The one million rupiah felt thick and warm in Raden's pants pocket. All the way home, he couldn't stop smiling. He stopped by the famous Ajo Ramon Sate Padang stall and ordered five portions of tongue satay, complete with jangek crackers. He also bought a kilogram of mandarin oranges.
Today, he would spoil Nila. No more flour-fried tempeh or wilted water spinach.
"Wait until Nila sees this money," Raden thought. "She can buy a new house dress. Or maybe we can start paying installments for a used motorbike so she doesn't have to take the angkot."
However, Raden's smile slowly faded as he turned into the alley of his rented house.
A shiny white Toyota Innova was parked haphazardly in front of his rickety fence, taking up almost the entire width of the alley road. Several neighbours were seen peeking from behind their windows, whispering.
Raden's heart beat fast. He knew that car.
It was Nila's mother's car. Bu Rahayu.
A sharp bad feeling pierced his stomach. Raden quickened his pace, half-running while carrying the bag of Sate Padang. When he arrived in front of the open door, a loud shouting voice was heard from inside.
"Are you stupid or bewitched, Nila?! A man like that is just a parasite! Trash!"
That was Aunt Ratna's voice.
"Auntie, please don't talk like that about Mas Raden..." Nila's voice sounded weak, interspersed with sobs.
"Shut up!" This time it was Bu Rahayu's voice screeching. "Mother has been patient enough, Nil. Look at your body! Skin and bones like this! It's embarrassing for me to see! What will people say? A gold merchant's daughter living in destitution in a rat hole like this?"
Raden clenched his fists. The plastic bag in his hand crinkled from his hardening grip.
THUMP.
Inside his sling bag, the Carubuk Keris vibrated.
[Emotional Resonance Detected: Rage.]
[Echo 'Wrath of the Butcher General' offers power. Accept?]
"Not now," hissed Raden inwardly. He took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to unsheathe the keris, and stepped inside with a cold face.
"Assalamualaikum."
Raden's voice wasn't loud, but somehow, it cut through the commotion inside the room instantly.
Three pairs of eyes turned to him. Nila, sitting in the corner of the mat with swollen eyes. Bu Rahayu, a middle-aged woman with high-teased hair and rows of gold bracelets. And Aunt Ratna, looking at him as if Raden were dog excrement stuck to her expensive shoes.
"Speak of the devil," sneered Aunt Ratna, flicking her hand fan. "Look, the bringer of bad luck has arrived."
Raden ignored her. He walked straight to Nila, placing the packages of Sate Padang and fruit beside his wife, then knelt briefly to wipe the tears from Nila's cheek.
"Mas..." whispered Nila, grasping Raden's hand tightly. Her hand was cold and trembling.
Raden stood up and turned to face his mother-in-law and aunt. He didn't bow his head. He didn't kiss their hands like usual. He stood tall, shoulders squared.
"What brings Mother and Auntie to my house?" Raden asked flatly.
Bu Rahayu glared. "Your house? Don't dream! This is a rented shack! And you ask what brings us here? I want to take my daughter!"
Bu Rahayu threw a brown envelope onto the floor, right at Raden's feet.
"What is this?" asked Raden.
"Divorce papers," said Aunt Ratna with a cynical smile. "We've already prepared the lawyer. You just have to sign. Nila is coming home with us today."
Raden's blood boiled, but his mind strangely became crystal clear. His 'Appraisal Eye' activated automatically, scanning the two women in front of him.
[Target: Rahayu (55 years old). Emotion: Disgust, Anxiety. Financial Status: Declining. Hidden Debt: Rp 200 Million.]
[Target: Ratna (50 years old). Emotion: Envy, Schadenfreude. Motive: Wants to matchmake Nila with her husband's business partner for personal gain.]
The information flooded Raden's brain. Turns out... this wasn't purely about motherly love. It was about money.
"I will not divorce Nila," said Raden calmly. "And Nila doesn't want to go home."
"Nila must go home!" Bu Rahayu stepped forward, pointing at Raden's nose. "Just so you know, Haji Somad, the rice tycoon at the Central Market, has already proposed to Nila! He wants to pay the debts... uh, I mean, he wants to guarantee Nila's life!"
Raden smiled crookedly. "Oh, so Mother wants to sell your daughter to pay your own debts?"
Bu Rahayu's face went deathly pale instantly. "Y-you... what nonsense are you spouting!"
"Two hundred million debt from a fraudulent arisan, right?" Raden fired back.
Bu Rahayu's eyes widened. Aunt Ratna stared at her older sister in shock. "Sister? Is that true?"
"He... he's making it up!" Bu Rahayu stammered, but the cold sweat on her temples betrayed her lie. She looked at Raden with fear. How could this scavenger know the secret she kept so tightly?
"Raden! Watch your mouth!" Aunt Ratna tried to take over. "The point is, you are poor! You can't feed Nila good food! Look, you only came home carrying those greasy packages!"
Raden didn't answer with words. He reached into his pants pocket.
He took out the thick envelope from Ko Aseng, tore the corner, and spilled its contents onto the small table in front of them.
One hundred thousand and fifty thousand rupiah bills scattered. One million five hundred thousand rupiah. Not an amount to make one filthy rich, but enough to silence the mouths insulting his poverty today.
"That is my earnings today," said Raden. "Enough to buy a whole cart of Sate Padang."
Silence.
Aunt Ratna stared at the money, then laughed disparagingly. "One million? You think one million is a lot? That's just my child's daily allowance! You must have pickpocketed or robbed someone, right?"
"Enough!"
Raden's voice suddenly changed. No longer the voice of a polite young man. It was a voice containing the 'echo' of clashing metal.
[Partial Activation: Intimidation Aura (The Butcher General).]
The room temperature dropped drastically. Raden's shadow on the wall seemed to grow, forming a giant silhouette holding something sharp.
Bu Rahayu and Aunt Ratna suddenly felt their necks turn cold, as if an invisible knife blade was pressing there. Their breath hitched. They took a step back, their faces paling from a terror they couldn't explain.
They saw Raden, but their primal instincts saw a savage predator ready to pounce.
"This money is clean," Raden's voice was low, vibrating with a power that pressed on the chest. "And from now on, never set foot here again to insult me or my wife. Or I will expose all your disgrace to the entire extended family."
Bu Rahayu trembled violently. Her legs went weak. "Let's... let's go home, Ratna..."
"B-but Sister..."
"LET'S GO!" Bu Rahayu pulled her sister's hand, not daring to look Raden in the eye again. They rushed out the door, tripping over their own sandals, got into the car, and floored the gas to get out of there.
The Innova disappeared at the end of the alley.
The strength in Raden's legs vanished instantly. He almost collapsed, but he supported himself on the door frame. Using the Echo aura turned out to drain his energy.
"Mas..."
Nila stood behind him. Her eyes were still wet, but she looked at Raden with disbelief.
"You... how did you know about Mother's debt?"
Raden turned, smiling weakly. "Just happened to hear gossip at the market, dear. It's a market after all, a place for all kinds of rumors."
He lied for kindness. Nila didn't need to know that her husband could now read people's disgrace like reading a restaurant menu.
Raden hugged his wife. "Already, don't think about it. They're gone. Come on, eat the Sate Padang, before it gets cold."
Nila buried her face in Raden's chest and cried again, but this time they were tears of relief. "I'm sorry about Mother, Mas... I'm sorry about my family..."
"Shh. It's not your fault."
While stroking his wife's hair, Raden's eyes stared at his sling bag lying on the floor.
He managed to drive them away today. But he knew, this wasn't over. One and a half million wouldn't be enough. The threat of Haji Somad the Rice Tycoon was real. And he needed more power to protect this small happiness.
Tomorrow, he wouldn't play around anymore. Tomorrow, he would hunt for stronger heirlooms.