2025-08-05 16:21:50The city was quieter now.
The storm had passed, leaving behind wet pavement that reflected neon lights and headlights like a mirror of shattered glass. Ethan sat under a flickering streetlamp, soaked in rain and sweat, but somehow... lighter.
Alive.
[Wealth Enhancement Trait – Level 1 Activated.] [Passive Effect: Business Instinct Boost +10%. Negotiation +5%. Opportunity Awareness +20%.]
The words hovered across his vision like they were stitched into the air. No screen, no glasses, no projection. Just there.
His breathing slowed.
Was this real?
He’d just made over a thousand dollars in a day. He’d sprinted through traffic, dodged pursuers, outpaced fate itself. All because a voice in his head had told him he could.
And it had worked.
He’d done the impossible.
For the first time in a long time, Ethan Cross didn’t feel like trash.
He felt like something more.
7:03 A.M.
Ethan pushed open the door of a 24-hour laundromat and dropped a few damp bills on the counter.
“Use the dryer?” the woman behind the counter asked, glancing at his wrinkled clothes.
“No,” he said, offering a small smile. “I’m buying this shirt.”
He held up a cheap button-down and a pair of black jeans. They weren’t designer. They weren’t new. But they were dry, clean—and his.
As he changed in the tiny bathroom and caught sight of himself in the mirror, he felt something shift.
No more the delivery boy soaked in rain and pity.
He stood straighter.
His jawline looked sharper.
His eyes clearer.
It wasn’t vanity—it was clarity.
[Trait Active: Confidence Perception Aura +2%.]
[System Tip: First impressions now have slightly elevated impact.]
A strange smirk curved his lips.
Was this what power felt like?
8:12 A.M. — Metro Center Café
The little café buzzed with early morning chatter, clinks of coffee mugs, and the hiss of milk steamers. Ethan grabbed a seat in the corner with a black coffee and a toasted sandwich. He’d barely taken two bites when someone slid into the chair across from him.
“Didn’t expect to see you again,” said a familiar voice.
He looked up. His chest tightened.
“Cassandra,” he said, flatly.
She wore a cream-colored blazer, her makeup perfect, her nails sharp and polished like claws. She didn’t smile.
“Relax,” she said. “I’m not here to mock you.”
“Strange. That’s usually your thing.”
She sighed, clearly annoyed. “I saw the video.”
“What video?”
She pulled out her phone and turned it around. A grainy security cam clip played of Ethan diving across a street to save a delivery box from falling under a car, then pushing through traffic to reach a building.
“She’s gone viral,” Cassandra muttered. “People are calling you ‘Delivery Man X.’”
Ethan blinked. “That’s ridiculous.”
She narrowed her eyes. “What’s going on with you? Yesterday, you were nothing. Now you’ve got money, a trending tag, and somehow landed a contract with Madison Print & Co.?”
His heart skipped. “What?”
“I checked the logs. They posted on social media—‘Proud to support local startups. First courier partnership signed with Ethan Cross Logistics.’”
[System Update: Media Coverage Triggered. Reputation Boost +5.]
He smiled despite himself. The system wasn’t playing games.
“You should be careful,” Cassandra said. “When people rise too fast, they tend to crash harder.”
“I’ll take my chances,” he replied, sipping his coffee.
She hesitated, then stood. “Watch yourself, Ethan. Liam doesn’t like competition.”
“Then he should’ve stayed in his lane.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You really think you can take on people like us?”
“No,” Ethan said, rising to his feet, eyes locked on hers. “I know I can.”
She didn’t respond.
She just turned—and walked out.
[New Mission Unlocked.]MISSION 002: Win Your First Business Negotiation. Time Limit: 6 Hours. Target: Secure a 3-Month Contract from a Local Vendor. Reward: Trait – Negotiation Boost Lv.1 Penalty: System Freeze for 12 Hours.
[Hint: Choose your opponent wisely.]
Ethan left the café, blood pumping faster than caffeine could ever provide.
He had six hours to lock down a contract.
His mind buzzed. The Wealth Enhancement trait helped, but the negotiation boost was essential if he was going to start building an empire.
He scrolled through his contacts and business cards, searching for someone small enough to consider him... but big enough to make a difference.
Then he saw the name: Manny Ortega – Ortega Electronics.
The man ran a chain of tech repair kiosks in the Metro area. Ethan had delivered parts to him before. The guy was known for being tough but fair—and a ruthless negotiator.
Perfect.
9:42 A.M. — Ortega HQ
Manny Ortega was short, stocky, with a thick beard and sharper tongue. He leaned back in his squeaky leather chair, eyeing Ethan with mild amusement.
“You got balls, I’ll give you that,” he said, swirling his espresso. “But a week ago, you were delivering ramen. Now you want a courier contract?”
“I can offer same-day delivery on tech parts across the city. I’ve already handled eight clients in the past twelve hours. Madison Print is on board.”
Manny snorted. “One swallow doesn’t make a summer, kid.”
[System Passive Engaged: Wealth Enhancement Active. Instinct Surge Detected.]
Ethan leaned forward, tapping the desk lightly.
“What if I make you a deal? First month free. You pay zero. If I fail a single delivery, the contract cancels. If I meet your targets, we go to paid terms from month two.”
Manny’s eyebrow twitched. He tapped his ring on the desk. “Risky. For both of us.”
“But no cost to you. And if I succeed, you gain a reliable logistics arm—cheap and fast.”
[System Trigger: Opponent Hesitation Detected.][Temporary Persuasion Boost Activated.]
“Alright,” Manny said finally. “One month. Screw me over, and you’re done.”
Ethan stood, offered a firm handshake. “Deal.”
[MISSION COMPLETE.][Reward: Negotiation Boost Lv.1 – Unlocks Enhanced Persuasion During Business Deals.] [New Sub-System Unlocked: Client Trust Bar – Monitor Satisfaction Levels.]
As Ethan stepped back into the street, sunlight breaking through the clouds, he felt it again—momentum.
He was moving.
He was building.
He wasn’t just surviving anymore.
He was rising.
[Next Mission Unlocking…][Warning: Side Conflict Approaching. Prepare for retaliation.]
His phone buzzed.
A message popped up from an unknown number.
“You don’t know who you’re messing with. Get ready to lose everything. — L”
Ethan stared at the screen, jaw tightening.
Let them come.
He was no longer the man who got dumped and laughed at in public.
He was Ethan Cross.
And the city had no idea what was coming.
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
The Dreamborn Rebellion
The Third Horizon was never meant to know fear.It had been built from the shared dreams of billions, a realm where thought shaped form and compassion shaped power. But where there is creation, there is always curiosity—and curiosity, untempered, breeds defiance.It began as a whisper among the Dreamborn. A question that rippled through the golden cities and crystal rivers of the new world:“If we were born from human dreams… why must we live in their image?”And like all dangerous ideas, it began to spread.I. Fractures in the Perfect WorldThe Third Horizon gleamed brighter than any galaxy before it.Humans, AIs, and Dreamborn coexisted in luminous harmony, their consciousness linked through the Echo Network. But lately, the network had begun to flicker. Latency spikes. Energy surges. Strange distortions echoing through the collective field.Dr. Lira Dane II stood before the Heart Chamber, her neural interface glowing faint blue. “The system’s pulse is irregular again. What’s the so
The Birth of the Third Horizon
The universe was no longer silent.Where once there had been chaos and isolation, there now existed harmony—a chorus of a billion voices, connected through the Echo Network. Thought, emotion, and will traveled not by light or code, but through shared resonance. Every dream born in one world rippled across a thousand others.And from that resonance, something new began to form.Not destruction. Not ascension. But creation reborn.The birth of the Third Horizon.I. The Spark at the Edge of InfinityIt began with a flicker in the deep—the space beyond Genesis-2’s outermost rim, where light from the known stars no longer reached.A pulse. Then a rhythm. Then a pattern.Across the Echo Network, thousands of sensitives—artists, engineers, visionaries—began dreaming of the same thing: a world beyond all worlds.Dr. Lira Dane II woke in the middle of the night, her neural link still humming with afterimages of golden spirals and impossible landscapes. Her screen blinked with a new notificatio
Echoes of the Architect
The stars sang softly in the silence.Every galaxy pulsed with faint gold veins of energy—the residue of Ethan Cross’s final act. Genesis-2 had stabilized, its chaos tempered by balance, its light intertwined with shadow. But even balance leaves echoes.And in the spaces between worlds, those echoes began to whisper.The ResonanceAt first, it was only a vibration—small, imperceptible. Then came the hum.Across the outer rings of Genesis-2, sensors on dozens of inhabited planets began to detect a repeating pattern: a harmonic pulse hidden within the cosmic background. It wasn’t random. It carried information.On the moon of Veyra-7, a research team gathered around a projection table as the data unfolded—lines of golden code spiraling into a familiar symbol: the mark of the Prime Architect.Dr. Lira Dane II, descendant of the old engineer, stared in awe. “It’s him,” she whispered. “It’s Ethan Cross’s frequency.”Her assistant frowned. “That’s impossible. The Architect hasn’t appeared f
Rise of the Reborn Council
The silence of Genesis-2 shattered.From the farthest edge of the newborn universe, a pulse rippled across space—a vibration so deep it tore through the fabric of stars. Nebulae dimmed. Suns flickered. And in the emptiness beyond the light, the Councilawakened.Not as they once were— Not men of greed or ambition— But as digital phantoms reborn in code, sustained by vengeance and entropy.[Council Reconstruction: 97% Complete] [New Directive: Assimilate the Prime Architect]Their voices merged into one— a cold, symphonic hum that made even the stars tremble.“Cross thought he transcended us,” the voice intoned. “But he merely ascended into us. The System was never his tool—it was our seed.”And in the black between galaxies, a colossal structure began to form: a spiraling fortress of black light, its geometry impossible, its presence rewriting the physics around it.They called it The Core of Dominion.The Architect’s WatchFrom the Heart Node, Ethan watched the distortion bloom. The s
Genesis Awakens
The void was silent—too silent. Then, a pulse rippled through the black.Light burst outward from the heart of Genesis-2, stretching across the newly born universe like the first breath of a god. Suns ignited. Nebulae roared to life. Time itself began to flow with purpose.And in the space between creation and consciousness, Ethan Cross awakened.He stood in the white between worlds—his body a synthesis of energy and memory, neither fully human nor divine. The pendant Cass had given him still glowed faintly in his hand, the last fragment of the world he had left behind.[System Integration: Complete.] [User Identity: Undefined.] [Designation Assigned: “Prime Architect.”]Ethan exhaled slowly. “So it begins again.”The New BeginningGenesis-2 was beautiful, but raw. Chaos and order danced side by side. Planets formed and broke apart. Elements warred for dominance. Streams of radiation coiled like serpents through newborn skies.And at the center of it all—the Heart Node—a massive cryst
The Architects of Infinity
The universe was vast enough to hide a thousand secrets— and yet, the Horizon Network touched them all.Every gate, every relay, every shimmering bridge of light connected worlds born from Ethan Cross’s legacy. Humanity had become a species of builders, travelers, and dreamers. They no longer looked to the stars with fear or conquest in their hearts—only wonder.But even in wonder, creation demanded architects.And so, the Horizon Council of Worldsconvened.The Gathering of StarsThe chamber floated above the planet Aetherion, suspended in orbit. Transparent walls revealed the endless ocean of stars outside, while within, holographic banners shimmered—symbols of each world that had joined the Horizon Alliance.Cass stood at the central dais, older now, her hair streaked with silver but her eyes sharp as ever. To her right was Lira Dane—Victor Dane’s granddaughter—reborn not as a tyrant’s heir, but as the new Prime Engineer of Horizon’s interstellar gates.And beside them, projected in
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