In a small apartment in Tokyo, Japan.
Click
Click
Click
A young man, average looks, black hair and brown eyes, was typing away at his computer in a comfortable chair.
His room was not messy but was not so clean either. A few energy drinks and clothing were scattered around in his room.
Click
Click
Click
His fingers moved efficiently along his keyboard for a few more minutes until finally pausing after pressing down the final key.
Yawn
He stretched his arms over his back. "Finally, 600 chapters completed."
The man's name was Ryo, a 19-year-old 7/11 worker from 9-5 and an author in his free time.
He used to be quite a happy guy until his parents kicked him out the moment he turned 18.
The reason?
Dad: "When I was your age, my father did the same. You have to learn to mature on your own, son... it is quite expensive to fund your college as well."
Mother: "Yes, it's for your own good, Ryo; you can visit on the holidays, come back as a man... but don't have children unless you know you can afford it."
On the surface, it seemed they were doing it for his own good, but Ryo knew the truth. A few years back, his mom called him an accident in a small argument.
She did apologize, but Ryo could tell there was some truth to her words. His parents were poor, they could not afford an abortion, and they could not give him away to an orphanage either because it would harm their reputation.
Ryo shook his head, trying to push the negative thoughts from his head, but they stuck even more.
It wasn't until he heard a DING that his attention diverted back to his computer.
'Comments already? Let's see what they have to say today.'
Most of Ryo's fans were supportive, but a few read his novel and also made hate comments at the same time, which he didn't get—just don't read, nobody's stopping you.
'Good as always, author-sama. Can't wait to see what happens next.'
Ryo smiled at the supportive words, but his smile turned upside down as he scrolled to the next comment.
'UGH, this shit will never be good. The MC is always trying to save everyone, 80% of the time he fails. 1-star rating, avoid at all costs 🤮'
Ryo's eyes narrowed slightly. Normally he would ignore every comment like this, but this fucker has been reading for 600 chapters, not failing to complain at every turn.
Ryo sighed before replying back, his fingers pressing down on each key slightly harder than usual.
'If you don't like my novel, others do. Instead of hating for 600 chapters, read something you like instead of wasting your time. Good luck.'
Ryo pressed send before deciding to scroll on his phone before he got a good night's rest.
Ding
Ryo sighed and hesitated for a moment, then clicked the notification and read the reply.
'You're lucky I am even reading your novel. Not for you or the shit plot but because it's something nice to laugh at. Only a loser can write something like this. AKA quit while you can.'
Ryo rolled his eyes. 'Who let their kid on their computer?' He turned off his computer and reached for an energy drink on his desk, just for his hand to grasp an empty can.
Sighing once more, he got up from his chair and headed out of his apartment.
'The nearest store isn't that far,' he knew it was unhealthy, but he couldn't care—he was addicted to energy drinks.
As Ryo walked down the streets at 11 pm, the usually busy roads and packed pathways had quieted down but were not completely empty.
As he walked down the pathway, his thoughts drifted. He felt like he was in a predictable loop—work, home, store. But I guess everyone feels that way... well, most.
As he was thinking about his bland life, his steps came to a pause as he felt as if he had walked into a solid wall.
He looked away from the road, and what he was now looking at was a large guy, muscular, tattoos going along his neck and left arm, wearing a plain tank top.
"Kid, you should look forward when you're walking. I've had a bad day, my misses has been acting up. Now a runt thinks he can do as he likes on my street." His two large hands moved, pushing Ryo back, making him stumble a bit.
'What the...' Ryo glared at the man subtly but only straightened up. "My fault, it won't happen again."
But the man only grinned and walked up to Ryo. "Nah. Take this as your punishment for today. Empty your pockets..."
Ryo sighed and was about to reach for his wallet, even though he seemed calm. Ryo's palms were sweating. After all, it's been a long time since he's been in a confrontation like this.
"You have a nice pair of pants too. I'm gonna need those too."
Ryo's hand instantly paused at the man's words and raised his eyebrow.
"Hell no. If you want to be a freak, you can be elsewhere."
Ryo shook his head, disgusted.
The man gritted his teeth. "Well, blame yourself for this." His fist moved in a quick motion. Ryo moved his head back, gulping subtly as he felt the man's fist almost graze his cheek.
The man gritted his teeth as he missed. He went to swing again, but Ryo was already running off.
"See you later. Maybe try a job for your money problems, ya fucker."
Ryo could hear the man's footsteps behind him for a while, shouting out curses in different languages.
After a while, Ryo hid in an alleyway as he breathed heavily.
"Haah... I think I lost him."
'Shit, I ran in the opposite direction of the store.'
Just as he was about to exit the alleyway, he felt a jolt in his chest, followed by a searing pain. The intensity of the pain made him gasp.
"Ugh, what's going on?" He moved his hand to his chest, holding on to press on his chest as he felt his vision blur.
'No... don't tell me. Drinking 7 energy drinks every day finally got to me.'
As he was in the middle of having a heart attack, he heard a chuckle as he saw the man from earlier enter the alleyway.
"Almost lost you. What are you groaning about, kid?"
The thug shook his head with a satisfied grin on his face. 'He's having an asthma attack just from running, pathetic. If I beat him enough, I can make him pay up weekly.'
With a snarl, he ran at Ryo with his fist raised.
Ryo's eyes widened as he saw the man run at him. His vision blurred even more, and he felt his knees buckle. His breathing became strained and ragged.
"Oh, I'm done for."