Chapter 7
Author: Dep Flair
last update2025-04-02 09:11:58

Michael cracked his knuckles, staring intently at the four company profiles displayed on his monitor. The blue light illuminated his face in the dimly lit apartment as midnight approached.

"These four," he thought, tapping the screen. "These are the golden tickets that no one else can see yet."

He'd chosen his targets carefully from his future knowledge:

NeuraTech: A small medical device company that would announce a breakthrough stimulation device in the next two hours, sending their stock soaring.

QuantumShield: A cybersecurity firm about to land a massive government contract.

Then

GreenHorizon and 

"In my previous life, I watched these four companies explode while sitting on the sidelines," Michael mused. "Not this time."

He opened his trading platform and began dividing his capital. His fingers paused over the keyboard as he prepared to place the first order.

"This feels almost like cheating," he thought with a smile. "But then again, I've earned this advantage the hard way."

The first order went through for NeuraTech—buying a substantial position but not enough to trigger regulatory flags or move the market dramatically. Then the second for QuantumShield, followed by GreenHorizon and finally VisionStream.

Within twenty minutes, all four positions were established. Michael sat back, rubbing his eyes.

"And now we wait," he said to the empty room. "The catalyst events for each company are already in motion. They just haven't reached the public yet."

He set up alerts for significant price movements, then reclined on the small sofa against the wall. 

Before he drifted away into sleep.

The sharp alert tone jolted Michael awake. Disoriented, he fumbled for his phone before realizing the sound came from his computer. The room was bathed in early morning sunlight, and his neck ached from the awkward sleeping position on the small sofa.

"What the..." he mumbled, squinting at the screen. The time showed 3:38AM.

A few more minutes before the stock market closes.

The trading platform was flashing with alerts. All four stocks were moving—not the gentle upward trend he'd expected, but dramatic, almost vertical spikes.

"There it is," Michael said, fully awake now as he clicked through the notifications.

NeuraTech: UP 127% QuantumShield: UP 83% GreenHorizon: UP 115% VisionStream: UP 92%

The stocks continued climbing. Clearly, institutional investors were piling in. His initial $78 million investment was now showing a paper value of over $160 million—and still rising.

A notification popped up on his screen:

"I need to get out before this attracts too much attention,” Michael said.

He quickly set up his sell orders, scheduling them to execute automatically the moment it crosses the mark. No need for brokers or financial advisors—he'd deliberately chosen a high-end trading platform that catered to wealthy self-directed investors precisely to avoid unnecessary interactions.

"The beauty of modern trading," he thought as he configured the orders. "No calls to make, no permissions to seek. Just me and the market."

“Now how do I pull out such funds,” Michael formulated his exit strategy carefully.

“The traditional banking system would immediately flag movements of this magnitude, potentially alerting father through the Crawford family's banking connections.”

“Yes,” a thought came to him.

"Cryptocurrency," he decided. "Untraceable, unattached to the Crawford name, and perfect for large sums that need to move quickly."

He opened an encrypted browser and set up a secure cryptocurrency wallet, configuring it with multiple security layers. 

Michael watched in awe as the sell orders executed, converting his investments back to cash. The final tally appeared on screen:

$359,871,543.22

"Three hundred and fifty-nine million dollars," he whispered, staring at the number. "In a single day."

Without hesitation, he initiated the transfer to his cryptocurrency wallet, converting the entire amount to Bitcoin. The transaction would be complete within hours, leaving no trace in the traditional banking system that could alert his family.

"From zero to nearly four hundred million in cryptocurrency," he thought as he watched the transfer initiate. "Not bad for my first day as a time traveler with inside information."

**

Across town in the gleaming Financial District, several stock brokers gathered around a monitoring station at GlobalTrade Securities, one of the city's bustling trading firms.

"What the hell is happening with these four?" demanded Gerald Thornton, a senior broker, pointing at the screens showing the skyrocketing stocks. "They all exploded with no warning."

A younger broker leaned forward, squinting at the data. "It's weird. The trading patterns show someone got in big across all four companies just before midnight."

"The same trader?" Gerald's eyebrows shot up. "That's not a coincidence. That's someone with inside information."

"Maybe," replied Sarah Winters, adjusting her headset. "But here's the strange part—whoever it was sold everything almost instantly. Took profits a few minutes later."

"Someone with insider knowledge wouldn't exit that quickly," another broker noted, coffee cup paused midway to his lips. "They'd ride it longer, knowing the full potential."

Sarah clicked through several screens of data. "Whoever it was, they've completely withdrawn. Almost like they got scared by their own success."

"Or they got exactly what they needed," Gerald mused, loosening his tie. "Nobody gets that lucky by accident."

"The biggest profiter has sold off," the junior broker announced, pointing to a transaction log. "We can't see who it was though—the platform privacy shields are in place."

"A professional trader, then," Gerald concluded.

"Maybe," Sarah said thoughtfully, leaning back in her chair. "Or maybe just a newbie who got incredibly lucky and ran with their winnings.”

Gerald tapped his pen against the desk. "If you see that pattern again, flag it. Someone out there just made a fortune while we all watched."

**

Back in his apartment, Michael watched the final confirmation of his cryptocurrency transfer come through. Three hundred and fifty-nine million dollars, now securely stored in his digital wallet.

"By tomorrow, those stocks will plummet," he thought, closing the laptop with satisfaction. "The announcements never live up to the leaks, and profit-taking will drive prices down. But by then, I'll be long gone with my gains."

He checked his watch—still early enough to get home, shower, and make it to the office without raising Katherine's suspicions. He'd have to maintain his charade of dedicated Crawford executive for a while longer.

"Three hundred and fifty-nine million dollars," he thought again, the reality still sinking in. "Enough to fund our company and still have plenty left over for... contingencies."

The System message appeared before him:

[Team Building and Capital acquisition successful. Reward granted. Reward: Enhanced Strength.]

Michael nodded to himself as he put on his coat. Everything was proceeding according to plan.

He took one last look at his cryptocurrency wallet balance on his phone, then headed for the door. It was time to start building his new empire—and his revenge.

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