The grand lecture hall was packed with over two hundred students.Nicholas slipped through the back door, trying his best to be invisible.His clothes were still damp from last night, clinging to his skin with a stale, cold scent.A prominent brownish stain from the courtyard mud ruined the hem of his faded jeans.As he walked down the stairs to find a seat, a heavy silence suddenly fell over the room."Well, well. Look who finally decided to join civilization," a sharp, mocking voice boomed through the microphone.Nicholas stopped. Professor Vance stood at the podium, his tailored gray suit pressed to perfection.Vance adjusted his golden wire-rimmed glasses, glaring directly at Nicholas with pure arrogance."Tell me, Nicholas. Is your alarm clock as broken as your financial situation?" Vance asked.The entire lecture hall erupted into a wave of snickers and muffled laughter.Nicholas felt a familiar, burning sting in his chest, but he kept his face completely blank."The campus bus

Chad laughed loudly, pulling out his phone. "Let me record this. The internet is going to love it." Professor Vance reached out his hand, his fingers curling into a claw as he moved toward Nicholas. "Give me that backpack right now!" Vance forcefully grabbed at Nicholas’s backpack to search it, threatening to call the campus police on the spot.Nicholas shifted his weight and slid to the left with effortless grace. Professor Vance’s hand swiped through empty air, completely missing the backpack straps. Vance stumbled forward a step, his face twisting with irritation as he nearly lost his balance. "Did you just dodge me, you little brat?" Vance yelled, his voice cracking with rage. Nicholas didn't answer right away, his eyes locked onto the glowing letters hovering over Vance’s head. The system text box shone brightly in the dim basement, revealing every dirty secret. "Nicholas, stop resisting!" Miranda shouted, her face flushed with deep embarrassment for him. "You are just d

Beep. A crisp, high-pitched chime echoed through the silent luxury boutique. The small screen on the payment terminal suddenly flashed a vibrant, bright green. Transaction Approved. The machine began to hum smoothly, spitting out a long, white paper receipt. The snobbish clerk’s smirk froze instantly, his face turning an ash-gray color as his eyes nearly popped out of his head. "N-No... this is impossible," the clerk stammered, his hands shaking as he stared at the screen. The store manager pushed past the clerk, his eyes widening as he grabbed the printed receipt to check the numbers. "Five thousand dollars... fully paid," the manager whispered, his voice cracking with sudden panic. He looked up at Nicholas’s damp clothes, his mind racing as a cold sweat broke out across his forehead. The manager instantly bent his waist, bowing deeply at a perfect ninety-degree angle toward Nicholas. "Sir! Please accept my deepest, most sincere apologies!" the manager yelled, his voice tr

Nicholas stared at the glowing numbers on his cracked screen. [10:15 PM] "Fifty thousand dollars," Nicholas muttered, his throat dry as the reality hit him. "And I have less than two hours to get rid of every single cent." He looked down at his muddy jeans and felt the damp fabric clinging heavily to his skin. He needed a complete transformation, and he needed it immediately. Nicholas turned around and marched toward the high-end shopping avenue just two blocks away. Most regular stores were closing, but the bright neon lights of Aurelius Luxury Tailors still shone. He pushed the heavy glass door open, the scent of expensive leather and premium cologne filling his nose. An older salesman with a slick mustache looked up from a computer, his eyes instantly scanning Nicholas's mud-stained sneakers. "We are closing in ten minutes, young man," the salesman said, his tone dripping with quiet judgment. "And honestly, our off-the-rack items here start at a price that might shock yo

Nicholas stood behind the heavy mahogany podium, looking out at the sea of doubtful faces.He cleared his throat, his voice projecting clearly through the room without even using the microphone."The solution is actually quite simple if you know how to read the hidden assets," Nicholas began smoothly.He tapped the digital screen on the podium, his fingers moving with absolute certainty and high speed."First, we slice the secondary shipping logistics division and sell it to the European conglomerate," he explained."That immediately injects twenty-five million dollars in liquid cash to stall the primary creditors."Professor Lawson scoffed, leaning back with a smug grin. "That's basic textbook knowledge, Peterson. It's not enough.""I am not finished," Nicholas replied, his icy gaze locking onto the arrogant professor."We then use the Tier 2 market manipulation data to short the competitor’s fuel supply stocks," Nicholas revealed.He brought up a series of real-time financial charts