THE TREASURE OF THE RISING SUN

Adrian de Alva is a man who lives on the face of the earth. From the thirtieth floor of his office in Bonifacio Global City, the vehicles below are like crawling ants. From his infinity pool atop his Forbes Park mansion, the city is a glittering diorama that belongs to him. At the age of thirty-two, he is the sole owner and brains behind ‘Nexus Innovations,’ a tech company that has changed the way millions of Filipinos live. Her life is a perfect algorithm of success: waking up before five, coffee, exercising, meeting, signing a contract, coming home to a quiet, spacious house, sleeping. Again.

His mansion was not a home; It is a museum of his accomplishments. The Italian marble floor is cold to the feet. The glass walls provide an unobstructed view of his garden that was even designed by a foreign landscaper. Her housemates act with perfect efficiency and calmness. But for all the luxuries, the silence inside the mansion is deafening. Every corner screams of riches, but whispers of sadness.

It all started early on Tuesday. While sipping her espresso, a ritual she had before her workout, an image shattered her perfect look. Outside her lofty gate, under the dim light of the pole and in the approaching morning light, a slender young woman carefully rummages through the garbage cans lined up for later collection.

At first, Adrian felt annoyed. A hindrance. A slap in the face to his clean environment. He grabbed his phone, ready to call security to get her out. But before he could hit the number, he stopped. He watched it. It’s not like other merchants who quickly and indifferently pour out the contents of the garbage. This girl is very special. He had a small flashlight attached to his forehead. He slowly lifted the lid of each trash can. Her hands, even if they were dirty, were very careful. He was looking for something definitely.

Every day, before the sun rises, it becomes part of his ritual. He would sip a cup of coffee and watch from his window. The girl, whom he estimated to be in her twenties, was always there. The trash cans across from his mansion were always the first things he looked at. He was wearing a faded T-shirt, jeans with knee holes, and a heel that was always mostly empty. But his stance is not that of someone who has given up. There is dignity in every action.

A week passed. Adrian’s anger was replaced by curiosity. What is this woman looking for in a billionaire’s garbage at a time when most people are still asleep? Leftover food? Her neighbors were wealthy, but the meals were often given to drivers or housekeepers. Items that can be sold? Possibly, but why does he seem to be focusing solely on electronic waste?

He couldn’t stand it anymore. He called Mang Ben, the trusted chief of his security. “A lady used to go out to pick up trash in the morning. Don’t let them go. I wanted to know who he was, where he was from, and what he was doing. But do it with caution. I don’t want to scare him.”

Two days later, Ben came back with a thin folder. Adrian sat down on his leather sofa and opened it.

The girl’s name was Elara Santos. Twenty-one years old. They live in a shack behind a large condominium in Guadalupe, about two kilometers from Forbes Park. Her grandmother, Grandma Ising, sold vegetables on the street. He has a brother, Leo, twelve years old, who has severe asthma and pain. What struck Adrian the most was the last page of the report: Elara Santos was a former scholar at a prestigious university, taking a course in Computer Engineering. He quit in the third year when his brother’s illness worsened and their savings ran out.

It was as if he had been stabbed by the truth. An engineering student who collects garbage. The image didn’t match his mind. His curiosity had turned into something deeper—admiration, and perhaps, a twinkle of conscience. He remembers himself when he was just starting out, waking up early in the morning to study and work, dreaming of coming up with something that would change the world.

Now that he knew who Elara was, the mystery grew even more intense. What does an engineering student look for in broken appliances?

The next day, at the same time, Adrian did something he hadn’t done in years. He left his mansion not in his luxury car, but on foot. He wore a simple hoodie and jogging pants, a look far removed from the billionaire CEO. He waited for Elara in a dark corner of the street.

It came, as usual, just as the sky was just beginning to change color. It began to squirrel. He approached slowly.

“What are you looking for?” he asked in a low voice.

Elara was astonished. He quickly stepped back, his eyes filled with caution. He was ready to run.

“Don’t be afraid,” Adrian said, raising his hands. “I’m not going to hurt you. I’m just asking.”

Elara stared at him, checking to see if he could be trusted. “Why do you want to know?” he asked sternly.

“Because I see you every day. “You don’t look like an ordinary businessman.”

There was a long silence between them. Finally, Elara sighed. He seemed to realize that he would not be blessed if he ran. He slowly opened his palm. As the morning dawned on, Adrian saw what was inside: a few small screws, a shattered circuit board, a small motor from a broken toy, and a few strands of copper wire.

“This,” he said. “Pieces. It’s something that others have thrown away, but it’s still worth it.”

“For what?” asked Adrian, his heart starting to beat faster.

Elara hesitated, but finally pulled a piece of folded paper from her pocket. He opened it. It is a schematic. A drawing full of lines and numbers. Even in the tangled paper, Adrian saw the brilliance of a genius.

“My brother, Leo, has asthma,” Elara explained softly. “It’s getting worse in the early hours of the morning because the air inside our house is cold but dusty. The air conditioner is expensive, and the power is strong. Air purifiers are more expensive. So I’m trying to build my own. A small solar-powered air filter. From discarded items. At the very least, he can breathe better while sleeping.”

Adrian was stunned. All the noise of the city around them suddenly vanished. All he could hear was the beating of his heart. He stared at the drawing—an innovative design that uses electrostatic principles to capture dust, powered by tiny solar cells that he picks up from broken garden lamps. It’s something his company could sell for thousands. And it consists of a young woman from the garbage she gets outside her mansion.

At that moment, Adrian felt a deep sense of embarrassment. Her wealth, her mansion, her perfect life—all seemed to have vanished in the face of this young woman’s determination and love.

“I’m Adrian de Alva,” he said at last. He saw the change in Elara’s face—surprise, recognition.

“The owner of the Nexus?”

Adrian nodded. “And I want to help you. Not by giving money.” He could see Elara’s body shrink, his pride rise. “I want to help you build that. Inside.” He pointed to his mansion. “I had a personal workshop there. Everything you need is there.”

The next day, for the first time, Elara Santos entered the gate of Adrian de Alva’s mansion. Not as a guest at a party, but as an inventor. Adrian takes him to a part of the mansion that no one has ever seen—a high-tech laboratory filled with 3D printers, soldering stations, and diagnostic equipment.

Elara’s eyes widened. He was like a kid walking into a toy store.

In the weeks that followed, the cold mansion came to life. The silence is replaced by the sound of machines working, their laughter, and the endless discussion of algorithms and circuit designs. They worked together. Adrian discovers that Elara’s genius isn’t just theoretical; It’s practical, creative, and full of solutions. Elara, in turn, discovered that behind the billionaire’s serious face was a man with a genuine passion for creation, a passion that had long been overshadowed by business meetings and financial reports.

A small air purifier has become a sophisticated prototype. They replace parts from waste with high-quality materials. They made it more efficient, more durable, and more beautiful.

One day, Adrian took Elara to their home in Guadalupe, with the finished project. He saw where he lived—a small space that was clean and tidy, but obviously lacking a lot of things. He met Grandma Ising and Leo, a skinny boy with a smile that lit up the entire room.

When they plugged in the air purifier and it started to release clean, cold air, Leo burst into tears. “Honey, it’s a good nose,” she said.

At that moment, Adrian felt a happiness that all his money in the world could not buy.

The story didn’t end there.

Adrian founded the ‘Nexus Foundation,’ a new branch of his company dedicated to developing affordable technologies for communities in need. He made Elara head of the Research and Development department, gave her a full scholarship to finish her studies, and a salary that was more than she could have dreamed of.

Adrian’s mansion is no longer a cold museum. Her workshop became a hub of innovation, filled with young engineers and scientists led by Elara. Grandma Ising and Leo have moved into a comfortable home close to a beautiful hospital.

One morning, a year after all, Adrian stood across his window again, holding a cup of coffee as the sun came up. At her side stood Elara, holding a tablet showing off the new designs. They looked outside, in the same place where he had first seen the girl. The trash can is still there, but no one is cleaning it anymore.

“Who would have thought,” whispered Elara, “that it would all start with garbage.”

Adrian smiled and looked at him, not as an employee, but as a companion, a partner. “You’re wrong,” he said. “It didn’t start with garbage. It started when I saw a treasure hiding in the darkness of the early morning, just waiting for the sun to shine.”

And in the dawn of dawn, the billionaire who lives on the surface of the earth finds his reason to descend and set foot on the ground again.