James returned home late that same night.
The streets were quiet. Most people stayed indoors after dark these days, especially since the Tower had appeared. Sirens occasionally echoed in the distance, and the glow of the city lights reflected faintly off the clouds above.
Mentally, James was exhausted. But his body felt perfectly fine. Ever since gaining his new strength, fatigue barely touched him anymore. Fighting monsters for hours inside the Tower had barely slowed him down.
He reached his house and knocked on the door. Then he waited. And waited. Finally, the door swung open.
Before he could say anything— Smack. His sister slapped him across the face. James blinked in surprise.
"Where were you?" she demanded, her voice sharp with anger. Her eyes were red, like she had been crying.
"I had some errands to run," James answered calmly. "Again."
Her expression twisted with frustration. "We're tired of your errands!" she snapped. "We all know what you're actually doing."
James stayed silent.
"You keep gambling everything away!" she continued. "While we're here trying to hold everything together!"
"You should be looking for a job!"
Her voice cracked.
"Mom is getting worse and worse, James!"
That made him pause. "…What do you mean?"
"She stopped responding this afternoon," his sister said quietly. "The doctor came earlier."
James felt his stomach drop.
"And?"
His sister looked away.
"He said… if nothing changes soon…"
Her voice broke.
"…she might not make it."
Silence filled the doorway. For a moment, James just stood there. Then he stepped inside.
"Where is she?"
"In her room."
James walked down the hallway slowly. His sister watched him go, still angry, still hurt.
"…You don't understand," she muttered under her breath.
But James didn't answer. He opened the door to their mother's room. The lights were dim. Machines quietly hummed beside the bed. His mother looked smaller than he remembered. Paler. Fragile. James stood there for a long moment. Then he sat down beside the bed.
"…Hey, Mom," he said quietly. "You're gonna have to hang in there a little longer."
He looked at his hands. The same hands that had crushed monsters only hours ago.
"…I'm working on it."
For the first time that day, James Carter felt tired.
....
James didn't remember falling asleep.
At some point during the night, while sitting beside the bed, exhaustion finally caught up with him. His head rested against the side of the mattress, and the quiet hum of the machines slowly pulled him into sleep.
Morning came quickly. Sunlight slipped through the curtains, landing across his face. James opened his eyes slowly. For a moment, he didn't remember where he was. Then he looked up. His mother was still lying there, breathing weakly but steadily.
"…Good," he muttered.
He stood up and stretched his shoulders. Despite sleeping in a chair, his body felt perfectly fine. Tower benefits, he thought. Before leaving the room, he glanced back once more.
"Hang in there," he said quietly.
"I'm getting closer."
In the kitchen, his sister was already awake. She didn't look at him when he walked in. James grabbed a glass of water and checked his phone. A notification sat at the top of the screen.
Unknown Number
Coffee today? Around noon. You owe me a story after killing that thing yesterday.
— Elena
James stared at the message for a moment. Then he smirked slightly.
His sister finally looked at him.
"Who's that?" she asked.
"No one important," James said, grabbing a jacket. "I'm heading out for a bit."
She rolled her eyes.
"More errands?"
"Something like that."
About thirty minutes later, James arrived at a small café not far from the hospital district. The place was quiet, mostly filled with people scrolling through news feeds about the Tower. He stepped inside. Elena was already there. She sat by the window with a cup of coffee in front of her, still wearing a light healer jacket, though her hair was now down instead of tied back like yesterday.
When she saw him, she smiled.
"Well," she said. "You actually showed up."
James sat down across from her. "You asked for coffee," he said.
"Didn't want to be rude."
She studied him for a moment. "You don't look like someone who just fought a Level 15 monster yesterday."
"I feel fine."
"That's… not normal."
James shrugged. "Guess I'm built different."
Elena laughed quietly and took a sip of her coffee.
"So," she said.
"What's your deal?" James raised an eyebrow.
"My deal?"
"You show up on the first floor alone, kill something that wiped out an entire squad, then disappear before anyone can ask questions."
She leaned forward slightly. "That's not beginner behavior."
James leaned back in his chair. "Maybe I just got lucky."
Elena gave him a look. "…Right."
They sat there for a moment in comfortable silence. Finally, she spoke again.
"You going back today?"
"To the Tower?"
He nodded. "Yeah."
"Good." She smiled slightly. "Because I was hoping we could climb together."