The Real Life System

"I'll make it fair for you "

Adrian was determined to complete his goal. He had a plan to make sure he earned exactly 200$. He came up with a solution:

"One of you buys the coat from me for 150$, and the other buys it from the market, but on the condition that you add 50$ for me so I can complete my 200$."

The men agreed to the deal. Adrian continued selling coats, one by one. He managed to sell four coats in total, keeping the last one for himself. After all the sales, he successfully collected 1000$.

But then, reality hit him.

The system screen displayed:

[Time left: 15 minutes]

[Current temperature: -5°C]

[You still have a credit: 9 meals]

Adrian felt a sharp shock run through his body. He suddenly remembered, his goal wasn't just about collecting money. He had made a promise.

"I have to buy 10 meals… That means I need 500$. But if I do that, I can't complete my goal..."

He felt hopeless. There was no way out. His plan had failed.

Frustrated, Adrian gave up and went to buy the meals anyway. But as he stepped out of the restaurant, something strange happened.

[You still have a credit: 9 meals]

His heart pounded.

"Wait... wasn't it supposed to be 10?"

A terrible thought crossed his mind.

"Don't tell me..."

He turned and ran as fast as he could, heading straight for the first floor of the building. His breath was heavy, his body shaking, but he didn't stop.

The first floor… The old lady's room.

She was the only one who hadn't come out to buy a coat.

He knocked on the door. No response.

He knocked again, harder this time. Still nothing.

Panic rushed through him. He had no choice, he had to break the door. He threw himself against it, and surprisingly, despite his skinny body, the door gave way.

Inside, he found the old woman on the ground, unconscious.

He rushed to her side and checked her pulse.

She was still alive.

Adrian let out a deep sigh of relief. Without hesitation, he took off his own coat and wrapped it around her. He looked around the room and saw a heater in the corner. He gently lifted the old woman onto a chair and dragged her towards the warmth.

He splashed some water on her face, hoping she would wake up.

Slowly, her eyes opened. She saw Adrian's face, full of worry. She looked around, realizing what had happened.

Adrian relaxed a little and handed her a meal.

"Sorry for the inconvenience. Here's your meal. I'll leave now."

But just as he was about to leave, she grabbed his hand.

She was too weak to speak, but she reached into her pocket and pulled out a stack of money, 500$.

Adrian's eyes widened. His heart pounded.

This was exactly the amount he needed.

Tears welled up in his eyes.

The old woman smiled and nodded, encouraging him to take it.

"Don't worry," she said with difficulty.

"I still have some money. After all, I am the guest of the first floor."

Adrian frowned, confused.

"What does that mean?"

She explained, "The less wealthy the guest is, the higher floor they live on. I am the richest resident here."

Adrian was shocked. He had assumed that everyone in the building had the same financial situation.

"Well, my lady, oh..."

A sudden shiver ran down his spine.

The cold was becoming unbearable.

He had just realized, he no longer had his coat.

The system displayed:

[Time left: 9 minutes]

[Current temperature: -11°C]

[You still have a credit: 9 meals]

There was no time to think.

"I have to succeed."

He ran to the second floor, delivering the meal.

Then the third.

Then the fourth.

The system updated:

[Time left: 6 minutes]

[Current temperature: -14°C]

[You still have a credit: 4 meals]

His body was failing him.

His vision blurred.

His legs felt like they were moving on their own, like a zombie.

But he kept going.

Finally, he reached the last floor.

The system displayed:

[Time left: 4 minutes]

[Current temperature: -16°C]

[You still have a credit: 1 meal]

He knocked on the door.

No answer.

He tried again, but his hands were too weak. Even he couldn't hear the sound of his own knocking.

A thick fog filled his vision.

The cold became unbearable.

His body collapsed.

BOOM...

Adrian opened his eyes.

The ceiling looked familiar.

'' am I in the hospital !? ''

His head was heavy. His body was weak.

He slowly leaned against the headboard of his bed.

What had happened?

Confused, he reached out toward the system screen, skipping past all the unnecessary information, focusing only on the result.

The system displayed:

[The Rebels' System congratulates you. You have completed Exercise 1 successfully.]

[Target Goal: $1000]

[Your Record: $1000]

[Exercise 1: Completed]

[Exercise 2: Available]

[Exercise 3: Locked]

[Exercise 4: Locked]

[Take Your Prize]

Adrian stared at the screen, his mind racing.

He had done it.

He had completed the challenge finally.

But what awaited him next? 

Adrian sat on his bed, staring at the system's message. He had completed the exercise, but something still didn't make sense.

He asked himself,

"How did I do it? I remember losing consciousness and falling hard... Hard!?"

Then, suddenly, he chuckled.

"Hah! So that's how it was! The last man must have heard me fall and opened the door before I died. How lucky I am!"

But as he thought deeper, his smile faded.

"Wait… These system simulations… They feel so real. If I don't pay more attention, I might actually die in one of them."

He shivered slightly, realizing how close he had come to the end.

"I have to thank the old lady. She saved me."

He sat up, trying to recall any useful details from his conversations.

"She told me they were planning to travel to Nyouma… Nyouma…" His eyes widened as he remembered something.

"Wait a second… Isn't that the city 50 km east of here?"

His heart pounded as a strange realization hit him.

"Are these people… real? Just like in my first training experience, where I met those killers?"

He felt a wave of confusion and unease wash over him. Something about this system was strange. There was a mystery behind it, something he hadn't understood yet.

"There's something big going on here," he whispered to himself.

Adrian tried to push those strange thoughts aside.

"There's no point in thinking too much about it now," he told himself.

"All I can do is keep moving forward and complete the system's exercises."

Just then, he remembered something, he hadn't opened his prize yet, nor had he checked his updated ranking. His curiosity grew, and without wasting time, he pressed the option on the system screen:

[ Take your prize. ]

Suddenly, a golden bank card appeared in the air before him. His eyes widened in amazement. The card floated gently, shimmering under the room's light. He reached out and grabbed it, feeling its smooth, premium texture. The design was incredible elegant and futuristic, something far beyond what he had ever seen before.

Then, another system message appeared:

[ Congratulations! You now have a bank account. Check it. Code: XXXX ]

Adrian stared at the message in shock.

"A bank account? But I never created one!"

He had never had enough money to open one, unlike his friends who all had accounts and savings. His heart pounded with excitement.

A wide grin spread across his face. This was a huge moment for him.

"I finally have an account... my own account!" he thought.

"This is unbelievable!"

Now, all he could think about was getting out of the hospital as soon as possible to check his balance. He felt confident that he would find 1,000$, the amount he had earned in the simulated zone. His excitement was overwhelming, and he whispered to himself:

"I can't wait to see how much money is in there… this is just the beginning!"