The morning light filtered through the gray curtains, though he made sure he didn't forget to cover the curtains properly.
"I wonder who opened it," he said, subtly remembering he didn't actually cover it.
"Right, brain rot," he muttered, sliding off the bed slowly, his brain throbbing from an unknown pain.
He put on his slipper, walking toward the sitting room with only his boxer and a singlet on.
"Tiring day," he said, forgetting the day had barely started.
He laid down facing the floor and began doing some push-ups.
"I haven't done any morning exercises since I came into this world and now I'm slowly losing my fitness."
He pulled up like ten push-ups before his arms started wiggling and he had no choice but to give up.
"Exercise is not for the rich anyway," he said, trying to uplift his spirit.
He crawled near the sofa and climbed onto it.
"My arms ache, I barely did any exercises," he muttered between breaths, sitting upright.
He stared at the room, analyzing it as if he had left something undone the day before.
"That's right, where's my phone?"
He stood up and walked around the living room in search of it.
"Where did I keep it last? How bad is my memory?" he muttered, stroking his chin—scientists say it helps in remembering things.
He drifted to the room and saw the phone on the bed, the screen lit up with a notification. He walked up to it and noticed he had a notification 8 hrs ago, and it was from the system.
He quickly opened the notification, only to see a couple of words:
[System Update Complete.]
[New Trait: Predictive Combat Reflexes (Passive) has been added]
[Your reaction time to physical threats will now be instinctively enhanced]
"I thought this was locked until I got a third ally?" he asked, his expression mixed.
"It's probably a glitch from the system," he muttered, a smile slowly tugging on his face. "That means I got a skill without completing the task. Wonder if that can be set from the admin settings."
Soon, another notification lit up the screen in bright blue words:
[Task Complete: Recruit 3 Allies.]
Allies: Mia, Sera, ???
(Third slot locked —> pending confirmation.)
"A third ally has been verified??" he muttered in confusion. "How is this possible? And who is the person?"
He noticed another notification on the top-left corner of his phone. He slid the phone down and saw the notification was from the site he logged into earlier:
[Lazypuppy added you]
[Accept/Reject]
Well, if this was the third person the system confirmed, he better start getting to work then, because the money ain't gonna make itself.
Then he clicked the accept option after thinking about it for a while. He scrolled further to make sure there were no other notifications, then he chatted up Lazypuppy.
"Uhm hey, I am an investor looking for 30% gain from any businesses. If you're a business owner, pls describe your business and location for further considerations," he said in his head as he typed.
"That should be good," he said, smiling faintly before receiving a call from an unknown number.
He thought about it for a while before answering the call.
"Hello?"
"Yah, Liam," a female voice spoke through the phone.
"Yeah? Who's this?" he questioned, keeping his thoughts guarded.
"It's Mia," she responded sarcastically, wanting to see his reaction.
"I already have Mia's number. And how do you know us both?" he asked, his brain lagging a bit.
"Hmm," she sighed over the phone. "Well, figure it out, Mr. Investor."
Then his brain finally remembered where he had heard that voice before—it was from Sera.
"Sera?" he gasped, feeling a bit shocked that he didn't recognize her voice.
"No, I'm your mother," she answered sarcastically. "Of course I'm Sera!"
"My bad, I tend to forget things lately," he answered, placing his hand on his forehead softly.
"Well, what's happening today? Aren't you coming?" she asked.
"I'm currently on my way. I'll be there in a short while," he answered briefly, staring at his car-designed boxer.
"It's obvious you're at home," she responded.
"I guess you really are from the military. Anyway, yes I'm coming. Just give me a couple of minutes," he said, smiling and softly scratching his sagging sack.
"Alright then, be quick. The reconstructions will soon start taking place, and Mia is waiting for you," she said, then ended the call.
He stared at the number briefly before he dropped the phone on the table and drifted into the bathroom.
After a few minutes of bathing, he stumbled out and wore his clothes before eating breakfast and heading out the door—making sure to lock it behind him.
"It sure is hot today," he muttered, as he stared at the passing streets in the moving cab.
After a moment of rest, he got stopped right in front of the bakery. From the car, he saw Mia, Sera, and a couple of guys from the last renovation.
He walked up to Mia.
"Hey."
Mia, who was lost in thoughts, turned around to see him.
"Liam," she said.
"How are things? What did they say?" he asked, dropping his hands into his pocket for a better posture.
"They're saying it'll cost us about $12k to get it all done. And if we want it done in a week, it'll be $20k," she said, bending down sadly.
"I see why you were lost in thoughts now," he muttered, caressing her hair softly. "Don't worry about the payment, I'll deal with it."
She looked up to him, her expression lightened with a single teardrop dangling from her eyelid.
"Thank you."
She hugged him out of happiness, and he returned the hug while Sera stood behind them smirking faintly.
"What a nice couple."
Mia heard her comment and immediately let go, blushing hard.
"We're not a couple, just partners!" she responded, walking off with her cheeks still red.
Liam just smirked softly, not saying anything in return, then he walked up to the renovators.
"So what's your bargaining price in total?" he asked, softly activating the Charisma boost.
They looked at each other in unison, then nodded.
"We told her $20k, but since it's you, we'll take $14k for a week's work."
He smirked briefly.
"Alright, good deal," he nodded, then walked back to Mia.
"They agreed, and it'll be ready by next week. So you can be rest assured and not worry so much," he said.
"I don't know what I would have done without you, Liam," she said, almost crying.
He pulled out his phone.
"What are your details? Call them so I can send you a startup for next week."
She stared at him for a while, then answered,
"It's Mia Teopheluse with an 'e' at the ending."
He nodded, then tapped on the send option, receiving a debit notification of $9k.
She received a notification as well, and she couldn't believe her eyes.
"Why?"
"Because you're a hard worker, and I love hard workers," he muttered, stumbling toward the renovators again.
"When are you starting?" he asked.
"From tomorrow, boss," they answered.
"Alright. If you do a good job, I might just consider investing in your company as well," he said, giving them a subtle motivation to get the job done fast and well.
Then he walked up to Sera in private " I want you to track down someone for me" he said, his expression darker than it had ever been.