Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again. - Chapter 396

Chapter 396: The savior.
Sunshine was a little surprised to see the wrapper. And it was in such pristine condition! They had cleaned it and removed all the wrinkles. But there was just one question now. Had they preserved it for a good or bad reason?

Were they planning to force her to stay back and provide food to them like the Noxians had tried to force her to stay back and fix their eggs? Her hand tightened on her hammer.

She marked the positions of the people around her. In her mind she drew up a ten second defense plan which would end with the system teleporting her away.

“This?” Othyrean’s voice trembled. “Because of this. Do you… have more? Are you the maker?”

She replied carefully. “I am not the maker. But I know a place where they are made. Why do you ask?”

A sound rippled through the eavesdropping crowd_ gasps, broken sobs, whispered hope. Tears filled the eyes of starving people.

Someone whispered, “Savior…”

Another, “Food… real food…”

Sunshine’s chest tightened. This world wasn’t merely ruined_ it was dying. Food wasn’t a commodity here. It was a miracle.

Othyrean stepped closer, voice soft and pleading. “Please. We need these things. We are running out of insects, bark or anything to eat. The water is toxic, we don’t waste any fluids, not even drops of sweat or urine. We cannot even afford to spit. We cannot keep going much longer. I am afraid…..”

Sunshine understood what he was saying. She looked at the mountain of scrap_ valuable metals, machines, rare tech. A goldmine for repairs. They did not have food but what they had were treasures to her.

Othyrean followed her gaze. “We saw you collecting these things. They are not very useful, most are broken. If you bring us food… you can have all of it. We can gather as much as you need as long as you can provide us with food and water.”

Sunshine’s heart skipped. His words were tempting because her work would be cut down and she would achieve more. They’d gather everything for her, and she would just wave one hand and take it all.

The planet was big; they could go to the places she would never get a chance to visit. It was a win-win situation.

“And” Othyrean rushed to add, “we saw that you liked the iron shirts. We can make more if you want. Very strong. Many.” He spread his arms out wide.

In the crowd, heads bopped up and down. Hopeful eyes dug into her back.

Sunshine tried to look professional, but a happy smile tugged at her lips. “That is quite the offer.” Did they even know the value of what they had? Before the apocalypse, something like an iron shirt on earth would have sold for millions of dollars. In the apocalypse, it could sell for more.

They were serving them up for the price of protein bars!

“It is all we have,” he whispered, voice cracking.

She inhaled, then nodded. “I accept the deal. But I will only exchange food equivalent to what I take. Not everything is useful or fixable.”

Othyrean nodded immediately. “Agreed.”

Relief rippled through the factory like a physical wave. Several people fell to their knees. Some cried. Others whispered prayers.

She smiled at them, feeling like a thief. These people thought she was saving them, but they were doing more for her. She looked at the scrap mountain wondering what valuable things she was going to get this time.

Sunshine dove into the mountain of scrap with a determination that only exhaustion and necessity could fuel.

The pile towered over her like a broken metallic hill, rusted edges glinting beneath the dim factory lights. Each piece she lifted let out a groan or clank, like the junk itself resented being disturbed.

The system guided her through a tiny holographic display over her head. [Left_ good. That is a Kylor compass, it tells direction no matter the dimension. It’s repairable.]

Sunshine tossed it into the ‘useful’ pile. She pointed at a cylindrical object covered in grime.

“And that?”

[Quantum regulator, it regulates energy fluctuations, it prevents overloads, keeps devices from exploding or shutting down. It’s damaged but fixable. Keep.]

Another item_ a sleek black triangle, like part of an alien ship.

“System is this useful?”

[Extremely. Don’t scratch it. Very expensive.]

Sunshine raised an eyebrow. “It looks severely damaged.”

[Still expensive, you can sell it on the dark market for a lot of money.]

Her eyes widened and placed it gently inside her bag. “I thought you were not on board with my dark side.”

[I have a rogue host, so I am adapting.] The system replied.

She pulled out something shaped like a curved disk. “What about this one?”

The system paused. […That is garbage.] ”

Sunshine dropped it instantly.

A small crowd of Boulder Creek citizens whimpered softly.

She gave a tired smile and shrugged. “Well,_ I have no use for that.”

She continued digging hyper-conductive wires capable of carrying massive electrical loads with zero overheating and minimal resistance, and something the system called a Dimensional Stabilizer Fragment. “What does it stabilize?” she asked.

[Unstable dimensions or worlds.]

“That’s… helpful.”

As she went on, her arms began to ache and sweat gathered beneath her mask. After nearly two hours of sifting through metallic chaos, she finally dropped onto a broken crate to rest. Her legs trembled with fatigue, and her fingers throbbed from gripping sharp edges.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a potato crisp and a bottle of fresh water. She had just unwrapped the snack when she spotted a child standing near a damaged car, watching her. Big eyes. Thin arms. Swallowing hard without meaning to.

Sunshine paused. The child wasn’t staring at her. He was staring at the food. She sighed softly and held out the snack. “Here.”

The child’s eyes widened. He looked around as if expecting someone to punish him for taking it.

“It’s okay,” Sunshine said gently. “Take it.”

He approached slowly_ terrified, starving_ and when the snack touched his hand, he ran away quickly as if escaping before she changed her mind.

Sunshine glanced at the adults. They weren’t begging but the hunger was there in their eyes. That almost made it worse. They were starving but too disciplined_ or too ashamed_ to ask.

Their cheeks were hollow, their lips cracked, their movements sluggish. Without a word, Sunshine pilled out more snacks from her space_ dried fruits, nutrient cubes, per-cooked meals, boxes of water.

Half of the useless snacks she had bought from the food court were added to the pile and some grains from what she had planted in the space. All of it formed a small hill.

People flinched. Some stepped back.

One woman whispered, “No… that…it is too much.”

Sunshine shook her head firmly. “This is payment for the things I am taking. It is equal in value to what you have given me. If you find more valuable things next time, you will get more.”

Othyrean urged a group of adults to come and start moving the goods away. Like a hoard of beasts, they rushed forward with eagerness. Just like the child before, they seemed to be afraid that she would change her mind and take it all back.

In the midst of the move, a woman approached Sunshine, pulling a child along. It was a female, no older than three years old. Her hair was too red, she was too skinny, her clothes filled with holes and her skin was too dry.

She shoved the girl forward and gestured at Sunshine. “How much for her?”