Maximillian was a student at Paranova University, the most popular university in Rumblet City. He was one of the lucky ones who could get into the elite university because of his intelligence. Even so, he was not special because his background was unlike any other student there.
Maximillian was an orphan, he lived in an orphanage and was poor. When he entered Paranova, he decided to leave the orphanage and live on his own. He worked part-time to support himself, even though it was exhausting."Thank you." Said Max afer he gave the delivery order to his customer. "No problem. Are you the new delivery boy?""Yes, I am. I've only been working at Ostin Restaurant for a week." "What's your name?""Max.""Okay, Max. Get used to the atmosphere of this place. Gym customers usually order food from where you work.""Yes, sir." Max smiled as the tall, fit man and left. "Looks like he's the owner of this gym. He's nice and friendly." Max was happy. For a poor man like him, being treated well by people was a special thing. He appreciated everyone who treated him well, even though he was often looked down upon for being poor and orphaned.Max walked out of the gym to deliver his next order, but he stopped when he heard a familiar voice. Max turned around and his eyes locked onto a woman walking past him with a man he also recognized."Tiffany?" Max squinted, making sure he wasn't mistaken. He followed the petite woman to the lat pulldown machine.Max wanted to go over and say hello to Tiffany, his girlfriend, but he stopped with widened eyes when he saw Tiffany and the man kissing briefly. The look in their eyes told him what kind of relationship they had, how they felt about each other."Tiff?" Max called out to Tiffany and the woman was surprised to see Max's presence. "Max? What are you doing here?""I was working and saw you here, but you came in with Zaco and... kissed? No, you kissed him?" Tiffany looked at Zaco as if talking to him. Then she replied to Max with, "Yes, I kissed him." "But why? You're my girlfriend, Tiffany.""Yes, and then?""And then? Are you allowed to kiss other guys as long as you have a boyfriend?""Why not? Did I sign a contract not to kiss other men while being your girlfriend?" Tiffany asked back more boldly, as if she didn't feel guilty and it made Max dumbfounded. " Anyway, Max, I've been wanting to tell you this for a long time. Let's break up.""What?""Didn't you hear? We're breaking up! I like Zaco and I want to be with him." "But why? We were fine yesterday, why do you suddenly want to break up?""You are the only one who thinks we were fine, but I don't. Do you know what it's like to be your girlfriend for six months? It's suffocating!" Tiffany said, looking at Max very coldly. "You know who you are, right? You even got into Paranova at the pity of the foundation.""I got into Paranova on a scholarship! And I fought hard for that scholarship!""Yes, in the end scholarship is just a nicer word to called donation. Get over it, realize who you are. You don't deserve me!"Max was hurt, but he loved Tiffany very much. "What do you like about Zaco?" Max asked, making Tiffany almost laugh at him."What do I like about Zaco? Do you realize what you're asking?""I mean, Zaco is popular, he's also the quarterback of the town football club, but he's a playboy! He can't be as loyal to you as I am!""F*ck loyalty, what I want is to date a handsome, rich and popular man, and you don't even fulfill a single point! You idiot!"Max saw Zaco silently laughing at him, which made him even more annoyed and held back Tiffany who was about to leave."Tiff, you can't do this to me! I love you! I would do anything for you! I'd be handsome, rich and popular for you!""Haha!" Tiffany laughed, getting louder and sounding distinctly mocking. "You even have trouble just to make sure what food you’re gonna eat for tonight, Max, forget about your dreams of being with me. You're dreaming too high, that's not good either."Tiffany swatted Max's hand away. "Also, I asked you out on a date because it was a bet," Tiffany said, leaving Max stunned and in complete shock. "I had to date you for a month, but amazingly, we lasted six months.Don't get it wrong, I never liked you. I kept you because you were fun to watch, like a dog that craves affection and follows its master around just for a pet."Tiffany hugged Zaco's muscular body and left Max, but out of annoyance, Max ran over and pulled Tiffany's hand."Hey, let go!" Tiffany said, but Max was very upset and hurt. "I won't let you go, Tiff, even if I die.""Then die!" Max took a few steps back as Zaco pulled him off Tiffany and punched him in the face. "Stop bothering my lover, you bigot!""She's my girlfriend!" retorted Max, standing up and fighting back, but Zaco was very good at fighting. He dodged Max's weak punches and punched Max's nose until it bled."Was my punch not hard enough to wake you up?" asked Zaco, "then take it from here!" Zaco attacked Max with several hard punches, leaving Max cornered and people started running to stop them.But just as the gym owner arrived and was about to restrain Zaco, the man first gave Max a punch so hard that Max fell and hit the metal lats pulldown machine behind him.Max was lying on the floor and his vision was blurry. He heard Tiffany's panicked voice, and people came to help him."Hey, is that blood?" "Yes, it's blood!""Hurry and call an ambulance or he'll die!"Just as he was about to close his eyes, Max saw Tiffany who greeted Zaco with a tight hug as if to protect him. Even though Max was about to die here, Tiffany was still protecting the real villain.The pain in his heart even outweighed the pain in Max's head right now.Max woke up in a hospital room, his head aching the more he remembered what had put him here."Are you awake, boy?" someone asked, it was the gym owner. "Thank God, I think my gym is about to make its first history as a place where murders happen.""Are you the one who took me to the hospital?""Yes... I won't let you die where I work." "How long have I been unconscious?""About 5 hours?" said the gym owner in a doubtful tone. "Your head was bleeding but there were no serious injuries, thankfully.""Really?""Yes.""Then why is there something weird appears in front of my face right now?"The gym owner was silent in confusion. "What weird thing?" staring at Max who was just looking straight up at the ceiling of his room."It's like a hologram screen in front of my eyes, it's very bright and there's something written on it," Max said. "What does it say?""Install all system devices to connect with the user. Yes? No?"The owner of the gym named Darius was stunned with an astonished look
" Be your girlfriend?"Max took Irrisia to the apartment he had just bought. He couldn't bring Irrisia to talk in a public place like a café, so he had deliberately bought a fairly luxurious apartment just to house Irrisia, while spending money as the system's task dictated."Not really, just like a contract." "What benefits will I get?""Wow, immediately interested? Do you need money?"Irrisia sighed and rolled her eyes briefly. "Everyone needs and likes money, as long as it's not a request to kill or join a cult, I'll accept."Max laughed, he was a little surprised to see another side of Irrisia, the most wanted lady of the university. "How much money do you need?" Max asked."500,000 dollars."Max frowned briefly. With only $300,000 left in his account, he couldn't pay Irrisia right away because most of the money had already been spent on the apartment."I don't have that much money yet, after all, is being a boyfriend for just one week already that expensive?" "Not anyone can even
[Estimated remaining task time: 8 hours] [Ting! Transaction successful][Startup task completed successfully] [Send reward to user]Max and Irrisia were enjoying their romantic dinner while taking in the beautiful view from the balcony of a fancy restaurant. Max walked over to his table followed by the sound of Irrisia's cell phone showing the results of the transfer to his account."Wow, you're really paying me?" asked Irrisia, not expecting her fantastic offer to be actually paid by Max. "You think I'm a fraud?""This is really surprising. The geeky kid who's become the center of attention only when he's being bullied turns out to be a tycoon, huh? Are you the hidden son of a tycoon?"Max smiled blushingly. "I wish I was, but I'm not destined to have a family.""You can make your own later," Irrisia said, then drank the high quality wine with such grace that Max was stunned."I'm quite impressed that you're such a no-fuss person. It's even late and I broke my promise to pay you duri
BRAK!The VVIP room door of a nightclub was opened by Max's foot kick. His arrival startled Zaco, Tiffany and therest of their partying friends who stopped what they were doing."Look who's here... the nouveau riche," Zaco said, sounding more relaxed.Seeing Zaco talking that casually, Max was furious. Max rushed towards Zaco to give him a punch in the face, but Zaco didn't even move a centimeter from where he was sitting."Is this what a man's fist feels like?" Zaco asked. "Bastard! You're the one who hit Irrisia, right!" "What?" Zaco asked innocently."Last night in front of Iglechi restaurant! You hit Irrisia with your fancy car! You wanted to kill her, huh? You see what you're doing now! You made Irrisia never walk again!"Max's statement took the whole room by surprise, as did Zaco who immediately regained his calm and smiled casually."You come in and break the door, punch me in the face and then accuse me of criminal action... honestly this is enough to sue you.""You should b
Max ran down the hospital corridor at high speed, just so he could get to and open the door to Irrisia's room.He saw that Irrisia had opened her eyes, just as the infirmary had said and made her come to this place immediately.Irrisia immediately looked at Max when the door opened, probably because she was a little surprised."Irrisia" Max called out to her, then slowly sat down near her bed. "How are you feeling?" Max asked, tryingnot to show his sadness and pity for Irrisia.Irrisia smiled slightly and replied. "It still hurts, but not as bad as when I opened my eyes." "Are there any areas that still hurt?""Other than my head, no." Irrisia glanced at her feet and looked at Max. "I thought my whole body would hurt, but my legs don't even feel it anymore.""Irrisia ...." Max was dumbfounded and felt guilty. "Did you hear from the doctor? About your legs""Yes, I heard about it. He said I only have a small chance of recovery.""Why are you smiling? Doesn't it hurt you a lot? You w
Andrew stopped and turned to look at Max who had just made an eye-opening statement. "What did you say?" asked Andrew, asking for a repetition.Max actually didn't want to give evidence since he thought the police would do better than him and arrest Zaco, but it seemed like his wish didn't materialize and he had to make his own move."I know who hit the victim that night. I know him!"Andrew didn't look enthusiastic even though Max had said that. He just crossed his arms in front of his chest and listened to Max as if it was just a formality."All right, let's hear your statement that you've been silent for three days." Max smiled awkwardly, then asked. "Aren't you going to write it down?""Fine, I'll take notes." Andrew went back to his desk followed by Max who sat in front of Andrew again. The policeman opened a book and held a pen, preparing to write down Max's statement."Tell me the physical characteristics of the suspect that you know, the background, where they work and what th
A few days later, Max was busy with classes. Since he had a lot of money, some things were no longer a problem for him, including work. Max was more focused on studying and Irrisia was also focused on recovering from her accident.Max is hoping for good news, like hope for Irrisia to be able to walk again through some therapy. Then there was the arrest of Zaco as a suspect in the hit-and-run that cost Irrisia as a victim.Max heard the news that today Zaco Erzema was picked up by the police at his house to be interrogated about the hit-and-run case. Max was of course very happy because he thought the police must already have evidence to arrest Zaco."That smug guy will finally get his punishment!" Max said, driving with excitement to see Zaco arrested. "He'll get the taste of prison that he craves. Irrisia will get justice!"Max was so excited that he drove at top speed, just to get to the police station.After parking, Max hurriedly got out of the car, he couldn't wait to see Zaco ar
Max continued his investigation to find evidence of the night's accident. He investigated several places around the scene, just to make sure CCTV cameras were installed and recorded the car that hit Irrisia."The police said that there was no camera footage they could get that night. It was impossible! The streets are very long, and there are many shops along the way that have CCTV cameras installed. I'm getting suspicious." Max walked on while looking at the buildings. Most likely the car was traveling in the direction of the street in front of them, and there was no way they wouldn't have any footage while the CCTV cameras were installed.Max entered one of the stores where he saw the CCTV, intending to ask for help and see the footage. But he came out with one of the assistants."I'm sorry, sir, but as you can see inside, there's nothing else you can find here." "But!"The door closed first.Max sighed in disappointment, as this wasn't the first time.There had been five times when
As they caught their breath, Max looked at his team with pride. "We've faced darkness within and without, and we've emerged stronger every time. Together, we are unstoppable."[ Ting! ]All the members looked at their phones and were surprised to see that the system was asking for a meeting with the superheroes. [ Task: Come with the containment of the darkness. Reward: meeting with the SYSTEM."]All the members looked at each other surprised. " Is this real? Are we meeting the person assigning us the task all this while?" Irrisia asked with disbelief. " There is a possibility that this is it. We might be finally meeting with the enigmatic figure behind who the system is." Max chuckled.They looked at Dr Lin who had been murdered by the darkness. " He deserves a befitting burial. He is a hero." Amy said with sadness in her eyes. Eddy moved close to her, " It will be alright." he said hugging her close to himself.The crew immediately took the containment and also decided to move Za
Darius and Rose found love and immediately decided to put a ring on it. He proposed to Rose in a picturesque setting, surrounded by their fellow crew members. The atmosphere was filled with joy as Rose said yes, sealing their commitment with a heartfelt embrace.The crew celebrated the engagement, bringing a sense of happiness and unity. Max raised a toast, "To love and overcome darkness together."The crew, now a tight-knit family, continued their journey, ready to face new adventures and uncertainties. Love, friendship, and the resilience to stand against the shadows defined their path as they moved forward, bound by the experiences that forged them into heroes. They were stronger in packs as Max continued to lead them.With the extracted darkness securely contained, the crew left the government facility, feeling a mix of relief and uncertainty. Darius and Rose, hand in hand, shared knowing glances as the rest of the crew contemplated the challenges that lay ahead.As they gathered
Zaco let out a cry of pain each time Shades tried to mind-control him. " You are hurting me. Zico, how can you let them do this to me? I am your brother, remember?" He said trying to reach out to Zico but Shades knew it was the darkness talking. " Don't listen to him, Zico. That is not your brother. Just let me do my thing." The doctor came back and immediately ordered them to release the last sleeping gases. Immediately it was released, Zico fell into a long slumber, giving Doctor Lin the chance to inject him. Shades also fell to the ground, as he had lost strength and the crew members gathered around him. " Are you alright?" they all asked showing a concerned look." I will be fine. I can't believe this darkness is still as strong as ever. I think he could do much harm because the host is damaged and weak. I wonder why it refused to come out." Shades said, cleaning his bloody nose.Doctor Lin injected Zaco with the sleeping pills, carefully monitoring his vitals. The crew gathere
The crew decided to check on Zaco after a few months. As they entered the facility where he was held. Max looked about to see a lot of villains who had been caged for one reason or the other. As they approached Zaco's holding cell. Max looked at Zico, " It is okay if you want to stay back. I will understand." " No, I need to see how he is doing. He might have even been remorseful and decided to turn a new leaf." Zico replied.They were met by Doctor Lin who welcomed them. " Hello, my heroes. How are you doing" he said with a smile." We are all good. We have come to check on Zaco. How is he? How long do you think you can extract the darkness out of him?" Max asked looking at the man before him." Hmm, Max. That is a very great question. Right now we are trying our best to make sure he is powerless and doesn't mind controlling anyone from where he is. The darkness is trying to have full control over his body but the body is weak."" What do you mean by a weak body?" Zico asked." The
Having said all that, Max knelt before Irrisia as everyone looked at him and was surprised to see what he was doing. " Max! What are you doing?" Irrisia asked with a shaky voice.He brought out a ring and looked into her eyes as the other members of the crew stood in admiration "Irrisia, from the moment we faced the darkness together, I realized that you are not just a teammate but the strength that kept me going. Will you marry me?" Max asked, his eyes filled with sincerity.Irrisia caught off guard, felt a mixture of emotions. The crew watched in anticipation, knowing that this moment was a celebration not just for Max and Irrisia but for the bonds they had all formed.Irrisia's eyes welled up with tears as she nodded, "Yes, Max. A thousand times yes." The crew erupted into cheers, celebrating the union of two souls who had faced the depths of darkness and emerged stronger together. Both of them kissed as the crew applauded the couple. It was long overdue as Irrisia had waited for
After the battles against darkness, the crew gathered in a solemn ceremony to honor the memories of those heroes who had lost their lives. A memorial was erected in the heart of the city, a tribute to the sacrifices made for the greater good. Max, Shades, Amy, Irrisia, Eddy, and the rest of the crew stood together, paying their respects. There was a moment of silence throughout the city as many people who didn't even know how the heroes were paid their respect to them. As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting a warm glow on the memorial, Max stepped forward. "We stand here not just as individuals but as a united front against the forces that sought to plunge our world into darkness. Today, we remember those who fought valiantly and gave their lives for the cause. They will forever be remembered and lived on in our hearts."Shades approached the memorial, placing a wreath as a symbol of remembrance. "Their courage will forever be etched in our hearts. As we move forward, let us ca
As Zaco was locked away, the country started to rebuild and the people joined in the building. Most now knowing about the superheroes were in awe and grateful at the same time. They flock around Max and his crew thanking them. " We wouldn't have done it without you guys. Thanks for staying strong." Max said, shaking some of them as they clustered around him. The president called the crew to the presidential villa to thank and award them. A red carpet was rolled out, and the crew walked down it, a mix of exhaustion and pride evident in their expressions. The president stood at the end, ready to express his gratitude."Max, Shades, Amy, Irrisia, Eddy, and the entire crew," the president began, "your bravery and sacrifice have saved countless lives. On behalf of the nation, I want to extend my deepest thanks."As the president presented medals to each member of the crew, the atmosphere was a blend of solemnity and celebration. The public, watching the event live, erupted in cheers and a
The underground lair echoed with the aftermath of the intense battle. Max and Shades stood amidst the remnants of the clash, the air heavy with the residue of energy. Zaco, now freed from the grip of the darkness, knelt on the ground, panting.Shades approached cautiously, his energy still on guard. "Is it over, Max?"Max, exhausted but victorious, nodded. "For now. The darkness has retreated, and Zaco seems to be regaining control. We need to make sure he's not a threat."Zaco looked up, his eyes reflecting a mix of confusion and realization. "What... happened? Where am I?"Max said nothing as he sat down on the bare floor looking at Shades who immediately put Zaco to sleep. " Do you think the darkness is gone?" He asked looking at Max exhausted." I am not sure Shades but I just need us to rebuild and get this person to their families. I am too exhausted to think of any possible outcome right now." Max got up and looked at Shades." What about him? What do we do with him?" Shades as
As the crew worked tirelessly to evacuate the people under Zaco's influence, Max continued his intense battle against the combined forces of Zaco and the darkness. The air crackled with energy as their powers clashed in a fierce struggle.Meanwhile, Shades utilized his unique abilities to break the illusions created by Zaco, freeing those trapped in the dark influence. Rose, Carlos, Amy, and Irrisia assisted in guiding the bewildered individuals toward the exit, ensuring their safety.Eddy, with his tech skills, reinforced the passage created by Max, ensuring a swift and secure evacuation. Darius, now reinvigorated after drinking water, joined the efforts to help people move out.As the last of the captives exited Zaco's lair, Eddy turned to Shades, "We can't leave Max alone in this. We need to find a way to support him."Shades nodded, his focus divided between the ongoing battle and coordinating the evacuation. "I'll join Max. The rest of you, get everyone to safety. We can't let Za