It was not hard to fill out the paperwork and submit it. But the verification process took much longer than Rin anticipated.
A whole nerve-wracking hour passed before Rin got the permit for his settlent and he let out a sigh of relief once the confirmation text appeared on his screen.
It was already the next day and task 3 would begin in a few hours. Rin decided to sleep until he was needed.
His sleep was shallow and even the smallest sounds ended up waking Rin up. He did not feel well-rested but he could not afford to sleep anymore. So Rin pushed himself to get out of bed and headed toward the dining hall.
Silent gazes followed him around the room. People already knew about the bet and everyone was curious to know the reason behind his confidence.
Rin wasn’t the only one receiving these curious gazes. Albus was getting just as many. But while the ones Rin was getting were filled with curiosity, Albus’s were filled with hostility.
But Albus must have nerves of steel, because he did not even look fazed. He looked at Rin and waved at him to join his table.
"Sir, why don’t you sit with ? Were you nervous about our bet?"
Albus asked him this question in front of everyone. He was keeping an eye on Rin’s expression to catch any sign of weakness.
Unfortunately for him, Rin had mastered the art of keeping a poker face no matter what he felt inside. He sat down in front of Albus and smiled back at him.
"Why would I be nervous about our bet? I trust my instincts. I am certain that the third task will start any second."
[...User, this is not fair. You are using your knowledge incorrectly. You are supposed to help the protagonist, not antagonize him.]
That was unfair. Rin had not even been rude to Albus yet, but the system was already telling him to stop being an to the original MC.
It just made Rin want to annoy him more.
[User, why is your personality trash? Can’t you be a little more sympathetic to our poor Albus? He’s gone through a lot—]
’Haven’t we all gone through a lot? Albus is not special just because he suffered a little more than the others.’
The MC was not even the most pitiful person in the original novel. There were far more people Rin felt sorry for.
But the system was biased toward Albus as the original MCC.
So far, all the system had done was plead with Rin. He doubted it had the power to actually do anything to him. So he decided to ignore the system until it gave Rin important information that could help him.
"Sir Rin, are you alright? You went quiet all of a sudden. Is the stress of your position too much for you?"
Albus asked in a cheeky tone. He was older than Rin by a few years, but he seed ntally younger. Even his words felt irritating, making Rin sigh to calm himself.
’Think of Albus as that annoying younger sibling. I cannot get angry because I need to use him in the future.’
It was easy to control his anger once Rin adjusted his mindset. His formidable patience was rewarded by the system not even seconds later.
[Task three will begin in 2 hours.
Task objective: Base Cleanup.
Congratulations on establishing a community. But a thriving community is a place that attracts all kinds of things. That includes pests. Please make sure to protect your precious resources.]
"Ah, the task has started. It looks like I won this bet. I am happy to have you under my command, Albus. I promise I will look after you well."
Albus looked startled and he stared at his system screen with a look of betrayal.
"This is...this shouldn’t happen for two more days. Why is the task here already?"
Rin sympathized with Albus at that mont. He might not like Albus much but as soone in a similar situation to him, Rin felt like he could understand him.
That did not an he agreed with Albus’s actions in the original story.
"I don’t know why you were so confident about the date of the next task, but you should consider the fact that we are in the apocalypse and nothing is certain. Keeping these things in mind can help you adapt more quickly to new changes."
Albus flinched but he was considering Rin’s words. Sothing shifted in Albus’s expression and Rin had a feeling that Albus was not as hopeless as he initially thought.
Having read the original ant that Rin was aware of Albus’s thought process and his motivation. He was fixated on surviving for now. That was why he was ignoring the people from ENC Tech and trying to adjust.
His ntal state was fragile and Rin suddenly felt that it was not too late for Albus to change.
"I don’t know what you went through, but I do know that you are not the only one who went through hardship. You should rember this if you want others to respect you."
Albus flinched at Rin’s words but nodded to show that he understood.
Rin watched him for a few more seconds before he walked out.
[User, this was hypocritical of you to say. Didn’t you say you were going to use people as tools and get as much out of them as possible?]
The system chid in and Rin imdiately corrected himself.
"I am going to use people as tools. But that does not an I think of them as tools. But I doubt you will understand such a complex feeling."
Even Rin did not understand this feeling fully. He just knew that there was a difference between the two.
But whatever the difference was, that would have to wait. First, Rin needed to go and prepare for the task ahead.
He recalled the third task well because it was a troubleso task in the novel. It was a test of stamina and endurance.
The task was as simple as the system made it seem. On paper, the task was to simply repel pests and protect the base’s ration supplies. But the system had failed to ntion how many rats would be there and where they would spawn.
These things would only be ntioned once the task started.
But it was not an obstacle for Rin.
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