"Do you really think this was the right decision?"

A young man swallowed hard, his hands shaking slightly because of nervousness.

Another young man answered him, "Don't get so worked up! Now the seven of us can finally take over the company!"

"Yes, it's our father's own fault, actually leaving the whole fortune to Joseph!" Another assured his brother of the valicity of their actions.

But these words weren't exclusively spoken for his brother's sake. He himself didn't seem to quite believe in their cause.

Like this, seven brothers sat together and listened intently to the news.

***

Januar abruptly opened his eyes.

Ready to face whatever would come his way.

But..., there was no one in sight. He was surrounded by plain white walls from all sides, except for the pink door to his right side.

Discovering that he was alone and unattended, Januar sighed in relief. He tried to lift up his upper body and leave this vulnerable state of lying down.

He was unable to move.

Anxiety gribbed his heart, trying again and again to free himself.

Growing more desperate with every failure, he opened his previously tightly closed mouth. He wanted to cry out for help, regardless of the risk of alerting his assailants.

...?

Januar halted for a moment. Didn't he shout earlier? Why didn't he hear anything?

A bad premonition rose in his heart.

Focusing on his vocal chords, he tried again...

Nothing!

His vocal organs all seemed fine. Now that he thought about it, he didn't hear anything. Not even the quickened beat of his heart ot the blood rushing through his veins.

At that moment a pair of women clad in pink robes entered his line of sight. Startled he flinched and only stared at them with windened eyes.

Their mouths were moving but he still couldn't catch what they were saying.

Januar's heart dropped.

So, his hearing organs were the problem!

This was very, very bad news.

He was already in his 'Realm'! Honestly, the lack of Kay should've already told him that he wasn't in his world anymore, but he was too preoccupied with his current situation that he forgot about his empending 'Realm'.

Still, this made his hearing problem all the more dramatic.

The only way 'Cardplayers' were able to communicate with the natives of a 'Realm' was through speech. They could neither write nor read the language of the 'Realm'.

Knowing this, Januar decided to stay silent in front of the women.

Restained with no hope of escaping, unable to communicate and clueless to his 'Quest'.

This was probably the biggest nightmare for every 'Cardplayer'!

Januar's anxiety and fear peaked. He had never heard of a similar case, and didn't know how to react.

Wait.

Maybe there was no information, because no one survived these conditions to tell about them.

At this point Januar started to sob uncontrollably. Sure, he was miserable in his world, but he still loved his family and with the help of his first ever friend he was finally able to take the first step to a better self. He just saw the first fruit of his labor and now it was already bound to fail?

The pair of women watched Januar's breakdown with calm expressions, althought there was a hint of pity in their eyes.

They approached Januar in a slow and collected manner, clearly used to this.

Carefully grabbing Januar's restrained right arm, one woman lifted up his seelve and the other one readied a syringe with a clear liquid.

Before Januar could retract his arm and retaliate, the needle pricked his arm, injecting the liquid into his bloodstream. With every throbbing of his heart, his mood calmed and the choking sobs quieted. Sleep overwhelmed him as the two women watched with pitying smiles on their faces.

Days passed.

Januar pretty much figured out that he was currently staying in a pre-apocalyptic hospital (the difference was the absence of medical pods and the many people working here). The people in pink - there were also men, but usually women came to take care of him- were the nurses and there were also doctors clad in white jackets.

Atleast, he believed them to be doctors, but he wasn't entirely sure. They never touched him, only took a look at a sheet and spoke briefly with a nurse before leaving again. Although there were exceptions, like some doctors sitting down and trying to communicate with Januar through various means while marking down some stuff on the same sheet as the other doctors.

While, all this seemed peaceful and orderly, Januar was anything but.

The silence was driving him crazy on the inside. Unable to vocalize his frustration, continuing to stay in the dark about the reason for his injuries and stay in the hospital, all this was worse than anything he experienced prior. Slow torture that felt similar to gradually suffocating to death, this was especially true since Januar was now trapped with his thoughts. Reliving the experience of dying by drowning every night. Not even his dreams were safe.

Every time it happened, Januar missed Kay more severely. He was so used to his presence that it felt unbearable to be alone again like this, without anyone to consult with.

On a day that started just like any day, with a rude awakening by drowning, a male nurse entered Januar's room. He suddenly loosened the restrains and stepped back watching attentively, ready to respond to every possible action of Januar.

Januar was stunned.

What just happened?

He was... free?

Januar immediately sat up straight in his prison known as bed. He hurried to stand up but a sharp pain flashed through his entire body after only putting his feet on the ground. He fell forward, startled by the sudden pain and landed directly in the male nurse's arms. The nurse supported Januar before handing him a crutch to substitute for his injured left leg and helping him adjust his weight.

After affirming that Januar could stand on his own, the nurse beckoned Januar to follow him and took a few steps towards the pink door.

Januar was so elated he alsmost started crying, finally free to leave his torture chamber Januar hobbled to the door as if his life depended on it. It propably did, so he hobbled even faster.

After almost stumbling to the ground the nurse hooked his arm under Januar's shoulder and forced him to slow down. Together the stepped through the door.