The Philippines had changed a lot by 2035. The economy was booming, and you could see it everywhere—new buildings going up in Manila, better roads, more opportunities for people. The country was getting richer, and the government had this new system where they elected a new CEO every two years to help run things alongside the president. It was supposed to make everything more efficient, more modern.
For most Filipinos, things were looking up. But for John Reyes, none of that mattered.
John still remembered the day his mother said it. He was only thirteen years old, standing in their living room with his small backpack already packed.
"You are a mistake!" she had screamed at him, her beautiful face twisted with anger and something else—maybe regret, maybe just annoyance.
His father stood behind her, silent as always, just nodding along. They were leaving him. Both of them. They were dropping him off at his grandmother's small house in Quezon City and never looking back.
His mom used to be a supermodel. Everyone in the Philippines knew her face—it was on billboards, magazines, TV commercials. She was stunning, the kind of beautiful that made people stop and stare. His father was one of the richest men in the country, a businessman who owned hotels and restaurants all over Metro Manila.
But their son? He was just a mistake. An accident that got in the way of their plans, their business, their perfect life together.
So they left him with his grandmother, Lola Maria, a kind old woman who lived in a tiny two-bedroom house with a rusty gate and cracked walls. She took him in without question, loved him without condition, and raised him like he was her own son.
High school wasn't so bad, at least not at first.
When John was in Junior High, he met Carla De la Cruz. She was the school princess—everyone said so. Long black hair that shined under the sun, warm brown eyes, and a smile that made his heart beat faster every time she looked at him. Somehow, impossibly, she liked him back.
They started dating in Grade 9. For two years, John thought he had finally found someone who saw him for who he was. Someone who didn't care that his parents abandoned him, that he lived with his grandmother in a small house, that he didn't have money or connections.
He was wrong.
They broke up during his first year of college. By then, Carla had already met someone new—a guy whose parents owned a chain of malls. Rich. Connected. Everything John wasn't.
At first, she made excuses. She said they were growing apart, that college was just different, that it wasn't his fault. But John eventually found out the truth from a mutual friend.
Carla had only stayed with him because she thought his parents would come back. She thought that eventually, his rich father would forgive him, that his famous mother would take him back, and that John would inherit all that wealth. When she finally realized that his parents had really abandoned him—that there was no money, no mansion, no inheritance coming—she left.
She was after his parents the whole time, not him.
It hurt more than anything his parents ever did.
The only person who ever truly loved John was his grandmother.
Lola Maria raised him, fed him, sent him to school with the little money she had from her pension. She never complained. She never made him feel like a burden. Even when she got sick, even when her body started failing, she still smiled at him every morning and asked if he had eaten.
She died three months ago. Ninety-six years old, peacefully in her sleep.
John was twenty-three now, alone in the world. He had finished college—barely—with a degree in Business Administration that he honestly didn't care about. He was handsome, people told him that. Tall, decent-looking, with the same sharp features his model mother had. But what did that matter when he had nothing else?
No money. No family. No future.
The funeral was small. Just a handful of neighbors, some old friends of his Lola, and John. His parents didn't come. He didn't expect them to.
He stood there in his cheap black polo, watching as they lowered his grandmother's casket into the ground. He felt numb. Empty. Like everything good in his life had just been buried along with her.
As the priest said the final prayers, John closed his eyes.
What am I supposed to do now, Lola?
And then he heard it.
A sound. Like a soft chime, right inside his head.
His eyes snapped open.
[System Binding Successful]
The words appeared in front of him—floating in the air like some kind of hologram, glowing with a faint blue light. John blinked hard, looked around. Nobody else seemed to notice. Everyone was still praying, heads bowed.
"W-What the...?" he muttered under his breath.
[New Job System Acquired]
[Welcome, User: John Reyes]
His heart started pounding. Was he going crazy? Was this some kind of hallucination from stress?
But the words didn't disappear. Instead, more text appeared.
[New Job Acquired...]
[Job: Janitor at UP Diliman]
[Duration: 3 Days]
[Reward: ₱500,000 + Skill Cards + New House]
[Upon Completion, a New Job Will Appear]
[Note: Every job completed will progressively become more interesting]
John's mouth went dry.
Five hundred thousand pesos? A house? Just for working as a janitor for three days?
This had to be a joke. A cruel prank. Maybe he really was losing his mind.
But as he stared at the glowing screen that only he could see, a tiny spark of something flickered in his chest.
Hope.
For the first time in years, John Reyes felt like maybe—just maybe—his life was about to change.
[Accept Job?]
[Yes] [No]
John looked down at his grandmother's grave one last time, then back at the screen.
He reached out and pressed [Yes].