Say Hi to Our Dad

[Difficulty level 10/10]

Congratulations, you have chosen the worst start. With the highest probability, you will lead a bad life. You are talented but poor.

Background: Orphaned.

Character Stats:

-A stat point can have a maximum value of 25-

(total stats points 100)

Body: 9

Agility: 14 (theft bonus +2)

Vitality: 7

Mind: 13

Heart:?

Spirit: 22

Charisma: 20 (puberty penalty -5)

Luck: 0

Inventory: Empty.

At age six, Ru described his society as 'gigantic stupidity.' At the age of ten, he decided to live his life selfishly. He wanted to be an idol and had the ambition and talent for it. By age fifteen, he was the poorest student at the luxurious and posh art school with a 100% scholarship.

But Ru was clever and devious. He was already determined to go to any lengths to get the life he desired.

Today's math class was boring. Ru, who had already learned the probabilities thanks to gambling, was looking out of the window, watching the increasingly cloudy sky. The humid air was as oppressive as the teacher's lecture.

He loosened his tie in a show of subtle rebellion against the stifling atmosphere. Greeting the girls' flirtatious glances, Ru slicked his hair back. He stood up at the teacher's request and strode confidently forward, staring at the question on the blackboard.

Ru solved the difficult question without a moment's hesitation. He gave a middle finger to the rival geeks without the teacher noticing, then sat back down.

The sky, meanwhile, was growing darker and darker. Clouds, like an ever-expanding canvas, piled on top of each other. Lost in their shapes, Ru sculpted fantastical creatures with his imagination, oblivious to the world around him. Suddenly, a voice high-pitched like a mosquito's buzz pierced his reverie.

<Dad?>

This voice belonged to a little girl, reaching Ru's mind from an unknown source.

<Are you so bored, Dad? >

Familiar with the voice he heard and his absence, "Uh oh," Ru muttered, a sinking feeling creeping in. "Meds again, weren't they?"

<Snap out of it, Ru! We're real, not some dream! We're your daughters!> said another girl's voice, slightly different from the previous one.

Someone else supported her: <C'mon, Dad! Don't you recognize us? It's us, your girls!>

A girl said with a giggle, <Our dad is so silly. >

<Do you want us to cheer you up, Dad? > asked someone else.

Ru slammed his fist on the desk. "Get the fuck out of my head!"

As everyone in the class looked at Ru, his seatmate Alan tapped Ru's knee sharply under the desk. "Focus up, man. What's going on?"

"Umm! Sorry, I'm hungry. I wonder how long until the end of class," said Ru, trying to get his bearings.

His head still throbbed, the voices echoing faintly now, like whispers in a storm.

When everyone went back to the blackboard, Ru looked at the clock. Ten minutes before the end of class, the minute hand sped up. Or did it? His vision blurred, time-warped, and swirled around him.

Ru's breath hitched. "Wh-what..."

Alan, sensing Ru's distress, leaned closer. "Hey, you okay, man?"

"Nothing," Ru said.

A sudden crack of thunder boomed outside, mimicking the internal storm raging within Ru.

CAAARRAACK!

There was a flash of lightning outside. The air was illuminated with red light. Everyone in the class focused on the window.

The red lightning faded from the sky, but the color it left behind triggered chaos. Even the walls of the classroom seemed to be painted in pale red, and every shadow looked menacing.

"Red," asked one of the schoolgirls, hesitant and scared.

The murmurs turned into worried whispers, and some students glanced out the window.

"Is it the end of the world?" whispered one student, rubbing his hands.

"Don't be ridiculous," said another, trying to laugh but her voice was tense.

"It's just a weird lightning strike."

The teacher's eyes darted around the room, taking in the students' reactions. They were all wide-eyed and pale, their faces filled with fear.

The teacher took a deep breath and spoke in a firm voice. "It was cosmic lightning," he said and continued, "A rare natural phenomenon. Now calm down and be quiet. Tom, come and solve the last question on the blackboard."

The students exchanged glances, but they didn't dare disobey the teacher. Tom stood up and walked to the blackboard. He picked up the chalk pen and began to write.

Tom, the undisputed champion of lunchtime arm wrestling, has remained Ru's silent enemy since their fateful match. A scrawny, short boy compared to Tom, Ru had always been a bit of a geek.

Tom's confident demeanor and effortless solution to the math problem fueled Ru's jealousy even more.

Instead of the usual murmur of classmates, Ru's ears were suddenly filled with high-pitched, disembodied giggles of children. The sound seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once, prickling his skin with goosebumps.

<Aw, our daddy is still jealous. >

<You're very jealous, Dad. >

Ru was counting the pills out of his bag when one of the girls asked;

<Are you ready, Dad? >

<The show's about to start. >

<The Gates of Hell will open. >

<They are coming for you. >

3!

2!

1!