investment

Three days later, in the hospital courtyard.

Nurse Carol, in charge of Kane, was chatting during a lunch break with her colleague Michel, who worked in the private area of the hospital.

"Ah, I almost forgot," Carol said, slapping her forehead as she remembered the patient she had been seeing these past few days. "Michel, the patient I have is quite strange."

"What do you mean by 'strange'?" Michel, intrigued, was immediately interested since Carol rarely talked about her patients.

"It's hard to explain. He came to the hospital with multiple broken bones and damaged organs, but he recovered in just three days. It's amazing."

Carol was still amazed at the memory of how her patient had healed almost entirely in that short time. She couldn't quite understand how someone could recover so quickly from such serious injuries.

"Was he seriously injured, or only minor injuries?"

"The man arrived in critical condition, but in three days, he was practically recovered; it doesn't make any sense!"

"Wait, you're telling me he's already recovered in three days?"

Michel couldn't believe it. It was too surreal, especially if the patient had been on the verge of death.

"And that patient of yours, is he a 'player'?"

"Yes, he's a 'player,' but he doesn't look high-ranking. The Silver Hand guild people dropped him off and left quickly."

"Well, remember that 'players' are not considered humans like us. They're closer to living weapons, so they can heal from things that would be impossible for commoners like us."

Carol and Michel continued to chat animatedly as they finished their lunch.

...

"Please sign here."

Kane was signing the papers to be discharged from the hospital so he could leave.

Within three days, he had recovered from almost all of the fractures and damaged organs. However, that quick recovery caused more corruption in his body, and the initial murmurs turned into voices that seemed to come from deep within the cosmos.

In three days, he had healed from something that would typically take months or even years, with a high likelihood of leaving sequelae.

"It's all perfect. You don't have to pay anything. All medical expenses are covered by insurance."

"Thank you."

After thanking the reception nurse, Kane left the hospital with his mother and younger brother.

They took a cab to the Eburnean district, where their mother lives. They did not go to the Argenteo district because the history-devouring monster destroyed the place where Kane was staying.

...

After a few minutes, they arrived at 12 Etern Dawn Street in the Eburnean district.

Kane stepped out of the cab and looked at the cobblestone street and the gas street lamps on either side. He felt as if he had been transported back to Victorian times. Although he had already seen it through a screen, he couldn't help but be surprised.

Ignoring the voices in his head, he followed his mother, Isabella, who was entering a gothic-looking house.

Entering the house, he was met with a breathtaking sight.

A spacious and bright living room. The furnishings were neutral tones, contrasted with touches of bright colors in the cushions.

In the center of the living room, a dark gray fabric sofa stood in front of a flat-screen TV mounted on the wall; underneath was a shelf with a collection of video games and an old PS2.

To the left of the living room was the open kitchen, equipped with modern stainless steel appliances and a central island that served as a dining space.

The dining table, minimalist in design, was located near the kitchen, with seating for six.

In one corner, a gamer PC with three 34-inch curved screens occupied an ergonomic desk, surrounded by shelves filled with books and collectible figurines.

Kane looked around in surprise; he hadn't expected the house's interior to be so different.

With her long black hair and deep blue eyes, Isabella spoke, looking at her eldest son.

"Kane, I'm going out to get some things for dinner. Would you like me to get you something from the store?"

Kane looked at her for a few seconds, still uncomfortable with that treatment. After a few moments, he replied:

"Ice cream."

"What flavor?"

"... If possible, all of them."

"I understand, son. I won't be long. If you need anything, feel free to call me. I'll be right back."

Kane looked at his mother in silence for a while, not knowing what to say. He opened his mouth to speak but closed it again.

Isabella, seeing him, asked:

"Do you want anything?"

Kane was silent for a moment before answering:

"Mother... Could you lend me 10,000 Crowns?"

Isabella raised an eyebrow in surprise. Although it wasn't significant to her, it was still a lot of money for someone only twenty-two years old.

"And what do you need that much money for?"

Bluntly, Kane replied:

"To invest in something I've been thinking about for a while."

He had no intention of hiding it, as he was not doing anything illegal. He would only use the money to invest and then acquire a small stake as a shareholder in MystTech Innovations. Besides, he needed to buy the ingredients to brew a potion.

It wasn't good for his sanity to hear voices in his head twenty-four hours a day. Kane didn't know how much more he could take before he experienced a significant change.

Isabella was silent for a few seconds and then replied:

"Sure, no problem. I'll transfer it to your account."

After that, Isabella and his younger brother, Thomas, left the house, leaving Kane alone.

Kane received a message on his cell phone shortly after confirming the transfer. After seeing it, he sat on his three-screen computer and turned it on.

"Well, this makes me feel like I'm back in my old room," Kane sighed softly.

Since he already knew what he would do, he went straight to the Global Exchange (GlobEx) website.

GlobEx is the world's leading gaming financial center. It is an international, centralized stock exchange that operates in several countries and handles various financial assets, including stocks, bonds, commodities, and cryptocurrencies.

Kane continued to navigate to the cryptocurrency section. When he clicked, graphics of various virtual currencies appeared on all three screens.

After a brief search, he found the coin he was looking for - NexCoin.

The NexCoin chart glowed with steeply rising and falling lines. The black background made the green and red lines stand out: green indicated rises, and red indicated falls. On the vertical axis, numbers showed the fluctuating price, while on the horizontal axis, time advanced by the minute.

Kane looked at the chart with a smile. He got up, went to the kitchen, pulled vanilla ice cream from the freezer, and returned to the desk, savoring a spoonful.

Soon after, the red line fell rapidly as NexCoin lost value. Kane was still enjoying his ice cream, relaxed. The smooth, creamy ice cream was slowly melting, releasing its sweet aroma that mingled with the summer breeze.

After a while, the red line stabilized with NexCoin at its lowest point.

"It's time."

With a big smile, Kane invested ten thousand Crowns in NexCoin.

An hour or two later, the green bars, indicating growth, rose like towers, and the ascending lines pointed to unsuspected heights.

"Well, it's finally starting," he muttered, satisfied. He was never worried; he knew the currency would rise fast, only to fall again in a month.

...

After the line stabilized, Kane realized that many people who regularly followed the market had turned their attention to NexCoin because of the sudden surge. He then decided to sell all the NexCoin he had bought now that it was at its highest point.

A few minutes later, a notification arrived in his inbox. Kane smiled broadly; his investment had paid off, multiplying fivefold.

Of the ten thousand Crowns he invested, he now had fifty thousand, just as he had anticipated.

Kane fixed his gaze on a stock market chart showing the stock of MystTech Innovations. He knew the company would become a technological giant, revolutionizing the industry with unique products.

Aware of this, he was determined to acquire a significant share before its value skyrocketed.

Kane clicked, logging into the online broker's system. After a brief calculation, he looked at the current share price and decided to buy 23% of the available shares, spending forty thousand Crowns.

As he confirmed the transaction, a sense of accomplishment washed over him; it was the first time he had done anything like this. After completing the transaction, Kane exited his desk and shut down his computer.

He would get ready to go to the Silver Hand guild and pick up his pet, although Kane felt things would get annoying.

'I just hope they deliver my pet without too much hassle.'

...

In the comments is the original art of the protagonist.