Chapter 88: Return and Reward
A sliver of light appeared before him, and Mason opened his eyes, finding himself back in his apartment.
He checked the time—only about ten minutes had passed since he'd entered the G.I. Joe world.
He estimated that this time was spent transitioning between worlds. In the mission world, time in the outside world essentially didn't pass.
Opening his interface, the first thing he saw was the standard official notification:
"Congratulations, Trainee Courier Mason, on completing your first official mission. After completing two more official missions, Courier Mason will be promoted to a full employee of the company."
"More privileges will be unlocked at that time. We hope you will continue your excellent work!"
Mission Reward: One upgrade to the standard bio-battery, with selectable specialization.
Mason opened the upgrade menu, revealing a dense array of options, covering everything from battery life and power output to the activation of special abilities and the stealth function Mason needed most.
Of course, many of these abilities were currently locked, requiring him to upgrade his bio-battery to a certain level before they could be accessed.
Mason wasn't in a hurry. Instead, he closed the upgrade page and continued scrolling down.
Plot Disruptor: Due to the courier's actions, the plot of the G.I. Joe world has taken a significant divergence. Storm Shadow's premature defection and Zartan's death have led to a dramatic collapse of the G.I. Joe storyline, resulting in an irreversible new trajectory.
Special Warning: Couriers, please handle plot changes with care. Excessively drastic plot alterations have a high probability of creating a "dead mission." The courier will be solely responsible for any mission failures resulting from this.
Upon seeing this, Mason's expression changed slightly. A "dead mission," as the name suggests, refers to a delivery assignment that is completely impossible to complete.
For example, in the G.I. Joe world he'd just experienced, if he were to return for another mission that required him to deliver something to the U.S. President—who was being impersonated by Zartan—but Zartan had already been killed by Storm Shadow, then Mason's mission would automatically fail upon entering the world!
With Mason's current courier level, mission failure would only result in one outcome: being stripped of his courier status and having all his enhancements removed!
Of course, mission generation is based on corrections and analysis of the current world state, making the probability of an impossible mission extremely low. However, if the plot deviates too drastically, the difficulty of missions generated by the System will increase dramatically, leading to numerous complications.
At the same time, changing the plot can bring substantial rewards, making couriers want to alter events while simultaneously trying to control the narrative to avoid causing too much disruption.
It's truly a double-edged sword, both tempting and dangerous.
Couriers may choose one of the following rewards:
1200 System Points: As the sole currency of the Time-Space Courier Company, its purchasing power far exceeds imagination. Trust us—you'll need funds, and you'll always need more.
Nanomite Injection: From the G.I. Joe world, modified by the Company. Injecting this compound can significantly increase the user's defense and recovery abilities for a short period, and can suppress most pain responses.
Note that this injection has severe side effects and requires exceptional physical condition. Using it when physically exhausted carries a 30% fatality rate!
Both rewards were quite valuable. If Mason had enough System Points, he could choose to manifest his true form in the next mission. The nanomite injection combined with enhanced healing would be a game-changer. Mason hesitated for a moment, then looked at the third option:
Bio-Battery Upgrade: Receive one targeted upgrade, increasing battery output power and allowing for short-term overload to generate power far exceeding normal levels!
Seeing this, Mason's eyes lit up. The bio-battery upgrade was a core enhancement for him, ranking high in his priority list. He remembered that while a battery upgrade option had appeared in previous mission rewards, he couldn't obtain it due to his trainee status.
But this time, perhaps due to the significant plot changes, a usable battery upgrade appeared in the reward options.
He was caught in a difficult decision.
Each of the three options was excellent, but he could only choose one. After deliberating for a long time, Mason finally gritted his teeth and chose the third option.
Points could be earned again, and the nanomite injection, while useful, didn't offer many practical applications with proper caution. However, upgrading the bio-battery was absolutely crucial. And judging from the upgrade description, the short-term overload capability, while not as powerful as the nanomite injection, still provided another tactical option.
He continued reading.
Overcoming Adversity: In the mission world, the courier defeated Storm Shadow, Snake Eyes, and the COBRA Commander through direct confrontation, moderately increasing blade combat learning ability, and the original accelerated learning trait was enhanced.
This accelerated learning ability was arguably Mason's greatest gain in the previous world besides the Super Soldier Serum. It was this ability that allowed him to acquire near-superhuman combat skills in just one month.
Although this ability could improve learning efficiency for firearms, melee weapons, and other physical skills, Mason's experiments revealed that he mastered hand-to-hand combat techniques the fastest, followed by weapons, with firearms being the slowest. Perhaps his body had a naturally higher aptitude for close combat.
Mason assessed his current abilities. His aptitude for hand-to-hand combat was highest, while his blade skills, after being enhanced, were slightly weaker. Other weapons and firearms followed in descending order.
"Once I've learned everything I can from my current trainer, I might consider learning some knife techniques to round out my skill set," Mason thought.
"No Fight, No Friendship": You have gained Storm Shadow's trust. Please cherish this bond; it will prove more valuable than most things in critical moments.
In his previous mission, he'd gained the friendship of Steve Rogers. In this world, he'd earned Storm Shadow's trust. Mason sensed this must be part of a vast relationship system, only not fully unlocked due to his current level.
After two missions, he'd gained some insights into the reward structure.
First, there were the basic mission rewards, all tailored to his current needs.
Then there were the plot rewards, determined by the degree of disruption to the storyline and the impact on main characters, with three possible options each time. Whether these three directions were fixed remained unknown.
The third type was combat achievement rewards. Based on the difficulty of the opponent, these rewards consisted of rare traits that could dramatically accelerate a courier's growth!
The fourth type was relationship rewards—a hidden but extremely important category. Mason even felt that without Storm Shadow's assistance, his mission would have been nearly impossible.
The final reward was a completion rating!
Congratulations to the courier for completing his first official mission, with a mission rating of three and a half stars.
Reward: Alloy Gauntlets (Modified), which can be equipped to your personal interface and brought into mission worlds!
Chapter Rewards
500 Power Stones = 1 New Chapter
10 Reviews = 1 New Chapter
Thanks for reading!
30+ advanced chapters available on P1treon: DarkFoxx