Kai didn’t go to another gate after he came back through.

His shoulder ached as he came through the gate. Then paused when he heard a rumbling sound, and he glanced back to see it collapsing.

"So, it can’t be reused after being conquered."

He rolled his shoulder once and left.

He could hear the sounds of people shouting a block away and phone cameras flashing at the destroyed gate. Soon, he reached the shopping center that had turned into a trading hub overnight.

The mall entrance was packed with tables, players crowding them, laying out cores and claws and fragments Kai couldn’t name yet. Scanners ran over everything as fast as the lines moved.

It already looked permanent. Nobody seemed to find that strange because the market was too useful to question.

Kai got in the nearest line and waited for his turn.

When he reached the front, he put everything on the table and asked how much it was. The clerk ran over the pile before stopping and frowning.

"You got all of this from one run?" the clerk asked.

Kai said nothing.

The clerk looked at the screen before leaning back in his chair with his arms close. "That’s way higher than it should be for an F-rank clear," he muttered.

"How much?" Kai said.

The clerk typed something, and the number appeared on the shared display between them.

[Credits Earned: 26,800.]

They stood in silence for a second.

Kai stared at the reward total. He’d expected more than a run-of-the-mill F-rank clear, but the final tally still eclipsed even his adjusted guess.

"The only scores near this were from an epic-class player yesterday," the clerk murmured, "and he had a full party."

Kai pictured the grocery store on his way home. Was there any reason not to stop? No. "Transfer it," he said.

The clerk nodded and slid the receipt back.

Kai accepted it without meeting his gaze. "Intersection of Vael and Northgate. F-rank. Collapsed forty minutes ago," he added.

The clerk glanced up.

"For your records," Kai said, then turned and left.

At least the clerk hadn’t tried cheating him.

A few minutes from the hub, he found a grocery store. The shelves were half-empty compared to two days ago, and the prices had already moved. Fruit that cost two dollars now cost four. Everything else crept up behind it. He filled a cart with potatoes, rice, beef from the counter, a few drinks and headed for the checkout.

Then the snack aisle caught his eye.

For a year, he’d passed this row twice weekly; it was Leo’s favorite in all those ads. And how many times Kai had told himself, "Maybe next time," since eight dollars on snacks was eight dollars less for other needed food.

He stood there for a second.

Then he put two packages in the basket and kept walking.

At the checkout, the total climbed into the two hundreds, far more than he’d ever spent here. He swiped his card without hesitating and grabbed the bags.

For once, the number didn’t matter.

...

It didn’t take long to reach home.

He opened the door to see Mina standing there. "You need to tell me when you’re leaving this early. But it’s good you are okay."

Kai moved past her, saying. "I promise I will next time, but see, I’m fine. And don’t worry, it was an easy dungeon."

"I guess I will believe you," Mina said before her eyes narrowed. "I hope you aren’t lying."

"I would never."

Leo rushed through the hallway, stopping at the table. "Did you fight monsters? Were they huge? Did you use a sword?"

Kai set the bags down. "Yeah. They were tough." He looked at Leo. "Help me unpack."

Leo quickly began pulling out fruits and canned goods. Mina moved more slowly, stacking jars and ketchup bottles with hints of surprise at what she was seeing. But then she lifted a butcher’s package and froze. "You bought meat."

"Yeah."

Her brow furrowed. "Where did you get the money?"

Kai met her gaze. "By selling the materials found in the dungeon."

"Is there already a market for it?" Mina muttered in surprise.

"The world is changing fast, it’s expected," Kai said before moving to help empty the bags. Mina sighed but also nodded in agreement and returned to emptying the bags. Leo reached the bottom and pulled out a bag of crisps.

He held it up like a prize. "No way," he whispered. Then he said again. "No way. You remembered."

Kai stopped near the counter. He saw it clearly now: the dinner table three months ago, Leo asking for snacks, Mina promising next time, Leo’s hopeful nod. He’d replayed that moment in the shop until he slipped the crisps into his basket.

He smiled. "Of course. Enjoy."

Leo stared at the snacks for a few seconds too long. Like he still wasn’t fully sure he was allowed to be excited about things like this anymore. And then he tore open the bag with a massive grin.

Mina didn’t say anything, but she had a faint smile as she kept unpacking in silence. Neither of them needed words to understand what this meant.

They ate dinner together while Leo talked about rankings and players from other cities and things he’d seen on the streams during the day. Kai was listening, and then he noticed the paper. It was tucked against the side of the counter, pushed back toward the wall, and he reached for it.

But then Mina moved quickly, her hand coming out. "Wait, Kai! Don’t–"

He already had it and unfolded it.

[Final Notice: Payment Due. 84,000 Credits.]

[Deadline: 14 Days.]

[Failure to comply will result in forced eviction.]

The table went quiet.

Leo had fallen silent while looking between the two of them and then eating his snack slowly.

"I was going to tell you."

"When did it come?"

"It arrived two days ago. I wanted to figure something out first before—" She stopped. "I didn’t want to add it to whatever you were already dealing with."

Kai thought about the school fee she said she had handled, and realized she had been holding back. He smoothed the paper along its folds. Trying to get over 80,000 in twelve days would be almost impossible.

In the old world, that number would’ve crushed him.

But now?

The system had made a mistake in giving him a chance. Today’s gate run had pulled in 26,800 credits with first-clear, solo, and distortion bonuses stacked. Those conditions were unlikely to align again, but it was enough to tell him he had a chance.

"Don’t worry, I will handle it."

"Kai." Mina said softly. "You don’t need to force yourself to handle this on your own–"

"You know, I’m not." He reached over and briefly touched her hair, making her go still. "You already took care of Leo’s school fee. Leave the debt to me. We will split the work like we always do."

Mina blinked before giving a nod while Leo picked up his snack and took a cautious bite without looking at them.

Kai glanced at the notice one more time and then said. "Alright, let’s eat."

Slowly, the table settled back to normal.

A couple of hours passed with the others sleeping and Kai staying by the window. The city lights stretched beneath him, and the folded paper rested on the kitchen table. Compared to last night, the streets pulsed with life as people moved through normally quiet hours.

He ran his numbers again. Every calculation ended the same way: being careful would not be enough. Some of today’s conditions couldn’t be repeated. The ones that could would need extra force. He had to understand the distortion better and faster than two weeks if he tested only one factor at a time.

He felt his shoulder ache.

He stared at the city and thought about eighty-four thousand credits, twelve days, and Leo setting the snack on the table with both hands.

Then his status screen blinked on by itself.

[Condition Threshold Reached]

[New Function Unlocked: Temporary Class Emulation]

No details explained, no instructions. Just the name floating on the screen while Mina and Leo slept, and eighty-four thousand credits waited silently on the kitchen table.

Kai stared at the words and then slowly smiled.

One problem at a time.

Distortion first.

Class Emulation later.

He leaned back, let his shoulder relax, and watched the dark city move below. The paper on the table held its number in the quiet.

Twelve days remained.