GRRRRMHM....
The garbage van moved, revealing an empty trash container.
Scuff...
A beggar with torn clothes came and started reaching for something inside the trash container.
Frrsh...
He got his hands on a very firm paper bag. As he put his hand inside, he grabbed something...
Pulling it out, he found out it was a gun, clean and completely loaded.
"Hey! What are you doing with things that are not yours?" a voice came from behind him.
"Does it belong to you, then? It is illegal, you know," the beggar tried to threaten the man.
"So are we going the hard way now?" the man asked, coming closer.
"Just give me money; I will not tell anyone," the beggar said in fear.
"You know what except money you will get here?" the man said, his hand suddenly glowing.
"What, what is this? And your face... you were the one who died in the stadium, you are, you..."
The beggar didn't complete the sentence.
THOOOM!! KRAK!
The man punched the beggar with his glowing hand; the beggar's head directly got detached from his torso, falling into the trash container behind.
Tak...
A stick fell behind the man, and he turned. It was...
[Lucian Whitmore - POV]
"See, see, I know I wasn't meant to see that, but I mistakenly saw that now. Please show some mercy," I said, sitting and missing my hand.
"Sorry, child, but you have to die," the man said, appearing right behind me and grabbing my nape.
"Sir, please, it's hurting me. I won't tell anyone," I said in pain.
"I don't want to chat with you." The man raised his non-dominant hand, which started glowing.
I suddenly? I? Or who? I suddenly stopped shivering from pain.
Why am I going into a deep sleep? It felt like my next blink was the last before I slept, and... I did that....
"Even though middle-aged, you didn't seem to be an arcanist from birth. So tell me, are you an arcanist by birth?" Lucian's voice changed.
The man's expression changed as if his secret had just got revealed. His fist loosened.
"And also, the amount of flux you are giving your hand is not enough to lay a scratch on me," Lucian said, his voice much more confident.
"What? How do you know about all this, boy?" the man asked in shock.
[Man's thoughts]
His clothes—the grey hoodie, black track pants, and those sneakers—are a perfect fit. He isn't wearing the academy dress beneath, so he can't roam either, 'cause he definitely isn't 18, so he will be faking it so I get distracted so he could run to save his life.
"If you are done thinking, remove your filthy hands off my nape," Lucian said, correcting his posture like he was another human in his own body. Is he?
"You think you can distract me and run with these words?" the man said, regaining his cool and launching a punch.
THOOOM!! KRRRK! FWOOSH!!
Before the man's punch could reach Lucian's face, Lucian, with his non-dominant hand, tore the man's hand from which he had grabbed him by the nape and reappeared 7 meters away from him.
"Truly a rookie move." Lucian spat on the blood flowing from the torn arm of the man.
"How? This isn't possible. The General said I made it to flux stage-2, Vita core, then how?" the man said, collecting his falling blood.
"Tsk... Tsk... Tsk, I don't know who this general of yours is. But when I had reached flux stage-2, my father buried his hand in my chest and grabbed my heart for a whole 2 minutes," Lucian said, completely changed, throwing the torn hand into the same trash container which had the beggar's head.
"My hand... My power... I am the most powerful weapon to defeat the blasphemy," the man mumbled, ignoring ME.
"Excuse me, what happened here? And ahh! What happened with your arm? Are you okay, sir?" I said, coming close to the man.
"Are you making fun of me, changing your tone and this kindhearted statement?" the man frowned.
"I am making fun of you? But why do you think so? Leave that, you are bleeding too much." I tried to close the distance.
"You... you filthy child, you will die here and now! I am the inevitable soldier who never loses a fight," the man screamed.
FWOOSH!!
The man vanished and reappeared behind me, and at that moment I felt real fear. My bones shook in fear—it isn't like I haven't been hit my whole life, but it's like I don't wanna get hit anymore.
"There are many rookies, but you are the dumbest of them all," Lucian said, grabbing his hand.
[Flashback]
THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!
Three straight, powerful punches landed on Lucian's chin.
"What, you pig, you dare to complain about us?" one of the bullies said to Lucian.
"I swear I never..." They didn't let him complete it.
THWACK!
One more punch landed on his face.
Tak! Tak! Tak!
As the bullies turned, he ran with his remaining strength. He ran as fast as he could, AS ALWAYS.
"I lied to everyone that my father is a car mechanic and I live a happy life," Lucian said to himself in the mirror, applying the medicine.
"You should hear this every day. Your father left you and your mother, as he was too drowned in his gambling. Your mother left you for another man and left you to die here." Lucian raised his finger, saying all this to himself.
"H-Hic... the people you call friends bully you, torture you, blame you, and you... you just run... loser, you run, you run." Lucian threw things at the mirror while crying.
"Are these genes? Or are they just excuses? You can't even study, you piece of shi—" Lucian said, slapping himself.
"What are you? What are you to yourself?" Lucian was interrupted.
RIIING!! RIIING!!
A landline, closed for many years, rang.
"I have seen so many rookies, but you are the dumbest of them all," a voice said from the phone.
[Flashback End]
"I cannot see anything; it's very dark," I said, standing in the middle of nowhere.
"Do you remember what I said on our first phone call? Whenever you can't handle things, do... not... swi... tch," the words projected in front of my eyes.
[The man's thoughts]
I am too close. If I just reach his head, he will die. My hand is just very close.
"Huh!" the man's eyes widened.
TCHK!
Lucian opened his eyes.
SHNK!
His pupil divided into three parts, making two crescent moons from the top and bottom part, arranging themselves leaving the middle part as the seed of origin.
VMMMM...
You don't wanna know what happened?
[The man's last thoughts]
It is like a four-pointed star is blasting this close to me, but it is purple in colour. Is this boy raising his hand to kill me?
No, he is just showing me the middle fin...
...ger.
I have to tell you everything that happened...
"Ah! What just happened? Where is that?" I said, regaining my consciousness.
"…" a very low voice came into my ears.
"What?" I asked, as I didn't hear what the voice said.
"Run," a voice shouted in my head.
Tak... Tak... Tak...
I ran as fast as I could, AS ALWAYS.
Leaving behind the trash container which had my today's morning, the beggar's head and body, and above that was the upper half of the man, his lower half on his chest, completely, forcefully torn.
But the man was not dead. With his own glowing hand, he was cutting his other hand like he was being controlled to do that.
His eyes were open, but he wasn't seeing the sky, rather a dream—a painful one with open eyes.
But don't worry, the dream won't end 'cause...
...before it, he himself would meet his end.
And the reason I would love to tell you this is 'cause I know this story better than anyone in the world. You know why? Because this IS MY STORY...
And where should I start from??
Correct. It should be from....
Tring! Tring!
A very old-style street cycle stopped in front of Lucian's house.
"La la la," the boy hummed, coming towards Lucian's house.
"I really don't know who he is, but coming towards my house, I guess he must be my friend from school," I said to myself.
Ding-dong!
He rang the bell, and I opened it as fast as possible.
"What, you are ready this fast, Lucian? I thought you would take another 15 min," the boy said, entering the house.
[Lucian's thoughts]
His style of wearing a loose black button shirt, some buttons open, sleeves rolled up to the forearm, somewhat loose high-waisted black tailored trousers, and those black leather loafers—he looks like a goon rather than a student.
Snap!
He snapped his fingers in front of me.
"What are you so busy thinking, Lucian?" the boy asked, his thin rectangular glasses shining.
"No, no, nothing, let's go to school," I said, turning.
[My thoughts]
How do I ask his name?
"Do you have amnesia? I told you we have to go and save the friend who was addicted to games of chance," the boy said, keeping a hand on Lucian's shoulder.
"You mean g-ambling? How can I be friends with someone like them?" I said with disgust.
"It is not like that, Lucian. The person who can send 3000€ (3000 euros), he is definitely our friend," the boy said.
"But why did he send 'us' the money?" I said, getting away from him.
"First of all, the answer to 'why' is to protect him from the president of the app where he played these games of chance. He played because he has taken a massive amount of loan from him, which he cannot pay the president back. That is why the president is torturing him, and this is what we have to protect him from," the boy said with a devilish smile.
"And the answer to why 'we' is because we are best friends—more than friends, brothers actually," the boy said, coming closer.
"But we are just students in...
...middle school, 12 years old. How and why will we do this?" I asked him.
"Mr. and Mrs. Kurogane once said, 'Do anything for money, boy'," the boy said, putting both hands on my shoulders.
"And who are they?" I asked in shock.
"Who? Mr. and Mrs. Kurogane? They are the ones who gave me my surname and name. In short, they are my parents and the namers of the legendary KUROGANE JIN," Jin said, moonwalking.
"But why are you doing this?" I said, wailing dramatically.
"'Cause you are taking too long to come, my body is moving on its own," Jin said, showing more steps.
"Ok! Ok! I am coming, but I don't know how to fight, and what about school?" I asked.
[My thoughts]
I don't know where, but I definitely had heard his name somewhere in my memory. No, it is like I have read it in The Arcane Herald. No, there is no publishing house like that. I must be hallucinating.
"Who cares about school?" Jin said, throwing my bag. "And about your fighting skill, leave that. The host of the party will handle it."
"Wait! You aren't the host?" I asked in shock. "Then who is the host?"
"HAHAHA, my old friend, I am gonna attend a competition with him in 4 months," Jin said, making me sit on the back of his cycle.
"Who? And what competition, Jin?" I asked.
"His name? The competition name? Hahaha, you will know," Jin giggled.
"You know he is my best friend, and I also borrowed this cycle from him, and you don't want to mess with him, so sit properly," Jin threatened me, smiling.
I adjusted myself on the seat, but then I saw something that completely changed my facial expression—a badge which had a name printed on it.
[My thoughts]
The name on the badge is of m…mine?