Because the Canadian government handled cases extremely slowly, it took three to fifteen business days to approve or reject an application.
So William, who had only just arrived in this world, had no intention of wasting any free time.
First, he had Andre, the burly man, arrange a proper plan to train his frail body.
Health came first.
He got up at six sharp. Thirty minutes after breakfast, he followed Andre on a morning run to increase his lung capacity.
Then he went to the gym not far from home, training a different muscle group every day for more than two hours.
During the first five days, William suffered terribly.
Every morning, his body felt as if it were falling apart.
But for the sake of becoming healthy, this degree of pain was nothing.
If he gave up at this level, he might as well enjoy himself for another decade or so before disappearing along with the world.
Moreover, after a week, William had adapted to this low-intensity training.
The results after twenty days of training were fairly obvious. His body was no longer as weak and frail as before.
At the same time, William enrolled in the school's summer courses.
He exercised in the morning and attended classes in the afternoon.
William did not know what kind of assistance the system would provide him, but learning more could never hurt.
While he was at school, the female classmates who had previously been involved with him all gathered around him, competing for his attention out of jealousy.
But after his rebirth, William politely rejected every one of them.
It was not that he disliked them. He simply knew that these female college students stayed by his side purely because of the previous William's lavish spending.
Twenty-one days passed in the blink of an eye.
June 21, 2006, in the library of St. Mary's;
William was sitting at a school computer. His right index finger rested on the Enter key, constantly refreshing the webpage on the screen.
The page was the official Access Nova Scotia website, and he was checking the application to rename the company.
With every refresh, the mouse pointer had to spin several times before the progress could be displayed.
After all, the Internet of this era was nowhere near as developed as it had been before William crossed over.
"Ugh!"
Seeing that the progress bar still displayed "Please wait" after refreshing, William could not help frowning deeply.
Today was the fifteenth business day.
Before crossing over, he had known that the North American governments worked slowly.
But they had never been this slow!
"Forget it."
William muttered under his breath and pressed the Enter key again.
However, before the webpage could even load this time, the system's voice rang out beside his ear once more:
[The host has successfully changed the name of the company that exists in name only to Umbrella Corporation. Therefore, this system has determined that the host has completed the task. The reward package is now being opened. Please wait...]
"Whoa—"
Looking at the still-white screen, he could not help marveling at the system's reaction speed.
[Congratulations, host. You have obtained a major character from the sci-fi game series Halo: Catherine Elizabeth Halsey. Her implanted identity is that of a professor at St. Mary's University, which the host attends. The host may interact and converse with her at any time. This character will gladly accept the host's recruitment and will never betray the host.]
Halsey?
Hearing the words Halo and Halsey, William froze.
After all, he was a devoted fan of the series and Xbox, and had therefore never bought a Sony console.
Of course, the PSP was an exception.
So William naturally knew the extent of Dr. Halsey's "power."
The famous Spartan-II program in Halo had been created by the genius Dr. Halsey.
With her assistance, William believed there was a good chance the Spartan Super Soldier project could also be developed.
Immediately afterward, the system spoke again:
[This system will assist the host in expanding the company's scale, recruiting a private army, producing exclusive private technologies, and so on. Since the host will need to face supernatural phenomena and entities, it will inevitably attract the attention of governments around the world one day. Therefore, this system recommends that the host cooperate with governments worldwide. Or... Through cultural influence, economic control, and overwhelming military force, make the governments of various countries assist the host's operations against their will. The host must also conceal the existence of supernatural phenomena and entities from ordinary humans as much as possible. Permissions are being unlocked. Please wait... ... System funds: 5 billion dollars. Army recruitment permissions unlocked: 1. Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Service (UBCS) 2. Umbrella Security Service (USS) ... The host must use the system funds to improve the company's employees and expand the company's scale. Employees can be divided into ordinary and advanced tiers. The host may personally define their specific levels. Ordinary employees will handle surface-level work, such as regular office duties, construction, and production. Advanced employees will be responsible for the following: Recruiting Umbrella Corporation's two special response forces. Manufacturing new weapons to provide support for the host's forces. Researching how to contain and control abnormal life-forms or phenomena. Constructing secret containment, experimental, and training facilities. And so on. ... Mission: Recruit personnel with loyalty above 50 and combat ability above 50 to join the UBCS. Recruit personnel with loyalty above 60 and combat ability above 60 to join the USS. Target numbers: UBCS: 100 USS: 20 Mission rewards: 1. The host will obtain the Assimilation skill. 2. Four draws from the Resident Evil game series. 3. System funds will be increased to 50 billion dollars. ... Important items to note: 1. The maximum loyalty value is 100. 2. Combat ability is a comprehensive evaluation of shooting, close combat, reaction speed, physical fitness, and so on. An ordinary adult man without any training has an average combat ability of 30. There is no upper limit. 3. The host may use 50,000 dollars per month for personal expenses. As the host's permissions increase, the available funds will also increase. 4. This world has been detected to contain abnormal entities or phenomena. They will begin appearing one after another in 180 days. This system recommends that the host complete the mission of establishing a private army as soon as possible.]
Listening to the system's emotionless words, the expression on his face gradually grew solemn.
As the system's voice faded, William immediately asked:
System, where did these funds come from?
According to what I've learned, the broad money supply of the U.S. dollar is only 6.8 trillion right now.
Wouldn't an extra five billion appearing out of nowhere be immediately detected by Canada and the United States?
[In response to the host: the system funds all come from the real world. For example, if your account were short one dime or one dollar, would you notice?]
Um... I guess I would.
[...]
Go on.
[This system extracts wealth from the world's population according to a proportional distribution. The total amount remains unchanged. During the conversation just now, this system transferred assets worth 5 billion dollars into the host's bank account. This system has also granted the host the bank's highest level of authorization. The host may freely exchange Canadian and U.S. dollars, as well as conduct dollar transfers and transactions within Canada. Since reasonable transfer records have been created, the funds are recorded as a hidden inheritance left by the host's grandfather, Sears Russell. The bank and government will have no suspicions. Please use the funds with confidence.]
Before you continue