5. A Strange System

"You can rest in this Suite Luxury room for two days. After that, there will be an official introduction of you as the CEO of the Miller Family company," Walt said.

Walt escorted Darren to one of the most luxurious rooms.

Darren didn't have time to answer Walt's words. He was dumbfounded by the luxury of this room. As he entered, Darren saw that there was a magnificent glass window stretching wide in a semicircular basin.

From just a few meters away, Darren could see the luxurious tapered buildings of Washington. Darren could also see several robots flying around.

"Is this real?" muttered Darren.

Without caring about Walt, the curious Darren immediately stepped quickly closer to the magnificent window. After getting closer, Darren could clearly see the overpass with cars hanging down the road.

There were several buildings whose roofs were made of solid concrete. In some buildings, robotic janitors flew from one glass to another.

Almost all buildings have magnificent LED screens displaying beautiful illustrations.

On the other side, tapered cars resembling airplanes pass by as if there is traffic in the air.

"If you need anything, you can press the LED screen next to your bed. For now, a few minutes later a waiter will bring you food," said Walt.

Darren only glanced at Walt with his eyes still twinkling. He nodded briefly, then returned his attention to the majestic scene before his eyes.

Soon there was the sound of the door to the room closing.

"Am I really in 2062?" muttered Darren in disbelief.

This whole scene seemed impossible.

Darren suddenly felt strange that he was in the year 2062. How could he wake up and time had already passed sixteen years later?

"So I'm the main son-in-law of the Miller Family. I own this magnificent hotel," Darren told himself.

Now Darren felt very proud.

"But, do I really have to face the Johnson Family?" Darren wondered.

His hands were folded in front of his chest as he thought seriously. Unfortunately, his thoughts were suddenly interrupted when he heard the sound of the door breaking quite loudly.

Darren immediately looked toward the door. His eyes widened in surprise after witnessing a spherical robot flying rapidly towards him.

Unable to dodge, the round gray robot crashed into Darren's face. Both of them immediately jerked back with equally surprised gazes.

"Ahh!" Darren groaned while holding his sore forehead.

"Ouuchh! I'm so dizzy! I'm losing control!" The round gray robot in front of Darren spoke.

Darren was still wincing when he opened his eyes. Behind his hands massaging his temples, Darren immediately gasped as he realized what had hit him.

"Hey! What kind of creature are you?" accused Darren who looked at him warily.

The gray robot opened its eyes and blinked for a moment. He moved his hands away from his face.

"Mr. Darren! I'm sorry, I accidentally bumped into you due to loss of control!" the gray robot said.

Darren looked on with an uncomprehending stare. He needed time to process what he was seeing now.

"Who are you? I mean, are you a robot?" asked Darren.  

"My name is Hallen. I will accompany Mr. Darren from now on," said Hallen the gray robot. He waved his hand awkwardly.

Darren wasn't really used to this. He didn't know what Hallen meant and why the robot had to accompany him. On the other hand, he instantly remembered the sight of people with their flying robots at the station.

"Does everyone here have their own robot?" asked Darren.

Hallen nodded without hesitation. "That's right! Wait, not everyone gets a robot to keep them company. You're lucky, I'm your robot."

Darren's eyebrows furrowed. He shook his head. "I don't need company. You'd better go."

"Of course you won't. I'll keep you company," Hallen said. "You need a friend while you're dealing with the Johnson Family anyway. I have a lot of information about them."

Darren, who was about to walk away from Hallen, stopped his steps. He looked at Hallen curiously.

Darren's eyebrows furrowed. He shook his head. "I don't need company. You'd better go."

"Of course you won't. I'll keep you company," Hallen said. "You need a friend while you're dealing with the Johnson Family anyway. I have a lot of information about them."

Darren, who was about to walk away from Hallen, stopped his steps. He looked at Hallen curiously.

"What do you mean?" Darren wanted to know. "What information do you know about them?"

"Before that, you have to put your fingerprints here," Hallen said as he pointed to the LED screen on his abdomen.

"What for?"

"A kind of bond between a robot and its owner. In this case, you and me."

Darren laughed sarcastically after hearing Hallen's words.

"I don't need that. I just need you to tell me what Johnson Family information you know," Darren insisted.

Hallen shook his head. "I won't do that until you put your fingerprints on it."

Darren immediately snorted in disgust after hearing Hellen's words. Finally, Darren was forced to paste his fingerprints onto the screen on Hellen's stomach.

[CONNECTION ACTIVATION SUCCESSFUL!]

[CONNECTED TO OWNER: DARREN AWALTER MILLER]

Darren frowned as a system voice appeared. He looked at Hellen.

"That's my system. A sign that you and I are connected as robot and owner," Hellen replied.

"So, what's the information about the Miller Family?" asked Darren after retracting his hand.

Hellen did not answer. After that Hellen fell silent as the LED screen played a video recording.

"What are you planning to do to bring down the Miller Family?"

Darren frowned, feeling familiar with the voice.  

"Ah, they're too powerful to take down. They are not business opponents to be underestimated," said another man.

On the LED screen, the footage was taken from the right side and was slightly hidden behind an unknown object. The two men seen were Charlotte and Cloe's new lover-Darren didn't know his name yet.

Darren was surprised to realize who was in the video. For a few seconds Darren just stood there dumbfounded.

"They took all the important investors who were supposed to invest funds into our company," said Cloe's new boyfriend.

Why are the two men seen together?

Is Cloe's new lover already married to Cloe?

"The closest we can come is to embarrass their company in front of the investors," said Charlotte, giving her opinion.

"When can we do that?"

"Two days later. I've got the files that could put the Miller family company's reputation into disrepute," Charlotte replied with a smirk.

Two days later?

Wasn't that the day Darren was officially announced as the CEO of the Miller Family company?

Unfortunately, the video recording was interrupted as the screen suddenly went black. Darren was somewhat surprised. He still felt very curious about the conversation.

"I was caught listening to their conversation. That's why my system screen shut down. I hurriedly ran away," Hallen explained.

Darren sighed. "What are they planning? What files do they have?"

As Darren was thinking that, a holographic screen suddenly appeared in front of his face. Not just a screen, but a computer-like text caption.

[USER PROFILE AUTHENTICATION]

[PROCESSING... PLEASE WAIT FOR A WHILE]

[....]

[DONE!]

[NAME: DARREN AWALTER MILLER]

[AGE: 32 YEARS OLD]

[JOB: NONE]

[HEALTH: 90% GOOD]

[MENTALITY: 45% HAVING A BIG DEPRESSION]

[POINT SYSTEM SCORE: 100/100,000]

When the writings on the holographic screen appeared in front of Darren's face, he gasped in surprise.

"What is this?"