Within an alleyway, Mercedes was leaning beside a run-down wall while coldly gazing at the bastards that dared to corner her little sister. The anger within her heart was far from quenched. If not for the fact that her little sister was present, the group would have disappeared.
"Daring to bully my little sister. It appears that you mistook her as some weak rabbit that no one would defend." Mercedes lightly chuckled and clenched her fist. She still felt that it wasn't enough. So without any hesitation, she began punching their faces.
"AHhh!!!"
"KAAHHkk!!!"
"Please don-"
"NO! NO! It hurts!"
Bruises emerged on their faces as they became bloodied. Most of them were kneeling on the ground while heavily breathing. Many of them were crying their hearts out while some were frozen in shock.
Mercedes wanted to continue beating them into a pulp. But she stopped herself when she noticed Kiara beside her. She wanted to avoid having her little sister see such a vicious side of herself. But Mercedes couldn't stop herself.
Subdued emotions from the past started leaking out after the scene of the group cornering Kiara. It reminded Mercedes of a past memory that she'd rather forget. Otherwise, she might commit murder to those bastards.
"*Sigh...* You're lucky for now. So let me remind you one thing. If I ever hear or see my sister being bullied by your group. You'll know well the results. And don't think that the authorities would be able to help you."
"They won't be able to protect you from me. I'm sure you know what I can do if I'm angry, correct? I believe that I have no need to remind you about it."
"Is it understood?" Mercedes calmly questioned and the group of bloodied teenagers rapidly nodded while crying. Seeing their agreement, Mercedes glanced at her little sister who was still in a trance.
"Kiara, follow me." Mercedes left the alleyway and called for Kiara to follow her. Kiara got out of her trance after hearing her older sister's voice and immediately followed. But she passed through her bloodied bullies who she thought were unstoppable.
Never did she think that those people who thought that they could do everything in the world had finally met their match. And she never expected it to be her older sister.
As the two of them walked through the sidewalk, Kiara couldn't utter a single word. She was nervous about what her older sister wanted to talk about. But she took a deep breath and gathered some confidence.
Kiara gazes at Mercedes and finally muttered under her breath.
"Mercede-"
Before Kiara could continue, Mercedes hugged her tightly while patting her head. Kiara felt the warm body of her older sister and responded with a hug. The two of them hugged each other for a couple of seconds until Mercedes released her little sister from her grasp.
"When did it get worse, Kiara? And don't lie to me. I don't appreciate liars." Mercedes asked with a soothing voice and warned Kiara to not lie about the details. Kiara, seeing the determination of Mercedes, could only sigh in defeat.
*Sigh...*
"It started a couple of days ago... The bullying had gotten worse after you started studying in the local library. I didn't want to disturb you since it was your path in returning to school, so I didn't bother to report anything about it."
"I know... I know... You'll say that it was foolish of me to do so. It might be, but I don't regret it."
"I appreciate you, Sis. But I don't want your life to be nothing more than pampering me. You can go far beyond and maybe even chase your dreams. You-"
Kiara couldn't continue speaking as Mercedes placed a finger on her lips. Mercedes shook her head and slightly lowered her body to have the same eye level as her little sister. With a smile, Mercedes responded to Kiara.
"Listen... What are we, Kiara? We are family. And who am I to you? I am your older sister. You should understand that it is my responsibility to protect you along with Mom. And I don't regret to have such a responsibility."
"After all, don't family members protect each other from this harsh world?"
"In addition... A dream is something that you can continue chasing even if you fall down. But family is something that you can only lose and you will never get it back. What would achieving a dream be worth if there's no one to celebrate it along with you?"
"Besides, who wouldn't be happy pampering a cute little sister." Mercedes grinned while staring at Kiara whose eyes glistened with luster. Mercedes felt turmoil on Kiara's face and decided to tease her about it. "Hey, hey... Don't cry. When did my little sister become a crybaby?"
"Shut up. I'm not crying!" Kiara pouted and continued walking. She was heading back to their home, wanting to meet her mother. Mercedes, who was behind her, simply smirked and followed from behind.
Though, while walking from behind, Mercedes's eyes glinted with a slight tinge of coldness. She was sure that those kids wouldn't shut up. And even if they did. The injuries on their faces would be easily noticed by their parents.
What should she do? What could she do? Mercedes didn't regret her actions for one bit. She would do it again and again for the sake of her little sister. So with this in mind, an idea already emerged in Mercedes's head.
'It looks like it's time.'
It was something she'd rather not do. But it was the only way for her plan to work without her identity being broken. Nonetheless, it does make one wonder. What kind of plan does Mercedes have in mind?
Well, it was rather simple. Conquer every group of gangs within the district and turn all of them into her loyal dogs? How? Through violence of course. Those thugs talk to each other with fists. Which was coincidently the best talent that Mercedes had.
"I'll have to start this plan in the evening so as to not waste time."
"Haiz, here I thought that I wouldn't have to do such things ever again. I guess it is one of the fastest and most reliable ways to achieve my goals."
"So much for wanting to stay on the side of justice and legality." Mercedes couldn't help but mockingly chuckle. She shook her head and threw such thoughts at the back of her head. For now, her duty was to escort her little sister back home.
Mercedes and Kiara arrived at the front glass door of their Cafe. They noticed the business inside it as waiters went in and out of the kitchen. Kiara could see her Mom managing the Cafe and was somewhat occupied.
Not wanting to disturb her mother, Kiara slowly walked through the Cafe. Mercedes raised an eyebrow after noticing her little sister's actions. It made her grin before placing her pale hand on Kiara's shoulder.
Before Kiara could take a single step, she couldn't move a single inch of her body forward. It was as if something was anchoring her. Kiara saw her older sister's hands patting her shoulder.
Kiara raised an eyebrow and glanced at her older sister only to see her smiling at her. Kiara wryly smiled in response and was dragged away by Mercedes as they walked towards their Mom.
The two arrived in front of their mother who immediately noticed her. Regine squinted her eyes wondering what was wrong between her two daughters. One appeared to be nervous while the other was serious.
"Hey, kid! Take care of the waiters and manage the reception for me." Regine ordered while the waiter beside her nodded in understanding and took the helm. Without uttering a single word, Regine walked towards the kitchen as the two sisters followed her from behind.
As they arrived back at their home, Regine looked back at her two daughters, waiting for an explanation. Mercedes wasn't interested in explaining and decided that it would be better for her little sister to explain the circumstances.
"I'm not telling anything, Kiara. So do what you want with Mom." Mercedes expressed and stepped back. Kiara shivered after hearing the words of Mercedes. She couldn't help but feel that her older sister wouldn't tolerate any lies.
Thus, Kiara sheepishly walked forward. Regine calmly waited as the clock kept ticking. Seconds were passing by and the air was becoming suffocating. Kiara didn't want to drag her Mom into a delicate problem, but she wasn't the one in control anymore.
Her older sister was someone who didn't like liars and bullies. Kiara knew of that, and she also didn't want to hurt her older sister by lying. She had already lied before, so lying more about the circumstances would be problematic.
With this in mind, Kiara took a deep breath and explained everything in a concise manner. Regine's expression changed every ten seconds as a cold glint lustered in her eyes after the conclusion of the explanation.
"Mercedes, did Kiara tell me the truth about you beating those kids up?" Regine calmly questioned. Kiara could feel the atmosphere beginning to tense. Mercedes, seemingly fearless, walked forward and stood between Kiara and her Mom.
"That's correct. I couldn't control myself."
"It was my fault, Mom." Mercedes lightly bowed since she understood that there would be many implications for the things she had done. The parents of those bastards would probably start to become rowdy.
"It seems that you already know what you have done." Regine stepped forward and hugged Mercedes along with Kiara tightly in her arms. "You don't have to regret it. I'll take care of it."
"I'm proud of you, Mercedes."
"For protecting your little sister."