2025-07-29 00:00:19The city buzzed around him as Jared waited for the bus back to the central district. He could’ve called a cab, but he didn’t. Not yet. Every naira counted now.
The auction had left him with nothing in his wallet, but in his mind? He had more power than any of them could imagine. Elena’s voice still echoed in his head — “Just don’t come back empty-handed.”
He hadn’t. She just wouldn’t see it yet.
The bus pulled up, brakes squealing, and Jared climbed on. No one paid him any attention. He liked it that way. That’s how all great rises began — in silence.
By the time he reached the Bai family residence, the sun had started its descent. Long shadows stretched across the marble floors as he walked in.
He’d barely shut the door behind him when he heard the voice.
“You’re late.”
It was Bai Cheng. Sitting in the lounge with a glass of wine, his expression tight with annoyance.
Jared didn’t slow his steps. “I said I’d check the warehouse. I did.”
“It’s not about the warehouse,” Bai Cheng snapped. “It’s about you disrespecting this family. My daughter gives you money — my money — and you can’t even be back on time? You think this is some kind of vacation?”
Jared didn’t answer. He dropped the plastic folder containing the supplier’s signed invoice on the table in front of him.
“There was a delay with their shipment. I handled it. They’ll deliver by tomorrow noon.”
Bai Cheng looked at the paper, then back at Jared, as if trying to figure out how a man like him had managed even that.
“Elena said you left this morning without saying anything. You didn’t answer her calls either.”
“I was busy handling your task,” Jared said coolly.
“And now what?” Bai Cheng leaned back. “You think doing one errand means you’ve earned something around here? This house isn’t yours. This family—”
“Never accepted me,” Jared said, his voice calm but firm. “I know.”
Bai Cheng stood up, jaw tight. “You think you’re clever now, huh?”
“I think I’m not as stupid as I used to be.”
The silence stretched. It wasn’t defiance in Jared’s tone. It was something worse. Confidence.
Bai Cheng didn’t like it.
From the hallway, another voice joined in — softer, cooler.
“Can I talk to him alone?”
Elena.
She walked into the room, dressed in a navy blouse and slacks, tablet in one hand. Her face was unreadable, as usual. Beautiful and distant, like a portrait that never changed expression.
Her father gave her a long look, then walked out without another word.
Jared stayed where he was.
Elena looked at him, arms crossed.
“Where did you go, really?”
He raised a brow. “You think I lied?”
“I think,” she said slowly, “that you disappeared for ten hours and came back with an attitude.”
Jared didn’t answer.
She stepped closer. “I don’t care if you’re trying to play some game, Jared. But if you’re going to stay in this house, you don’t get to make me look like a fool.”
“You’re worried what they’ll think of you?” he asked. “For marrying someone beneath you?”
“I didn’t marry you,” she said, her tone sharp. “I was told to.”
That stung more than he wanted to admit.
She took a breath, like she wanted to say more but changed her mind. “Dinner’s in an hour. Don’t be late again.”
She walked past him, but he caught her wrist gently. Just for a second.
She turned.
“You didn’t have to give me that money this morning,” he said. “Thank you.”
She blinked. Her lips parted slightly, as if surprised by the sincerity in his voice.
“I didn’t do it for you.”
“I know.”
She didn’t pull her hand away. Not right away.
Then she did.
Without a word, she disappeared up the stairs.
Jared stood there, staring after her, and for the first time in days, he let himself feel something. Not love. Not hate. Just… memory.
She’d once told him she regretted everything. Long after the fall. When it was too late.
Maybe it would be different this time.
Ding.
The system chimed again in his mind.
[New Mission Available.]
[Mission 002: Acquire one firearm (pistol or shotgun) within 48 hours. Reward: +1500 points. Unlock: Combat Tab.]
Jared exhaled slowly.
The storm was coming.
And now, he had a weapon to find.
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Episode 12: Storm Roads
The rain started two hours after they left the bunker. It wasn’t gentle or forgiving—it came down in sheets, pounding against the broken asphalt of the highway like the sky itself was trying to scrub the world clean.Jared gripped the handlebars of the old military bike they’d found in an abandoned checkpoint shed. It roared down the cracked road, tires skimming puddles, engine groaning from years of disuse. Mei sat behind him, arms wrapped tightly around his waist, face pressed to his back to shield against the cold wind.They hadn’t said much since escaping the bunker. There was nothing to say. Every second counted now.“We’ll need fuel in the next twenty miles,” Jared shouted over the storm.Mei nodded, wiping water from her eyes. “How do you even know this bike will make it?”“I don’t,” he replied flatly. “But it’s faster than walking.”The sky above them flashed—lightning streaked jagged through the clouds, illuminating the skeletal remains of a once-bustling town. The buildings
Episode 11: Beneath the Surface
The entrance to the uplink bunker was buried beneath layers of moss, rotting leaves, and a collapsed thicket of tree limbs. No one would have known it was there unless they were looking. And even then, it took Jared nearly twenty minutes to uncover the old steel hatch hidden beneath a camouflaged tarp coated in decades of forest debris.Mei knelt beside him, shivering from the cold sweat that came with fear. She held the rifle tightly, even though she hadn’t fired it once yet. Her hands trembled, but her stance didn’t break.“This is it?” she asked quietly.Jared gave a slight nod. “Used to be a failsafe command post. Remote systems control. It was taken offline before the Collapse.”“Why would they hide it way out here?”“Because it wasn’t meant to be found. Not by the public.”The badge Finn gave him still felt warm in his hand. Like it carried the weight of all the ghosts it had passed through before reaching him. He slid it into the scanner beside the hatch. There was a long silen
Episode 10: The Ones Who Wait in the Fog
The fog hadn’t lifted by sunrise. If anything, it had grown thicker—so dense Jared could barely see past the tree line without straining. Nature didn’t move like this unless something unnatural had disturbed it.He was already dressed in full tactical gear, rifle strapped tight across his chest, boots laced up to the shin. His breath was slow, even, but everything about his body was alert. Primed.Mei stood on the porch in his old hoodie and jeans that didn’t quite fit, trying to shake the cold out of her limbs. She looked at the treeline and then at him.“You’re going out there, aren’t you?”Jared nodded once. “North Ridge sector. Something pinged the motion sensors.”“Could it be an animal?”He strapped on his knife. “Not unless it knew how to disable the backup camera first.”Her mouth parted slightly. “Someone’s watching us.”“They’ve probably been watching for days.”She took a breath, trying not to panic. “Let me come with you.”“No.”“I’m not staying behind while you walk into
Episode 9: Shadows in Echo Ridge
They reached Echo Ridge just before sunset. The cabin sat at the top of a narrow gravel road, shrouded by thick pine trees and jagged cliffs on either side. To Mei, it looked like something out of a forgotten survival manual—modest, solid, a little crooked with age, but hidden well.Jared cut the engine and sat still for a second. His eyes swept the treeline like they always had before he approached any shelter—measured, alert. You didn’t survive as long as he had by assuming any place was truly empty.Mei leaned forward. “This is yours?”He nodded. “I built it after I left the service. Never brought anyone here.”“Why not?”“Because this was the only place in the world that was mine.”The wind picked up. It carried the faint scent of pine needles and distant smoke. Mei wrapped her arms around herself as they stepped out of the SUV. The air felt colder here—sharper.Jared led the way to the front door, keys already in hand. He paused as he reached for the knob.The door was slightly a
Episode 8: Fire on the Horizon
Jared didn’t waste time watching Mei pack. He knew the moment she walked back into that house, she’d feel the pull of comfort again. The luxury. The lie. If he gave her too long, she might stay.He loaded the SUV with what little gear he had—his old rucksack, a folded camp stove, a water filter he hadn’t touched in months. There was a sidearm buried in a lockbox under the driver’s seat. He checked it now, loading each bullet with mechanical precision.[Time Remaining: 66 hrs 03 mins][Objective: Evacuate Safe Zone]The system’s calm tone was beginning to unnerve him. Like a god whispering in a burning temple—offering guidance just moments before everything crumbled.Mei came back out fifteen minutes later, wearing a dark hoodie and jeans, a duffel bag slung over her shoulder. She looked different. Smaller. Like the world had finally reached her skin.“I didn’t bring much,” she murmured.“Good,” Jared said. “We’ll need room for supplies.”She climbed into the passenger seat without ano
Episode 7: The Tipping Point
The SUV’s engine rumbled low and steady like a warning growl. Jared stood beside it for a moment, listening, testing—every gear, every turn, every tremor in the machine. It wasn’t perfect. It wouldn’t outrun an explosion. But it would move, and in the days ahead, that was enough.He wiped his hands clean, though the grease clung to his fingers like guilt. The garage lights flickered. Another surge. The city’s power grid was failing in waves now, and no one was fixing it.[Time Remaining: 68 hrs 42 mins][Objective Update: Gather Med Supplies – In Progress]The system had gone quiet after that, no new prompts. No help. Just a countdown.He turned back toward the house.A sharp voice echoed through the halls upstairs—Mrs. Bai, again, her shrill tone cutting through silence like shattered glass.“You’re saying we can’t get through to the warehouse? What do you mean gone dark? Are you telling me the entire eastern district shut down and no one knows why?”Jared climbed the steps slowly, e
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