Apocalypse: I'm Bound to a Mobile Lottery Shop

Chapter 71: Chapter 71: Strictly Forbidden to Leave

She had no news from inside Nutwood Base and didn’t know what the situation was.

She was feeling lazy and didn’t want to bother negotiating with The Guardian Corps. Her main approach was to just open for business and see what fate brought.

’Anyone who shows up for a scratch-off ticket is brought here by fate.’

With this zen-like attitude, the morning passed. Around noon, Frost Shaw arrived with Easton and a few others.

"It was really quiet this morning," Frost Shaw said, sounding a bit bewildered.

The lottery shop and convenience store had already made a name for themselves, thanks to the unintentional promotion by Roman Rowe and Zelda Whittaker on the platform.

A few days ago, it had even become a topic of discussion for the whole population. Logically, the place should be bustling with customers.

But this morning was eerily quiet. It was one thing for no one to come out of the base, but there weren’t any residents nearby either.

It felt like they had entered a ghost town.

Lily Hart gave a dismissive nod, her fingers tapping away at her Light Brain. Frost Shaw leaned in for a look.

She was creating an account on "Human Social Sphere." Her profile picture was a photo she had just taken of the RV.

The RV gleamed in the sunlight, giving off the faint impression of a technological behemoth that inspired awe at a single glance.

Her username was also very direct: Lily Hart’s Lottery Shop.

Her bio read: The one and only lottery shop in the world. Everyone is welcome to come and buy. There’s nothing you can’t win, only things you can’t imagine!

Frost Shaw immediately opened the app, searched for Lily Hart, and hit ’Follow,’ becoming her first fan.

Just as he was about to exit, he watched as the "1" under her follower count changed to a "2."

As if sensing something, he glanced up at Roman Rowe, who was leaning against the wall. Roman Rowe gave his Light Brain a little shake, as if showing off.

Frost Shaw couldn’t be bothered with him. ’I’m Boss Hart’s first fan,’ he thought. ’No one’s taking that from me!’

Once she was registered, Lily Hart made a post: [At Nutwood Base. Come quick. Waiting online!]

The simple sentence, once posted, disappeared without a trace, failing to make a single ripple.

After waiting for a while, Lily Hart looked up, confused. "Aren’t I famous? How come no one’s commenting or liking my post?"

Frost Shaw remained silent, looked down, and tapped away at his screen. Lily Hart’s Light Brain buzzed. She looked at it, her heart filled with joy.

But she nearly rolled her eyes into the back of her head. "Frost Shaw! And you, Roman Rowe! You two can stop adding to the ’crowd’!" she said, annoyed.

"It’s just that so many people have been impersonating you lately," Roman Rowe explained. "Look—"

He showed her his Light Brain. On the search page, he had only typed the two words "Lottery Shop," but thousands upon thousands of users appeared.

"No way..." Lily Hart scrolled in astonishment. The usernames were all slight variations of the same thing.

Lottery Shop, Base Lottery Shop, Cathaya Lottery Shop, Hart’s Lottery... All of them were fakes.

The top few results were pretty convincing. They had even stolen profile and background pictures from somewhere, making them look very authentic.

And they all had follower counts in the five digits or higher. Lily Hart looked silently at her own page with its single-digit follower count and said nothing more.

Her only two followers were Frost Shaw and Roman Rowe. ’Completely useless!’

"I’ve got it!" A spark of inspiration hit Lily Hart. "You two repost my post, and I’ll ask Zelda Whittaker to repost it too. That will boost its credibility!"

The two men immediately got to it. The last time Roman Rowe had casually posted a photo of the lottery shop, he’d gained over a hundred thousand followers overnight.

And his follower count had continued to grow since then. Everyone was curious to see what would happen next with the two shops.

But Roman Rowe hadn’t dared to post anything else, afraid of causing unnecessary trouble for Boss Hart.

And as for Frost Shaw, he was a well-known High-level Superpower User, not to mention the only Ice Element user in the entire world.

With a reputation like that, he had plenty of followers, but he’d never made a single post. His account was completely dead.

The two dutifully reposted, and soon, comments started appearing under Lily Hart’s post.

[Lily Hart’s Lottery Shop? Is that the one that went viral?]

[Yeah, looks like it! At Nutwood Base! Hey, I’m there right now!]

[Hey, person above, go buy something! It’s now or never~]

[This has to be the real owner, right? Why else would Roman Rowe repost it?]

[I want to go too, but for some reason, the base is on lockdown today. No one’s allowed out.]

There were still only a few comments, but as Lily Hart read through them one by one, she noticed that several were indeed from people in Nutwood Base.

Their stories were all the same: the base was strictly prohibiting anyone from leaving today. ’Did something happen?’

Lily Hart couldn’t figure it out. ’Could there be a mole they’re trying to catch? Or did someone turn into a zombie, and they’re doing a cleanup?’

’Knowing how a large base operates, they’ll probably have it sorted out by tomorrow,’ she mused. Time was one thing Lily Hart had in abundance. She could wait.

She had been busy for so many days, anyway. It was a good time for a break. She immediately gathered up the scratch-off tickets, slapped the table, and announced, "Time to eat!"

The younger ones looked a little uneasy. They hadn’t done any work all morning. ’Do we still get to eat?’

But when a huge, fragrant pot of meat and crab stew and another large pot of braised chicken wings appeared on the table, they couldn’t help but gulp.

The rich sauce was perfect for mixing with rice. The chicken wings and feet were plump and tender, falling right off the bone with the slightest bite, full of rich collagen.

The meal was incredibly satisfying. Even after so many days of eating and drinking well, everyone still had a hearty appetite.

But they no longer fought and scrambled for food like they used to, driven by the desperate fear that there might not be a next meal.

The younger ones had now learned to take their time, knowing that another meal would always come, so there was no need to rush.

Lily Hart was very pleased with their current state. It was harmonious and peaceful, unlike at the beginning when every meal felt like a battle.

After the meal, it was time for their usual afternoon nap. Lily Hart lay in bed, scrolling through her Light Brain. The post she’d made had already been pushed to the top of the trending list.

Below it, many residents of Nutwood Base were commenting, all saying they couldn’t get out of the base today and begging the "boss" to wait for them.

There were too many for Lily Hart to reply to individually, so she made another post. The accompanying picture was...

...a shot of the square table, neatly covered with stacks of scratch-off tickets, and the six shelves piled high with goods, creating an image of endless choice.

This post caused another uproar, but Lily Hart’s eyelids were already growing heavy. She fell into a deep sleep right after posting it.

She had no idea what a massive shockwave her two photos had just sent out.

Central Command immediately analyzed the two photos. They were completely original images, with no signs of editing.

Furthermore, the time and location of the photo were confirmed: 12:50 PM, one hundred meters directly in front of the south gate of Nutwood Base.

The department in charge of foreign affairs immediately sent Lily Hart a private message but received no response. Several high-level officials promptly convened an emergency meeting to discuss the matter.

Clean water, fresh fruits, and vegetables were already precious resources. But more importantly, there were the scratch-off tickets that could produce anything imaginable. How could they not be excited?

The result of their discussion was, of course, to do everything possible to win Lily Hart over—either by getting her to surrender her superpower or by striking a deal for her to provide a daily supply of necessary resources to Central Command.

When Lily Hart woke up, she subconsciously checked her Light Brain. Her private messages on the app had completely blown up. The vast majority were from people asking her to set up shop at their bases, with a smaller number inquiring about her supplies.

There was also a small handful who wanted to collaborate. Scrolling through them, Lily Hart saw a private message from the "Central Command Department of Foreign Affairs."

The gist of it was that she should think of the nation and its people, and selflessly dedicate her superpower to the greater good.