Chapter Two: Villain Temptation
The silence in the cramped kitchen was even heavier after Soma's confession, thick with the weight of her tears and Adar's dawning understanding. He still sat frozen, her final, desperate sobs echoing in his ears, her words "anytime and anywhere" chilling him to the bone. He had always known they were poor, that life was a struggle, but to learn the brutal, dark truth of his origins, and now, to face the terrifying possibility of losing the only family he had... it cracked something open inside him.
Soma eventually pulled away, wiping her face with the back of her hand, trying to compose herself. Her eyes, though red-rimmed, held a desperate hope as she looked at her son. "Promise me, Adar. Promise you won't seek revenge. Live a happy life. Be strong for yourself."
Adar looked at his mother, at the deep lines of exhaustion etched around her eyes, at the way her shoulders slumped even as she tried to seem brave. How could he promise that? How could he ignore the monstrous injustice that had crushed her spirit and stolen their peace? A quiet, cold rage began to simmer in his gut, replacing the shock. His little fist clenched again, this time not in childish frustration, but in a burning resolve.
"I promise I'll be strong, Mom," Adar said, his voice flat, devoid of the usual ten-year-old bounce. He couldn't bring himself to promise the other part. How could he promise to live happily when her pain was so real, so raw? How could he not want justice for her?
Soma seemed to deflate slightly, but she nodded, perhaps sensing his unspoken reservation but too weary to push. "Good, my love. That's all I can ask." She forced another weak smile. "Now, let's finish dinner, okay? It's getting cold."
They ate in a strained quiet, the humble meal tasting like ash in Adar's mouth. He kept stealing glances at his mother, searching for signs, for clues as to when. The uncertainty was a new, biting fear. Every creak of the floorboards, every shadow on the wall, felt like a silent countdown.
Later that night, long after Soma had fallen into an exhausted sleep on the old, squeaky cot in the corner, Adar lay awake in his own small bed, staring at the peeling paint on the ceiling. His mind replayed his mother's words: He forced himself on me. He tied me. They bought lawyers, Adar. They bought judges. They threw me out.
And then, his own words, villainous in its new resolve, echoed back. He thought of the Zed family, powerful and untouchable, living in their "big houses" while his mother suffered in silence, working herself to the bone. A dark, insidious thought began to worm its way into his mind, something whispering that normal rules, normal paths, wouldn't work against people like that. They had used their power to commit evil and escape consequences. Perhaps to fight them, one needed a different kind of power.
His eyes fell on the crumpled drawing beside his bed – the powerful fighter, muscles bulging, fists raised. The image, once just a childhood fantasy, now felt like a desperate plea, a emerging vision of the strength he needed. He remembered the voice which had been tempting him, promising power beyond comprehension. He was weak, a nobody, a child.
If they twisted justice with money, what could I twist it with? The whisper in his mind grew louder, colder. Strength. Power. What they value, what they fear.
A chilling thought solidified in Adar's young mind. His mother had asked him not to seek revenge. But what if it wasn't just revenge? What if it was about justice? A different kind of justice. A power so undeniable that even the wealthy Zeds couldn't ignore it. As he drifted towards sleep, the image of his mother's tear-streaked face was joined by a new, powerful resolve, dark and unwavering.
He would accept the voice that had been bothering him, no matter what it takes, even if it consumed his life as fuel.
As he solidified his resolve, the voice came again, clearer this time, cutting through the quiet of the room.
"So, now what are you going to do, little human?" The voice was ancient, resonating not from the air, but from inside his very head. "Are you willing to let your mother die? And also, listen to your mother's awful request to live happily? At least accept me to make her live happily."
Adar's eyes snapped open. "What did you say? My mother is going to die?"
"Oh, she didn't tell you directly, did she?" the voice chuckled, a dry, rasping sound that sent shivers down Adar's spine. "The problem is, she is suffering from a deadly sickness. A sickness brought on by continuous torture and overworked years. The treatment fee is a staggering one billion, two hundred million dollars. So, she doesn't have any choice but to say her goodbye for now, because she can die anytime from now."
A cold, crushing wave of despair washed over Adar, quickly replaced by a desperate, burning hope. "But... but with my help, you can sustain her life for long. And getting extremely rich is not a problem with my help. So, accept me. I am vanishing. My time is almost up. Within two days, you won't see me again. Your unyielding spirit brought me to you."
"So, you said you can help my mother and cure her?" Adar asked, his voice trembling with a desperate plea.
"No," the voice replied, blunt and unfeeling. "I can only sustain her life with guidance. Only when you get the money can you cure her completely. I am only about fights. My name is God of Modern Martial Art, Kart, from a distant civilization. I drifted here by random teleportation, and now I am only left with my spirit form. My time is almost up, and I am to be erased from existence."
Adar didn't hesitate. His mother's life, her pain, the injustice – it all fused into one singular, desperate goal. "Okay, if you can help me cure my mother, I will accept anything. And what will happen to your existence?"
"No, it doesn't involve your life," Kart stated. "And my existence will stabilize and will not be erased. I will live as a spirit in the system, bound to you."
A fierce, almost wild grin spread across Adar's young face. His mother's words about happiness and no revenge faded into the background, replaced by the chilling promise of power and a brutal path to justice.
"Then let's go conquer the world," Adar whispered into the darkness, his voice filled with a terrifying, newfound resolve.