8:00 AM. BPI Main Branch, Makati.
Jae-Min sat across from a loan officer named Gerald. Middle-aged. Receding hairline. Tired eyes.
"I need a personal loan."
Gerald adjusted his glasses. "Of course, Mr. Del Rosario. How much were you thinking?"
"Five million."
Gerald's pen stopped. "I'm sorry?"
"Five million pesos. Unsecured."
"Sir, that's... for an unsecured personal loan, that amount would require extensive background—"
Jae-Min slid a folder across the table. Inside: his payslips from the last three years. His tax returns. Bank statements showing a clean, flawless credit history. His Del Rosario family assets listed in Cavite.
Gerald opened the folder. Flipped through the pages. His eyebrows rose.
"You're a warehouse manager at—"
"The largest logistics hub in Southeast Asia. Pasay."
"Yes, I see that, but five million is—"
"I also want to open three credit cards. Maximum limit on all of them."
Gerald stared at him. "Mr. Del Rosario, are you in some kind of trouble?"
"No."
"Then why do you need this much capital so suddenly?"
Jae-Min leaned forward. Met Gerald's eyes.
"Business investment. I'm not here to negotiate, Gerald. I'm here to get approved. Can you do that, or do I need to speak to your branch manager?"
Gerald swallowed. Pressed a button on his phone.
"Ma'am? Can I get a signature override for a five-million personal loan? ...Yes. Right now."
9:30 AM. BDO, Ayala Avenue.
"Two million. Unsecured."
"Sir, our maximum unsecured loan for a single applicant is—"
"I have a co-borrower. My uncle. Retired Colonel Ricardo Del Rosario. Thirty years military service. Camp Aquino. Villamor Air Base."
The loan officer blinked. "A retired colonel? Does he know—"
"He already signed the documents."
Jae-Min slid the papers across the desk. Uncle Rico's signature. Perfect. Authentic.
He had forged it ten minutes ago in the GT-R.
11:00 AM. Security Bank, Bonifacio Global City.
"Three new credit cards. Maximum limit."
"Sir, you already have two active cards with us—"
"Cancel them. Open three new ones."
The banker frowned. "May I ask why?"
"No."
"Sir, policy requires—"
Jae-Min placed his phone on the counter. Opened his BPI app. Showed the approved five-million loan. Then the BDO app. Two million approved.
"I'm a premium client. Process the cards."
The banker looked at the screen. Then at Jae-Min. Then back at the screen.
"Yes, sir. Right away, sir."
12:30 PM. Metrobank, Paseo de Roxas.
"Four million."
"Sir, that's—"
"Unsecured. I know. Here are my documents."
He didn't even let them finish the script anymore. Just dropped the folder. Waited.
Approved.
2:00 PM. Union Bank, Makati Avenue.
"Two credit cards. One million loan."
"Sir, our system is flagging multiple inquiries across different banks in the last six hours—"
"System error. Fix it."
"Sir, I can't just—"
"Then get me someone who can."
The branch manager came out. Apologized. Approved everything.
3:30 PM. PNB, Escolta.
"Three million."
"Sir, this is highly irregular—"
"Is it illegal?"
"No, but—"
"Then process it."
5:00 PM. EastWest Bank, Ortigas.
"Two credit cards. Max limit."
The loan officer looked at Jae-Min like he was crazy. "Sir, you've opened nine credit cards across seven banks in one day. This will destroy your credit score."
Jae-Min smiled. It didn't reach his eyes.
"In thirty days, credit scores won't exist."
"What?"
"Process the cards."
7:00 PM. GT-R. Parking lot of a convenience store.
Jae-Min sat in the driver's seat. Engine off. Phone in his hand.
He opened his notes. Scrolled through the list.
BPI: ₱5,000,000 BDO: ₱2,000,000 Security Bank: ₱3 credit cards (₱300,000 limit each) Metrobank: ₱4,000,000 Union Bank: ₱1,000,000 + 2 credit cards (₱250,000 each) PNB: ₱3,000,000 EastWest: 2 credit cards (₱200,000 each)
Total cash loans: ₱15,000,000
Total credit limit: ₱1,600,000
Grand total: ₱16,600,000
Sixteen million pesos.
In one day.
He leaned back. Closed his eyes.
In his first life, he had sat in this dark apartment. No power. No food. Watching the battery drain on his phone while the news played the same clip on loop.
Flight 217 from Incheon to Manila. Lost contact over the Alishan Mountains. Flash freeze. Blizzard conditions. Malfunction.
No survivors.
Mom. Dad. Ji-Yoo. Gone.
He had screamed. He had punched the wall until his knuckles bled. But nobody came. Because everyone else was dying too.
Now he had sixteen million pesos and a hole in reality.
It still didn't feel like enough.
Jae-Min opened a new note. Typed:
DAY 1 COMPLETE.CASH: ₱16.6MFOOD: 200 MEALS (800 MORE IN 3 DAYS)NEXT: GUNS. AMMO. BUNKER SUPPLIES.
He stared at the screen.
Then added one more line.
CALL MOM AND DAD. TELL THEM THE TRUTH.
His thumb hovered over the keyboard.
They wouldn't believe him. He knew that. In his first life, he hadn't known about the apocalypse. He couldn't have warned them. But now?
Now he would sound insane.
Hey Mom, don't take the flight from Incheon. It's going to crash into a mountain because of a flash freeze that hasn't happened yet.
They would think he was having a mental breakdown.
But he had to try.
He pulled out of the parking lot. Headed home.
The void inside him pulsed. Expanding. Hungry.
Tonight, he would call his parents.
Tomorrow, he would show his uncle the impossible.
Jae-Min put the phone down and stepped out of the GT-R. The humid Manila air hit his face as he walked toward the elevator of Shore Residence 3.
He pressed the button. Waited.
The elevator dinged. The doors slid open.
It was empty. But on the floor of the elevator, someone had dropped a crumpled piece of paper. A flyer.
Jae-Min picked it up.
It wasn't an advertisement. It was a military-grade dispatch notice. Dated three days from now. It listed a "Mandatory Withdrawal of All AFP Forces from Southern Luzon."
Jae-Min's blood ran cold.
In his first life, the military didn't start retreating from Luzon until weeks after the freeze. Why were they pulling out early? What was coming out of the south that the government was already running from?
The elevator doors began to close.