Chapter 40: Return and a Bountiful Harvest!
"Severe energy loss! Severe energy loss! Please replenish immediately!"
A faint light appeared in the boundless darkness. Mason groggily opened his eyes, finding himself back in his cramped studio apartment.
The shift in time and space left him momentarily disoriented.
"Where am I?"
He tried to sit up, but the emptiness and weakness within him caused him to stumble. Memories flooded back, and after shaking his head, he finally pieced together what had happened.
His vision was blurred, a consequence of severe energy depletion affecting his nervous system.
"Right, I completed the mission!"
"Where's the reward bio-battery?"
Mason opened his personal terminal, ignoring the dense notification messages, and directly retrieved a cylinder marked KD from the reward items.
Standard Bio-Battery: After charging, it can provide energy supply for at least ten days for an ordinary individual. Actual usage time will vary depending on activity level during strenuous exercise and combat.
Note: Produced by the Dimensional Express Company. This item can be upgraded when the courier reaches a certain level.
This is a very basic bio-battery—don't expect it to contain much energy.
"This has to be it." Mason breathed a sigh of relief; his life was temporarily saved thanks to it.
He inserted the end of the bio-battery into the socket in his chest.
After entering the internal slot, the battery was automatically drawn into his body. With a soft click and a gentle thud, the battery and the internal conversion device locked together perfectly in his chest.
Mason tapped it—the external casing was extremely hard, probably impenetrable even by a handgun.
"Products from the Dimensional Express Company are indeed top quality." With the energy replenished, Mason's emptiness and nausea gradually subsided.
Learning from his previous experience, he first used the bio-battery to fully charge his body. This way, even if the battery failed again, the reserved energy would allow him to function normally for a day or two, preventing a similar crisis.
The bio-battery had about 20% charge remaining; he connected it to the wall outlet to begin charging.
The new battery was far superior to his previous one in both capacity and charging speed. He estimated it would only take about two hours to fully charge.
With the energy crisis resolved, he finally had time to check the densely packed notifications on his personal terminal.
"Congratulations to courier Mason for completing the mission and officially becoming a probationary employee of the company. After three official missions, probationary employees can be promoted to full-time status, with varying degrees of improvement in personal benefits and permissions."
"We hope the courier will continue his efforts and become a top-tier courier soon!"
The first message to pop up was a congratulatory message from the Dimensional Express Company. Mason glanced at it and closed the page—it was similar to corporate boilerplate he'd received at previous jobs.
However, he also noticed that within the Dimensional Express Company, different couriers had different levels, and higher levels represented greater benefits and permissions.
For example, Mason's current level was probationary courier, with a monthly salary of 720 Dimensional Coins, no personal leave, and mandatory completion of company-assigned tasks.
For any questions encountered, inquiries could be made through the personal terminal, but response time and content were affected by personal permissions. In other words, if he asked a question, the Dimensional Express Company might completely ignore it.
Well, probationary employees had no rights—working harder than anyone and earning peanuts. That's how it was in every company; he'd accepted it.
He scrolled forward and quickly found the reward for this mission.
Mission Reward: One Standard Bio-Battery. (Claimed)
A Stunning Reversal: Exploring the impossible, reversing the situation in a brush with death, changing the major plot trajectory, and correcting the originally deviated plot to its original direction.
You can choose one of the following rewards:
1000 Dimensional Coins. Believe me, after joining the Dimensional Express Company, no matter what level you are, you will find yourself always short on cash—perhaps perpetually broke.
One vial of Super Repair Serum, effective immediately, can repair most injuries of ordinary individuals. In critical moments, this stuff is equivalent to an extra life.
Upon seeing this, Mason couldn't help but take a deep breath. To be honest, he still felt a pang of regret over the Super Gene Repair Serum he'd used on Steve.
He also noticed the word "gene" wasn't in this reward's name, meaning it had lost its ability to adjust and repair genetics.
Suppressing his emotions, he continued reading.
"III. Receive a free upgrade to your bio-battery. You will gain extended battery life and faster recharge time, and can unleash power far exceeding your normal strength through a short-term energy boost!"
Seeing this, Mason couldn't help but be tempted, especially by the second and third options, each with its own advantages. Because of the battery failure, he was now extremely paranoid about dying, wishing he could upgrade the power source in his chest to be nuclear-bomb-proof.
Just as he was hesitating, he suddenly noticed a line of fine print hidden after the third reward: "(Available after employee level upgrade)."
"Damn it, this is such a scam!" Comparing the two available options, he chose the Super Repair Serum without hesitation.
He continued reading.
A Mortal's Triumph: With the physical abilities of an ordinary person, you killed Black Serpent Captain Gilmore Hodge in direct combat, completing a legendary challenge.
Reward: Rapid Learning! (Inactive)
Courier Specialty: This is an exclusive ability for high-level couriers, helping them improve their skills and integrate into mission worlds.
After absorbing this specialty, the courier will receive an accelerated boost in learning skills requiring physical abilities, such as firearms proficiency, hand-to-hand combat, and weapon mastery!
This ability is incomplete and can be supplemented by absorbing other specialties!
Specialty activation is extremely precious—please cherish it, courier!
Although he didn't know exactly how powerful this was, judging from the company's repeated emphasis that it was obtained by killing Hodge, it must be extremely rare.
Though Mason couldn't assess its specific value, he carefully absorbed it anyway.
A moment of clarity washed over him—he felt he understood something, but couldn't quite articulate it.
At this point, Mason thought he'd received all his rewards, but looking down, he saw a second page.
Best Friend: Special Achievement: You have gained the absolute trust of Captain America Steve Rogers, becoming one of his most important friends.
He'd even give his life for you. Cherish this friendship. Believe me, treat your friends well—it will be your greatest reward in this world!
Courier Mason perfectly completed his first mission, earning a five-star rating.
Reward—Super Soldier Serum (Improved Version)!
"Holy shit!"
"Damn—the jackpot was right here!"
Looking at the blue liquid, Mason couldn't help but swear!
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