"ATTACK!"
The man in a black robe with a tiger mask shouted the moment they saw their target.
Several figures jumped and ran towards the boy.
'It is starting!'
Liam was excited.
His eyes were glinting with excitement.
'What should I—' his thoughts came to a halt when he heard a…
…Bang!
A man was kicked.
"AHHHHH!"
"Help me!"
The audience screamed.
"Bodyguards!"
The host shouted for security.
But…
It was useless.
Chaos had already erupted in the crowd, and… he knew better how tough it is to calm down a crowd that wouldn't listen.
Punches, kicks, and even the chair they were sitting on were thrown; nothing was spared.
Black men in dark suits rushed in to control the situation, but it was hard to distinguish the assailants, so they attacked anyone who neared the entrance, which only further fueled the chaos.
"Fuck!"
"Control the situation!"
"I am innocent!"
"Ahhh! Fuck you, motherfuckers."
"I won't die!"
It was pure hell.
Bang!
Smash!
Swoosh!
Jack was happy with how things went smoothly tonight.
No, smooth was an understatement; it went extraordinarily well.
'Thank you, god, thank you, for blessing me with such fortune.'
He even thanked God.
But…
Every fortune comes with its misfortune.
"Bodyguards!"
Jack shouted for the security and watched the descent of chaos to his auction house, which happened in mere seconds, with a dumbfounded look, just like a kid who was given a new toy only to have it snatched back again.
Reality hit hard.
So hard, he found himself kneeling with the microphone dropped beside him without even realizing it.
"Heh"
He smiled bitterly, as it was the only thing he could do at the moment.
After all…
…he never trained to be a fighter.
For the first time in his life, Jack regretted not training.
***
I followed the man with a tiger mask who came after the boy.
'The boy must be valuable. I must get him, of course, that bone too.'
'How should I make my entrance? Oh, I know.'
Liam wanted to save the boy in a way that he would look up to him with admiration.
So, he let the man with a tiger mask take the boy while he went to look for the skill.
***
Number 50
His official name, Zuckerberg, was hiding in his VIP quarters after the attack. He was a man of short stature with a big belly.
It was hard to say whether he was bigger or taller. Expensive jewelry adorned him from head to toe; coupled with a short temper, he was disliked by many.
"Shit! What the hell is happening, Kon?"
"My lord, it seems we are under attack."
"I can see that. Idiot! I am asking why they are not controlling the situation."
"I don't know, my lord." Kon lowers his head for not knowing such a simple thing.
Kon was supposed to protect his employer, but how could he act without even knowing the situation?
He was ashamed.
Not because he was loyal to the fat man.
He was ashamed of himself for the lack of judgment and strength.
Knock, knock~
A knock got him out of his daze, and he looked toward the door.
"G-go check the door." Zuckerberg, his employer, ordered him in a trembling voice.
Step, … step
Kon walked with careful steps toward the door, afraid he might get attacked.
And…
Creak~
He opens the door slowly.
Very slowly.
As the door opens just enough for him to see…
He quickly backs away and points his sword towards a suspicious figure.
'He looks dangerous.'
The intruder was short, very short. Maybe around an eight-year-old child.
'He looks like a young child; is he perhaps lost?'
He wore a black demon mask on his face with two horns and four fangs and a black suit with a red tie tied over his white shirt.
He did nothing but stand, yet an oppressive, almost tangible aura came from him that made even breathing hard.
'He is no child! A child can't possibly be that strong.' Kon quickly dismissed the thought that he might be a child.
'He is a demon.'
Gulp~
"W-who are you?" Asked Kon after gulping.
Kon looked back with his one eye towards his employer while the other was occupied with the demon.
He saw that his employer had gone pale, with his body shaking uncontrollably.
Then…
"Who? Me?"
The demon said while tilting his head to the side as if finding the situation amusing, making the almost tangible aura tangible.
"Y-y-yes, you." Kon said with much struggle while trying to keep his trembling hand, which was pointing a sword toward the demon, steady.
"Hmm, why should I tell you who I am?"
The demon said that with a playful and calm voice, yet Kon couldn't help but feel a weight was crushing him beneath it every time the demon opened his mouth to speak.
Then…
Tak~
The demon took a step toward him, yet he couldn't move a muscle, as if they refused to move under the presence of the demon.
Tak~
The demon took another step and… went past him to come to a halt in front of his employer.
"Where is the bone?" He asked calmly, yet it felt like the room's temperature had dropped suddenly.
Kon felt a cold chill creeping into his entire body.
And his employer…
Drip, drip~
He didn't have to imagine how his employer was faring as he heard the 'dripping.'
"T-t-the b-bone. I- I will give it. Just don't k-kill me."
The fat man's pants were tinged yellow, and he failed to even form a proper sentence without stammering.
He quickly took out a small bone the size of an index finger and gave it to the demon with a trembling hand, almost dropping the bone with how much his hands trembled.
The demon took the bone and examined it. Upon confirming the authenticity, he stored the bone and started going back towards the door.
The demon halted in his tracks when he reached the door and turned to say,
"I am Nightmare. I will come into your dreams when you sleep. I will haunt you even after your death; you will see my face when you look at the moon in the night. Remember, I am yourNightmare."
The demon left after his last remark.
Kon's back was drenched in sweat.
Thump~
'I almost died.'
He slumped down and stared at his hand.
Tremble~
They shook, even though the dem… no, the nightmare came and left, just like when you sleep.
They are fleeting and imaginary.
But…
'He was real.'
The pungent smell lingered in the air from his employer.
The sweat that drenched him.
The trembling in his hands.
And…
The image imprinted in his mind was all the proof of the Nightmare's existence.
"haaaa…"
"Maybe I should really quit this job and find something better to do."
***
"hehehe…"
Liam laughed as he looked down at his pocket, where a bone the size of an index finger rested.
"It was easier than I thought. Now, shall we get started for the real show?"
Raising his head, Liam looked toward a certain broken wall with small figures running in the distance with a young boy.