Inside a square room—a somewhat small room—with a colorful carpet decorated with clouds and rainbows, and walls painted pink. The open windows allowed sunlight to shine on two children. The first was a little girl wearing pajamas with a hood that had bunny ears. She was searching inside a box filled with toys.
Behind this girl, who was rummaging without a care, was a boy with green eyes and black hair, wearing a black T-shirt with a Batman logo and blue shorts. He was holding two Lego toys—one was a dragon, and the other was a ninja. He moved them as if they were fighting, making sound effects with his mouth, which resulted in him spitting a bit of saliva on the toys.
"Look, Laos! This is my Lego collection," said the girl as she excitedly carried a handful of small toys and approached the boy who was playing behind her.
"Wow! Emma, this is amazing!" Laos exclaimed, throwing aside his toys and eagerly checking out Emma's collection.
"I'm not really interested in Lego, so you can have them," Emma muttered with an innocent smile.
Suddenly, Laos started jumping up and down, dropping all the toys on the floor. He ran around Emma, spreading his arms high and shouting:
"I am a spaceship that kidnaps amazing children... We have spotted a girl named Emma, a kind and lovely child who gave her Lego collection to another kid... Over, over! We are capturing her now!"
Emma let out a playful scream as she ran away from Laos, who chased her around the room. After a while, they both collapsed on the floor, exhausted, and burst into loud laughter. Then, they started chatting about different topics, like the best ice cream flavor and the airing times of their favorite cartoons. But more than these topics, what mattered was that they talked nonstop, as if they were twins.
"Laos, it's time to go! Come on!" A voice called from outside the room.
Upon hearing this, Laos stood up, gathered the Lego toys in his shirt, and walked with Emma out of the room. They went down a short staircase leading to the first floor, where two women were sitting on a large couch—one blonde and the other with black hair and brown eyes. The two children approached the women.
"Oh, did Emma give you all these toys?" asked the woman with black hair.
"Yes, Mom!" Laos replied.
"That's so kind of you, Emma!" Laos' mother said warmly.
"Wait, Laos, let me put them in a bag for you," Emma's mother said as she stood up from the couch.
After packing the toys into a bag, Laos and his mother walked toward the door leading outside. They stepped out, accompanied by Emma and her mother, who started talking. Seizing the moment, Laos pretended to be a monster and chased Emma, who ran from him across the grass.
"Alright... Just be patient. Divorce should be the last option," Laos' mother said to the other woman.
"Okay, I'll think about it," Emma's mother replied.
After that, Laos and his mother left the house, walking back to their own home. That was Laos' childhood at five years old—a child who loved playing with toys alongside his mother's friend's daughter, Emma. She was his best and only friend, the one he played with endlessly.
◆ ◆ ◆
"Happy Birthday!" Laos' mother cheered as her son blew out the candle. It was autumn, the season when orange leaves fell from the trees. Laos was celebrating his tenth birthday while the rain drizzled outside. Sitting beside him was another figure besides his mother—a tall man with green eyes, wearing pajamas. It was his father, but strangely, he wasn't smiling. All he did was sip a glass of beer placed right next to Laos' juice.
"Dad, move the beer so I can take the picture," said a boy with black hair and a medium build, holding a camera and squinting one of his brown eyes through the lens.
"Alright, alright," the father muttered.
The boy then snapped a picture of Laos smiling in front of his birthday cake, with his mother and father beside him. And yet, despite being a child, despite this being a birthday celebration—which should be the happiest occasion for a kid like him—Laos didn't look truly happy.
"Mom, why didn't Emma come?" Laos asked after sipping his juice.
"Emma, Emma, Emma! Can't you go one day without bringing up that name?" the boy with brown eyes—Michael—grumbled.
"Hey, Michael, stop that! Don't talk to your little brother like that," their mother scolded him.
"Whatever," Michael muttered, grabbing his slice of cake and juice before leaving the room.
"Laos, Emma has her own family matters to take care of, so she can't always come play with you," his mother explained gently.
"But now, it's time for your birthday present!" she added with a wide smile.
"Is it another set of Pokémon cards?" Laos asked.
"No, no! Your gift is your very own gaming device!" his mother exclaimed, pulling out a white Nintendo 3DS and showing it to him.
"What? But this isn't like Michael's PS3," Laos muttered, his face showing slight disappointment.
Suddenly, his father smacked him hard on the head and shouted,
"Take the gift and stop complaining, or I'll smash your head!"
"James, don't do that!!" his mother yelled at her husband.
After that, the father left the room as well, leaving only Laos and his mother. Laos clung to her, tears welling up from the painful hit he received. His mother comforted him, patting his head and trying her best to make him laugh in any way she could.
But he only responded to one sentence. A sentence that made him smile from the bottom of his heart.
"Tomorrow, we're going to see Emma."
On another morning, Michael stood in front of his younger brother, holding a game controller, and said with a menacing look:
"Listen, you know I bought a new game, so my friends are coming over to try it with me... Mom is at work, and so is Dad, so I'm in charge of the house. What I want from you is to sit in your room and not move."
"I won't! I want to go out and show my friends my new console!" Laos shouted.
"I swear I'll smash your head if you leave! I won't be able to keep an eye on you, so stay in your room, or you'll be crying blood!" Michael shouted at the top of his lungs.
After that, Laos retreated to his room and shut the door, then started crying. Over time, he got immersed in his console, playing Mario and his favorite games for hours, lying on his bed and playing. After a while, he put the console aside and started watching outside from the window, staring at the world he wished to go to.
◆ ◆ ◆
Under the summer sun, a long line formed in front of an ice cream truck. The line was crowded, and at its front stood a boy with black hair, wearing a basketball tracksuit. He stepped forward and ordered a large ice cream mixed with vanilla and chocolate sauce. After receiving his order, he left the line.
"Laos, you're thirteen years old. Stop wasting time with that console and those childish games, and come to my house. There will be a lot of people—I bought a new card game with monster pictures!" said a chubby blond boy as he walked behind Laos, who ignored him and kept licking his ice cream.
"It's called Yu-Gi-Oh... and I'm not coming. I bought a new game, and I want to try it." Laos replied.
"Jesus, didn't you hear what the teacher said yesterday? Isolation will make you a bad person!" the chubby boy exclaimed.
"Go fuck yourself, you and that teacher." Laos muttered as he walked away.
The boy left him, and each went their separate ways. Laos continued eating his ice cream, some of it melting in his hand due to the heat. In truth, Laos dreamed of going out and hanging out with friends, but his brother Michael and his father forbade him from leaving the neighborhood, and sometimes they forced him to stay home. This went on for years until Laos got used to isolation and playing alone.
After walking for a while, Laos passed by a house and suddenly stopped. At that moment, a girl with brown hair and a tracksuit stepped out of the house. Seeing her, Laos approached and said:
"Emma, where are you going?"
"I'm going for a run," Emma replied as she headed down the road.
"Great! I'll go with you!" Laos said excitedly.
"Sorry, Laos, but I want to run alone," Emma responded.
"Hey... your parents' divorce doesn't bother you, right?" Laos hesitantly asked.
"..."
Emma ignored his question and ran away. Laos gave up and continued his way home, finishing his day as usual—going inside, heading to his room, playing games on his Nintendo 3DS and Michael's PS3, and watching anime on TV. That was it. He didn't even talk to his family.
On another morning, Laos woke up to the sound of screaming. He ran downstairs to find Emma's mother hugging his own mother, crying and shouting. Laos tried to run to his mother and ask what was going on, but suddenly, a hand grabbed him and pulled him back. When Laos turned, he saw Michael, who stopped him from moving forward.
"What's happening?!" Laos asked loudly.
"..."
"Laos..." Michael muttered.
"Emma... They found her dead after she was hit by a car," Michael said, looking into his brother's shocked eyes.
At this exact moment, Laos' life took a bizarre turn. After Emma couldn't bear the pain of her parents' divorce, she left her life behind. Now, Laos saw the world as if Emma was asking him, "Go ahead, will you be able to bear the suffering of life?"
And at this moment, Laos' relationship with Emma ended, and their moments together became mere memories... Memories that would remain buried in Laos' heart until the day he perished.
2:00 AM
"Haven't you slept yet, you fucking brat?!" A large man shouted at a boy lying on his bed, reading a book.
"I'll finish this chapter, then I'll sleep," the boy replied. It seemed to be Laos, reading one of his favorite light novels.
"Read, read, read... Are you trying to drive me crazy? You talk as if you're studying scientific books that will benefit you!" the father shouted as he walked away from the room.
"Fuck you, you bastard... Fuck, he ruined my mood... I was enjoying this, ugh!!!" Laos muttered, shutting the book and placing it on a nightstand in front of his bed.
After that, he tried to sleep. Laos' habit of isolation had only grown stronger, even at sixteen. After Emma's death, forming relationships became a rare thing for him. At this exact point, Laos saw his life as ruined. After realizing he couldn't sleep, he pulled out his phone.
"Fuck, school again tomorrow!! Ugh, I wanna kill myself and be done with this life!"
After that, he continued watching some anime episodes until he finally drifted off. But before sleeping, he imagined various fantasy scenarios where he died and was transported to another world, just like in his favorite stories. But this wasn't just a fantasy scenario—this was Laos' dream.
Yes, Laos dreamed of going to another world and leaving this one behind. He hated his life here, hated it beyond belief. He despised everything about this world—the people around him, the weather, school, celebrations, shopping, conversations... He hated every human activity.
3:51 PM
Laos returned home after what felt like an exhausting day at school. He threw his bag into a random corner of the room before collapsing onto his bed again, grabbing one of the light novel volumes from his shelf. Staring at the cover, he muttered:
"Here we go! Danmachi Volume 19."
Suddenly, a woman with black hair, much like Laos', appeared—it was his mother. She approached him and sat down on the bed beside him. Before she spoke, Laos set the book aside, waiting for her words. Unlike everyone else, his mother was someone truly dear to him, which is why pausing his reading to listen to her didn't bother him.
"Michael passed the entrance exams. He'll be attending a prestigious university in a distant city," she said.
"Oh, that's great!" Laos replied.
"Well... what I wanted to say is that it's not too late. You can still work hard and become a successful student like him," his mother added.
"Mom, I already told you—I hate school. All I want is to die and go to another world. A world with magic, dragons, and girls with animal ears… That would be so much better than living here!" Laos said, his eyes shimmering as if he were on the verge of tears.
"Hey! Cut that out and go study! Give me those fucking books!" his father suddenly yelled as he barged into the room.
"James, back off! I'm talking to him!" his mother shouted back.
"See? I can't live like this," Laos muttered once he was sure his father had left the room.
"It's okay… just focus on your future. You won't be here forever," his mother whispered.
"I know… I know."
◆ ◆ ◆
Laos' life in this world remained dark—or at least, that's how he saw it. He thought of nothing but leaving this life behind and moving to another world. Even though it was pure fantasy, he pursued it with unwavering seriousness. His family, his country—none of it mattered. He just wanted to start anew in a different world. This was a glimpse into Laos' past, or as he called it, The World of Suffering. But what matters now is the new Laos. The Laos who managed to escape the palace… Will he finally break free from the chains of suffering and begin a new life? Or will he fall into another chain and finish the same plate Emma had before him? No. That was never Laos' goal. Because all this NPC wants… is to refuse that plate—And order a new one. A plate of happiness!
ACT I: A New Servant - END