### Chapter 6
"Jk Hospital has been shut down today. Higher authorities have declared the facility closed, and it will remain non-operational for the next decade. Early today, records of their illegal activities were exposed by an anonymous whistleblower. The leak included recordings of staff speaking to a victim's family, explicitly exposing how patients are treated behind closed doors. The files were made public at midnight."
The news report played in the background of the living room.
Solomon took a slow sip of his water, his eyes indifferently glancing at the television screen.
```
[ Hidden Mission Concluded! ]
[ Evaluation: The host, proving to be exceptionally vengeful, bypassed the medical staff's expectations and leaked the audio files even after his niece received treatment. ]
[ Reward: $200,000 processed. Laura's emergency intake fees have been entirely returned to your registry as cashback. ]
```
Solomon offered no response to the system's text. Every single second those corrupt professionals had wasted while Laura bled out had now been paid back to them in full. The baseline payoff he had given the doctors and nurses would have to sustain them for a very long time, considering they were now permanently unemployed. A cold smirk played across his lips.
"The physician and nurse featured in the recording have been formally arrested under severe malpractice and corruption charges," the anchor continued. "They have received a maximum sentence of ten years in a high-security correction facility."
As the broadcast detailed their ruin, a quiet laugh finally escaped Solomon's lips.
The system felt an involuntary shiver run through its digital framework. [ Host, you have finally unfrozen the new business asset. You now possess the structural authorization to invest your capital and generate independent streams of revenue. Money is the ultimate authority in this world; however, the interface will not remain tied to your consciousness forever. You must construct your own unassailable empire. ]
"I need to attend my lectures," Solomon replied internally, gulping down the last drop of his water and completely ignoring the system's strategic advice.
The instructor who had previously falsely accused him of plagiarism had been quietly transferred to a remote district. The academy administration had buried the incident without a public announcement, but Solomon noticed the empty desk in the faculty office and chose to remain silent.
Solomon's steady footsteps echoed down the corridor as he entered the main lecture hall. The moment he crossed the threshold, his eyes locked onto a bizarre sight—high-resolution posters featuring his own face had been plastered across every available surface of the classroom walls.
Solomon raised an eyebrow, staring dead at the display.
The system, thoroughly rattled by its host's silent pressure, quickly popped up to offer an explanation. ```[ Host, for reasons tied to recent social algorithms, the student body has taken immense notice of your profile.
Your status as an exceptionally handsome, wealthy, and elite-tier D-class student has gone viral across the internal networks. To them, your sudden rise is akin to a deity manifesting in the lower districts. They deeply admire your intellect, and your passive aura has completely shifted to a superior register. ]
```
"It's nothing but trouble," Solomon muttered beneath his breath, walking down the aisle with total indifference, acting as though the gossiping students weren't explicitly staring at him.
```
[ Structural Inquiry: Why do you maintain such a profound level of nonchalance, Host? ] the system pressed, continuing its relentless chatter.
```
Solomon completely tuned out the noise. Why would he ever engage in a peaceful, casual dialogue with a literal devil?
As he navigated deeper into the classroom, every single student sat up straight, their collective gazes tracking his movements like heat-seeking missiles. Solomon didn't flinch for a fraction of a second.
"Well, look who finally decided to grace us with his presence—the academy's newly minted icon."
Marcus, the individual who had systematically orchestrated trouble for Solomon in the past, sneered the moment he approached. Marcus held the title of the premier bully within the institution, traditionally tormenting Solomon and other lower-district students due to their lack of capital and low class ratings.
Solomon looked directly at Marcus, refusing to offer a single word. He had zero interest in engaging with him; his sole purpose here was to finish his studies. He fully expected the loudmouth to eventually exhaust himself and shut up. Solomon had always operated under the firm belief that silence was the most efficient path to a non-violent life, ensuring no unnecessary complications came his way.
Unfortunately, his calculated silence only served to provoke his antagonist further.
"I'm speaking directly to your face, and you're going to sit there and ignore me?" Marcus gritted his teeth, his facial features contorting with rage at Solomon's absolute lack of a reaction. "Who the hell do you think you are? What kind of elite do you take yourself for? I am talking to you! Do you have any actual comprehension of who my family is?"
Solomon finally shifted his gaze upward, his tone flat and undisturbed. "What exactly do you want from me? I am simply here to attend lectures. I don't have the spare time to waste on your antics."
A collective gasp rippled through the lecture hall the moment the words left Solomon's lips. The surrounding students had never anticipated such a quiet, dominant delivery from him; it caught the entire room completely off guard. No one had ever dared to stand up to Marcus with that level of cool authority, even though Solomon was technically just an ordinary student.
Because Marcus was universally recognized as someone more cruel than a demon, his presence typically brought nothing but chaos to the campus.
"Today is the mandatory physical evaluation session," Marcus snarled, leaning in close. "I am going to completely dismantle the pathetic little reputation you've manufactured in this school. Are you truly prepared to face me out on the field, or are you just a helpless pup?"
Marcus let out a menacing laugh, deliberately spitting onto the polished leather of Solomon's shoe.
Solomon's eyes tracked the saliva downward. His upper lip twitched slightly, his expression freezing before he slowly raised his head to look Marcus dead in the eyes.
"Challenge accepted."
The exact millisecond those words left his lips, a high-priority system chime detonated inside his mind.
```
[ High-Risk Objective Initialized! ]
[ Warning: You are actively challenging the direct heir of a prominent mob syndicate. Lethal consequences are highly probable. ]
[ Mission Directive: Formally accept whatever athletic challenge Marcus proposes during the upcoming physical evaluation. ]
[ Core Performance Metric: Demonstrate absolute dominance; do not allow a single bystander to mock your execution. ]
[ Failure Condition: Structural degradation of your remaining left kidney, resulting in instantaneous biological expiration. ]
```
"Oh," Solomon reacted internally, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'll see you out there, Marcus."
Completely ignoring the system's dire warnings, Solomon walked over to his designated desk and sat down. Immediately, the surrounding students dissolved into frantic whispering, and mobile devices began vibrating across the room with a cascade of notification alerts.
The academy's private gossip channels were completely flooded with a single headline: *Solomon just challenged the mob syndicate's son.*
***
The lecture finally concluded. The moment the bell rang, Solomon grabbed his gear bag and headed straight for the locker rooms to change into his athletic uniform for the upcoming physical evaluation, keeping Marcus's explicit threats at the forefront of his mind.
Once changed, he slung his bag over his shoulder and walked out onto the expansive outdoor sports complex.
On the surface, it appeared to be a standard physical education session, though the athletic tracks and training zones were strictly segregated by class tier. Students were clustered in groups, chatting idly with their peers. Solomon scanned the field, searching for his assigned sector.
The moment he located his position, Marcus arrived on the turf, his eyes boring into him with pure hostility.
Solomon stood his ground, and the two men locked eyes in a suffocating stare down—a silent war of attrition waged entirely through their expressions. Marcus clenched his fists until his bones popped. *Damn it, why does this pathetic D-class nobody carry himself like he's superior to me?*
However, Marcus had zero intention of letting his calculated plans be derailed by a minor display of psychological intimidation.
"So you actually possessed enough spine to show up," Marcus sneered, looking down his nose at Solomon as if inspecting a piece of sub-district filth.
Silence. Solomon offered absolutely no verbal feedback, causing the veins along Marcus's forehead to bulge violently. How dare this garbage ignore him? Was he intentionally trying to humiliate him in front of the entire student body?
"You're going to accept my challenge to a football match right here and now, correct?"
"Regrettably, I don't participate in football," Solomon stated, his voice completely level. He delivered the refusal as if it were the most mundane, self-evident truth in the world.
The female students gathered along the perimeter to watch the drama unfold all let out a synchronous gasp.
"Did he just admit he doesn't play football? For a guy, isn't that a first?"
In reality, the institutional benefits and training facilities for football were strictly reserved for the upper-class elites. Lower-district students were only permitted to access the pitch under exceptional circumstances, which meant Solomon had never developed a genuine investment in the sport. Furthermore, despite actually possessing a highly proficient skill set on the field, he had deliberately formulated his response purely to spike Marcus's blood pressure.
Enraged by the casual rejection, Marcus lunged forward, throwing a heavy, untelegraphed punch directly at Solomon's jaw.
Solomon reacted with lightning efficiency, swiftly pivoting his torso to dodge the incoming strike.
Marcus's momentum carried him forward, his missed punch sending him stumbling toward a group of bystanders. A young girl in the crowd panicked, scrambling backward to flee the trajectory, only to trip over her own feet and fall directly toward Solomon.
Solomon caught her effortlessly, his arms stabilizing her frame.
His gaze momentarily locked with a pair of striking green eyes, hidden behind an oversized pair of thick spectacles. Solomon analyzed her features for a fraction of a second before immediately releasing his grip and stepping back. He dismissed her presence instantly, treating her as though she were nothing more than an irrelevant background character in a passing drama.
"Marcus, I am currently feeling quite unwell," Solomon adjusted his posture, preparing to exit the athletic grounds. "I am not in the proper condition to engage with you today."
He turned to walk away from the turf, but the head physical evaluation tutor intercepted him, his voice booming across the field. "What exactly grants you the authority to dismiss yourself from this session, student?"
"And who exactly do you think you are?" Solomon turned slowly to face the instructor.
Evaluating the tutor's aggressive demeanor and fierce attitude, it was immediately apparent that the faculty member was operating as an active accomplice for Marcus's family.
"I am currently indisposed, instructor. Is an enrolled student no longer permitted to utilize the infirmary when their health degrades?"
"Not without my explicit authorization, and the answer is no."
Solomon silently slid his hand into his uniform pocket and pulled it back out.
"Here—$10,000. Consider my absence cleared."
The massive stack of high-denomination notes splashed directly into the instructor's open palm. If Marcus was utilizing financial bribery to command the faculty's cooperation, Solomon could easily deploy the exact same methodology with zero friction.
The instructor's hand trembled violently under the sheer weight of the physical currency. This much money... He swallowed his saliva hard, forcefully resisting the urge to count the bills in front of hundreds of staring students. He remained frozen on the turf, quietly watching Solomon walk away from the athletic sector with his hands casually resting inside his pockets.
*System, my remaining kidney is completely secure, correct?* Solomon inquired internally, his voice completely devoid of any discernible human emotion.
```
[ Positive Confirmation: Yes, Host, ] the system stammered, its digital frequency wavering in clear shock.
```
The corner of Solomon's mouth twitched into a faint smirk.
```
[ Objective Successfully Concluded! ]
[ Financial Reward: $20,000 compensation fee has been credited to your active account. ]
```
"Stop right there, student Solomon!" a sharp voice barked from the edge of the field.
```