Meanwhile, while the three captains of the Region F Army were busy arguing over Jake's future, he was having a hard time deciding which weapon affinity talent to purchase.
Buying the Common version of any weapon affinity before him would cost him 5,000 System Coins, but before making a decision, he chose to open the beginner gift package displayed at the edge of his system interface.
The moment he tapped it, the box expanded, covering his entire screen as it shone brightly before spilling out its contents.
[ GIFT ]
> 5,000 System Coins (formerly called System Points)
> 1,000 B-Coins
> 500 Pilot Coins
> 1,000 Implant Parts
> 1,000 Common Mod Parts
> 50 Elite Mod Parts
> 10 Fortune Keys
As someone who had once been addicted to playing Mech Arena in his previous life, most of what appeared on his system screen was things he was incredibly familiar with.
However, what truly caught his attention was the Status Tab.
[ Status Tab ]
Name: Jake Fernandez
Race: Human
Talent Rank: Common
Weapon Affinity: —
Level: 1 (0%)
[ Currencies ]
System Coins: 15,000
B-Coins: 1,000
Pilot Coins: 500
Implant Parts: 1,000
Common Mod Parts: 1,000
Elite Mod Parts: 50
Fortune Keys: 10
[ Mech Hangar ]
Mechs: (0/3)
Linked Special Ability: —
After reviewing his status, Jake felt it was finally time to purchase a weapon affinity, as he believed it would give him at least a slight advantage in the upcoming matches to come.
Even if others looked down on him, he was sure he would have made some form of progress, still, he understood one thing clearly, gaining a weapon affinity wouldn't change his situation much.
With only a common talent, he was still bound to be the weakest mech super soldier among them, however, at the moment, he did not really care that much, all he wanted was to make himself a little bit more stronger than he currently is.
That was how he entered the Weapon Affinity Market and began thinking about what he needed most right now, since he had 15,000 System Coins, he decided to buy two weapon affinities and keep the remaining 5,000 coins as savings, in case he needed to spend them on something else important later.
[ Weapon Affinity ]
> Assault (Common)
> Missile (Common)
> Beam (Common)
> Close Quarters (Common)
> Sniper (Common)
> Guided (Common)
> Artillery (Common)
> Barrage (Common)
> Heavy Duty (Common)
Seeing all nine known weapon affinities, including those that were rare for awakeners to obtain, made Jake smile as he began to think about which ones he should choose.
He decided that his first choice would be Assault, because assault type weapons embodied the essence of rifle-type firearms like the AK-47.
Not only did assault type weapons usually have a high magazine capacity, but many of them also offered decent, if not fast, reload speed compared to other weapon types, with an assault weapon in hand, Jake was confident he could deal consistent damage by firing rapidly and keeping pressure on his opponents.
It was also ideal for mid-range combat, and some weapons could even hit targets at long range just at a reduced damage rate, that way, he would not need to get too close before he could start dealing damage.
But then came the bigger problem, choosing his second weapon affinity, he wanted something that would complement the first affinity he had chosen.
At first, he considered Missile affinity which was next to the assault affinity in the list, because it would allow him to deal massive damage as swiftly as possible.
Missile-type weapons were designed to unleash a large amount of damage in just a few shots, or sometimes even a single strike.
But then Jake thought about how it would turn him into a hit-and-run type of fighter, and he immediately changed his mind, he still had no idea what kind of terrain they would be battling in, so relying on missiles might not be as advantageous as he wanted.
Beam weapons leaned more toward long-range combat, and while he liked the idea, he was well aware that at the early stages, the beam weapons available to him would have low damage output.
That meant even from a safe distance, he would struggle to take down opponents quickly, and that would expose his location easily due to the connecting beam light.
Jake wasn't naive enough to believe he could freely move around after revealing his position in his current state, so he sighed and looked at the next option—Close Quarters.
A faint smile appeared on his face, in the game from his previous life, this had been his favorite weapon affinity, he had used countless weapons under that category.
But now that he thought about it, he realized it wasn't something he should be relying on at the moment. Close combat meant putting himself in close proximity to enemy mechs, and right now, that was too risky.
Finally, his gaze landed on the Sniper affinity, the moment he saw it, he didn't hesitate at all, he just knew instantly that it was the perfect choice for him.
With a sniper weapon, he could engage enemies from long range and eliminate them before they even got close, and even if his position was exposed, he wouldn't be totally defenseless, he could still switch to his assault weapon and handle close to mid-range combat if necessary.
With his decision made, he selected both affinities he had in mind as 10,000 System Coins were deducted instantly from his balance, instantly a tingling sensation spread through his body as he closed his eyes.
Memories—no, instincts—of assault and sniper weapons began flooding his mind, though it only lasted a moment in reality, however to Jake, it felt like he had undergone years of training with both weapon types.
When he finally opened his eyes, the first thing he did was exhale deeply, as it felt like he had just completed ten years of combat training with weapons of both assault and sniper categories, but then he realized something else.
Even while he had been in that strange, dazed state, the other two from Region F had been too busy talking to notice anything unusual about him.
And more importantly—Jake could clearly feel it.
Gideon's attitude toward him had changed after the talent evaluation, there was distance now, not that Jake particularly cared, but he couldn't say he liked it.
They were supposed to be F region teammates going forward, if people from other regions looked down on him, that was expected.
But those beside him?
They shouldn't be the ones treating him with quiet disdain, this was how Jake felt.