Chapter 1: Dumped Like Trash
Rain poured from the dark sky as Lucas Reed stood outside the luxurious Crystal Palace Hotel.
Water soaked through his cheap clothes, but he barely noticed.
His eyes remained fixed on the massive glass entrance.
Tonight was supposed to be special.
Three years.
For three years, he had worked part-time jobs, skipped meals, and saved every spare dollar to support his girlfriend, Emily Carter.
Tonight marked their third anniversary.
Lucas reached into his pocket and touched the small velvet box hidden inside.
A silver ring.
It wasn't expensive.
In fact, it had cost him nearly three months of savings.
But it represented everything he had.
His love.
His loyalty.
His future.
Taking a deep breath, he stepped toward the entrance.
Before he could enter, laughter drifted from inside.
A familiar laugh.
Emily's laugh.
Lucas smiled.
She was already here.
Maybe she had arrived early.
Excitement filled his chest as he pushed open the doors.
The moment he entered, his smile froze.
His body turned cold.
Not from the rain.
Not from the air conditioning.
But from what he saw.
Emily sat at a table near the center of the restaurant.
She wore the beautiful red dress he had bought for her birthday.
The same dress he had worked double shifts to afford.
But she wasn't alone.
A handsome young man sat beside her.
An expensive Rolex gleamed on his wrist.
Designer clothes.
Luxury watch.
Sports car keys casually placed on the table.
Everything about him screamed wealth.
The man wrapped an arm around Emily's waist.
And she didn't resist.
She leaned into him.
Laughing.
Smiling.
Looking happier than Lucas had seen her in months.
For a moment, Lucas couldn't breathe.
His heart pounded violently.
No.
This had to be a misunderstanding.
There had to be an explanation.
He forced his legs forward.
One step.
Then another.
Until he stood beside their table.
Emily noticed him first.
Her smile vanished instantly.
"Lucas?"
The wealthy man frowned.
"Who is this?"
Lucas looked directly at Emily.
His voice shook.
"What is this?"
Emily's expression became complicated.
Then guilty.
Then cold.
Very cold.
The wealthy man suddenly laughed.
"Ah."
Understanding appeared in his eyes.
"So you're the boyfriend."
Lucas clenched his fists.
"Emily."
"Explain."
The restaurant grew quiet.
Several nearby customers turned to watch.
Emily slowly stood.
Her eyes no longer contained affection.
Only impatience.
"Lucas."
"We need to talk."
A bad feeling exploded inside him.
"What talk?"
Emily sighed.
Then she said the words that shattered his world.
"Let's break up."
Silence.
Complete silence.
Lucas stared at her.
Certain he had heard wrong.
"What?"
"I said let's break up."
Her voice became firmer.
"I don't want to continue this relationship."
Lucas felt as if someone had punched him in the stomach.
Three years.
Three years together.
And she wanted to end everything just like that?
"Why?"
Emily looked away.
"You know why."
"No."
"I don't."
The wealthy man smirked.
Emily crossed her arms.
"Because you're poor, Lucas."
The words struck harder than any slap.
"You work endless part-time jobs."
"You live in a tiny apartment."
"You don't have a future."
"I've waited long enough."
Lucas felt his blood turning cold.
"You said money didn't matter."
Emily laughed bitterly.
"That was before I graduated."
"That was before I saw how the real world works."
She pointed at the wealthy man beside her.
"This is Jason Black."
"The son of Blackstone Group's vice president."
Jason raised his glass casually.
Emily continued.
"Jason can give me the life I deserve."
"Luxury."
"Status."
"Security."
Lucas stared at her in disbelief.
"So that's it?"
"You sold our relationship for money?"
Jason suddenly chuckled.
"Careful with your words."
Lucas ignored him.
His eyes remained locked on Emily.
The woman he loved.
The woman he had sacrificed everything for.
Emily sighed.
"Grow up, Lucas."
"This isn't a fairy tale."
"Love doesn't pay bills."
The ring box in his pocket suddenly felt unbearably heavy.
Lucas slowly removed it.
Emily's eyes widened slightly.
She recognized it immediately.
A ring.
He had planned to propose.
For the first time, guilt flashed across her face.
Only for a second.
Then it disappeared.
Jason burst out laughing.
"A proposal ring?"
"Oh man."
"This is embarrassing."
Several customers laughed quietly.
Lucas stood frozen.
His humiliation was complete.
Emily looked away.
"I can't marry someone who earns less in a year than Jason spends in a month."
The words cut deeper than knives.
Lucas felt his heart breaking.
Not because she left.
But because she had become someone he no longer recognized.
The Emily he loved would never have said those things.
Or perhaps...
He never truly knew her.
Jason stood up.
Towering over Lucas.
"Listen."
"You should thank me."
"I'm saving you years of disappointment."
He pulled out a wallet.
Removed several bills.
Then tossed them onto the table.
"Here."
"Consider this compensation."
The money landed in front of Lucas.
Like charity.
Like scraps thrown to a beggar.
The restaurant erupted with laughter.
Lucas stared at the bills.
Then at Jason.
Then at Emily.
Neither looked ashamed.
Neither looked sorry.
Something inside him finally snapped.
Without warning, Lucas grabbed the money.
Jason smirked.
"Good choice."
The next second—
SMACK!
Lucas slapped the cash directly across Jason's face.
The restaurant gasped.
Jason stumbled backward.
Shock filled his eyes.
Lucas's voice thundered through the room.
"Keep your dirty money."
The smile vanished from Jason's face.
His expression darkened.
"You little—"
Before he could finish, security guards rushed toward them.
The restaurant manager pointed at Lucas.
"Remove him immediately!"
The guards grabbed Lucas.
Jason straightened his suit.
His eyes burned with fury.
"You'll regret this."
Lucas laughed.
A bitter laugh.
"What more can you take from me?"
The guards dragged him toward the exit.
Emily never stopped them.
She never looked back.
Not even once.
The doors slammed shut behind him.
Rain poured endlessly.
Lucas stood alone.
Broken.
Humiliated.
Abandoned.
Everything he had built over three years had vanished in a single night.
His girlfriend.
His future.
His dreams.
Gone.
He laughed weakly.
Then laughed harder.
Until tears mixed with the rain.
"What a joke."
His phone suddenly vibrated.
Lucas ignored it.
A second vibration followed.
Then a third.
Annoyed, he pulled it out.
An unknown number.
He rejected the call.
Immediately, it rang again.
And again.
And again.
After the fifth attempt, Lucas answered.
"What?"
A calm elderly voice responded.
"Young Master."
Lucas frowned.
"...What?"
"Young Master Lucas Reed."
"We have finally found you."
He nearly laughed.
Great.
Now scammers were targeting him.
"Wrong number."
The elderly voice continued.
"No."
"We have spent twenty-three years searching for you."
Lucas rolled his eyes.
"I'm hanging up."
"Your grandfather passed away this morning."
The words stopped him.
"Before his death, he ordered us to locate his only grandson."
Lucas remained silent.
The man continued.
"You are now the sole heir to the Reed Global Consortium."
Lucas almost laughed.
The Reed Global Consortium?
One of the largest business empires in the world?
That Reed family?
Impossible.
Absolutely impossible.
"Nice joke."
The elderly voice remained calm.
"A black Rolls-Royce is currently waiting across the street."
Lucas instinctively looked up.
Across the road.
A luxury vehicle sat beneath the rain.
Its headlights shining brightly.
His heartbeat accelerated.
The elderly man spoke again.
"Welcome home, Young Master."
At that exact moment—
[DING!]
A mechanical voice suddenly echoed inside Lucas's mind.
[Infinite Wealth System Activated.]
[Host Detected.]
[Binding Process Starting...]
Lucas froze.
His eyes widened.
The rain continued to fall.
But his entire world had just changed.
Forever.
[System Binding... 1%]
