"What is a young man such as yourself looking for in this place? Are you lost?"
The old man asked, standing in front of Alaric.
Looking up at the old man, Alaric noticed the man's back was a bit hunched, yet he still looked healthy.
He was dressed in a black suit, with a golden walking stick in his hand.
"Excuse me?" Alaric was confused.
What could an old man dressed in such a fancy way be doing in a dark alley at this time of night?
'Is he lost?'
"I asked a question. Children these days are so rude," the old man spat.
'I don't have time for this...'
Alaric stood up from the ground, flinging the lighter to the side.
Just as he was about to take another step—
"You need money, don't you?"
That question was most definitely some kind of taunt.
Well, according to Alaric.
He turned around, his face filled with rage. "What was that, old man?"
"You have only three hours before the gang members decide to face your case. You can't outrun them."
The old man smiled as he spoke, almost as if he was enjoying the confusion etched on Alaric's face.
'H...ow does this old man know— is he part of the Red Axe?!'
Alaric flinched, taking two steps back.
"Life can be such a taxing thing. One second you're happy your sister is healed, and the next you're depressed because you're owing some dangerous people money. Quite a shame."
"W...what do you want?"
Alaric, though confused, remained calm.
He had already made up his mind; he was going to die anyway, so what was the point of running now?
"You've given up." The old man pointed his stick at Alaric. "Did you think about your sister? She'll be treated as a slave by those thugs and forced to do all sorts of nasty things while you rest in peace in your casket, failing the trust your elder sister had in you. Is that what you really want?"
Alaric frowned. "What...the hell? The last thing I need is an old man shoving my shit down my throat! You think I haven't thought of that?! What the hell am I supposed to do?! I don't have money! I'm poor, pathetic! What the hell do you expect from someone like me?!"
He could almost tear up, but his composure was strong.
"That's it, the anger you need. Winning and losing. That is all that should matter to you. You must win. Winning is everything; if you lose, win. If you win, win again and again until you get everything you want."
"What are you..."
Suddenly, the old man tossed a round coin at Alaric, about the size of his palm.
Alaric caught the coin, noticing a devil feeding a man an apple, drawn on the face of the coin.
"Under Rikan Bridge, you'll see a vending machine. Insert this into it and register yourself as a player. Your sister's and your safety depend on your decisions and conviction."
"Hold on a second, what do you mean by...?"
Alaric raised his head, only to see that the old man had disappeared, leaving no trace he was ever there.
'He's gone...'
He sighed, looking back at the coin.
'Under Rikan Bridge, huh?...' he laughed a bit, 'I can't believe I'm so desperate that I'll actually fall for this. I'm so messed up.'
Alaric turned around, gently placing the coin in his pocket.
'Regardless, I'll be damned if I don't give it a chance!'
He ran.
Sprinting through the city as fast as he could.
It was 10:16 p.m. Once midnight hit, he knew for a fact the Red Axe would come looking for him.
Luckily for him, Rikan Bridge wasn't far from where he was.
In less than seven minutes, he arrived, spotting the vending machine under the bridge.
It looked out of place, but Alaric didn't have the time to start questioning things.
He slid down the block, landing on the flat cement floor, before dashing forward until he arrived in front of the machine.
'The old man said to insert the coin in the machine...right? Right.'
Despite how he was panting after running so much, Alaric didn't pause for a single second.
He wanted to get it done as quickly as possible.
Tik!
Alaric pushed the coin inside the vending machine slot.
And waited.
Nothing happened.
"Fuck!"
Frustration took over, and he punched the vending machine, almost knocking it over, when all of a sudden—
[Coin has been received.]
Alaric was surprised.
Right in front of him was a red screen with the message on it.
[Host has been identified.]
[Name: Alaric Hainan.
Age: 19.
Occupation: None.
Compatibility with system: 100%.]
'Is this for real? Looks like something straight out of a manga.'
[Host is compatible with the system.]
[Would you like me to register you as a CEO?
(Yes) or (No).]
The options were displayed right in front of him.
One would think he would hesitate before making a decision.
Alaric was the type to follow through with his choices, even if it happened to be the day of rapture.
"Yes."
For some reason, he felt like saying it out loud would work.
[Congratulations, you are now a CEO.]
[Stylus name: RAVEN34.]
'Wait, that's it?'
Alaric took a few steps back.
[Congratulations, you have received $50,000 for joining.]
[Payment has been sent to your bank account.]
Alaric sighed. 'I know I'm seeing all this play out in front of me, but I'm supposed to expect $50,000 to just pop up in my account?'
Ding!
His phone buzzed in his pocket.
'No way, it couldn't have just...'
Reaching for his pocket, Alaric pulled out his phone, and immediately, he saw the notification.
[$50,000 has been deposited into your account from transaction ID xxx xxx xxxxx. Your updated balance is $50,000.]
His eyes widened, almost as if he had just seen a ghost.
Technically, he did. He had never seen such a huge amount of money before in his life.
"YOU'VE got to be kidding me!"
...
[A\N: Please let me know your thoughts on this story.]