The young girl looked a bit embarrassed and said, “I’m sorry, but the last minibus was just rented by this gentleman…”

When William Carter called, she was the one who took the order, but the boss had already rented out the vehicle, so she felt quite apologetic.

But she was just an employee—how could she influence the boss’s decision?

“I’m really sorry. If you can wait, maybe you could make a new reservation now, and there should be a car available in a few days. Once this customer is done, the car will be returned as well.” Grace Walker said apologetically.

William Carter was stunned for a moment. There was no way he could wait that long, and this was the only company with available vehicles. At this point, there was no other solution. He thought for a moment, then suddenly asked, “Has payment been made?”

“Huh? Not yet, but we’re about to sign the contract…” Grace Walker replied, a bit confused. She didn’t know why William Carter was asking this.

The man in the suit next to them glanced at William Carter, a faint smile in his eyes. He could tell William Carter was in a hurry, but it wasn’t his fault William Carter arrived a step late. Besides, with online reservations, if no payment has been made, the boss can cancel at any time.

“Oh, if no payment’s been made, then it’s fine. Tell your boss I’ll add two hundred a day, rent for a week, and I’ll renew again next week. I’ll only use it in the city, so there won’t be much wear and tear.” William Carter said.

Grace Walker was taken aback and looked at the man in the suit, not sure what to do. This was the first time she’d encountered something like this.

“Three hundred more!” William Carter added.

Grace Walker hesitated. The amount involved was already significant, and William Carter did seem to be in a hurry. “Sir, according to the rules, I have to call for approval.” She apologized to the man in the suit.

The man in the suit was speechless. He’d just been feeling a bit smug, but now it seemed he’d run into a rich kid.

“Forget it, don’t bother calling. Just rent it to him.” the man in the suit said. There was no need to even think about what would happen if she made that call—why bother?

“I’m really sorry. You’ll have to wait until the weekend to use the car. Or I can arrange it for you in a couple of days. You see, this customer is in a hurry…” Grace Walker quickly apologized again.

The man in the suit looked at William Carter, who seemed to be under twenty and looked like a student. He couldn’t help but ask, “Kid, why are you renting a car for so long?”

“To keep it parked.” William Carter replied.

“Parked…” Well, young people these days really are rich and willful.

William Carter didn’t care about the surprised looks from the two of them. He couldn’t care less what others thought of him right now.

William Carter quickly signed the contract with the rental company. He glanced over the terms—sure enough, these rental agreements were extremely harsh on customers, with all sorts of penalties. Even a single scratch could cost a fortune.

But William Carter just skimmed it, then signed his name with a flourish.

This car would end up with more than just a few scratches…

“We’ll need to keep your ID here…” the receptionist said with a big smile.

Smack! William Carter slapped his prepared ID card onto the table, then took the car keys.

After taking just two steps outside, William Carter turned back. “Can you help me find a driver to take the car home?”

He didn’t have a driver’s license…

Chapter 3: Scanning and Modification

Sitting in the minibus, William Carter called his younger sister… though he knew the call would most likely go unanswered.

Before the “star seed” and all that information appeared in his mind, his sister had already gone deep into the mountains for fieldwork, with spotty signal at best.

His sister being in the mountains, right as the apocalypse was about to break out, was just about the worst news possible.

However, thanks to the star seed, William Carter knew that both he and his sister would not be infected by the virus.

Her fieldwork should be wrapping up in the next couple of days, which was a huge relief for William Carter. He and his sister had grown up relying on each other. If the apocalypse came and his sister was still lost somewhere in the mountains, unreachable, William Carter would go crazy.

Sure enough, when he called, he got a message that her phone was off. William Carter sent her a text, telling her to contact him as soon as she saw the message, and that he would keep his phone on 24/7 waiting for her call. Knowing his sister, if he sounded this serious, she would definitely call back as soon as she had signal.

“Boss, should I park here?” The rental company’s driver had driven the car to William Carter’s apartment building and looked around curiously. This was just one of those old neighborhoods in Jiangbei City that were almost obsolete, with buildings from the 1990s, every unit with the oldest style of awnings and security bars.

It really didn’t look like a place a rich kid would live. Was he just here for the experience? But that wasn’t the driver’s business. After William Carter signed, he handed over the keys and left.