The Legendary Junkmaster

Jason immediately began the slow work of sorting out everything he would need to make five more copies of the SDW: Primal 001. Since it would take some time for him to complete this project anyway, he took things slowly. This allowed him to further get used to the motions of dismantling several different types of junk.

It would be good practice for further in the future as he rarely dove this deep into any of the useless things he managed to scavenge. 'Come to think of it, how will I explain myself to gramps if I'm unwilling to part with something that could make us some credits?'

That was sure to become a thorny issue at some point that probably could only be resolved if he explained his power to the old man. However, Jason had enough experience of how the real world worked to not go blabbing his mouth so soon. Even if it was to someone that he trusted.

There was a good chance that the lord would get wind of his abilities and might consider keeping him locked up to produce useful things for him until the day he died! That was far from the type of existence that Jason longed to experience. He already had an inclination that his power could only properly benefit if he were to travel and see how things were done in other places.

For now, his creation was not anything spectacular. Nobody would find anything strange about a scavenger creating something mildly useful from the crap they collected. This would give him some leeway to earn some credits while he slowly expanded his means to protect his own freedom.

By the time Jason had managed to remove all of the components that he would need to create the five copies, it was already deep into the night. He had been so deep in thought while he worked that Jason only just now realised that he could hear the familiar loud sound of his grandfather snoring.

'When did that old geezer get back?' It bothered Jason that despite how loud Harry usually was, he could be as quiet as a mouse when it suited him. Sometimes it would feel as though the old coot was doing it deliberately just to scare him when he least expected it.

Jason sighed as he thought about the fact his Gramps had most likely gone scavenging without him. It made him angry to think that the old man was more interested in a few credits than his grandson's well being. 'I guess I should just be glad that he made it home safely. It's too rough out there for him on his own anymore.'

The highest rate of mortalities of those in their profession came from the brave or idiotic ones that risked going it alone. This was generally to save them from splitting the gains, but just about everyone knew you were more likely to earn more in a group than venturing out solo.

'Still, maybe it would be better to put my new skills to use to start a business? Gramps can run it while I create the merchandise. That way, I won't have to worry about him so much.' It sounded like a solid plan in theory. Nothing was stopping him from travelling if he did this, and it would provide a nice steady stream of credits to fund his journeys as well.

'I would need to build up enough of a customer base first. Nobody would trust my inventions as I am now without a professional dealer acting as a middle man.' Jason's gaze turned to his first creation on the desk as he toyed with the idea of selling it. 'It would be a good indicator of how the other's will sell depending on how long this one takes to get snapped up.'

Jason made up his mind to sell it to a local weapons store. From there, he would check back every day to see if it had been sold. He could always ask the shopkeeper for his professional advice about the weapon. Such as how much interest it might generate. Of course, selling this one would leave him without a copy for himself.

'Then again, I can use the money to buy some other parts and maybe try my hand at making an upgraded version for myself.' Jason rubbed his chin as he stared into space at the thought. The idea was certainly tempting, and it would put him a step ahead of anyone that bought his creations.

'Let's go with that then.' Jason's gaze turned to the hole in his bedroom wall that served as his window. A cold breeze washed over him as he stared out at the stars shining on the black canvas of the sky. He stretched his arms up over his head as he let out a stifled yawn. 'I'll continue assembling the others tomorrow after I get back from Al's.'

Jason carefully laid his tools down on the desk in a neat arrangement before sliding onto his bed while still being fully clothed. He wrapped his thin blanket tightly around his body, but even then, he ended up shivering from the cold of the night. 'Note to self, buy a decent cover first with the money!' Jason rolled over to stare at Syssie, quietly sitting on the lonely chair staring at him.

"Hey Syssie, what will you be doing while I sleep?" Jason asked with a slightly worried tone. To be honest, he did not like the idea of an AI that had some control of his brain being active while he was out for the count. Who knew what she was really capable of?

"I heard that little thought of yours. Don't worry, I can't hijack your body if that's what you're concerned about." Syssie flashed a mischievous smile at him that did not do much to reassure him of her sincerity. "I'm just playing. I'll have to enter my sleep mode to conserve power, so I won't function again until you wake up."

Jason smiled in relief at her explanation. 'That's right, she mentioned something about the fact she'll run out of power in a few months. Hopefully, I can find an alternative or some way to prolong it in time.' Jason subconsciously rubbed his head as he considered the thought of his own power killing him without her.

The thought of being a ticking time bomb to himself was sure to give him nightmares until he found a reliable solution. Another thought crossed his mind at that point. It was something he had meant to ask Syssie earlier but got caught up in the moment when he unlocked his skills.

"Syssie? How do I get more Potential Points?" It would be frustrating if he had to wait for them to come in on their own over time. He hoped that Syssie had a way for him to gather them quickly.

Syssie's eyes focused on his as he lay beneath his blanket, staring at her. She tapped her chin in a peculiarly seductive way as she seemed to be searching for the answer in her programming. "Hmm, it seems like there is a way. You seem to have programmed me to release a set amount PP for every creation you make depending on its rank and value evaluation."

"Eh! Then why didn't you give me anything for that then!" Jason complained as he gestured towards his first creation sitting on the desk next to her.

"Oh, but I did. It just happened to equate to zero." Syssie flashed a wicked smile. "Don't shoot the messenger just because you did it to yourself! Remember, you're the one responsible for the programming!"

Jason groaned as he thought about her airtight defence. It left him with no room to be angry at her. "Tell me, how did it equal nothing at all?"

Syssie stared at him as if she were trying to figure out if it would actually do him any good in knowing. She seemed to decide that it was in both of their interests for him to know. Since that might drive him to make improvements faster which could lead to protecting both of their lives.

"Alright, the equation in my programming goes like this. The sum of Item Value multiplied by the Rank Evaluation Modifier must be divided by Ten." Syssie waved her hand to make an example based on his own creation appear in his HUD to study.

'(Item Value (15 Credits) x Rank Evaluation Modifier (F Rank = 0))/ 10 = 0 PP.' Jason's eyes went to the second line that showed the sum without the text explaining it. '(15x0)/10 = 0 PP.'

Jason mulled it over for a while before another question arose. "What's the multiplier for each rank?"

Syssie seemed like she could not be bothered answering this question at all as she lazily swung her hand in the air again. Jason thought that the sight of her performing this gesture actually made it seem like Syssie was tired. The vision in his HUD changed to show a simple table of what he had asked for.

'F = 0, E = 1, D = 2, C =3… S = 6. So it just goes up by one with each increase of rank. With S as the most valuable followed by A, working its way down to F.' Jason felt a small headache brewing as he considered how high the items he would make would have to be valued to give him a significant amount of PP. Either that or their quality would have to be extraordinary, which was far out of reach for his current skills.

Before he finally drifted off to sleep, he had already begun to consider how he could upgrade his first and only invention so far. 'It has to reach E Rank at least, or I'll never make any progress…'