Chapter 19: No. 19: New Day. New Me!
Sprawled across the bed of a washed-out apartment that looked as though it was on the brink of collapse, a plus-sized young man slept noisily. His body covered nearly twice the size of the bed itself, his legs still able to touch the ground despite lying on it.
Groggily opening his eyes as the beastly man finally stirred awake, Bruce took in the sight around him while remaining sprawled across the bed.
A faint smile soon appeared on his face after he briefly failed to recognize the room at a glance. However, the moment he recalled the events that had occurred yesterday, his smile widened even further, elated that it hadn’t all been a dream.
Raising a hand, Bruce stared at it briefly before muttering.
"I never thought the day would come when I’d be happy to be plus-sized."
Yawning slightly, Bruce recalled how reluctant he’d been to fall asleep last night, fearing he’d wake up back in his old body and realize it had all been nothing more than a beautiful dream, forcing him to return to the nightmare he once called his life.
Fearing this, he’d stayed awake for quite some time, aimlessly staring at the ceiling until exhaustion finally caught up with him after getting beaten up multiple times in a single day.
"Good thing I was able to return the favour. Otherwise, I’d feel indebted to them."
Chuckling to himself, Bruce couldn’t help but smile as he suddenly recalled spending the night with a gorgeous young lady, gazing at the stars before they eventually parted ways because it had gotten late and she didn’t want to worry her parents.
Satisfied with the thought, Bruce’s smile widened a bit as he finally decided to get out of bed.
A task that proved far more difficult than he’d initially anticipated. All he could do was roll around on the bed like a turtle that had been flipped onto its shell, while the bed creaked in protest beneath the weight it was forced to shoulder.
Realizing he’d be at it forever if he kept trying, Bruce decided to roll off from the bed instead, causing himself to crash heavily onto the dented floor, finally free from the bed’s clutches. Behind him remained a Bruce-shaped dent permanently imprinted into the mattress.
"Yikes."
Shuddering slightly at the sight, Bruce headed to the bathroom to freshen up.
A while later, after fighting a war against the formidable foe that was his oversized body, Bruce finally emerged victorious.
Although he’d struggled to clean beneath the folds of fat that made up his body, the task proved relatively easier this time since he’d already gone through the ordeal yesterday, making it slightly less tormenting.
Returning to his tiny living room, Bruce realized he didn’t really have anywhere he urgently needed to be. As such, he decided to sit on his crooked couch, which had also suffered greatly under his never-ending weight.
Sadly, the couch had lost that battle.
One of its legs had snapped, causing it to lean awkwardly to one side. Fortunately, it was still usable... to an extent.
Sitting down, Bruce decided to check his current stats to pass the time.
********
[Personal Profile]
{Name: Bruce Wade}
{Age: 20}
{Level: 1}
{Main Ability: Rebate Lord}
{Account Balance: 11,082,028 KPT}
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[Personal Stats]
{Strength: 10}
{Agility: -15}
{Stamina: -27}
{Charisma: -53}
{Mana: 30/30}
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[Rebate Profile]
{Rebate Stage: Wimp Stage}
{Bonded Targets: 1/2 (Kindly upgrade to the next Rebate Stage to unlock additional Bonded Target slots.)}
{Rebate Coins: 194.75 » 365.75}
{Rebate Gifts: None}
******
Looking over his progress so far, Bruce couldn’t help but smile.
Though his physical stats hadn’t changed, nor had he advanced to the next Rebate Stage, the amount of Kepto he’d earned in just one day from Summer alone was insane.
Plus, he now had over 11 million Kepto in his bank account, roughly equivalent to 11 million dollars. If he were back in his old world, he’d likely rank among the wealthiest youngsters of his generation.
Perhaps not at the very top, but he’d undoubtedly be counted among them nonetheless.
’And this was the amount I earned in a single day. Imagine how much I could make in a month... or even a year.’
The thought alone was enough to send chills down his spine, making him realize just how terrifying the system truly was.
Shaking those thoughts away, Bruce decided to take things one step at a time instead of daydreaming about a future he hadn’t reached...
Yet.
Turning his attention to the other noticeable change since yesterday, Bruce looked at his current amount of Rebate Coins as he recalled how he’d obtained the additional rewards.
Strangely enough, it wasn’t buying the earrings for Summer that had earned him the extra Rebate Coins.
Instead, he received them while talking to her, after she’d held the gift close to herself, triggering the rewards. That amounted to roughly an additional 180 Rebate Coins before the system deducted the usual 5%, leaving him with the amount currently displayed.
That, in turn, reminded Bruce of the System’s explanation regarding what it meant by ’spoiling Bonded Targets.’
It had never specifically stated that buying things for them was what earned Rebate Coins. Instead, it mentioned that giving gifts, sweets, and showing affection were the requirements for earning Rebate Coins.
Based on what he’d observed so far, only when the System explicitly stated that a money-related task would reward Rebate Coins did purchasing something actually count toward earning them.
Of course, he couldn’t conclude that buying things wasn’t a requirement at all. It was still far too early to make such a judgment.
But based on everything he’d learned so far, that seemed to be the most likely explanation.
Seeing how far he’d come, from a weak, sickly man with barely any money in his account to someone who was now practically a millionaire, Bruce couldn’t help but feel a sense of accomplishment.
Sure, the extra weight was still a problem.
But for now... He didn’t really mind it.
After all, he was no longer the former Bruce. Nor was he his past self. He was someone new.
"A new me!"
The moment those words left his mouth, Bruce cringed slightly. Then, as though remembering something important, his eyes lit up.
"That’s right. I haven’t had the chance to check out the System Shop ever since I unlocked it yesterday. Might as well see what it has to offer."
With that, Bruce decided to check out what the newly unlocked shop feature, and what goodies awaited him.
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