Pampering Discarded Heroines Triggers My 10,000x Rebate System

Outside the Sector 4 Frost Rift, the snowy valley was completely packed with people.

Dozens of satellite broadcast vans from Veridia City News, Awakener Today, and the Metropolis Daily lined the outer perimeter.

Blinding camera lights flashed through the falling snow, while several live broadcasting drones hovered overhead, streaming the scene to millions of viewers across the metropolis.

At the center of the clearing, surrounded by high-ranking guild officers and armed security, Prescott stood behind a polished metal press podium.

He had changed out of his scuffed dragon-scale plate armor into a gold-embroidered velvet coat. His hair was neatly styled, and his posture was raised with confidence.

Standing behind him in tight military formation were forty Prescott Guild raiders, looking proud and imposing before the media cameras.

”Quiet down, everyone!” Prescott raised a gloved hand, flashing a charming, arrogant smile toward the sea of flashing lenses.

The clamoring reporters lowered their microphones, eager to broadcast the breaking announcement.

”As the sole heir and vice-commander of Prescott Guild, I am honored to deliver an official announcement to the citizens of Veridia Metropolis,” Prescott spoke with grandeur. ”Just thirty minutes ago, my elite raid division successfully neutralized the Level 45 Frost-Fang Ice Wyvern and conquered the B-Rank Frost Rift. As we speak, the support team is clearing out the remaining loot and resources.”

The crowd of journalists gasped, frantically scribbling notes on their tablets.

”Young Master Prescott!” a senior reporter from Veridia City News called out, pushing her microphone forward. ”The Metropolis Guild Bureau classified this Frost Rift as an extreme high-risk zone capable of causing a regional mana breach! Was the battle as perilous as the reports warned?!”

Prescott puffed out his chest, smiling with smug satisfaction.

”It was a brutal and terrifying battle,” Prescott lied smoothly, looking straight into the main camera drone. ”The Frost Wyvern’s glacial breath threatened to wipe out the entire northern valley. But under my direct personal command, our guild’s elite coordination proved solid. Prescott Guild will always stand as the shield of this metropolis.”

Across the city, the live press conference broadcasted on giant LED billboards in commercial plazas, subway terminals, and high-end hotel lounges.

In a luxury VIP suite at the Grand Apex Hotel, Giselle sat curled up on a white leather sofa, watching the live stream on her phone with a wide grin.

”That’s my man,” Giselle whispered smugly to herself, tapping the screen to share the live video link to all her social media circles. ”A true hero of the metropolis... not some broke, pitiful delivery boy who got lucky with a rental car.”

Back at Sector 4, the reporters cheered and applauded as their cameras flashed continuously.

WHIRRRRR!

Suddenly, a powerful wave of mana fluctuation tore through the freezing air.

The twenty-foot portal of the Frost Rift rippled violently, glowing with bright gold and blue light. Dense waves of freezing mist poured from the tear in space, blowing across the snowy field.

Everyone turned their heads toward the glowing dimensional gate in shock.

”Is there another monster coming out?!” a cameraman yelled in alarm.

”No, look! Someone is stepping through the portal!”

From the center of the swirling spatial vortex, a tall figure walked calmly out into the falling snow.

It was Evren.

His dark, fur-lined coat swayed gently in the wind, and his Glacial Trench Blade was strapped securely across his back. His breath plumed steadily in the freezing air, and he looked completely relaxed, unaffected by the intense cold.

Prescott turned his head toward the entrance, spotting Evren walking out on the snowbank.

A wave of pure terror washed over Prescott as he remembered the terrifying speed that Evren had used to crush his elite squad inside the pass.

But when Prescott glanced around and saw dozens of news cameras, live broadcasting drones, and armed Bureau marshals surrounding the clearing, his arrogant sneer returned instantly.

Prescott pointed an accusing finger at Evren, raising his voice so the sensitive broadcast microphones would catch every word:

”Look at that, ladies and gentlemen! The F-Rank delivery boy finally crawled out alive!”

The reporters turned their cameras toward Evren, muttering among themselves in confusion.

”You see,” Prescott laughed mockingly, playing directly to the nationwide audience, ”this former food delivery boy registered a fake one-man guild called ’Apex Guild’ and snuck past our perimeter barricade earlier. He must have spent the entire raid shivering in a snowdrift while my men did all the heavy lifting.”

The forty Prescott Guild raiders chuckled in unison, eagerly joining in to cover up their shameful defeat on the mountain.

Evren didn’t utter a single word.

He walked forward across the snow, stopping ten paces in front of the press podium.

At that exact moment, a heavy black government transport pulled up to the gate.

Chief Inspector Flores of the Metropolis Guild Bureau stepped out, accompanied by four armed Bureau marshals. In his hands, he carried a reinforced Mana Terminal equipped with golden dimensional authentication sensors.

Prescott’s eyes narrowed slightly with unease.

He had expected Inspector Miller, the corrupt local district official Prescott Guild regularly bribed with fat envelopes to rubber-stamp their raid reports without running deep terminal scans.

Seeing the notoriously strict Central Bureau Auditor instead made a drop of cold sweat run down Prescott’s neck.

”Clear the perimeter,” Inspector Flores announced in a commanding tone.

”Inspector Flores,” Prescott forced a polite, strained smile, stepping forward to block his path. ”I didn’t expect Central Internal Affairs to visit Sector 4. My father has a standing arrangement with the local district office... surely a full core log scan isn’t necessary for a routine guild clear?”

Inspector Flores didn’t even look at Prescott’s outstretched hand.

”Abnormal mana fluctuations were recorded in Sector 4,” Inspector Flores stated coldly, his voice carrying over the reporters’ microphones. ”Central Bureau regulations apply to every raid team without exception, Young Master Prescott. Step aside.”

Prescott’s jaw tightened in frustration, but with dozens of live camera drones hovering overhead, he couldn’t push the matter without raising immediate suspicion.

Inspector Flores walked up to the swirling Rift Gate. He placed the gold-tipped scanner of the terminal directly against the spatial frame and pressed the central authorization rune.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

The Mana Terminal hummed with overwhelming magical power.

A massive, golden holographic screen shot fifty feet into the sky above Sector 4, projecting the realtime dimensional data live to every camera drone and news feed across the entire metropolis:

[METROPOLIS GUILD BUREAU: OFFICIAL RIFT LOG]

[DIMENSIONAL GATE: SECTOR 4 B-RANK FROST RIFT]

[CONQUEST STATUS: 100% CLEARED!]

[FIRST CONQUEROR: GUILDMASTER EVREN (APEX GUILD — SOLO RAID)!]

[BOSS KILL RECORD: LEVEL 45 FROST-FANG ICE WYVERN — SLAIN BY EVREN (100% DAMAGE CONTRIBUTION)!]

[CORE HARVEST RECORD: PRISTINE GLACIAL LOTUS ESSENCE — CLAIMED BY APEX GUILD!]

[PARTICIPATING GUILD LOG: PRESCOTT GUILD RAID TEAM STATUS — ’FLED BATTLE VIA EMERGENCY RETURN CRYSTAL — DISQUALIFIED’!]

Dead silence descended over the entire valley.

The wind howled softly across the frozen ground, carrying the sound of falling snow.

The dozens of reporters stared up at the massive golden hologram with dropped jaws. The live broadcasting drones hovered in dead stillness, transmitting the glowing red words ’PRESCOTT GUILD: FLED BATTLE’ to millions of television screens across Veridia Metropolis.

Prescott’s smug smile froze completely on his face.

Every trace of color drained from his skin until he was as pale as a corpse. His knees began to shake so violently beneath his velvet coat that he had to grip the metal podium to keep from collapsing onto the snow.

”T-This... this is a mistake!” Prescott stammered hysterically, his voice cracking on live television. ”The terminal is glitched! I slayed the Wyvern! My men killed it!”

Evren reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a fist-sized, radiant diamond-shaped beast core glowing with blinding sapphire light.

Dense, freezing S-Rank mana radiated from the core, instantly frosting the air around Evren’s hand and sending chills through the entire crowd.

Every camera lens in the valley zoomed in on the genuine S-Rank Frost Wyvern Beast Core.

”You slayed the Wyvern, Prescott?” Evren’s voice carried clearly across the silent clearing. ”Then what is this in my hand?”