Rejected by Her, Chosen by the System

EPISODE 8 – The Most Expensive Suit

The blue light intensified.

It flooded Fred's vision until the clothing store around him dissolved into a sea of shimmering particles. His heartbeat pounded so loudly in his ears that it drowned out the soft jazz still playing through the speakers.

For one terrifying moment, he was convinced he was about to collapse.

Then, just as suddenly as it had expanded, the light contracted into a single translucent window floating before him.

A soft chime echoed inside his mind. [Mission Completed Successfully.]

Another line appeared. [Calculating Cashback Reward...]

Fred instinctively held his breath as the words flickered once, then again; finally, the display changed.

[Congratulations.]

His pulse quickened. The next line appeared slowly, almost as though the System wanted to ensure he absorbed every word.

[Cashback Reward Granted.]

[Another notification formed beneath it.]

[100% Ownership Acquired.]

Fred frowned. "Ownership... of what?"

The answer appeared without hesitation. [AURELIUS LUXURY FASHION GROUP]

His expression froze.

The System continued. More information materialized beneath the company name.

[Estimated Market Value $1,800,000,000]

Fred stared blankly at the number one point eight billion dollars?

His lips parted, but no words came out. The figure simply refused to make sense. He blinked several times, convinced he had misread it.

Then he rubbed his eyes, but Nothing changed. The glowing number remained the same.

One point eight billion dollars. A dry, disbelieving laugh escaped him. "There's..."

He swallowed hard. "...there's no way."

Emma looked up from behind the counter. "Sir?"

Only then did Fred realize he had spoken aloud. "N-Nothing."

His voice cracked as he quickly shifted his attention back to the floating interface.

The System remained perfectly calm, as though handing someone ownership of a multinational corporation was no more remarkable than printing a receipt.

"I bought a fifty-dollar suit," he whispered, "...and you gave me a company?"

The reply appeared immediately. [Correction.]

[The host received the appropriate cashback.]

Fred almost laughed again. "Appropriate?"

He looked around the store, and no one else appeared to notice anything unusual.

Customers continued browsing through jackets and shirts. A young child tugged impatiently at his mother's sleeve while Emma quietly organized receipts behind the register.

Life carried on exactly as it always had. Only Fred's reality had completely fallen apart. His breathing became uneven. "No..."

He slowly shook his head. "This can't be real."

The System displayed another notification.

[Ownership Transfer Completed.]

[Legal Documentation Finalized.]

[Host Recognition Pending.]

Fred stared at the glowing words. "So you're telling me that I own a billion-dollar fashion company..."

He paused, still struggling to believe what he was saying. "...just because I spent my last fifty dollars?"

[Affirmative.]

His knees suddenly felt weak; he instinctively grabbed the edge of the counter to steady himself.

Emma immediately noticed. "Sir!"

She hurried around the register. "Are you alright?"

Fred forced an uneasy smile. "I think..."

He let out a slow breath. "...my blood sugar is low."

It wasn't entirely untrue; he hadn't eaten in nearly two days.

Emma gently guided him toward a chair beside the fitting rooms. "Sit down for a minute."

She disappeared into the staff room and returned moments later carrying a bottle of water. "This one's on the house."

Fred accepted it with both hands. "Thank you."

Emma smiled warmly. "You've thanked me twice already."

She tilted her head slightly. "That tells me you probably don't receive enough kindness."

The simple observation caught him completely off guard. For just a moment, the pain of the past two days became a little easier to bear.

His problems hadn't disappeared, and his bruises still ached.

But someone had chosen to treat him like a person instead of an inconvenience, and that small kindness meant more than she could know.

Fred unscrewed the cap on the water bottle. His hands were still trembling. Before he could take a drink, his smartwatch vibrated. Once. Then again, then continuously.

He frowned. "That's strange."

The cracked watch display lit up. Unknown Number.

Fred hesitated. A part of him wanted to ignore the call, but after everything that had happened today, he wasn't sure he could handle one more surprise.

The watch continued vibrating insistently.

Emma glanced toward him. "You should probably answer."

Fred slowly nodded. He tapped the screen. "...Hello?"

A calm, professional female voice answered almost immediately. "Good afternoon."

"My name is Victoria Ellis."

"I'm calling from Sterling, Blackwood & Pierce International Legal Associates."

Fred frowned. "I think you've got the wrong number."

"No, Mr. Fred Harris, we've been trying to reach you."

His grip tightened around the watch. "What is this about?"

There was a brief pause.

"As of approximately three minutes ago, our records confirm that you became the sole legal owner of Aurelius Luxury Fashion Group."

Fred's heart skipped a beat. His eyes drifted toward the floating System window. The notification was still there. It hadn't disappeared. It hadn't been a hallucination.

Lowering his voice, he asked quietly, "Who told you that?"

"The international corporate registry." Her tone remained composed. "The ownership transfer has already been authenticated."

Fred felt another wave of dizziness wash over him. "This..."

He looked around the quiet clothing store. "...this doesn't make any sense."

"We understand your confusion." Victoria's voice remained calm and reassuring. "Large acquisitions often come as a surprise to new owners."

Fred let out an incredulous laugh. "Large acquisition? I make less than forty thousand dollars a year."

"I was fired this morning."

"I can't even afford dinner tonight."

For a brief moment, the line fell silent.

When Victoria spoke again, genuine sympathy colored her voice. "I'm afraid your circumstances changed a few minutes ago."

Fred leaned back in the chair as his thoughts raced. "Could this actually be happening?"

"No, it had to be an elaborate scam."

"How much do you know about me?" he asked. 

"We've verified your identity through multiple government databases." Without hesitation, she recited his date of birth. It was correct. Then she listed his current address. That was correct as well.  Finally, she named his former employer.

Every detail matched perfectly. A chill ran down Fred's spine. "How..."

She continued, "Our responsibility is to ensure the lawful transfer of your assets."

"Assets." The word echoed strangely inside his mind.

Victoria continued speaking. "Your digital ownership certificates, banking authorizations, and executive credentials have already been prepared."

Fred slowly shook his head. "I think..."

He paused, searching for words. "...I need someone to explain all of this."

"Of course." Victoria  continued, "That is precisely why I'm calling."

She paused briefly before delivering the sentence that made his pulse stop. "Mr. Harris, your board of directors has assembled."

Fred frowned. "My what?"

"Your board of directors," she repeated,  "They have postponed all scheduled meetings until your arrival."

He swallowed hard. "I've never even been inside Aurelius headquarters."

"You are expected there as soon as possible," Victoria said in a composed tone.

Fred stared through the store window. Outside, the city looked the same as it had only minutes earlier. Cars flowed steadily through traffic. Office workers hurried toward the train station.

No one had the slightest idea that the unemployed man sitting inside an ordinary clothing store had supposedly become the owner of one of the country's most prestigious luxury fashion companies.

A familiar chime sounded inside his mind. The System displayed another notification.

[Beginner Mission Reward Successfully Delivered.]

[Welcome to the first stage of the Infinite Cashback System.]

Fred slowly lowered his wrist as his reflection stared back at him from the store window. Only twenty-four hours earlier, he had been planning a marriage proposal.

That morning, he had lost his job. An hour ago, he had been beaten and robbed in a filthy alley. Now someone was waiting for him in the boardroom of a billion-dollar corporation.

Victoria's voice came through the watch once again. "Mr. Harris?"

He swallowed. "...Yes?"

"The directors have been waiting for you." 

She paused for only a heartbeat before speaking the words that would forever divide his life into a before and an after. "Your board of directors is ready to receive its new chairman."

Fred tightened his grip on the watch.

Outside, the evening sky darkened as though the city itself were holding its breath. His old life had come to an end. His new life was only beginning.