The Tycoon's Odyssey

As the figure drew closer, the tsion in the air was palpable. The sce had shifted from a momt of reunion to one of looming uncertainty, with the arrival of the black car heralding a new and unknown challge.

The car that had just passed rolled back, and the window slowly rolled down, revealing a handsome face, eyes shielded by black sunglasses.

Evan's heart chilled at the sight of the familiar face he despised the fellow to the core.

Noah's smirk cut through the air as bitter memories of their past flooded back. At just , Evan had only ever gott drunk once, at a class party where Noah's influce had led him astray. The next morning, he had wok up in a trash heap, making him learn a harsh lesson.

"Evan... It's be a while," Noah drawled, his voice laced with mockery.

"Noah..." Evan muttered hoarsely.

Behind him, Elina glanced betwe the two m, her expression a mix of surprise and confusion. "Brother, is he your frid?"

Before Evan could respond, Noah turned to Elina with a charming smile. "Of course, we're old frids," he replied smoothly before turning his gaze back to Evan.

However, before Evan could respond, Celina stepped forward and cut him, her voice laced with concern. "I don't know who you are, but you ar't giving fridly vibes, and this isn't the time—"

Aria, standing beside Celina, added, "Yeah, you should leave him alone."

Noah turned sharply towards Celina and Aria, with his demeanor turning cold and dismissive. "This doesn't concern you," he snapped, cutting through their attempts to interve.

"But—" Celina started, only to be cut off by Noah's icy stare.

"Stay out of this," Noah ordered, his voice leaving no room for argumt.

As the tsion thicked, Elina stood siltly, unsure of how to react to the confrontation unfolding before her.

Meanwhile, Evan's jaw clched in frustration, his eyes locked with Noah's.

"Congratulations, Evan...looks like you have made quite a splash rectly," Noah said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Noah th clicked his tongue, a bitter expression flickering across his face as he noticed the braces and bandages on Evan.

"It doesn't seem like you have many days left to joy," Noah sneered.

"Noah..." Evan's voice rumbled, filled with restrained anger.

"Stop beating a the bush and spit it out," Evan demanded, his frustration palpable.

Noah's smile faded instantly, replaced by a cold stare.

In fact, it was a coincidce that he had become aware of Evan's accidt. Accidts occurred every day but what drew everyone's atttion was the presce of Suri and many people who recorded, which became widely known after someone posted it online.

Noah was going through the video and suddly spotted a familiar figure. After asking his connections, he learned about Evan's affairs.

And for some reason, it left a very bad aftertaste.

Staring at Evan in disdain, he oped his lips, "Know your place."

Noah shot back icily. "Don't interfere where you don't belong. And if you dare, make sure to bow your head the next time you cross paths with me, because..." his voice trailed off ominously.

"This whole city is my playg. Everything here belongs to me, and it won't d well if you try to disrupt that."

With a final warning, Noah turned sharply before closing the car door and instructing the driver to leave.

As the car roared away, leaving a trail of smoke and the sct of burnt rubber hanging in the air, Celina, Elina, and Aria stood nearby, their expressions reflecting a mix of concern, disbelief, and fear.

They exchanged glances, unsure of what to make of the tse counter they had just witnessed.

The man appeared, spoke and just left like that after flaunting his arrogance.

Evan just stared at the speeding car and th got up, supporting itself with the help of a stick.

"Evan, what are you doing?" Celina shouted while Aria rose to support him, but Evan just shook her off.

"I want to go alone..."

"But..."

"Please..." Evan's words cut her off, leaving Aria and Celina in bewildermt.

They could hear the complexity of emotions behind Evan's words. It seemed he was in too much self-doubt and dilemma.

"Evan, you are injured and need help."

"Just arrange me a taxi. I want some time alone to rethink my thoughts," Evan answered resolutely.

_____

CLICK!

TAP!

Evan stood briefly at the door, staring into a vast space. The house that usually felt warm and cozy, for some reason felt lonely and cold.

Looking a, he noticed the place was well-maintained and didn't have ev a speck of dust. It seemed Aunt Celina had clearly tak care of this space in his absce.

Leaving everything behind, Evan walked towards the rooftop. Standing behind the railings, his eyes darted a, searching for an answer.

"WHYYYYY???"

A burst of voice erupted from him.

"Why does every time I take a step back, something bad happs…? Just why? Why is it always me?"

Evan screamed in agony, his hoarse voice roaring across the sky, resonating in the lonely landscape.

It was just him, vting out his unabashed feelings because he knew there was no one to answer him– or so he thought.

[Host, you ar't alone… you are just one of the pitiful guys, but not the only ones… ]

Evan stopped briefly after hearing the system's words. Oddly ough, his abusive system sometimes speaks too kindly.

This guy was 99% abusive, but that %...

"Why do I feel you're lying? Tell me, could I really become a big man without a system as you said?"

[...]

[The host could, but...]

Evan's brows stiffed hearing the "but…"

[Host's luck isn't good. The amount of suffering the host would have to go through to reach there wouldn't make the host feel like a human anymore. In the d, the host would just be like a machine and despite all this, there wasn't a single time wh the host would be truly happy.]

[You tried to do good work and take down others, alas, in the d, the host lost, and was tortured to death.]

"So, is this my destination? But now that the system has barged in, the world is trying to correct it by putting me against stronger opponts," Evan spoke his thoughts aloud.

He had read many novels and knew there were some balancing stats at play. He might not have believed it before, but if a system was possible, so was all that karma and other things.

[I can't say that, but that's why I am here. Host and all those who have gott a chance to inherit the system have good karma and should be rewarded, but for some reason, they d up with tons of bad luck. To rectify this, each one was giv a chance to have the system, but not all of them could seize it...]

"Hmm!"

Evan slumped down on the g with a complex look.

No one knew what he was thinking, but his dim eyes seemed to be growing colder and colder.

"Ar't you going to issue a revge quest now?"

[No...the system has giv ough couragemt by giving host quests and chances. The earlier quest was just to motivate the host to walk on the path.]

[But now the hosts need to make their own choice. My presce was to help the host initially until you have learned to walk and start running. Host already has a shop and means to earn SP.]

[So, no more small mini or small type quest. From now on, the host will only receive the main missions.]

[Now, the host is already self-sufficit.]

"I see…So that's the reason why I am not getting more quests," Evan muttered with an understanding look.

"So, what's the next mission?"

[The mission is based on the direction the host heads and at prest, the host's thoughts are chaotic. You need to first clear your mind and start taking steps and set an imaginary goal.]

"Good..."

Evan wasn't upset; rather, he felt this was a good developmt.

With a determined expression, he looked at his SP, which had already reached a whopping 500,000.

He had be saving them as much as possible to make a big change and it seemed the time had come.

To change himself as well as the world.

A change that was going to soon blow like a hurricane, shaking the roots of everyone to the core.