Three days later.
Ethan Cross sat alone in the corner booth of a 24-hour diner, wearing a gray hoodie and dark jeans. Steam curled up from a mug of untouched coffee. His eyes weren't on the drink—they were locked onto the floating blue screen in front of him, invisible to anyone else.
[Techno-Finance System Interface]
[Balance: $90.43]
[Power Points: 4]
[Assets: 1x SolarTech Surveillance Drone]
[Unlocked Functions:]
– Micro-Investment App (Active)
– Asset Manifestation (Active)
– Skill Tree (Partial)
– System Shop (Locked – Requires Net Worth ≥ $1,000)
– Automated Earnings (Locked)
Ethan tapped the air and opened the Skill Tree. New icons had appeared overnight:
[Remote Surveillance I] – Active
[Drone Control I] – Active
[Digital Tracking I] – 3 PP to unlock
[Spoof Identity: Create false financial profiles] – 5 PP to unlock
He stared at the last one.
"Fake identities… that'll come in handy soon."
His eyes flicked to the corner TV in the diner. A news anchor was reporting on David Langford, the CEO of Langford Holdings, recently promoted after a major merger. Lila stood beside him, smiling in a white dress—now engaged.
Ethan's jaw clenched.
"I was supposed to be next to her…"
He shut his eyes.
But now I have something neither of them will ever understand.
A power built on ones and zeros.
On control. Surveillance. Data. Money.
And they made the mistake of leaving me alive.
He stood up, pulled a few crumpled bills from his pocket, and left them on the table. As he exited the diner, the System pinged.
[New Quest Available]
[Side Quest: Test the System – Begin passive earnings.]
[Objective: Earn $100 through automated trading.]
[Reward: 2 Power Points + Unlock 'Automated Earnings I']
Ethan grinned.
He hadn't slept much in three days—he'd been running simulations, reading algorithms, devouring information like a starving beast. With just his phone, the System, and a cheap laptop he picked up with his last $40, he'd already built a prototype of a trading AI.
[Would you like to activate Passive Trading Protocol Alpha?]
[Y/N]
"Yes."
[System integrated. Tracking volatile stocks.]
[Estimated return in 8 hours: $121.35]
"Beautiful."
📍Unknown Warehouse – 2:14 a.m.
The drone hovered above the rusted rooftop silently, infrared lens zoomed in. Inside, three men were packing black duffel bags full of cash. Ethan watched from two blocks away on his cracked laptop.
[Remote Surveillance Feed Online]
[Facial Match: Joey "Snaps" Trujillo – Gang Enforcer]
[Status: Suspected for 7 assaults, never charged]
Ethan raised an eyebrow. "Lila's new boyfriend uses this guy for debt collection."
He closed the screen and leaned back against the wall of the abandoned subway entrance.
"So we start here."
"I'm not killing anyone."
"But I'll break their legs financially first."