The deal was done.
Kai watched Toby disappear down the street, backpack still hugged to his chest, the check folded neatly inside his jacket like it was a lifeline. In many ways, it was.
One life saved. One foundation laid.
Kai took a long breath, then turned his attention back to the translucent blue screen only he could see.
[Skill Acquired: Market Insight (Lv.1)]
[Passive Activated: You are now attuned to subtle fluctuations in future economic patterns. Use wisely.]
He blinked as a brief flash of data streamed across the corner of his vision stocks, real estate markets, tech startups, patent applications. The world had become numbers. Predictable. Exploitable.
He stood from the café seat, still in his oversized suit. It itched like hell, but it didn't matter.
He had two weeks just two before Damien began moving on early-stage investments using insider tips fed by corrupt syndicates. This time, Kai wouldn't just get ahead of him.
He would bury him.
Later That Night – Kai's Apartment
He spread out a tattered notebook on his desk and began scribbling, arrows, names, timelines all from memory.
GenIQ Technologies – Secured
TruCore Logistics – buy in next 10 days before drone partnership leak
Eaststream Fintech – top 3 blockchain IPO candidate by Q3
NeoVision Media – viral app launch imminent – manipulate buzz
He stopped at one name and circled it twice.
Damien Zheng – Target Alpha
But raw power wasn't enough. Not yet. Not in 2015.
He needed leverage. Resources. And allies smart ones. Loyal ones. Ones he could control.
That's when the system dinged again.
[New Side Quest Available: Recruit a Future Power Player Before They Rise]
Target Profile: Tang Mei-Lin – law student, future corporate defense attorney.
Reward: Legal Manipulation Skill + Future Contract Immunity Upgrade
Kai's eyes gleamed.
Mei-Lin… Of course. She would one day become the shield behind TitanCore's rivals, turning lawsuits into weapons and bankrupting entire firms with legal loopholes. In another life, she tore Kai's second startup to pieces after Damien framed him again.
But she wasn't a predator. Not yet.
He scribbled down the name of her university and a lecture schedule from memory.
The Next Day – East Lin Law University
It felt strange walking through campus again. He hadn't stepped foot here since he dropped out to support his mother's hospital bills. The pain was old, but now… now it just fueled him.
Outside the lecture hall, she was exactly as he remembered: sharp, confident, books cradled like weapons, eyes like knives. Tang Mei-Lin.
Kai waited until she stepped out alone and then walked straight up to her.
"Excuse me. I think you dropped something."
She raised a brow. "I don't think I did."
Kai held up a small slip of paper a fake business card he'd made earlier. On it: Zheng Investments. Private Capital & Strategic Consulting.
"You will," he said, "in about six months, when the banks start calling you for corporate litigation deals worth millions."
She blinked. "Who are you?"
He smiled. "A man with a very generous scholarship fund and a vested interest in your future brilliance."
[System Alert: First Contact Made with Power Player – Tang Mei-Lin]
[Charm Check Successful – Intermediate Tier Persuasion Unlocked]
Kai continued, voice cool and precise.
"You don't know me yet. But you will. And if you accept my offer today full tuition, apartment rent, and a part-time legal advisor contract you'll never have to work another side job again."
Mei-Lin folded her arms, skeptical.
"And what do you get?"
Kai leaned in just enough to let the weight of his words hang.
"When the war begins, I want you on my side."
She held his gaze. Then, slowly, nodded.
"Coffee. Tonight. You've got one shot to convince me."
Kai grinned.
"One shot's all I need."
[System Notice: Side Quest Updated – Persuade Mei-Lin to Join Your Inner Circle]
[Bonus Reward if Bond is Strengthened: Loyalty Upgrade + Future Scandal Immunity]
The pieces were moving.
First investments. First allies. The future wasn't just his to reclaim it was his to redesign.
Let the empire begin.
---
Coffee & Contracts
The café was dimly lit, tucked into the corner of East Lin's arts district a place frequented by students who wanted to feel a little more sophisticated than their wallets allowed.
Kai chose it deliberately. Not too flashy, not too cheap. Just enough ambiance to make a deal feel serious.
Tang Mei-Lin arrived exactly on time, coat draped over one arm, tablet in the other. She looked more like a corporate lawyer than a second-year law student.
Kai stood and gestured to the seat across from him. "Latte, extra shot. Your favorite, right?"
She paused. "Lucky guess?"
"Let's just say I do my research."
She took a sip, eyes never leaving him. "So, what exactly do you want, Mr. Zheng?"
Kai leaned back, fingers interlaced. "I want to build a company no, an empire. One that will tear through the financial world and rewrite the rules. I'll need someone who knows those rules. Someone who can twist them when necessary."
"You want a lawyer," she said flatly.
"No," Kai said. "I want you."
Her expression remained unreadable. "That sounds dangerously close to flattery."
"It's not," Kai replied. "It's strategy."
He slid a folder across the table. Inside: a preliminary contract, a full scholarship transfer document, and a limited partnership clause giving her a 1% stake in Kai's first major venture whatever form it took.
She glanced over it, brows slightly raised. "No NDA?"
"Not for this. I know you're too smart to sell out something you haven't fully understood yet. But if you do join me, the real contracts will come. The kind no one escapes."
Mei-Lin tapped the paper thoughtfully. "And if I refuse?"
Kai sipped his coffee calmly. "You won't. Because in three months, your mother's clinic in the lower district will be shut down due to unpaid regulatory fines. You're already working two jobs to help. With me, that problem vanishes."
Her eyes flared for a moment shock, then anger, then something colder. Calculation.
"You've been digging."
"I told you. I do my research."
Silence stretched between them.
Then she smiled, the first real one he'd seen from her.
"Fine. You've got yourself a devil's advocate. But one condition."
"Name it."
"If you ever become what you claim to hate one of them I'll be the first to burn you down."
Kai returned her smile with one of his own. "That's exactly why I chose you."
[System Update: Tang Mei-Lin Recruited – Loyalty: 45% | Intellect: 92%]
[Reward Unlocked: Legal Manipulation Skill (Lv.1)]
Skill Description: You can now identify and exploit legal loopholes to protect assets, attack rivals, or avoid consequences.]
Kai stood, shook her hand, and turned toward the window.
Only three days had passed since his "rebirth," but the empire was already rising. One ally, one investment, one play at a time.
But the storm was coming faster than he thought.
Because just down the street…
A black luxury sedan idled outside a high-rise office.
Inside, Damien Zheng stood in a dark suit, swirling whiskey in his glass, eyes fixed on a screen showing surveillance footage from Red Brick Café.
"That bastard…" he muttered.
"He's supposed to be dead."
His assistant shifted uncomfortably. "He's using aliases… but our cybertracers confirmed it. Kai Zheng is back."
Damien smiled darkly.
"Then let the game begin."