The city didn't hand out favors.
It handed out bruises, broken promises, and the occasional stab wound.
But Urime Atsumi wasn't looking for favors. He was looking for a way out.
By sixteen, he wasn't just another street rat.
He was a hustler.
Shoe shiner by morning. Ramen runner by noon. Street cleaner by night.
And when the world finally went quiet… he read. He learned.
The rich lived by rules — invisible rules — that nobody taught in the slums.
But Urime was paying attention.
"Watch their moves," he told himself. "Copy the ones that win. Dodge the ones that fall."
By seventeen, he was sharper than most grown men. His clothes still cheap, but his mind? Razor-edged.
The first business? A courier gig — risky packages, no questions asked.
The second? Investment flips — small-time, but the cash flowed.
By the time he hit eighteen, Urime Atsumi wasn't just a name. He was a whisper. A rumor.
The slum kid who was going places. Fast.
And then… it happened.
Atsumi Enterprises.
His company. His future.
The day they installed the shining sign on the building, Urime stood outside, watching the letters glow under the city lights.
The same city that spat on him.
The same city he promised to buy.
People whispered:
> "Where did this kid come from?"
"How's a slum rat running a business now?"
"He won't last."
But Urime didn't care.
For the first time in his life… he had gold in his pocket.
Power in his hands.
A future in front of him.
But what he didn't know…
The higher you climb…
The harder you fall.
---
To Be Continued…