It was 7:00 PM, and I was helping my mom prepare dinner because I told her that I had invited the whole family of my friend Jake over, so she had to cook more.
Well, she didn't just accept the fact that I had invited Jake's family over without telling her.
I mean, I am from a middle-class family, and I am not rich.
So, asking for such a big favor was a little...
...but, I managed to convince her, and she agreed.
My mother is not a bad person, and she is the nicest person in the world.
And, she would always help anyone in need.
Especially when she knows that they don't have enough money to feed their kids.
There was once a time when she even helped a woman to get her son into a school by paying the fees for him.
And, she didn't want any repayment for it.
And now that child is in another city, always coming first in every subject, and is going to become a successful man.
I think his name was Shen or something. I don't quite remember.
He had just transferred to a better school in another city... Maybe two or three days ago.
Anyway, that's not important.
What important is that my mother was happy for him.
She would always say, "If you have the ability to help, then why not use it? There is no need for a reward or repayment. Just do it because you want to, and you have the ability."
'What a beautiful heart,' I thought.
My mom is a kind soul.
She has a pure heart and a caring nature.
She is an angel.
Well, she has her faults too.
She is sometimes too nosy, and she loves gossip.
But, hey. Everyone has their own faults.
No one is perfect.
I was just happy that she accepted my request.
Because, we have to eat before we can think about other things.
Right?
"Rael, could you please come over here?" My mother asked, interrupting me from my thoughts.
I walked towards her.
"Yes, what is it?" I asked, wiping the sweat off my forehead with a towel.
"Could you please give me the tomatoes?" She said, her hands pointing at the vegetables she was using.
"Here," I said and passed her the tomatoes.
"Ok, go and help Lily and Yoonhe." She replied, smiling.
Beside me, my younger sister Lily and Yoonhe were also preparing the food.
"Ok."
And, I started walking towards them.
But, I suddenly felt a pair of eyes following me.
"What?"
I turned around and looked at my mom.
"Ah, nothing. Don't mind me." She smiled.
'I wonder what she was looking at.'
'Her face has a mischievous look on it.'
I shook my head and kept walking.
I reached the place where my sister and Yoonhe were, and stopped.
"What are you guys doing?" I asked.
"We are cutting the carrots," Lily said, pointing her knife at the chopped pieces of carrot.
"And, I am preparing the meat." Yoonhe smiled, looking at me.
"Oh, nice." I looked at the meat on the cutting board, and licked my lips.
'Looks delicious.'
Click!
Suddenly, the door of our house was opened.
I leaned in forward and looked at the person coming in.
It was my elder sister Emily who had been staying at house for three days instead of staying in her apartment which was closer to the company where she worked.
'She is back? Now only my father and Jake's family are left.'
'Now that I look at Emily that scene I had seen in her room is coming back to my mind.'
'Hmmm.'
Well...
Fuck...
I shouldn't think like that about her...
She is my sister after all.
But, the scene kept coming back to my mind.
That stains and white things attached to the fabric.
It was all pointing toward one thing and that was...
'Ughh, I am going crazy.'
I sighed, shaking my head.
Emily saw us, and stopped.
She tilted her head a little, and blinked, her mouth hanging open.
"Who is she?"
She pointed at Yoonhe and asked, her gaze fixed on her.
"This is Yoonhe, she is my friend." I introduced her to Yoonhe to my sister Emily.
"Hi," Yoonhe said and waved her hand, a smile on her face.
"Hey," Emily replied, her eyes fixed on her.
'Hmm, they are just exchanging greetings but why does it seem so tense?'
'It's not a fight between a couple, is it?'
"What are you guys doing?" Emily asked, and looked at the dishes being prepared.
"We are cooking the food for dinner," Lily answered her, smiling.
"For dinner? Did we invite someone?" Emily looked at me, her eyes narrowing.
"Ah, yeah," I replied.
"When? And, who?"
"Today, and it's Jake's family."
"Jake's family? Your friend? From the same school?"
"Yes, that's him."
"Hmm, ok."
Emily nodded, and walked into her room.
'Hmm, her behavior is a little odd. She has been a little bit on the edge since yesterday.'
'Is she stressed or something?'
'Maybe she had a bad day at work.'
Well, whatever. Is it already past 7? Why hasn't Jake's family arrived yet?
Maybe they are stuck in the traffic?
....
8:29 PM...
All of us...
My father, my mother, and my both sisters...
Jake's Family...
And Yoonhe, including me, were sitting at the dinner table.
There were eight plates on the table, and each one was filled with a variety of dishes, ranging from soup to salad.
Each plate also had a different dish on it.
On the center of the table was a bowl full of rice, and another bowl full of stew.
"Itadakimasu!"
And, we began to eat.
As we were eating, I looked around, and realized that the mood was a little tense.
The atmosphere was a bit weird, and it was as if everyone had something to say, but they couldn't.
No one spoke, and the only sounds that could be heard were the chewing sounds.
'Is this because of the people from Jake's family?'
'Are they shy or something?'
'Should I say something?'
But, no matter how hard I tried to think, I couldn't come up with anything.
And, the silence continued.
It was as if time had frozen.
And, everyone was stuck in their own little world.
Then, Jake's older sister suddenly opened her mouth, and asked.
"Do you guys have a bathroom?"
"Huh?"
We looked at her, and she repeated her question.
"Do you guys have a bathroom? Like a toilet."
"Oh, yes, we do. It's on the left side of the corridor."
"Thank you," She replied, and got up from her seat, her face pale.
'Did she not feel well?'
I looked at my phone and saw that the time was already 8:45...
'Just a bit more and....'
'They will be here any time soon...'
Suddenly I started to chuckle, and all the people present in the dining room looked at me.
I stopped chuckling and said.
"Sorry."
And, then we went back to eating.
After eating my fill...
I put my spoon down, and got up.
"Where are you going, Rael?" My mother asked.
"Nowhere." I turned around and looked at the cardboard box of weapons, and the stick beside it.
I moved forward and took hold of the baseball bat and picked it up from the box.
"What are you doing, Rael?" My father asked, his voice stern.
"Don't worry Dad, I am just going to the gate for a while."
"To the gate? Are you sure? But, why the bat?"
"Dad, don't worry." I smiled, and waved my hands.
"Ok." He sighed and turned his attention back to the food.
I walked toward the door and went outside of my house.
It was a cloudy night.
I looked at the sky and noticed that there were no stars in the sky.
'Hmm, that's a pity.'
I thought, as I stood there and admired the beauty of the sky.
'Now, show yourself, you fucking asshole!'
I gripped the baseball bat in my hand tightly, and looked around.
'Where are you?'
Just then suddenly, a black hole appeared right at the other side of the gate of my house.
It had blue electricity sparking around its edges.
I immediately tensed up.
'Here he comes!'
I smiled.
"Finally, you showed up, asshole!" I yelled.
But that was not the only black hole that had appeared.
Right after that, many black holes had appeared. The sky, the ground, and everywhere had black holes.
As I stood there with the baseball bat in my hand, the black holes continued to multiply, each one revealing a different kind of monstrous creature.
From the first hole in the sky, goblins began to descend, flying out with leathery wings.
Their eyes glowed with malevolence, and they brandished crude weapons as they circled in the air.
From the holes in the ground, more terrifying and grotesque beings emerged. Enormous, tentacled horrors slithered out, oozing with slime and emitting eerie, guttural sounds.
These creatures were unlike anything I had ever seen, and their appearance sent a shiver down my spine.
Amidst the chaos, a screen appeared in front of me.
— Divine Apocalypse has begun.
— Your class has been assigned.
— Your current level is Lv. 1.
— The first mission has been unlocked.
— Mission 1: Survive the night.
— Rewards:
— 1000 Experience points.
— 1000 Skill points.
— 100 Random Points
— 10 Rare weapons.
Wait!
"What the hell!"