<🎧 Song Recommendation: Song 2 - 2012 Remaster>

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[Item: H-19 Panacea Formula (SS-Ranked)]

[Description: A complete synthesized biochemical blueprint for the permanent cure and vaccine against the H-19 virus.]

Von stared at the glowing text once again. It felt really heavy, as if the weight of the entire world was resting on his palm.

’I still can’t believe it...’

The System was really giving him the craziest stuff from the lottery ticket, but this one was entirely on another level. It was a golden ticket to absolute global power.

For weeks, Von had been wrestling with this exact dilemma.

If he walked into a major pharmaceutical company with this drive, he could patent it.

He would become a billionaire overnight. He would be among the richest and most powerful men on the planet. He could buy islands, studios, and anything he ever desired.

But there was a massive catch. The legal red tape, the government approvals, the bidding wars, and the sheer corporate greed would take years to sort out.

Millions of people would die while men in expensive suits sat in boardrooms and argued over profit margins.

Besides, Von looked around his luxurious, quiet bedroom. Even though his bank account wasn’t currently holding millions, he was still a multi-millionaire.

He still had his $17 million in stocks. His music career was only getting higher, and he was about to step into Hollywood as a leading man. He didn’t really need blood money to secure his future.

He gripped the small purple flash drive tightly, making his final decision.

"Argh... I can’t believe I’m being selfless. The former Von would never," he muttered to himself in the quiet room.

’Well, that’s a different Von. I’m the better one,’ Von eventually concluded with a firm sense of confidence.

He walked back to his desk and opened his laptop. If he was going to do this, he couldn’t just hand it to one government or one organization.

That was too risky. They could easily hide it, monopolize it, or claim it as a national security asset. He had to release it anonymously, and he had to release it to the entire internet all at once.

It took mere moments for Von to set up a VPN, bouncing his IP address across a dozen different countries. He created several untraceable burner accounts.

Then, he dropped it everywhere.

He uploaded the massive data files to X, SubVerse, Photogram, HubGit. He titled the posts simply: The Cure. Everyone had access to it now.

Simultaneously, he mass-emailed the direct download links to the private, secure inboxes of the world’s top medical officials at the CDC and the WHO.

He made sure the subject line was alarming enough that they couldn’t ignore it.

Von smiled, watching the upload bars hit one hundred percent. The files were out. The genie was out of the bottle, and no corporation on earth could put it back in.

He pulled the purple flash drive from the USB port, snapped it cleanly in half with his hands, and tossed the broken pieces into his trash bin.

Right as he got back to his bed to finally get some sleep, a glowing purple notification suddenly lit up his screen, making Von open his mouth in surprise.

[Ding!]

[You’ve saved humanity from the brink of collapse without seeking glory or financial gain! For that great deed, you’ve been awarded a title!]

[Title: Unsung Hero (A)]

[Effect: Whenever you keep your projects a secret, the eventual public reveal generates a massive multiplier in hype and shock value.]

"Wow, this was unexpected," Von couldn’t help but think, his eyes scanning the text.

The effect was as vague as usual. It was something he couldn’t really measure with a specific number or stat boost, but he still knew immediately how it applied to his current film project.

His role as Aiden in Perfect Ruins was still heavily under wraps. Maybe this title could help with that, and hopefully, it would generate the positive type of hype they desperately needed to secure a theatrical release.

But what Von cared about most right now was that the formula was out there. Now all he just had to do was to wait, and hopefully, everything would fall into place.

***

One week later...

The internet had been a chaotic mess for the past seven days. Conspiracy theorists, scientists, and news anchors had been arguing endlessly about the mysterious data dump that had flooded the web.

Some called it a hoax; others called it a miracle. But the official agencies had remained completely silent.

Von was sitting in his living room with Max and Naomi. The TV was playing quietly in the background, tuned to a global news network while Max scrolled through his phone and Naomi read a book.

Suddenly, the regular broadcast was abruptly cut off. A breaking news banner flashed across the screen in bright red.

"We interrupt this program to bring you a live press conference from the CDC headquarters in Atlanta." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

The room instantly went quiet. Even Max turned away from his phone to check what was happening on the screen.

A tired, gray-haired, but visibly emotional scientist stepped up to the podium. The cameras flashed rapidly in the crowded press room.

"Good morning," the official said with a shaky, profound voice. "For the past week, our top researchers, alongside the WHO, have been analyzing the anonymous, unverified biochemical formula that caught the internet by surprise. We have run thousands of simulations and rapid real-world tests."

He paused, gripping the edges of the podium, a genuine smile breaking through his exhausted features.

"Today, I am proud to announce that clinical trials have been overwhelmingly successful. We have found the cure for the Hypoxia Virus!"

Naomi gasped loudly, her hands flying to cover her mouth.

"The government has fast-tracked mass production of the vaccine," the official continued, his voice growing stronger.

"Effective mid-October, the global lockdown protocols will be completely lifted!"

"Holy shit!" Max jumped entirely off the couch, screaming and dancing around the living room.

"It’s over! The lockdown is over! We are going back to the clubs, baby!"

Naomi started crying tears of joy, instantly lunging across the sofa and pulling Von into a massive, tight hug.

"Von, did you hear that?!" Naomi sobbed happily into his shoulder. "I can go back to school! People won’t die anymore! Things are going back to normal!"

Von smiled warmly, hugging his sister back tightly. "Yeah. I heard."

It was a surreal feeling, knowing he was the reason millions of families were celebrating around the world right at this very second.

His phone immediately started buzzing violently in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw Marcus’s name flashing on the screen.

He answered it with genuine surprise, because Marcus rarely called him directly. Usually, the director filtered everything through Emily or Leviathan.

"Von! Tell me you’re watching the news!" Marcus was practically shouting through the speaker, sounding like a man who had just been pardoned from death row.

"I’m watching it, Marcus," Von chuckled, walking toward the kitchen to get away from Max’s loud cheering.

"Cinemas are opening in November, kid! The timing is absolute perfection!" Marcus yelled with relief. We got a tip about this earlier from Levy’s label, so I can finally break the news to you. Perfect Ruins has officially been submitted to the Toronto International Film Festival! We got a screening slot!"

Hearing the positive news about the movie made Von’s grin widen significantly. The Toronto Film Festival was the ultimate launching pad for Hollywood blockbusters. This was their battleground.

"So get ready," Marcus continued, breathless with excitement. "You’re coming to Canada!"

"Oh man. You bet I’m ready!"

***

Thousands of miles away, in an apartment room, the exact same breaking news was playing on a laptop screen.

Marvin was sitting on the edge of his bed, grinning from ear to ear as he watched the CDC official step away from the podium.

The news anchors had taken over, excitedly discussing the rapid rollout of the vaccine and the economic boom that was sure to follow.

"I told you so!" Marvin gloated, pointing a finger directly at his roommate. "I literally told you this lockdown was ending! You swore we were going to be trapped in this room for a decade!"

Harvey was sitting on the floor, staring blankly at the laptop screen. His usual cynical, know-it-all expression was completely gone, now replaced by unfiltered shock.

"Wow..." Harvey mumbled, taking his glasses off and rubbing his eyes.

"That’s... that’s a massive surprise. Honestly, I thought it was just internet fake news when the files leaked last week."

"Well, it wasn’t," Marvin laughed, thoroughly enjoying his victory.

"But hey, I’m happy about this for real," Harvey admitted, a rare smile appearing on his face. "I can finally go back to working in a real office instead of this dusty floor."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a lighter. He placed a cigarette between his lips and sparked it.

"But don’t celebrate too hard," Harvey added, taking a drag and pointing the cigarette at Marvin.

"You haven’t won the bet yet. You also claimed that Von Varley will have a role in Leviathan’s movie, Perfect Ruins. I guarantee you, that’s not happening."

Marvin stepped back, waving his hand to clear the smoke, but his smirk didn’t fade in the slightest.

"Well, that’s your business," Marvin shot back confidently. "Just wait and find out. You’ll be disappointed once again when you see him on the big screen."

"Yeah, whatever," Harvey rolled his eyes, turning back to his laptop to check his flooded inbox.

Journalists and writers around the world were scrambling to cover the end of the pandemic.

Suddenly, Harvey stopped scrolling. He clicked on a specific email, his eyes widening slightly as he read the subject line.

"Well, well. Would you look at that," Harvey muttered, leaning closer to the screen. "I just got invited to report at the festival."

"Wait, seriously?" Marvin walked over, peering over his roommate’s shoulder to check the email for himself.

It was an official press invitation from the Toronto International Film Festival organizers.

Aside from writing freelance articles for American bloggers, Harvey used to work for a mid-sized entertainment magazine in Canada before the lockdown forced him to move.

It was great to see he hadn’t been forgotten by his old editors. They wanted him on the ground to review the indie film lineup, since major studios were suddenly rushing to debut their delayed movies there.

"That’s crazy!" Marvin congratulated him, slapping him on the back. "A press pass to TIFF? That’s huge, man."

"Yeah, it pays to have connections," Harvey smirked, looking quite pleased with himself.

Marvin’s eyes suddenly lit up with a brilliant idea.

"In that case, I’ll get a public ticket so I can come with you to Toronto," Marvin declared eagerly. "We’ll go to the Perfect Ruins screening together, and we’ll be meeting Von Varley in person when he walks the red carpet."

His roommate simply burst out laughing at the ridiculous remark.

"You’re delusional, bro," Harvey chuckled while shaking his head. "Von isn’t going to be in Toronto. He’s probably in a studio in Miami recording another hit right now."

Marvin didn’t care about his roommate’s dismissal. He just smiled, retreating back to his unmade bed to pull up flight prices on his phone and make his plans.

The world was finally opening back up, and he wasn’t going to miss the greatest comeback in Hollywood history.