Surviving the Apocalypse: All I Want Is to Find a Husband
Chapter 222: Convincing Gorillas (2)

Chapter 222: Convincing Gorillas (2)

The Snow Gorillas exchanged uncertain glances. Titan and Nala looked down at the skull in their hands, their expressions unreadable, almost as if they were trying to hear the imaginary whispers of their former owner.

Medeia, of course, saw this as the perfect opportunity to turn up the theatrics.

She let out a deep, dramatic sigh and placed a hand over her chest. "I understand. You need time to process this sacred message," she said solemnly, nodding like a wise old oracle.

Then, with the act of a true performer, she gently patted the skull. "Cornelius, dear, please be patient with them. After all, accepting one’s fate is never easy."

At this point, Lucian had to physically press a fist to his mouth to keep himself from bursting into laughter.

The gorillas, however, were taking this far too seriously. Titan turned to Nala, and the two of them let out a series of deep, thoughtful grunts, almost like they were having a secret discussion about the meaning of life.

Finally, after a long pause, Titan and Nala knelt before Medeia. One by one, the rest of the Snow Gorillas followed suit.

They didn’t say a word, but Medeia knew exactly what this meant.

They had made their decision.

They were staying in Red Canyon.

And more importantly, they weren’t staying out of guilt or obligation.

They had chosen this of their own free will.

Note that. She didn’t force anyone to follow her.

Lucian raised an eyebrow, somehow feeling a little proud of her. After all, she had just convinced an entirely different species to see her as their leader.

Medeia smiled, tilting her chin up like a queen welcoming her new royal guards. "Good choice," she said. "You won’t regret it."

According to the system, the Snow Gorillas could eat fruits and vegetables, but for years, they had only survived on insects since they couldn’t find anything else.

Honestly, Medeia wanted to give them some vegetables as a welcome gift, but since her crops weren’t ready for harvest yet, they’d have to wait a little longer.

"Well, since you’re officially part of my base now, would you like a more comfortable place to sleep?" Medeia asked, tilting her head as she glanced at the rough, uneven rock walls surrounding them. "Or ... do you actually like sleeping here?"

Titan let out a low growl before standing up and pointing toward a more open section of the canyon wall, one that received more sunlight compared to their current dark and cramped spot.

"That one?" Medeia followed his gaze and nodded. "Alright. I’ll ask my husband to fix it up for you."

Since the Snow Gorillas preferred sleeping against stone walls and were now part of her hidden defense system, it made sense to let them sleep in the rocky cliffs.

Which meant ... Lucian would have to carve out small caves along the canyon walls to make them proper resting spaces.

The location was actually strategic, it wasn’t far from where they planned to build the second watchtower, which would serve as a security checkpoint before entering deeper into Red Star Alliance territory.

However, since this spot was so close to the watchtower, Medeia knew she’d have to introduce the Snow Gorillas to her people first.

Because the last thing she needed was one of her soldiers mistaking them for wild beasts and shooting them on sight.

"For now, it’s best if you stay here," Medeia told them. "Once I’ve introduced you to my people, then you’ll be free to roam around Red Canyon as you please."

The Snow Gorillas didn’t seem to mind at all and simply nodded in response. Surprisingly, they were almost too easy to deal with, so much so that Medeia found herself thinking, ’Am I talking to actual gorillas or just a bunch of very hairy, oversized humans?’

In fact, for some reason, she felt like it was easier to talk to them than the people in her own base.

Well, animals were better than humans anyway.

Lucian glanced at her. "When do you plan to introduce them to everyone?"

Medeia lazily kicked a small rock down the path. "I don’t have much time, so maybe ... after we get back from our mission to find those old scientists?"

The moment she said it, the system chimed in.

[New Mission Unlocked: Find the Old Scientists and Bring Them to the Red Star Alliance Base.]

Medeia froze. Did the system just steal my idea and turn it into a mission?

Seriously?! Was the system running out of creativity or what?!

No, wait—that wasn’t even the real issue here. What really mattered was where the hell was her level-up announcement?!

Her experience points should have long surpassed the required amount, so why hadn’t the system notified her yet?!

"Hey, why are you lagging?" Medeia abruptly stopped walking, forcing Lucian to do the same.

Lucian, already used to her weird conversations with the system, didn’t even bother asking. He simply crossed his arms and waited in silence.

[The system apologizes for the delay, Host.]

[A new update was just installed, and it will take approximately two days for the system to fully adjust.]

Medeia narrowed her eyes. "New update?" she continued, "You still sound just as annoying as ever, so what exactly changed?"

The system went quiet for a brief moment before finally responding.

[The authority has removed the locked access for detecting other people’s systems.]

[The data is too large, so the system needs time to process all the new information.]

Medeia frowned. Why would the authorities suddenly give her system access to detect other systems?

She had always suspected that there were others like her—people with their own systems, but as long as their paths never crossed, it didn’t really matter.

Now, though? Now her system could actively detect them?

That sounded like a problem waiting to happen.

And knowing the Watchers, those sadistic entertainment-loving freaks, they probably did this on purpose just to throw more chaos her way.

Medeia clicked her tongue in frustration. Great. Just great.

It looked like she needed to level up as soon as possible to secure her safety—and the safety of those around her.

Her gaze shifted toward Lucian, and suddenly, a thought hit her. ’... Could Lucian have a system too?’

She had always thought there was more to him than just being incredibly strong.

But if he really did have a system, wouldn’t he have told her by now?

[The system can’t detect it yet, Host.]

[Please wait a moment until the system fully syncs with the new update.]

Medeia had never brought this up before, but she had noticed something strange—

Her system always seemed to struggle when it came to Lucian. It couldn’t access his abilities properly. It couldn’t see the illusions he experienced when the panther had messed with their minds.

And even though she never confronted him about it, deep down, she still wondered why. Why did her system treat his illusions as classified information?

Why couldn’t it even detect them?

Was there something different about Lucian? Something that made him unreadable?

"The system is updating," Medeia finally told him. "It said that after the update, it’ll be able to detect other people’s systems."

If he had one, wouldn’t he look even a little concerned?

She waited.

Waited for some sign of hesitation—for even the slightest flicker of worry to cross his face.

But Lucian? He was as calm as ever. If anything, he looked like he was worried about something else entirely.

"That’s actually great," he mused, "but doesn’t that also mean you’ll be running into people like that soon?" He glanced at her, his voice casual but firm. "That’s ... not really great, is it?"

Lucian leaned in slightly. "I mean, people who have a system on their side are basically walking cheat codes." He continued, "They’re not exactly easy to take down."

Medeia nodded. "They’re not. That’s why... I guess it’s time for me to step up my game." She smiled. "Once we get back, do you want to come with me to the forest? I need to kill some monsters."

Lucian didn’t even hesitate. "Of course. You don’t even have to ask."

Honestly, who cared if he had a system or not?

As long as he stayed by her side as her strong, kind, and adorably gentle future husband nothing else mattered.

As soon as they returned to the base, Medeia wasted no time. She called for a meeting with the high-grade hunters, the strongest warriors in the Red Star Alliance.

She hadn’t officially introduced the Snow Gorillas to the entire base yet, but these hunters? They needed to know first.

After all, they were the ones fighting on the front lines. It was only right that they learned about the new hidden weapons in their territory.

"So now we’re working with a bunch of monkeys?" Tian asked, crossing his arms.

He didn’t look thrilled. In fact, he looked very much against the idea. "They’re mutated animals," he added, his voice flat.

Medeia arched a brow. "And you’re a mutated human. What’s your point?"