2026-09-10 15:50:07Ethan entered the electronics store with the confidence of someone who had a plan, even though he had no idea whether the plan would work.
The manager was still arguing with the delivery driver near the counter.
“I ordered twenty units,” the manager said. “You delivered thirty.”
“The warehouse sent the extra units by mistake,” the driver replied. “I was told to leave them here.”
Ethan glanced at the boxes.
He recognized the product immediately. It was a new processing device designed for professional computers. The manufacturer had announced that production would stop within a month because of a shortage of a specialized component.
Most people had not noticed the announcement yet.
Ethan had.
Financial Insight activated.
[Market opportunity detected.]
[Current estimated value: $420 per unit.]
[Projected value after supply shortage: $1,050–$1,300 per unit.]
Ethan looked at the manager.
“Are you planning to return the extra units?”
The manager turned toward him.
“That is none of your business.”
“I am interested in buying them.”
The manager studied Ethan's rain-soaked clothes.
“You?”
Ethan almost laughed. Only an hour earlier, he had been a senior executive at one of the city's largest companies. Now a store manager was judging him by his appearance.
“I can offer you $250 per unit for ten units,” Ethan said.
The manager laughed.
“The retail price is nearly twice that.”
“You also have no reason to keep excess stock that you did not order.”
The manager's smile disappeared.
Ethan continued.
“If you return them, you will spend time dealing with the supplier. If you sell them to me today, you recover your money immediately.”
The manager crossed his arms.
“Why would you want ten?”
“Because I know their value will increase.”
The manager shook his head.
“I am not selling below cost.”
Ethan turned to leave.
“Wait.”
The manager looked at him.
“$300 each.”
Ethan considered it.
The system displayed another message.
[Negotiation opportunity detected.]
[Recommended maximum purchase price: $350 per unit.]
Ethan nodded.
“I will take ten for $330 each.”
The manager hesitated before accepting.
Ethan counted his remaining cash.
It was nowhere near enough.
He remembered the company account that had been frozen and the settlement Richard had offered.
Then an idea occurred to him.
“Do you accept short-term private financing?”
The manager stared at him.
“What?”
“I can bring you a buyer who will purchase all twenty units at a higher price. You give me ten minutes to arrange the deal, and I will take my commission from the difference.”
The manager laughed again.
“You expect me to trust you?”
“No. I expect you to trust your own numbers.”
Ethan pointed toward the boxes.
“You have thirty units. You only ordered twenty. If you can sell the extra ten for profit, you solve your problem. If I fail, you lose nothing.”
The manager thought for several seconds.
“Ten minutes.”
Ethan stepped outside and called Daniel.
“I need a favor.”
Daniel answered immediately.
“What happened?”
“I found a product that is about to become scarce. I need you to locate ten buyers who specialize in computer equipment.”
“Ethan, are you serious?”
“Very.”
Daniel sighed.
“I will try.”
Ethan sent him the product number.
Within eight minutes, Daniel called back.
“I found three companies interested.”
“Good. What are they offering?”
“The highest offer is $520 per unit.”
Ethan smiled.
“Tell them I can provide ten units at $500 each if they transfer the money today.”
“You already have them?”
“Not yet.”
Daniel was silent.
“You are buying inventory you do not own?”
“I am creating a deal.”
“That sounds dangerous.”
“It is.”
Daniel gave him the buyer's contact information.
Ethan returned to the store and spoke with the manager.
“Ten units at $330 each. I have a buyer willing to pay $500.”
The manager's eyes widened.
“You already found someone?”
“Yes.”
The manager quickly checked the buyer's company.
After confirming the information, he agreed.
The transaction took less than twenty minutes.
Ethan's first deal generated $1,700 in profit.
It was not enough to make him wealthy, but it was enough to prove something important.
He could build himself back up.
The system appeared.
[Challenge progress updated.]
[Current earnings: $1,700.]
[Required earnings: $10,000.]
[Time remaining: 71 hours.]
[Bonus reward: Financial Insight level increased.]
Ethan felt a strange satisfaction.
Then his phone vibrated.
Daniel had sent him another message.
“I found something about the old building.”
Ethan opened it.
The message contained a photograph and an address.
Daniel wrote:
“Officially, the building was demolished. Unofficially, someone has been paying security guards to keep people away from the property.”
Ethan stared at the photograph.
The building stood in darkness, surrounded by a tall metal fence.
A familiar symbol was visible above the entrance.
The same symbol from his father's watch.
Before Ethan could respond, another message arrived.
“This gets worse. I found the name of the company that owns the property.”
Ethan's heart tightened.
“What company?”
Daniel sent the name.
Ethan read it once.
Then again.
The company belonged to Richard Cole.
The system appeared instantly.
[Major clue confirmed.]
[Hidden Mission updated.]
[Objective: Enter the restricted property and discover what is being concealed.]
[Reward: 300 System Points.]
Ethan looked toward the darkening sky.
Richard had taken his job, his home, and his money.
Now Ethan had discovered that his uncle might also be connected to the secret behind his father's disappearance.
He slipped the phone into his pocket.
For the first time, Ethan was no longer running from his problems.
He was going straight toward them.
But as he walked away from the electronics store, a second black vehicle appeared across the road.
Someone inside was watching him again.
This time, Ethan noticed.
The vehicle accelerated and disappeared around the corner.
Ethan did not chase it.
He simply smiled.
If Richard wanted a war, he was about to get one.
Ethan did not know who was inside, but he understood one thing clearly: whatever waited behind that fence had already noticed his return. And it was waiting for him.
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
The Witness who Could Not Answer
The countdown reached forty-seven seconds before Ethan ordered everyone to stop speaking.Nurse Amaka had been dead for six years. Her name appeared in the hospital's archived personnel records, her death certificate had been verified, and her employment file had been closed. Whatever was generating the notification had no right to demand a response from someone who could no longer give one.“Daniel, preserve the countdown exactly as it appears,” Ethan said. “Mara, confirm that nothing connected to this request can affect the hospital's doors, patient records, or medical equipment.”Daniel began recording the terminal's activity while Mara contacted the hospital's technical supervisor. The administrator moved the paper documents away from the screen and ordered staff to keep the corridor clear without disturbing Adrian or Elias.The countdown continued.WITNESS CONFIRMATION: 00:31.Daniel examined the notification's metadata. “The system isn't communicating with a nurse's account. It'
The Signature Before the Name
The timestamp on the authorization changed everything, but it proved less than the archive wanted them to believe. Adrian had entered Room 317 eleven years earlier; the replacement request had supposedly been approved during that same minute. The record offered no name, only a status that treated an unidentified custodian as an unquestionable authority.Ethan asked Daniel to compare the timestamp with the hospital's original ledger, not the reconstructed digital file. “We need to know whether these records were created together or joined later. Until then, nobody calls this Adrian's approval.”Daniel contacted the records officer, who retrieved a sealed storage box from the hospital archive. The box had remained untouched since the old ward system was retired. Two officials documented its condition before opening it, and Mara ensured the security team did not remove any page without recording the transfer.Inside lay a carbon-copy register, several maintenance sheets, and a narrow env
The Authorization that lied
Ethan stared at the hospital administrator's screen, where his name appeared beneath a request for access to Room 317. The authorization carried his executive credential, a valid signature, and a timestamp showing that the request had been submitted less than thirty seconds earlier.He had never touched the hospital access system.“Freeze the request,” he instructed. “Do not approve it, and do not reject it yet. Preserve the original record and create an independent copy.”The administrator contacted hospital security while Daniel examined the authorization through an isolated device. Victoria remained connected to the conference call, listening as the technical details emerged.“The credential is genuine,” Daniel said. “The signature matches Ethan's certificate, but that doesn't mean Ethan created the request. Someone may have copied the signing authority or used a system permitted to act under his certificate.”“Can you identify the originating device?”“The record lists the executi
The Voice behind the Wall
The ticking continued for eleven seconds before Ethan heard a voice coming from the sealed wall.“My name is not the question you should be asking.”Ethan remained beside the records cabinet, keeping the evidence tray within the hospital administrator’s view. Daniel had disconnected the terminal, but the isolated screen had awakened again, displaying a single line that neither of them had entered.ONE QUESTION REMAINS.“You agreed to identify yourself,” Ethan replied. “You cannot change the terms after I have honored them.”“I agreed to answer one question. I did not agree to answer yours.”Victoria joined through the secure call. “Then clarify the arrangement before anyone proceeds. If you expect cooperation, you must explain what you are offering and what you are asking in return.”The voice fell silent.Mara checked the corridor. No person stood near the wall, and the facilities manager confirmed that the sealed passage remained inaccessible. The ticking, however, continued. Its rh
The Room That Kept it's Time
The alert reached Ethan before the hospital called. Room 317 had registered an incoming visitor, but the timestamp placed the arrival eleven years earlier, during the night Adrian first entered Saint Orson Hospital and stopped responding. The visitor’s identity field was blank. The destination field was exact.Ethan ordered Daniel to preserve the alert and send a copy to the independent auditors. Victoria arranged a secure call with the hospital administrator, while Mara prepared a team to accompany Ethan without entering any restricted area. Nobody would open a door because a screen demanded it.“Room 317 is occupied by Adrian,” Daniel said. “The hospital’s live record confirms he is still there with Elias. But the visitor record is attached to an archived ward system that was supposedly retired.”“Supposedly?” Ethan asked.“The archive has no closure certificate. It has a maintenance note saying the ward system was disconnected, then a second note saying its clock would remain activ
The Call from Two Places
Ethan did not turn when the phone rang. The map still showed Elias Cole standing behind him, although the security feed showed an empty corridor and every officer on the floor had confirmed that nobody had passed the conference room.“Daniel, answer the call on speaker,” Ethan said. “Keep the line recording, and don’t merge it with the building system.”Daniel connected the call. “Elias, can you hear us?”“I can,” Elias replied. His voice sounded strained, as though he had been running. “Why are you calling me from the executive floor?”“We didn’t call you first. Your number called us.”“That is impossible. I’m at the hospital with Adrian.”Ethan watched the map. The marker remained behind him. “Can you see the executive floor on your end?”“No. I can see the call record. It says the call began from your office, but I didn’t place it.”Ethan kept his eyes on the empty doorway. “Then we have two records and no reliable account of who initiated this. We need to establish where you are w
You may also like
WAR GOD'S REVENGE
Ardy-sensei100.6K viewsTRILLIONAIRE ON TOP
Sweet savage228.5K viewsThe Almighty Dominance
Sunshine2.5M viewsBillionaire in Disguise
Faith127.5K viewsSILENT REAPER
Chidezny216 viewsAFTER THE DIVORCE, SHE FOUND OUT I'M A TRILLIONAIRE
ISHOLA MATTHEW OLAMIDE 293 viewsThe Forgotten Heir Of Pendragon
Lightpen58 viewsThe Disgraced Heir: A Trillion-Dollar Revenge
M.A187 views