Zero to Trillionaire: The Scholar’s God-Tier System

Ethan POV

Rrip.

The sound was louder than a gunshot in the quiet chemistry lab.

"Stop! Bryan, stop!" I lunged forward, but two guys from the football team grabbed my arms. They held me tight, their fingers digging into my skin like iron claws. I could only watch.

Bryan Montgomery stood over the lab’s waste sink, a smirk on his face. In his hands was my research binder—three years of data, thousands of hours of sweat, and my only hope of paying for my mother’s heart surgery. He gripped the thick stack of papers and tore them again.

Rrip.

"You know, Ethan," Bryan said, his voice calm and cruel. "I actually did you a favor. This wastewater treatment garbage was never going to work. You’re a charity case, not a scientist."

He tossed the shredded remains of my life into the sink. Then, he reached for a bottle of concentrated sulfuric acid.

"No! Please!" I kicked and struggled, but the guys just laughed.

Bryan poured the acid. I watched as the liquid hissed and smoked, eating away at my formulas, my graphs, and my future. In seconds, the paper turned into a black, bubbling mush.

"There," Bryan said, wiping his hands on his expensive jeans. "Now you won't have to stay up all night working. You can spend more time thinking about how a loser like you ever thought he could keep a girl like Chloe."

I looked toward the door. Chloe was standing there, holding a designer bag I’d never seen before. She didn't look angry. She didn't look sad. She just looked bored.

"Chloe, help me," I gasped. "Tell them to stop."

She walked over, but she didn't look at me. She looked at Bryan and tucked her arm into his. "Let’s go, Bryan. The smell of this place is getting on my clothes. And Ethan?" She finally glanced at me, her eyes colder than the acid in the sink. "Stop calling me. I can’t be with someone who has to count pennies just to buy a burger. We’re over."

The guys let go of me. I fell to the floor, my knees hitting the hard tile.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Bryan said. He reached into his leather wallet and pulled out a crisp $100 bill. He flicked it at me.

The bill fluttered through the air and landed in a puddle of distilled water right in front of my face.

"That’s for your 'hard work,'" Bryan laughed. "Buy yourself a nice meal. It’s probably more money than your whole family makes in a month."

They walked out, their laughter echoing off the walls. I sat there on the cold floor, staring at the black sludge in the sink. My chest felt like it was being crushed. My mother... the surgery... the patent... it was all gone.

My phone buzzed. It was a text from the University Dean.

“Student Ethan Vance, your scholarship is officially revoked due to a report of lab safety violations filed by the Montgomery Foundation. Please vacate your room by 6 PM today.”

He didn't just dump me. He didn't just ruin my research. He was erasing me.

I put my head in my hands and let out a choked sob. I had played by the rules. I had worked three jobs. I had studied until my eyes bled. And for what? To be stepped on like an ant by someone who was born with a silver spoon?

"I hate this," I whispered into the empty lab. "I hate this world."

Ding.

A sound like a sharp bell rang inside my skull. The world didn't just go quiet—it stopped. A drop of water falling from the faucet froze in mid-air.

[System Loading...10%... 50%... 100%]

[Absolute Despair Detected. Soul Frequency Matching...]

[Binding Sovereign Scholar System to Host: Ethan Vance.]

A blue screen, glowing and sharp, appeared right in front of my eyes.

[Welcome, Ethan Vance. You have been a victim for 21 years. That ends now.]

[Initial Gift Unlocked: The First Trillion.]

[Reward: $10,000,000.00 has been deposited into your personal account.]

[Reward: Brain Overclocking Unlocked. Your IQ is now beyond human measurement.]

My phone vibrated again. I pulled it out with shaking hands. It wasn't a text. It was a notification from my banking app.

“Account Balance: $10,000,008.50.”

I stared at the numbers. The eight dollars was for my dinner. The ten million... that was enough to buy the lab. That was enough to buy the whole school.

[New Mission: The First Slap.]

[Objective: Bryan Montgomery is currently at the Blue Velvet club celebrating your downfall. Go there and show him what real wealth looks like.]

[Time Limit: 2 Hours.]

[Reward: Master Combat Skills & The Ghost Luxury Car.]

I looked at the $100 bill on the wet floor. I picked it up and stood up.

My body didn't feel heavy anymore. My mind felt like a supercomputer. I could see the molecular structure of the acid in the sink. I could calculate the exact amount of force needed to break a human jaw.

I tucked the $100 bill into my pocket.

"Bryan," I said, my voice cold and steady. "I’m coming for my change."