Reborn as a Mechanist with a God-Tier System-Chapter 258: The richest man in the world

16th August, Year 714 A.G.

Central Belt’s Eastern Rim, Red Meridian.

Of the numerous cities of the Omnicore Federation, as one of the 3 Megacities in the Central Belt, Red Meridian is a major hub of activity, a strategic inland command city of the Federation.

As one of the Megacities closest to the headquarters of the Omnicore Federation, inevitably, Red Meridian is one of the cities with not only one of the highest population in the world but the highest and heaviest policing, data governance and intelligent network.

Red Meridian did not sleep, it was regulated 24/7.

Miles above the mostly artificial inland plains of the city, districts hung in the sky like floating behemoths - these were vast platforms of carbon-laced stone and light that were tethered to the planet by gravity anchors and policy.

Above the city is an impenetrable defense grid with multiple connecting tall towers acting as watchtowers.

The airspace was clean, stratified, and watched, forming multiple interconnecting aerial pathways that connected the floating districts.

In a certain large compound in one of the floating districts, energy loudly rumbled across miles as highly dense ADE erupted outwards even as another rocket got prepared to lift up towards space for the biannual satellite maintenance of the Federation satellites.

Below all of this and the floating districts, the ground city pulsed with logistics traffic and controlled chaos.

Every movement in this city left a signature with Synths and A.I Constructs walking with their heads raised high, while the few Geneforms stuck to the shadows like slaves in an ecosystem that didn’t welcome them.

Surveillance halos traced invisible arcs through the sky, keeping track of every single person that entered and left the city.

Data wards shimmered faintly along the edges of the districts, filtering signals, identities, and intentions in one of the greatest applications of NetRunner and Mechanist powers, one of the core technology of the Omnicore Federation.

In Red Meridian, every aspect of the city was regulated.

With data wards filtering even thoughts, it was literally impossible for spies or people opposing the Federation to enter the city.

Once you have thoughts opposing the rule of the Federation, the data wards will detect it within a few minutes and the local police will find you, leading to either imprisonment due to heresy or even outright slavery or the death sentence.

This was one of the cities with the lowest crime rate in all of Neo-Tokara.

Beyond the surveillance halos and the data wards shimmering along the edges of the city districts, autonomous police patrol crafts also drifted around like predators, watching every corner of the city, their presence absolute.

In Red Meridian, crime just didn’t have the chance to explode because of the extreme preventive measures in place.

This was one of the major seats of power of the Omnicore Federation.

Today, on Sector Aurex-9, one of the highest publicly accessible floating districts, anticipation crackled in the air.

A large crowd gathered in front of a building, pressed against each other, from civilians to analysts, influencers, and even well-known media personnel.

Holographic banners in front of the building showed live financial indices alongside biometric readouts of the airspace above, while numerous camera drones hovered in the air.

Click! Click! Click!

The shuttering sound of cameras echoed incessantly.

And then, the sky changed as the traffic corridors suddenly dimmed to amber even as the civilian aerial lanes folded away.

With this change, a deep, intentional silence came from the western horizon, lasting just a few seconds before it was quickly followed by motion.

HUM!

A convoy descended.

16 luxury aerial vehicles cut through the cloud like polished blades, their hulls seamless and reflective as their engines operated in near-null acoustic mode.

They flew in perfect geometric formation, escorted by the local police, showing the power and influence of whoever this convoy was escorting.

As they approached, a name rippled through the crowd, quickly swelling into a roar.

["Bill Zefyr."]

The richest man in Neo-Tokara.

An Architect of post-scarcity monopolies, the only Geneform to freely operate in Omnicore territory, the man whose decisions shifted markets the way tectonic plates shifted continents.

The lead vehicle detached and rotated gracefully from the rest of the convoy, its undercarriage blooming into a ring of light as it settled onto the platform in front of the building that was already arranged for it.

The moment its landing struts kissed the surface, the noise from the crowd instantly hit a crescendo as cheers, shouts, and flashes of camera light inundated the vehicle.

The hatch opened upward, and Bill Zefyr stepped out. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

The man didn’t wear a ceremonial attire nor did he wear any armor-weave theatrics, he simply wore a neatly tailored suit of adaptive fabric, black, sharp, business-like and understated.

Click!

When his white and black boots met the tiled ground, it made a subtle slick sound akin to that of a couple kissing.

Bill Zefyr’s presence alone bent attention toward him. He was tall, relaxed and smiling like a man arriving late to a meeting that he owned.

With his practiced and perfectly curated facial expression, he raised one hand and flashed his trademark charismatic smile and instantly the crowd erupted.

BOOM!

Security fields flared briefly as the reporters surged forward, quickly extending their microphones as their questions overlapped like a raging tsunami.

Zefyr didn’t answer as he moved through all of them with the help of his guards to the podium that was set at the platform’s edge.

The moment he sat down, the press conference began and like shooting stars, the questions came fast.

"Mr. Zefyr, how does it feel like to control more capital than most planetary factions?"

"Sir, do you consider yourself a product of privilege or vision?"

"What was the defining failure of your early career?"

"Is it true that you turned down a Federation office twice?"

"Is it true that your net worth is already over 1 billion Neo Credits?"

Bill Zefyr answered smoothly, occasionally deflecting some answers and occasionally leaning into candor. He addressed a few topics, focusing on the topics of risk, timing, the topic of being wrong more often than being right, and surviving long enough to learn the difference.

Then the final question came as a young Synth reporter, his voice barely heard through the commotion asked.

"Sir... what’s your advice to young men out there?"

The platform instantly turned quiet.

Bill Zefyr paused as his eyes gleamed with amusement. He focused on the reporter and leaned slightly forward, resting his hands on the podium.

"First," he said, "stop asking how to get rich".

He smiled. "Money is not a destination, it’s a side effect".

He gestured toward the city behind him. "This exists because people solved problems no one else wanted to touch, uncomfortable problems, boring problems, problems that didn’t look heroic on day one".

He looked directly into the nearest camera and grinned. "If you chase money, you’ll follow trends, and well, trends end". He shrugged. "But if you chase competence, you’ll outlive them".

His tone sharpened. "My advise to young people is to learn how systems work," he grinned again. "The world does not reward passion, it rewards people who can deliver value repeatedly without needing applause".

A faint smile returned on his face. "And finally, stop waiting to be chosen".

"No one is coming to tap you on the shoulder and say now it’s your turn. Build something useful, fail in public and adjust faster than your ego".

"Do that long enough, and money will chase you".

His smile widened. "As you all know, my philosophy is that money can buy anything".

"Well, scratch that," he grinned. "Money is everything!"

"I’ve been a poor man and I’ve been a rich man," he leaned back on his chair and said. "No matter what it takes, make money".

"Cabin D World to the world".