Apocalypse Queen: My Space, My Rules Chapter 76: Expanding the Space

He thought about the handgun she had given him earlier and couldn't help but feel that she actually treated him pretty well.

It just wasn't something reserved for him.

Number One finally accepted the reality that his position with Ms. Townsend was below Captain Zimmer's.

But it didn't matter. After all, he and Chandler weren't even in the same arena.

There was an unspoken rule in the bodyguard industry, and it was never to get emotionally involved with your employer.

He was a qualified bodyguard.

Back in her room, Mariella opened the bag of jewelry Number One had given her. Most of it was gemstones, with a smaller amounts of emerald and gold pieces.

Among them were several rare, top-grade sapphire necklaces and a pink diamond the size of a pigeon egg, worth nearly 100,000,000.

Without hesitation, she tossed everything into her storage space. As expected, it was quickly absorbed.

The virtual display lit up, the villa's second floor now had an additional study and a game room, with the total area expanding to 2,800 square feet. The garden had expanded by another 1,000 square feet, now totaling 915 square feet. The static storage space had increased by 3,500 cubic feet, reaching 38,000 cubic feet.

Looking at the newly expanded preservation space, Mariella felt pleased, but she also realized something clearly. Jewelry wasn't as effective as gold and emeralds.

If she had thrown in gold or raw emeralds of equal value, the expansion would likely have been several times greater.

She needed to find a way to get more gold and emeralds.

But for now, she couldn't risk sending her team out again as flash floods could strike at any moment.

Mariella pulled out her phone and dialed Kieran's number.

His lazy voice came through. "Ms. Townsend, what good news do you have for me this time?"

Mariella curled her lips into a smile. "I need a favor. I want to buy aviation fuel."

"What?" Kieran thought he misheard. "What do you need aviation fuel for?"

"I recently got my hands on a helicopter, and I need fuel for it. Help me out."

Mariella transferred over 80,000,000, including the money she had taken from the assassin and everything left in her account. "Buy as much as you can. Please hurry."

She knew Kieran had connections, so he could get almost anything.

Before the floods hit, before digital payments collapsed completely, she had to convert every last bit of her money into tangible survival resources.

Kieran grumbled, "Every time you call me, it's either to borrow money or buy something. Don't I get anything else out of this?"

"Did you forget? I was the one who tipped you off to secure management rights for Imperial Crest Plaza and Greenfield Organic Farm. That wasn't a small favor," Mariella reminded him.

Kieran chuckled. "All right, all right. But aviation fuel is scarce right now, so it's hard to get and also very expensive."

"Price doesn't matter. Just get it. The faster, the better."

If she didn't spend the money in those accounts soon, it would all be worthless once the flood came.

"Fine. I'll handle it."

After hanging up, Mariella opened her phone and scrolled through the group chat.

The residents of Celestine Ridge were relatively calm. With a large shopping complex and an organic farm supporting them, basic living needs weren't an issue.

But things were much worse in the city.

After a week of continuous storms, the floodwaters had reached the seventh or eighth floors. Windows had also shattered under the force of the typhoon, leading to massive casualties.

Some households had already run out of food. Now, government rescue teams were going door to door—registering survivors, distributing supplies, and relocating flooded residents to temporary shelters.

For now, the storm had stopped, and it looked like things might be improving.

But Mariella knew better. This brief calm would soon be shattered by an unprecedented flash flood.

As for when it would strike, she had no idea.

She walked to the window and looked down at Chandler, who was leading the bodyguard team in training. She called him. "Captain Zimmer, come up for a moment."

Chandler answered, glanced up, and their eyes met through the glass for a few seconds.

He calmly looked away, instructed Number One to continue leading the training, then turned and walked into the villa.

The bodyguards immediately started exchanging looks and whispering:

"Boss just woke up, didn't she? And she's calling Captain again?"

"Guess he's got something special. Ms. Townsend seems really into him."

"No way! Has she never seen other men? Deputy Captain, have you even had a chance to show what you've got in front of the boss?"

"Shut up!" Number One snapped, his expression dark. "Anyone caught gossiping about Ms. Townsend and Captain Zimmer will do one hundred push-ups!"

...

Chandler knocked twice. The door opened, and Mariella pulled him inside.

"Do you know how to make keys?" she asked. "The cars I salvaged from underwater don't have keys. Can you duplicate them and get them running again?"