Class Awakening: Working Hard Can Evolve My Classes

Days quietly went by, and a few things had changed in Zeke’s lifestyle. After finishing his training in Solace Bar, he was finally given his first pay of 5,000 crimson rubbles, a neither small nor large amount.

Receiving his first wage from Hullo made him subtly emotional for some reason, a fact that Leon had caught on during that time, but of course, Zeke would never admit to something like that.

With a stable income secured, Zeke felt relieved. He no longer had to buy packed lunches and waste his merit points.

Aside from his food, he also bought a new fan, since just having one still felt hot for him. He didn’t forget the mattress... in fact, the mattress held a higher priority in Zeke’s heart.

He could deal with the hotness, but the thin excuse of a mattress he was sleeping on truly put him in an uncomfortable position every morning. The sooner he was able to replace his mattress with something thicker, the better.

All the purchases brought down his money to 3,500 crimson rubbles, which he would use all of it for food in the upcoming days.

... Or at least, that’s what he had originally planned.

But a notice yesterday had shattered his wishful thinking. Zeke discovered a brand-new world of bottomless evil. Bills. His electricity and water bills were delivered straight to his doorstep, and seeing the amount he needed to pay almost made him tear them apart.

Long story short, he realized that people actually paid bills, which include electricity, water, house rent, and sometimes, items.

Being someone ’ordinary’ himself, Zeke was also subjected to such torture. His crimson rubbles now amounted to a measly 500. He was starting to think that perhaps buying a fan and a mattress was too rash of him...

Of course, those doubts vanished from his mind when he finally woke up feeling comfortable the next day.

"Still, isn’t 3000 crimson rubbles for electricity and water just too expensive? I’m rarely even home, and I only shower twice a day..."

Zeke couldn’t help but complain out loud. Granted, he had no experience in paying bills, but if the average salary of a full-time worker in the Underground was around 10,000 rubbles a month (double his wage), and they probably utilized their electricity and water more than him, then how were they supposed to live after paying for those bills?

That was assuming they didn’t have a family to feed too.

The more he thought of it, the more he felt that those bills were a scam.

"Is it your first time paying for electricity and water?"

At that moment, a male voice resounded in front of him.

Zeke raised his head, looking at the middle-aged man sitting in front of the underbar. He knew this middle-aged man. He was one of the Solace Bar’s frequent customers. His name was Asher Tolstoy, whom Leon introduced to him as a first-rate author.

As part of his training, he made connections with various customers, one of whom was Asher.

Zeke realized that he might have spoken his thoughts out loud this time.

But instead of taking it back, he nodded honestly.

"Uh, yes."

He didn’t feel the need to hide this, and he already said it anyway.

Asher slowly put down the drink in his hand, then chuckled.

"I see, but you’re right to think that it’s a scam."

"... It’s a scam?"

Zeke narrowed his eyes, puzzled.

"Yeah," Asher nodded calmly, then looked down at his drink. "They’re an open, blatant attempt to rob everyone in the Underground. Though operation is more apt to describe it... It’s no longer an attempt if it’s working, isn’t it?"

Zeke fell silent, but a moment later, he couldn’t help but ask hesitantly. "The one who provides electricity and water... who are they?"

If this kind of scam was persisting even before he came here, then why has nothing changed?

He could only guess that the people behind this scam were invincible.

"It’s a company from the Surface," Asher continued slowly. "They’re called Brightwell, one of the three megacorporations in the Surface. They’re in charge of collecting the electricity and water bills in the City Lord’s stead. Not paying them means you’ll get cut off from the grid, or worse, you might even get killed."

Zeke couldn’t help but fall silent.

No wonder then.

But a moment later, he asked again, perhaps to clarify something.

"... No one has a choice? Why doesn’t anyone... say anything, then?"

Asher looked at Zeke for a moment. After a brief stare, he shook his head and spoke cynically. "Freedom is an illusion, my friend. Being born in the Underground, people like us only have two choices. One is to learn to live with it, and the other is to die with it."

"Don’t ever think we are free. Humans have conquered everything but freedom, because they always believed that they have it already."

After saying that, Asher drank his drink in one gulp. His eyes couldn’t help but shine.

"Good drink... It’s better than that poet’s work. You improved significantly, Crimson."

Zeke nodded slightly, but Asher’s words still left a mark in his heart. The vast majority of people weren’t actually free, and this was more than obvious in Red Land. But how does one actually attain freedom?

Will freedom always remain an elusive concept, or...

’Strength.’

This thought appeared in Zeke’s mind almost immediately. In the Age of Classes, the only requisite for freedom was undeniable, undefiable, and unshakeable strength—but if that was the case, then only the strongest was closest to freedom.

Everything else, other than strength, they were false freedom.

His conversation with Asher stayed with him the whole shift, persisting even when he returned home.

Knowing whether the bills were a scam or not actually changed nothing, Zeke would still have to pay for them. This was the reality, until he had any power to change it, then he shouldn’t complain.

’... But what if I never get that power?’

Almost immediately, when this thought appeared, Zeke’s heart skipped a beat. But then, he realized he didn’t need to be anxious since since he had a guarantee for that, which was the proficiency bar. But, what about other people?

Without a guarantee, how could they live?

’No... why am I thinking about them?’

Zeke expression changed slightly, immediately brushing aside such thoughts. His situation alone was exhausting to deal with, he shouldn’t concern himself with the business of other people. While he was currently living like them, he wasn’t as hopeless.

He must be feeling bored to think about that stuff...

"Forget that, I’ll just sleep..."

Zeke closed his eyes and cleared his thoughts. Tomorrow was the long-awaited class exams, so he definitely couldn’t be late. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

But that night, knowing how lucky he was, he fully resolved himself to change his fate.

–It was either he die trying, or live long enough to be the strongest.