A year passed in a flash, and the dense fog still showed no signs of dissipating.
The wood outside the safe zone had been almost completely gathered, and the temperature remained between thirteen and sixteen degrees.
Rats had long since been driven to extinction by everyone's vigorous hunting efforts. However, some people had started breeding large numbers of them at home, and several shops selling rat meat had even opened in the safe zone.
Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick continued to keep a comfortable distance from the others. The safe zone's rules and regulations gradually became more formalized. Though life was still hard, the survivors living here enjoyed a rare sliver of peace.
The light rain still fell once every three days. The stored rainwater was enough for everyone to drink, but only just. Washing one's face or taking a bath was an absolute luxury.
