Morning in the City
It was an early morning in a bustling urban district...everywhere filled with noise, traffic, shops, and the endless flow of people coming and going. Through narrow, crowded alleys lined with tightly packed houses, Lamai Fon finally reached a small café.
The little shop was overflowing with customers, voices overlapping, laughter echoing, the rich scent of coffee filling the air. Behind the counter, the owner, Yen, was moving about with cheerful energy, her smile as bright as it was every day. Yen's home was attached just behind the café.
Lamai entered, bowed respectfully to her aunt Yen, and asked warmly about Warawee.
Yen made a face.....like a parent annoyed yet still filled with affection...and muttered:
"She's still sleeping in her room. Does she ever do anything else?"
Lamai burst into laughter, then slipped through the back door, heading upstairs to Warawee's room.
The room looked like a disaster zone, as if an earthquake had passed through. And there was Warawee.....not on her bed, but sprawled out on the floor, snoring loudly, as though even if the world ended today, it wouldn't matter to her.
Lamai sighed deeply, so deeply it was clear this scene was nothing new to her.....it was a daily ritual at this point.
---
Somewhere Else…
Far across the city stood a grand villa, its walls towering, its grounds swarming with guards at every corner as though they were protecting a priceless treasure. But no gods lived here...only devils.
Inside one of the vast rooms, Komkai was in the middle of her daily routine.....training with an array of deadly weapons. Her face was hard, severe, carrying no trace of a smile, as though she had never once known what laughter was. She was the very image of a born killer.
The door creaked open, and her brother entered.
Jakchai...himself a merciless assassin...pulled up a chair and sat down casually, watching his sister master her blades. His voice, calm yet ominous, cut through the room:
"Father says… it's time you do the work you were born for, Kai."
Komkai's eyes flashed like a hunting eagle's, sharp and predatory, as she turned to look at him.
But Jakchai knew his sister well.....he had no fear of her. After all, she was his blood.
Kai knew exactly what kind of vile task her father was planning to force upon her. And she also knew that refusal could cost her life. That was why she had trained relentlessly....mastering every form of martial arts, every weapon possible. Not just to survive… but to protect her plan, to protect herself....especially from her own father.
Because deep inside, Kai longed for something else.
A path no one in her mafia family would ever accept.
A path only she dared to walk.