REBORN RICH WITH A SYSTEM

Chapter 3

“No, I'm not asking you for money,” Raven told Laila.

However, Laila wasn't about to believe his words so easily. She knew exactly what kind of man her husband was.

“Both of you should rest. I'll finish cutting the wood and carry it home,” Raven continued, taking the machete from Mrs. Aisyah's hand.

He began chopping the longer pieces of wood into shorter logs so they would be easier to transport home.

Laila and Mrs. Aisyah exchanged glances. Clearly, neither of them believed what Raven was saying.

“Are you sure?” Mrs. Aisyah asked.

“Yes, Mom. Let me finish this. Afterward, we'll go home. You two can rest, and I'll carry everything back myself,” Raven replied.

As he chopped the wood, Raven occasionally glanced at his mother and wife. Neither of them seemed convinced.

He couldn't blame them for being skeptical. They knew all too well what kind of person he had been. He wouldn't even lift a machete to chop firewood, let alone wash his own clothes.

Still, deep down, Laila couldn't deny that she felt a little happy seeing this change in Raven.

Aisyah gently nudged Laila's arm.

“What's gotten into Raven?” she whispered.

Laila shook her head.

“Could he have been possessed by some spirit after fainting yesterday?” Mrs. Aisyah wondered aloud.

“I hope Raven has really changed, Mom,” Laila replied softly.

Raven continued chopping the long logs that Aisyah and Laila had gathered. Sweat trickled down his forehead, and his breathing grew increasingly labored.

His hands felt sore and raw. After all, those hands had spent most of their time holding playing cards and dice rather than doing any real work. Nevertheless, he kept going.

After managing to chop around ten long logs, Raven finally sat down. His breathing was so heavy that it felt as though his lungs were about to burst out of his chest.

Laila looked at him with disappointment. She had expected too much from her husband, only to discover that his limit was apparently ten pieces of firewood.

“Water,” Raven said, glancing at Laila and Mrs. Aisyah.

There was only half a small bottle of water left. Without a second thought, Raven drank every last drop. He didn't even consider that his wife and mother might still be thirsty.

Laila began arranging the chopped logs into the baskets they would carry home, trying to suppress her disappointment. She had foolishly hoped Raven would do more, but apparently, nothing had changed. The man still had no consideration for anyone but himself.

“Let me carry that,” Raven offered when Laila began lifting her basket onto her shoulder.

Laila and Mrs. Aisyah usually carried the firewood in baskets strapped to their backs, with the straps secured around their foreheads to help distribute the weight.

“But…” Laila hesitated, glancing at the pile of long logs that Raven hadn't finished chopping.

“I'll walk you and Mommy home first. Then I'll come back, finish everything, and carry the rest home myself. Don't worry,” Raven quickly assured her.

If anyone else had said those words, Laila might have been over the moon. But this was Raven, the man who had always done nothing but eat and take away everything they had.

“We won't have anything to eat if this firewood doesn't make it home. Your younger siblings won't have anything for lunch today. They only had watery porridge this morning,” Laila replied, looking sadly at the pile of wood.

She deliberately said that to Raven because she wanted to see how he would react.

Raven nodded and looked straight into her eyes.

“I know. Don't worry. I'll bring all of it home, sell it, and buy food for everyone.”

“Raven, this isn't something to joke about,” Laila said firmly.

Raven looked at her. Only now did he realize how difficult it was to rebuild someone's trust. Even though his intentions were completely sincere, Laila still couldn't bring herself to believe him.

At that moment, he remembered how his younger siblings had wanted to eat the fried tofu that had fallen onto the dirty floor earlier. They really hadn't eaten anything since morning.

“Please, trust me. This time, I'll bring everything home. You and Mommy just wait for me there.”

“Let's go home first. The sun is getting higher,” Mrs. Aisyah suggested.

“But, Mom…” Laila was still reluctant to leave. She couldn't stop thinking about her little siblings, who were probably struggling with hunger, waiting hopefully for her and their mother to return.

“I'll bring all the firewood home and buy food for everyone,” Raven repeated, trying to reassure her.

Finally, Laila nodded, although she still had doubts about her husband. She glanced at the considerable pile of firewood. In her estimation, if they managed to sell all of it that day, they could earn around thirty thousand rupiah. That would be enough to fill her younger siblings' stomachs.

Laila and Mrs. Aisyah each carried a basket, while Raven lifted a small bundle of firewood onto his shoulder.

Laila had thought Raven would carry a much larger load. But once again, she was disappointed when she saw that his bundle contained only half as much as what was in her basket.

“What was I even expecting from someone like him?” Laila thought bitterly.

Eventually, they arrived home. As luck would have it, a neighbor immediately came over and offered to buy the firewood they had brought back.

All the firewood they managed to carry home fetched only fifteen thousand rupiah.

“La, just buy some instant noodles for your younger siblings' lunch,” Mrs. Aisyah said, handing the money to Laila.

“I'll buy half a liter of rice instead, Mommy. That way, they'll have something more filling if we serve it with some extra rice,” Laila replied.

“All right. You decide what you think is best,” Mrs. Aisyah agreed.

“Give me five dolar, La,” Raven said.

Laila tightened her grip on the money. She stared at Raven in utter disappointment. They had only fifteen dolars, and they hadn't eaten anything since morning. Yet he still wanted five dolars for himself.

To other people, that amount might not seem like much. But to Laila, it was enough to feed her younger siblings.

“Raven, I already told you that this is all the money we have left for the children's food. Look at them! They're starving!” Laila said, struggling to hold back her tears.

“I promise I'll bring back money and something to eat when I return.”

“You just want to go gambling again, don't you? How much longer are you going to keep living like this?!” Laila shouted.

"Really, I'll pay you back. I'm only borrowing five dolars,” Raven replied.

Not wanting the argument to escalate, Mrs. Aisyah asked Laila to give Raven the money. At least the remaining ten dolars would still be enough to buy instant noodles and perhaps half a liter of rice, which they could turn into thin porridge for lunch.

After receiving the money, Raven immediately hurried out of the house. However, before leaving, he turned back to give Laila and Mrs. Aisyah a warning.

“Both of you stay here. Don't go anywhere,” Raven said.

Laila didn't respond. She merely snorted in irritation.

Raven ran toward one of the villagers' houses. As it turned out, he intended to borrow a bicycle, offering the five dolar as payment. He was confident that with the bicycle, he could transport all the remaining firewood home.

“Don't you dare sell my bicycle, Raven! If you do, I'll kill you!” his neighbor snapped, clearly annoyed because Raven had practically forced him to lend it.

“Of course, sir. Don't worry.”

Raven immediately pedaled back to the pile of firewood and began arranging everything so he could transport it in one trip. He tied the longer logs to the bicycle so they could be dragged along behind it.

As Raven dragged the bicycle loaded with firewood, the ring on his finger once again tightened, as though it were binding itself to his skin.

A screen suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[First Mission Completed.]

An amount of US$1,000 has been deposited into your bank account.

Raven rubbed his eyes in disbelief. Still, he couldn't help hoping that the money had really been deposited into his account.