Post-Appreciation: Becoming the World's Wealthiest

"Hundreds of dollars on skincare, $999 for an iPhone, thousands on designer bags. Even the new car I bought was mostly driven by her. I treated her so well, why did she do this to me?" "Six years, and I have gave her all I have. And she, damn it, she went to a hotel with that f**king Phillips right in front of me!" … In the silent darkness of his rented room, the door suddenly swung open, letting streaks of light from the hallway seep through the cracks. Nolan Quinn returned to his apartment alone. He opened the door. Flipping on the light switch, he was greeted by a sight that rendered him speechless. The living room was adorned with roses and balloons, with a diamond ring placed at the center. Nolan had planned to propose to Linnea that day, following a visit to her parents.He had intended to hand over the money to Linnea's mother the next morning and set a date for the wedding. The proposal, though not essential, was meant to fulfill Linnea's long-held dream and surprise her greatly...However, she cheated on Owen Phillips, the son of the owner of The Phillips Company, just due to his wealth. After a moment of silence, Nolan discarded everything. Far from feeling relieved, this act only intensified the ache in his heart. "I need to get the car and house keys back tomorrow," he muttered, anger simmering within him. He had bought both a new car and a new house, but since the rental was closer to his work, he hadn't moved into the new house or used the car much, leaving Linnea in possession of both sets of keys. Previously, Nolan hadn't thought much of it, but now, with Linnea's betrayal clear, he couldn't bear the thought of her enjoying the comforts of his house and car. Lying in bed later, somewhat drunk, Nolan's phone buzzed with several notifications: Ding— "Your repayment is due in 1 day. A total of $1,699.37 will be automatically deducted at midnight on the due date. Please ensure sufficient funds in your account." "On June 9th, your account will automatically repay $2,498.36. Log in to..." "Your June 2nd bill is overdue. $29.87 has been paid, with $1,992.66 remaining. Please ensure timely repayment." The reminders of his debts, along with the thought of the additional money his parents had borrowed after selling their house back home, weighed heavily on Nolan. He took a deep breath, his head throbbing, "I'll use the money borrowed from mom and dad to pay off some debts first, then return to them." He was immensely relieved that he hadn't yet transferred the money to Linnea's mother. Otherwise, he and his parents would have been in dire straits. The thought brought a sharp pain to Nolan's heart... He had promised his parents he would spend his life with Linnea, which had convinced them to sell their house to support their wedding. Now, how was he to explain the situation to them? "Don’t think about it for now," Nolan sighed, turning off the light and drifting into a troubled sleep amid the dark night. In his dreams, Nolan was tormented by headaches and visions of Linnea kissing Owen Phillips in front of their company, his own anger at the scene replaying over and over. Unbeknownst to him, the real world was slowly changing around him. By morning, while Nolan was still asleep, his phone displayed several shocking news alerts he had never seen before. "Shock! Yesterday, a new property launch in Philadelphia saw prices hit an astonishing 65,000 microdollars per square foot, sparking a buying frenzy. Has the housing market not yet peaked? Just how wealthy are the citizens of Montverde?" "The Forbes rich list has been updated. Currently, the world's richest man, Jeff Bezos, has a net worth of $12,000. However, Bezos claims there's someone even wealthier, whose identity he doesn't know..." "Who could this unseen, unheard-of billionaire be? Our editors are curious too. Please leave your guesses in the comments below..." Woken by the incessant pinging, Nolan groggily got up, grabbed his phone, and checked the time. It was only 7 a.m. He was relieved; despite his drunken state the night before, he hadn't overslept and risked missing work. Such are the worries of the working, even amidst the heartbreak of betrayal by a partner of six years. But upon checking the news, Nolan wondered if he was still drunk. "House prices at 65,000 microdollars? The world's richest man worth $12,000? What kind of joke is this? It should be $12 billion, not $12,000!" These absurd news updates seemed like a bad joke. House prices were supposed to be in dollars, not microdollars, and since when was someone with a mere $12,000 considered the richest person in the world? Nolan couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity. "The quality of news on Twitter is really dropping. A billionaire with just $10,000?" With his own savings of $200,000, Nolan mused that he could easily surpass the so-called richest man, according to these bizarre standards.