"Is there any task I can help with?"
Pei Guang's voice interrupted Arlan's thoughts. The moment he saw Pei Guang, his eyes lit up: although they hadn't interacted much, Pei Guang seemed like a great person in his eyes.
Despite being strangers, Pei Guang had saved members of the space station and even attracted a large portion of the antimatter legion, ensuring that more hidden members remained undetected.
When the Doomsday Beast appeared, he single-handedly taunted it. Although no one knew how the Doomsday Beast was eventually defeated, Arlan saw Pei Guang as a hero.
"The space station is currently implementing the 'Revival Plan.' If possible, I hope you can help us out."
"Revival Plan?"
Arlan nodded excitedly, "I was just thinking about how to enhance the Disaster Training in the Defense Section, which is a crucial part of the Revival Plan. If the 'Legion' dares to invade again, they won't get away with anything!"
Pei Guang was infected by Arlan's enthusiasm. The more he spoke, the more it meant there was a side quest! A side quest was definitely worth doing. He clapped his hands and said, "Great! Very good!"
March 7th then whispered, "Do you know what you're supposed to do?"
Pei Guang shook his head, "No idea! Let's wait for him to give the quest instructions. If nothing else works, we'll just go on a rampage!!!"
At that moment, March 7th was certain that inviting Pei Guang on board was the right decision. Left in this space station, his pent-up energy might really cause trouble someday.
After explaining everything, he looked at Arlan and said, "Feel free to ask me! But if the reward isn't sufficient, I might decline your task."
Arlan nodded excitedly, "The task rewards are very generous! A total of 648 credits. I'll pay you upfront. The main task is to help the staff resolve some security issues. I'll send you the details, okay?"
"What?! 648?"
Pei Guang was shocked, while Arlan scratched his head in embarrassment, "I'm sorry, I didn't know how much to give. I've been provided with food and shelter here, so I have no concept of money."
Pei Guang accepted the number with eagerness, "648 credits! That's a lot!!!"
March 7th was shocked when she heard this. While it wasn't a small amount, it wasn't exactly a fortune either...
But seeing how excited Pei Guang was, she decided not to burst his bubble. After all, doing quests was about having fun, and fun was more important than money. Besides, there wasn't much to spend money on aboard the Astral Express.
Hearing Pei Guang agree, Arlan breathed a sigh of relief, "With your assistance, the Revival Plan will proceed smoothly. Hopefully, Miss Asta can finally get some good sleep..."
Just as he agreed, his phone vibrated. He opened it and was stunned to see that he had been added to a strange group chat that was already buzzing with messages.
The staff of the Herta Space Station were chatting in the group. It seemed that one of them had encountered some problem and was looking for help. Seeing so many people, Pei Guang casually added March 7th to the group and curiously asked, "When did I get so many friends?"
Asta: "Hehe~ Technical problems are no match for my 'Herta' staff."
Asta: "Sorry if my staff are bothering you. I've already blocked many fans who were queuing up to add you. As for whether to respond to the requests you've received—that's up to you~"
Pei Guang finally remembered who Asta was. She was the girl who had faced the Doomsday Beast with him on the platform. Though they had only met once, she could be considered a comrade.
Pei Guang picked up his phone and began typing: "I'll take on your tasks! Just make sure the rewards are ready!"
After sending these messages, Pei Guang called March 7th to get ready to tackle the tasks.
"Let's go! We've got quests to complete, and we..."
Just as Pei Guang was about to head out with March 7th, something caught his eye. What did he see? A treasure chest? A chest placed by the side of the road, with someone watching over it?
People were coming and going at the space station, but everyone seemed oblivious to the chest.
"Could it be that these people can't see the chest?"
At that moment, Pei Guang's blood boiled, and he got excited. As a gamer, what excites a player the most? It's not the main quest rewards, the attractiveness of the heroines, or the game's freedom and output. It's seeing a treasure chest on the side of the road!
In any game, the moment a player spots a treasure chest, even if they're smart, their body is instinctively driven by the urge to open it. Previously, he avoided deviating from the main quest to avoid failure, but with three days until the main quest begins, there's no harm in opening a treasure chest now, right?
As he thought of this, his body had already started moving towards the chest.
March 7th noticed Pei Guang's odd behavior and, following his gaze, was shocked.
"Stop! That's someone else's property!"
But Pei Guang excitedly exclaimed, "A treasure chest! That's a treasure chest! I'm a player, and how can I be a qualified player if I don't open chests? Besides, you don't know, treasure chests contain all sorts of rich rewards. I couldn't open them while on the main quest, but now I'm going to open this one!"
March 7th tried to stop Pei Guang, but by then, he was already too far gone. She hugged his waist, but she was a step too slow. Though Pei Guang's mind wasn't completely overtaken by desire, his body faithfully followed it. He pulled out a wooden sword from his backpack, and despite March 7th's attempts to stop him, he struck the chest. After confirming it wasn't a mimic, he reverently crouched down and opened the chest.
"What are you doing? How can you go through someone else's belongings like that?"
The young staff member beside the chest scolded Pei Guang for his behavior. Pei Guang reluctantly withdrew his hand, and just as March 7th was about to explain, the staff member angrily picked up the chest and left.
Watching the staff member walk away, Pei Guang muttered, "Damn! How despicable! To disguise a suitcase as a treasure chest—why are there such evil people in the world? A life without treasure chests feels like something is missing."
March 7th teased, "That was someone's luggage, you know. But I remember you found a real treasure chest earlier, didn't you? Let's go open that one! What do you think is inside?"
Pei Guang's mood instantly lifted, "A treasure chest! If we knew what was inside, it wouldn't be a surprise. But based on my experience, it's usually food and materials. However, the chest I saw earlier seemed to be guarded by some high-level monsters. I suspect it's their resource supply. Let's go raid that chest!"
March 7th's eyes sparkled, "Let's go!"
As the two set off, Asta, the head of the Herta Space Station, also learned about Pei Guang's little quirk through her own channels.
"Loves opening treasure chests? He really is just like a gamer. But..."
Recalling his contributions to the space station, she began making plans. She had always been thinking about what gift to give Pei Guang. His presence had ensured the survival of the station's most valuable personnel—human lives are priceless. As the station chief, Asta felt that she should prepare a gift for the hero of the Herta Space Station.
For her, money was the least of her concerns. After using her pocket money to replace the lost items, she thought of thanking Pei Guang. Now that she knew he had this small hobby, she purchased some treasure chest-like boxes, filled them with items and materials, and placed them in various prominent spots around the space station.
Of course, she listened to Pei Guang's entire conversation. Ordinary chests would contain the food and items like he mentioned. For the more advanced ones, she added some money, weapons, and equipment.
Though they weren't very valuable, they were a small token of her appreciation for the hero of the space station.
"I hope this leaves you with some beautiful memories here!"
Not only did she place these chests around the space station, but she also instructed some trusted individuals to seek Pei Guang's help when needed. Not only would they pay him for his assistance, but they would also provide useful materials and items, and sometimes even hand him treasure chests directly!
However, Asta didn't know that Pei Guang wasn't the only oddball in this space station. Stelle, who had just awakened, had also developed a bit of a gamer's mindset under Pei Guang's influence.
Just after she accompanied Herta's doll on an experiment and stepped out of the lab, she noticed a treasure chest by a flower pot at the lab's entrance.
In the past, she wouldn't have thought much of it, but now, influenced by Pei Guang, her eyes locked onto the chest as she walked.