Anthony was still stirring at the screen when his cracked phone suddenly vibrated.
Once.
Twice.
Then it rang.
A foreign number.
Unknown.
He hesitated.
“… What now?”
For a moment, he considered ignoring it.
His body was still aching, his mind still trying to process everything that had just happened.
But the phone kept ringing.
Relentless.
Finally, he answered.
“Hello?”
A pause.
Then a calm, professional male voice came through.
“Good evening, am I speaking with Mr Anthony A?” Anthony frown slightly.
“How did you get this number?”
A soft chuckle came from the other end.
“That’s not important right now.”
Silence.
The voice continued, steady and controlled.
“I’m calling from LEKKI tech dynamics corporate headquarters.”
Anthony’s eyes narrowed immediately.
“LEKKI tech?”
A brief pause.
Then the man spoke again_ this time more precise.
” We are conducting verification for a recent change in shareholder structure ”
Anthony’s heart tightened.
“What are you prattling about?”
The voice didn’t change tone.
“According to our internal records, a new 3% stakeholder was added under your name less than ten minutes ago.”
Anthony’s breath caught.
His eyes flicked toward the blue interface still faintly glowing in his vision.
The system was still silent.
But it was there.
All there.
Right in his face.
The man continued.
“We need confirmation that you are the authorized recipient of this allocation.”
Anthony didn’t answer immediately.
For the first time…
He realized this wasn’t a hallucination.
This wasn’t imagination.
This was a real-world reaction.
This is real.
Slowly, his back straightened.
Even with pain still in his body, his voice changed.
Lower and steadier.
“… And if I say yes?”
A brief pause on the line.
Then_
“Then Mr. Anthony, you will be invited to an emergency shareholder briefing tomorrow morning at Victoria island headquarters.”
Another pause.
The voice softened slightly, almost cautious now.
“And your life… Will change significantly from that moment onward.”
Anthony’s eyes darkened.
He looked down at his cracked hands.
And finally_ at the empty street where everything had started.
” I’ll be there.” He hung up.
The line ended.
Silence returned.
Anthony stood still for a moment.
Then slowly, almost instinctively, he whispered:
“… So it is real.”
The system responded instantly.
“Yes Host.”
A pause.
“Welcome to the beginning of your rise.”
…
sorry for the short chapter “-“.