The system's words felt vague, yet unsettling
It at least confirmed that there was someone, or even multiple individuals who were monitoring this situation…watching him. It felt unnerving to know that his every move was being watched.
Was it because despite being an extra, he was a named character? Or was it because he was an outsider?
'The fact that this never gets brought up in the original novel worries me. Or maybe I just never got this far in the original.'
Rin could not answer these questions. The only one who could was the system. But getting anything specific out of it was a battle Rin didn't feel like fighting.
But as the saying goes- strike while the iron is hot. The system had ignited this topic, and Rin would be a fool not to take advantage of it.
"Are your superiors responsible for the apocalypse? What do they expect to achieve by causing this?"
Rin asked and the system went quiet. It was processing what it should reply.
Finally, after a full minute of processing, the system replied.
[Information related to the higher-ups is confidential. User does not meet the requirements to know.]
[What? Did the user think it would be this easy to resolve the mystery? Please keep trying your best. The more promise you show, the more attention you will receive from the higher-ups. Who knows? You might even get a chance to sit at their table and present your opinion?]
The sudden bombshell made Rin stagger. He was being baited by the system. He knew that much.
However, he was a fish that was willing to bite if it meant that he got more information.
"Why are you showing me all these favors? What do your higher-ups want to do by helping me out?"
Rin pressed further and the system, in return, decided to answer his questions.
[Please do not think of this as a trap, dear user. This is just a precaution the higher-ups are taking due to the current changes in this world. They have assessed what is happening and decided that a course correction needed to happen.]
[Your early opportunity is also a result of this course correction. If you refuse, then this opportunity will go to someone else. So please think carefully.]
The system was reminding Rin that he was special, but not enough to keep making exceptions. There was no time to think about it further.
No matter how suspicious this sounded, Rin had to accept the system's offer. He could also guess why the system had decided to present him with this opportunity.
Rin was Harem member #2 Shelly's resourceful friend who always had what the MC needed. The system was just trying to enforce this situation by giving him any advantage possible.
Not that Rin minded such blatant favoritism. But it did leave a bad taste in his mouth to know that all of this was for someone else's benefit.
[A new task has been prepared. Location of 3 sacred treasures will be marked within the nearby area. Please retrieve them before the end of the third day to earn a special reward.]
The system screen changed to a map. The text box became much smaller and occupied most of the system screen.
[The system would like to wish the user the best. Who knows, maybe the user might even find something 'special' during this mission.]
Rin did not feel chills often, but the system had some special power to make Rin feel uncomfortable. He pushed it aside and decided to head out.
…
Rin considered himself a lucky person. He had managed to gather an assortment of workers who could manage themselves. Even the new workers that joined yesterday caused little trouble and worked well.
He watched them work for a while before heading down. He planned to select a few workers to take with him.
But the more he watched them work, the more he felt he shouldn't disturb them. The main reason behind this feeling was the subtle hint of distance Rin felt with these people.
Most of the men gathered here had been his employees. They respected him as a master but still preferred to keep their distance. People from ENC Tech were even more out of the question since they saw Rin as someone 'holy' and their admiration felt…almost creepy.
As for their newest addition? Tired from getting used to extra work that it felt cruel to select them. Rin was also not comfortable with them.
Rin's choices narrowed down to Reina (who had collapsed due to exhaustion after treating people) and his head butler (who was managing everything in his place)
In the end, Rin realized that he did not have a suitable choice in this matter. It was for the best if he went out alone.
"It'll be fine. The next task has not started, so most people would ignore me if they see me. But I should still not risk it."
Since Rin had decided to go out, he was going to be prepared for anything. He grabbed several bombs and a few physical weapons and started working on them.
[You have used Perfect Craftsman(lvl1) on your knife. Enhancement is successful. The weapon's durability has increased. There is a 20% chance to apply the status effect 'mild poisoning' on the enemy]
[You have used Perfect Craftsman(lvl1) on the bomb. Enhancement is successful. Firepower has doubled. There is a 50% chance to slow targets caught in the blast radius.]
Rin kept enhancing his weapons one by one and he successfully added effects to most of them.
'This truly is a cheat ability. However, I need a way to upgrade it soon. I cannot keep enhancing weapons one by one. This will drain me too quickly.'
He was nearing his limit already and his body ached. Once his legs began to ache, he stopped and bought a potion to heal himself.
It was expensive so he decided to stop enhancing for the day and head out.
"I wonder how many weapons I will have to enhance to reach a breakthrough. Or maybe I should keep checking in the shop to see if an item for skill enhancement drops soon."
For now, increasing his skill should be Rin's first priority. If he could not get powerful by stats, then he would rely on his skills and weapons.