Chapter 2 2
2
The room was pitch dark, except for a young guy—Ethan—sitting in a cold metal chair with thick rope biting into his arms and legs. He barely moved, head hanging down, completely still.
A single tear slid down his cheek, then another, falling to the floor and leaving a shimmering puddle near his feet.
He spoke into the darkness, voice raw. "For people like us, the world is just some messed-up game we were never taught to play. We’re pawns for the rich. I was just a piece on their board, even though I tried to live my own life."
"Weak, broke, hopeless…and what’s the point? Why’d I end up like this? All I wanted was peace. I tried not to bother anyone. But then—yeah, I screwed up. I trusted someone. I gave her everything. She was my reason to keep going in this shithole of a world…" He choked out a laugh that twisted into a sob. "But she was a goddamn lie. My life, my everything, just one big lie!"
His words bounced off the walls, echoing back to him.
Ethan’s parents had worked themselves to death trying to give him a real future. He’d wanted to use that, to finally have some quiet, some happiness. Who could’ve seen it all unravel like this?
His old bully didn’t steal his girlfriend—she just chose money over him. It ate at him from the inside.
Ethan kept his head bowed. Tied up in the dark with no clue how to escape.
Beep.
Beep.
"Ethan! Don’t die, please!"
He heard a voice and strained to lift his head.
Light spilled through a door left open just a crack. The ropes around him fell away as if by magic.
He stood, shaky at first, and slowly walked toward the door. When he got there, he looked back—everything behind him was gone. The chair, the ropes, the puddle of tears, all vanished.
He let out a sigh and stepped through the door. Light flooded his vision, blinding him.
Beep.
"Ma’am, please wait outside so we can work."
"Ethan, don’t leave me!"
Muffled sounds swirled around him. That beeping grew louder.
Suddenly, he realized he was lying in a hospital bed. Two nurses hovered over him, and someone tried to keep a woman—Shelly—at bay.
Ethan forced his eyes open. At first, all he could see was a mess of blurry lights, then things sharpened into focus.
"He’s awake!"
"He made it!"
The nurses didn’t hide their relief. Shelly cried his name, rushed over, and wrapped him up in a tight hug.
Ethan stared at the ceiling, dazed by the faces and lights spinning around him. For a second, he couldn’t even piece together where he was.
Shelly pressed her tear-stained cheek to his chest. That feeling—a warm, solid hug—reminded him of real friendship. He almost traded it away for love that wasn’t real.
Ethan hugged her back, feeble but honest. Memories flooded him: the flashing blue-red ambulance lights, the siren blaring, then nothing.
"Ma’am, you have to be careful not to put pressure on his wound," a nurse said as she carefully moved Shelly aside.
Shelly nodded, dabbing her eyes with her sleeve.
Ethan’s brain started reconnecting the dots. He remembered the dark room, the fear, the hopelessness.
Doctors adjusted his IV, patched him up, and hurried around the bed.
"I’m alive," he thought, over and over.
A loud, strange beep echoed in his head—just like in the dark room. But this time, it didn’t come from any hospital machine.
He glanced toward the window, and all at once, words flashed before his eyes:
[Congratulations! You have accomplished the hidden quest.]
[You have been granted the Ethereal Adventure System.]
[Your dream can be achieved with this system. Power, wealth, super intelligence, and everything you ever wished for is now within reach.]
A reward notification hovered before him.
Ethan stared at the message, stunned. He looked at the nurses and the doctor, but none of them seemed to notice anything unusual.
"Can you see that?" he asked, pointing toward the system notifications floating in his vision.
One nurse knitted her brows. "Did he get brain damage? We need to run a test right away," she murmured, thinking he was hallucinating.
She shook her head no and got back to work, ignoring his bewildered question.
Ethan asked the others, but they just told him to rest and suggested more tests—maybe a brain scan.
"Is it really just me seeing this stuff?" he wondered aloud, confused and alone.
[Your reward is available now. Say ‘Open Reward’ to claim it. Note: You can summon your reward later if you want. Status is updating and will be available within twenty-four hours.]
Exhausted, Ethan decided to close his eyes. Maybe he was just seeing things because of all the stress. For now, he let himself drift, hoping things wouldn’t get worse.
Shelly sat in the doctor’s office, trying to wrap her head around everything. The doctor—barely looking up from his papers—started talking about money. “A full body scan’s three grand. The total? Twenty thousand. His wounds will take about two months, or heal partway before that. You’ll need to pay half upfront for him to stay.”
It slammed into her all at once. Twenty thousand dollars. Shelly made less than a thousand a month. Even her last two years of savings weren’t enough to cover half.
She just shook her head, knowing she had nothing close to that on hand. The doctor slid a paper across the desk, itemized and cold, and turned away.
Shelly made her way out, pain etched across her face as she walked toward Ethan’s room. She sat down next to his bed and quietly took his hand.
“We’ve lost everything in a single day because of that spoiled William family kid, Ethan. I wish I could have done more. Maybe then you wouldn’t have to feel so much pain.” Her voice broke, and she crushed the hospital bill in her fist.
Ethan was only half-awake, but he heard every word. He lay there, staring at the ceiling, silent, weighed down. His eyes flicked over to the faint, floating windows—small digital mirages only he could see.
He couldn’t get the thought out of his head that it was all real. He watched Shelly, asleep now and still holding his hand, her grip tight on the bill. In the soft hospital light, he made out the total and felt something in him harden.
He took a breath. “I can’t just rely on anyone else to save me. Not anymore.”
So, with a decision, he spoke, “Open the reward.”
The two windows merged into one; the text vanished, and swirling lights spun on the screen. Then, clear as day, there were words and numbers:
Congratulations! You have received $200,000 as a reward.
[Congratulations! You have received an elixir: Quick Healer 2.]
[Congratulations! You have received a skill set in heroic martial arts.]
[The system has synced with your real-life account; would you like it transferred now?]
It felt like some trick, some fever dream, but deep inside, Ethan was starting to believe this was really happening. He wanted proof—so he said yes.
His phone buzzed. He glanced at it, thinking it was a random notification—maybe social media. But when he grabbed his cracked old iPhone 6 and powered it up, a new alert flashed:
[You received $200,000 from Black Anonymous.]
His heart pounded as he stared at the screen. The exact same amount. His hands trembled as he opened the Cash app.
Balance: $206,567.00
He blinked, trying to make sense of it. This was real. It was really there.
[Cash reward sent successfully; please claim your other rewards within thirty minutes.]
He looked at the two remaining options. Martial arts skills and a golden Quick Healer elixir. He accepted both, and out of nowhere, a small bottle appeared in his hand.
Ethan just sat there, staring at it, almost laughing at how impossible this all felt. But he opened the bottle and took the liquid in one shot. Bland, but somehow refreshing. Warmth spread through him, especially around his stomach and his wounds.
He glanced at his arm. Dark vapor seeped from the gash, floating away. The pain faded. Within minutes, he felt his strength returning; his chest loosened up, his face healed, even his bruised eyes cleared.
He flexed his hands. Whole again. Stronger.
On the digital screen, messages flickered.
[Elixir: Quick Healer (1) has been stored in the system inventory.]
[Skill: Heroic Martial Arts (unlearned)]
[The reward has been received. The system will go offline now. To call it back, just think or say “System.”]
The floating window faded away, leaving Ethan staring at empty air and his healed body.
He looked at Shelly, at the stain of tears on her face. Money. Power. A new shot at life. All from this strange system.
“I can change everything,” he whispered. “Not just survive, but rise above all this. I’ll become someone who can turn this world upside down—even crush those who tried to ruin us.”
He clenc
hed his fist and punched forward, hope and wonder blazing in his eyes.
“With this system, I’ll take control of my life—and no one will hold me down again.”
