The situation was becoming even more complicated for Steven. He wasn't sure if he had read what he read correctly, or if he truly understood it.
He closed his eyes briefly and exhaled softly. He opened them and stared at the screen, reading the information on it again.
[Rebate System: You can trigger varying levels of rebate, from 1.5x to 10x, by spending money. Rebate rewards will vary depending on the amount spent.]
Steven went silent for a full minute, quietly processing everything. He understood what the word rebate meant, and if what he just read was true, then it meant that he could receive between a 1.5x to a 10x return of the money he spent.
He frowned slightly, keeping his emotions in check. While what he just read was something wonderful, but it sounded too good to be true, and he didn't want to get his hopes up for nothing.
Steven had no idea what a system was, and something that gave him a return on the money he spent was completely outrageous. He wondered when the world had started doing such charity.
Still, even with his skepticism, Steven really wished what he had just read was true. Because if it was, it would solve his most immediate problem, which was his lack of money.
Steven decided that the only way to find out if what he read was true was to try it out. Meaning he had to spend money.
He currently had $247 in his account. It was the money he hoped to survive on for the coming days, until he finally found a job. But now, he had to use some of it to test whether what the strange screen said was true.
As for what he was going to spend money on, he planned to order a pizza and have it delivered. It actually helped that he was hungry, having been unable to eat anything before or after he had shown up for work, and it was already past noon.
This way, even if the rebate reward didn't pan out, he wouldn't make a loss.
Steven picked up his cracked Samsung Galaxy S9 and opened the browser. He couldn't help but shake his head, thinking of how outdated the phone he had been using for more than five years was.
He opened the food delivery app and pulled up the store page of the nearest pizza restaurant. After making his selection, it was finally time to make the payment.
Steven took a slow, deep breath and exhaled.
"Here goes nothing," he muttered to himself, and clicked checkout.
He waited for the payment to be processed, and a moment later, he received a debit alert.
The alert had barely faded when he heard the familiar voice, and the screen changed, saying something different this time.
[You spent $28. A 3x rebate was triggered.]
[You received $84. The money has been sent to your account.]
Steven was stunned silent for a moment.
Then his phone's notification sound rang out, snapping him back to reality. He instinctively looked at his phone and saw a credit alert notification from his bank.
"ALERT: A deposit of $84.00 was made to your account ending in 0000. Available balance: $303.00. If you have any questions, please contact the bank or log in to your online banking portal."
Steven's breath caught in his throat. He opened his mouth to say something but closed it again, finding it very hard to put his emotions into words.
He was in disbelief, shocked, and flooded with happiness all at once. He read the credit alert a couple more times to be sure he hadn't misread it.
After reading it several times and confirming that what he read was real, he checked his account balance in his banking app, then pinched his arm hard to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
Feeling the sting from where he had pinched himself, and seeing his account balance now reading $303 just as the notification said, Steven burst into loud laughter filled with exhilaration.
"It's real! It's f*cking real!"
He really couldn't believe that he had spent $28 and got $84 back.
It felt like a dream, but the credit alert, the sting on his arm, and his account balance all proved this was reality.
Seeing that what the system said was true made Steven even more curious about it. He wanted to know more, and hopefully find out if there was a catch to the whole thing.
The pizza he ordered would still take a while to arrive, so he was free. And time was one thing he had plenty of right now.
"Rebate System? Are you there?" He called out, hoping for a response, but was met with only silence.
He had hoped the voice ringing in his head would reply, but it seemed the voice only existed to read out the captions.
"It seems like I would have to find out everything about this strange, but miraculous system by myself," Steven muttered.
He turned his attention back to the system screen.
[Rebate System]
[Name: Steven Craig]
[Physique: 12]
[Intelligence: 18]
[Account Balance: $303]
[Exclusive Points: 0]
***
Steven was curious about what each section represented. The name section was self-explanatory, so he focused his attention on the others.
[Physique: A stat that represents the host's strength, stamina and agility. The points an average human can have is 20 and the highest a human can have is 50.]
[Intelligence: A stat that represents the host's intelligence. The points an average human can have is 20 and the highest a human can have is 50.]
[Exclusive Points: You can use these points to enhance your Physique and Intelligence stats. You will receive 1 point for every $100,000 spent.]
Steven took his time reading everything. According to what he had just read, not only would he receive rebate rewards, but he could also increase his strength.
Being able to receive rebate rewards was already more than enough for him, but being able to increase his strength was an added bonus.
Steven felt an indescribable feeling well up in his chest as he thought about what he could achieve with the system. He had no idea why or how he had gotten it, but he would make sure to use it to his benefit.
He remembered what Tara had said to him at the restaurant, and he smiled. She had left him for someone better, and he was happy she had found her happiness, for he had found his.
He would become someone that she, his former boss, and everyone else would no longer be able to look down on. With the system, he would grow wealthy enough to buy whatever he wanted without batting an eye. It might take a while, but he would get there eventually.
A knock on his door broke his train of thought.
"That must be my order," he muttered, as he stood up from the bed and went to answer the door.