Chapter 3 The 5× Multiplier

The next morning, Amelia was sitting beside her father's bed when the door opened. She looked up. Adrian stepped inside. He looked exhausted. His shirt was slightly wrinkled, his hair was a mess, and there were dark circles beneath his eyes. Amelia immediately stood. "You actually came early." Adrian gave her a tired smile. "I said I would." He walked straight toward their father. "How is he?" "Better." Their mother smiled. "He's awake." Adrian's shoulders relaxed. He moved closer to the bed. "Dad?" Their father slowly opened his eyes. For a moment, he simply stared at his son. Then he smiled. "You're here." Adrian let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. "Of course I'm here." He carefully took his father's hand. "How are you feeling?" "Like I've been hit by a truck." Adrian laughed. "At least you're still making jokes." Their father smiled. "Who told you your mother raised a serious son?" Their mother rolled her eyes. "He wasn't serious when he was younger." Adrian looked offended. "Mum." Amelia laughed. For the first time since the previous day, the room felt normal. Almost. Adrian stayed beside his father for several minutes before eventually looking toward Amelia. "Can we talk?" Amelia noticed the seriousness in his expression. "Sure." They stepped outside the room. Adrian crossed his arms. "Where did you get the money?" Amelia knew immediately what he meant. "The surgery money?" "Yes." She looked away. "I told you. I had money." "Amelia." "What?" "I spent half the night trying to borrow money." His voice wasn't angry. It was tired. "I called almost everyone I knew." Amelia remained quiet. "I couldn't even raise half of what we needed." He looked directly at her. "Then I wake up this morning and find out you somehow came up with $112,000." Amelia swallowed. "I managed." "With what?" She hesitated. "I've been saving." Adrian gave her a look. "Since when?" "A while." He didn't look convinced. But he didn't push. Instead, he sighed. "Okay." Amelia looked at him. "Okay?" "I don't understand it." He rubbed the back of his neck. "But Dad is okay." His voice softened. "That's what matters." Amelia nodded. Adrian looked at her for another moment. "And Amelia?" "Yeah?" "Thank you." She smiled faintly. "You don't have to thank me." "I do." He squeezed her shoulder before walking back into the room. Amelia followed. A little while later, the hospital room became noisier. The door opened again. Arya walked in holding a tiny hand. Ace followed behind her. The 5-year-old was carrying a sheet of paper against his chest like it was the most important document in the world. "Daddy!" Their father smiled immediately. "There he is." Ace ran toward the bed. Arya caught him before he could climb onto it. "Careful!" "But I want to see Daddy!" "You can see him without jumping on him." Ace frowned. He looked at his father. Then at Arya. Then back at his father. "Daddy, are you broken?" Everyone went silent. Their father blinked. "Broken?" Ace nodded seriously. He pointed at the hospital bed. "They put you here because you're broken." Amelia covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing. Their father chuckled. "I'm not broken." Ace looked suspicious. "Are you sure?" "Very sure." Ace nodded. "Okay." He seemed satisfied. Then he suddenly remembered something. "Daddy!" "What?" "I drew something for you." He proudly held up the paper. Their father leaned forward slightly. "What did you draw?" Ace smiled. "A dinosaur." Everyone looked at the drawing. It was a collection of wildly uneven lines with something that vaguely resembled a dinosaur. Their father smiled. "It's beautiful." "I know." Arya laughed. "He's been waiting all morning to show you that." Ace nodded proudly. "Because my dinosaur is very strong." "How strong?" Adrian asked. Ace thought about it. "Very." "Can it beat me?" "No." Adrian raised an eyebrow. "Why not?" "Because you're not a bad person." The room erupted in laughter. Even their father laughed before immediately wincing. Their mother shook her head. "See what you people are doing? Let him rest." Ace looked confused. "Why is everyone laughing?" Amelia crouched beside him. "Because you're funny." He looked pleased. "I know." Amelia laughed. That was Ace. Completely innocent. Completely confident. And completely unaware that his family had spent the last twenty-four hours terrified they might lose their father. For a few minutes, nobody talked about money. Nobody talked about hospitals. Nobody talked about surgery. They simply stayed together. Their father watched his children. His eyes softened. "I missed this." The room became quiet. Amelia looked at him. "Missed what?" "All of you being together." He smiled. "Even when you're noisy." Ace immediately raised his hand. "I'm not noisy." Adrian laughed. "You're the noisiest person here." Ace shook his head. "No." Arya pointed at him. "You're literally shouting." Ace lowered his voice. "I'm not noisy." Everyone laughed again. Their father smiled. For the first time, Amelia realized something. The money wasn't the most important thing she had given them. It was this. The feeling that, even for a few minutes, everything was okay. Then- Ding. Amelia froze. Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She slowly pulled it out. A system notification appeared. [Family Bond Level has increased.] Amelia's eyes narrowed. Another notification appeared. [Family Bond evaluation complete.] Then: [Cashback Multiplier has increased.] She stared at the screen. [Current Cashback Multiplier: 5×] Amelia's eyes widened. 5 times? Another line appeared beneath it. [Maximum Cashback Multiplier: 10×] She read it twice. Then came the explanation. [Cashback multiplier is determined by the recipient's genuine gratitude toward the Host.] Amelia's breathing slowed. So it wasn't simply about spending money. The system cared about how her family genuinely felt. If someone appreciated what she did deeply enough, the reward could increase. And the highest possible multiplier was 10 times. Amelia stared at the screen. 5 times. If she spent $10,000... She would receive $50,000. If she spent $20,000... $100,000. And if she somehow reached the maximum? Her eyes widened. She quickly locked her phone. She looked around the room. Her mother was helping their father adjust his pillow. Adrian was teasing Arya about something. Ace was still proudly showing everyone his dinosaur. Amelia smiled. The system had just become much more interesting. She had thought the cashback was simply a way to recover the money she spent. But now she understood. The more she cared for her family... The more powerful the system could become.