'Wow.' that was the only thought in lucius' mins as they rode into a luxurious looking estate.
The car that came to pick Elizabeth seemed like am expensive one too. For once in his lifez he felt like his luck has turned good for the first time.
If he hadn't saved the younger woman, then he wouldn't have had this opportunity.
He looked to his side, seeing the younger woman looking out of the window with a serious expression, as if in deep thought.
Her skin was smooth and fair, devoid of blemishes and imperfections of mortals. The sun seemed to make her blonde hair have a metallic sheen to it.
'She's quite beautiful.' he thought, looking back out the window the next second.
Elizabeth was wearing a medical patient's attire so he wasn't able to see her body fully.
All heroes were practically saints worshipped by the people. They were like gods walking amongst men.
'Now that I think about it, this is the second time I'm meeting a hero face to face. The first time was...' Lucius' neutral expression transitioned into a cold look.
'The first time was...' the image of him being stabbed to a wall by dozens of daggers flashed in his memory.
After a while of driving inside the estate, the car finally arrived at a hotel with a huge black gate.
The gate buzzed open letting the car in.
Despite their arrival, Elizabeth still had her gaze distracted, lost in thought.
The car came to a halt, parking alongside hundreds of luxury cars. Lucius couldn't help but think that she was rich.
"...heroes sure are living the life." He rubbed his chin, eyes flicking across the sharp angles of the estate. For once in his miserable life, it almost felt like fortune had smiled on him.
If he hadn't stepped in to save her, he would have still been grinding in the outlands.
The driver opened Elizabeth's door first. She hesitated before stepping out, her thin slippers touching the marble pavement. Lucius followed behind, scanning the armed guards stationed at the gate. Every single one of them looked at him as though he was a rat that had crawled out of a sewer.
He could feel the emotions emitting out of their bodies.
'Disgust...' he shook his head. 'I actually do look like a pig.'
"Welcome home, lady Elizabeth," one of the butlers greeted her, bowing. His eyes flickered briefly to Lucius, and the corner of his lip twitched. "And… guest?"
Lucius shoved his hands into his filthy pockets. "Relax, I'm house-trained."
Elizabeth ignored the remark, her mind still clearly on something else. She ignored the butler and the guards walking towards the elevator.
Lucius trailed after her, his eyes wandering across chandeliers, polished floors, and walls decorated with paintings and pictures of heroes that looked too pompous to smile.
For a moment, he caught himself wondering what it would've been like to be born into a place like this. To never have had to fight for scraps, to never have had to crawl in the dirt just to breathe another day.
[System Notice: Your envy has stirred. Sin gauge +1.]
Lucius scoffed. "Shut up."
They ascended up the elevator at a slow pace, and throughout the ride none of them said anything.
It didn't take long for the both of them to get to her suite. It was rather luxurious, having fancy lighting.
Lucius leaned back on the couch first. There were rewards from the system that he didn't check before he took the lady here.
[SYSTEM UPDATE: Sin Gauge unlocked.]
[Sin Gauges: 0/7]
[Each gauge represents a sin. Filling one will unlock a unique power, tailored to the sin's essence. Sin points can be gained by killing enemies and commiting villainous acts.]
[Current Gauges: Wrath (1/100), Envy (1/100), Pride (0/100), Lust (0/100), Greed (3/100), Gluttony (0/100), Sloth (0/100).]
[Completion Rewards: Passive stat bonuses, special skills, unique Titles. Warning: The further the gauges fill, the further your humanity will slip.]
Lucius chuckled softly under his breath. "Heh. Humanity was never much of a prize anyway."
[Once all sun gauges are full, the user can access an ascended form]
[System Notice: Sin Gauge—greed at 3! Chances to stumble upon rewards in dungeons have been increased.]
[Your luck has increased by 5!]
'What? No way...!'
[luck –5. An attribute is affecting your luck]
'Tsk.' Lucius gritted his teeth.
He closed the screen just as Elizabeth touched his sleeve lightly. "Lucius… come with me."
She led him through a door, heading to another room which has a bed in it. The chamber smelled faintly of lavender and old paper, lined with shelves of books and a single polished desk. She closed the door behind them.
Elizabeth turned, her expression sharp now, not the polite smile she wore in front of others. "What did you mean?" she asked quietly. "What you said to me before we boarded the car."
Lucius sighed. He knew this was coming, she had been thinking about it ever since.
Lucius folded his arms, leaning lazily against the desk. His dark eyes glinted. "Ah… that."
Her jaw tightened. "Say it again."
He stepped closer, just enough that his voice dropped to a whisper.
"I told you that the people close to you wants you dead."
Elizabeth froze, the weight of the words sinking in. Her hand trembled at her side.
"...Why would you say something like that?"
Lucius tilted his head, his tone neither mocking nor sympathetic—just coldly honest. "Because I've seen it before. And I've lived it."
"Your expression shows that you're aware, but you probably don't want to believe it."
Her eyes widened slightly as he continued, voice low.
"I was a kid. Trusted the wrong people. We were playing by the docks—laughing, joking around like idiots. My FRIENDS pushed me into the water. They stood there, still laughing, while I thrashed around. I didn't know how to swim. Every second felt like knives carving into my chest."
He paused, his gaze unfocused for a moment.
"I only survived because I remembered something I saw in a movie. Floating, kicking slow, not panicking. Clawed my way back out while they just… watched." His lips twisted into a bitter smile. "When I crawled onto the wood, coughing my lungs out, they were still laughing."
Elizabeth pressed a hand against her chest, her breathing uneven. "That's… cruel."
"That's people." Lucius' voice hardened. "The ones closest to you are the ones who can sink the knife the deepest. Don't act so surprised that someone wants you dead. Act surprised if they don't."
Silence hung heavy in the room. Elizabeth's eyes wavered, as if torn between denial and the cold logic in his words.
"Thank you for saving me." She smiled, walking away from him.
Lucius smirked faintly.
"Don't think about it too much. People always said I was crazy anyway."
Elizabeth blinked, almost as if his words tugged her between fear and curiosity.
Lucius straightened up, rolling his shoulders. "Now… where's the bathroom?"
Elizabeth hesitated, then pointed toward a smaller adjoining door near the shelves. "That's… my personal washroom. I'll call some of the servants—"
"Nah," Lucius cut her off, already walking toward it. "I'll manage."
She followed reluctantly, only to freeze as he casually tugged his grimy shirt over his head. Her eyes went wide. "Wait! What are you doing?!"
Lucius arched a brow at her. "What's it look like? Bathing. Or do you want me to keep walking around stinking up your fancy mansion?"
Elizabeth sighedz turning around. "You were just going to get naked in front of me. You're on another level, really."
"Another level of what—?"
"You know, you give me the vibe of an animal."
Lucius' lips twitched as he looked at her. He then shook his head before stepping inside the bathroom.
The room was pristine, polished marble with a wide mirror above a gleaming basin. He stripped the rest of his mud-caked clothing and stepped into the warm water in the tub, letting it wash away the filth on his body.
The gunk and grime in his hair loosened, sliding off in clumps. For the first time in what felt like forever, he felt… clean.
When he leaned forward, dripping water across the sink, his reflection caught his attention.
His skin was... smooth, flawless wouldn't even benan exaggeration.
"The scars... Are gone?" Lucius mumbledz his eyes looking empty as they stared into the mirror.
Every scar that had once been on his body was gone. His physique was lean, more refined than it had been before his awakening. But it was his eyes that unsettled him most.
They were an unnatural shade of red, glaring back at him in the mirror.
Lucius frowned, leaning closer.
That was when the mirror smirked back at him.
"Enjoying your time here?"
"What the f—!"
Before he could finish, his foot slipped against the slick marble. He crashed to the floor, water splashing across the tiles as his heart thundered in his chest.
His reflection in the mirror didn't fall with him.
"Hahahah, it's nice to see you too."