Noid looked up at the early morning sky and began to open his coffee shop.
The shop had started selling a month ago. He used the points he had accumulated to open it. It was called a shop, but it was really just a large tent with a counter and a few tables and chairs inside.
Both Noid and Jack moved in to live here, giving their old spot to other homeless people. Jack also became an employee of the shop.
The shop's customers were mainly refugees who were going to work early in the morning. The cheap prices and decent coffee made the place very popular. Some people even joked that the coffee Noid brewed had a very special taste, not necessarily delicious, and even a bit bitter, but it made them feel very comfortable.
The daily expenses and rent for the space weren't too high. Coupled with a decent profit, his and Jack's lives were comfortable.
The most notable event was that Sasha also came to this coffee shop, and she came every day. This had caused a huge stir for a while.
Sasha held a high position in the military and was an Augmented Human. Because her battle images were often broadcast, calling her the hero of Rorgh City was not an exaggeration.
This almost caused Noid's shop to be overwhelmed several times, but thankfully, all that was over now. Business was stable, and no one was causing any trouble.
Although both Noid and Jack worked at the shop, they didn't give up their previous jobs. He only opened the shop in the early morning and in the evening after most people had finished their work. The rest of the time, he worked as usual.
Compared to the Noid from the old world, he now seemed completely changed. He was no longer afraid of society and as listless as before. Instead, he had an added air of a special kind of charisma. He didn't notice it, but Jack, who had been with him for a year, felt it clearly.
Noid pushed a finished cup of coffee toward Sasha.
"Why are you here so early today? Is something going on?"
"Yes, today the military will be escorting a batch of important supplies into the city. They're being transferred from Lysandra City. Even I have to go out and participate."
The importance of supplies transported from Lysandra City needed no further explanation. Lysandra was the main city of Defense Line No. 1. It had the most stable and strongest military force, surpassing the main cities of all the other defense lines.
Although Sasha spoke in a casual manner, her face showed seriousness. Noid didn't ask further. Sasha took a sip of coffee and said irritably:
"The reason for such a large deployment this time is because the doom cult might be causing trouble. I'd rather face a legion of doom than these guys."
"Doom cult?"
"That's right, you're an ordinary person, so you probably don't know, but the military has clashed with these bastards many times and has been infuriated and disgusted by their actions."
"It started as a small community of pessimists after the doom disaster. This community became more and more twisted and attracted more members, eventually forming a cult that worshipped the doom. They believed that the doom bringing everything to nihility was the only truth."
"In the early years, the situation wasn't under control, so we could only let it grow. After things stabilized, the cult had already taken shape. Because there were so many people, the government could only force them to disband."
"You know what? After these bastards were disbanded, they didn't keep a low profile. Instead, they caused disturbances and attracted even more people to join."
"During one of the sweeps, I even saw a cultist stuffing his disgusting thoughts into a group of children."
"But the worst thing was when they offered an entire city as a sacrifice to the doom. Two million lives!"
As she said this, Sasha's voice became a growl. If she hadn't been careful to control her strength, the cup in her hand would have shattered.
As if to calm her anger, she chugged the rest of the coffee and let out a sigh.
"From then on, if any cult members surrendered, they would be imprisoned. But if they resisted stubbornly or showed fanatical behavior, they could be killed regardless of their crimes."
Sasha's emotions had returned to normal. She looked at his empty left sleeve and asked:
"Have you really not thought about it? I can get you a prosthetic arm, and it would be very flexible."
"It's okay. I've gotten used to it."
After they finished talking, Sasha left. Noid cleaned up the cups and sat there lost in thought, muttering:
"Doom cult, sounds dangerous."
Noid had thought that humanity's only enemy was the doom, but he didn't expect to have his own kind as an enemy as well.
The doom cult's stance was completely opposite to humanity's, so they were no longer considered part of the human faction. Between the two factions, doom and humanity, the cult was much weaker, but the trouble it caused could absolutely not be ignored.
Noid had seen some movies about cults and fanatics. They weren't just crazy; they also wanted to make others crazy. Compared to the loss of lives and resources, the ideology of this kind of cult caused even greater damage, especially in this era, which wasn't lacking in desperate and lost people.
Although Sasha said that the cult had been swept up by the military many times, Noid had a premonition that this supply transport would be a sign of the doom cult's return.
"It seems I need to find a self-defense weapon."
He thought to himself, and the interface of the Infinity System appeared. He had only used this thing for the first few days, but had basically ignored it afterward.
He clicked on the store.
Accumulation Points: 65
"Infinity, can you recommend items that match my thoughts and are within my budget?"
As soon as he asked, the store updated. Because there were too many items, he asked the system to help filter them. The items that appeared before Noid's eyes were:
Low-Grade Energy Shield
Creates an energy shield with a height of 3 meters and a width of 2 meters. Completely resists physical and energy attacks below 3.0. If the value exceeds 3.0, the shield's duration will be shortened. Duration: 30 seconds. Cooldown: 1 hour.
Price: 50 accumulation points
Seeing this strange data appear, Noid immediately asked the system.
"Infinity, what is this 3.0 data?"
"This is a unique data point given by the system, which can be used to measure the influence of a given existence under normal conditions and without the presence of external factors."
"The value for an ordinary human is around 1.0. It can be lower or higher, but the difference is not significant."
"Then what is Sasha's data?"
"Estimated data when in armored state: 3.2. When in normal state: 1.9. If the traveler wishes to obtain precise data, they can purchase the data evaluation tool in the store."
Noid checked and saw that there was indeed a data evaluation tool, but its accumulation point cost was 1000, which made him give up on it.
Sasha's estimated data was 3.2. Assuming it was accurate, the data for other Augmented Humans was around 3.0.
Noid wasn't just guessing. Sasha had told him a lot about the Augmented Humans. She and a few others were the best of the entire Augmented Human project. So, Sasha's strength was in a different league compared to other Augmented Humans.
So, the energy shield could resist an Augmented Human in their armor for 30 seconds, not to mention a doom. However, he didn't intend to use this item, because it wasn't suitable for self-defense in a world of war. After the 30 seconds were over, if he hadn't escaped, he would be in danger.