*kaching*

[Unknown female voice] “Thank you for your patronage, please recommend us if you enjoyed your service! Ah, what’s that? You’re ready to pay? Yes, sorry, coming right away!”

Ah, these people came right when I was going to close down the shop. Goodness, did I miss something? Why are there so many customers coming in now?

The scene was hectic for the young woman who ran about the quaint coffee shop as if possessed.

The cold morning dew hung lazily on the window sill, the sunny morning sky cutting through the droplets hanging on the glass casting beams of light into the store.

The store had a peaceful atmosphere; a few fragments of conversation played about the air as the gentle steam of fresh coffee slowly entwined with the smell of various confectioneries. Compared to the dim and grungy concrete jungle which took up much of the scenery outside, this place was nothing short of a paradise.

In the shop, an unremarkable girl, with short brown hair and perky green eyes, worked tirelessly. Only occasionally looking up from her busy preparation of coffee drinks to check the state of the customers in front of her, making sure no one was left unattended.

{But why does she work so tirelessly, and why is she such a pretty and capable person to run such a shop so skillfully? I’m sure these are all things these lovely customers are asking themselves as they look at the wondrous me. Ah crap, there are drinks needed on table one. Ok, ok, then I can run these drinks to table five and check on those loiters at table four.}

And so the morning dragged on like this for a bit of time, a day like any other for the girl, one that was busy, stressful, and yet, if she was asked, she would be hard-pressed to say she didn’t enjoy it. This shop had been in their family for longer than she could ever remember or know for that matter. As for why she was the one person manning such a busy place, that was a hard story, one she was never in the mood to tell, though it was a frequent topic of discussion between the customers.

The shop was started by her grandfather when he first came Albion as an immigrant from Dahlia, and was later passed to her father, once her grandfather started to see success as a craftsman for wardens. Unfortunately, her father never had the passion to run the shop. That was given to many other things. He was a man who would start something only to lose interest when it began to challenge him, moving on to something else. He was, at heart, a drifter, the type of man to wander place by place, caring and knowing nothing about where he ends up. Yet somehow, he always came out alright. He was charismatic to a fault, a man who would never leave a place without friends and who, despite being nothing but a deadbeat, thrived in life. And yet, he agreed to settle down and take care of the shop. Why? Simple. He had found a woman, or rather, he found love.

With a wife and pressure from her grandfather, he eventually founded a little family, and maybe things could have turned out well if it had stayed at that. Though this world is nothing if not unforgiving. He could not be restrained to such an uneventful life, staying around only long enough to half raise his son and seed a daughter. He took nothing with him, leaving everything he had saved up to his family, probably in some vain attempt to soothe his conscience, but it’s hard to say that made things any better. His wife, a frail woman, couldn’t handle the rejection and went half mad, leaving afterward to go after him herself, leaving her almost newly born daughter and her son to their grandfather.

Letting out a sigh, the girl looked up from the counter, cutting her daydreaming off. She couldn’t help but feel a little regretful about the past, but shaking her head, she shook off all such thoughts, devoting herself back to her work.

Suddenly, the serene atmosphere was interrupted by the ringing of the bell on the door, signaling the arrival of a new customer. The bell itself can't be said to be what interrupted the calm; rather, it was the rather dingy man who entered following it. With his disheveled brown hair falling over his furrowed brow, in his eyes was the disgruntled countenance which marks a man as disagreeable to his fellows. His clothes took the form of soaked tattered armor, not so much bearing the marks of battle as disrepair. On his back, he held a fine-looking bow, seeming to be the only decent thing about him.

Stalking up to the counter, he approached the girl with a consoling look on his face before glancing at her eyes, conveying an unknowable communication between the two. This scene didn’t seem to greatly confuse the older-looking customers, but it did provide some point of interest for the new customers, leading to an odd state where half the customers were locked with curious eyes on the disheveled man and the cute girl to which he seemed to have some great connection to, while the other half continued to converse, paying little to no head to the two.

The girl looked at the man seeming unimpressed at his visit, in her slightly crumpled expression was contrary emotion, there was a hint of happiness at seeing the man again, but this was mostly over shadowed by a general since of disappoint on her face.

[Unknown dingy man]: “Mariam, really, that’s the face you’re going to show me after I get back?

{But really, I suppose the question weighed heavy on everyone's mind who hadn’t seen this scene before. Who is this man who acts so harshly to such a frail girl who’s working so far? This man is my brother, and yeah, this isn’t anything strange to me, so I guess I should respond, huh? Though maybe I can just show him out of the sh... huh, what? I was thinking something bad? No idea what you mean.}

[Mariam] “Shush shush, stop making a scene in front of all the customers. Look how much you’re disturbing that ol... that spry couple over there. They’re, well, okay, they seem to be enjoying their food, but they’re probably just being polite, okay! Anyway, just come to the back with me. I don’t want the store’s mascot to be some dingy guy!”

Walking into the back of the shop, the girl and the man, while in silence, held their own conversation through actions. The man stopped, trying to speak several times, only to be shushed with a motion by the girl until they made it to the back of the shop. In this place was a simple living place, a small TV on the wall playing what must be an endless series of ads, only really serving to complement the utter mundaneness of the room.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

On the wall was a single poster of a band that wasn’t popular enough to be widely known, nor unique enough to be considered niche. There was an old game console stuffed into a drawer, gathering dust, purchased with the intent of use but clearly never had it enjoyed such an opportunity. The bed was made cleanly, and overall, the entire place gave an almost obnoxiously simple feel, the type of room that invokes both respect and pity for the one who lives in it.

Stepping into her room, the girl turned to the man, tossing him a basket to put his sodden armor into as she let out a breath, waiting with a strained expression her eye twitching slightly with annoyance as she waited for his response.

{This guy! I forgot he was all dirty from the rain. I should have told him to take off his armor back there, but I was all caught up with acting cool in front of the customers. I didn’t even notice. Wait, no, I should probably be paying attention to my brother here. He actually looks in pretty rough shape this time. Geez, why does he always show up like this? I swear I’ve said how I feel about his job before. Guhh, I’m not going to let it slide this time, I’m not going to let this go till he promises me he’s going to quit, so not matter what he asks for he’s not going to get it, I’ve given him enough already!}

Seeing that the girl seemed to be distracted by some idle thoughts, the man attempted to get her attention a few times, finally raising his voice with a tinge of annoyance at her seemingly complete lack of care for his situation.

[Unknown Brother]: “Mariam… MAIRAM? Did you hear a single thing I just said?!”

The girl snapped out of her thoughts, smiling back at her brother, putting a finger to her lip with a playful expression before saying back with a teasing voice.

[Mariam]: “Uh-huh, let me see. Something about how my brother, the oh great Dylan, failed another mission with your office, then you got kicked out. Wait, no, fined. Wait, uhh, let me guess... I mean, recount more accurately. You got your armor damaged, and they won’t pay for it, so now you need to borrow money from the shop again to pay for your repairs. But you totally swear you have another mission lined up, one that’s just around the corner that’ll pay me back, right?”

Her brother stood shocked for a moment, half in her blatant change of attitude, and half because he felt embarrassed that she had so accurately recounted what he had said while having clearly not paid attention to a single word of it. His face flushed red for a moment, it was clear he wasn’t sure if he should lash out in anger or apologize for the annoyance he had caused and just walk away.

[Dylan]: “Mariam... you don’t need to be so harsh. This time I’m serious. I’ll make it out of D tier in the international ranking assessment that’s being held soon, and with that, I’ll have a clear shot for making it as a grade two, no, three warden. I’ll even be able to make it as a senior member in the office. But I need more low-grade mana stones to keep this bow powered, but those guys at the office won’t issue me any unless I participate in rift clears. And do you really think I can do that with my armor in this state? Do you want me to go out there and die, Mariam, or are you going to just lend me a little more money? Do you honestly think I won’t repay you?”

Her face took a sour look at his intentions. This conversation wasn’t a new one to her; he always came back tattered like this with an empty promise and pleas. He always made excuses about how this time things would change, about how he just needed one more shot, and she knew despite this, things would play out the same way they always do.

[Mairam]: “Really Dylan? Do you actually understand how many times I’ve heard you say stuff like this? You always come back here and beg me for more money, more time, another chance to pay me back. I haven’t gotten a single cent back from you! NOT ONE! Do you think I believe you even for a second? No, don’t give me that face. This isn’t the first time you’ve heard these words, and I know I’m not the only one to tell them to you. How many of your friends did you kick out of your life since they wouldn’t agree to coddle you like some sort of baby?!”

[Dylan]: “Mairam! I’m serious, don’t be like this. I thought maybe we could talk without you getting upset over stuff like this. I’m sorry for asking for money so much. I get it, but this is the last time, I promise. And if I can’t pay you back, I’ll make it right somehow, you know?”

[Mairam]: “You don’t even understand! You don’t even care. You never could care! It’s not about the money, Dylan; it’s never been about that. I don’t care how much of that you want. I’d be more than happy to give it. I don’t care if I ever get it back. I’m worried about you, Dylan! You keep going out there for what? Why do you keep entering the rifts, for those office ‘Comrades’ as you like to call them, who’d leave you for dead in a heartbeat, or for some ill-conceived notion of glory? You aren’t going to be like that. You are going to be some great Warden like the Bulwark Boloklsy or the Raging Phoenix Selene. No, you’re Dylan, that’s it. The middling D-tier warden who’s not even officially part of an office yet. You don’t earn any money, any fame, anything, and yet you keep almost killing yourself for it! Do you think I could be happy about this? Did you think you’re the only one struggling here!”

It was hard to tell if the girl was about to break out in tears or punch her brother, who stood almost passively in front of her. If she was more perceptible, it’d be clear that in his eyes swam pangs of regret, which only multiplied at each of her passion-filled words. But whether it be the foolish pride of his type or some other chain of the mind, he was compelled to show no obvious emotion to her cries; only the slight twitching of his face showed any reaction. Patiently waiting for her to tire herself with scolding, he looked at her, his face unmoving, before he retorted in a quiet voice.

[Dylan]: “Mairam, is that really what you think about me? Do you think I’m just doing everything for nothing more than something like fame or glory? I want to protect you! I want to be there for you, Mairam. I wasn’t able to do anything once our father left. I wasn’t able to do anything when our mother did the same. I left everything to our grandfather, but I’m going to change that. I’m going to get stronger. I’m going to become someone who can protect you. I’m going to be the big brother I never was, so please, don’t look at me like that. Don’t take pity on me like that. I already feel bad enough relying on you like this. Do you have to torture me with that look?”

The girl looked a little annoyed by his overdramatic speech, and yet to a certain extent, it still seemed like he had moved her a little. After some thought, she spoke, this time much softer.

{This brother of mine, really, it’s a nice speech, but saying all that stuff while still asking for money is a little... well, when he looks at me with that serious face, I know he doesn’t plan to stop what’s he doing, and if he does go out without fixing his gear the chance that he’ll be hurt is. . . ah fine. I was going to save up a bit to buy something for our grandfather, but business is doing well recently, so it should be fine to help him out a bit one last time. Plus, I need to get back to serving the customers. We’ve been back here for too long. I’m sure there are people who need attending to.}

[Mairam] “Brother, I’m going to make this clear; this is the last time, okay! I’m only giving this to you if you both agree that if you fail this time, you’ll come back and help me at the shop, and that you promise to do only the safe raids. Even if those jerks at your office try to push you into doing something else, okay! Oh, and this was supposed to be for a present for grandfather, so next time you see him for maintenance on your bow, make sure you tell him why he won’t be getting a present from his favorite granddaughter. I’m sure he’ll understand.”

The man looked at the girl who idly pointed to the small box beside the bed. Though it was amusing, he knew that’s where she kept most of her money. Though it might be better to keep it in a bank, their family couldn’t afford the rit insurance cost which came with that, so they like most people had to keep what little capital they had to spare in places like this. Clenching his fist, he wanted to yell out about how he was going to change things, but seeing as he was taking another charitable loan from his overworked sister, he wasn’t stupid enough to say such a thing.

He didn’t say anything more, silently taking the money out of the box. It would only be enough to buy a few low-grade magic stones, but it’d have to do. It’s not like she could give him any more, though half of his mind did want to ask if she had more to give. He had a feeling he had already reached the limit of what could be asked. Ignoring the disapproving stares of the customers as he walked back out of the store, he silently walked off into the desolate city, the rain making a fine companion for his own emotions.

Watching him leave, Mairam wanted to say something. She wanted to say a lot of things, for him to be more careful, for him to just quit, but she knew she couldn’t. She knew her brother had to do this, had to keep going on like this. Ever since their father left, he had always feared being like someone who wasn’t able to protect her. This thought, she had to wonder if it was one their father ever had, and as she saw his drooping shoulders disappear back into the lobby of the shop, she thought he might be closer to their father than he wants to admit. He’ll never be able to settle down, and she knew it, so despite how frustrated it made her, she swallowed what she wanted to say, forcing a smile back on her face as she walked back out into the lobby.