Webnovel Author In The Apocalypse World

The cold air immediately rushed into the house, but it was quickly neutralized by the warm indoor heating.

When Go Okrim returned to the living room after checking everything, Kim Haru had already cleared all the ice from the door.

"The windows and vents are all intact," Go Okrim reported, "but they're all covered in thick ice."

"Alright, stay warm. Come with me to take a look outside."

Even standing near the doorway, Kim Haru could feel the bitter cold outside. Fully bundled up from head to toe, the two ventured out. They made sure to leave the door slightly ajar to maintain airflow for the animals inside.

Once outside, they were greeted by the sight of their house, now encased in ice.

Not just Kim Haru's cabin, but even the neighboring staff dormitory was sealed in a thick layer of ice. The two buildings looked like models carved from ice, with only their general outlines visible under the frosty coating.

However, the Dreamweaver's Osmanthus Tree beside the house fared much better. Its branches were dusted lightly with snow, looking more like it had experienced a gentle snowfall rather than the brutal ice storm.

The surrounding farmland was another story. The mutated plants seemed to be wearing fluffy snow jackets, their branches rounded and plump, resembling freshly made cotton candy sold by street vendors.

Unlike the rigid ice around the cabin, the snow on the plants was soft and easily dislodged with a shake. Kim Haru wasn't worried about them.

Even without knowing the Dreamweaver's Osmanthus Tree's rank among mutated plants, its resilience was evident compared to its surroundings.

"Let's start clearing the ice around the house," Kim Haru decided. Since there was only one pickaxe, he handed the system-provided hoe to Go Okrim. At least it would save some effort.

Starting from the doorway, the two began hacking at the ice from opposite sides.

By the end of the morning, they had freed Kim Haru's cabin from its icy prison. After eating a chaotic yet edible lunch prepared by the Ginseng Spirit, the two turned their attention to clearing the ice off the staff dormitory.

As for the Igloo where the Ginseng Spirit originally lived, Kim Haru had inspected it earlier and decided it was beyond saving.

Once a hollow hemisphere, the Igloo had transformed into a solid, enlarged block of ice after the storm.

"I'll clear the cowshed for you. You can stay there for now," Kim Haru said, assigning the Ginseng Spirit a new living space.

The Ginseng Spirit protested, "The cowshed is far away, all the way near the pond! Walking back here for meals every day will freeze my roots off!"

Kim Haru simply gave him options. "Would you prefer the chicken coop with Little Nugget, Sir Peckington and the 25 ducks, the pigpen with Little Snort and Big Snort, or maybe the doghouse with Snowball No. 1?"

The Ginseng Spirit fell silent.

"Fine, I'll take the cowshed," the Ginseng Spirit finally relented.

After all, whether it was chickens, ducks, pigs, or dogs, they all had a taste for radishes. Especially the Cryo Wolf and black pigs—sharing a space with them would mean his precious radishes might never grow again. Worse, he might lose parts of himself while sleeping.

Better to endure cold roots than risk waking up one morning to find himself missing half a body or several strands of his delicate root hairs.

A cold cowshed was still a private residence, after all.

By the time all the ice surrounding the buildings on the small farm had been cleared, the sky was already darkening.

"I wonder what the situation is like in the safe zone now," Kim Haru said, a trace of worry in his voice.

He hadn't expected the ice storm to be so severe. Fortunately, he had sent the dogs to the safe zone. With their digging skills, rescuing houses from the ice should go a lot faster.

It was also fortunate that ice storms didn't come in succession. If they did, with this level of destruction, it was hard to imagine how many humans could survive.

"Woof!"

A bark came from the forested area.

Kim Haru looked in the direction of the sound and saw a large figure emerging from the woods—it was Snowball No. 1, it had gone into the forest the previous day. But Snowball No. 1 wasn't returning alone; following behind it were several tall, slender stalks of bamboo.

It was an Unmelted Frost Bamboo Tree.

"Snowball No. 1, why did you bring these back?" Kim Haru asked, scratching the head of the Cryo Wolf that had trotted up to him. Unable to understand Snowball No. 1's response, Kim Haru turned to the Ginseng Spirit for a translation.

The Ginseng Spirit had a brief exchange of barks with Snowball No. 1 and a few swishing motions with the Unmelted Frost Bamboo Tree before turning back to Kim Haru.

"The Cryo Wolf said it chased the wind yesterday—Cryo Wold likes to play wildly when it's stormy. It went pretty far, and on its way back, it passed by the Unmelted Frost Bamboo Tree Grove. Then, the Unmelted Frost Bamboo Tree coerced it into being their laborer."

"Laborer?"

Kim Haru noticed that the Unmelted Frost Bamboo Tree was standing on a large sheet of ice, with their roots entwined around Snowball No. 1's tail like a rope, hitching a ride to the small farm.

Now Haru understood why Unmelted Frost Bamboo Tree was often described as "reluctant to move."

As for why these supposedly immobile plants had traveled all the way here, the Ginseng Spirit had an answer for that too.

"They said they want to help you."
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Unmelted Frost Bamboo Tree thrives in the cold and, like Cryo Wolf, enjoys harsh winters. But after the ice storm, they realized humans weren't as resilient as they were. Fearing that the human they liked so much might be in danger, the Unmelted Frost Bamboo Tree in the grove decided to take action.