Having finished the last comic pages, Noid sat there stunned, then his hand suddenly rested on his chest. A warm feeling spread throughout his body, just like the first time he met Jack, when the boy was about to be killed by an elite doom.
He didn't know what this warmth was, but at that moment, Noid felt like his strength was limitless.
From the moment he desperately rushed in front of the elite doom to save Jack, a tiny seed had been sown in his soul. Compared to the darkness in his heart, this seed was just a small firefly, appearing and disappearing. But it was still resilient, not swallowed whole, using all hope, warmth, and happiness as its nourishment. Now it was just waiting, waiting for the moment to break through the ground.
Noid looked down at the bottom of the book box where there was still one more book. But it wasn't a comic book, it was a regular notebook.
He opened it and saw that it was Jack's diary. Looking at the dates, it seemed the boy had started writing almost two years ago.
There were happy times, sad times, bình đạm times, and exciting times. There were even times when the boy had nightmares about the elite doom killing his mother, making Jack wake up with a start, all written down.
"But thank goodness, when I wake up, Noid is always here."
"He's a little shy, but he's a very good person to everyone."
"And he cooks and makes drinks really well."
"Today, Noid and I are moving. I hope this place will be given to those who need it."
Noid's eyes blurred. He, who considered himself a timid person, who believed he didn't have happiness, had become happiness, had become a courageous person in a child's eyes.
He turned to the last page. There was a drawing, and although a child's artistic ability was not enough to describe it, Noid could recognize at a glance that it was himself in tattered armor. In the bottom left corner of the drawing was a line of text.
You are my "Hero".
Two streams of tears flowed down his face, but Noid smiled. The darkness in his heart completely vanished, leaving only a body full of warmth. He closed his eyes, and in his mind, images of his parents appeared. They were at the edge of a cruise ship, and he was standing on a lifeboat.
For ten years, this scene had only brought him pain and the agony of running away. But this time, he stood still and faced it. Even though the pain was still there, Noid smiled at his parents.
"Dad, Mom, thank you."
The surrounding scene disappeared, leaving only a pure white space. Only his parents stood in front of him. Their faces, which had been as blurry as smoke, now became clear. Before, he didn't even dare to face his parents' faces, even in his dreams, which was why they didn't have faces.
His mother stroked his head, telling him to live a good life and treat the people around him well. His father patted his shoulder, telling him that he was an adult now.
Noid finally couldn't hold back anymore and hugged his parents tightly. He cried, but not because of pain, but because of happiness. His face was filled with reluctance to let go.
"Go on, there are people waiting over there," both of them said in unison.
The white space vanished, bringing Noid back to reality. He was still sitting there, with Jack's diary in his hands.
"Thank you, everyone."
He didn't reject the pain because pain was also a part of the past. Rejecting pain was no different than rejecting himself. Noid faced it, turning himself towards the light.
Heart of a Hero (Completed)
Understand pain and suffering to understand light and hope. Possess a brave heart, and never retreat.
Reward: 3000 accumulated points.
"Infinite, what is this?"
Noid had just gone through his rebirth and before he could even process it, he was hit with a system notification.
"To allow the traveler to maximize their potential without being constrained, the system creates hidden quests based on the achievements the traveler has earned. The traveler will only be informed of a quest after it has been completed."
He now understood, and looking at the quest name "Heart of a Hero," Noid couldn't help but let out a wry smile.
"The heart of a hero, huh? Jack, you've given me a difficult task."
"But who said I'm not your hero?"
He stood up and went to the sink, splashing his face with water. He slicked back his long, drooping, mournful hair, revealing his face. He looked much more spirited than before.
He took out Jack's diary and asked the system.
"Infinite, can I put this in the system's storage?"
"Yes, the traveler only needs to spend the appropriate amount of accumulated points to store an item from the original world."
"Please do."
The diary disappeared. Noid checked his accumulated points and saw the number change from 3035 to 3034 points.
"Infinite, why do I have 20 extra points?"
He clearly remembered that he had 65 accumulated points before, and then he spent 50 points to buy the paralysis gun and the low-grade healing capsule.
"Discovered and dismantled a small stronghold: 20 accumulated points."
"As you have officially become a part of the human faction, a new price list has been updated for the traveler."
Discover/Dismantle or participate in dismantling:
Small stronghold (under 20 people) of the doom cult: 20/50 accumulated points.
Medium stronghold (20 to 100 people) of the doom cult: 100/250 accumulated points.
Large stronghold (over 100 people) of the doom cult: 200/400 accumulated points.
Doom cult headquarters: 500/1000 accumulated points.
Defeat or eliminate members of the doom cult:
Follower: 1 accumulated point.
Fanatic: 2 accumulated points.
Fanatic (incomplete reform): 5 accumulated points.
Fanatic (complete reform): 10 accumulated points.
Pope's confidant: 100 accumulated points.
Pope: 300 accumulated points.
Eliminate:
Doom embryo: 1 accumulated point.
Doom: 5 accumulated points.
Elite doom: 20 accumulated points.
Aerial doom: 10 accumulated points.
Elite aerial doom: 30 accumulated points.
Doom leader: 500 accumulated points.
Doom war machine: 6000 accumulated points.
Doom king: 10000 accumulated points.
Doom lord: 10000 accumulated points.
...
Sasha had finished her training for the day. She quickly changed back into her regular clothes and headed to Noid's coffee shop. She had seen his state over the past few days and was worried that he might do something foolish. Despite her busy schedule, she made sure to spare some time to check on Noid.
It was evening now, and what surprised Sasha was that the coffee shop was open and lit. The sound of customers' laughter spread all around.
She walked inside. Noid was standing at the coffee counter. Seeing Sasha, he waved at her, then made a cup of coffee for her.
Sasha was stunned and stammered.
"You're not..."
"Yeah, the pain, the despair. I won't run from it anymore. If Jack saw the hero he believed in so much in such a pathetic state, I wouldn't have the face to look at him either."
Noid wasn't the type of person with a sky-piercingly handsome face, but his current appearance, after tidying up, could be said to be quite pleasant. But when he smiled, he gave Sasha a feeling like the morning sun, warm and radiant. It made her heart skip a beat.
"Sasha, what's wrong?"
"N-nothing!!"