Two days later, the lottery results were announced.
Lucian had already mentioned the tickets to Lia a few days after he bought them—and she had been furious at him.
How could she not be?
She had worked so hard for that money, juggling many part-time jobs while keeping up with her studies, counting every dollar and cutting corners whenever she could.
And then her brother—her unbelievable brother—had casually spent a chunk of it on something as uncertain as lottery tickets.
Lottery tickets.
To her, it sounded no different from throwing money into a fire and hoping it burned into gold.
After a long round of venting her anger at him, scolding and convincing—she finally calmed down, though barely.
But the disappointment remained, and Lucian simply accepted it as it was.
After telling her about the results, she was shocked.
She couldn't believe his words.
At first, she even laughed, thinking it was just a joke.
But when he showed her the results, Lia froze.
She was sitting on a chair, with a phone in one hand and the lottery ticket in the other.
Her eyes darted from the winning numbers to the prize amount—200,000 dollars—and then back again.
"...No way"
She rubbed her eyes repeatedly, trying to see if it was real.
Lucian chuckled softly.
"I told you, right? I would win."
He rested his chin lightly on the top of her head, with a smug smile tugging at his lips.
She nodded blankly, her mind still trying to catch up.
"Holy shit, we really…"
Her voice trailed off.
Seeing her dumbfounded expression, his smile widened slightly.
***
After withdrawing the money, he gave some to Lia for her college fees and other uses, kept some for himself, and used the rest in online stock markets where he knew returns would be high in the short term.
He needed to build as much as he could, as fast as he could.
He didn't want to worry about money.
And he needed enough to bring his mother out of that place.
He hadn't been able to visit her in the past few days and was already missing her.
She might act cold towards him, speaking little, using only a few words, but only he knew how warm she really was.
He was currently jogging outside, thinking about his future plans.
Just then—
[Ding!~]
As he was running, a holographic panel suddenly appeared before him.
[New Quest Generated!]
[Quest: Damsel in distress]
Objective: Save her from the accident.
Reward: 5 AP
Difficulty: E-
Time Limit: 30 Seconds
Failure Penalty: None
— — —
"Huh?"
He slowed down, then stopped completely on his tracks.
It had been a while since he had gotten a quest.
As he read the quest…
'What kind of quest is this?'
First, it just told him to save her.
Who was her?
From what accident?
And where?
While he was frowning at the screen…
[Time remaining: 22 seconds]
His expression changed suddenly.
"Shit."
He had forgotten to check the time limit.
He hurriedly looked around, scanning his surroundings.
Since the Time Limit was so low, the individual had to be nearby.
Some people nearby looked at him weirdly.
[19 seconds]
The time was running out.
Just then, he noticed a small boy chasing a ball onto the road.
Lucian's eyes narrowed.
'A boy? No…that's not right.'
The quest said her.
Then, he saw it.
A truck was approaching the boy.
Lucian's heart pounded. His body moved on instinct, sprinting toward the child with everything he had.
But then—
Someone else moved too.
A figure rushed from the sidewalk.
'Is she—?!'
***
A young woman was walking down the street, looking around in wonder as if she had seen the outside world for the first time.
Her clothes were clean, tailored, and expensive.
She wore a cream-coloured top, draped smoothly over her frame, paired with brown trousers. The colours suited her perfectly, as if made specifically for her.
People turned their heads as she passed, stunned by her beauty, but none dared to approach.
She had long golden hair that reached her shoulders, and she stood at 170 cm tall.
As she was strolling, she saw a kid running onto the road, with a truck approaching him from a short distance away.
Her eyes widened.
No one else had noticed the boy since there weren't many people nearby.
And the people present were absorbed in their phones, their conversations, their own worlds.
Her heart tightened.
Without thinking, she ran.
"Hey––!"
She managed to grab the boy's hand just in time, but as she turned to pull him away—
Her foot twisted sharply.
"Aahh!"
Pain shot up her ankle. She stumbled, panic rising as the truck's horn blared.
She tried to stand, but her foot buckled again.
'Am I—'
Suddenly, a hand grabbed her roughly and pulled.
She and the boy were yanked out of the road as the truck roared past.
The sudden momentum made her lose balance, and she collapsed onto the person who saved her.
"Excuse me."
She heard a man's voice as she came back to her senses.
He gently pushed her aside, hurriedly turned to the boy, who had his eyes widened, with a blank and dazed look, frozen with fear.
Lucian knelt and patted the boy's head.
"It's alright. You are safe now." He said softly.
Hearing Lucian's voice, the child came to his reality and started bawling his eyes, clinging to him tightly.
[Ding!~]
[You have completed the Quest: Damsel in distress!]
[You have completed the objective.]
[You have acquired 5 Attribute Points.]
Lucian exhaled.
He had completed the quest.
The nearby people had gathered around them, some mumbling to each other or taking videos on their mobiles, maybe for their social media.
But no one came to help them.
'Disgusting creatures.'
He clicked his tongue, then turned to the boy.
His expression softened instantly.
"It's okay… It's okay." He murmured, wiping the child's cheeks.
"Don't cry."
The boy looked up at him, sniffling.
"You are a brave kid, so don't cry." Lucian added with a gentle smile.
"Mm!" The boy puffed his cheeks, nodding stubbornly.
Lucian patted his head.
Then—
"Ren!" A frantic shout echoed through the street.