His mother had died when he was only five years old, shortly after giving birth to his little sister, Naomi.
His father had served in the military for most of his life. After hearing about his wife's death, he decided to return home and take care of his two children. Once back from his military service, he swore to protect them with his life—and for the next eight years, he did just that.
Until one dark night.
Lee’s father received a phone call that changed everything for their family. As he spoke on the phone, his expression turned to one of fear. When the call ended, he gathered us and told us that he had to leave for a military mission, promising to return as soon as possible.
Sadly, that promise was never fulfilled.
Whatever mission he had been called for, he never returned from it. Since then, Lee had no idea what had happened to his father.
Money was still being sent to their home, but whether it was truly from their father or just someone in the military helping them out, even Lee didn’t know. Hell, I don’t even know if he’s alive or dead.
After their father left, their older brother Sam took them into his house. However, despite moving in with him, they rarely saw him due to his demanding job as a doctor at the hospital.
And now, here he was—a boy who had grown into an eighteen-year-old man. He played basketball on the high school team and worked as a waiter in a restaurant to earn money. Standing at 5’7”, he was shorter than most for his age, but it didn’t bother him much.
Naomi, his sister, had grown rapidly over the years and now resembled a young lady. They shared everything with each other. He recalled a time when someone in her class had confessed their feelings to her, asking her to be their girlfriend. To the unfortunate suitor's dismay, Naomi turned him down immediately.
When Lee questioned her about it, she smiled sweetly and said, “If I became his girlfriend, I wouldn’t have time for my big brother. So, I just refused him.”
[She’s going to have a hard time getting a boyfriend in the future with that personality. Well, one less problem for me to worry about.] Lee thought.
However, his life took an unexpected turn.
One day, out of nowhere, a blinding flash of white light engulfed his sister Naomi as she sat at her computer. All he saw was that flash—then everything went dark.
When he came to, just ten minutes later, Naomi was gone.
He remembered running down the streets, screaming her name, pleading for her to come home. But even his desperate cries led to nothing. The police were no help, only making him angrier.
Six months had passed since that heart-wrenching day.
Even half a year later, he couldn’t come to terms with her sudden disappearance. The incident had been so shocking that he quit the high school basketball team and his job as a waiter.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
When he told people what had happened, no one believed him. Some even suspected him of harming her and making her vanish. The police treated him as a suspect, adding to his frustration and deepening his hatred for the situation.
Days passed in a monotonous routine.
He woke up, went to school, pretended to pay attention in class, returned home, ate his meal, punched the punching bag while imagining an opponent, practiced the katas his father had taught him, completed his homework, went to bed, and then repeated the same routine the next day.
His friends tried to help him snap out of his frustration, but no matter what they did, he couldn’t shake off the memory of that day. He needed to know what had happened to his little sister. Someone out there had to know something.
Time kept moving forward.
One day, after returning home from school, he went straight to his little sister’s room.
[Where are you, Naomi? I hope with all my heart that you are safe,] Lee thought.
He entered her room and settled into her chair, unsure how many times he had sat there over the past six months.
And then, unexpectedly, a sound.
Plop.
The computer turned on.
Why was the computer on? He could have sworn it wasn’t like that just a second ago.
He glanced at the screen, and a message popped up.
"Hello, Lee. Do you want something more? Do you want to know what happened to your little sister and your father? A new chance to make things right and regain all that you've lost? If so, click 'Yes'."
What was this message? Was it real?
"I don't have much time. What's your answer?"
Doubt filled his mind. Could this be some kind of elaborate prank?
But he decided to play along—to entertain the enigmatic messenger. Perhaps there was a tiny chance of truth in this strange situation.
He tapped "Yes," and suddenly, a blinding flash of white light enveloped him.
"WHAT THE...? WHAT'S GOING ON?" he exclaimed as the light consumed him.
In an instant, the light vanished.
So did Thomas Lee.
Mission Details:
- World: Eden no Ori
- Time of story: Twenty-four hours before the escape of the animals
- Time before the mission starts: Half an hour
- Time limit: 1 week
- Status: All previous team members died in the previous mission
- Problem Calculated
- Solution Found - Randomly sending a guide twenty minutes before the mission begins
Mission: Retrieve the key of the Spiral Tower
- Points: Everyone receives 500 points and a D-rank reward for obtaining the key
- Basic Reward: 500 points
Side Missions:
- Kill Wild Boar: 5 points
- Kill Wolf: 5 points
- Kill Grizzly Bear: 10 points
- Kill Tiger: 15 points
- Kill Diatryma: 30 points
- Kill Smilodon: 50 points
- Kill Entelodon: 50 points
- Kill Short-Faced Bear: 150 points + D-rank reward
- Kill Andrewsarchus: 250 points + 2 D-rank rewards