Chapter 69: Chapter 69: Professor Ebert
Wu Chang looked at the last sentence on the letterhead and revealed a strange expression.
Surely when writing this letter, his predecessor never imagined that later that night he would be visited by Matty due to a strike.
Eventually bound to the dock and made into a blood eagle.
Hmm...
In a certain sense, it could also be considered a surprise.
The intelligence brought by this letter overturned many of his previous speculations, requiring a reevaluation.
Previously, when he saw his predecessor postal worker killed by Matty in one strike, he thought the former postal worker was simple, weak, and naive.
Upon learning the predecessor postal worker was a seasoned player, the problem shifted to Matty.
Under special conditions, Matty probably could use some rule-based ability to suppress the opponent’s power or bypass defenses.
Whichever it is, he cannot act rashly.
Besides reassessing Matty’s combat capabilities, he also needs to reassess the importance of working in the town.
According to the former postal worker’s letter and Matty’s behavior, it is clear that working diligently can greatly improve how the town’s citizens perceive him.
He proposed a private plan for delivering letters, and Matty’s attitude towards him immediately became much more amiable, and a player named Logan even became eligible to join the town council due to his diligent work.
They need to roll up their sleeves!
He took out the accumulated mail during the postal worker absence, sorted them by recipient, then put on the postman’s bag, grabbed the trailer, and started delivering mail door to door.
When inserting the first piece of mail into a citizen’s mailbox, he finally understood why the citizens wouldn’t bypass the postal worker to take the letters themselves.
Because the delivered letters were "poisoned."
For every letter delivered, his temporary Willpower Limit decreases by 0.3!
And the mail accumulated at the post office amounts to fifty-five pieces in total!
Delivering all this mail would deduct as much as 15 points from the Willpower Limit, enough to drive a regular person mentally crazy three times.
Yet there was an unexpected delight in that, during his mail delivery, the postman’s bag retrieved from the police was consistently emanating warmth, soothing his spirit.
「Item Name: Postman’s Delivery Bag」
「Item Type: Dungeon Item」
「Artifact Level: D」
「Item Skills: Skilled Delivery」
「Skill Description: Equip the postman bag for the delivery, decreasing Willpower Limit consumption by 0.2 per delivery. During working hours, wearing the postman bag can restore part of the Willpower Limit per hour, the value being 2% of the user’s maximum Willpower Limit.」
「Note: Item skills only take effect on Briff’s Island, and the delivery bag can only be used by officially appointed postal workers.」
Seeing the item description, he realized that without the postman bag’s effects, delivering a parcel would decrease the Willpower Limit by 0.5.
The delusions at Moonlight Sanatorium aren’t nearly as insane.
With work being so arduous, how much do Briff’s Island’s citizens dislike going to work?
If replaced with a regular player, even spending 10 free Attribute Points to raise Willpower Limit to 15, achieving a balance would mean delivering only one parcel per hour.
To deliver all fifty-five accumulated packages, it would take nonstop work for over two days.
But Wu Chang doesn’t need to.
As a legendary stress-resistant king with 82 willpower points, he is fully capable of enduring the decrease in Willpower Limit, delivering all the mail first, then slowly waiting for willpower to recover.
Where regular mail delivery is just work, properly delivering accumulated mail is hyper-competition, and now Wu Chang can certainly be called the competition king.
Thus, the town’s citizens saw a postal worker who was more nimble and several times quicker than the previous ones, delivering the accumulated mail relentlessly.
They’ve never seen such a diligent worker.
The citizens were pragmatic; at first meeting Wu Chang, they were indifferent, with attitudes like "a stinky outsider begging at Briff’s."
Upon delivering the tenth piece of mail, when encountering the citizens again, they all had smiles on their faces.
Not only did they greet him proactively, restaurant and drink shop owners even invited him for lunch and drinks.
For a time, the entire town knew a diligent and handsome postal worker had arrived.
Upon delivering to the mayor’s house, the mayor was full of praise for Wu Chang’s performance.
He promised Wu Chang that as long as all the accumulated mail was delivered, he’d personally write a recommendation, inviting Wu Chang to join the town council and become a real citizen of Briff.
Wu Chang had been waiting for this moment and stated outrightly:
"Rest assured, Mayor, by sunset today, I will definitely deliver all the accumulated mail!"
The mayor was alarmed by Wu Chang’s resolve, thinking a fool had come, hurriedly dissuading:
"No need to rush, you’ve just arrived on the island and are not yet accustomed to the living conditions; don’t get too tired."
"No need to worry about me, Mayor; my job is to facilitate the citizens’ lives, and that’s what I should do!"
Wu Chang decisively said, too eager to progress, or rather, too eager to join the town council.
Leaving the mayor’s house, Wu Chang continued delivering mail.
The greatest factor limiting his delivery speed was only the distance.
The town’s post office has neither a bicycle nor a horse-drawn carriage, not even a riding horse.
All deliveries require him to drag the trailer by foot.
A day nonstop delivering, he walked at least fifty thousand steps; if not for his endurance point reaching 22 after enhancement, an ordinary person wouldn’t be able to walk this.
Until evening, he delivered to the last house.
The last household, furthest from the post office, the recipient lives at the town’s farthest east, in the detached building, with no neighbors around.
The recipient’s name is Joshua Ebert.
Or he could be called Professor Ebert.
Ebert is a male close to sixty, wearing round-framed metal glasses, his hair graying, his body frail, the standard scholar look.
During delivery, Wu Chang subtly inquired from villagers; Ebert once taught at the Kingdom’s premier university, thus being called a professor.
It is said his courses comprised archeology and theology.
And because of this, while teaching in the Royal Capital, he had multiple collaborations with the Church.
Being named in the Church’s help letter implies Ebert’s identity isn’t purely bad, at least a fence-sitter.
If used appropriately, his role is akin to half a teammate.
Ebert seemed to have awaited Wu Chang’s delivery, standing at the door, as soon as Wu Chang inserted the two letters for him into the mailbox, he took them out desirously, reading them instantaneously.
After a brief read, he showed disappointment, asking: "Mr. Sean, are you sure these are all my letters?"
Wu Chang remained calm as he answered: "I am quite sure, among the accumulated mail at the post office, there are only these two letters for you."
He didn’t lie, as the letter sent by the Church to Ebert was placed in the compartment of the postman’s bag.
Ebert’s disappointment deepened, yet a flicker of relief and liberation appeared in his eyes.
That flicker of emotion was very subtle, hard to notice; unfortunately, he met Wu Chang.
From the start of meeting, Wu Chang was observing Ebert, especially his eyes — that trace of genuine emotion wasn’t missed by him.
Taking advantage of Ebert’s relaxation, he said:
"Professor Ebert, before coming to Briff, I had a relative working for the Royal Capital Church approach me, stating if any trouble arises in Briff, I could consult you."
"The town has small population movement, a fixed social circle, many customary rules unknown to outsiders like me. I worry inadvertently making mistakes and angering the citizens."
"Professor Ebert, I wish to integrate quickly into this beautiful and peaceful town, without conflicts with anyone; can you offer me some advice?"