Infinite Cosmic Cafeteria Chapter 1: Charge

Chapter 1: Charge

Translator: Stellar Novels Editor: Stellar Novels

"Are you saying this thing can transport me to other universes?"

Ma Lu carefully examined the white egg in his hand, but he couldn't see any difference between it and an ordinary egg.

It was about the same size and weight, with the same glossy shell, and it felt slightly rough to the touch. When held up to the sunlight, a faint glow could be seen shining through from the other side.

"The insect egg can't directly take you to other universes; it's more like it simulates a projection of you over there," explained Old Wang. "Once the time limit is reached, the projection will disappear, and if you suffer a fatal injury, your journey will end prematurely."

"It sounds like logging into a game account. It's pretty safe, but what if this thing gets broken? Can I still use it?"

"The insect egg is one of the most indestructible substances in the multiverse. There's nothing in this universe that can harm it."

"Really?" Ma Lu tapped the egg on the table. The shell dented slightly the moment it touched the surface, but as soon as it left the table, it immediately returned to its original shape, becoming as full as before.

Ma Lu clicked his tongue in amazement, while Old Wang pulled out a few more items from beneath his blue jacket.

These included an orange wristband, a small knife about thirty centimeters long, a medium-sized plastic bag, and a chip.

……

Ma Lu met Old Wang on the forty-second day after his graduation ceremony. That day, he had gotten up early to attend a job interview.

However, when he arrived at the interview location, he found that it was already in complete chaos.

Angry investors and confused employees were chattering like sparrows on a power line.

Someone in the finance office was even wailing, "Why, why did this happen? Where did all the money go?!"

Ma Lu stopped a woman carrying a monitor under her arm and two large bags of printer paper. She looked wary until Ma Lu explained his purpose, and then she relaxed.

"The company is gone. Early this morning, the boss suddenly dissolved the work group chat. Shortly after, his phone became unreachable, and no one could contact him. Some say that bastard has already fled the country, taking the remaining money in the accounts with him.

"There won't be any compensation, and we probably won't get back the two months' salary we were owed. Everyone's just grabbing whatever they can.

"Since you're here, don't be shy; take something as a transportation fee. All the valuable stuff has already been taken anyway," she generously offered.

Unable to refuse her kindness, Ma Lu eventually picked a snake plant from the corner.

During this time, a middle-aged man who looked like an investor rushed out of the finance office, his eyes red, shouting, "Put it down! Everyone put it down!!! This is company property! No one is allowed to touch anything!!!"

However, it would have been better if he hadn't shown up at all. As soon as he appeared, he was surrounded by angry employees. Someone even grabbed him by the collar, demanding that he pay back the money in place of the boss.

The office quickly became lively again.

Ma Lu walked out of the office building holding the snake plant, its leaves a bit yellowed, and headed for the subway.

On his way through a small park, he saw a group of boys around sixteen or seventeen years old gathered together, cursing and kicking something.

Curious, Ma Lu approached and found that a bald middle-aged man was lying curled up on the ground with his eyes closed.

"What happened?"

"He tried to steal Huizi's power bank while we were playing basketball," said a boy over six feet tall, holding a basketball and looking fierce. "He needs to be taught a lesson."

"That's right, stuff has been going missing on the court all week, and we finally caught someone. This guy is way too bold, trying to steal in broad daylight right in front of us. He really needs a beating," someone chimed in, kicking the man on the ground a couple more times.

The man didn't fight back, just remained in his strange curled-up position, hugging his chest, but leaving his face exposed.

"It seems like a misunderstanding. I know this guy; he lives downstairs from me. There's something off with him," Ma Lu said, pointing to his head.

"Really? You're not his accomplice, are you?" The six-foot-tall boy looked at Ma Lu with suspicion.

"Would someone in their right mind wear a jacket in 38-degree heat?" Ma Lu said, fanning his shirt to let some air in.

"A lot of people in our neighborhood know about him. He used to be a programmer and made some money during the best years of the internet boom. But then his parents died in a car accident.

"After that, he lost all his money in the stock market, and even ended up deep in debt. His wife ran off with someone else, and a paternity test revealed that the child wasn't his. He couldn't take the blow and went crazy. Now, he lives with his grandmother, who is over 80 years old. But she's too old to keep an eye on him, so he sometimes slips away."

"So tragic?" The tall boy was shocked.

The other teenagers also stopped what they were doing and looked at each other.

Ma Lu adjusted his grip on the flower pot, "I'm not his accomplice. I work nearby, Mars Technology, 12th floor of Huanyu Building A. Heard of it?"

The boys exchanged glances, and the tall one said, "What bad luck. Forget it, no point in arguing with a crazy person. Let's just go back to playing basketball."

After they walked away, Ma Lu turned to the man on the ground and said, "Hey, are you okay?"

The man opened his eyes and shook his head.

"Do you remember where you live, or a relative's phone number? I can help you call them."

"Thank you. My sector is severely damaged, and I've lost a lot of data." The man's wording was very strange.

"Alright." Ma Lu wasn't too surprised by what he heard.

Even though he had been bluffing with those boys earlier, there was one thing he didn't lie about—this bald man's mental state was indeed not normal. If Ma Lu hadn't noticed that, he wouldn't have gotten involved.

"Let's go to the police station first, see if they can help you recover your data," Ma Lu said, playing along with the man's words.

But the man shook his head again, "According to Article 1 of the 'Multiverse Travel Manual'—travelers must ensure their identity is not known to civilizations outside the Grand Alliance. I should immediately terminate this communication."

"But you're in trouble," Ma Lu said. "If you don't deal with it, it might cause even bigger problems later. Then it’ll be hard not to get noticed, right?"

The man hesitated for a moment before saying one word, "Charge."

"Charge?"

"I need to charge."

"Oh, you mean your phone? No wonder you tried to steal a power bank earlier; your phone was out of battery. Do you want to use mine first?"

Ma Lu handed over his phone.

The man grabbed the phone, but after just a few seconds, he returned it. "Not enough."

"Not enough?" Ma Lu took back the phone, surprised to find that the battery, which had been at 40% just moments ago, was now dead. The screen was pitch black, and no buttons were responding.

"How strange, how did it run out of power so suddenly?" Ma Lu checked the phone, but when he looked up again, he saw that the man was already walking toward a nearby high-voltage power tower.

Ma Lu quickly grabbed his jacket, "Don't even think about it. How about this, I'll take you to a place where you can charge. My phone's out of power too."

Five minutes later, Ma Lu led the man into a small street-side cafe, ordered two of the cheapest lemonades, and then asked the waiter for a charging plug.

Ma Lu placed the snake plant in the center of the table. Through the plant's broad leaves, he saw three shiny metal wires emerging from beneath Old Wang's blue jacket.

Those three metal wires seemed almost alive. At first, they only cautiously peeked out a little, sneakily scanning the surroundings. After confirming that no one in the cafe was looking their way, they wriggled down under the table and quickly plugged themselves into the three-hole socket in the corner.

The next moment, the cafe's ceiling lights suddenly started flickering rapidly, going on and off.

The store's appliances all began emitting sharp beeping sounds, with error messages flashing on the LCD screens, like a bizarre and frantic symphony.

This strange scene lasted for about ten seconds until there was a muffled bang from the electrical box, and the world returned to silence.

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