Chapter 55: Reserve

On the morning of 20th January, David finished his morning practice session and took a seat in the dining hall to have his breakfast.

He had begun eating strengthened meat for breakfast. Even though he had five servings of strengthened meat each meal, he could barely replenish the energy he consumed. 

He couldn't help but miss the days when he had Level 1 strengthened meat. Back then, he did not have to eat to the point of stuffing himself silly to replenish his energy as he did now.

In those three days, the Strength and Physique values on David's attribute panel still remained the same. However, every time he practiced the eighteen movements of Bodywork, he felt his body was more absorptive than before. 

His Mental Energy, which was as high as 3.4 arbitrary units, made him feel much more agile. He could feel that his body was being strengthened. However, it was not reflected on the attribute panel, but rather, it was a physical change in the nature of his strength.

"Coming!" David exclaimed when he heard the doorbell ring. He took a mouthful of the strengthened meat, swallowed it excitedly, and scurried to the door.

"Maron, why are you here!?!" asked David who was disappointed to see that it was not Jim whom he wanted to see. 

"David, I came to take you out. How could you treat me like this!?!" Maron questioned with dissatisfaction as he walked towards the door, feeling close to David.

"Maron, why does it look like you're here to wait for Jim instead?" David asked, exposing Maron's hidden agenda.

The two of them sat down while teasing each other, and the doorbell suddenly rang. At this moment, both of them leaped up and looked at each other. However, David was not eager. As a result, he gestured for Maron to go and open the door.

"Jim, you're here!" Maron immediately greeted him with a smile after he opened the door. He then reached out for the weapon's case in Jim's hand and said, "Let me carry it for you!"

"Maron, you're here too!" Jim said with a grin as he handed the weapon's case to Maron.

Maron grabbed the weapons case without uttering a single word. He was completely attracted and mesmerized by it.

"Jim, please bring it here!" David said. As the host, David of course, could not behave like Maron. Although he was similarly excited about the Eye of Death replica, he was also conscious that he was the host and hence, had to be polite. 

Emma, the robot butler, delivered the natural fruit juice that had already been prepared beforehand. David then invited Jim to have a seat on the couch in the hall.

"David, you don't have to be so polite and forward with me. I like being straightforward. I've brought the Eye of Death replica and another five hundred rounds of ammunition here!" Jim said as he placed the other small metal case that he was holding on the table.

David did not expect Jim to have prepared ammunition for him as well. The ammunition for sniper rifles was available for purchase. However, he could feel Jim's sincerity. 

The sniper rifle was a regulated weapon among the lightweight hot weapons, and the rest of the guns could be purchased and owned by those who had legal proof of ownership. On the other hand, ammunition was not restricted.

In Pelan City, local and foreign hunters would have to replenish a large amount of ammunition every time they went out. Hence, the ammunition supply was also one of the important businesses in Pelan City.

"Since you're still underage and the Eye of Death replica is a controlled weapon, I've helped you obtained a city defense reserve qualification. Hence, not only can you legally possess the Eye of Death replica, but you may also own other weapons!" Jim exclaimed as he operated the identity bracelet again. He pulled out an authorization document and transferred it to David.

David opened the authorization document and scrutinized it in detail.

That authorization document was granted by the Pelan City Defense Brigade to him, David Karl. As long as David confirmed that authorization document, he would become a reserve combat member of the Pelan City Defense Brigade. He could have the legal right to own and use single-armed hot weapons like sniper rifles. He could also purchase the corresponding accessories and ammunition from the military.

David had a look of hesitation on his face. He wondered if being a reserve combatant would affect the rest of his life in high school, or even his college entrance exams.

"David, you will only be incorporated into the city's defense squad as a reserve combatant. It won't affect you in any other way. You just have to respond to the call when a major battle occurs. There hadn't been a major war in Pelan City in twenty years!" Jim explained with a smile when he saw David's hesitation.

"Thank you!" David confirmed the authorization document, which was saved in his identity bracelet. His information on Skynet was also updated at the same time.

"David, I'm not going to harm you!" Jim said with a chuckle.

"Jim, why don't you ever think of me when there's such a good deal?" asked Maron who was seated at the other side of the table. He brought up the matter about the Eye of Death replica with displeasure. 

"Maron, if you have David's competency, I'll do it for you!" Jim said while glaring at Maron. 

Although Jim had used some of his authority when settling that matter, it was in accordance with the military regulations. It was a proper procedure.

David's sniping ability could indeed be useful in times of war. Besides, recruiting a potential Sniper Armorer was something that the military would usually do. 

Although there were plenty of armorers in Pelan City, there were actually three divisions. The armorers that served the military would only face the outside world. They would not take part in the matters in Pelan City. 

The armorers who served the government were few in number, but they had to manage a large number of civilian armorers. As such, the government was forced to frequently borrow local civilian armorers.

The third division contained the largest number of civilian armorers, which included retired military armorers—armorers who had graduated from the Armorer Academy and returned to their hometowns. There was even a large number of armorers with complicated status who were there to fight for their own interests. 

Talented young men like David were exactly what the military needed. Even if he wouldn't become a soldier in the future, he should still have good relations with the military.

"Jim, you're underestimating me. Once I get into Nan University and become an armorer, I won't even bother looking at these authorization documents if they're placed in front of me!" Maron said arrogantly.

Although he said that, he knew that people of Pelan City often vied to become reserve combatants of the City Defense Brigade. Being allowed to own multiple hot weapons was enough to tempt the vast majority of people.

Besides, if there was a big war in Pelan City, would it be possible to hide?

By then, if that happened, it would be better to take up some weapons and join the battle. The young men of Planet Rocky were never afraid of fighting in battles. The environment that they were born into had decided that the best of them would fight the Bugs. They would only get to raise their status by taking part in the battle. 

David saw Maron's desire to become a reserve combatant and understood that it was a good thing. Hence, he felt more at ease.

"David, are we going to the shooting range this time, or should I take you somewhere else?" Maron asked when he saw that Jim was done discussing with David. 

"Where can you take David to play?" Jim said to Maron with disdain. He then turned to David and said, "I shall take you around the city today to see the real situation outside the city!"

David's eyes lit up. The view outside of Pelan City was something that he had seen before when he was on the wall. However, he had only seen it from afar and had never reached it.

"I'll go too. If I take this guy with me, I might even be able to kill a few Bugs larvae myself!" Maron exclaimed with excitement as he raised the Eye of Death replica. 

"Jim, it won't get you in trouble, will it?" David asked tactfully. He really wanted to go as well.

"It's nothing troublesome. We'll just move around within the city boundaries. Basically, there won't be any danger. It won't just be the three of us either. We'll be taking a few more people with us!" Jim said with a smile. 

David carried the scabbard on his back as he left. On the other hand, Maron placed the Eye of Death replica and some ammunition in the car. 

Jim's car was a military hovercar while David and Myron followed them in the Glaston VI.

They had chosen the Southern Gate this time. When they arrived, David had already seen hundreds of people standing at the Southern Gate. Those people were carrying all kinds of weapons, knives, spears, and hot weapons. Although there were no armorers who wore exoskeleton armors, they had some combat power, and some armored hovercars were lined up crookedly next to them.

David had also seen the Southern Gate. It was a square gate that was 10 meters tall and 10 meters wide. At this moment, the reinforced and spiked gate was not activated, and it looked rather menacing. 

The two cars did not approach the gate and pulled up in the military parking lot that was not too far away instead. 

David wanted to help Maron carry the Eye of Death replica, but he refused. David could also tell that Maron seemed to be intending to take over the right of ownership of the Eye of Death replica.

However, David did not vie with him for it. Given the current standards of Maron who did not go through proper training, he definitely would not be able to continue after a few shots. 

Jim walked past the crowd of armored hovercars with the two of them. While some of the people, who were waiting, were dissatisfied with the fact that the three of them were not getting in line, most of them knew who Jim was. Due to such, the voices of the people complaining were rather soft.