CHAPTER 1 - Author's Prologue

[New Task >> Get the information from the man. Either by negotiation or by Physicality]

"What?" The tall, muscular man muttered to himself.

"Get the information from your witness," The computerized voice said. "You have two options to do it. Negotiate, or use Physical contact."

The man paced the dark room. "What does Physical contact mean?" He muttered to himself again.

No answer.

The system remained silent.

"Did you hear me?" The man asked in a fierce whisper.

The system remained silent.

The man's bodyguards shuffled on their feet uncertainly, wondering why their boss was muttering to himself and leaving their witness – who was the chief of staff of the Salvatore Empire – seated with a smug smile on his lip.

"You can't do anything," The witness said. His name was Hobie Galdin, the chief of staff and major controller of the Salvatore Empire.

The tall man stopped his pacing and faced Hobie, "What did you say?" He asked.

Hobie chuckled, "You think you are something. You think you are someone to be feared, but let me tell you, you are still nothing. Nothing!" He half yelled the last word. "You hear me?!" He adjusted his body to sit in a more comfortable position

The tall man came to crouch in front of Hobie, "I don't think you understand your situation," He said in a deep voice. "You have been cornered. My bodyguards are all over the place, and you are not going anywhere until you sign over the major Salvatore Estate and Company in New York, to me."

Hobie chuckled and said, "We have been at this for, how long now?" He checked his wrist watch and continued, "3 hours. You have pleaded, begged, tried to bully … and where has that gotten you? Nowhere!" He burst into laughter again.

The man stood up and ran his fingers through his hair.

"Sir," One of his bodyguards called, "Do you want us to lead this man outside and deal with him?"

The man turned and looked at the bodyguard and then he shook his head, "No. Not yet."

[Negotiation or Physicality?] The computerized voice beeped in his head again.

He thought about this. He had been trying to negotiate for the past 3 hours, and he was a bit curious about the second option, so he said, "Physicality."

[Option picked > Physicality]

[New ability > Physical strength increased by 100%]

[Phyical muscle increased by 20%]

[Intimidating aura increased by 200%]

The tall man closed his eyes as the system activated the newly unlocked abilities. He felt the muscles of his arms increase slightly and he felt the rush in his blood. It felt like adrenaline.

He walked and stopped in front of Hobie.

"What do you want now?" Hobie asked.

"Just to ask a question."

"What is it?"

"Do you have medical insurance?" The man asked.

Hobie was taken aback by this strange question. Slowly, he nodded. "Well, yes. I have dental insur–"

"That's all I needed to hear," The tall man said. His hand lashed and hit Hobie in his jaw. Just one fast and hard hit.

Hobie snorted and gasped as he was thrown back and against the chair before he leaned over and hung his head between his knees. He coughed out blood and two teeth.

The tall man used his thumb and index fingers to pick the papers and placed them on the seat beside Hobie. "Sign them!"

Hobie coughed out more blood and another tooth fell out. But he struggled up, grasped the papers, and scrawled his name across it.

The man smiled, nodded, and stood up. He folded the paper and put it in the briefcase held open by one of his guards. He made a circling motion with his hand meaning that they were leaving. His bodyguards followed him out and into a limousine that was waiting for him.

He stood just outside the open back door and turned to a small chubby man.

"Fleck, Are we in?" He asked.

The chubby man called Fleck nodded. His thick glasses cast a white reflection in the darkness against the blue light of his laptop. "Yes, sir. I believe we are in," He tapped some keys on the laptop.

"Good," The tall mysterious man said. "Now, I want you to dump all the stock prices."

"S-sir?" Fleck asked, "That would be liquidating over 20 billion dollars. You would be throwing all that away."

"Do it."

Fleck swallowed and nodded. He tapped some keys on the laptop and then turned it to face the mysterious man, who glanced at the screen and nodded at the large red bars signifying the drop in the stock values. He nodded and said, "Good. Now, I will await the call." Then he got into the limousine which started with a silent whine of the engine and drove off into the night, followed by the entourage of 3 SUVs.

That man is Arthur Salvatore.

He had always been rich, but he was not always so harsh and bold. He was once a wimpy and soft-spoken man.

Let me tell you the story of Arthur Salvatore, the boy who went from being spat on, to the man who made the knees of his enemies tremble.