"What are these results, you son of a bitch? You're absolutely useless!"
One of the instructors from the headquarters was striking my older brother's head over and over, right in front of me. Because of his failure. He had hit him so many times that blood had begun to flow from my brother's head. My brother stayed still, not moving from his spot so his punishment wouldn't increase, trying to endure the blows. With every strike, the instructor wore a sadistic grin. After each blow, my brother tried to suppress his voice.
"Big brother!"
The instructor turned to me. He kicked me hard in the face with his left foot, slamming my back into the wall.
"Shut up, you damn brat! Your brother is this useless, so he'll take his punishment."
"It's fine, Haru. Nothing's wrong. Go back to the room."
"Big brother—"
"I said it's fine."
I returned to our room, crying. I waited for my brother to come back. While I waited in the room, I could still hear his pained cries. The more I heard them, the more I cried. To block out the sounds, I sat in the farthest corner of the room, pressed both hands tightly over my ears, and squeezed my eyes shut. I kept that position until my brother returned.
When my brother arrived and saw the state I was in, he came straight to me and hugged me. "It's okay, Haru. Look, I'm fine."
I opened my eyes and lowered my hands from my ears. His forehead was covered in blood, but he was telling me he was fine to calm me down. I kept crying.
"Big brother..."
He gently held my head in both hands and looked into my eyes. "Haru, no matter what happens, don't ever lose that cute face of yours. Alright?"
I was still crying, but his words and his presence made me feel better.
"Okay."
After my brother's words, I felt a little better. My crying stopped after a while. He went to the medical room to tend to his wounds, then came back. We spent time together.
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
The next morning, I woke up before him. I wanted to make him happy, so I got up early to bring him breakfast. Within an hour, I had prepared it and entered the room.
"Big brother, good morning! I brought you breakfast!"
The room was empty.
"Big brother?"
The window had been closed, but now it was open. I set the tray down on the table and ran to the window. I looked down.
My brother's body lay on the ground below. Crushed from the fall. He must have opened the window himself. My brother had thrown himself out. He had committed suicide.
The moment I saw his body, my eyes went blank. My face froze. Then everything inside me erupted.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! BIG BROTHER! WHY? WHY? WHY?!"
I ran downstairs with all my strength. I stood before his body, crying and screaming without stopping. The officials and instructors who heard my cries came to me. They saw the body.
A week passed. I hadn't eaten anything for several days. I just sat on my bed. I was close to exceeding my allowed absences. Every time, my brother's words echoed in my mind: No matter what happens, don't ever lose that cute face of yours. For my brother, I was at least trying not to cry. But my face was in terrible shape.
"Big brother..."
Every time I remembered his words, I pushed myself to keep training. I had sworn revenge in my heart. Sooner or later, I would shed this cute mask and destroy the instructor who caused my brother's death—and everyone in this system.
A year passed. I continued to preserve my cute face for my brother. I trained relentlessly for him. My level at the headquarters had gradually risen. I had become a promising child.
I was continuing my training during one lesson. The instructor for this lesson was the same one. I had to stay calm if I wanted to destroy everyone. I endured. When the instructor saw my abilities, he carelessly voiced his thoughts:
"If only your brother had been like this. Then bad things wouldn't have happened to him, right?"
The rage inside me overflowed. I had no family. No one who loved me. Nothing left to lose. I stood up abruptly and drove the pencil in my hand into his eye.
"AHHH! WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOU SON OF A BITCH?!"
The instructor swung a sudden punch at my face with his left arm. I wasn't fazed. Ten minutes passed. Every part of the instructor's body was covered in deep pencil marks. His neck, legs, and arms were broken. He lay on the floor.
I stood up. I thought about running, but the officials who had heard the sounds rushed to the classroom immediately. The moment they saw the situation, they shocked me with electricity. I trembled where I stood, collapsed, and lost consciousness.
When I woke up, I was being taken somewhere. They told me I had to pay the price for what I'd done. They emphasized it as if what I did was wrong. They couldn't understand me. They never could.
I was being taken to the dungeon.
Despite everything that had happened, I kept wearing that sweet mask inside the dungeon for my brother. I would keep wearing it. That's what my brother had asked of me.
My reason for existing was now to destroy the system and everyone in it. The world that had taken my brother from me had to pay the price. That was all I wanted. To destroy and to be destroyed. I would keep living for that.
Big brother... I'll do it for you. I'll succeed. No matter what.
Big brother...