A frail, trembling voice broke the silence.
"Big brother, wake up... I'm hungry."
Kai stirred from his restless slumber. His dreams had been plagued with visions of Kenzo, of the suffering he would unleash upon his family. And when he was awake, the only thing that consumed his mind was how to repay the debt before it was too late. Yet, amidst his turmoil, the soft, tearful voice of his little sister, Lily, was enough to ground him back into reality.
"You should really figure something out," Henry, his younger brother, muttered. "Because if you don't, I might just take things into my own hands—and you won't like how drastic I get."
Kai let out a weary chuckle, ruffling Henry's hair. "For someone so young, you sure have a mouth on you."
Henry pulled away with a scowl. "Whatever."
Rubbing his swollen eyes, Kai sat up from the couch, exhausted beyond words. "What do we have in the fridge?"
Henry and Lily exchanged confused glances. "Uh... what fridge?" Henry replied flatly.
Kai blinked. Reality hit him like a slap to the face. Right. They didn't have a fridge. Or much of anything, really—just a battered couch, a hovering fan, and an old projector set.
"Oh... yeah. No leftovers," Kai muttered bitterly. He sighed. "Alright, what do you guys want to eat? I can only afford enough for you two."
Lily's eyes darkened with worry. "What about you?"
"Don't worry about me. I ate enough yesterday," Kai lied, forcing a reassuring smile.
Henry wasn't fooled. His arms folded, his brows furrowed, and his voice—despite its harsh edge—quivered slightly. "Idiot. No one's asking you to starve yourself."
Kai chuckled at Henry's tough act, but he could see the glimmer of unshed tears in his eyes. "Alright, alright. Let's all wash up. We'll go to Vicky's place."
As Henry and Lily disappeared to get cleaned up, Kai's watch beeped. A message.
**Kenzo:** *Don't you dare come to me for work, and don't even think about skipping town. Because if you do, I have your mother. And I'll finally put her out of her misery—limb by limb.*
Kai clenched his fists, his teeth grinding in barely-contained rage.
"That bastard..." he whispered.
As he was about to turn off his watch, a call came through. Anton.
"Did you get that message from Kenzo?" Anton's voice was tight with fury.
Kai exhaled sharply. "Yeah. This shit is bad."
"I've been up all night looking for a way to get the money," Anton continued. "And guess what? GULAC dropped a massive announcement last night."
Kai felt a pang of guilt. While Anton had been searching for solutions, he had just been drowning in his own hopeless thoughts.
"Hey, don't feel bad," Anton reassured him. "This is our mess, mine and yours. We're in this together."
Kai swallowed hard. "Thanks, man."
Just then, Henry and Lily reappeared, dressed and ready. "I gotta go," Kai said. "Meet us at Vicky's in five."
"See you soon," Anton replied.
---
As they walked through the streets, Kai noticed something... off. The usual noise of the city had dulled. It was quieter. Emptier.
Ignoring the unease creeping up his spine, he pressed forward toward Victoria Lush's restaurant.
Vicky was Anton's cousin and, despite everything, had always been kind to Kai and his siblings. She sold them food at a lower price, but not everyone in her restaurant shared her generosity. The workers, the locals—they saw Kai as nothing more than a street rat. They never failed to remind him of it.
As Kai stepped inside, he braced himself for the usual mockery. But... silence. The customers barely spared him a glance. No insults. No sneers.
Something was definitely wrong.
A familiar voice called out, breaking the tension. "Kai!"
A muscular man with brown hair approached with a grin. "What's up, mein Bruder?"
Kai relaxed slightly. "Tommy. Where's your sister?"
Tommy smirked. "Why? You finally gonna propose?"
Kai rolled his eyes. "Shut up. And what's with the strange atmosphere?"
Before Tommy could answer, another voice chimed in. "It's about the news."
Anton had arrived.
---
They retreated to a back room, away from prying ears. Tommy went to fetch Victoria. As they waited, Kai sipped on a milkshake and turned to Anton. "What's the news?"
Anton leaned forward. "I found a job. But there's a catch—they won't take SSCs like us. Too unpredictable. But... there's a silver lining."
Kai's brows knitted together. "Go on."
"GULAC announced an antidote. A cure for SSC. And it's completely free."
Kai scoffed. "Yeah, I heard that too. But the public isn't buying it. GULAC has a history of deception."
"Exactly," a new voice interjected.
Victoria entered, her long, curly brown hair tied back in a ponytail. "It could be a trap."
Kai smiled. "Vicky, you look stunning as always."
She blushed before pulling him into a tight hug.
"Ugh, stop with the lovey-dovey crap," Anton grumbled.
Tommy snickered. "You keep calling her stunning, but the only thing that's growing on her is her—"
Victoria punched him before he could finish.
Kai laughed. "Alright, alright. Let's get back to the point."
Anton's expression darkened. "Kai and I are in deep shit. And it's worse than before."
He and Kai relayed everything—the debt, Kenzo's threats, the missing money. When they showed them the messages, Victoria's face drained of color.
"I told you two to stop this gang shit after the first incident," she whispered, her voice tight with emotion.
"Selling the restaurant might help," Tommy suggested. "At least it'll pay off part of the debt."
Kai shook his head. "No. I won't drag you into this."
"Too late," Tommy said flatly. "We're involved whether you like it or not."
"I have a plan," Anton interjected. "Beast hunting. We hunt high-grade creatures, harvest their crystals, and sell them for profit."
Victoria shot up from her seat, furious. "Are you insane?! That's suicide!"
"It's the best option we have," Kai said. "We take the antidote, cure our SSC, and then we fight."
Victoria's hands trembled. "What if it's a lie? What if it's a setup?"
Kai exhaled. "Then we die trying. But I refuse to let Kenzo destroy our lives."
Tommy looked between them, then sighed. "Be careful. Don't die on us."
Kai turned to Victoria, his voice softer. "I'm doing this so I have something to come back to. I want you safe. I want us to be happy."
Tears welled in her eyes.
Anton patted Kai's shoulder. "Come on, lover boy. We've got a cure to get."
As they stepped into the dark streets, they knew there was no turning back.
This was their only chance. Their silver lining.
TO BE CONTINUED...