The angel watched him in silence. Lumian on the other hand, didn't know what to do.
Slowly… he stepped back.
But in the next instant, a light tap landed on his shoulder.
He froze.
"Lumian."
The voice came from behind.
He turned, his heart trembling—
—and saw him.
The angel stood there, dressed in a blue-and-black robe, his slightly long black hair framing a calm, almost gentle face.
He smiled. "Why are you running?" he asked softly. "I'm only asking for my coin back."
Lumian said nothing. Instead, he brought the pressure to his head.
From his perception, he noticed the man was glowing in black. He was very dangerous!
With trembling hands, Lumian reached into his pocket and returned the coin.
Abel took it, smiling faintly as he slipped it away.
"You know," he said casually, "this coin was given to me by someone very special."
He glanced at Lumian. "I even did a divination for you… and you didn't return it."
"That's not very polite."
Lumian couldn't respond. His throat felt tight. His body refused to calm.
Abel studied him for a moment… then spoke again. "And I have a question, It seems you visited a rather strange place. A place where most people don't return, I would love to ask, how are a you still here."
Hearing that, Lumian immediately thought about his visit to the land of evernight. Oh shit! How does he know I went to the land of evernight.
Abel chuckled softly and turned away.
"You're quite interesting."
He took a few steps forward, his figure already beginning to blur into the darkness.
"I'm sure we'll meet again soon. Till next time Lumian." With that he finally disappeared.
What the f**k! He even knows my name, and why did he just mention it so casually... Lumian inwardly said, as his body was trembling. He heaved a sigh of relief, and did not want to dwell any longer.
He quickly crossed the street, paid four pounds and entered a taxi, heading home without a second thought.
...
Cornerstone, No. 21.
After returning home, Lumian got some proper rest.
He woke early the next morning—seven o'clock.
Dressing in his black coat, he combed his hair before settling onto the couch beside his brother, who was busy playing a game.
To be honest… Lumian wasn't entirely at ease. The man from last night lingered in his mind. That presence… Could he be Phase 5?
The aura was even more dangerous than Mr. Hayes. I pray to Skywalker, I won't meet him ever again.
Picking up a copy of the Arclif Article, Lumian began reading.
As expected, the murder Mrs. Venerable mentioned had already made the news.
He simply shook his head.
Beside him, Kelvin let out a chuckle without looking away from his phone.
"Lumian, have you heard about this game?"
Lumian lowered the newspaper slightly and glanced at the screen.
"Yeah, it's pretty popular right now."
He paused.
"But shouldn't you be at work?"
Kelvin shrugged. "Yep. But I still have time, I'm leaving around eight, before calling the babysitter to look after Laura, since they're done for the term."
"But to be honest." Lumian interrupted. "You look like a kid right now. Meanwhile, I'm here reading the news."
Hearing that, Kelvin chuckled. "Okay bro. That's just for you, get older okay."
With that statement, Lumian's mouth twitched. And to top it off, Kelvin added. "No wonder you don't have a girlfriend."
That statement alone, sent blow after blow in Lumian's heart. He leaned back slightly, saying nothing.
After all, Kelvin was the older brother.
...
With some time passed, Kelvin headed to work, while Lumian remained in the house for sometime.
Amid the stillness, Lumian suddenly removed his gaze from the newspaper onto his arm, where he noticed that his skin was slowly darkening.
A thin layer of shadow spread across it, twisting unnaturally.
He thought about the injury he had during his last visit in the Evernight, but he himself already knew it was gone!
The shadow suddenly peeled away from his hand. Like liquid ink, it dripped onto the floor.
Lumian instinctively stood up, and moved short distance away.
His mind raced with the idea of running, but with his sister, still in the house, he couldn't do such.
The dark substance gathered, shifting… writhing… before slowly forming words.
"It's Mr. Hayes. Come to the bank."
The letters trembled, then melted, Reforming into new words.
"You might be wondering why I'm looking for your assistance, it's simply to discuss the matter on helping me find something. What you can gain, well I know many things about you, I know your a sorcerer, so I can help you learn a very important spell."
The words twisted further and formed another sentence. "No. Do not come to the bank. Something has changed, come to Hadgy Residence… around ten."
The twisting shadow, suddenly became still, and after some moments, collapsed on itself, dissolving into nothingness.
...
Lumian stared at the fading spot where the shadow had vanished, his brows slightly furrowed.
The message left him uneasy.
More than that, he was afraid. Mr. Hayes wasn't someone he could take lightly.
He had already scammed him of two hundred pounds… and worse, he had pried into matters he shouldn't have. Surely Lumian wasn't willing to court death.
His gaze drifted toward the family portrait hanging nearby. His mother, her black hair streaked with age. His father.
Kelvin.
And himself, much younger.
After that, he started to pace around the room, deep in thought.
I think I should visit him. If I visit him I can get a spell, something that captain mentioned that, it takes time. And more importantly he might even stop contacting me entirely. Mr. Hayes... Mr. Hayes... With powers like that, even if I refuse he might just come take me and me and my family by force.
Lumian gave a wry smile. Or maybe I'm just overthinking this matter, I can simply just tell him I'm busy.
He stopped in his tracks, and rubbed his philtrum in thought. With a minute, he continued walking.
No that can't work, how will I tell him, it's not like I have his number, the only way is to meet him in hadgy residence, and tell him, and that's just funny. Think of it, coming to the exact location just to say 'sorry I can't come,' while your already there. Hehe, it's very funny.
Lumian chuckled. After some moments, he decided to meet up with him, as he was sure he would benefit also. He went to his sister's room and informed her about his departure, before calling a babysitter and heading out.
...
Blackhead, Hadgy Residence.
The morning air carried a faint chill.
Dressed in his black coat and matching shirt, Lumian walked through the lively streets, blending into the steady flow of people.
Before long, he arrived at a nearby park.
The distant barking of dogs and the laughter of children filled the air, creating a strangely peaceful scene.
Lumian stopped and checked the time.
It was exactly ten thirty. Mr. Hayes, please don't disappoint me... Lumian inwardly said as he leaned on a pole.
He pulled out his phone, idly scrolling as he waited.
A few minutes passed.
Then, after several minutes, footsteps approached. Lumian looked up, and saw the beautiful Bella with her purple hair and black eyes.
She smiled. "Good morning, Mr. Ward. Long time no see." Her tone was polite, almost cheerful. "So… you're the one my boss wanted to meet."
She gestured lightly.
"Please, follow me."
Lumian gave a small nod, slipping his phone back into his pocket before walking alongside her.
They didn't go far, just a short distance ahead, near a children's playground on a bench.
There, a man sat casually, scattering bits of food onto the ground. Pigeons gathered at his feet. It was Mr. Hayes.
His yellow hair stood out beneath the crimson morning light as he fed the birds, as if he didn't have a care in the world.
...
Mr. Hayes looked up and smiled. "Good morning, Lumian. How was your rest?"
Lumian returned a polite smile and sat beside him.
"Pretty well."
Mr. Hayes nodded, then gestured lightly toward Bella.
She understood immediately and excused herself, leaving the two alone.
When she left, there was a brief silence, until it was broken by Mr. Hayes with a smile.
"Alright, no time to be blabbering around." He said with a chuckle. "Let me go straight to the point."
He leaned back on the bench and crossed his legs. "I need you to get me something."
"What is it?"
Please don't let it be something ridiculous… or a cursed item, Lumian thought.
Mr. Hayes paused briefly, as if considering something else.
I would have asked for the wheel of perception, but I need to advance and become an angel, so I can at least be safe, a little from Abel... Outwardly he spoke calmly.
"Nothing complicated." With that, he looked at Lumian. "Have you heard of the God of Storms?"
Lumian nodded.
Mr. Hayes continued,
"Good. Then this will be simple."
"I need you to pray at one of his statues... using my name."
...
Hearing that, Lumian was excited and conflicted at the same time. What does he want to do with a prayer, but such a simple thing, for a spell... count me in!
Meanwhile, Mr. Hayes remained calm, though his thoughts moved quietly beneath the surface.
With the Son of Storms awakening and the God of Storms awakening inside him, things will get problematic. I just want to get the angels blessing before advancing. And plus I could help this species, because the God of Storms is awakening inside Saeltheron, and it's he's evil and angry characteristics that's waking up.
Lumian finally smiled, this time more genuinely.
"Mr. Hayes, that sounds simple enough."
He paused, then added,
"But what about your end of the deal?"
"The spell you promised."
...
Mr. Hayes looked at him and shook his head with a faint smile. This boy, I didn't know he was this greedy... If I had knew I would have offered more things so he could help me more, heh.
"First, what Order are you from? And what do you understand about spells?" Mr. Hayes spoke outwardly.
Lumian glanced at him and replied, "I'm from the Diviner Order. As for spells… they're abilities gained through understanding your Order. And they take time to learn."
Mr. Hayes nodded in approval. "Correct." He paused then, crossed his legs and added casually.
"But wait, what if I told you I was a Celestial."
"..."
There was a long pause, Lumian didn't even know how to reply to that statement.
To be honest, he believed that Mr. Hayes was very strong, atleast phase five. But to be a god in the mortal world, it was very unbelievable to him.
Mr. Hayes chuckled and patted his shoulder.
"I'm joking."
Lumian let out a quiet breath, though the tension didn't fully leave him.
Mr. Hayes continued.
"The spell I'm giving you… comes from a very powerful Diviner I met in the past. It's called Spirit Synching."
Mr. Hayes spoke calmly, almost like a teacher.
"The spell can help with instead of seeing spirits, one can communicate with other entities, you can also control the state of your spiritualiy and can also invade the mind of other people for a mean time. Let me explain some matter to you on this spell, because it also has its consequences."
"First, the matter of controlling your spiritualiy. This can increase how spirits or other sorcers see you. When activated, if your a phase 9 let me say, with that boost you can be a phase 7, in the eye of others. But listen carefully, it has some consequences."
"I know you've already been told that you can expell your spiritualiy to the environment and take it in. But have it in mind that if you boost your spiritual output many times, it'll be hard to expell, instead it'll be leaking and you might simply burst. For example it's just like filling a bottle of water more and more till it can take it."
Lumian slowly nodded.
...
Hayes smiled and continued. "And here's the matter of invading people mind. With this ability you can enter a person soul state and look into thier memories, and control them for a meantime, a very short time. Because if you stay in the space and don't withdraw, you may catch the attention of other entities, because when doing this, you spirit actually wonders and taints the person in question."
"And as a diviner, you know that when you leave your human body and travel as a spirit, it catches the attention of other entities. So when using this, it's only for a short period of time, only, of course if you advance... that reminds me, it seems your about to advance."
"Yes Mr. Hayes. I actually followed your advice and got a law."
Hayes nodded. "That's good, advance slowly... don't rush, unless, if your not ready, you can turn into a curse... don't think that because your following laws, that your not prone to turning into a curse. Keep it in mind that the laws help you advance faster, but it does not help you escape the creator."
"The creator can simply give you an idea as he sees your characteristics is getting closer and closer to him. The creator only targets people most who are closer to him and affect them with curse logic. He can also do this on lower phases—mind you. But not much if they use laws—another logic giving by the creator when you perform your role."
"But I'm just saying, if you reach phase 5, that's when you start getting close to the creator, and he starts noticing you."
...
Lumian felt a chill run through him. If power comes from the Creator's "hair"… then Phase 9s are at the very end… And the higher you go… the closer you get to the head…
That thought alone was enough to make his chest tighten.
That's… terrifying.
Mr. Hayes simply smiled and stood up. "To get this spell you must first understand the matter about your order that, 'power isn't everything.'
With that, he turned and walked away, leaving Lumian sitting there alone.
For a while, Lumian didn't move. He stared ahead, lost in thought, replaying everything he had just heard.
Finally, he let out a quiet sigh and stood up. Since he was already late, he decided not to head back the way he came.
Instead, he planned to cut through Hatcliff Street and make his way toward Lamenti.
The streets were calmer now.
As he stepped into another road, his gaze shifted, And then paused.
Ahead of him stood a man with balding hair and a full white beard, dressed in a blue coat.
Wait, That's… Mrs. Theresa's husband.