26 Assistant-Manager

The old man gave Lian a brief run-down of Antonio's dilemma. The young man's mother had a heart disease with complications that could occur at any time. Nothing could be done unless a large amount of money was accumulated in order to transfer her to a hospital overseas for surgery.

Hence, Antonio would work long hours, with no days off, solely to save up money for the operation. Lian wondered why Antonio didn't apply for government aid. However, considering that the surgery was only available overseas, this probably complicated things even further.

*System: Congratulations! You have understood Antonio's dilemma. All that is left is to solve it!*

*System: User has gained 300k exp points in: Farming.*

*System: Current experience to reach lvl 7: 929k/1m.*

Lian was pleased to easily receive such a large amount of exp. However, when hearing of Antonio's plight, he couldn't but help think back to his own parents.

"I know that nothing serious should happen to my dad anytime soon. I also have the system now just in case…"

"But… what if our family savings run out and medical bills need to be paid? What about my mother who's working herself to death?"

"Alas, I can't be impatient. I need to remember the bigger picture. On that note, I just need to keep pushing so I can level up. Regardless, with my skills, I'll find efficient ways to make money soon…"

He then excused himself, and headed off to the fields. It was the seventh and last day of his machinery task, and he had two left to operate.

The day went by uneventfully as Lian easily shadowed the drivers and then ran the vehicles with his high skill proficiency until the evening.

System: *Task "Trusty Machine Operator" has been completed.*

System: *User has been rewarded with 5m farming exp.*

System: *Congratulations! User has reached lvl 7 in farming. All aspects of the users' farming knowledge and abilities have increased.*

System: *Current experience to reach lvl 8: 4929k/10m.*

System: *New Task ready to take on.*

After the flurry of notifications, Lian felt a rush of information entering his mind.

"What a jump in exp gain!"

"…Sigh…the best feeling is definitely when you get a notification after a long task."

Lian quickly looked through his newly acquired knowledge before proceeding to examine his new task. Within less than a minute he rolled his eyes.

"Fuck! It's only been a day and now I have to ask Senor for a favor yet again…"

"The system calls me shameless, but it's putting me in situations where I have to be awkward! Max shamelessness my ass!"

This week, Lian had to focus on assisting with managerial tasks, along with continuing to operate certain machinery without needing supervision. Once again, the task should take around a week to complete, as long as he made sure to stay in tune with the daily sub-tasks.

Lian took a deep breath, sighed, and then gazed at the sun. He then made use of his stereo ability to mentally play some slow music. Within a few seconds, Lian turned away from the brightness of the sun, then blinked and coughed.

"Why am I trying to act mysterious again? No one's even looking at me…"

"Oh well, that made me feel cool for a second."

He then shrugged and returned to his room. There were two options. He could either investigate the suspicious man from the other day, or assist his main body in preparing for the encounter with the thugs in three days.

Lian was already at level 4 in Brawling. Therefore, despite not having been in a real fight, he had the basics of street combat down. Even if he were to be engaged in combat with more than one person, he would be able to act accordingly.

Regardless, Lian was a cautious person by nature. This skill did not make him anywhere near invincible. Therefore in order to be prepared for any unexpected situations, he hoped to be as strong as possible.

Unfortunately, reaching level 5 in three days would be a stretch. Nonetheless, Lian decided to keep training in his room and going through the motions. As he gained exp, all distracting thoughts of others side-tasks were pushed aside for the time-being to avoid being overwhelmed…

The next day, Lian dropped by the old man's house to request for permission to assist with managerial activities. With the advancement in his farming skill, Lian knew that the job would consist of working as a supervisor whilst directing and coordinating workers. He would also be recording storage and financial information, inspecting equipment, supplies, and machinery, and guaranteeing the safety of workers, along with ensuring consistent soil quality and correct treatment of live-stock.

Senor Pablo: "…"

Senor Pablo: "You really can't give us a break can you? Do you want to take over the farm before the month is over?"

Lian knew that the old man was joking. However, with the route in which his tasks were going, this was most likely going to be the case. Such a rate of growth was unfathomable.

As usual, Senor Pablo asked him some general questions to make sure that Lian had a basic understanding of each of his responsibilities. Although Lian was very skilled at pretty much every aspect of farming-including machine operation, the old man was still quite helpful. To manage a farm, a whole other branch of skills outside of general farm-work are required.

Eventually, after going back-and-forth for half an hour, the old man conceded. Lian had done his research! He was genuinely thrilled to see such a knowledgeable young man.

This time, Senor Pablo believed in Lian's abilities, despite having not yet seen him in action. Although "Diego" was in his mid-20's, within an unbelievably short time, he had the potential to be a great manager!

Senor Pablo: "Okay… I give up! I'll give you permission to work as an assistant manager."

Before continuing, he requested for a pen and paper from Senora Romina.

Senor Pablo: "Back to the topic at hand… I can't have you working under me. I'm older now and with my energy-levels, there's only so many things I can teach you at once."

Senor Pablo: "For this reason, I'm going to have you work under Catalina..."