He slipped on the glasses.
And just like that, ti began to blur, steady, unbothered, the way it always did when no one was watching. Books opened. Notes scrawled. Pages flipped.
By the ti he finally closed his notebook and took off his glasses, the sky outside the window had already darkened from golden-orange to deep indigo.
The library emptied slowly around him, until only a few scattered students remained—ghosts of midterms, caffeinated and hunched like tired gargoyles over their screens.
His body ached from sitting too long, and as he stood, he let out a quiet groan and stretched like a cat coming out of hibernation. Muscles popped. Spine cracked. Mind, however, felt slightly clearer.
"Ugh. At this rate my spine’s gonna file a lawsuit."
He packed up his stuff, shook the numbness from his legs, and walked back out into the cool evening.
...
The drive ho wasn’t rushed. He wasn’t in a hurry. On the way, he stopped by a roadside diner with flickering neon signs and too many laminated nus.
The bodyguards didn’t follow him inside—they had their own routine. Kaelan picked up takeout from a nearby stall, and Victor stayed behind, scanning the streets with bored but watchful eyes.
Once inside, he didn’t bother overthinking what to eat, and simply ordered. A grilled cheese. Fries. Lemon soda.
It was the kind of food that didn’t require choices. Just comfort.
And for a few minutes, it was quiet, no tension, no worries, just the clink of cutlery, the buzz of old lightbulbs, and the slow burn of tired satisfaction.
He ate in silence, watching as the world passed by beyond the window. No noise, no plans. Just the llow hum of neon and distant traffic.
....
By the ti he got ho, the skyline outside his window sparkled with city light—like a slow exhale after a long day.
His footsteps echoed lightly across the pavent, and a few seconds later—almost perfectly tid—two silent shadows peeled away from the surrounding darkness.
Without exchanging words, the three of them moved toward the front door.
"Evening, gentlen," Rex greeted with mock formality, "Another exciting day of lurking in the shadows?" Rex asked casually as he unlocked it.
Victor smirked. "You make it sound creepy. We call it ’professional overwatch.’"
Kaelan didn’t speak, just nodded once.
"Night, boss," With that both of them veered off toward the small annex near the back—their dedicated quarters.
They’d been shadowing Rex all day, like they always did—silent, professional, and borderline ghostly. Their presence never drew attention. No one ever questioned it. Most people didn’t even know they existed.
Rex offered a casual wave over his shoulder and headed straight to his room, kicked the door shut behind him, and took a deep breath.
The mont he stepped into his private space, a wave of quiet washed over him.
He dropped his bag on the couch and tossed his keys on the desk,
He peeled off his shirt, hit the shower, and let the hot water work its magic—washing away stress, noise, and whatever else clung to him.
By the ti he dried off and changed into a soft tee and joggers, he didn’t feel like reading. Didn’t feel like studying either. No desire to check emails or look at the endless stream of group chats piling up.
Instead, he grabbed his phone, plugged in his headphones, scrolled through his playlist, and tapped play on sothing calm. The soft hum of lofi beats filled his ears, and collapsed onto the bed like he belonged there—and nowhere else in the world.
A soft lo-fi track flowed into his ears, llow beats syncing with the gentle rise and fall of his breath. It was peaceful. Still.
Outside the window, a half-moon floated high in the sky—silver and serene, occasionally veiled by lazy drifting clouds. But it still shone through, casting its glow like a promise. The Moonlight spilled through the open curtains, and shone across his bed, illuminating his body in soft luminescence. A real-life lo-fi aesthetic scene—music, moon, mood and all.
He let his eyes close and let his thoughts wander, drifting sowhere between dreams and dusk, the music a heartbeat beneath it all.
He let the silence stretch, the kind of silence that didn’t demand anything—just existed, soft and weightless. The music played on in his ears, low and steady. Sowhere outside, a breeze rustled the trees, brushing against the windowpanes like a whisper.
And then—
Ding!
A familiar, lodic chi echoed softly in the back of his mind.
[Daily Sign-In Available]
Claim now to receive today’s reward.
Rex didn’t move at first. He let the song finish, eyes still closed, breathing slow.
Then he sighed—half-amused, half-resigned—and opened his eyes.
Floating a few feet above him was the soft blue glow of his system interface. Translucent, slightly curved like a sheet of glass, it hovered in the air, its familiar light pulsing gently in the dim moonlight.
"finally," he murmured, sitting up slightly as the glowing interface adjusted to follow his gaze.
He tapped the [Claim Now] button lazily with one hand, expecting the usual—maybe so stat points or a free item.
But the screen shimred for a second... before lines of text appeared.
----
[Daily Sign-In Complete]
[Reward Unlocked: Invitation to an Exclusive Hollywood Industry Party
Location: [REDACTED]
Date: Tomorrow Night
Dress Code: Formal
----
"...What?" Rex sat up fully now, blinking at the screen. "You’re serious?"
Before he could process the reward, a second chi echoed in his mind, this one lower, almost like a heartbeat thudding in the back of his skull.
---
DUN—DUN
[New Quest Activated]
"Blend In With The Stars"
Objective:
Attend the Hollywood elite party tomorrow night
Gather industry insights
Bonus Objective:
Make 1 unexpected connection
Reward: Unknown
Punishnt: No missions for 1 year.
----
He stared at the floating text for a long beat.
No missions for a year?
"That’s... harsh."
Rex rubbed the bridge of his nose, still half-covered in moonlight, the soft pulse of the system interface reflecting in his eyes.
He stared at the glowing interface for a mont, then huffed a short laugh under his breath.
Huh.
This was... definitely sothing new.
An invitation to an exclusive Hollywood party?
Honestly, just thinking about it made his heart thump a little faster.
And really, why shouldn’t he feel excited? It was Hollywood—the beating heart of global entertainnt. The land of legends, headlines, scandals, and stardust.
And that one word—exclusive—made it clear this wasn’t going to be so cheap red-carpet knockoff with local influencers and wannabes.
No, this was the real deal.
There was a very real chance he’d see actual celebrities. Directors. Producers. The kind of people who could change your life with a single na drop or handshake.
See, of course—not et. That was a whole different ga.
Still... judging by the way this invitation just landed in his lap, maybe even that wasn’t completely out of reach.
And that thought alone?
Yeah—it lit sothing in him.
A slow, growing buzz of anticipation.
This wasn’t just a reward.
It was a door.
A door to a whole new world.
(End of Chapter)
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