Reset Life with Infinite Talents - Chapter 88

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Infinite Talent Reset Life Episode 88

 

 

Clack clack clack!

A dark room echoing with keyboard sounds.

The slightly open door closes.

“Sigh.”

Outside the door, a small boy who let out a sigh goes downstairs and turns on the TV.

-….

Voices that bounce off without reaching the boy’s ears.

The boy watching the subtitles at the bottom turns off the TV.

‘I’m bored.’

The boy’s head turns toward the window next to the front door.

The lawn bathed in bright sunlight tempts him.

It beckons him to come out quickly.

The boy who looked up at the second floor quietly gets up.

Whoosh!

A refreshing and dry wind greets the boy as he slightly opens the front door.

The boy’s eyes scan the surroundings.

‘No one’s around.’

10 o’clock. The time when the fewest people pass by.

The time when the boy can play without getting hurt.

‘Father, I’m sorry!’

I’ll just play for a bit and come back.

The boy who grabbed the hat next to the front door stepped outside.

 

The boy who left the neighborhood walks alongside the road where cars pass.

Cars racing by without making a sound.

Wind and vibrations hitting his body.

Sunlight tickling his nose and the smell of exhaust.

All of it makes the boy happy.

How long had he been walking like that?

‘Huh?’

Through a slightly open large gate, a colorful world spreads out.

“Kyaaah!”

Girls raising both arms wide as they slide down and fall into a large pool.

Boys his age moving something around.

On one side, adults are grilling barbecue.

“…Wow?”

It was an amusement park.

 

* * *

 

Smack!

Flash throws down his brush.

“Hey! Girls! Are only the boys doing work?!”

“We’re working too!”

“Is playing also work?!”

“You guys are playing too!”

“Who’s playing?!”

They had to bring paint to Johann, bring drinks to Robert Burton, and bring brushes and other art supplies and tools to Jamie Valin.

“We worked earlier too!”

‘Ugh.’

Mason shook his head, picked up the brush Flash had thrown, and was heading outside the building when he froze.

“Wh, who?”

“Who are you?”

Some boy was standing at the entrance.

“Ah? Huh?”

The boy panicked and couldn’t say anything.

Beep!

Mason and Emily were startled by the horn sound and turned their heads, while Joy, who had followed Mason out because of the noise from Flash, looked at the still-panicking boy with a strange expression.

“Don’t tell me you can’t hear?”

“Ah, uh….”

“Ah!”

Seeing the boy trying to run away, Mason reflexively reached out his hand.

Joy grabbed the boy’s hand faster than him.

“Wah! No! No!”

The boy struggled, shaking his caught arm.

“Why is this little thing so strong?”

Joy pulled the boy’s arm firmly and hugged him tightly.

“Shh, shh. It’s okay, it’s okay. We won’t tease you.”

“Ri, right. We won’t tease you.”

Mason also comforted the boy like Joy did.

Whether that was effective, the boy soon calmed down.

Then he lifted his head from Joy’s embrace.

‘She… hugged me.’

Without pity.

Like Mother and Father.

‘Wow, look at this kid’s eyes.’

Blue and deep eyes like the ocean.

“He looks like a potato but his eyes are just like Johann’s, aren’t they?”

“Ca, calling someone a potato is….”

“Who’s that kid?”

In front of the wall, Johann walked out, pulling back the high-hung screen.

He had paint splattered here and there.

“Don’t know!”

We just caught him because he was wandering around in front.

“Johann, can this kid play with us too?”

“…You are studying for exams, right?”

“Phew. Phew.”

Mason also turned his head.

Mason’s mother had changed her thinking a lot after the kidnapping incident.

Thanks to that, Mason could also play together.

Though it would be impossible once the sun set.

“You might get scolded by the adults.”

“Don’t worry! They’ve all given up anyway!”

They gave up the moment they turned on the barbecue grill.

Honestly, setting up a swimming pool and telling them to study was worse than torture.

“And we can study when we go home! We are studying!”

“Me, me too!”

‘Right. It’s better than doing homework at least.’

If that weren’t the case, the adults wouldn’t have allowed this playtime.

“Got it.”

It’s not really an atmosphere for studying anyway.

Whether one more person joins or ten more, there’s plenty of space.

“Awesome! Let’s go!”

“Whoa?”

“Hey guys! I brought a friend!”

‘Joy and Mason had that side to them.’

Johann chuckled and approached Robert Burton, who was standing in front of the wall inside the building. A woman approached Johann.

“Are you hungry? Here, drink some water first.”

“Th-thank you.”

Seeing her earnest expression, he couldn’t refuse.

Charlotte Burton, Robert Burton’s wife and Benjamin’s mother.

She had come after receiving Robert Burton’s call.

Johann, who had subdued Benjamin the ‘Art Student’ from acting up, stood next to Robert Burton and looked at the wall.

A middle-aged man in his thirties walking by.

A lit cigarette butt was falling to the ground.

“It’s wonderful…”

A carelessly discarded cigarette butt.

It brings about irreversible disaster.

It was content worthy of a poster, but it certainly hit home.

Robert Burton’s rough, bold art style powerfully imprinted the message the mural was trying to convey.

With content like this, Mayor Antonio would be satisfied too.

It was Robert Burton and Jamie Valin’s idea to include educational content for everyone to see.

“Hmm. That’s good to hear, but…”

He wasn’t satisfied.

Something felt lacking.

That’s when it happened.

“Jo-Johann.”

“Hm? What, Mason?”

“Can I draw too?”

“You?”

What’s this all of a sudden?

“The wall is wide, so…”

The long wall, probably about 30 meters, looked somehow lonely with just this one man drawn on it. Like a waste.

“And I’m tired.”

He was exhausted from playing too much.

He had made a new friend, but there was a limit.

He needed something to do until dismissal time at 7 o’clock.

‘Because I don’t want to study!’

“Well, if that’s the case… Then over there… Wait.”

Something flashed through his mind for a moment.

“Are you going to draw a person?”

“I-I guess so?”

“A person. A person…”

Johann looked at the long, high wall.

The small brush in his mouth was twitching.

Seeing this, Robert Burton stepped back and stood next to his wife.

“It was good that you came, wasn’t it?”

“When you said you’d be late, I thought you might have gotten a girlfriend…”

Tears seemed about to burst forth again.

Hand gestures, body language, and even the occasional glances he sent.

It was as if their son, buried in their souls, had come back to life.

She knew it wasn’t Benjamin.

She knew it was just lingering attachment.

‘But still, it’s good.’

It was sad because it reminded her of Benjamin, but happy because it felt like seeing Benjamin.

It gave her strength to rise again.

It was like green sprouts blooming in her heart that had died bleakly.

“Thank you.”

If she hadn’t seen that child, she would still be waking up with alcohol and falling asleep with alcohol.

She was grateful to her husband who told her that somewhere in the sky, somewhere in the world, someone like that child was being born and living.

She rested her head on her husband’s shoulder.

A warm breeze embraced the two of them.

“But what do you think he’s thinking about so deeply?”

“Let’s wait and see. That little head will surprise us again.”

If not, then they could guide him in the right direction.

That was what adults should do.

“Ah!”

It came to him.

Johann opened his mouth wide.

“Robert! Jamie!”

And you guys too.

Everyone gather around.

People began to gather at Johann’s call.

 

“My goodness.”

“Are you… a devil?”

“No. This kid is a robot! Terminator! Skynet! That’s how he can think of such things… Agh! Aaaaagh!”

Johann, who despite growing 3 centimeters was still short, grabbed Flash’s wrist with both hands and twisted it like wringing out a rag, then held his nose high.

“So you’re not going to draw?”

“…No.”

“Of course we have to do it!”

“It’ll be fun!”

The most exciting thing was that they could participate in the mural painting too. The children who had been envious watching Johann draw alone all this time.

“You adults should draw together too.”

“Us too?”

“We’re not very good at drawing though…”

“What does that matter?”

What’s important is drawing together as a family.

At those words, people looked at their children.

‘Together… memories…’

Making memories with their beloved children.

“Ahem. Well, if it’s okay.”

“Wow!”

“The best spots go to whoever gets there first! Run!”

“Aaah! Dad, hurry!”

“Mom! Brush! Brush!”

It was the moment when the excited people rushed toward the wall.

Ding! Flash’s face brightened as he checked his suddenly ringing phone. Then he let go of his mother Mary Thompson’s hand and ran toward Johann.

“Johann! Dad says he’s completed the beta version!”

“Already?”

An unexpected timing.

His mind was tangled whether he should paint the mural first or go meet Flash’s father.

“Jerome-!”

“…Abaa!”

The bearded man came running breathlessly.

He seemed to be the father of the deaf boy.

 

* * *

 

The next day, Manhattan Beach.

Clatter!

Johann, Emily, and Flash who got out of the car ran up the building.

Larry and Edward Sherman also followed behind with slightly quick steps.

“Dad!”

“Uncle!”

“Haha. You came? Did you arrive?”

“Ah, hello!”

Flash’s father Michael Thompson, who reeked of sweat, and the black young man Tristan Walker who had offered a job during the Long Beach event, greeted them while breaking out in cold sweat.

He was currently working in the management support team.

“Please come this way.”

Michael Thompson guided them to the conference room on the first floor.

The heads of the design team, management support team, PR team, and sales team who had arrived first stood up.

Since all development and company personnel matters had been left to Michael Thompson, these were people meeting for the first time today.

They were flustered seeing the young children Johann, Emily, and Flash.

“Please introduce yourselves. All of these people are the major shareholders of our company. Including all these children here.”

“Gasp!”

“Ah, hello!”

As Johann nodded and people took their seats, Michael Thompson snapped his fingers.

Then darkness fell and the projector emitted light.

“Oh.”

“Wow!”

A pure white background.

Round profiles.

Photos arranged in a grid like a mosaic.

At the top center, written in elegant cursive script:

Instory.

‘Clean!’

‘Investor Leicester Barber’ also admired it.

“The currently developed Star Maker Instory Telegram. Shortened to Instory. The basic functions of ‘My Story of Becoming a Star’ are as follows.”

Michael Thompson clicked on one of the photos.

Then the photo enlarged, showing a heart, speech bubble, and paper airplane drawn below it, with the text ‘I want to nurture this!’ written underneath.

“Haha.”

People burst into laughter.

When he clicked on it, a window opened where comments could be written.

“The heart references Fatalbook’s like button, the speech bubble is for comments, and the paper airplane is a button for link sharing.”

By the way, videos could also be uploaded.

Without links, a full 10 seconds of video.

“Shall we look at the most important feature?”

The feature that would devour Fatalbook, Blue Bird, and My Space.

Instory’s unique point.

When he clicked the + icon in the upper right of the screen, an item called ‘Post Management’ appeared. When he clicked on it, photos saved on the laptop spread out in a row.

“Emily, could you come out and help me?”

“Yes? Yes!”

“You do it like this, dear.”

Following Michael Thompson’s instruction, Emily’s eyes widened as she moved the mouse and clicked on a photo.

“My goodness….”

Photoshop, no, filters.

It was full of the features she desired.

Emily’s eyes sparkled as she began editing the photo by clicking on the features one by one, and people gaped at seeing the photo change in real time.

“…Wow.”

Clap clap clap clap clap!

The admiration that started with applause soon led to everyone standing up.

“Bravo!”

“Unbelievable!”

It far surpassed Fatalbook and Blue Bird.

My Space was not even worth mentioning.

This would definitely succeed.

That’s why questions arose.

“How were you able to complete this so quickly?”

Johann nodded vigorously.

That was what he wanted to say.

It was only 3 months at most.

Even though they didn’t know much about development, they knew it was too fast.

Michael Thompson smiled with satisfaction.

“Because we have many people and sufficient budget.”

The development team alone had 50 people.

The design team had 10 people.

There were also 12 employees handling other tasks.

With time, budget, and manpower, there was nothing that couldn’t be accomplished.

“70 people?”

This wasn’t an office building.

It was a three-story house.

Even if they could somehow squeeze in desks, where would they sleep?

“Sleep is something you can do when you’re dead.”

When you need to complete a program, how can you indulge in the luxury of sleep?

Two hours of sleep per day was sufficient.

That was what it meant to be a programmer, a developer.

“Just kidding. We rented a small failed mart nearby and converted it into dormitory.”

…Clap clap clap clap clap!

‘How, how many people did they grind through?’

Even though they were clearly representatives of each department, their faces were not just haggard but completely blackened.

The regular employees might have become zombies by now.

Johann and his group didn’t know.

They didn’t know that social newcomers who had been fired from their jobs or faced uncertain employment due to the economic crisis had no choice but to desperately cling to Instory even if it was a startup.

They simply turned a blind eye to their pain and fatigue.

‘Good.’

He had felt a bit regretful when he painted the ‘Story of the World Watched by Stars’ mural or when Joe Walsh & Jimmy Page & Robin Joel released their new song.

It was an opportunity to promote InStory.

But since they couldn’t present something that didn’t exist to the world, they had no choice but to endure it, though now they didn’t have to.

“So when will we be able to use it?”

“Hmm….”

When Michael Thompson’s gaze fell on him, the Marketing Team Leader straightened up.

“Considering potential bug checks and problem verification, we plan to begin major advertising in three days, and the site will open a week after that. In other words, you’ll be able to use InStory starting ten days from now.”

The app will also be uploaded to the App Store around that time.

“Ah….”

“What’s wrong?”

“Could you possibly delay it by just four days?”

The mural would be completed by then.

“I’d like to make that InStory’s first post.”

“Oho.”

Edward Sherman’s eyes lit up.

“I’m in favor.”

It would be good from a public interest perspective too.

“Since it’s the first post of an SNS that will make history, it should be something meaningful.”

At those words, Larry, Emily, and Flash also cast their votes in favor.

There was no way they’d oppose having the mural they created become the first post.

“Hmm. In that case….”

They could put more time and effort into bug checks, problem verification, and advertising.

If money wasn’t a consideration, doing more was naturally better.

Johann clenched his fist.

‘Perfect.’

As he turned his head, Michael Thompson grabbed the microphone again.

“Now let’s take a look at the delivery app, Quick Food.”

What they had completed wasn’t just one thing, but two.

Johann and his companions, who had been preparing to stand up, were stunned.

 

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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