Two more inventions were needed to finish the quest. Ryan was working on something to finish both the inventions at the same time in his personal lab inside the house. 

 

"Compiling code." ALBUS notified. 

 

A progress bar was displayed on his laptop.  He had been making a program that could read the neuron activation inside the body, precisely the signals that were sent from the brain to move our limbs. 

 

He planned to make a high technology prosthesis that could get feedback from the body and move as well as an intact limb. 

 

Theoretically, the prosthesis could make the user feel a sense of distance from the surface they walk on, a sense of gripping things, and a sense of moving their prosthesis as limb rather than some metal attached to their body. 

 

The technology could also be used by support-type exoskeleton frames. He got the ideas from Avenger infinity War, when he saw the War Machine standing up again using an exoskeleton frame. This invention could possibly make those who were paralysed walk again. 

 

It's going to take a while to debug the prosthetics code and neural interface. Ryan made it slowly and in any extra time he had, considering that he has a busy schedule now. 

 

He greatly hopes that after finishing the quests, he could go back to the Neet life. This time, with a girl in his arms. 

 

There was a prototype of a right hand prosthesis that he completed in a month on the table. It has a direct connection to his supercomputer and was currently undergoing the debugging. 

 

Gwen walked in on Ryan while he was working. She handed him a cup of coffee, and said with concern, "You should get some rest. You just finished the experiments with the trees. You deserved to rest for a while before continuing this project."

 

"Just for a while. I will rest after this." 

 

After living with him for a while, she understood that he wasn't the type to stay still — even though he wanted to do so. 

 

Writing songs, making a new type of comic he called manga, cooking new recipes, and then doing world changing experiments.

 

"You smell!" she said while she hugged him from behind. She didn't want to discourage him. All she wanted was for him to get some rest. 

 

He ignored the snide comment about his odour as she was only playing. He caressed her hand gently and enjoyed her warmth on his back. 

 

"I'm almost done. I plan to get some vacation time after this is done. What do you think about going to the Maldives?" 

 

"I have to finish up some research. After that, We can go. " Gwen replied as she continued burying her head on his back. 

 

The computer chimed in with the report that the debugging has been completed.

 

"Now it's time to test it. Get some feedback. See if it works." Ryan planned, hoping for the best. 

 

This was his own invention rather than buying items on the trading side or getting quest rewards. He's pretty nervous about it. 

 

If the programming works, then the exoskeleton-frame will also work, completing both of his work at the same time. 

 

It was already June 2006. He only had a year and a half left before the plot for the Avenger officially started. He wanted to enjoy his time leisurely before that storm came. 

 

Ryan picked up the metal arm from the table. He will need some volunteers for his work as he has all his limbs intact. 

 

"Who should test this?" he muttered.

 

" Hiddle may be able to get some veterans who lost their limb as a volunteer." He thought for a while. 

 

"Maybe Rodrigue will be interested, I'll call him and ask." 

 

"Okay, let's call him." 

 

Ryan has a good impression on the retired police officer, Rodrigue. The man was always smiling even when life pushes him down. 

 

Gwen called her father's former partner and asked him excitedly. Rodrigue will come tomorrow to help. He had nothing much to do anyway as he was living the retired life. 

 

"Hmmmph, " Ryan stretched his body by leaning at the back of the chair, and cracked his spine, producing some cracking sound. 

 

As his work couldn't progress, he decided to take a little break. 

 

"ALBUS, put on my playlist." 

 

"Fun mood or sad mood sir?" 

 

"The fun one." 

 

"Playing: Riptide by Vance Joy." 

 

He stood up and started to sway. While hearing and singing along to music, Ryan danced along to release the stress that had been built up. He grabbed Gwen and forced her to join in. 

 

"Hey!" Gwen pretended to be angry. Then, she too started to sway. 

 

They were dancing together at night, just the two of them. 

 

"Did you make this song?" Gwen asked while they were dancing. 

 

"Y-yeah," Ryan answered with some guilt in his heart. 

 

He danced with her for a long time. The music seemed to be silent for him, and he felt a deep affection in his heart as he saw she was smiling and laughing happily. 

 

"What?" Gwen asked as he kept staring at her. 

 

"Nothing. I just thought you're really beautiful." 

 

"Shut up and dance." 

 

Gwen blushed uncontrollably by his sudden confession and they danced together until the playlist stopped and they were both tired. They fall asleep with a smile on their face. 

 

The next day comes quickly.

 

Ryan was meeting with Rodrigue in his lab. 

 

"See if there's any discomfort. Whether the feeling when it touches your skin or when you need to put it on, and any feedback from the usage." 

 

Rodrigue was a little awkward using his new hand at first as it's been a long time since he lost his hand. 

 

But as the time passed, he quickly adjusted to the sensation. Albeit slowly, he could even use his hand to write some stuff.

 

"This is… amazing!" 

 

The only reason it was slow was because he wasn't used to it. When he does, he could write with the same smoothness as a normal person. 

 

"This hand is really good, it's leap and bound compared to my previous fake hand!" Rodrigue exclaimed excitedly. 

 

But then, he lowered his head as he was depressed. "This… must be really expensive right?" 

 

Even if it hit the market, he knew there will be no way for him to enjoy this type of high technology, especially since he lived on a pension fund. 

 

Ryan touched his chin, unnoticing Rodrigue's worries. He calculated inside his head. 

 

"For now it's expensive, but when the mass producing line is finished. I think maybe 5,000 dollars?" 

 

That was his rough estimate. Gwen who heard that and Rodrigue, the potential customer, were both shocked by his calculations. 

 

Ryan saw their reaction and said anxiously, "Is it too expensive? I could make it cheaper but it'll lose some functions." 

 

"It's not expensive at all! " Rodrigue interjected with an excited voice. "In fact, it's really cheap! No. It's too cheap!!" 

 

He had to buy his previous prosthetics for more than 20,000 dollars. Four times more expensive than Ryan's estimate. Now, Rodrigue could get a much more reliable item, at a much lower price! 

 

If it wasn't Ryan who claimed it, he would think the entire invention was a trick to scam people. 

 

"Ryan, are you sure it's only 5000?" Gwen asked. 

 

"Yeah. Once I create the manufacturing line, it will become cheaper." He claimed. The manufacturing line blueprint could be bought from the system site. He didn't have to work as hard for it. By then, he will have made a profit even if he priced it at 3000 dollars. 

 

"I couldn't wait till it's on sale!" Rodrigue said excitedly. 

 

Ryan breathed in relief after that. They continue testing for a while, but Ryan constantly becomes more and more frustrated. 

 

"Well you can play and talk about it later but I really need the feedback for now. How about this, you keep the hand for the rest of the week and record it."

 

Rodrigue scratched his cheek shamefully after hearing that. Gwen smiles knowingly and patted Ryan's shoulder. She noticed that Rodrigue was so excited that he didn't actually say some useful feedback for the hours he was here. 

 

She also raised her affection for Ryan as he didn't have a temper tantrum or was mad from Rodrigue's actions. 

 

"I'll give you my recording as soon as possible." Rodrigue vowed with determination in his voice. 

 

Gwen chimed in " You know, maybe you can cover it up in something to mimic the human hand. All metal… looks kind of threatening. " 

 

Ryan clicked on his laptop and showed Gwen the design for the finished product. 

 

"There is a silicon based material I'm gonna put into the prosthesis. It'll mimic human skin, so that the fake arm will look more like a real arm." 

 

Right now the arm looks more like a winter soldier arm — although it's relatively thinner. He finished up his work for the day and sent Rodrigue home. 

 

Before having the feedback from the man, he could only work with what he observed. So far, the invention was close enough to what he imagined it would be. 

 

"Gwen, it seems like we can proceed with further testing. A more vast target group is needed." 

 

"Do you still want to keep it under wraps? I think your father already knew about it."  

 

"For now. Yes. Until I complete the encryption." 

 

Gwen was excited for the prospect of her boyfriend's invention. She felt that he was slowly changing the world. 

 

If his family's company was involved, more people could be reached, and the research would go faster. She doesn't understand why Ryan kept it to himself and tried to do all of the work on his own. 

 

"The thing is Gwen, I'm afraid that the military will use it as weapons." 

 

Ryan has some worries about the matter. That was why he didn't want to make the research public before he's absolutely positive that he could avoid the scenario. 

 

He encrypted the core program of the prosthesis. If someone tries to reverse engineer the invention, the core will self-destruct. He could let his company handle it after he had completed the program. 

 

Ryan told his worries to Gwen, and about his prevention. Gwen nodded in understanding. She also had some aversion to the military. 

 

When the plant growth serum was completed, some military officials tried to propose to use it as a weapon to destabilise other countries that depend on it.

 

"What the?!" It's like a splash of cold water is thrown to her head at that time. What Ryan said came true after all. 

 

She was woken up to the reality of the world. This profit centric world didn't care about progression, they cared only about money and strength. She and Ryan were both invited to join the super soldier serum research, but they rejected it. She had a bad impression on the military after the incident. 

 

Ryan and Gwen were finishing up in the lab, before Hiddle walked in. 

 

"Young master, Master Tim invites you and Miss Stacy to dinner at the Manor tonight." 

 

He heard his girlfriend's opinion before agreeing to it. After Hiddle left Gwen freaked out a bit. 

 

"This is my first time meeting your father, what should I wear? What would he think of me? "

 

Ryan patted Gwen's head and comforted her. "Just be yourself. I'm sure he'll like you." 

 

"Well if he doesn't, that's not gonna change anything anyway, so don't worry about it." He tried to comfort her. 

 

Gwen brushed off her unreliable boyfriend's hand, ran off to the door and said "I'm gonna go home to get ready, I'll meet you there." 

 

Dinner with his family went well. Tim enjoyed meeting with Gwen and even showed a rare smile. Hiddle was excited and kept nudging Ryan to a higher step by hinting about marriage, and caused him to choke on his food. 

 

"See, you're worried for nothing." Ryan teased as they sat at the Manor's garden swing. 

 

"I think you need to be more worried." Gwen said with slight dissatisfaction. 

 

"Haha, I know that this will go well. So I'm not worried. Even if it doesn't, I wouldn't sit still if my father bullied you." 

 

"Well I want to believe you," Gwen said while rolling her eyes. On the inside, she does believe in him, but she doesn't want to give him the satisfaction now after he had been unhelpful. 

 

Ryan looked at his cute pouting girlfriend, leaned in and said slowly. "I love you Gwen." 

 

Gwen's eyes widened and she replied," I love you too." They locked and kissed for a minute before they separated. 

 

She added, "You know that's the first time we said that right?"

 

Ryan showed a stunning smile, " Well then I regret not saying it sooner."  

 

Seeing that Gwen was very happy at the moment, he does regret it a bit. 

 

Vampire kid : You know, if you take my quest, you've already ⅔ of the way to tier 2.

Hydra :(-_-') 

 

In the trading session, he chatted with his friends when GreenWitch popped up in the chat. 

 

GreenWitch : Hey @Hydra. The serum works! Many people can be saved this winter because food could be abundant. In fact, some of it was already ready for harvest. 

 

Ryan smiled sincerely reading the feedback. Many people thanked him about his serum in the Interdimensional Trading System, making him feel fulfilled. 

 

GreenWitch : I have made some magic scroll based on my magic. You can grow plants instantly using it. The problem is that one scroll can only be used by one plant. 

Hydra: It didn't matter. I can make my experiment time shorter with it. 

 

After that, he chatted with the person whose quest he was doing. 

 

RetiredMechanic : Kid, I have read your encryption and new program. While your program is a fresh idea, your encryption sucks. 

Hydra: (sigh) It's you who are too powerful. 

RetiredMechanic : I meant it kid. It really sucks. Go to my page, there's a book called Encryption for Dummies there I just put. It's specially for you. 

Hydra : Wait, there isn't a prefix for it? No 'basic' or 'elementary'? 

RetiredMechanic : It's a named skill. You can buy it at a higher tier marketplace. It'll help you in what you want to do. 

 

When he read the knowledge, he realised that he was too naive in making the encryption. 

 

"There's a virus style encryption, where a virus will be released to the computer that tries to break it" 

 

"A self-destruct type that can make a powerful explosion." 

 

"A short-circuit type that can burn the core of the technology" 

 

He was getting more and more excited when he digested the new knowledge. In his mind, he thanked the crazy old man who forced him to buy the knowledge. It cost him 2000 tc just for that one book. 

 

The next day, he went to the company to continue with his experiment. Last night when having dinner, he already told his father about his invention. 

 

He has been making the left arm prosthesis, the legs prosthesis and made it with various sizes to get data from a wider target group. 

 

"This invention is going to be popular amongst veterans." A team member of his research group said. 

 

His father puts together some of the brilliant minds of the company to help him. After a week of preparing and the researcher learning about his inventions, the testing period comes. 

 

There's a lot of people that tested the prosthesis. A child that was born with genetic defects, a diabetes patient that had their legs cut off, a veteran who lost his legs after he stepped on a landmine, and more. 

 

"We needed to make a smart equip function so that children could do this on their own." 

 

Ryan informed his findings while the team of researchers was following him and taking notes. A few people in white coats were following him all around the company. 

 

"A protective layer must be added to avoid rashes from the skin, especially with the leg prosthesis." 

 

"The moving motion of the leg isn't fluid enough, note to study more about how legs more and adds the corresponding adjustment" 

 

A team member raised their hand to ask, "But sir, isn't it impossible for prosthesis to mimic a human limb completely?" 

 

"We are only limited by our imagination. I am sure WE can do it." 

 

It seems weird that a young man is giving a team of research veterans life lessons, but they listened to every word he said as if they were interns again. 

 

Before, Ryan never would have thought he had the capability to lead and make something with his own effort. Even the previous 'invention' he made was copied from the trading site. 

 

Even in his previous life, he had never imagined he would achieve what he had achieved today. 

 

Knowledge helps, but it's the effort that someone makes to better themselves that counts in their journey. 

 

"We would never know our capability if we let fear of failure drive us, instead of doing what we love. Like I said, WE are limited by our imagination. I believe that WE could do it."

 

While the speech worked for the researchers, one person didn't believe in what he had claimed. 

 

"YOU SHOULD STOP DOING THAT", Gwen pinched both his cheeks as a protest. 

 

She was mad because Ryan tried to push the team under him to the front. He planned for the researchers to take the heat for his invention instead of him. Just like what he did to her before with the tree's serum. She had to answer every question by the media and her contributions were exaggerated. 

 

"And what's with this imagination crap, you shouldn't make a fake speech to try to brainwash those poor guys to get public  attention for you !" She said while stretching his cheeks even further.