NoGift

IN THE PAST seven years, a big change occured in the world. A certain company began producing the most remarkable device called sPhones. It was rectangular in shape and has many cool functions. It has something called a 'camera' that can take the image of anything or record the things happening around a person. The image was called a 'picture' and the recording was called a 'video'. But not only that, sPhones have things in them called 'Apps'.

Apps were small icons on the screen of an sPhone. Each one has different functionality. The most famous ones were - the [Skynet] where people could search about everything and anything; [TalkUs] a call app where people could call others, send them messages, and even directly talk to them thru something called video call; [VMall] where people could buy and order products from different companies and individuals; [Quill&Ink] where people could post the novels they've written and people everywhere could read it; [VideoFlix] where people could post videos and watch videos posted by others; lastly, and probably the most often used one, [Jiffy] where people could post the everyday things that was happening to them, which could include pictures and short video clips. Every user's profile has a 'follow' feature. Anyone who clicked it could pay attention to that person.

The first time buyers have to register an account on the [SilverCorp] app. The process of registration included putting the person's fingerprint on the app. So a person could only have one account. And that account was used to register to the other apps. It was made so to avoid the creation of fake accounts and identity theft. It could also provide more privacy and security to the users.

The products and other services provided by the sPhones, like the things in the [VMall] for example, could be bought using cyber coins. You could have cyber coins by buying load cards. The cheapest load card cost 100 gold coins which could be converted to 100 cyber coins.

Almost everyone in the world probably have their own sPhones. Even the poor people. Because the cheapest one only cost 5,000 gold coins. Even though the pictures and videos taken by it were poor in quality, it was enough as long as you could use it.

sPhones brought an unprecedented cultural revolution and change in people's way of life. Nowadays, people prefered to shop thru [VMalls] than go outside and look for the things they need. So businessmen have no choice but to follow the trend and set up shops in [VMall]. Novelist could easily earn money thru [Quill&Ink] by gathering readers and letting them buy the chapters of the stories they're posting. The same could be said for people posting videos in [VideoFlix]. They were even acting troupes shooting dramas and posting it on the app.

The younger generation completely embraced the change. They loved it. Socializing with people all around the world. They found it novel and interesting. But the much more older generation had an opposite reaction. Especially the old priests from the Temple of Gaia - the major religion in the world that worshipped the goddess Gaia. For some reason, they found it blasphemous. But even so, they couldn't stop the rise of its popularity. And now, they're part of everyone's everyday life.

All of these could be credited to one company - Silver Corporation.

It was founded seven years ago. The first batch of sPhones they produced could only be bought in Amexem. But slowly, their production spread from countries to countries. And now, there's probably only a few places in the world that didn't sell an sPhone. In just seven years, Silver Corporation managed to integrate itself in society. Now it's probably the company with the highest revenue in the world. Some might think it's a miracle but really, it's just pure genius.

It was no secret that many tried to make a copy of sPhones. But even if they tried to disassemble it and study each and every part, no one could seem to understand how it really worked. Even the famous alchemists couldn't figure it out. Everyone knew that the creator of sPhones was the founder of Silver Corporation. So really, maybe they should understand first how the mind of this genius worked before trying to copy his creation.

And now at this time, almost everyone was staring at the screens of their sPhones, waiting for the live video feed of the official channel of Silver Corporation in [VideoFlix]. Just the other day, the official [Jiffy] account of Silver Corporation announced that they will post a live interview of the founder of their company in their [VideoFlix] channel and it will be hosted by Aurum Blackbourne.

Who was Aurum Blackbourne? She's the most followed individual in [Jiffy]. Partly because she's the spokesperson and face of Silver Corporation. Ever since the founding of the company, they would release a video every time they make a new version of sPhone. And everytime, the star of the video was always Aurum Blackbourne. But that's not the only reason she was loved by many. It was because she's as beautiful as an angel. Long, flowing golden hair, porcelain white skin, and a pair of amber eyes. Who doesn't love beauty, right?

But the main reason everyone was patiently waiting for the upload of this live video was because they could finally see the mysterious founder of Silver Corporation. In the seven years since its conception, he had never shown himself in public. He didn't even have his own [Jiffy] account. No one even knew his name! But that would all change after this interview.

Suddenly the screen flashed and the familiar silver 'S' logo appeared then it was followed by the smiling face of Aurum Blackbourne. Her golden hair was in a high ponytail tied by a long sky blue ribbon. Her pink lips has a gentle smile. She was wearing a white dress with a flowing skirt that reached just above her knees. At the age of 14, she was already 169 cm. Add that to her grace and temperament and no one would even see her as a kid.

Aurum smiled at the camera. "Hi everyone!"

Because of her appearance, the comments on the video was full off; [Ah, my goddess is so beautiful!], [Hello, goddess!], and [Marry me, my angel!].

"I know a lot of you has been waiting for this moment, so I won't delay this any longer. Please welcome, the founder of Silver Corporation and my beloved twin brother, Argent Blackbourne!"

[???]

[Wait- did I just hear it wrong? Did my goddess just say her 'twin brother'?]

[Upstairs you're not the only one, I also heard it.]

[Σ(꒪ȏ꒪)]

On the screen, a tall teenage boy came into view. He was wearing a crisp white shirt under a simple blue suit, paired with black slacks that perfectly showcased his long legs. His short silver hair looked particularly soft. His amethyst like eyes were surrounded by thick silver eyelashes. To say that he was handsome was not accurate. It's probably more appropriate to call him beautiful. But despite his beauty, no one would associate this person to the word 'feminine'. Because he was exuding so much air of indifference. As if no one was worthy to be in his sight.

[Shit! Is this pretty boy really the founder?]

[Ah! Ah! Ah! The founder is so beautiful!]

[I think everyone's focus is wrong. If he's the founder and the twin of Aurum, then he's also only 14 years old. That means he started making sPhones when he was seven!]

[Upstairs, you're right! I also just realized it just now!]

[Is this boy still human???]

"Brother, could you smile for our audience?" Aurum asked sweetly.

The silver haired teenager just patted Aurum's head. "Don't make trouble," he said in a low husky voice. He didn't smile but his tone was soft and his eyes were full of pets.

[Ah!!! The founder's voice is sooooo good!]

[I don't care if he's human or not, founder please marry me?]

Aurum just smiled and the two sat face to face. "Brother, could you introduce yourself to our viewers? I'm sure many of them has been wanting to know more about you."

Argent faced the camera and said, "My name is Argent Blackbourne, 14 years old, the maker of sPhones, and the founder of Silver Corporation. Oh, and I'm also a NoGift."

[A NoGift? No way!]

[How could he be a NoGift?]

[I guess not everyone could be a perfect human being. The goddess Gaia is still fair at least.]

[A NoGift? Then he's nothing but a waste!]

[Upstairs, is your brain still functioning? Could a waste person make the sPhones you're using right now?]

[Who cares if he's a NoGift? He's beautiful and super smart, not to mention filthy rich! That's enough. Founder, marry me, okay?]

[Upstairs, +1]

"How did you come up with the idea of sPhones?" Aurum followed up.

"I just thought how interesting it would be if people in every corners of the world could somehow communicate with each other. Thus, the design of the sPhones was born."

"Being just seven back then, I'm sure everyone is wondering how you even manage to create something like this."

"It has nothing to do with age. Doing something like that all depends on a person's brain. I happened to be extremely smart. So even at seven, making the design of the sPhone was pretty easy for me," he said it in a very matter-of-factly tone that you couldn't help but believe that what he said was nothing but the truth.

[How arrogant!]

[Being smart doesn't give you the right to be arrogant!]

[The founder is not arrogant! He's just telling the truth!]

[Don't you hear the founder's tone? He's not boasting, he's just stating facts!]

The interview continued for twenty minutes. During that period, people constantly commented on the comment section. Until the interview reached its final minute.

"Sadly, we could only stop here." Aurum turned to her brother. "Brother, do you have any words for our viewers?"

"Only one thing." He looked straight at the camera. "Thank you."

He still looked indifferent but no one could deny the gratitude in his words.

[Ahh!!! The founder is welcome!]

[We're the ones who should thank you! Thank you for bringing sPhones to us!]

[Thank you founder!]

[Founder, please make a [Jiffy] account so we could follow you!]

[Upstairs is right. We hope to hear more from you soon!]

[We love you founder!]

At the end of the interview, the number one trending topic in [Jiffy] was #thefounderistoobeautiful followed by #founderpleasemarryme.

And that's how Argent Blackbourne introduced herself to the world.