Supreme Son-in-law: Reborn With the Apocalypse System

Episode 2: The Breakfast Trap

Jared woke early.

Not because he wanted to, but because he knew what was coming.

He dressed in silence. The system screen hovered quietly in his mind, waiting. It wasn’t intrusive — more like a presence at the edge of thought. The auction countdown ticked in the background, hours shrinking by the minute.

He checked the funds on his phone: ₦420,000. Almost everything he had. No savings, no backup. Just enough to survive, barely enough to complete the mission.

His new wife still lay curled on the far side of the bed, her back to him, breathing even. Not a word since last night. Not even a glance.

He didn’t blame her, not anymore. That had been the trap last time — caring too much about people who didn’t care at all.

He slipped on his jacket and left the room.

Downstairs, the Bai family was already gathered for breakfast in the hotel dining lounge. White tablecloths, fresh fruit, clinking cutlery — all for show. Jared stepped in quietly.

The moment he did, conversation stopped.

Bai Cheng, the patriarch, looked up from his cup of coffee. His expression was carved from stone — disappointment already sitting on his face like it lived there rent-free.

“Jared,” he said without smiling. “You actually showed up.”

“I live here,” Jared replied calmly. “For now.”

One of the cousins snorted into his juice.

Bai Cheng ignored the comment. “Since you’re here, let’s not waste time. I have something you can do for me.”

Here it comes.

“In the warehouse district, there’s a supplier we use. They’re late with a shipment. Go check it out. Take a cab — and don’t come back until it’s resolved. Understood?”

Jared met his gaze evenly. “Sure. Before I go, I’ll need an advance. Three thousand.”

The entire table went silent.

Bai Cheng set down his coffee slowly. “Three thousand? For what?”

Jared smiled faintly. “Transportation. Lunch. Maybe a down payment on my dignity.”

The silence cracked — a bark of laughter from one of the uncles. But Bai Cheng didn’t flinch.

“You want me to hand cash to the Bai family’s son-in-law for a simple errand? Are you out of your mind?”

“No,” Jared said. “Just done playing games.”

“You’ll get nothing from me,” Bai Cheng said coldly. “If you can’t afford a taxi, walk. Maybe it’ll teach you some respect.”

Jared stood without another word.

Before, he would’ve swallowed it. He would’ve smiled, nodded, begged to be accepted. Not this time.

“Thanks for the breakfast,” he said. “Even if I wasn’t invited.”

He turned to leave, but just as he reached the door, another voice cut through the room.

“Wait.”

Elena.

She stood at the entrance, hair wet from the shower, wrapped in a crisp blazer, perfectly put together. Her eyes met his, unreadable.

“I’ll give him the money,” she said, taking out her purse. “Consider it a wedding gift.”

Jared blinked. That hadn’t happened in the last life.

Bai Cheng looked annoyed. “You’d waste your allowance on him?”

“It’s not a waste if it gets him out of the house.”

She handed Jared the cash — ₦3000 exactly — without emotion. Like passing a receipt. Their fingers brushed. She didn’t look at him.

He took the money, pocketed it.

“Thanks,” he said.

“Don’t thank me,” she said. “Just don’t come back empty-handed.”

She didn’t mean the warehouse.

He knew that.

—

By noon, Jared stood outside a rusted office in the outer district. The sky hung low and gray. His shoes were soaked. Mud clung to the edges of his trousers.

But in his pocket was a receipt.

Purchased: 520 square meters of rural land on the outskirts of the city.

The seller hadn’t even asked questions. No one wanted land out there — too far, too empty, too useless.

Jared had smiled and handed over the money.

[Mission complete.]

[+1,000 system points earned.]

[Inventory tab unlocked.]

A jolt ran through him. Not physical — something deeper.

In his mind’s eye, a new screen flicked open.

[Inventory: 0 items stored]

[System Shop: Locked]

[Next Mission available in 6 hours.]

It was real. All of it.

He turned toward the plot he’d just bought — a flat stretch of grass and dry trees behind a crumbling factory. It looked like nothing.

But in three weeks, when the world fell apart, it would be everything.

He took a deep breath and whispered to himself, “Let them keep calling me trash.”

He glanced back toward the city skyline.

“When this world burns, I’ll be the only one with a map.”