Rain poured over Aurelion City.
Behind the Sterling Grand Hotel, a young man sat in a dark alley, staring at his cracked phone.
His name was Davis Alexander Blackwood.
Eighteen years old. An Oxford business graduate. The last surviving member of a family that had once possessed extraordinary wealth.
Tonight, he had lost everything.
His job was gone. His savings were almost exhausted. The woman he loved had betrayed him.
Two hours earlier, he had discovered his girlfriend, Sidney Williams, kissing his boss, Richard Coleman, inside the office building.
When Davis demanded an explanation, Sidney had looked at him with cold eyes.
"You can't give me the life I want, Davis. Richard can."
Those words continued to echo inside his head.
He had worked overtime to buy her gifts. He had sacrificed his comfort to help her. He had imagined marrying her one day.
Apparently, none of it had mattered.
Davis clenched his fists.
"Father, you always told me that hard work would pay off. Mother, you told me never to give up."
He raised his face toward the rain.
"Then why am I alone?"
For several minutes, he sat in silence.
Then a strange electronic sound interrupted his thoughts.
DING!
A translucent blue screen appeared before his eyes.
[HOST DETECTED.]
[EMOTIONAL DISTRESS: EXTREME.]
[FINANCIAL STATUS: CRITICAL.]
[COMPATIBILITY WITH ALMIGHTY CASHBACK SYSTEM: 100%.]
Davis blinked.
"What is this?"
[CONGRATULATIONS! THE ALMIGHTY CASHBACK SYSTEM HAS AWAKENED.]
[WOULD THE HOST LIKE TO CLAIM THE BEGINNER'S GIFT PACKAGE?]
Two options appeared.
[YES] — [NO]
Davis stared at the screen.
He had nothing left to lose.
"Yes."
[BEGINNER'S GIFT PACKAGE CLAIMED!]
[REWARD ONE: £1,000,000.]
[REWARD TWO: OWNERSHIP OF A LUXURY PENTHOUSE.]
[REWARD THREE: 100% OWNERSHIP OF BLACKWOOD CAPITAL.]
[REWARD FOUR: CASHBACK MULTIPLIER UNLOCKED.]
[REWARD FIVE: BLACKWOOD FAMILY LEGACY — SEALED.]
His phone vibrated.
A banking notification appeared.
ACCOUNT CREDIT: £1,000,000.00
Davis stared at the screen.
He refreshed the banking application.
The money remained.
He refreshed it again.
Still there.
A laugh escaped his lips.
It gradually became louder until he was laughing beneath the rain.
For the first time that night, he felt something other than despair.
Hope.
Then another message appeared.
[FIRST MISSION ACTIVATED.]
[OBJECTIVE: ACQUIRE STERLING TOWER WITHIN 24 HOURS.]
[REWARD: PERMANENT TENFOLD CASHBACK MULTIPLIER.]
Davis looked toward the towering buildings beyond the alley.
Sterling Tower was one of the most valuable commercial properties in Aurelion.
He smiled.
"Richard Coleman. Sidney Williams."
"Tomorrow, everything changes."
He stood and walked out of the alley.
The world had taken everything from him.
Now he intended to take his future back.