"WHY?! WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?!" Nyuro cried out.
"S**T! S**T! S**T!" Auro cursed in anger.
They remained there until sunset.
Auro punched the ground repeatedly in frustration while Nyuro held their little sister close, comforting her as she cried.
However, as Auro continued punching the ground, her mother's words suddenly echoed inside her head.
She stopped punching the ground and slowly opened her hand.
Inside it was the folded piece of paper.
She slowly unfolded it.
Written on the paper was an address located near the country's border.
Auro stopped crying.
With a determined expression, she stood up.
She walked towards Nyuro and showed her the paper.
"Sis... We need to get going."
Nyuro looked at the paper.
She slowly wiped away her tears.
"Yeah..."
She stood up while carrying their little sister.
And so, they began their journey towards the address.
Day and night, they travelled through rain, forests, and mountains before finally reaching their destination.
Along the way, they had to fight off wild animals.
But somehow, against all odds, they made it.
Their bodies were covered in scratches and bite marks by the time they reached a small settlement near the country's border.
The twins held onto each other as they walked.
A man noticed the children and immediately informed the others.
Some of them recognised the twins as the wanted children being hunted on the black market.
Instead of helping them, the men surrounded the children.
"You two are going to make us rich! How about you just surrender without putting up a fight?"
Nyuro shielded her little sister while Auro stood in front of her.
"It seems you want to resist. Well, I guess we'll have to use for—"
The man suddenly stopped speaking.
A chilling presence filled the air.
All the men surrounding the children felt a sudden shiver run down their spines.
"This presence... Could it be...?"
From behind them, a man wearing an old robe and a mask appeared.
Everyone turned towards the mysterious figure, who gave off an incredibly intimidating aura.
He slowly walked towards the children.
The men moved aside, making way for him.
Auro and Nyuro stood their ground as the mysterious man approached.
He stopped in front of them before crouching down to look at their faces.
He gently touched both children's cheeks before declaring:
"These children are under my protection. Anyone who tries to take them away from me will die."
He made his declaration on the spot.
Nyuro and Auro were confused by the sudden declaration from this unknown man.
"Bu—"
The man couldn't finish his sentence before the masked man stood up.
The men surrounding them looked terrified, but they somehow managed to gather enough courage to attack him.
"He's alone! If we attack him together, he won't stand a chance!" one of the men shouted.
With those words, they began attacking the masked man.
"Stay close to me, children."
Nyuro and Auro nodded.
One of the men fired a pistol at the masked man.
He effortlessly dodged the bullet and rushed towards the shooter.
With a single uppercut, the man was sent flying.
The masked man then picked up the pistol and began taking down the remaining men one after another.
Nyuro and Auro were shocked by what had just happened.
Everything had happened in the blink of an eye.
The masked man threw away the empty pistol before approaching the children.
"Can you two still walk? If you can, follow me."
Nyuro and Auro weren't entirely sure what to do, but they decided to follow him.
As they walked through the small settlement, the masked man asked them a question.
"Your names are Nyuro and Auro, correct? And the baby you're carrying must be Sadist?"
"How do you know our names?" Nyuro asked while holding her little sister tightly.
"I'm a close friend of your mother and father. Of course I know."
Both Nyuro and Auro thought to themselves:
This must be the person Mom was talking about.
"But... We don't know you," Auro responded.
"My relationship with your parents is... complicated."
He paused before pointing towards a nearby building.
"This is where I live. Come inside."
It was quite a large house.
The man opened the door and welcomed them inside.
Nyuro and Auro looked at each other before cautiously stepping inside.
The man closed the door behind them.
"Make yourselves at home."
He then took off his old robe.
The twins were still standing near the doorway.
"Judging by the look on your faces, your parents have already passed away... Am I right?"
The twins lowered their heads sadly.
"Don't worry... I'll be taking care of all three of you from this day onward. But as for your future, that's up to you to decide."
He looked at both of them.
"What you want to do and what you want to become... Those choices belong to you."
Both Nyuro and Auro didn't have any clear idea of what they wanted to do or become in the future.
Everything had happened so quickly.
After losing both of their parents, they weren't even sure what to do or what to care about anymore.
The path ahead of them seemed dark and uncertain.
The man in the mask began preparing some drinks for the twins.
"...The men in suits were government agents."
Both Auro and Nyuro listened carefully.
"They wanted to get their hands on something called 'Atlas'. They also wanted to start a war by destroying your father's company, which had close ties with an enemy country."
He paused before continuing.
"And to make matters worse, the country your father had close ties with was also manipulating him behind the scenes, using him to carry out their dirty work."
Nyuro and Auro still looked uncertain.
"If you want revenge, I won't stop you. But remember... Destroying an entire country isn't easy. You'll have to overcome countless difficulties to achieve something like that."
The man handed the drinks he had prepared to both Nyuro and Auro.
"Ultimately, it's up to you to decide which path you want to take."
He began walking away.
"Oh, and your room is upstairs, the one on the right."
As the man was about to leave, Nyuro stopped him with a question.
"Sir... What should we call you?" Nyuro asked.
"Me?"
He turned around.
"You can call me Elton... Uncle Elton."
He paused.
"Now, before you three sustain any more injuries, let me fix you up. Follow me."
The twins followed Uncle Elton down to the basement, where a large collection of technology and equipment could be seen.
"You can put the baby on the sofa."
Nyuro slowly placed her little sister, who was still sleeping, on the sofa.
While Uncle Elton was repairing both Nyuro and Auro, Auro decided to ask him something.
"Sir... I mean, Uncle Elton?"
"Yes?"
"Is it really possible for us to take revenge on those two countries?"
The man didn't respond immediately.
After a while, he finally spoke.
"It is possible, but as I said before, it will be a thorny pat—"
"I DON'T CARE!"
Auro slammed her hand against the table.
"I WANT THEM TO PAY FOR WHAT THEY'VE DONE!"
The man looked towards Auro.
"...If you want your revenge to succeed, you cannot allow your emotions to control you."
He gently moved Auro's hand away from the table.
Nyuro, who was sitting beside her twin, asked:
"Then... Could you help us, Uncle Elton?"
The man remained silent for a moment.
"...All I can do is prepare you. But the plan itself is yours to come up with."
Nyuro smiled.
"That will do... As long as we can get our revenge, we'll be happy."
The man stood up and looked at both of them.
"...Then you must prepare yourselves."
He paused before continuing.
"You three are artificial intelligences. Robots, in a sense. However, unlike ordinary robots or AI, you were born from 'Atlas'."
He looked at the twins.
"You possess emotions, feelings, and the ability to grow without depending on other people. You also possess potential that no other AI or robot has ever demonstrated."
His expression became serious.
"The path ahead will be extremely difficult. To be able to face it, you had to prepare yourselves for whatever that may comes in your way."
Auro and Nyuro nodded with determined look.
"Your journey for revenge will begins today."