The next morning, Ethan woke up feeling refreshed and energized. After getting ready, he made his way to the dining table, where his family was already settling into their usual routines.
His mother, Elise, was busy preparing breakfast while his father, Aaron, was flipping through the morning newspaper and sipping a cup of coffee.
As soon as Elise noticed Ethan, she smiled warmly. "Good morning, Ethan. What's your plan for today?" she asked casually. "And how's the project your university gave you coming along?"
Ethan sat down at the table and poured himself a glass of water. With a calm tone, he replied, "Everything's good. I've almost completed it."
Hearing this, both Elise and Aaron looked up at him, their attention suddenly caught by something. They blinked a few times as if trying to confirm what they were seeing. Elise leaned closer, her brows furrowed in concentration.
"Why does it feel like…" she started, touching his face gently, her eyes narrowing as she examined him. "Ethan, have you… changed? Your face looks different somehow."
Aaron put down his newspaper and joined her. "Now that you mention it, he does look… uh… sharper?" He tilted his head, trying to figure out what exactly had changed. "Maybe I've just been too distracted lately. Kids grow so fast, and I didn't realize how much you've changed."
He patted Ethan on the shoulder and added apologetically, "Sorry about that, son. I'll make sure to spend more time with you."
Elise nodded in agreement. "Me too, Ethan. We've been too wrapped up in our own routines and... problems."
Before Ethan could respond, Jacob and Lily stumbled into the kitchen, still groggy from sleep. The sight of their parents peering closely at Ethan immediately grabbed their attention.
"What's going on?" Jacob asked, rubbing his eyes. He walked over to Ethan and, after a moment, gasped. "Whoa, what happened to you, bro?"
Lily followed suit, her curious gaze fixed on her older brother. "Yeah, you look… different," she said, tilting her head as if trying to piece together the puzzle. Then, her eyes lit up. "You're more… muscular?"
Jacob reached out and poked Ethan's arm experimentally, his brows shooting up. "She's right. Did you start taking supplements? Or… wait, are you injecting steroids?" he asked, his voice filled with mock seriousness.
Ethan's eyes widened, and he waved his hands quickly. "Stop spouting nonsense!" he said, a nervous laugh escaping him. He glanced at his parents, who were now looking at him with concern.
"I'm not taking any supplements or steroids, okay?" Ethan said firmly. "I've just been taking better care of myself." He turned to Elise. "Mom, you can check if you don't believe me."
Elise gave him a long, appraising look but eventually smiled. "Alright, alright," she said. "I believe you."
Aaron, however, narrowed his eyes. "You're sure about this, son? If you're hiding something…"
Ethan felt his chest tighten momentarily. For a fleeting moment, a thought crossed his mind. What if those potions were actually drugs? Some strange kind of illegal enhancement?
He quickly shook his head to dismiss the idea. No, the system wouldn't do that… right?
Thankfully, Lily broke the tension with her next comment. She looked at Ethan with wide, affectionate eyes and said, "I think you look more charming now. Really handsome."
Ethan felt his cheeks flush. "Well… thanks," he muttered, using the moment to shift away from the awkward conversation sparked by Jacob's comments.
Standing up, he smirked and added with a hint of teasing, "This is what happens when you have money, you know."
His family exchanged glances, their curiosity far from satisfied, but they decided to let the matter drop. Ethan relieved, grabbed his glass of water, and took a long sip, thankful to have diffused the situation.
Aaron cleared his throat, setting down his coffee cup. "Speaking of money…" he began, his tone a little hesitant. "The amount you lent us the other day, Ethan—I'll pay it back once I get my paycheck. They're giving out a bonus this month, a full month's salary."
Ethan's heart sank a little at the topic. He wished his parents wouldn't bring up financial issues in front of Jacob and Lily. They were still too young to carry such worries, and he didn't want them to feel burdened.
He quickly responded, his tone light but firm. "It's okay, Dad. Don't worry about it." Then, turning to Jacob and Lily, who were now watching the conversation with wide eyes, he added reassuringly, "You two don't need to think about this stuff. I've got everything under control."
Aaron and Elise exchanged a glance, catching the subtle hint in Ethan's words. They nodded, silently agreeing to be more careful about discussing such matters in the future.
Ethan didn't elaborate further, steering the conversation back to lighter topics. They chatted a bit more about everyday things, sharing a few laughs as they finished breakfast together.
The morning warmth of their familial bond made Ethan feel grounded despite the whirlwind of responsibilities he was juggling.
Pushing back his chair, Ethan stood up. "I've got a few things to take care of in my room," he said with a smile. "I'll see you all later."
Besides, it was time for his parents to go to work, too.
Ethan sat at his desk, the soft glow of his laptop illuminating the room as he leaned forward, fingers poised over the keyboard. He took a deep breath, staring at the empty document on the screen.
This was the moment he had been waiting for—the beginning of the app that would be the foundation of Celestia Tech.
His mind wandered briefly to the name. Names were powerful; they carried weight, meaning, and identity. What could he call this? Something simple, something universal, something that encapsulated speed, convenience, and efficiency.
"Quick," Ethan muttered to himself, the word rolling off his tongue effortlessly. "That's it. Quick."
He typed it into the document header, smiling to himself. It was clean, memorable, and carried the promise of speed and reliability.
"Alright, Quick," he said with a grin. "Let's make you real."
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
Ethan's first step was to define what Quick would be. He opened a fresh document titled Project Vision.
"What do I want this app to do?" he asked aloud, as though speaking to the blank page would summon ideas faster. His mind raced with possibilities, and he started typing.
Ethan wished for it to start as a food delivery app but expand into a multi-functional platform for package delivery, courier services, and ride-sharing. A one-stop solution for modern convenience.
"That sounds good."
Ethan leaned back in his chair, satisfied with the vision. It felt ambitious yet achievable. "Start small, dream big," he muttered, a mantra that seemed to suit the moment.
His thoughts shifted to the potential users of Quick. Who would benefit the most? He imagined late-night students ordering food, busy families needing quick meals, and small businesses requiring affordable delivery solutions. He created mental profiles of these users, thinking about what they'd need from the app.
"It has to be easy," he murmured, jotting down notes. "Simple interface. Quick access. No fluff."
He grabbed a notebook and began sketching rough designs for the app. “Okay, the home screen needs to be intuitive,” he said, drawing a rectangle to represent the phone’s display. “Three main options: Order Food, Send a Parcel, Book a Ride.”
He labeled the boxes and began detailing each feature.
=====
* Order Food: Partner restaurants, real-time tracking, seamless checkout.
* Send a Parcel: Easy address input, delivery estimates, and live tracking.
* Book a Ride: Driver profiles, ETA updates, and route maps.
=====
By the time he finished, the notebook was filled with rough sketches of menus, buttons, and layouts. It wasn’t polished, but it gave him a sense of what Quick would look like.
With the design sketched, Ethan moved to his laptop and opened a wireframing tool. It felt like translating his ideas into a digital blueprint. He dragged and dropped elements into place, recreating his sketches on the screen. The home screen came first, followed by subpages for each feature.
“It’s coming together,” Ethan muttered, his excitement growing as he clicked through the mock app. It was still barebones—just placeholders and lines—but it gave him a clear direction.
The next step was more technical. Ethan opened his browser and began researching what tools he’d need to bring Quick to life. “Alright, let’s keep this scalable and efficient,” he said to himself, diving into articles and forums.
For the backend, he decided on Code.js, a lightweight framework perfect for handling real-time updates like delivery tracking. To store user data, he chose MangoDB, a database that offered the flexibility he needed.
For the app’s front end—the part users would interact with—he settled on Reflect Native. “One codebase for both Android and iOS,” he said, nodding. “Saves time and resources.”
With his technology stack decided, Ethan set up the project in his IDE. The first thing he coded was the server, setting up routes for user registration, placing orders, and tracking deliveries.
Lines of code filled the screen, and Ethan lost himself in the rhythm of typing, testing, debugging, and typing again. This was his element—solving problems and creating something from nothing.
Hours passed, and Ethan barely noticed the time slipping by. His fingers danced across the keyboard with a precision and speed that surprised even him. His mind felt sharper, clearer, as though every piece of knowledge he’d ever absorbed was now perfectly aligned and ready to be used.
"Wow," he muttered, pausing for a moment to process what was happening. He could think faster, visualize complex structures in his mind, and find solutions to problems before they even fully formed. His creativity felt boundless, ideas flowing freely as if the puzzle pieces were already laid out for him.
“This must be the Intelligence boost,” he said to himself, a grin spreading across his face. “It’s like I’ve unlocked a new part of my brain.”
Ethan continued working, refining the code, adding features he hadn’t initially planned for, and polishing the user interface. Every problem he encountered seemed to solve itself, his hands moving almost instinctively to type the answers. He marveled at how effortlessly it all came together as if the app was designing itself through him.
“If it keeps going like this,” Ethan murmured, leaning back to survey his work so far, “I could probably finish this entire thing by myself.”
The thought exhilarated him. He didn’t feel overwhelmed by the scale of the project anymore; instead, he felt invigorated. His high Intelligence made everything smoother, every step more efficient. He glanced at the unfinished prototype on the simulator screen, feeling a surge of determination.
“Why stop halfway?” he said with a chuckle. “If I can complete this quickly, the mission will be done. While I’m at it, why don’t I just go all the way?”
With renewed energy, Ethan cracked his knuckles and leaned back over the keyboard, ready to take the project to the finish line.
Ethan didn’t notice the soft golden light creeping through his bedroom window. The morning sun bathed his workspace in warmth, but he was too immersed to care.
He even turned down lunch and dinner yesterday. He felt hungry, but he still wanted to complete this project.
His hands moved deftly over the keyboard, every tap calculated and precise. The world outside was a blur—his focus entirely consumed by Quick.
When he finally stopped, it wasn’t because he was tired. It was the sense of accomplishment that made him pause. Ethan leaned back in his chair and exhaled deeply, rubbing his eyes.
The app's home screen gleamed on the simulator, polished and professional. Every feature was functional, every detail exactly how he had envisioned it—or better.
“It’s done,” he whispered, staring at the screen. His heart pounded with excitement, a mixture of exhaustion and triumph washing over him.
Before he could celebrate further, a familiar chime echoed in his mind, and a blue notification panel appeared before his eyes.
=====
[Mission Complete: Deliver Success]
Objective: Successfully develop the Novan City Food Delivery App.
Reward:
1. 5,000 EXP
2. 20 Ascension Points
=====
Ethan blinked at the notification, the words sinking in slowly. A grin broke across his face, and he let out a triumphant laugh. “Mission complete!” he exclaimed, feeling an overwhelming surge of pride and satisfaction.
Ethan was practically buzzing with excitement as he leaned forward in his chair, eager to check his Status Panel. This time, instead of using his phone, he opted to display it directly in front of him, the translucent blue screen appearing mid-air.
When the panel materialized, Ethan's eyes widened in surprise.
=====
[Status Panel]
Name: Ethan Vale
Level: 4
EXP: 7500 / 10000
Ascension Points: 20
Wealth: Unlimited
Attributes:
* Strength: 21
* Speed: 18
* Endurance: 17
* Intelligence: 21
* Charisma: 16
Free Attribute Points: 20
Skills: [None Unlocked]
=====
His jaw dropped slightly. “Level four already?” he muttered, marveling at the progress. “And two levels at once? That’s... impressive.”
His gaze drifted to the bottom of the panel, and his lips curled into a grin when he saw the twenty free attribute points. “Twenty points? That’s a game-changer.”
Ethan leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms as he contemplated his next move. "I should probably spend these right away," he decided, remembering how much stronger, faster, and sharper he had felt the last time he distributed points.
He glanced at his current stats, a smile tugging at his lips. "Let’s balance everything out,” he said, tapping on the screen with precise intent.
=====
Attributes:
* Strength: 23
* Speed: 23
* Endurance: 23
* Intelligence: 23
* Charisma: 21
=====
As the points were allocated, Ethan felt an immediate ripple of change course through his body. It wasn’t as intense as when he drank the potions, but it was undeniable. His muscles felt subtly stronger, his mind clearer, and even his sense of balance seemed to improve.
“This feels incredible,” he murmured, flexing his fingers and clenching his fists experimentally. His gaze returned to the screen, satisfaction gleaming in his eyes as he admired the symmetry of his stats.
"Charisma’s lagging behind a little," he said with a chuckle, "but I’ll work on that later. For now... this is perfect." Ethan leaned back, letting out a deep breath, a wave of accomplishment washing over him. "If things keep going this way, there’s no stopping me."