Morning came fast, warmth spreading around the bustling city. The blazing sun was slowly rising above the sky, no clouds in sight to be an obstacle to its scorching rays.
The sunlight slipped quietly inside the window of an apartment, dust motes visibly drifting lazily around the air. The room was bare, almost minimalistic. Inside was a mattress, a wooden table, and chair. No decorations were present inside the room, it was simplistic to the core like the room has no personality. There was an empty space beside the kitchen, a punching bag and a couple of gym equipment. This was the apartment of a disciplined and simple man.
Lucien opened his eyes and sat up on the edge of his bed, always on time with his routine even without using any alarm. He stood up with no wasted movements, tidied his bed and went into his kitchen to make a breakfast. After a simple sunny side up and hot dog with rice meal, Lucien went to the bathroom to brush his teeth.
After brushing his teeth, Lucien stared at mirror, his deep black eyes like the abyss staring back at him. Lucien stood above average height with a lean build, his muscles ripped. He has a striking appearance, with defined cheekbones, straight nose, and sharp jawline which is always shaved. Lucien was a very handsome mid 20's man. His hair was dark and slightly long and unkempt, softening his aggressive vibes. When you see him, you'll see that he is full of imperfections, with the way he styles his hair and his outfit, but it was all deliberate. A disguise to cover the real Lucien inside him.
Finishing all his morning preparations, wearing a normal black suit and tie with a white undershirt and black pants, and glasses, Lucien locked the door on his apartment and slowly walked outside the compound. Waiting for the bus to pass by, Lucien put on his earphones and listened to music.
It was another typical morning for Lucien, as he always do through the years. Like a well-oiled robot, he functions like this day by day without any flaws. But no emotionless robot is perfect without flaws. Sometimes, even the most cautious man can slip and forgot something, making a mistake that can end his career and life.
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Arriving at his company building, Lucien walked steadily towards the elevator. It was still early in the morning so the company was buzzing with noise and actions. People walked everywhere and was busy with all of their own devices. Even with the nerdy glasses and the unstylish hair, Lucien's aloofness and height makes him stand out amongst the crowd. People inside the building constantly sneak glances on him until he enters the elevator.
"Good morning, Luci!" Ara greeted Lucien as he stepped out of the elevator with a wide smile on her face. As the life of the party, Ara brings warmth and joy to those around her. With her cheerful vibes, cute height, and pretty face, nobody dislikes Ara. Everyone always greet her with wide smiles and they often give her gifts or food as the popular girl of their department, but not Lucien. To him, Ara is like all the other coworkers.
"Morning to you too," Lucien greeted back nonchalantly as he went straight directly to his cubicle to start up his personal computer to begin working.
Around him, the cacophony of people was talking, printers printing paper, and keyboard clicking filled the office space. Other people was also standing beside the coffee machine, their conversations ranging from the occurrences on their life to others' relationships.
Another boring day, Lucien thought to himself as he logged in on his computer to start his daily quota.
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As Lucien continued to type on the keyboard, someone approach the cubicle near him and gossiped.
"Did you see the news on social media last night? Apparently, someone died near our building. Just across us, inside one of the alleys we frequently pass by!" a man in his 30's said while he slightly covered his mouth sideways with his hands.
Lucien typed while listening attentively, his actions calculated and precise.
"I saw that too! Apparently, he was not a good guy. The police investigated his house to find a motive for why he was murdered when they found strands of hair of the murdered girls and several other missing teens which are all female!"
"Lower your voice! Do not get too excited, otherwise, Ara will scold us!"
"What are you two gossiping about?" Ara asked, suddenly appearing like a ghost behind the man who was standing.
"N-nothing," the standing man stuttered as he straightened his back like a soldier encountering his drill instructor.
" It was the horrifying news last night," the man who was sitting said as he stifled his laughter when he saw how nervous his gossiping workmate was.
" Oh, the murder case that was done by the Executioner?" Ara asked as she leaned on the wall of a cubicle near Lucien.
Lucien stopped typing for a brief moment when he heard the nickname but quickly recovered as he continued his work like nothing happened.
"Yes, that one. What do you think of it? Is it a good thing or a bad thing?" The man sitting inside his cubicle probed, waiting for Ara's response but the guy standing beside him butted in on their conversation.
"I think he's a bad guy. We got a justice system for that specific type of people. Why bring justice in your own hands? That's just like becoming the thing you hate," The standing man said as he caressed his non-existent stubble on his chin.
"For me, I think he's one of the good guys. He's making sure that we ordinary people will be safe at all times by unaliving the evil people," Ara said with worship in her eyes, like a fan girl fangirling over an idol.
"I think he means well too," Lucien said as well as he continued typing, the gossiping trio stuck in place like they were frozen in time.
"Lucien engage in gossips too?" the standing man asked as he put his elbow on top of the cubicle of Lucien.
"It was an interesting topic, so I gave my opinion," Lucien replied as he stopped typing for a moment to stare at the eyes of the standing man and went back to typing after a brief eye contact.
" So you believe that bad people should be murdered?" the sitting man asked Lucien as he stood too to get a better look of Lucien.
"I believe that someone should be cleaning the dirt of our society," Lucien said as he stared at the man who asked him, his black eyes never faltering.
"I agree with him too," Ara said as she slightly smiled.
" Anyways, enough of that you three, now get back to work!" Ara scolded them like she was not part of the conversation moments ago.
-----
Their work continued, papers shuffling, and keyboards typing until lunch came.
Lucien sat at the table near the window of their building, alone and quiet. Across the cafeteria, his co-workers sat together, their laugh reverberating as someone told a funny joke. Across another area of the cafeteria, women are seriously discussing what are the latest trends in fashion and make up.
Lucien ate undisturbed, silent as he occasionally glanced at the window. He was eating the same food, he was sitting at the same seat, and he was doing the same things for how many years. It was methodical and calculated, but it prevents anyone from figuring him out, the skeletons from his closet remaining unseen.
-----
The scorching sun was now slowly setting above the gold-covered sky as the day ended. People was flooding out buildings as they either went directly to their homes or roam around the city to enjoy its presence.
Lucien stepped out of their building, people passed him, talking and laughing. Lucien's stride was fast but he did not bump anyone, like a ghost walking through the crowd.
Lucien stopped at a crossroad, waiting for the traffic light to turn green. He observed the variety of people around him. A middle aged man was arguing with someone on his phone, his voice is loud and anger is present on his voice. A man in his 20's bumped a girl drinking coffee, making her drop it and spill it on her clothes, no apologies was said. Lucien observed them silently.
The traffic light turned green, people walked across the pedestrian lane, filling the road as they pass.
Monsters are rampant in this city, anyone could be evil. They need to be cleansed, I need to be the janitor again, Lucien thought as he walked among them, like a wolf wearing a sheep's wool.
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Sweat drips from Lucien's body as his fists slammed into the heavy punching bag, his force controlled and no wasted movement.
The chain holding the punching bag above creaked with each punch of Lucien, loud impacts echoing across the room rhythmically. Only wearing boxing wraps on his fists, Lucien continued throwing a variety of fist and leg techniques.
Minutes turned into hours, Lucien's ripped body was now glistening with sweat. He stopped punching and kicking the sandbag and drank cold water. His workout then shifted to push ups, pull ups, core, and cardio exercises.
Lucien then stopped at exactly 8 PM, his sweat now pooled below him. He grabbed a towel and wiped the sweat from his face and body, his expression unchanged. He then grabbed a floor rag to clean his floor, a clean environment is necessary for a calm mind.