Chapter 4 – One injury equals a hundred times of pain!
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Chapter 4 – One injury equals a hundred times of pain!

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Emanuel stared at the video playing on the monitor. His son, Illinois, lay on the ground whilst a skinny figure with a helmet kept punching the latter.

In front of Emanuel, thousands of monitors hanging on the wall, and every monitor displayed four cameras.

From his silent street to the busy main road, he installed minuscule cameras everywhere.

He didn’t like to be here, inside his secret room, but whenever something wrong would happen, his destination was always here.

He recalled his interaction with his son earlier.

“What happened to your face?”

He could see a brief panic appearing before vanishing on the boy’s face. “Nothing, Dad. I slipped. By the way, what happened to your big day? Got promoted?”

“You are a man now?!” But Emanuel was a master at masking his emotion. “Man, go wash the dishes!”

His boy sniggered before putting every plate in the kitchen sink.

“Don’t tease him. Your son is a grown man too.” Cleo interjected with a faint smile. Emanuel only just smiled at her.

“You bet,” Emanuel muttered while picking a tweezer and started cleaning his facial–his way to relieve stress and waste time. The flickering lights and the low-audible sounds became the background.

Nevertheless, he didn’t seem worried. He already knew his son had always got taken advantage of by bullies in school for a long time. But this was a first.

His eyes darted around. He had been different. He saw things like a kaleidoscope, and in no time, all necessary pieces of information transmitted from the monitor got received by his senses and processed by his brain.

Right now, he already examined who were his targets: their age, characteristics, and even their basic personality. By interpolating, and with a bit of help from a dubious neighbor, Emanuel knew when and where these bastards would poop!

“Let’s see what we can do. I have two days. After that, people might notice something.” Emanuel puffed a gush of fresh air, an act that a normal child did when mimicking smokers. He enjoyed being childish once in a while. It catered to the serious things he could do. Like the sweet sugary taste of a bitter strong coffee.

“Two days, huh? I hate plans. But nothing will move if there’s no plan.”

“Humans have been selfish animals. We are supreme, the creature that stood on top of the food chain by only using a few thousand years. Not even the mighty dinosaurs could do that. Now, we even have weapons that can destroy the very same meteor that wiped these scary animals on the face of the earth.”

“So, it was no doubt we are selfish. We don’t even need to care for the world and played things should be. Hell, some extremists even called out to ignore everything because they argued that ‘they won’t even live that long’ till nature strikes back.”

“Rhinos had their horns cut off by environmentalists just because poachers will hunt them. Hypocrite! But it decreased the rate of these animals dying.”

“Politicians squandered money! What crocodiles! But they organized peace and decrease chaos, created a better system of living so fucking trolls can bash people on the internet.”

“Mosquitos bite and kill thousands. Those annoying suckers! But they are important in the natural cycle because they help pollinate plants.”

“So, who’s correct and who’s wrong… we can never judge them. Or at least, not when I am in the equation.”

“I’m very, very selfish.”

“One blood of my son is a gallon of tears for you!”

“I don’t want to move because I want to be the pillar that will support my family, a tree that they will find cover and shade on every season, and a post that will guide their way.”

“But sorry not sorry… you just make me move.”

Emanuel pinched the last of facial hair on his chin and pulled it so much it left a stinging pain. But the man ignored it and peered at the school gate. The only period the bully trio entered the school.

“This is only temporary. I will return soon to be a sturdy parent for my son.”

Then he smiled. “My daughter is coming back next month. Unfortunately, she won’t be on time for my birthday. Still, I hope she’s okay.”

“Err… My bad. I hope anyone against her is okay…” Emanuel laughed. He still felt a lot worried about his son because the latter didn’t have the same capability as his big sister.

Of course, he didn’t want his boy to suffer like his daughter. It was better if he lived ignorantly. Unbridled and happy was the smart way.

As for her daughter, Emanuel won’t feel worried unless the sky fell. He might even watch her escapades while eating popcorn. Though, it would be in a secret room instead, because his wife didn’t know the truth and he didn’t want to sleep on the sofa because of that. Cleo only knew that her daughter was taking her second bachelor's degree abroad.

While thinking about happy matters, all of a sudden, an immense force struck his ears. He could only sense the heavy silence but had no time to observe before collapsing to the ground.

He huffed—like a drug addict. Bulging veins and bloodshot eyes appeared on his face. The agony was enough to kill a normal person, but Emanuel took it in a stride.

But the ‘something’ inside his head was the real problem.

“You are lost! Go away!” Emanuel bit deep into his finger till a piece of skin burst.

“Low lives should all die, right? These kids are already like this when young, harassing and harming people on daily basis. What would they be when they are older? Bandits? Corrupts? Let’s cut the weeds before they sprout.”

“No! Let’s take time to observe! We can take action after we consider everything. So, just go away.”

“Ah, yes. Cowardice. You’ll need a few punches to settle things. What is the purpose of limbs if no action is required?”

“Not if we put life into scale. Taking a step back doesn’t mean losing.”

Soon, the agony subsided. The adult man heaved for a few seconds. The episodic season came again. Secret—he had a secret before until he met the love of his life. Hence, he became a changed man. A better man, in his own words.

Thinking about his current life put him into tears. No one was an island. Every person, even the toughest and evilest, still needed a particular solace. One that eased not only their physical pains but also their heart and souls.

And he was lucky to find her so fast. Thus, he would never, ever replace what he had with any riches of the world!

“So, my current way is the best way. I just want peace so I’m going easy.” Wiping his eyes with his shoulders, Emanuel rubbed his palms whilst wearing an evil face.

“Shall we use egg bombs? Pfft. Schooling someone is still stimulating and never gets old.”

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