The AC in the conference room wasn't working. But Mr. Davis's office had its own private one. That pretty much summed up my life. "Okay, team, let's start the monthly review," Davis said, loosening his $10 tie like he was a billionaire. He never looked at me. He never needed to. I was the invisible guy in the corner. The guy who fixed the printer, who stayed late, who got paid late. "Great news. Mark closed the Henderson deal. $50,000 commission. That's how business is done." Applause. Mark stood up - tall, gelled hair, watch that probably cost more than my entire year salary. And next to him, clinging to his arm like a trophy, was Sarah. My ex-girlfriend (although she had kids with me) The one who told me last month, "I can't keep struggling with you. Mark has a future. You... you just have bills." She saw me looking. She didn't even flinch. She just leaned in and whispered to Mark, "That's him. My ex." Mark looked at me and gave me that pity smile rich guys give poor guys

2:00 PM. The exact same conference room.This time, I wasn't sweating.The doors opened and every head turned. The chatter died instantly.I walked in wearing a $3,000 suit the hotel stylist picked for me; dark blue, tailored perfectly. My shoes were Italian leather. On my wrist was a watch I didn't even know the price of because the system just gave it to me as a bonus reward.And holding my hands were four kids.Lily in her new Gucci dress, holding a Dior shopping bag bigger than her. Grace with her new pink backpack, swinging it like a weapon. Tom pushing a mini Mercedes toy car that cost more than Davis's monthly salary. And little Ben, asleep on my shoulder again, wearing a tiny suit that matched mine.Mr. Davis's jaw literally dropped. Mark's smile froze. Sarah... Sarah stood up so fast her chair fell."What... what is this?" Davis stammered. "You were fired! And you can't bring children to a corporate meeting!""Oh, I'm not here for the meeting," I said calmly. I pulled out the

The private car didn't go to a pet shop as we thought. It went to a place that didn't have a sign. A big steel gate in the hills, with guards. The CEO of Luxe Cuts called it "The Ark." Where billionaires buy things you're not supposed to be able to buy."Are we going to get a puppy?" Lily asked, holding Grace's hand tight. She was excited but she kept looking out the window, worried."Daddy said big pet," Tom said seriously. "Like bigger than Ben.""I AM NOT A PET!" Ben shouted, almost crying, but he soothed him to go back to sleep.I checked my phone.[MISSION PROGRESS: $55,200 / $1,000,000][TIME LEFT: 58:42:11]I had spent $55k at the salon. I needed to spend $944,800 more in two days. On pets.The gate opened. Inside, was a mansion with acres of land. And it was full of cages, but clean, huge cages that looked like small houses.A man in a white coat met us. Old, calm, eyes like he had seen everything."Mr. Chairman. Welcome. I was told you need... something special for your child

The lobby was still frozen.Davis was staring at his phone like it had betrayed him. His system was still flashing ERROR. Mark's face had gone from smug to pale. Johnson Sr., for the first time in maybe 40 years, didn't know what to say.Because Victoria Sterling just said the one word no 100x user ever wanted to hear.200x.She held my arm tighter and said louder, for the whole lobby to hear:"This man is under Sterling Group protection. This hotel is under Sterling Group protection. His children are under MY protection. If Child Services comes, they will talk to my lawyers first."She looked at Johnson Sr. directly. "You have 10 seconds to leave my hotel."Your hotel? John the GM, standing in the corner, almost fainted. The hotel I owned 15% of was now hers?Johnson Sr. recovered. He was old, but he was a predator."Victoria, sweetheart, you always liked to collect broken toys," he said, smiling cold. "A 200x? Please. There's no such thing. Your scanner is broken. Like your father's

I was a billionaire for exactly 14 minutes before the system ruined it.We were still in the lobby. Sarah's perfume was still in the air. Lily was showing Emma how Leo liked his belly rubbed. Gold was trying to steal everyone's shoes and pile them in a corner like treasure.Victoria was about to say something... something soft, which was rare for her, when all our phones screamed at once.It was an emergency alert. Like a tsunami warning.[EMERGENCY: JOHNSON FAMILY ACTIVATES 100x FAMILY COMBINE][3 GENERATIONS OF 100x USERS HAVE COMBINED TO 300x FOR 24 HOURS][TARGET: YOUR $10B EMPIRE + YOUR CHILDREN'S TRUST FUNDS][THEY WILL SPEND $100M IN 24 HOURS TO STEAL YOUR CASHBACK]Victoria's phone also buzzed. She went white."My system... it says 'Family Combine Detected - Hostile Takeover In Progress.' Johnson Sr. called his sons and his brothers. There are seven of them. Seven 100x users. If they all spend $100M today, their combine will hit $30 BILLION. They will outspend us and the bank