After Surviving the Apocalypse, I Built a City in Another World

They built temporary walls with wooden posts around the quarantine areas, making them relatively air-tight—at least within the required height.

They also made sure to include some villa areas and farm villas as well, so they could at least be self-sustaining if this lasted longer than expected.

They hoped to contain it within a few months. They weren’t certain if they could make a cure by then, but they could at least stop it from spreading further.

There was also a clinic covered inside, and some people were assigned there in exchange for huge bonuses in terms of gold and contribution points.

The entrances were also connected to quarantine zones with different blockages. The same was said to the mercenary halls.

The motels were used for people to stay in, and more tents were erected around. All of the Specialty Store’s high quality tents were also purchased by the well-off people unfortunately trapped in the quarantine zones.

Free masks were given to everyone who entered, and airtight ’hazmat’ suits were sold to those level 20 and below.

After about a week since the disease landed in Flaret, there were no cases (yet) among Alterrans themselves, but there were plenty from those outside, so there was always a possibility of infection, so they were quarantined for two weeks until they showed symptoms, in which case they would be moved to the afflicted areas.

It wasn’t like they could keep them out. Even if they were cold-hearted, the system wouldn’t allow it, since they paid for the entrance fees.

There were different zones, with those who were completely afflicted and those who were just connected to them. These were placed in units above the 3rd floor, and they’d be moved accordingly when they showed any symptoms.

Of course, because the pathogen’s incubation period was so long, it was inevitable that citizens of Alterra would still be affected, at least to a degree.

Fortunately, they were separated fairly quickly because of Alterra’s quick and decisive programs that everyone had to comply with—otherwise they’d be thrown in prison for insubordination.

One of the ways the afflicted—even asymptomatic ones—was separated was through Cheman’s very effective tester.

Cheman was a traveling alchemist, so he did not have an oath binding him to any territory, even his home city, so he could exchange the methodology for a huge amount of contribution points.

In fact, all three masters actually had their testers, which were developed in parallel during the previous fire plague. It was just that the materials for the other two were a bit too challenging.

Cheman’s had a small margin of error and was less accurate than the others, but it was at least cheaper to make, worked faster, and was far less intrusive, so they chose it.

In contrast, Hoffen’s had to bleed someone and take blood near the heart, while Zenno’s had to have a long q-tip like thing shoved into a person’s nose, making them feel like their brains were being picked. Not to mention, some of the materials for them were not readily available to Alterra at this time.

For Cheman’s, one only had to breathe on the strip made of the dried solution, and if its colour turned red, then the person was ’positive’ of the ailment regardless of their symptoms showing.

The margin of error was primarily when particles of the demon smoke remained in the air. It was invisible after the initial dense smoke, so it was invisible and airborne. Hence, there were a lot of false positives.

To minimize this, they made sure to take the test above the two meters where the disease could go up to. And it wasn’t just on the second floor either, because it still had a floor surface on which the smoke could anchor.

It could not be applied everywhere, but what some zones did was to elevate the testing area above a park. However, it could only be done in areas where there were no outright cases to be safe.

They could also make use of wind ability users, though they had to make sure the wind they were circulating wasn’t bringing in the poison instead.

The demon smoke was only visible while the body of the victim was burning from within. When it dissipated and combined in the air, it was difficult to track.

Fortunately, Alterra’s scientists came up with something that was inspired by Cheman’s invention.

This was a spray and it would change colors when in contact with the virus! This allowed people to visualize it, and therefore avoid it.

This spray would add a bit of color (reddish, pink) to the pathogen particles it came in contact with. After some more experiments, they made it so that it was contagious. That was to say, a portion of the colored virus coming in contact with others would also do the same.

This was done with various chemistry techniques, like molecular templating, that made the grandmasters clap their hands.

This meant that one molecule could induce nearby similar molecules to adopt similar traits.

It was relatively easy because the pathogen already had this quality, considering how it would ’convert’ any smoke into its likeness.

Anyway, each zone also adopted different styles of testing and treatments. Those without symptoms had most of Cheman’s items, while the ones in the highest danger levels had the most willing test subjects.

Those who participated in the experiments were promised priority to whatever the Research Center churned out, and the subjects could also choose whether the medicine would be given to them or to others, like family members.

Interestingly, each zone was divided in a way that was self-sustaining. These had food stores, parks, and so on, to make sure that if this lockdown lasted a long time, people wouldn’t go insane.

High-level elementalists—who have higher immunity—were also wearing proper protective equipment and would deliver supplies. These were the same group from the Extreme Cold.

In a way, they had feared that their business would dip after it ended. Who’d have thought they would still make money right after?

This was how the delivery industry continued to boom in Alterra.