FIVE YEARS AGO... The Salvatore Mansion, Connecticut. "Arthur, don't be an ass." The shrill voice rang through the whole room. Arthur took a deep breath. He completely loathed family dinners such as this. He plastered a fake smile on his face and nodded before looking down and chewing on his food. "So tell me again, Arthur," His stepmother said again in her nerve-scratching voice. Arthur groaned inwardly. He just wanted to eat his food in peace, give a few nods and shakes of his head, and then disappear from this mansion for as long as he could. "Tell me, What is it that you're doing in New York again?" His stepmother asked. He knew exactly what she wanted to hear and her aim – to embarrass him even further – and he wanted to tell her to go to hell, but he did not have the guts or courage to voice out his mind, so with some difficulty, he swallowed snd said in a small voice, "Well, you see, right now, I am working two jobs…" "Hmm," His stepmother said, playing around with her f

HE DID NOT know who sent the text as he got on the next flight leaving for Connecticut. He could barely afford the economy seat and had to borrow some money from some of his friends at school.As the plane took off, Arthur started the calculations in his head and figured that he would have to work for two months before he would gather up the money to pay back. Luckily, it was unlikely that his friends would embarrass him for the money, but he did not like to be in debt so he planned to pay back as soon as possible.He rubbed his eye socket and tried to sleep amidst the clutter going on around him on the plane. He was packed between a woman with a kid and an old woman. When he approached the air hostess for a seat change, she had scoffed. Then she gave him a once-over glance and walked away without answering. Arthur had resigned to his fate and since it was not a really long flight, he was prepared to endure it through.He closed his eyes and his mind went back to the text, "Your grand

HIS EYES OPENED slowly. His vision was blurred as he tried to sit up but felt a sharp pain jolt on his side. He gasped and laid back down as a nurse hurried in. "Lay back down," she snapped. "Where am I?" Arthur asked, twisting his neck to look around.The nurse propped her hands on her supple hips and stared at Arthur, "You are in New City Hospital. A good Samaritan brought in your broken body." She picked up the chart beside his bed and looked at it, then she adjusted the drip that ran into the veins of his right hand.Arthur looked around. The monitor beside his bed was beeping at steady intervals. "What happened?" Arthur asked. The nurse scoffed and walked out without answering. She could not see any reason why she was assigned to look after the scrawny-looking young man. "Excuse me, miss," Arthur called to her just before she walked out. "Who brought me here?""You will know soon," the nurse snapped. "Now, go back to resting, and do not disturb me. I have much more important

[New Task>>> Put your ex-girlfriend in her place] Arthur's brows furrowed together. "Ex girlfriend? I dated her?" He asked himself. He muttered under his breath as he turned around to look at Sophia. "I'm not sure I should waste my energy on… that," He started to walk away and ignore the system's task. [Reward >>> an amount of your memory will be regained. Additional 10,000 USD and increase in ego. Punishment >>> Compatibility with the system will be reduced by 5 percent. Remember, if the system Compatibility reduces by less than 35 percent, it will cause a slow and painful death.]The cold robotic voice in Arthur's head made him shiver with fright. A slow and painful death. Goosebumps. "And what are you standing there ogling at me?" Sophie's voice snapped him back to reality. Arthur shook his head. "You're not worth my time." That took Sophie by surprise. She gasped. "What?!" "I said you're not worth my time. That's what I said," Arthur said lazily. Sophie looked like she

"I'M GOING TO the hospital," A tall thin man in an oversized suit said, getting into the taxi. Arthur started the engine and drove on. He had been doing this for over a week now and even as he didn't expect to like it, he found himself waking up every morning looking forward to the type of people he was going to meet that day. He had found a small apartment on the outskirts of downtown. It was a shabby building, but he had nice neighbors and a place to sleep. He had also bought some casual clothes, not as expensive as the first set he had bought, but they were not cheap either. Oftentimes, he caught himself thinking of his late friend, William, but he snapped himself out of getting sad, and for that reason, he was glad to have a job as tasking and busy as a taxi driver. It kept his mind from thinking of the past and trying to regain his memory. "Would you like some music, sir?" Arthur asked his passenger. The man shook his head. "I would prefer the silence." Arthur nodded. He k