My 100th Rebirth a day before the Apocalypse - Chapter 283

Chapter 283: Chapter 283 Charity Can’t Be Good In Apocalypse
After cooking and serving the food, everyone gathered around the dining table for dinner to replenish their energy from the day. Conversations stayed away from work as they focused on sharing positive stories and highlights from their day. This shift in topic ensured that everyone enjoyed their meal, momentarily forgot their burdens, and maintained a healthy, relaxed mindset.

“Young Madam, you wouldn’t believe how intense Master’s training was. Many of the new recruits cried for their mothers and wanted to leave, but even after that, they stayed on, promising to return the next day after getting some rest and supplies. They’re incredibly grateful and understand the sacrifices we’re making to support everyone. This has only fueled their dedication; they’ve even volunteered to patrol the base to ensure everything is in order. Because of this commitment, Sparrow, Clyde, Fred, Bald Eagle, Rose, and many others have become team captains. This helps us better manage the recruits and keep track of attendance,” Vulture shared enthusiastically about the positive changes in the square while Kisha was busy at the makeshift hospital.

It seems that the warriors, satisfied with the new leadership arrangements, are not only enduring the rigorous training but are also eagerly participating in the patrol groups. They’ve even organized themselves into squads to improve monitoring. Now, each team captain is responsible for reporting on their members, assessing their performance, and identifying opportunities for promotions or improvements.

The new system ensures that the team captains are responsible for monitoring their members, tracking attendance, and overseeing the allocation of supplies. This setup relieves higher leaders like Duke and Kisha from worrying about individuals attempting to sneak into the ranks to claim supplies under false pretenses. Additionally, the arrangement allows team captains to closely observe their members’ progress and weaknesses, providing more effective and interactive mentoring.

After Vulture and the others updated Kisha, the meal came to an end. As they all cleared the dishes, Marcus entered with his grandchildren trailing behind him like chicks. The children looked healthy, their eyes sparkling with a newfound excitement as they watched Kisha walk with the others towards Duke’s office.

“Young Madam, Master, Old Master, and everyone—have you all had dinner?” Marcus asked with a warm smile, stepping closer as he saw everyone nod in response. He then turned to Kisha and continued, “Young Madam, thanks to your guidance, all my grandchildren have awakened abilities that seem perfectly suited to them. They are all thrilled with their new powers.”

“If it weren’t for your generosity in providing us with shelter and food, I don’t think we would have lasted a single day out on the streets. We might have perished even before our abilities had a chance to emerge. We would either have been beaten to death or brutally killed by those living around us, driven by their fear,” Marcus said, his voice trembling as he fought to hold back tears, his hands clenching in front of him.

Everyone felt deeply grateful to Kisha, as her intervention had allowed them to survive and lead a better life than they might have otherwise. However, Kisha didn’t view her actions as mere acts of charity. In the apocalyptic era, there was no such thing as a free lunch, and true generosity was rare. For Kisha, this was a strategic investment in her future. By helping others, she was advancing her own goals and working towards a better life for everyone, including herself.

What good is unparalleled strength and power if there’s no one around to share it with? Without companions, even the greatest abilities can lead to a solitary journey filled with battles not just for survival, but for meaning. To avoid such loneliness, Kisha chose to embrace the system missions while finding solace in the company of those she cares about. For her, this connection is what truly matters.

In an apocalypse, kindness and selfless help without any expectation of return are often exploited and seen as weaknesses. Others may perceive a kind person as an easy target, a vulnerable prey. If such individuals turn their backs on those they helped, they might be blamed for their own misfortune, leading to betrayal and a gruesome end. In such harsh realities, kindness can become a dangerous liability rather than a virtue.

Kisha learned this lesson the hard way. In her past, she acted out of compassion, saving everyone she could and offering them a safe haven to heal, both physically and emotionally. She aimed to ease their solitude and provide protection amidst the chaos of the zombie horde. Her approach was rooted in basic humanity—helping those in need, safeguarding the defenseless, and providing for those who couldn’t provide for themselves.

Essentially, her efforts had become a charity case, but what did she receive in return? People expected her to shoulder everything—fight on the front lines alone, provide for, and protect everyone she helped—while they simply enjoyed what she provided. When Kisha grew weary of this relentless cycle, those she had helped showed no understanding. Instead, they treated her as if she were a long-standing enemy who had wronged them, demanding retribution rather than offering support or empathy.

So, she learned the hard way not to initiate endeavors she couldn’t sustain or complete, especially charity where people failed to meet expectations. From Duke, she also learned the importance of using both incentives and consequences to manage others effectively, ensuring they wouldn’t see her as a doormat or a pushover.

So, helping Marcus and the children wasn’t driven purely by compassion or humanity, but by the need to ensure usefulness and productivity. While she genuinely cared for the children, those who couldn’t prove their value would need to learn to fend for themselves or face their own consequences. This is why she implemented a work system—not only to motivate people to earn their keep and contribute to rebuilding the economy but also to encourage self-sufficiency. In an apocalyptic world, charity can’t be given freely without expecting something in return; everyone must find their own way to contribute and survive.

That’s why Marcus’s gratitude meant little to Kisha. She might be labeled heartless or devoid of compassion, but she was exhausted from trying to meet others’ expectations while trudging along a path that seemed only to lead to oblivion. Having faced countless life-or-death situations and endured numerous betrayals, pain, and suffering across many of her lives, her mentality had been tested beyond what any single human could endure.

But she managed to endure, preserving the last shreds of her sanity and keeping her heart, though scarred, still capable of holding love for her family and Duke. Her life now felt relatively smooth compared to the tumultuous experiences of her past lives. She reserved her best self for those she cherished and categorized everyone else as either helpful, useless, friends, or foes.

With this approach, her life felt significantly better compared to before, when she bore the weight of everyone’s hopes and lives alone. While she still bore some responsibility, she no longer had to carry it all on her own. This time, she wasn’t obligated to take on tasks she didn’t want to, and no one could force her or demand anything in return.