Rise of the banished heir

Chapter 2 Unraveling Fate’s Thread’s

"Have you realized it, young man?" asked a middle-aged woman who had just entered Gerald's hospital room. She sat down beside Gerald.

"Yes, Grandma!" Gerald replied, gazing admirably at his interlocutor.

Although some of the woman's hair had turned white, traces of her youthful beauty still shone clearly on her face. From her appearance, it seemed that she came from a well-off background. "Thank you for saving my granddaughter," she said with a smile.

"You're welcome, Grandma. I believe anyone in my position would have helped without thinking twice."

The grandmother looked at Gerald with a friendly smile. Her eyes examined his handsome face and beautiful brown eyes. "Why do I feel like I know this young man's gaze and face?" she thought.

"Why are you looking at me like that, Grandma?" Gerald asked softly, feeling confused by Sarah's gaze.

"Oh, it's nothing. It's just that your face seems to remind me of my past mistakes," she said, continuing to gaze at Gerald and smile.

Gerald was becoming even more puzzled by the grandmother's words. Not wanting to jump to conclusions, he tried to listen carefully to every word she said, intending to show respect to his elder.

Sarah went on to recount her past arrogant behaviour, which had even caused her to lose the smile of her first son. She had disapproved of her first son's romantic relationship until their marriage was over. The regret she felt now stemmed from not being able to see one of her own grandchildren.

Feeling like she had shared too much, Sarah decided to change the sombre atmosphere by asking about the name of the young man who had helped Anna. Through their conversation, Sarah learned that the young man in front of her, who had assisted her granddaughter, was Gerald Lewis.

Sarah smiled again upon discovering that this humble young man was currently pursuing an education at a university supported by his extended family.

There was something about Gerald's appearance that piqued Sarah's curiosity. Although she didn't dare to ask directly about what intrigued her, she gradually tried to gather information about the young man's identity, bit by bit. "Gerald, who do you live with in this city?"

"I live by myself, Grandma!" Gerald replied, returning the smile.

Gerald actually wanted to go home, but he respected Sarah, who seemed to want to continue talking.

Not wanting the conversation to end, Sarah asked another question. She intended to prolong the conversation. Although it might not have meant much to Gerald, Sarah's time was precious now. Seeing Gerald smile, the chains that had bound Sarah's heart were slowly beginning to loosen. "Do you have a job yet?"

"Well, about that... I'm currently looking for a part-time job, Grandma," Gerald replied.

"What if you work at my company?" Sarah offered, handing him a very prominent business card. In addition to the company name, "Johnson," the genuine gold coating made the business card truly valuable.

Gerald also received the business card. There was no other impression in his mind, as Gerald thought that such an extravagant business card was only fitting for a conglomerate. "Very well, I accept the offer from Grandma!"

In his heart, Gerald was grateful for the lesson he had learned from yesterday's incident. Moreover, getting a job was very useful in covering the difficult-to-accept gift money system.

Then Sarah continued her story about her past arrogance and pride. It was because of that attitude that Sarah and her husband had experienced bankruptcy, reaching the lowest point in their married life.

While they were engrossed in exchanging stories, the door to Gerald's room was suddenly opened by a woman. "Mom, why are you here?" the woman asked, it was Martha.

Martha sat on the sofa next to her mother-in-law, Sarah. Then she looked at Gerald, who was awkwardly rubbing his neck.

Martha was shocked to see the birthmark, a red rash, on Gerald's right side just below his ear. "That birthmark?!" she thought, surprised, although she tried to remain as composed as possible.

Martha only observed Gerald chatting with Sarah. She didn't say a word, as if Gerald's birthmark made her uneasy.

Just a few hours after the conversation ended, Gerald was allowed to go home. The absence of any serious injuries puzzled the doctor who had treated Gerald because it didn't match the initial examination. Gerald's insistence on going home could not be refused after the final examination showed that Gerald had only suffered a few minor scratches on his elbow and knee.

As Gerald walked home, Martha watched him from a distance with a worried look on her face. She bit her index finger with a furrowed brow, as if she had a fear of Gerald. She then made a call with her phone screen displaying the name Zack.

"Zack, is there really a guy named Gerald Lewis at your campus?"

"Yes, I know that annoying poor guy!"

"Tell me everything you know about him!"

Upon returning home from the hospital, Gerald immediately checked the internet for information about the strange incident that had happened to him. The information that came closest to the truth about the strange phenomenon was the existence of a system that had blessed him. Whether he liked it or not, Gerald had to believe it because there was no other explanation.

Gerald stared at the stack of money placed next to his laptop. He was still half in disbelief because the explanation about the system only existed in novels and comics. "I'm still sceptical. But this money has no other explanation except for the presence of the system that chose me."

Moreover, Gerald should have had serious injuries when the accident happened. As far as Gerald remembered, one of his ribs was broken because he had felt an extraordinary pain when the minivan hit him. But in reality, Gerald had now healed as if nothing had happened, without any visible scratches, as when he was at the hospital.

The next day, Gerald went to campus feeling relieved because he no longer had to worry about financial issues. Especially after completing all the business at the campus, Gerald had plans to meet Grandma Sarah to choose the promised job. This certainly made Gerald happy.

Upon arriving at campus, Gerald headed to the administrative office and settled all the payments that needed to be made. As soon as he received the payment receipts, a sense of relief washed over him. "Finally, I can pay my tuition! I don't need to worry anymore. Now I just need to study hard to graduate with good grades!"

Gerald walked away from the administrative office. Today, Gerald had some free time as the professors had only assigned assignments. He intended to leave campus right away. However, his steps came to a halt when he saw a friend crying in the park.

"That's Olivia, right?" Gerald thought to himself as he quickened his steps to approach the woman, he called Olivia.

Gerald sat down beside Olivia. "Olivia, do you have a serious problem?"

Olivia tried to stop crying, but she couldn't. "I-I can't afford the tuition fees. I'm supposed to pay it today. I don't want to be expelled from this campus!"

Gerald fell silent, momentarily recalling his own situation a few days ago, similar to Olivia's current one. Without much thought, Gerald handed money to Olivia. "Here's some money for you. You can pay it back at a later time."

Olivia thanked him with a happy smile as she took the money. However, little did she know that Zack had secretly taken a photo of the incident from a distance.

"Even though I don't know where that money came from, this photo will surely tarnish his reputation," Zack said with a sly smile as he observed the picture of Inez and Gerald on his phone screen.

On the other hand, Gerald was puzzled by the appearance of a holographic message that was clearly displayed in his mind. Gerald then went to a quiet place to respond to the message.

"Reputation Recovery.

"Accept Mission: Yes or No."

"Do I have to undertake a mission again? Why don't I receive instructions like in the previous mission? Whose reputation am I supposed to restore?" Gerald mumbled as he looked at the contents of the second mission from the system.

Confused, Gerald tried to address the system as if he were the main character in a comic blessed with a mysterious system. "System, give me guidance for this mission!"

Since he didn't receive an answer, Gerald could only look around in embarrassment. He scratched the back of his head while laughing joyfully, realizing how absurd his behaviour was. "Embarrassing!"

After selecting 'Yes,' the holographic message in Gerald's mind suddenly disappeared. He then tried to act normal and forget the moment when he imitated a comic book character interacting with a system. "Luckily, no one saw me talking like that. It's truly embarrassing!"