lighten the way.

Anna almost forgot that she also needed those things. She couldn't let people notice that there was no difference between light and darkness in her eyes.

Still, she walked behind the man and when the supermarket could be seen, Anna offered, "I can take it from here. You can go back and have some rest too."

The Major halted for a second like he was considering what she said, but he resumed to lead the way.

Anna guessed that he was suspicious of her. 'If you are around, how could I take those things in my space?'

Sadly, she had no choice but to follow the man towards the supermarket. What Anna didn't notice was the noise of their boots as they continued to walk.

To be exact, the Major's light footsteps could still be heard while hers didn't. It was like only one person was walking around while the other was walking in the air.

When they entered the supermarket, Anna raised her head to check which section she must go to, but she didn't notice that the Major in front of her had turned around to look at her.

Click. A sound of a gun being held up rang again in her ears. Anna subconsciously turned to look at the man a few steps away, lifting her hand to block the blinding light, but she could see him pointing a gun and a flashlight straight at her.

'Damn! What's his problem?! Don't tell me he is a pervert who wanted to take advantage of me?!' Anna screamed in her mind. Her hand clenched while becoming alert against the man. Even if he was a soldier, she is ready to pull out her sword when needed.

Although she wasn't sure if her sword could divert the bullet once it is fired at her, Anna will remain vigilant. Truthfully, she was very nervous since the man was a soldier.

She may be as nimble as a cat, but Anna has never learned any martial arts or even defensive moves. It would be hard for her to win if they started to fight. What's more, she was carrying a child with her.

"Remove your mask." The man's cold voice rang again in her ears.

It was only now that Anna realized that her mask was exposed. It was probably when she lifted her head to look for a direction.

"Take off the hood first and do it slowly. Otherwise, I might shoot you." He added.

Anna sighed helplessly. She had no other option but to follow his instructions to prevent any fights. But if this man tried to take advantage of her, there would be no second thoughts, she would resist.

Slowly, Anna lifted the hand which was blocking the light from her eyes, to remove her hood, and revealed her snow-white hair tied in a ponytail, but leaving a few bangs on her forehead. It turned more very eye-catching due to the flashlight being pointed at her.

Then next, she slowly removed her mask which she designed as easy to take off in case these things happened. Luckily, she thought of it before coming to the mall.

When Anna finally removed her mask and revealed her magnificent countenance, the man was astonished by her beauty. He remained frozen for a moment, staring straight at her without saying a word.

Anna, who was still being blinded by the light pointed at her, started to feel irritated as she uttered helplessly, "Can you please put down the light? It hurts my eyes."

The man finally came back to his senses and immediately put down his gun and flashlight, thinking, 'No wonder she would wear a mask to hide her face.'

"Why are you alone with your child?" He inquired before he halted, he forgot that in the world's current situation, there are multiple reasons for a woman and a child to be alone, but he couldn't help hesitating until asking again, "Your husband?"

Anna was startled by his question, and subconsciously answered, "I don't have one." She halted, realizing her mistake, and added, "I... I mean…"

'Damn! Of course, I don't have one. I just accidentally picked up a son.' She cursed in her mind while unconsciously biting her lower lip, indicating she was uneasy.

"It's okay. Where are you planning to go after this?" The man's voice suddenly softens a bit.

'She didn't have a husband? No wonder she is alone. She looked 18, the size of the boy looked around four, don't tell me she got pregnant at a very young age?' He thought in his mind.

Anna froze after hearing his question. She didn't have any idea at all as to where to go and where to find the protagonist who would fall in love with her at first sight.

Worse, she didn't know what he looked like, all she had was his name. Maybe she could use it and claim to be the father of her child? Anna's eyes brightened.

"I am not sure where to go yet. But I need to find the father of my child." She said but before she could continue, Anna almost choked when she looked at him.

He was staring at her intently. Anna was stunned first to see a handsome man standing in front of her. She didn't notice it before since she had been dropping her head down to prevent them from seeing her mask.

Now, Anna couldn't help but panic. She didn't know why, but his gaze was too intense like it could see through her thoughts, making it hard for her to lie.

She raised her vigilance to the highest and started to stammer, "His name is David Bradley. Is there something wrong with finding the father of my child?"