“Then I'll head to my room now.”

“Yeah… Good night…”

Daniel excused himself as the second person to leave the dinner table after his father. Leaving his mother alone, still wiping her cheeks which were wet with tears from the previous conversation she had with the boy. And what remained was the whole house that became very quiet, forcing Daniel to try as well not to make any sound as he walked up each step of the stairs.

Even until he arrived in front of the bedroom door, there was no disturbance but the soft sound of it being gently opened and closed by the boy who then leaned against it, inside his tiny yet personal dark space with strangely only a few things around. Just his bed, a table with a chair, and a small wardrobe which probably doesn't even contain much of his clothes either.

Where Daniel buried his face inside both of his palms, feeling disappointed with oneself for the warmth he had just earned from the woman downstairs… As he felt negative and wrong because everything took place after the loss of his one and only sibling, assuming that was what caused it and nothing else.

“I hate it.” The boy spoke to himself, “I fucking hate it so much…”

[“This emotion’s just simply too strange and disturbing. Felt as if I was being given hope and rightly so, I was disgusted by every little bit of it!”]

[“Seriously… Why would life give me expectations only after I lost my sole reason to live? Just fucking why?! If you can hear me, then I just want to let you know, God… That if You force suffering on me just to give me hope, then I don't need hope!”

[“I hate it… I hate hope as much as I hate myself!”]

[“I hate it…”]

The boy then fell asleep with grief…

~~~~~

“What else do you people want from us!? I already told you, that's everything we have!”

A middle-aged man yelled from downstairs, jolting Daniel awake from his nightmare-filled slumber but he still hasn't moved, not even an inch in response. As he was sure that what he needed at the very moment was to hear more carefully to all the voices coming from the outside of his bedroom door; to the sound of rustling furniture, tin crates being forced open and glass breaking at the end.

Because as strange as it could be, it was exactly two in the morning… As Daniel found out through the smartphone screen in his right hand, while the other one was still trying its best to open the bedroom door without making even the slightest sound to be heard by anyone. Only for him to remain low, slinking down the stairs and through the kitchen… Until he reached the door frame connecting the dining and the living room, his head then tilted slightly, peering at two strangers standing in front of the door leading to Daniel's parents' room.

Dressed in their oddly matching shabby clothes; what looked like a pair of denim jackets that had many tears and threads hanging from it, black and dark green joggers respectively and both of their faces were also covered with ski masks…. Yet from their voices it was clear that they were relatively young and somehow felt a little familiar only to Daniel's ears.

“Big bro… I think that's enough already, isn't it?”

One of them sounded excessively nervous just to ask, that even his tone was a little shaky at the end. But still he begged the other to cease the search, resulting in the answer he got, coming with such dissatisfaction as the guy then yelled to him, “Alright, fine! Though we can get rich by also doing this, but whatever…”

Coupled with a sigh, the same guy who had just spoken, took out a sword that was initially invisible from around his back. Leading the rest, the cowardly one who appeared to be his own younger brother to also step into the room after him… Where in it, Daniel's father and mother had gone to great lengths just to tear down the contents of every single cupboard, in search of even the smallest remaining precious thing that might be used to pay for their own lives, yet it was all in vain…

For the commotion which at first wasn't even audible, now slowly began to become increasingly distinct and frightening, coming from all places around the housing complex. And as if that wasn't even enough, suddenly the power went out. Leaving only the red light of something burning outside of the window to illuminate the whole room, where both robbers exchanged glances… Acting like they were the only parties who knew what it was a sign of, as one of the robbers then said to the other, “It seemed like they had started the show before us, lil bro… Means we also have to settle matters here, so get your sword ready now.”

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The man's words suddenly triggered something inside Daniel. As his eyes widened, he ran frantically towards the kitchen. Reaching for a place where an old machete was kept by his parents and only then he went back, battling with the sound of his own mother's screams before ‘it's all too late for him to change the outcome.’

Even though the boy didn't actually want to think about the meaning of the sentence he had just used for the very matter, regarding when will that ‘something’ be considered too late and what will happen if he surpasses the time restriction he just set for himself.

~~~~~

Whatever the answer to that question is, but the only first thing the boy felt at the exact moment, was simply that he was extremely fortunate; since he wasn't wearing anything on his feet so the sound of the stomping could be overshadowed by the loud voices of the others. But after seeing the man's blue magical sword raised high and he was still far away from everyone, Daniel decided to yell as loudly as possible to divert the attention of the two, whose backs were facing him only.

And surprisingly, it worked…

The two robbers turned around, startled by the boy's loud warning voice that was meant for them to respond to.

Yet unfortunately, the critical decision that Daniel took, has cost him the surprise attack that he should have been able to carry out when everyone was unaware of his existence. Leaving not only one, but the two robbers were now more than prepared to face whatever Daniel had in his own hands, until it finally really happened… Just when the old machete and magical sword swung together towards the same point, came the result being in line with everyone's predictions.

The rusty machete flew out of Daniel's hand and the boy's bones even buzzed from the impact, making him slightly off balance.

“Bah! Old man, you said earlier that there are only two of you in this house, right?!”

The robber who had just successfully repelled Daniel's attack, yelled yet grinned as if amazed while the boy actually tripped over his own feet for moving several steps back from the same attack he himself had initiated.

“But wait… His face looked familiar. Wasn’t you there when…”

“Oh, I thought so! Wasn't he the kid from the internet café back then, big bro?!”

The two guys exchanged looks, shocked to find themselves on the same page on such matters. Giving the father a chance not to plead but to fight from the darkness, as he swung an old-fashioned wooden chair so hard that it shattered on impact, right at the head of the robber who looked the most mature of the others until blood even dripped from his head.

“Big bro!!!”

One guy screamed in surprise… He worriedly held his partner who was kneeling in pain, yet still able to maintain his own consciousness while at the same time, Daniel's father pulled his wife’s arm to leave their cornered position at the end of the room.

Just then he grabbed the machete lying on the floor and moved towards his son near the entrance. “Get up, boy!” The father whispered.

But on the other hand, the robber who was still in agony, was instead irritated far more by his younger brother's determination to care about his own situation, so he pushed the man away while preparing his sword ready for throwing. Admitting that his body wouldn't be able to move just for a moment, yet the sword that he threw with his dizzy head actually managed to hit the father's back. Though it wasn't pierced, the sharp part of the blade did slap the man’s flesh severely, notably on his shoulder before the magical sword then fell to the ground… Causing the middle-aged man to groan in pain, followed by a panicked scream from his wife when she found out that the slash wound was quite large and appeared on her own man's back.

“Now why the fuck are you still here with me, you useless shit?! Go kill them!”

The robber with blood still pouring from around his head, shouted in anger to his only guy who again was truly just showing nothing but concern, to the point of even kicking him while he was still trying to approach, though he had told him earlier to stay away.

Nonetheless, the man’s last outburst appeared to finally make his younger brother grimace in fright and choose to actually comply with the order he just gave… While back on the other side, Daniel gazed at the bloodstained magical sword lying on the floor, till then he saw from behind his father’s body, one of the robbers ran towards them with another similar blue sword as if it was ready to slash.

So he finally decided to make a decision.

~~~~~

Daniel grasped his father's shoulder. Intending to swap positions with the man, he then took up the robber’s blue semi-transparent blade from the floor and raised it up high; only for him to be surprised at the weight of the sword despite its appearance which seemed to be made out of nothing but a single thin piece of glass... Yet with all the odds, Daniel prepared his stance.

And funny enough, for the second time in a row he was just as surprised as before. All because he was met by the robber who was instead silent in fear, realizing that his prey would not give up his life without any fight. Especially since Daniel was using his own big brother's sword against him in this one duel… Provoking even more anger and disappointment from the other robber behind, as he then complained to himself, "What a fucking pussy you are!"

In addition to him shouting the discouragement to his own partner in crime, he also stretched his hand forward as if the guy was telepathically ordering for his sword in Daniel's hand to fade away the form itself. And that is probably the reason why the thing in Daniel's hands was slowly but surely dematerializing, disappeared into thin air and then returned to the injured robber's back.

"There! He’s unarmed! Now do it!"

He shouted again for the second time, as he realized that his little brother was in a perfect situation where he could just easily launch an open attack on Daniel, yet the man closed his eyes when he swung the sword forward… So it was no wonder, of how easily the boy's father drew Daniel back by the collar as the strike nearly hit his own son who was frozen stiff.

And the three of them then tried their best to escape from the pursuit of one person behind… But as if misfortune could pile up on only one and the same occasion, the family were instead met by even more robbers who had just walked through the front door, dressed in the same attire as the previous two… Becoming the reason why based solely on the man's instinct that kicked in, he then led his wife and son to turn around towards the kitchen instead. Intending to escape from the back door, but first he had to swing his machete aimlessly around, only to terrify the cowardly young robber behind the three, until the guy actually tripped over something and fell… Giving them a great opportunity to step over him, and run in the dark towards the back door.

Where they again discovered yet another, if not a bigger problem than what is chasing them already.

~~~~~