The smell of burnt beans and frustration lingered in the air as Jason passed by Kong's half-empty stall the next morning.
"Already set up, huh?" Kong growled, arms crossed, eyes bloodshot.
Jason didn't bother responding.
He had bigger plans.
---
8:20 AM – East Avenue Station, Exit 2
His cart—Iron Brew—looked sharper today. Branded cups. Minimalist pricing board. Streamlined ingredients. Jason wasn't just selling coffee anymore.
He was building brand trust.
> [Passive Buff Activated: Street King I – Return Customers: +20%]
[Optional Task: Expand Visibility – Partner with Influencer or Local Business]
[Reward: $3,000 + Marketing Dashboard Access]
Jason chewed on that as he served a line of familiar faces. Then, around 9:15 AM, the line shifted.
Vanessa Liu was back.
Today, she wore a beige trench coat and black pumps, hair down. She looked more executive than casual. Her phone was already out, camera pointed at his setup.
"Day two and still killing it," she said with a smirk. "Didn't think you'd follow up the hype this fast."
Jason handed her a caramel latte. "Didn't think you'd return either. What brings you back?"
"Two things." Vanessa sipped. "One: Blaze Market wants a trial run. You open two more carts in the next five days, you get placement on our local vendor feature. Could mean five figures a month in online sales."
Jason didn't blink.
"And two?" he asked.
Vanessa hesitated, then looked directly at him.
"I want to invest."
> [Major Fork Detected: Accepting Investment from Vanessa will lock certain upgrade paths and open others. Choose carefully.]
Jason's breath caught.
He studied her face—not just her charm, but her calculation. Vanessa wasn't playing around. Her eyes flickered between admiration and business instinct.
"How much are we talking?" he asked.
"Ten thousand. Silent partner for now. Ten percent cut. You scale, I win. You crash… you owe me nothing."
It was a fair deal on paper.
But Jason had the system.
And he never wanted to owe anyone again.
Still—
> [System Suggestion: Accepting Vanessa's offer grants Business License Buff + Cart Expansion at 50% Cost.]
He leaned on the cart, pretending to think longer than he needed to.
"Okay," he said finally. "You're in."
Vanessa extended her hand again. Her nails were painted gold today.
Jason shook it, firm and fast.
---
10:45 AM – System Shop Panel
Jason opened the system's business menu during his break.
> [New Feature Unlocked: "Branch Build – Rapid Setup"]
[Locations Available: Midtown Campus (Student Crowd), Mercury Plaza (White-Collar Crowd)]
[Cost: $3,000 per cart with system buff]
He picked Midtown Campus. Students needed caffeine and had less loyalty to brand names. Easy market share.
> [Branch Setup Initiated – ETA: 14 hours.]
> [Optional Add-On: Hire First Employee – "Temp Barista" Skill Tree]
Jason hesitated.
Trusting others? That was a new kind of gamble.
> [System Scouting Initiated – Top Local Candidate: "Ami Tanaka – 19, Hospitality Major, Experience: Moderate, Trust Rating: 82%"]
> [Recruit?]
Jason tapped "Yes."
---
3:30 PM – Blaze Market HQ, Rooftop Café
Jason sat across from Vanessa now, city skyline behind her. She had already wired the investment.
"So," she said, sipping her tea, "I read your application. You used to work warehouse night shifts, right?"
He nodded. "Three years. Minimum wage. Supervisor tried to short me overtime. Quit the day I almost passed out lifting pallets."
Vanessa raised an eyebrow. "You've got grit."
"You're just now realizing that?"
She smiled. "You're not like other vendors. You read numbers like a CEO, but you grind like a street dog."
Jason shrugged. "That's what happens when you've got nothing to lose."
There was a pause. Soft jazz played overhead. Jason noticed the small gold chain around her neck—a phoenix pendant. Her eyes looked tired beneath her eyeliner. There was more to her than polish and power plays.
"You always this hands-on with vendors?" he asked.
"Only the interesting ones," she replied, not missing a beat.
---
6:00 PM – Midtown Campus, Cart No. 2 Launch
Jason watched from a corner as Ami Tanaka greeted her first customer.
She was confident, precise, polite—just like the system said. Her ponytail bounced with every movement, and the Iron Brew shirt looked almost natural on her.
> [Passive Buff Activated: Employee Loyalty Lv. 1 – Revenue Increase +10%]
He texted Vanessa:
Midtown cart's alive. First day, ten customers in an hour.
Her reply was immediate:
Told you you were scalable.
Jason smiled, then caught himself.
This was just the beginning.
---
10:00 PM – Garage Apartment
Jason counted his earnings manually for old time's sake. Wads of small bills. Loose coins. But the total on his phone app said:
> [Daily Net Profit: $2,745]
[Net Worth (post-investment): $12,842]
> [System Update Unlocked: Investment Tier I – Access to Property Listings, E-Commerce Tools, and Digital Branding]
He sat back against the wall.
In three days, he'd made more than three months' rent.
> [System Tip: Rapid scaling creates long-term instability. Consider investing in stability-oriented upgrades.]
Jason didn't care. For now, he had momentum.
And something else.
> [Incoming Call: Vanessa Liu]
He answered.
"Hey," she said, voice softer than earlier. "Don't want to bug you. Just checking in."
Jason smirked. "Trying to micromanage your investment?"
She laughed. "Maybe. Or maybe I just like the sound of your voice after a productive day."
A pause stretched between them.
"Goodnight, Jason," she said.
"Goodnight, Vanessa."
He ended the call, his chest oddly warm.
He wasn't just chasing wealth anymore.
Something else was changing too.