The morning sunlight streamed through the glass curtain walls of the International Airport, reflecting blinding rays. Tom Harrison followed behind his parents, dragging a somewhat aged black suitcase into the Departure Hall. His father wore a simple plaid shirt, and his mother carried an ordinary canvas bag, their faces bearing the reluctance and worry of their son about to travel abroad alone.
"Tom, remember to call home every day, and don't forget to take your medicine on time," his mother said while adjusting the straps on his backpack, nagging with concern.
"Mom, I'll take good care of myself," Tom gently touched his mother's hand, his eyes full of warmth.
They had come in his father's seven-year-old Honda Accord, which looked plain and humble in the airport parking lot. Tom knew that the cost of this study abroad trip was a significant expense for the family, and his parents had been saving money for several months.
Just as the family of three was looking for the meeting point in the departure lounge, Tom saw that group of classmates wearing their school uniforms in the distance. Twenty-three high school sophomores were scattered around various corners of the hall, each surrounded by parents who had come to see them off. However, this seemingly ordinary farewell scene silently displayed the enormous differences between families.
Most eye-catching was the Williamson family. Chris's father wore a well-tailored Italian suit, with a gleaming Rolex watch on his wrist that was particularly striking under the lights. Chris's mother carried the latest Chanel handbag, radiating an elegant aura. Beside them sat three large Louis Vuitton suitcases, obviously purchased specifically for this trip. Even more impressive was the view through the glass curtain wall of a brand-new Mercedes-Benz S-Class in the parking lot, its body gleaming in the sunlight.
Not far away, Emma Black was saying goodbye to her parents. Emma was as beautiful as ever, her golden hair flowing like silk in the sunlight, wearing an exquisite white dress. Her father was a renowned lawyer, and her mother was a curator at a local art gallery.
In another corner of the hall, Tom saw several classmates from ordinary families. There was a boy named Jack, whose mother had come alone to see him off, clutching a somewhat worn wallet in her hands. There was also a slightly overweight, plain-looking girl named Betty, whose parents dressed simply and looked somewhat awkward, constantly reminding their daughter to stay safe.
The moment of farewell arrived. Tom hugged his parents tightly, feeling that simple yet profound love from them.
"Son, don't worry too much about the company matters, you're still a student - studies come first," his mother said softly. "Although your software project is very successful, you can't let it interfere with your learning."
His father patted his shoulder and added: "Remember, no matter what others have, you must remember your own value. True wealth is not in external things, but in inner fulfillment. Now that you have achievements, you must remain humble."
These words brought warmth to Tom's eyes. He knew his parents were both proud of his success and worried that he might lose his way because of it.
As boarding procedures began, the twenty-three students started queuing through security. Tom carried his simple backpack, which contained his most treasured book, "Ancient Greek Myths and Legends." When he passed through security, he noticed the security officer's friendly smile - that sincere warmth without any class prejudice made him feel good.
The plane took off. In economy class, classmates gathered in small groups. Chris was showing his new camera to several classmates - it was professional equipment worth thousands of dollars. Emma and her girlfriends were discussing shopping plans in Athens, having already researched the locations of major luxury stores.
Tom found his seat, a window seat. At the other end of the cabin, he saw Betty sitting alone in a double seat with the adjacent seat empty. Other classmates seemed to deliberately avoid that area - no one wanted to sit next to her.
Just then, a classmate named Mark walked toward the empty seat next to Betty, but was quickly stopped by another classmate, Liam.
"Hey, that's my seat!" Liam said loudly, waving his boarding pass.
"But my boarding pass shows this seat number," Mark said confusedly, also taking out his boarding pass.
The two began arguing, their voices getting louder. It turned out that Liam had deliberately taken Mark's seat earlier to avoid sitting next to Betty, and now that Mark had come looking, the situation became awkward and chaotic.
"See, I knew there would be problems," a girl next to Emma said quietly, her tone obviously gloating.
"Who would want to sit next to her," another classmate chimed in, his voice not loud but loud enough for Betty to hear.
Several classmates watched this drama from the side, their faces showing expressions of enjoying the spectacle. Some even took out their phones to record, as if this were some interesting entertainment show.
Betty sat there, her face flushed red, tears in her eyes. She knew all this was caused by no one wanting to sit next to her, and those mocking voices around her made her feel even more humiliated.
Tom couldn't stand it anymore. He stood up and walked toward the arguing area.
"Mark, you can take my seat," Tom said calmly. "The window view is better."
With that, he picked up his backpack and sat down next to Betty.
"Wow, Tom is so 'kind,'" the girl who had just mocked Betty said sarcastically, her tone full of contempt.
"Poor former captain, now he can only sit with losers," another male classmate whispered, drawing snickers from several people.
Chris looked at Tom's simple attire, his sense of superiority swelling even more. He said to a friend beside him: "Looks like some people really are not what they used to be."
"Tom, you don't have to..." Betty said quietly, her voice trembling. She heard those mocking voices and felt even more guilty.
"It's okay, Betty," Tom smiled gently, completely ignoring the surrounding mockery. "I'd like to chat with you about Ancient Greek history - you must know many interesting stories."
This small incident caught the attention of the flight attendants. A gentle flight attendant walked over, ready to handle this seating dispute.
"Passengers, is there any problem?" the flight attendant inquired.
"It's already resolved, thank you," Tom replied.
When the flight attendant looked at Tom, a flash of surprise crossed her eyes.
"Sir, are you Mr. Tom Harrison?" she asked politely.
Tom looked up, somewhat surprised. "Yes, is there something wrong?"
"Oh, wonderful! I'm Sarah, we met last month on the flight to Seattle," the flight attendant smiled. "Sir, I noticed you booked economy class this time. As our platinum frequent flyer, you usually book first class. Would you like me to upgrade you to first class for free today? This is our special service for VIP customers."
As soon as these words were spoken, the cabin that had just quieted down fell into shocked silence again. All eyes turned to Tom, and the air seemed to freeze instantly.
The girl who had just mocked Tom instantly turned pale, her mouth agape, hand clutching her chest in disbelief.
"Platinum... frequent flyer?" The male classmate who had called Tom the "poor former captain" stammered in repetition, his mocking expression completely frozen.
Chris nearly dropped his camera, and his earlier comment about "not what they used to be" now sounded utterly ironic. His face turned red, wishing he could find a hole to crawl into.
Emma also stopped her conversation with friends, her eyes full of confusion and shock. She remembered those mocking voices and felt incredibly embarrassed.
Even Mark and Liam, who had just been arguing over seats, stared wide-eyed, beginning to realize they might have offended someone remarkable.
Those classmates who had earlier taken out phones to record now quietly put them away, afraid of being discovered for their earlier schadenfreude behavior.
Tom shook his head and said gently: "Thank you for your kindness, Sarah, but I think it's fine here. This is a trip with my classmates, and I want to be with everyone."
"You're so kind," Sarah nodded approvingly. "Well, if you need any help, please let me know anytime. Have a pleasant journey, Mr. Harrison."
After the flight attendant left, the cabin fell into an eerie silence. Chris stared wide-eyed, Emma also showed a shocked expression. Other classmates began whispering.
"Tom... you..." Chris stammered, "You fly frequently? And you're a platinum frequent flyer?"
Tom maintained his calm smile. "Just some work matters that require frequent business trips."
"Work?" Emma couldn't help asking. "You're only seventeen, what kind of work could you have?"
Tom was silent for a while, seeming to consider whether to explain. Finally, he said softly: "I started doing software projects with some college friends when I was sixteen, and officially registered a company last year. We mainly do enterprise application software development. Although it's not large-scale, it does require frequent travel to meet clients in various places, so... I fly frequently."
This statement exploded like a bomb in the cabin.
"That's impossible, isn't it?" One classmate was the first to voice doubt. "He looks..."
"Tech... company?" The girl who had just mocked Tom said with a trembling voice, her face gradually turning pale. She realized how foolish her earlier words might have been.
"Are you serious?" Another classmate asked half-believing. "Do you have any proof?"
The male classmate who had called Tom the "poor former captain" stared at Tom blankly, wanting to say something but unable to speak. Starting a business at sixteen? This sounded like something from a movie.
Chris's face turned red, his earlier implied sense of superiority at the airport beginning to waver. He remembered when he was showing off his father's Mercedes earlier, Tom had just listened quietly without any rebuttal. Could it be...
"Wait, let me sort this out..." Liam said confusedly. "If it's true, then why did the flight attendant recognize you earlier?"
Emma was also shocked, but more confused. She re-examined this former football team captain before her, this ex-boyfriend in simple clothes. Was all this real?
Some classmates began whispering, some doubting, some half-believing, and others began recalling Tom's usual behavior, looking for clues.
Just then, a usually rational classmate named Jason took out his phone. "Since everyone's uncertain, let me check," he said, beginning to type "Tom Harrison tech company" into the search engine.
A few seconds later, Jason's expression suddenly changed. He stared wide-eyed, mouth slightly open, nearly dropping his phone.
"What's wrong?" A nearby classmate asked curiously.
Jason said in a trembling voice: "I... I found it. StarTech Software Company, founder and CEO... Tom Harrison, 17 years old." He paused, took a deep breath, "It says here... the company focuses on enterprise management software development, has completed two rounds of financing, is expected to launch IPO process next year, company valuation... valuation exceeds one billion dollars."
This statement exploded like a nuclear bomb, and the entire cabin instantly fell into deathly silence.
"Ten... ten billion?" The girl who had just mocked Tom could barely be heard, her face completely turning ashen.
"Let me see!" Several classmates crowded over, staring at Jason's phone screen. It indeed showed an article about "Most Noteworthy Young Entrepreneurs of 2028," with Tom's photo and profile prominently listed.
"This... this is impossible..." Chris was completely stunned, remembering his earlier boast about his father's hundred-and-fifty-thousand-dollar Mercedes, which seemed like a joke compared to ten billion dollars.
Those classmates who had earlier taken out phones to record now all lowered their heads, afraid of being noticed by Tom. They remembered their earlier gloating behavior and felt ashamed.
Emma stared blankly at Tom's photo on the phone screen. This ex-boyfriend she thought had "fallen," was actually a billionaire CEO. She felt dizzy, her entire worldview overturned.
The entire cabin fell into suffocating quiet. All the previous mocking voices and sneering disappeared without a trace, replaced by shock, fear, and deep regret.
Tom noticed Betty had been keeping her head down, seemingly made even more uncomfortable by this sudden attention. He actively turned to her and said gently: "Betty, what are your expectations for this trip to Greece? I heard you really like history."
Betty looked up, a flash of surprise and gratitude in her eyes. Few people actively talked to her, especially someone like Tom.
"I... I'm really looking forward to seeing the Parthenon," she said quietly, her voice trembling. "I've dreamed since childhood of seeing those ancient buildings with my own eyes."
"That's wonderful," Tom said sincerely. "We can explore those ancient sites together. I believe you'll learn many things from them."
These words brought tears to Betty's eyes. She hadn't expected that in this environment full of class differences, someone would be willing to treat her with such kindness.
Chris watched all this from the side, his heart filled with mixed emotions. He began reflecting on his earlier behavior, that casual contempt and sense of superiority, which now seemed so ridiculous and shallow.
Through the porthole, Tom watched the land gradually disappearing below, his heart unusually calm. He took out that book "Ancient Greek Myths and Legends" and turned to the chapter describing ancient heroes. In his view, true heroes were not those who possessed wealth and status, but those who could maintain kindness in adversity and humility in success.
Just as the plane pierced through the clouds, a strange crimson glow flashed across the western sky. Tom noticed this phenomenon, but thinking it was just some atmospheric phenomenon at high altitude, he didn't pay much attention.
At this very moment, in the cosmic deep space countless light-years from Earth, those four Abyssal Divine Steeds, pitch black as night, were still running eternally. The ancient chariot they dragged carved a mysterious trajectory through the void, and the energy fluctuations emanating from the rolling wheels were affecting that distant blue planet in an incomprehensible way.
The ancient runes on the golden chariot began to flicker, emitting weak but continuous light. Those patterns carved on the chariot body bore striking similarity to the ancient mythological symbols described in the ancient book in Tom's hands. It was as if this mysterious chariot from ancient times had some deep connection with the forgotten civilizational knowledge on Earth.
Though the Divine Steeds had already died, driven by some mysterious force that transcended life and death, their running never stopped, as if fulfilling a covenant that spanned millennia. And at ten thousand meters altitude, that young man holding the ancient book was unknowingly being drawn into a grand destiny beyond his imagination.
As the plane continued flying eastward, the ancient land of Greece was waiting for their arrival, and in the depths of that land, secrets that had slept for millennia were beginning to quietly awaken...