Surviving the Apocalypse with my Multiplier System - Chapter 107

Chapter 107: Return Gift
Rayne and Julian walked along the once scenic path in the less populated area of the base. They went to the spot they had discovered earlier that served as an overlook over the river valley below, watching as the sun rose behind the mountains.

“It’s so beautiful!” smiled Rayne. “It’s almost as beautiful as that spot you took me to see the sunset!”

Julian placed his arm around her, holding her by the waist. “Yes, it is beautiful. We should come here more often in the future,” he agreed.

They walked around some more, chatting and observing how the people in the tents lived until they reached the job offices.

“I was expecting more people here for some reason,” said Rayne, looking at the nearly empty job office.

“You missed the crowd just now,” commented an older man who was sitting on a bench nearby. “If you’d come just 15 minutes ago, you would’ve seen the many teams that had just set off for today’s missions.”

“Oh! I see. Looks like they set off earlier than I anticipated,” commented Julian.

“There should be another mission today. I guess there’s some scientist out there that needs a ride over to the base, so there’s a newly posted scouting mission,” said the man.

Rayne’s eyes lit up. “Sir, do you know what kind of scientist?” she asked quickly.

The man shook his head. “No, I have no idea. I’m just relaying what I’ve heard by sitting here since early morning.”

Rayne turned to Julian and saw him smiling at her. “Well, it’s the best lead we’ve had. Let’s sign up!”

The two of them then walked over to the appropriate counter. “Hello, we’re here to sign up for the recent scouting mission. The one to retrieve the scientist,” said Julian.

The recruiter looked at him and Rayne. “Sure. We have exactly two spots available for this mission. You will be paid contribution points upon your successful arrival.”

They both nodded in understanding and handed him their resident cards to finalize the sign-up process.

“This mission leaves at noon and is estimated to be an overnight mission due to how far away the target is. Please prepare accordingly. You will be under Team Star,” explained the recruiter.

“Let’s head back and prepare,” said Rayne. They still had some time before they needed to leave, and she wanted to make sure she returned the favor to their ‘lovely’ neighbors before they set out.

Julian looked over at her curiously, wondering what kind of thing she had planned. He had seen that look before and knew she was up to something.

When they made it back to their room, Rayne quickly walked over to the small electric cooktop and took out a small pot.

“What are you up to? Are you hungry already?” asked Julian curiously as he watched her turn on the cooktop.

“Oh no, I’m sending a small gift to our neighbors. They’ve been so attentive to us, I feel that we need to return the favor,” she said, almost giggling.

Julian stood beside her and watched as she took out bowl after bowl of water-looking soup.

“This is one of the first things I ever stored in my system—the most bland soup you can ever imagine, straight from the hospital,” she explained.

A few minutes later, the counter was filled with dozens of identical bowls, their contents emptied into the small pot.

Rayne then took out a pack of laxatives and crushed them into the soup, stirring it to dissolve it fully.

Julian started laughing as he watched her, feeling like she could be very devious at times. It didn’t matter much to him; those neighbors were as good as dead in his eyes after their attempts at breaking in.

Rayne finished heating up the soup and picked up the pot, ready to bring it over. “Would you like to come with me?” she asked.

“I wouldn’t miss it,” he smiled and opened the door for her.

They walked over and knocked on their neighbor’s door, which was quickly answered by Tee.

“Oh! Hey guys, how can I help you?” he asked fawningly, staring at the pot of soup in Rayne’s hands.

Rayne walked forward and presented the small pot. “You’ve been so kind to us that we wanted to show a small token of our appreciation. I just made this soup. I hope you all like it.”

Tee broke out into a huge smile! He couldn’t remember the last time he had eaten a hot meal and accepted the pot quickly.

“You’re so kind! We will enjoy this thoroughly! Thank you!” he said.

After handing over the pot, Rayne and Julian went back to their house and locked the door.

Meanwhile, next door, Tee brought the hot pot of soup to Rico. “Bro, look! You were right! We just needed to be friendly, and they would treat us to food!” he announced happily.

Rico looked at the pot of soup, slightly surprised. Although there was no meat in this soup, the aroma from the few vegetables was enough to make his stomach growl. They had also felt the chill of the colder air, and this soup would help their bodies warm up.

“Okay, we will all share this small pot of soup. Everyone will take two sips before passing it to the next person,” Rico announced and quickly took the first two sips.

The soup was finished very quickly, and everyone had a blissful expression on their face.

Back in Rayne and Julian’s room, they were both getting ready for their excursion. Rayne made sure to fully supply Julian in case they were separated, giving him a copy of her special pistol, ammo, food, and water.

She, on the other hand, dressed warmly and simply, keeping anything important in her system. They both carried large backpacks to act as cover if they needed to pull anything out of her system and set off to the job office once more.

When they arrived at the job office, they noticed a few more people standing around, asking about available jobs.

“Team Star, over here!” announced a fierce-looking woman. She was tall and had very muscular arms.

Rayne walked over with Julian. “We’re here for the scouting mission,” she said. The woman looked over at Rayne and frowned.

“How did they let a pretty girl join? Listen, it’s going to be dangerous. You should stay here and plant flowers or something,” said the fierce woman with a condescending expression.