bookpower Chapter 6: Side Hustle
Chapter 6: Side Hustle
Chapter 6 - Side Hustle
....
December 30th, 2009.
.
Tring–! Tring–!
The sound of his phone alarm sliced through the silence.
Regal's eyes flickered open, barely registering the alarm as he turned his gaze toward the desk, where his phone lay.
His blurry focus shifted to the clock on the wall.
Of course, it was only....4 in the morning.
Nonetheless, his hand reached out to the table and silenced the alarm with a deliberate tap, the sound cutting off mid-ring.
"...why am I continuing to wake up at this hour?"
For a moment, his mind wandered.
He saw a younger version of himself, a boy hunched over a desk in the predawn hours, scribbling stories in a notebook before the grind of part-time jobs swallowed his day whole.
That boy had dreamed big, fueled by caffeine and hope.
The memory was fleeting, fading as quickly as it had come, leaving behind a new thought.
Acting on impulse, Regal grabbed his phone and fired off a quick message to his employer.
It was brief and direct - he wouldn't make it in today.
That made two days in a row.
Yesterday, he had skipped work for something that felt like a long shot, a meeting with his so-called 'editor'.
What he thought would lead to a predictable string of rejections had snowballed into something much larger - an impromptu conversation with the CEO of the publishing house.
And now, here he was.
Late last night, he got a text from the company.
Short, to the point - they liked the book and wanted to meet again.
Today.
They hadn't explicitly said anything concrete, but Regal had a gut feeling.
Unless some catastrophic disagreement about the contract blindsided him, this was it. Things will move forward.
From the start, he hadn't been chasing fame or something extravagant with his writing career.
He wanted just enough recognition to carve out his space, maybe a few million to fund his first big project.
It wasn't unreasonable... right?
When that happened, he knew life would get hectic. So -
"...Maybe it's time to quit." He whispered.
He was referring to the part-time job that had kept him afloat all these days, the one that helped pay for groceries, rent, and the occasional splurge when he dared.
His employer had been kind, even understanding during his tougher days.
But now, things are changing. If he was going to leave, he owed them at least one thing - respect.
A proper resignation, delivered in person.
"But first, I need to stretch." Regal let out a sigh, stretching his arms above his head. "My body feels like it's been through a blender."
He didn't waste time. After a quick wash, he changed into something comfortable, and he was out the door.
His room, tucked away on the fifth floor, gave him peace and quiet, but the lack of an elevator made his trek down the stairs an unpleasant routine.
Today, it felt even worse than usual.
Stepping outside, he caught a breath of fresh air.
The kind that felt sharp and cold. It was early enough that the streets were mostly deserted, save for the distant hum of traffic.
The park wasn't far, and the morning air cleared his head a little.
As he reached the park, he slowed to a walk.
The path ahead was empty, save for a few joggers that looked like athletes.
Regal noticed a bench nearby and decided to sit for a moment, taking in the calm around him.
He closed his eyes and smoothed his rough breathing of chest, letting the cool breeze mess with his hair.
It was almost peaceful.
But the thoughts crept in again.
The next step.
What came after all this?
The meeting time is set today... for [10:30] today at the same office.
.....
.
After the quick jog, Regal returned to his apartment.
He headed straight to his room, pulled off his damp shirt, and tossed it onto a chair before stepping into the shower.
Minutes later, feeling a little less like a sweaty mess, Regal emerged, hair damp and clothes far more comfortable.
A slice of dry bread, some jam, and a half-hearted attempt at breakfast.
He plopped into the creaky desk chair, chewing absentmindedly as he powered up his old computer.
The desk around him was a quiet mess, scattered notes, a capless pen teetering on the edge, and a cup stained with old coffee rings told the story of countless late nights.
Regal pulled the keyboard closer, chewing another bite of bread, eyes on the screen.
Lately, Regal had been scouring the [Bulletin Board] for a solid side hustle to earn some much-needed EPs.
Ever since wrapping up the final draft of, and even before that, it had become a habit of checking the system [Bulletin Board] every now and then, hoping something worthwhile would pop up.
And, well... a few things had.
Some of them were outright insane.
Take thescript, for example.
Yeah, that James Cameron magnum opus project.
Regal had stared at it longer than he cared to admit, his hand hovering dangerously close to the [Pin] button.
The thought of directing something so iconic made his heart race.
But deep down, he knew better.
Makinghis debut project?
That wasn't just ambitious, it was suicidal.
The funding alone would be astronomical.
Money he didn't have and wouldn't have anytime soon.
Could it be his second project?
A pipe dream, at best.
He hadn't even locked in his first project yet, so tying up his one and only [Pin] on something so uncertain was out of the question.
With a heavy heart and a sharp pang of regret, he let it go.
Instead, Regal turned to something more practical - the [Web Novel] section.
It was the only thing remotely within reach of his meager 68K leftover EPs.
He needed something low-risk and high-yield to tide him over.
After all, it would be at least a month before his book hit the shelves and started generating income.
According to the system, EP came from one thing - entertaining people.
So the plan was simple: find a decent web novel, pour his efforts into it, and earn.
After some digging, Regal landed on two masterclasses ever written in this form. And unlike, he doesn't have to holdback here.
The first,