Vince opened his eyes to light—not the sacred glow of enlightenment, but the simple glare of the rising sun slipping through his window. Morning had arrived.
His head throbbed lightly. He felt dizzy, as if his mind were waking slower than his body. When he tried to sit up, he realized he wasn't on his bed at all, but sprawled on the floor.
Again.
He sighed.
This "old problem" of falling off the bed in his sleep was becoming a regular annoyance. A book had fallen with him, lying open beside his hand. The title stared up at him:
"Dimensional Travelers."
The moment he saw it, a sentence from the book resurfaced in his mind:
"Those who possess a soul may grasp powers beyond imagination.
Those without one will rot, burn, and scatter like dust across the world."
"What a stupid line…" Vince muttered.
It sounded like the author had run out of imagination and stitched together dramatic words for effect. Still, if he squeezed out a poetic interpretation, maybe it meant:
Do something in this world that lasts.
Leave a mark. Don't disappear like dust.
Vince had read novels since childhood, in a world where supercomputers existed in almost every household. Stories were common companions. Reality was harsher.
Dragging himself up, he cleaned his room, took a shower, and prepared breakfast.
In this era, eating even two meals a day was considered a luxury.
Technological advancement had wiped out entire industries—robots now handled 50% of the world's labor. Unemployment was more common than buildings.
Vince belonged to the lucky 50% whose jobs couldn't be replaced.
After finishing his bread and eggs, he put on his work uniform.
Then he stepped outside and climbed into his car—an old, battered machine that looked like lightning wrapped around a piece of trash.
Still, it was his.
And for now, that was enough.
The car activated automatically, humming to life as Vince leaned back in his seat. It merged onto the road on its own, gliding smoothly along the morning traffic.
Outside the window, the same depressing scenery passed by.
Makeshift huts lined the sidewalks—people forced to live on footpaths. Police officers and enforcement robots barked orders at them to move, threatening fines and relocation.
The world had grown numb.
Life had lost.
Vince watched all of it with quiet detachment before forcing himself to look away.
When his car reached the toll plaza, it halted automatically.
A familiar figure stood there—one of the few humans still working such jobs.
Mic.
"Hey, Vince! You're late today," Mic said with a grin. "So, who's the champion in the market this morning?"
Vince's expression didn't change. "Graviton Energy. Their stock is climbing again. Same with the other subsidiaries."
Mic clicked his tongue. "Fuck you, Vince. Always advertising your shitty company like some loyal servant."
Vince let out a small smile as the barrier lifted and the car rolled through.
Soon, tall corporate buildings came into view.
He stopped in front of one massive structure: Graviton Artificials.
The car parked itself automatically. Employees in sleek suits hurried past him, their faces tense, as if being late meant death.
This was the modern world—a corporate battlefield, where giant companies controlled every resource. Governments still existed, but only on paper.
If a corporation was dissatisfied, they simply dismantled the government and placed their own puppets in power.
This had been the reality for decades.
As Vince entered the building, scanners activated on their own. His ID chip, his retinas—everything was verified automatically.
Unauthorized entry was impossible.
Inside, he spotted his coworker.
"Good morning, Vince," Remon said. "What's on today."
"First let me settle in," Vince muttered. "After that, we can discuss the rest of the shit."
It was part of his routine.
Remon wasn't human—he is humanoid robot assigned to "assist" him. In reality, it monitored his behaviour every day. Still, as far as efficiency went, no human could compare and he is walking million dollars because anyone can pay too much money for his spare parts.
"Understood. I always enjoy your company," Remon replied with an emotionless, artificial smile.
A small pulse of anger flashed through Vince's mind… but his face remained cold and blank.
He walked to his desk, organized a few things, and then headed toward the canteen. Coffee was still popular—one of the few luxuries left in the world.
Most people could barely afford two meals a day now.
Vince grabbed a cup and went to the restroom, his usual spot for drinking in peace. The coffee was bitter, far stronger than blends from the past, but the heavy caffeine kick was refreshing.
He took a sip and leaned against the sink.
'Same old shit. I'm tired of this purposeless life.
No enjoyment, no meaning. I can't even quit—two meals a day already turn me into a pile of bones shaped like a man.
Another sip. Bitter warmth spread down his throat.
Should I try seducing the chairman's daughter?
Hah… too old-fashioned, even for this world.
Those novel worlds were better—MCs gained powers, got women thrown at them like bonuses.
Me? I have a thousand dollars left. Great. Just great.'
He exhaled slowly, staring at the mirror.
For a split second, the reflection flickered—like the light bent at a wrong angle.
He blinked.
It returned to normal.
Probably just the fluorescent light acting up.
Vince shook his head and finished the coffee, scattering his thoughts before they spiraled further.
Graviton Artificials was a hardware-support and chemical industry, a place where engineers mixed chemicals, alloys, and strange compounds to create better hardware for the Graviton network. Vince worked in the R&D section.
Robots couldn't replace him — the job required human intuition — but he could easily be replaced by another person. There was no shortage of people desperate for this kind of job.
As he walked through the long passage toward his workplace, someone suddenly stepped in front of him and blocked the way.
Devon Highland.
Tall, muscular, and built more like a bodybuilder than a research assistant. Anyone seeing him for the first time would wonder how a man with that physique ended up in a lab instead of on a stage lifting weights.
Devon folded his arms and said,
"Did you hear the news about the guest?"
Vince sighed.
"No. I had no time for this… but let's see."
He tapped the right side of his glasses twice.
The lens lit up, and the top notification appeared:
"Will Strong, junior member of the Main Body of Graviton, is coming to inspect Graviton Artificials."
Vince raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Ohh… that's a big catch."
He exhaled. "Some of us are definitely getting suspended."