I sat there on the cold pavement, head bowed, hair soaked and clinging to my face.
Rain poured down in thick, merciless sheets, drenching me from head to toe.
My clothes clung to my skin, heavy and cold, but the chill barely registered.
I wasn't sure if I felt anything anymore.
Right after my stepbrother threw me out like trash, the security guards came like vultures finishing off the scraps.
Without a word, they dragged my battered body through the front gate and tossed me outside the compound like yesterday's waste.
And so I sat.
For minutes, maybe longer.
I lost track of time, just sitting in the downpour, staring blankly ahead.
Every second, some pathetic part of me still hoped.
Hoped that maybe, just maybe, my father would open the door, call my name, tell me to come inside, tell me that this was all a terrible mistake.
But no one came.
The world was silent except for the rain hammering the streets around me.
I lowered my head, water dripping from my chin as I whispered to myself.
"Why?"
The word cracked in the air, barely audible over the storm.
"Why me?" I asked myself again, voice shaking. "Why did this happen to me?"
I clenched my fists, the sting of betrayal far colder than the rain.
My father, my only family left me, he didn't save me.
He abandoned me without a second thought.
So this was how it ended.
I couldn't sit there forever.
So, with legs that felt like lead, I forced myself to stand.
My whole body protested with sharp pains and dull aches, but I pushed through it.
I didn't know where I was going.
I had nowhere to go.
But anywhere was better than sitting there, waiting like some stray dog hoping for scraps.
I walked aimlessly down the dimly lit streets, rainwater splashing around my torn shoes.
Streetlights flickered weakly through the storm, casting broken halos in the puddles.
Then I remembered.
I reached into my soaked pocket and pulled out a card.
The last thing I owned in this world.
With shaking hands, I pressed the small button at its corner.
The surface flickered and glowed, revealing the familiar digital interface.
===========
Name: Ryan Nether
Account Number: ***** (Turn off filter)
Balance: 5,000 S
[Transfer] [Customize]
[Link] [See more...]
==============
"...Ah, shit!"
I practically screamed.
The moment I saw my balance, I felt like the universe itself had spat in my face.
Five thousand Shi.
That was all I had left?
Where the hell was the rest of it?
Fifty-three million Shi.
Gone.
Erased.
Like it never existed.
I shoved the card back into my pocket, my hands trembling, not from the cold anymore, but from sheer fury.
I stumbled across the street, spotting a narrow alley beside a tall building.
The overhanging rooftop offered some shelter from the relentless downpour.
It wasn't much, but it was something.
I slumped against the wall, sliding down until I sat on the cold, damp ground, legs stretched out before me.
"*Sigh.* So they actually cleared my account..." I muttered under my breath, trying to keep the rage from boiling over.
But it was already too late.
My voice trembled with hate.
They didn't just steal from me, they left just enough to crush me.
Six thousand Shi was the cheapest rate for a night at a rundown hotel.
And they left me with five thousand.
They knew exactly what they were doing.
Left me stranded.
Powerless.
I couldn't even afford a place to stay for one night.
That was the point.
They wanted me to rot out here.
And to top it off, my face still throbbed from the countless punches that bastard gave me.
I could feel my swollen jaw and busted lip every time I moved.
"Bastards!" I shouted into the night, my voice echoing down the empty street.
I stomped my foot hard against the ground, the splash of water barely muffling the fury behind the act.
"I'll kill all of you." My voice was lower now but sharper, colder. "I'll make you suffer."
And I meant it.
Every word of it.
I leaned back against the cold brick wall, closing my eyes for a moment.
My body was broken, and my soul wasn't far behind.
But all I could do was laugh bitterly, tasting the salt of my own blood.
This was it.
I was going to die out here.
No one was coming for me.
No one would save me.
And maybe that was for the best.
I hugged myself tightly, trying to keep some warmth inside, but it was useless.
The cold seeped through every layer of me, down to my bones.
I was exhausted.
Completely drained.
All I wanted was to close my eyes and drift away from this nightmare.
And just when I was about to give in, just as I felt my eyelids grow heavy, something strange happened.
A faint blue light flickered before me, hovering in the air like a ghost.
I opened my eyes, blurry and unfocused, but I saw it.
A floating blue screen.
And on it, words that made my heart stop.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations! You Have Awakened "The Villain System."]
I blinked, unsure if I was dreaming.
But it was real.
'Awakened.'
That one word burned itself into my soul.
I felt the corner of my lips curl upward, slow and weak, but a smile nonetheless.
"Finally..." I whispered, breathless.
Then I repeated it, louder this time.
"Finally."
And with that, the last of my strength faded.
The world tilted sideways, my body giving in at last.