Walker in Modern World

One week later, his code was almost complete. Every day after school, Sanjay would go to the cyber café to connect with the team he had hired and clear any doubts they had.

These guys were clearly very talented. They built a demo project within a week. Sanjay's part of the code, which included the OCR system and editing features for images and PDFs, was integrated seamlessly. The team also purchased a server from Microsoft to host their website and the software.

The software was protected with a secure login system, two-factor authentication (2FA), SSL/TLS encryption, GDPR compliance, and other measures to safeguard sensitive user data.

After some testing, the software was released online. There were two versions: a free version that allowed users to edit PDFs twice a day, and a paid version with unlimited usage for only 10 dollars per month.

Sanjay paid the team 25,000 dollars for the project and agreed to pay 10,000 dollars per month for bug fixing and maintenance. Everyone was satisfied with the arrangement, especially since they weren't getting much freelance work at the time.

In the United States, a man sat in his cubicle with his head pounding. His manager had assigned him thousands of documents in image format and instructed him to manually enter all the details into the system and upload them to the server.

The company was in the process of transitioning from physical records to digitalization. After manually converting five or ten documents, his hands began to ache. Frustrated and desperate, he searched online for a solution.

That's when he found a software application. According to the description, it could extract text from images, edit PDFs, and even modify images. The software's name was simple: 'iLoveImage'.

Sanjay had borrowed the name from popular websites in his past life that were commonly used for editing images and PDFs.

The man saw that the software allowed users to upload a trial image directly on the website. Out of curiosity, he uploaded a random image filled with text but with no real value. Within seconds, the extracted text appeared in a side box, ready to be copied.

Impressed, he tried uploading another image. But this time, a message popped up asking him to download the software for further use.

He downloaded the software to his local computer and tested it. It worked even faster than the website. Surprised by its efficiency, he continued uploading images. After processing two documents, however, another alert appeared, informing him that he had reached the free trial limit for the day. To continue using the software, he needed to pay 10 dollars per month.

The man frowned at first, but since he earned thousands of dollars, 10 dollars was nothing to him. After subscribing to the premium version, he discovered it even allowed bulk uploads.

Excited, he quickly uploaded one thousand images. Within a few minutes, all the text was extracted and ready for use. He couldn't believe his eyes. This software would save him weeks of tedious work. He could already see that it would disrupt data entry jobs in the future.

Across the globe, similar scenes were unfolding. People loved the software's simple interface and found the $10 monthly fee negligible for the value it offered.

Meanwhile, in Guwahati, India, Sanjay was busy studying. His midterm exams were starting the next day, and he didn't have much time left to prepare. The following week would be hectic for him.

It had already been one month since he traveled back in time. In the medieval world, however, nearly six months had passed. Thankfully, his body didn't seem to age according to the medieval world's timeline. Otherwise, he would be six older. He had verified this theory by checking the length of his hair.

Ramesh had also created a Swiss bank account with 28 million dollars deposited in it. Any additional earnings would be transferred to that account.

A week later, after finishing his midterm exams, Sanjay finally had some breathing room. He now had one month of summer vacation before his board exams six months later.

He came home after bombing his midterm exams. After eating lunch, he headed to the cyber café to check on the progress of his software. Every alternate day throughout the week, he had been checking the software's performance and connecting with the team to address any bug-related issues.

The team proved to be honest and efficient, quickly fixing any bugs that arose.

Today, when Sanjay opened the dashboard and saw the number of downloads, he was utterly shocked.

One million downloads. Of these downloads, almost fifty percent of users opted for the premium version, which was huge.

Sanjay added his foreign account details to handle the transfer of funds smoothly. After deducting server costs and other expenses, he was left with 4 million dollars per week in profit.

He realized he would need to transfer the amount to his Indian account soon. If the government verified that the money was coming through legal means, they wouldn't block the transaction. However, to do that, he first needed to create a company and open a business bank account.

Since he was a minor, he needed his parents' approval to start a business under their leadership. While he didn't mind involving them, he wasn't sure if they would understand. Especially with his exams around the corner, he worried they might dismiss his idea outright.

Still, he knew he had to talk to them. If they didn't agree, there was little he could do.

That night, during dinner, Sanjay sat at the table, feeling tense. His father was seated, eating quietly, while his mother was serving food.

Taking a deep breath, Sanjay said, "Dad, Mom, I have something to tell you."

His father looked up. "What is it?"

Even though Sanjay was a 35 year-old soul, his father's stern gaze made him nervous. But he summoned his courage.

"Dad, Mom... me and some friends made a software. It became a hit, and I earned a lot of money," he said in a single breath.

Both his parents stared at him, their mouths agape. They had expected him to confess that his exams went badly, but this revelation was completely unexpected.

"What did you just say? Tell me everything," his father demanded, leaning forward, his curiosity piqued. The only word he had fully registered was 'money.'

Sanjay took his time and explained everything—how he used his time after school and during outings to work with people he met online to build a software that could generate revenue.

The first thing that came to his parents' minds was that Sanjay had been scammed or was involved with shady individuals. Despite his repeated assurances, his parents were skeptical.

"Okay," Sanjay finally said. "Let's go to the cyber café tomorrow, and I'll show you myself. I'll prove what I built. Will that be okay?"

His parents hesitated, exchanged unsure glances, but eventually nodded. They didn't know anyone who could guide them in such matters, so they decided to see for themselves.

The next morning, Sanjay and his father went to a nearby café on his father's scooter. The café owner, Gopi, was their neighbor's son and someone his father knew well.

When they entered the shop, Gopi stood up to greet them.

"Hello, Uncle," Gopi said.

"Hello, Gopi," his father replied.

"Uncle, do you need anything?" Gopi asked with a smile.

"Yes, Gopi. Sanjay here has built something. Can you check if it's legit?" his father said, pointing at Sanjay.

Hearing this, Gopi gave Sanjay a confused look.

Realizing Gopi's confusion, Sanjay said, "Can you open the website 'iLoveImage'?"

"Okay," Gopi replied, eager to help. He quickly navigated to the website, showing off his computer skills.

Once they were on the website, Sanjay gave his father a brief demo of the software, showing what it could do. He explained how the software worked and even demonstrated the documents related to the domain name he had purchased.

He also logged into the domain to show his father that he had access to everything. Only after seeing all of this did his father realize the software was legitimate.

Gopi, though not very knowledgeable, recognized the significance of domain ownership. After inspecting the documents, he confirmed that the domain indeed belonged to Sanjay.

Seeing all of this, Sanjay's father finally felt at ease—and proud. His face lit up with happiness.

Sanjay, in turn, felt relieved. Seeing his father's approval lifted a huge weight off his shoulders.

That day, his father took leave from work to spend the entire day helping Sanjay with what he needed.

Their first stop was at a corporate lawyer's office. The lawyer would help them set up a company. Sanjay's father paid the lawyer's fees out of his own pocket.

Though Sanjay wanted to handle the expenses himself, he couldn't yet reveal the source of his income. So, for now, he let his father pay, knowing he would repay him in full later.

Setting up a company would take some time. Sanjay planned to name the company 'Future Tech'. Thankfully, the name was still available, and he had already purchased all possible domain names related to the word "Future."

Carrying a box of sweets, Sanjay's father happily returned home. When his mother heard that her son had legitimately created a successful software, she couldn't contain her happiness.

"But son, listen—don't lose focus on your studies, okay? In the future, you should aim to reach great heights. Sharma Uncle's son is earning hundreds of thousands in the U.S. You should also try to do the same," his mother said with praise.

His father, sipping tea, nodded in agreement.

"But, Mother, my software will earn more than Sharma Uncle's son," Sanjay replied confidently.

Hearing this, both his parents' eyebrows furrowed with surprise.

"Son, yesterday you said you'd already earned money from the software. Is that true?" his mother asked.

"Yes, Mom. So far, I've earned almost 180 million Indian rupees," Sanjay said after calculating in his head converting dollars to rupees.

His father immediately spat out his tea, coughing uncontrollably, while his mother stood frozen in shock at the amount Sanjay had just mentioned.

A few minutes later, after settling down, they asked Sanjay to confirm the amount again. They were astonished, not only by the large sum but also by the fact that it was his monthly income.

Sanjay explained that he didn't intend to keep the business forever. His plan was to sell it to someone else within the next two years. He knew that OCR technology would soon be released by multiple companies, and the success of his software would likely accelerate that timeline. Without a full team to manage and innovate, he saw little reason to hold onto the business long-term.

However, he needed a proper business account to handle his earnings legally. So far, everything he'd been doing was technically illegal. With official business documents, it would be easier to make purchases and answer any questions that might arise.

After dealing with matters in his world, Sanjay returned to the medieval world to check on the progress of his ventures there.

First, he delivered goods to the Kalyan store. Then, he headed to Bheem Clothing Shop to drop off the next batch of clothes.

When Sanjay arrived, the shop's owner, Tarun, stepped out to greet him.

"Sanjay, good that you came. I received an urgent letter from the capital. The royal family has invited you to the capital," Tarun said.

"What? Me?" Sanjay asked, surprised.

"I'm sorry, I don't have much information. I received a summons for both of us from the Kalyan family. It's best that we leave as soon as possible," Tarun replied.

Without knowing what the summons was about, Sanjay decided it was safer to go and find out. If the situation turned dangerous, he could always escape. He already had a significant amount of gold, enough to fund multiple plans. With proper preparation, he wouldn't have to risk his life unnecessarily.

After making some quick preparations, Sanjay boarded the carriage. Four days later, they arrived at the capital.

As the carriage approached, Sanjay saw a massive wall surrounding the city. Every person entering the capital had their ID checked. Soldiers stationed at the top of the wall stood watch with bows in hand, wearing far better equipment than the soldiers in their town.

When the soldiers at the checkpoint saw the noble family crest on the carriage, they immediately allowed them to pass without checking who was inside.

Inside the capital, Sanjay was amazed by the bustling metropolis. Nobles strolled along the roads, carriages traveled up and down the streets, and people hurried about their business. Women stood in groups, chatting and laughing, while shopkeepers called out to passersby.

The streets were lined with a variety of shops—noble clothing stores, restaurants, grocery shops, and more. It wasn't quite like the modern world, but it was far more advanced than their town.

The carriage didn't stop anywhere along the way, heading straight to the Kalyan family household.