A New Beginning in the City of Lies
The air in the Lin mansion smelled of sandalwood and lies. Li Wei, a mere ghost in the pristine corridors, had known it since his memories of another life merged with this one. He had reincarnated into a golden cage, the biological son of one of the most influential families in the financial sector. But to them, he was less than furniture. A nuisance. A vessel for all the blame his adoptive "brother," Lin Jian, couldn't bear.
Lin Jian, the perfect son. The prodigy. The charismatic heir who smiled with professional ease, but whose cold eyes only Li Wei, the family's "bad seed," knew how to read. That day, Lin Jian's smile was brighter than ever. An illicit transaction, a scandal about to erupt. And as always, the solution was simple: blame Li Wei.
"Li Wei, can you explain this?" His father's voice resonated in the grand hall, more a roar than a question. His mother, sitting beside him, didn't even lift her gaze from her jasmine tea. Disappointment, a familiar shadow, was already cast on his father's face before Li Wei could open his mouth.
"It wasn't me. Lin Jian knows that..."
"Enough!" Lin Jian interrupted, his voice tinged with false sorrow. "Brother, I know you've been having problems lately, but... blaming me isn't the solution. The documents have your signature. The server access logs... they all point to you."
His eyes met Li Wei's for an instant, a flash of icy triumph that only Li Wei caught.
His father's fist slammed on the mahogany table. "You are a disgrace, Li Wei! Your brother strives to uphold this family's honor, and you? You only bring us trouble. Get out of my sight! And consider your privileges suspended. Until you truly repent, you are not worthy of this surname."
The words hit him like stones. They weren't new, but the accumulation of years of contempt had eroded even the toughest shell. Injustice coiled in his chest, cold and heavy. He looked at his mother, hoping for a sign, a spark of concern. Nothing. Just the indifference he had learned to hate more than anger. He was the biological son, yet he was the discard.
The air grew thick, suffocating. Li Wei said nothing. There were no more pleas, no explanations that would be heard. Only an abyssal void threatening to devour him. He turned and left the hall, the echo of Lin Jian's footsteps approaching his parents, comforting them, being the son they always wanted.
The Escape and the Revelation
The escape was an impulse, an explosion of desperation. He didn't think of a destination, only flight. He ran through the gardens, leaping over the Lin mansion's perimeter wall like a cornered animal. The city's night wind whipped his face, carrying away his unshed tears. It wasn't just the pain of betrayal; it was the certainty that he would never be enough, never loved.
He fell to his knees in a dark, forgotten alley, far from the blinding lights of the skyscrapers. Rain began to fall, cold and purifying, mixing with the dirt on the ground. He felt stripped bare, empty. A mistake. His father's words echoed again and again: "you are not worthy of this surname."
It was then that he felt it. Not a whisper, but a deep resonance, vibrating in his bones. An energy that was not of this world, that was not his. The ground beneath him trembled, not from an earthquake, but from something more... artificial.
A cobalt blue light flickered before his closed eyes, followed by a voice. It wasn't human. It was metallic, calculating, but with a strange authority.
"Host identified. Bio-signature validated. Helldivers System activated."
Li Wei looked up, stunned. Before him, where there had only been a graffitied wall, a pulsating energy interface materialized. Codes and diagrams scrolled at impossible speeds.
"Welcome, Host. I am Aegis. Your interdimensional combat support system."
The voice, now clearer, seemed to emanate from his own mind. "What... what are you?" he murmured, his voice hoarse.
"I am a military Artificial Intelligence, Helldivers Class-A design. My purpose is the eradication of existential threats to organized life across dimensional planes. You are the last verified Host."
A panic seized him, mixed with utter disbelief. "Existential threats? Dimensional planes? Are you saying...?"
"Correct. You have been selected to operate a mobile Fortress of Justice, equipped with an elite force of 200 Helldivers. Your existence is in danger, but you now possess the means to forge a new path. Your first mission will be assigned shortly."
The Fortress of Justice. Helldivers. The magnitude of what was happening was overwhelming. A moment before, he was a despised, discarded child. Now, he was the commander of an otherworldly force. But for what? Why had he been saved if he had no place in this world?
"Warning, Host. Your current emotional state is critical. Despair and resentment are inefficient for leadership. You need a purpose."
Aegis's voice wasn't sympathetic, just practical. And suddenly, Li Wei had it. It wasn't for the Lin family, it wasn't for revenge. It was for the immense and crushing need that no one else should feel as abandoned, as powerless, as discarded as he had. If there was a purpose for this burden, it would be to be a shield. To be the strength he never had.
He stood up, the rain washing his face. His fists clenched. The humiliation, the sadness, the pain... everything transmuted into a cold, steely determination. If he wasn't worthy of the Lin surname, then he would forge a new one. A name that worlds would remember.
"Host, I detect a shift in your resolve. Excellent. Preparing initial dimensional jump. Your first destination is... Earth-199999. Alert status: Red."
A dome of blue energy materialized around him, pulling him upward. The city beneath him shrunk, the lights of the Lin mansion became insignificant. He was no longer Li Wei, the abandoned son. He was something more. Something new. Something born from the ashes.
The darkness of his past became the fuel for his future. And the first world would await him with the open arms of chaos.