“Am I dead?”Micheal opened his eyes slow. Unfamiliar room. Body hurt. But he was breathing. Touched his chest. Then his head. Just checking everything was still there.Not a hospital.Room was massive. Only rich people lived like this. Golden light from crystal chandeliers. Bed wide enough for four. Silk sheets colder than anything he’d ever felt. Heavy curtains on big windows. Smell of expensive perfume and wood in the air.Man in a white coat stood by the bed with a tablet. Saw Micheal’s eyes open and stopped.“You’re awake,” the doctor said. Sounded surprised. “Didn’t think you’d wake up for another day at least.”Before Micheal could say anything a weird mechanical voice spoke inside his head.[Ding! Activation requirements have been fulfilled.]Micheal froze.“What the hell was that?”[The system is now initializing.]Faint blue screen floated in front of him.Micheal just stared.[Initialization complete.][Welcome, Host.]Rubbed his eyes. Screen still there.“Am I hallucinatin

Micheal lowered his voice as he watched the doctor hurry out of the ward. “System, open the reward.” Almost immediately, a translucent interface appeared in front of him, and the familiar mechanical voice sounded inside his head.[Mission completed. Would the Host like to receive the reward?]“Yes.”[Reward distribution has begun. Congratulations, Host. You have received 2,000 System Points, $10,000,000, and ownership of The King Hotel. The money has been transferred directly into the Host's bank account, while the hotel has already been purchased under the Host's name. All necessary ownership documents have also been completed.]Micheal stared at the notification for several seconds before a smile slowly spread across his face. Ten million dollars was already more money than he had ever imagined having, but the system had gone even further by giving him ownership of The KingHotel, one of the most luxurious five-star hotels in the city. Just a few hours ago, he had been desperately se

Michael turned around slowly to face Elizabeth, his voice steady as he asked, “And how is that any of your business?”Elizabeth’s expression twisted with anger. She pointed at him and spoke through gritted teeth. “Why didn’t you tell me before that you had money? All this time you hid it from me and let me suffer for years!”Michael narrowed his eyes at her. “And why should I have told someone who never showed a single bit of gratitude?”Her face flushed with rage, but before she could answer he continued in a calm, measured tone. “Tell me, when were you ever satisfied with anything I did for you? All you ever did was criticize me and compare me to your friends who had rich boyfriends. And now you expect me to have shared my wealth with you?” He gave a slight shake of his head. “You’re not worthy of it.”“Michael, I will never forgive you for this!” Elizabeth shouted.He raised an eyebrow. “Forgive me? Weren’t you the one who said we came from different worlds? It seems you were right

She had never been spoken to this way in her entire career. The steady stream of remarks from the man in front of her had pushed past irritation into something sharper—humiliation that demanded an immediate answer. Michael watched the change in her eyes and spoke again, voice still mild. “If you redirected even half of this intensity somewhere more productive, we might both leave this room in a better mood. I trust you understand what I mean.” The last of her restraint vanished. She snatched the service pistol from the table and leveled it at his chest. “I’ll kill you.” Michael’s smile turned slightly strained. “I didn’t expect things to reach this point so quickly. There is still room to talk this through.” “I don’t care,” she snapped. “You die today.” He gave a small shrug, the cuffs limiting the motion. “You would be eliminating the only person currently willing to put up with you. That leaves a rather long and solitary future.” “Shut up!” Her finger tightened on the trigger—

“Huh?”Evelyn froze when she heard Micheal's words, staring at him as though she had just heard the most ridiculous thing in her life. They were surrounded by Viktor Kane's men, every exit was under their control, and more than a dozen police officers had already been disarmed. Yet, instead of thinking about how they were going to survive, Micheal was standing there asking her what she was willing to give him in exchange for his help. Had this man finally lost his mind?She knew exactly how dangerous their situation was. Viktor Kane was not an ordinary gangster who had risen through the ranks by simply being ruthless. Fifteen years ago, he had started as an insignificant enforcer in one of Namicity's underground organizations, but within three years, almost everyone above him had either disappeared or ended up dead. The police had once connected him to more than twenty murders, but every witness who agreed to testify against him was silenced before reaching the courtroom. One prosecut