Strongest Deliveryman In The Apocalypse

"Hup!"

Sobin hopped into the driver's seat of Bessie, his trusty delivery truck, still humming a jaunty tune. He pulled the door shut with a clank, slapped the steering wheel affectionately, and leaned back with a deep sigh.

"Another satisfied customer," he said proudly to no one in particular.

"Five stars, flawless package, Creed of the Deliveryman upheld. Hah! If there were Rider Saints, I'd be canonized already!"

Bessie's dashboard flickered to life.

Sobin's Rider Communication Device (RCD)—which was basically just his smartphone duct-taped into a reinforced slot—buzzed with notifications.

DING! Delivery Complete.

+65 Social Credit Points transferred to Rider account.

The System wasn't silent either.

[You have cleared the Quest <Complete your first delivery>, and have also completed two additional Quests <Get a Five Star Review>, <Help a sick patient>, and <Deliver Hope to a Desperate Family>. Congrats… that's nice progress!]

Unfortunately, he didn't share the same enthusiasm.

"Tch! Cheapskate!" Sobin clicked his tongue. "I should be getting more Quests completed…"

After his earlier run of completing so many Chain Quests, he had already grown desensitized to single-digit progress, and he wanted his Quest Completion to be much faster.

How could he have known that he had actually been clearing his Quests abnormally at the time, and that his current pace was actually impressive by normal standards? The System decided not to mention anything about it.

"Don't worry, Master! Progress is progress! As long as we're marching forward… isn't that what matters?" Bessie remained optimistic, and despite the simplicity of her words, they managed to lift Sobin from his earlier slump.

He wiped off his dissatisfied frown and chose to dwell on the positives of the experience.

"Okay! First delivery cleared!" Sobin pumped a fist. "What's next?"

He quickly tapped into the BOTL app, his eyes scanning his Rider Wallet. The digital numbers glowed at him like a treasure chest full of gold coins.

Current Balance: 650 SCP.

Minimum Withdrawal Requirement: 5 Completed Deliveries.

Sobin froze.

"…Huh? Minimum… five deliveries?"

He jabbed at the screen again, as if maybe his thumbs had misread reality. But nope. The app blinked smugly back at him, like some evil banker rubbing his hands together.

Sobin slumped against his seat.

"This… this is highway robbery! I risk my life against mutant horrors, navigate monster-infested highways, and they won't even let me touch my hard-earned Social Credit Points until I've done five deliveries?!"

[How exactly did you risk your life, though…?]

The System chided him, but Sobin ignored its words. The truth was that Sobin was never in any danger at all.

In fact, he was the danger!

Bessie let out a creaky groan, as if sympathizing with her master's plight.

Still, Sobin wasn't one to stay down for long. His eyes hardened, his grin returned, and he adjusted his cap.

"Fine then. Five deliveries it is."

He flicked through the available delivery requests, and, lo and behold, one popped up immediately.

Request Accepted: Outpost #47

Delivery: Reinforced Supply Crate

Destination: Blockade Bunker-12

Sobin's eyebrows shot up. "Wait a sec. Outpost #47… isn't that…?"

His grin stretched wider.

"Oh-ho-ho! So it's back to Miss Rude-and-Militarized, is it? Perfect!"

With renewed determination, he slammed the ignition.

Bessie roared like a dying walrus, coughed a bit, and then rumbled onto the cracked asphalt.

*************

[Moments Later]

Inside the command center of the Outpost, Miriam—yes, that was her name—nearly dropped her datapad.

"…Already?!"

She quickly flicked through her RCD, double-checking the BOTL app. The data didn't lie.

The request she had authorized earlier… the delivery had already been fulfilled.

Her eyebrows knit tightly together. That shouldn't have been possible.

She had fully expected at least a few weeks' delay. Maybe even a month. Even the best Riders she had dealt with needed a few days to navigate the wastelands, avoid monster nests, and sneak past Plunderers.

'He's merely an E Rank Rider, and I can tell from his license that he just started out. In fact, wasn't this his first delivery?'

And yet—

The log clearly showed the delivery was completed in mere hours.

Hours!

Miriam stormed outside just in time to see Sobin leap out of Bessie with his trademark radiant grin, as though he'd just returned from a picnic rather than a perilous run across deathland highways.

"Good evening again, Miss Militia!" Sobin waved cheerfully, holding up his Rider License like it was a golden ticket. "Back already with another order!"

Miriam stared at him, mouth opening and closing like a fish. "…How?"

Sobin tilted his head innocently. "How what?"

"You—you just left! There's no way you could've completed that delivery already!"

Sobin's chest puffed out with pride. "Ah, but you underestimate the Creed of the Deliveryman! No delays. No excuses. On time, every time!"

Miriam squinted at him. "…Are you really an E Rank?"

"Of course!" Sobin replied without hesitation. "E for… Excellent!"

Miriam didn't laugh.

Instead, she scanned his Rider License again. The holographic sigils lit up, showing his status exactly as before: E Rank Rider.

But that only made less sense.

She clenched her jaw. 'No E Rank is this fast. This guy must be hiding something. Either he's some undercover high-tier Rider… or he's breaking the system somehow.'

Still, her military instincts kicked in.

Even if she didn't understand it, it would be foolish not to take advantage of such a resource.

"…Fine." She crossed her arms, looking him square in the eyes. "My name is Miriam. I handle requisitions for this outpost."

Sobin gave her a mock salute. "At your service, ma'am!"

"…Right." Miriam exhaled slowly, trying to ignore his ridiculousness. "Listen. You clearly have… unusual capabilities. Whether you're hiding your real Rank or not, I don't care. What I do care about is results."

Sobin grinned, sensing something important coming.

The truth was that Miriam led this outpost, and she had a lot of delivery requests come in. But since there weren't enough Riders at their disposal, and the time between each delivery was too long, she was often at her wit's end and constantly had to delay deliveries.

But, if Sobin was as fast as this, then—

Miriam leaned closer, her voice dropping into a conspiratorial tone.

"Tell me, Rider… are you interested in an opportunity?"