"Skill?"
Max found it intriguing and quickly glanced at the skill bar.
[Driving a sports car with one hand]
Trigger condition: The car must be a sports car.
Effect: Driving skills upgraded to master level
Charm +20
Opposite sex favorability in the car +20
10% chance to trigger love-at-first-sight effect.
[PS: You might not be the most handsome man alive, but you'll look darn good driving a Ferrari with one hand!]
...
"Ha!"
This skill...
It seems the focus isn't really about driving with one hand; it's about the sports car!
Max couldn't help but chuckle, but upon further thought, driving a sports car with one hand... it does sound pretty cool!
Of course, that's just wishful thinking.
Though Max isn't a car expert, he knows enough about Ferraris to realize they're pricey. Even the cheapest model, the California T, starts at $300,000. Other models cost significantly more.
With his current income from the system at $100,000 annually, it would take him four or five years to afford one.
If you ask him whether he likes Ferraris, he'd say yes without a doubt.
Few men can resist the allure of a top sports car, just as few women can resist a diamond the size of a pigeon's egg!
"It looks like I need to level up!" Max mused.
He needed to increase his level quickly to boost his daily income.
Just starting college and needing a laptop.
And he already had his eye on one: the XPS 17, the latest model of the year, priced at $2,000!
The reason for choosing this laptop? Simply put: he likes it!
He often reads online about how the wealthy should buy not just expensive things, but the most expensive things.
Max thought those who said this were either show-offs or nonsensical.
True sophistication lies in buying what you genuinely like. When you encounter something you love, you'd pay $100 million for it just as willingly as you'd pay $1.
Money can't buy good taste!
That's his philosophy!
Besides, Papa Max still eats instant noodles often. Does that mean he can't afford a decent meal?
Decision made, Max took out his phone and proceeded to place an order without hesitation.
He entered the store, selected the model and configuration, filled in the delivery address, and made the payment in one go.
After buying the laptop, he immediately checked the system interface.
Host: Max
Level: LV2
LV1 privilege reward: Earn 20 cents every time you blink
Upgrade experience: 0/100,000 (Experience can only be obtained through spending and not through borrowing or earning!)
System store: Currently closed
Items: [LV2 Privilege Gift Pack],
[Stock Trading Mastery]
Skill: [Driving a sports car with one hand]
Balance: $86.70
...
Sure enough, after leveling up to LV2, the income per blink doubled to 20 cents.
$76 a day!
This way, the laptop he just bought would pay for itself in just over three weeks.
In addition, upon leveling up, he received a gift pack.
"Open the gift pack!"
"Ding!"
"Congratulations to the host for opening the [LV2 Privilege Gift Pack] and receiving a one-time item."
[Consumption Rebate Critical Strike Card]: Use this card to specify a purchase. After the purchase, you have a chance to receive a rebate of 50%-500%, with the chance of a critical strike being random. (PS: Is it more likely to be an emperor in Europe or a chieftain in Africa?)
...
"Nice! What a great item!"
Reading the item description, Max was delighted.
Specifying a purchase could not only get rebates but also potentially multiply them several times over. No matter how you looked at it, it was a win-win situation.
The moment Max got the card, his first thought was to ask his parents for a loan.
After all, the more you spend, the more you earn.
Spending $500,000 at once, becoming a European emperor, tripling the critical strike, would earn him $2 million. Even if he was unlucky and only got a 50% rebate, he'd still earn $250,000.
But soon, he dismissed the idea.
Asking for a few hundred dollars in pocket money was one thing, but asking for $500,000 would be out of the question. Besides, he didn't have a suitable excuse.
Max did some calculations. After buying the laptop, he had just over $80,000 left.
With luck, he could earn two to three hundred thousand.
To spend or not to spend?
After a moment's thought, Max decided to wait.
Clearly, the more money he spent using the critical strike card, the greater his potential earnings. Now that he'd leveled up to LV2, earning $76 a day meant $2,280 a month, plus a stable $200,000 in savings.
However, Max hesitated again. To upgrade to LV3, he needed to spend $100,000. After upgrading, his daily earnings would increase significantly.
"Let's wait. I don't have $100,000 right now anyway!"
Decision made, Max realized it was almost 2 o'clock. He got up and said to his mom, "Mom, I'm heading to the driving school for a lesson."
Without looking up, Mrs. Smith replied, "Take an umbrella. It's scorching outside, and you could get heatstroke."
Though it felt odd for a grown man to carry an umbrella, with temperatures nearing 100 degrees Fahrenheit outside, Max grabbed one.
Anybody who's taken driving lessons knows that more than a dozen students share a car with an instructor, practicing driving for ten minutes at a time, with the rest spent waiting.
In this weather, an hour or two in the sun could lead to heatstroke.
Having signed up for the driving school's VIP class, which had fewer students than the regular class, Max still had to wait.
It was simple enough: after the college entrance exam, many students planned to take the driving test during summer vacation, leading to a surge in VIP class enrollment.
Pushing open the door, Max felt the heat hit his face.
In just seconds, the brutal sun caused a slight stinging sensation on the back of his neck.
"Taking an umbrella was definitely a good call."
Holding an umbrella in one hand, Max rode his electric scooter leisurely towards the driving school.
...
"Max?"
Just past a fork in the road, a familiar voice called out suddenly.
Max was taken aback, stopped the scooter, turned to look, and smiled. "Hey, isn't that Emma?"
Under the bus shelter on the side of the road stood a slim young woman.
Even without makeup, her delicate facial features could easily score 90 out of 100. Standing at 5 feet 6 inches tall, she wore a white dress with long black hair cascading down her shoulders, giving her an ethereal aura.
Emma rolled her eyes at him and said, "Max, can't you be serious for once? All you do is tease me."
Emma and Max were classmates. Both were known for their exceptional looks and personalities, often being mentioned alongside two other girls as the top three beauties of their school.