2 Years Time Skip part 2

Three years had passed since John Wayne had been reborn into this world, and every year since that moment had been a thunderstorm of productivity and intellect. By the time he turned thirteen, John had already reshaped scientific norms, disrupted military R&D, and become a silent titan in engineering and innovation. But his hunger was not sated.

Fresh off his doctorate in mechanical and electrical engineering from MIT, John set his sights on a new domain: finance and mathematics.

He applied—without recommendation letters or references—to Princeton University's Department of Finance and Mathematics. His anonymous contributions in science had already made their way into high academic circles, and after a swift but intense entry interview, they accepted him without question. Within half a year, John completed the entire finance curriculum. He absorbed it, mastered it, then discarded it like an obsolete operating system.

Then came his greatest feat in the realm of pure mathematics.

The problem was ancient—Goldbach's Conjecture: that every even number greater than two is the sum of two prime numbers. For over 250 years, it had remained unproven.

John solved it in three weeks.

Great Sage assisted by converting historical attempts and modern number theory into compressed knowledge blocks, while Degenerate helped him mutate conventional logic to think in new dimensions. But the solution—elegant, airtight, and logically sound—was his.

He submitted the paper under strict anonymity. Princeton, respecting the request, labeled it "Author Withheld by Institutional Agreement," but the impact rocked the mathematical world.

He received his doctorate a month later, along with a system notification.

New Skill Acquired: Mathematician

Instant Calculation

Accelerated Logical Processing

Predictive Pattern Recognition

John smiled to himself. His mind, already a supercomputer, had now been fine-tuned into something far greater.

And with that, he left Princeton behind.

Returning to the small but familiar apartment he shared with Jennifer Lewis and Andrea Stark, John found something he never expected—he was the one being surprised.

Andrea, once the carefree girl who measured wealth in ice cream cones, greeted him with a determined smile and her backpack still slung over one shoulder.

"I just got moved up to high school," she said proudly.

John blinked. "You… what?"

"I've been studying hard," she continued. "I know I don't have cheat abilities or some skill in my head like you do, but I want to be useful. You always look so far ahead, John… I want to at least walk beside you."

Jennifer stood behind her, smiling gently. "She's been staying up late reading your old notes and research papers. I think she's memorized half your MIT textbooks by now."

John looked at Andrea in awe. She had no system, no Great Sage guiding her, no Degenerate mutating her learning capacity. She was just a girl—a determined, relentless girl—fighting to keep up with a legend.

And yet, somehow, she was doing it.

For the first time in a long while, John felt pride that wasn't tied to his own achievements.

"I'm proud of you," he said simply. "Really proud."

Andrea beamed, and Jennifer patted his shoulder. "You've been a good influence on her."

John gave a small smile, then turned serious. "I've decided to start a company."

That got Jennifer's attention. "A company?"

"Wayne Industries," John said. "I'm going to change the world—openly this time. I want to step out from the shadows and start building things that matter."

To his surprise, Jennifer didn't hesitate.

"I'll help you run it."

"You will?" John asked, blinking.

She nodded. "I quit the force. I've been thinking about it for a while now. Honestly, you're probably going to need someone to handle the day-to-day when you're off doing your genius stuff. And I've had enough of chasing criminals when I can help build something real."

John stared at her for a long moment, then bowed his head. "Thank you."

With Jennifer's help, Wayne Industries was born.

Operating from a sleek yet secure research compound outside Los Angeles, the company specialized in defense technology, clean energy solutions, and adaptive materials. John's first invention—a revolutionary bulletproof vest composed of a carbon-fiber kinetic dispersion mesh—was five times lighter than Kevlar but could stop .50 caliber rounds with ease.

He presented the prototype directly to General Marcus Bennett, the same man who had protected his identity during the EMP missile project.

In the sleek conference room of Wayne Industries HQ, John and Jennifer stood across from the uniformed general, who examined the vest with skeptical eyes.

"This is lighter than my dress uniform," Bennett muttered. "You sure this thing works?"

John activated a demonstration panel. A robotic arm fired three different rounds—9mm, 5.56 NATO, and .50 BMG—at the vest. Each bullet hit and was absorbed without penetrating.

The general stood silent, then whistled. "This is… I don't even have a word for it."

John slid a folder across the table. "One hundred million dollars. For initial production. Deployment-ready within three months."

Bennett looked at Jennifer, then back at John. "You drive a hard bargain, kid."

"I drive results," John replied.

The contract was signed the next day.

Months passed. Wayne Industries exploded in value. Government contracts flowed in. The military began transitioning standard units to wear John's vest, and murmurs began within defense circles about the mysterious boy who kept delivering miracles.

Then one day, John made an unusual request.

"I want to train with the military," he told General Bennett.

The older man's coffee froze halfway to his mouth.

"I beg your pardon?" the general asked.

"I want to see how my equipment functions in real combat. Not tests. Not simulations. The real thing."

"John," Jennifer said, stunned. "You're fourteen."

"I know."

Bennett rubbed his temples. "And you want me to send you to a battlefield?"

John didn't flinch. "Only after I complete the full training regimen. You said it yourself—I'm different. I need firsthand experience."

The general stared at him for a long time, then leaned forward.

"I'll make you a deal. You pass basic training. Weapons handling, physical conditioning, squad integration. If you pass all of it—and I mean pass to my standards—I'll approve a deployment."

"Under one condition," he added. "You're on logistics and supply. Rear guard only. I'm not putting a living genius in a bullet storm."

John nodded. "Agreed."

Jennifer looked between the two, clearly stressed. "You're serious about this?"

John turned to her. "Lewis, I have to know what it's like out there. If I'm going to build for soldiers, I have to stand where they stand."

She sighed, clearly torn. "Then I'm going with you."

"What?" John blinked.

"I quit the force for you. If you're marching with the army, then I'm handling command support. You need someone there you trust."

John gave her a long look. "Thank you. Again."

She smirked. "You'll be the death of me, genius."

And so began the next chapter of John Wayne's life—not as a child, not as a scientist—but as a soldier-in-training. Under the watchful eye of General Bennett and with Lewis by his side, John began his transformation once more.

He was no longer just the mind behind miracles.

He would become the man who walked through fire to forge them.