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"Your total will be $9, sir."
The man handed over a $10 bill, which I took, and gave him $1 in change.
~Oh, how tedious this is.
Well, I just need to push through one more month at this job, and then I'll have saved enough money to buy the new computer.
My name is Ethan Riddle, an 18-year-old in the final year of high school. I'm an orphan; my parents died in a car accident when I was 15, leaving me with a younger sister, two years my junior, to take care of. I currently work part-time at a store to save up for a computer I need for my studies, as my old one was destroyed by my foolish sister.
"If only I hadn't given her the computer, it wouldn't have fallen and broken. Stupid Olivia," I said with clear regret on my face.
I pulled out my phone from my pocket and opened my novel to continue reading. In these stressful times, dealing with the pressures of work and planning for life after high school, reading novels is the only thing that brings me comfort.
Just before my break started, a high-pitched female scream filled with panic and fear echoed.
"Ahhhhhhh!" she screamed.
I turned toward the source of the scream to find three men with aggressive demeanors, their faces scarred as if they were ex-convicts or gang members. I froze in place, trying to process the situation, unsure of what to do.
"Shut up, you b****! Your barking is annoying," one of the trio said.
"Please, let me go! Don't hurt me!" the girl pleaded, her voice trembling with fear and anxiety.
"Hehehe," the man laughed sinisterly. "Don't worry, I won't hurt you. After all, the boss ordered me to bring you to discuss the debt you've been late in paying."
"Please, I don't have any money," she said, her face turning pale.
The man smirked maliciously and said, "Don't worry about the money. Your body holds enough value to settle the debt if sold on the black market. And before that happens, we'll make sure to have some fun with you first." The trio laughed wickedly, their faces filled with leering smiles.
The girl collapsed to the ground, her body turning pale as her legs gave out from the horror of what she had just heard. Tears streamed down her face silently, accompanied only by the increasingly loud laughter of the men.
Ethan watched the scene with a grim expression, his anger growing with each laugh from the trio. He couldn't bear to hear the girl's fate without doing something. Then he saw one of the men step forward and grab the girl by her arm. She resisted desperately, but the man raised his hand and slapped her across the face, silencing her resistance with the pain, leaving her to face her grim fate.
But suddenly, "Hey, you! Stop right there! What do you think you're doing?" Ethan shouted in a loud, angry voice.
The trio turned to face him, seeing a tall young man with broad shoulders standing defiantly before them. They exchanged glances and smirked disdainfully. One of them said, "Hey, brave boy, don't meddle in what doesn't concern you, or you might not like what happens next."
Despite Ethan's impulsive behavior, it wasn't entirely reckless. Ethan wasn't naturally courageous; he had earned his bravery through strength and skill.
He was a martial arts prodigy, having trained since childhood in various disciplines, from basic techniques to mastering some of the most powerful and renowned styles like Karate, Kung Fu, Muay Thai, and more, which had honed his strength and expertise.
Ethan looked at the speaker and said, "Don't talk about things you can't handle." Without waiting for a response, he kicked the man squarely in the face, knocking him to the ground.
The other two men frowned and created distance between themselves and Ethan, raising their fists, ready to fight. Ethan glanced at one of the men, then sprinted toward him, jumping and planting his feet on the man's chest. In one swift motion, he flipped his body and slammed the man to the ground, then began punching him repeatedly in the face until he felt an attack from behind. Ethan quickly twisted his body to dodge the sudden assault, leaving the man unconscious and bleeding from his nose and mouth.
He then turned to the remaining two men, who now brandished knives. One stood upright, while the other staggered from the earlier kick to his face. They attacked Ethan simultaneously, and though his only weapons were his fists, he dodged their strikes with difficulty, sustaining several cuts that bled profusely. The fight seemed hopeless once they drew their knives. Despite Ethan's skill, the men were adept with their blades, showing strong coordination.
Ethan calmed himself and looked around, spotting a large shelf near the wall. An idea struck him.
He cunningly lured the men toward the shelf until they were close enough. Then, he suddenly jumped and climbed onto it, standing atop the shelf.
The two men looked up at him and laughed mockingly. One of them said, "Come down, little kitten."
Ethan smirked and looked down at them, giving them a sly smile. The men shivered, sensing something was wrong. Ethan lay flat on top of the shelf, gripping its edge, and pushed off the wall with his legs, causing the large shelf to wobble and crash down on the men, who tried to flee but failed.
Ethan also fell from the shelf, injuring his shoulder and foot. He stood up, dazed from the fall, his body aching and covered in knife wounds.
He looked at the two men buried under the pile of materials and the large shelf. Just as he was about to celebrate his victory, he felt a sharp pain in his lower back, followed by intense agony. He collapsed to the ground, bleeding heavily, and felt numbness spreading through his body. He reached for the source of the pain and pulled out a knife, then rolled onto his back to see the man he thought he had knocked out earlier.
Ethan glared at him with hatred and anger. Then, in that moment, something strange happened... He felt a surge of energy in his mind, accompanied by intense numbness. He closed his eyes and opened them again. Time seemed to freeze. He felt a power he had never dreamed of possessing. Instinctively, he grabbed the knife and threw it with all his strength into the man's chest. Then, he lost consciousness...