A man with a messy look, Carlos, entered the hair saloon and received many weird glances. Their movements, be it of their eyelids or their fingers, looked to be in slow motion in his eyes.

“Hey, this place ain’t for beggars!” one of the workers there tried to push him out, but he took out a hundred dollar bill. “S-Sorry, sir. Please take your seat.” the worker’s behavior took a U-turn. “What type of haircut and shave do you want?”

“As clean and simple as possible.”

In a few minutes, the job was done. The workers and other customers were surprised by how differently he looked now. Though he had a thin scar running diagonally at the corner of his left eye, his overall appearance was quite manly. He looked rather thin as if he was on an extreme diet, but his deep brow-ridge, his intense gaze, and his thick jaw, everything about his mein screamed manliness.

He didn’t care about the change in the impression the others were having of him. He walked out of the saloon and looked around with a slightly cold gaze before stepping out into the sun.

His skin burned and itched a little, but it wasn’t unbearable. However, the longer he stayed under sunlight, the more intense the pain became. He had to stop by in the shadows and take a little bit of rest there.

He was still quite surprised with all the changes in his body. Not only did his broken knees get cured completely, he was able to hear and see things better than ever. Even now, as he sat on the footpath, he could hear all the hundreds of different noises on the streets and distinguish one from another much more clearly.

He could hear a child sniffling about two hundred meters away. He could hear his own heart rhythm pretty well.

All these changes scared as well as excited him.

Only hours back, he was close to dying from starvation, but now, he looked relatively healthy and strong. His senses were sharper than ever. However, when he put his hand down to the side, an ant bit him.

“You little…” He slapped the ant with the intent to kill it. He immediately regretted it, but then the ant wasn’t dead. It got back to its feet and walked away. His slap couldn’t kill it.

He kept watching the ant for a long time. “Even an ant bites back if you mess with it. How can I let go of the Myers after they have ruined my whole life?” his eyes gained redness as he thought of all the horrible things they had done to him.

“Just because you have money, you think you can do anything and get away with it. Just you wait… Sofia. If I don’t make you kneel and cry before me, I’ll change my name to Craplos!”

“Hey, you. This is my begging spot,” a beggar with an arrogant look approached him. “Go and beg somewhere else!” He had a big birthmark on his nose. "You good-for-nothing fool!"

“I’m not in a good mood, so buzz off,” Carlos warned.

“What did you say?” the beggar kicked at Carlos’ face.

Carlos glanced at him. His leg came in slow motion. He could yawn and move his head away before it hit him, but he not only deflected the attack but then also swiftly punched in the beggar’s crotch, warping his face into a warthog.

“You little…” the beggar fell to his knees and cringed in pain.

“You are still quite rude.” Carlos snatched the dollar bills from the beggar’s pocket and walked away.

The beggar was furious, but the pain in his balls didn’t let him get up just yet, so he could only watch Carlos leave with his money. Almost thirty dollars in total.

As Carlos walked, he noticed a mother playing with her child in the park. His expression turned a bit sad. If Sofia had done even some justice to her role, they would probably have a child by now. On one hand, his heart ached. On other hand, he was also glad that the mother of his child wouldn’t be a wicked woman like Sofia.

All the thoughts burdened his heart.

He took a deep breath. “Let’s not worry about the past. I should focus on the future.”

“What should I do now? I don’t want to do the same job again as it will remind me of that family.”

“Should I work as a freelancer? No, I don’t have the desktop or the necessary setting for that. Besides, I can’t earn much with that. I want to find a job that helps me earn fast. The more the better. The faster the better.”

He entered the internet cafe and logged into his online account and printed out his resume and other necessary documents required at interviews, including the locations where the interviews were being held for the next few days.

“It’s time to walk into some interviews.”

He went to the nearest building. There were more than forty people sitting outside the interview room on the second floor, biting their nails or checking their files and whatnot. He walked past them and entered the room, shocking them all.

The interviewers were also surprised to see Carlos entering while another interviewee was being interviewed. Moreover, his dirty attire caught their eyes and contorted their expressions.

“Did you come here for an interview?” one of the three interviewers asked, his voice neither polite nor rude. If he hadn't asked fast, the other interviewers might have barked at Carlos and told him to get the hell out.

“Yes, of course,” Carlos casually replied.

“Then, couldn’t you wear something better?”

“I will once I get this job.” His reply left them in a bit of a daze.

“Ho, I like your confidence. How many years of experience do you have as a data scientist?”

“None.”

The interviewers fell silent for a few seconds. “What?”

“I can gain experience once I get the job, can’t I?” Carlos asked. “I’m a quick learner, so don’t worry.”

The interviewers looked at each other before speaking, “You can leave, mister.”

“Why? Am I overqualified for this job?" Carlos thought he was asking a genuine question. "Or is it because you guys don’t know what you’re talking about?”

The interviewers and the other interviewee in the room were shocked by how preposterous Carlos’ words were.

They rang the bell, and two men rushed in.

“What the hell were you two doing letting guys like him in? Take him away!” they yelled.

“There’s no need. I’ll go out by myself,” Carlos stood and snorted. “You guys don’t know you’re kicking out a CEO candidate.” He walked out with a disappointed expression. “The recruiters are supposed to have eagle eyes, but these guys are no better than bats. If others are also like this these days… Nah, I don’t want to waste time like this. Instead of working for others, why don’t I work under myself? Become a CEO of my own company?”