Rain tapped softly against the broken windows.
Eridius sat on the worn couch, leaning forward slightly, elbows on his knees. Across from him, Alexander stood calmly, posture straight, as if the ruined room were a noble's study instead of a backstreet dump.
Between them—
Three bodies.
Still warm.
Still bleeding.
The smell hadn't settled yet.
[Eridius]: Alright… new problem.
He rubbed his temple.
[Eridius]: We've got a house. No protection. No backing. Which means we're basically inviting someone worse than those idiots to walk in.
He jerked his chin toward the corpses.
[Eridius]: So—Finger protection. We pay, we live. Simple.
Alexander didn't immediately respond.
Instead, he glanced down at the bodies, then at the crude pouch of Ahn sitting on the table.
[Alexander]: Leader… after counting everything—
A small pause.
[Alexander]: We have 8,000 Ahn.
Eridius didn't react.
Didn't move.
[Alexander]: According to these… gentlemen—
He lightly nudged one of the corpses with his foot.
[Alexander]: It costs approximately 40,000 Ahn for a single month of protection.
Silence.
Rain.
A slow exhale.
[Eridius]: So we can afford… nothing.
He leaned back, staring at the ceiling like it had personally betrayed him.
[Eridius]: Seriously—how are we supposed to make money with no money?
A pause.
Then, casually—
[Eridius]: Alex, go find some rich old lady and let her have fun. We charge premium.
Alexander didn't even blink.
[Alexander]: No. I cannot do that, Leader.
Eridius sighed.
[Eridius]: Yeah… figured.
A beat.
He rubbed his chin, thinking.
[Eridius]: Alright, new idea.
His eyes shifted toward the instruments still in Alexander's hands.
[Eridius]: What about a front?
A pause.
[Eridius]: A small stage. Street performances. Maybe even turn this place into a café later.
He leaned forward slightly.
[Eridius]: Music brings people. People bring money.
Alexander considered that.
[Alexander]: And attention.
Eridius smirked faintly.
A beat.
[Eridius]: But the right kind of attention… keeps worse things away.
Silence.
Rain tapped softly against the broken window.
He stood up, stretching slightly.
[Eridius]: Now let's find a few more rats befo—
BANG.
The door—recently repaired, barely holding—exploded inward, splintering into useless scrap.
Wood hit the floor.
Silence followed.
Then—
Footsteps.
Heavy. Confident.
Two men stepped inside.
Purple tank tops. Thick chains wrapped around their hands like weapons.
Their presence alone made the air feel heavier.
Eridius didn't need the system to tell him.
The Middle.
One of them cracked his neck slightly, eyes sweeping the room.
Then—
[Little Brother 1]: Where is that piece of—
He stopped mid-sentence.
His gaze dropped.
To the bodies.
Then shifted.
To Eridius.
To Alexander.
A pause.
The room went still.
One of the men scratched the side of his neck, glancing around awkwardly.
[Little Brother 2]: …I think we got the wrong house, brother.
The other snorted.
[Little Brother 1]: No. This is the place.
He pointed toward a dark stain smeared across the floorboards.
[Little Brother 1]: See that?
A grin spread slowly across his face.
[Little Brother 1]: The former owner couldn't pay us back. So he gutted his own son and sold the organs to make quota.
Silence.
Rain tapped faintly outside.
[Little Brother 1]: Didn't help much.
Eridius stared at the stain for a moment.
Expression unreadable.
Then—
[Eridius]: …Did you two actually know the former owner?
[Little Brother 2]: Know him?
A harsh laugh escaped him.
[Little Brother 2]: This bastard borrowed 100,000 Ahn from the Middle and disappeared for months.
He shrugged casually.
Chains clinking softly.
[Little Brother 2]: But since he's dead—
His eyes narrowed slightly.
[Little Brother 2]: And you live here now…
A grin.
[Little Brother 2]: Congratulations. It's your debt.
Silence.
Eridius blinked once.
Then slowly leaned back into the couch.
[Eridius]: …That's not how debt works.
[Little Brother 1]: In the Backstreets?
A pause.
[Little Brother 1]: It is.
Silence settled again.
Alexander's hand rested lightly against his violin.
The chains around the Little Brothers' fists tightened.
Then—
Eridius opened his inventory.
A flicker of blue light distorted briefly in the air.
The two men stiffened immediately.
Suspicious.
Interested.
Eridius ignored them.
His eyes scanned the list—
Then stopped.
A slow smile spread across his face.
[Two Hours Later]
Rain still fell outside.
The room was warmer now.
Cleaner.
And filled with music.
Alexander sat calmly in the corner, playing a soft melody on the violin with almost painful elegance.
Meanwhile—
The two Little Brothers sat at the table.
Crying.
Absolutely devastated.
[Little Brother 1]: H-How… how can something be this sad…?
On the table in front of them—
{"Minecraft: A World That Doesn't Exist – Part 1 & 2"}
Paused mid-scene.
Eridius leaned back proudly, arms crossed.
[Eridius]: Emotional damage.
Alexander closed his teary eyes briefly, one hand pressing against his forehead.
[Alexander]:…I cannot believe that actually worked.
[Eridius]: Will turning a pixel story into a live story with more moves and setting
A pause.
[Eridius]: To be fair, I did improve it a little.
He gestured toward the screen proudly.
[Eridius]: Turning a pixel story into a full, moving drama with better settings, music, and voice acting takes effort.
A beat.
Then his eyes narrowed slightly.
Silence.
[Eridius]: Are you crying?
Alexander slowly lowered his hand.
His eyes were visibly wet.
[Alexander]: It was sad.
A pause.
Then, firmly—
[Alexander]: Of course, I cried.
Across the table, both Little Brothers were already beyond dignity.
One was clutching his chain like emotional support.
The other had his face buried into his arms.
[Little Brother 2]: O-Oh D3rLord3… why did you sacrifice yourself like that…?
[Little Brother 1]: He didn't deserve that ending…
A sharp sniff.
[Little Brother 1]: O-Oh D3rLord3…
Eridius leaned back slowly, staring at the scene in complete silence.
Then—
[Eridius]: …I weaponized cinema.
Alexander wiped his eyes with quiet dignity.
[Alexander]: I fear you more than the Sweepers now.
BOOM.
The wall exploded inward.
Bricks, dust, and rotten wood scattered across the room as a group of men stormed through the newly created entrance.
Purple tank tops.
Chains wrapped around their arms.
The Middle.
At the front stood a massive man with metal rings pierced through his shoulders and neck.
A Big Brother.
He glanced around once—
At the crying Little Brothers.
At the screen.
At Alexander is holding a violin with red eyes.
Then slowly raised a brow.
[Big Brother]: …What took you two so long?
One of the Little Brothers immediately pointed toward the screen with trembling hands.
[Little Brother 1]: Big Bro… it was just too peak…
His voice cracked.
[Little Brother 2]: D3rLord3 deserved better…
The Big Brother stared at them in complete silence.
Then at Eridius.
Then at the screen again.
[Eridius]: One more thing.
A pause.
[Eridius]: Watching isn't free.
Silence.
[Eridius]: Ten thousand Ahn per person.
The room went still.
Then—
The Big Brother burst out laughing.
Loud.
Deep.
Violent.
He wiped a tear from laughing too hard.
[Big Brother]: What kind of nonsense made these two cry?
A grin spread across his face.
[Big Brother]: And only for ten thousand?
He tossed a heavy pouch onto the table.
THUD.
[Big Brother]: Move over.
[Two Hours Later]
Rain continued falling outside.
Inside—
Twenty grown men from the Middle openly cried without restraint.
One was hugging a broken chair.
Another had collapsed to his knees.
A third was repeatedly wiping his face while insisting he was "completely fine."
Alexander sat quietly in the corner.
Both eyes red.
Still playing the violin through his own tears.
The soundtrack somehow made everything worse.
A sharp inhale.
[Big Brother]: Why would they write it like that…?
Beside him, another Brother slammed his fist against the floor.
[Middle Brother]: He trusted him…!
Across the room—
Eridius calmly counted stacks of Ahn.
100,000 debt.
Paid.
40,000 protection fee.
Paid.
And after charging twenty emotionally devastated gang members for admission—
Profit.
A lot of profit.
He slowly looked up.
At the twenty crying adults.
At Alexander, sadly playing violin music.
Then at the massive hole in the wall.
Silence.
A long pause.
Then—
[Eridius]: …I accidentally opened a business.
[Chapter end]