Kalifungwa didn't move immediately.
The city was loud. Too loud.
Everything felt sharper than it should.
Smells. Heat. Motion.
Alive.
[One free foresight query available]
The words sat in his mind like they had always been there.
Not imagined.
Not a dream.
His first instinct was fear.
His second… was memory.
Markets.
He stepped off the pavement, almost getting clipped by a boda.
"Eh! Watch yourself!" the rider snapped.
Kalifungwa barely reacted.
He needed a phone.
Now.
Later — a small electronics stall
"Cheap one," Kalifungwa said. "Internet."
The vendor looked him over. "Budget?"
"Minimal."
A scratched Android was placed in his hand.
Good enough.
Minutes later, he stood outside, screen glowing.
Trading app installed.
Account created.
Deposit: small.
Painfully small.
Balance: $32.14
He stared at it.
This was everything.
The system pulsed.
[Foresight query available]
"…Show me a profitable move today."
Silence.
Then—
[Result:]NASDAQ index will rise sharply within the next 3 hours.
That was it.
No explanation.
No warning.
He found the chart.
Price moving. Unpredictable.
Except now—
It wasn't.
He hesitated.
Old habits.
Fear.
Then—
People who start.
He entered the trade.
Small.
Too small.
The market dropped immediately.
His chest tightened.
"Too early…"
Seconds stretched.
Then—
It turned.
Up.
Fast.
Green.
His eyes widened.
It wasn't slow.
It exploded upward.
Profit.
He didn't close.
Couldn't.
Then—
He remembered.
Exit matters.
He closed.
Balance: $61.87
He laughed softly.
It worked.
[Free query consumed][Further queries will incur cost]
He looked at the screen.
Then at the city.
This time—
He had started.
End Chapter 2