Chapter 1. Despised Person

"Come here, you jerk!" David ordered.

The 185cm tall, athletically muscled man was standing with a woman who was none other than his girlfriend, Mia. Not only that woman but there were also two men who were always close to David, Darren and Martin.

Ethan, a man in shabby clothes, walked by nodding at the difference in status between them. David was the son of the CEO of Eclipse Enterprises, a company in the technology industry, unlike Ethan, who was just an ordinary student from a small town.

"What's wrong?" asked Ethan, his voice soft with fear in his heart.

"Did you listen to the lecturer? I need you to do our assignment," David replied.

"Why would I do that?" asked Ethan.

David narrowed his eyes. He released his hold on Mia as he walked toward Ethan. His muscular right hand immediately tugged on Ethan's collar, causing the other students besides David's group to move away.

"Cause you'll need money to pay for your tuition, right?" asked David sarcastically.

Ethan didn't answer the question because there was nothing Ethan could argue with David's words. In the end, out of necessity and fear in his heart, Ethan agreed to David's request.

"That's good. Do a good job, and we'll pay you," David said, pushing Ethan's relatively tall and skinny body to the ground.

There was a loud laugh from the athletic man, followed by Mia and his two friends. They walked past Ethan, who slumped listlessly on the corridor floor feeling humiliated, the majority of students on campus already knowing that Ethan was a 'slave worker' for David.

But Ethan didn't care. As long as he could earn money for his work, then he wouldn't respond to people's opinions. One of the women walked up to Ethan while helping him up.

"Did David ask you again?" the woman asked. She was Eleanor, Ethan's high school friend and the woman Ethan liked.

"I guess so. I can't avoid it anyway," said Ethan, sounding desperate to Eleanor.

The 176cm tall, fair-skinned, dusky red-haired, fashionably dressed woman always helped Ethan, no matter the circumstances. She realized David's behaviour had gone too far with Ethan, but no one dared him, considering he was the company owner's son.

"You cannot continue to abuse yourself by agreeing to David's demands," Eleanor explained, feeling compassionate.

"Thank you for your concern, but I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me," Ethan replied.

Ethan's black eyes immediately looked the other way, intending to say goodbye to Eleanor because he had to get to work on the assignment for David and his friends. The man with fair skin, messy black hair, and the simplest appearance among the other students began to walk with quick steps leaving Eleanor behind.

Every time Ethan walked, some students looked at him with a disgusted looks. They thought Ethan was a loser who always lost against the arbitrary David; they hated Ethan because of his attitude and status.

His classes that day had ended early, so Ethan could go straight to his small apartment to start working on David's assignment.

Right when he arrived in front of his apartment, Ethan was surprised by the presence of a large man smoking cigarettes while leaning against Ethan's apartment door.

He looked at Ethan with a serious gaze, his eyes narrowed with sharp eyebrows, and his expression seemed to be holding back anger.

"Why did you come here?" asked the landlord. Ethan called him Mr Jacob.

"Of course, I want to return to my apartment," Ethan replied flatly.

"Back to your apartment? I didn't see you bring the money for the rent you've been owing for three months," Jacob snapped.

Ethan rounded his eyes. He really hadn't paid the rent because he needed money for his studies. Also, the part-time job wasn't making much money.

Ethan didn't have the money to pay the rent this time, not even half of it.

"I-I don't have the money yet, but in the mid-month, I promise I'll pay it," Ethan pleaded, begging Jacob to make it easy for him.

"You know, there's a new student who intends to buy one of the apartments with a one-year term. I put him on hold because we don't have any empty apartment spaces," Jacob replied.

The stocky man threw the cigarette butt on the floor and extinguished it with his foot. He raised his right hand and knocked on the door he was leaning against.

"But if you don't pay it off today, maybe the key to this apartment will go to that new student," Jacob said, reluctantly turning to Ethan, whose face looked pitiable.

"Please, don't throw me out of this apartment. I don't know where else to live," Ethan pleaded. For once, he couldn't accept Jacob's proposal.

"It's none of my business!"

"I'll give you until sunset to find the money to pay the rent. If not, you must leave this place!" said Jacob, speaking to Ethan while pointing at the man.

His loud words made the other residents of the apartment feel uncomfortable. Some came out and saw the dispute; Jacob and Ethan were notorious for fighting over rent.

"As long as you don't get the rent, I'll lock this place up." Jacob took out the spare key, turned his body around and locked the door, so Ethan couldn't get in. He also asked Ethan to return the key to his apartment.

"Go on. Find the money," Jacob ordered.

Unpleasant events continue to happen to Ethan, and in the end, he can't help but look for extra money. Ethan thought of borrowing from a money loan company, but he thought of the big risk when he can't pay it back.

Ethan wandered the streets of the city, hoping that there was someone he could ask for help. One thing that popped into Ethan's head was Eleanor, she had always been kind to him, and maybe she could help him with the rent.

As Ethan was about to walk towards Eleanor's residence, he accidentally saw Eleanor walking lovingly with a man. The two stepped on the other side of the street, and Eleanor didn't notice Ethan's presence in the same place.

The man didn't care. He walked up to Eleanor, who was greeted warmly by the woman. The man with Eleanor appeared to be Marc, an upperclassman on campus.

"Ethan. What are you doing here?" Eleanor asked.

"Elle, there's something I want to talk with you about. Do you mind?" Ethan asked.

Marc, who knew Ethan, immediately pulled Eleanor away from the man. He certainly didn't want to see Eleanor in close contact with Ethan, who was known to have a bad image among students.

"Just speak here, Ethan," Eleanor pleaded.

Ethan was initially reluctant to tell anyone other than Eleanor, but since she asked him to, he had to tell her the truth in front of Marc.

"I'm having trouble paying my rent. I've been in arrears for three months, so I came to ask you a favour. Can you borrow me some money?" Ethan asked, putting his hands together in a pleading gesture.

Marc turned to Eleanor with a shocked look, surprised to see a man asking a woman for a loan, which wasn't appropriate for a man to do.

The man with Eleanor quickly shook his head, indicating that Eleanor should not help Ethan. Marc thought that if Eleanor helped him, Ethan would not grow.

"S-Sorry, Ethan. I don't think I can do that," Eleanor said softly.

Marc suddenly tapped Ethan's right shoulder, and their eyes locked on each other. Ethan, who felt inferior, saw Marc stand up and speak like an authority.

"I don't want to say this, but go back to your small town, Ethan. You won't be able to continue studying in this city," Marc said firmly, telling Ethan to surrender to the situation and go home.

"You cannot rely on others. You have to stand on your own feet," Marc continued.

The two continued walking, leaving Ethan silent with his head bowed. There was no one else he could turn to for help, as Marc's words kept going through Ethan's head.

"W-What should I give up?" asked Ethan, sitting shabbily on a sidewalk chair.

Daylight turned into afternoon, there was only an hour left before sunset, and Ethan had not yet received the rent money as Jacob had ordered.

Three black sedan-type cars stopped right at the roadside. Ethan didn't care because rich people wouldn't have anything to do with poor people like him.

When Ethan tried to ignore them, a woman with shoulder-length black hair and a black suit walked up to Ethan. The scent of expensive perfume could be smelled from the woman's body, even though she wasn't close to Ethan.

"What's wrong? Are you trying to ruin my life too?" asked Ethan, annoyed.

"No, we're not. We came to tell you something," said the woman, standing in the company of a man wearing sunglasses in the same black suit.

"What? I don't think I've ever had to deal with you."

"Mr Kingsley has passed away," explained the woman, handing over a letter sealed with a lead stamp.

"Kingsley? Who is he? What does he have to do with me?" asked Ethan.

"You can open the letter. All your questions are answered in that letter," said the woman.

A desperate Ethan immediately opened it because he had nothing else to do. He read from beginning to end, and every paragraph written made Ethan's heart beat fast.

His eyes were wide open; reading the last paragraph of the letter, you could say this letter was a letter of inheritance given by a man named Kingsley to Ethan.

"I don't understand. I don't even know Kingsley, and he's already made me the heir?" asked Ethan, confused.

"Come with us to the Kingsley residence. Madam Sara will explain it to you."