"Ah it was a text not a phone call. I'm still not used to the ringtones yet so I thought someone was calling." Lucielle smiled as she read the text that she had received from her, one and only, friend Ramon.
[Hey girlie, you make it back from the raid in one piece today or do I gotta start bawling my eyes out?]
Being more of an introvert, Lucielle never really had that many friends as a child with Ramon being the one exception. He had been her friend since they had been small children and Lucielle treasured him as the brother figure she had always wanted. The feeling was mutual on Ramons' side as well though that was obvious if anyone bothered to look at their circumstances. Ramon knew that Lucielle was a rank F Slayer and that Lucielle had no money to her name, but Ramon never despised her or treated her badly because of it.
Ramon was part of the population that had not awakened a power, but for him it did not matter, since even if he had received an awakening of lower rank, his family would not have allowed him to raid Gates to become stronger. They had an automobile company; it could be said that most of the automobiles across the country were manufactured by Ramons' parents company. So even if he was a C rank Slayer he would still be earning less money than he would earn by operating the company his parents had established.
Despite having a lot of money and a promising future ahead, Ramon still doted on Lucielle like he would his own sister if he had one. If it weren't for Lucielles' pride and stubbornness, he would have even offered to give Lucielle a salary and help her pay off her mothers debt, but she never accepted his offer.
Lucielle knew how important true friendship was after seeing how many people had turned their back on her when the awakening she obtained yielded only a F rank. She didn't want her friendship that she had with Ramon to be tainted with money and have that be the reason their friendship ended, so she never accepted any money from Ramon.
[Lucielle: Just got home and showered. Still got my limbs all attached and no new scars.]
[Ramon: Ah that's good to hear. I was just writing up my will since you took so long to respond back but I guess I'll scrap that for now haha.]
[Lucielle: I won't ever die that easily. Unless you're trying to jinx me into die you sick bastard lol.]
[Ramon: I would never. How dare you accuse me of such a thing lol. Anyways I was texting you to see if you'd be willing to come join me at this party my parents are hosting, you know how boring these things can be so please come save me from boredom.]
[Lucielle: Today was a pretty eventful day so yeah I'll swing on by. Getting some fresh air would do me some good I think.]
[Ramon: Great! You can come here around 7:00 pm, if you need me to I can pay for your Tuber ride.]
[Lucielle: It's okay, I still have some money with me, so I can pay for my Tuber myself. See you later brother.]
[Ramon: See ya girly!]
Setting her phone aside and glancing over at herself in the mirror once more, Lucielle sighed. "I was hoping I was done changing for the day but now I guess I gotta pull out the dress again."
Stripping out of her casual attire with haste, Lucielle strode over to her closet where she pulled an elegant dress out on an mannequin. The dress was knee length so it was rather conservative in that aspect but conservativeness flew out of the window when it came to the top of the dress with a plunging neckline that reached to just above her belly button and exposing her supple cleavage to the anyone's gaze.
"I detest this damn thing but it's the only high society outfit I have that doesn't require me to die while wearing the damn thing. At least my breasts are firm enough that I can get away with not wearing a bra with this dress."
"That's the problem Mithrial. I look too good and plenty of these old farts are lecherous old men. Not to mention their horny sons that they bring with them to these parties as well. I basically have to hide behind Ramon the whole time I go to these things, but he can't be with me the whole time and that's when they swarm me." Sighing loudly Lucielle finished dressing as she reached for her phone and purse.
"Because he's like family, Mithrial. I can't just abandon him to suffer on his own plus it's nice to be around someone I can let my guard down with." Stuffing the essentials into her purse, Lucielle looked around her room to make sure she wasn't forgetting anything before making her way out of the house and onto the deserted street outside her gates.
"Mmmmm." Lucielle was lost in her thoughts as she continued her walk towards the nearest bus stop that was a few blocks away. She knew it wasn't good for her mental health to stay cooped up in her room, even if she was excited about the system she had received and the infinite possibilities that had opened up before her. She wasn't too traumatized at the deaths of her fellow raid members but she was an unusual exception among Slayers at the lower ranks as most of them needed to have an active counselor when events like today happened.
One of the most requested professions nowadays besides Slayers was that of psychologists and psychiatrists, since many Slayers tended to develop trauma after seeing so many deaths and going through so many dangerous situations. The physical dangers of being a Slayer was extremely high but so were the mental dangers as well, eventually the government stepped in and began to finance several institutes for public psychologists and develop various incentive programs for people, mainly the Slayers, to consult with licensed psychologists about their problems.
It could be said that Ramon played the role of a psychologist for Lucielle, since they always talked about various things. Besides, when they were together, they always found a way to make her problems disappear without having to to rely on alcohol or addictive substances.
Arriving at the bus stop, Lucielle checked the time on her phone once more to see how much time she had till she had to be at Ramons place for the party. "Hmmm still got plenty of time. Depending on the availability of Tubers I should be able to arrive right on time." Looking up from her phone, she saw the bus arriving from further down the street..
The bus came to a halt at the bus stop once it arrived at the bus stop and then people piled out of the cramped bus before spreading out on the sidewalk to leave for their own destinations. Lucielle waited patiently as everyone passed her by before smiling at the familiar face driving the bus. "Hey Chuck. It's been a while has it not?"
The rugged looking man behind the steering wheel broke into a wide smile as he caught sight of Lucielle. "Well I'll be damned if it ain't Lucielle. Breaker of mens hearts and groins everywhere. What's got you looking all dolled up for." Chuck was a retired Slayer that drove this bus lane in his spare time and they had known each other for the last five years.
"I got to attend a party to save Ramon from boredom. You know how it is haha." she said as she climbed up into the bus and took her seat. "Plus I had to get out of the house so I couldn't turn him down. Raid today was pretty bad so I needed the fresh air."
"Yeah I heard through the grape vine that a low rank Gate had mutated and rose up a few ranks. That bloodbath must have been pretty rough to go through. Glad you're still in one piece kiddo." Chuck drove the bus off from the bus stop but didn't pry anymore into the Gate incident. "So old boy Ramon still can't stand high society parties huh. That kid is gonna have to learn to stand on his own two feet one of these days instead of hiding behind your skirt."
Laughing loudly Lucielle said, "If anyone is hiding behind someones skirt its me hiding behind his to keep all the creeps away since I can't break their balls like I usually would."
"Haha that would be a sight I'd pay to see. Those snobby rich folk really don't know the difference between Heaven and Earth." Chuck didn't have a very high opinion of those that abused their wealth to look down upon and abuse people that were less fortunate. The rest of their trip passed by in silence as the bus made its way back towards central station where Lucielle departed. "Well it was nice seeing you again Chuck. Tell your wife I said hello and that those cookies she sent me were delightful."
"Stay safe out there girl though maybe I should say stay out of trouble haha. Have fun at your party." Chuck smiled and waved as he drove the bus off to the garage for the end of his shift. Pulling out her phone, as she made her way out of central station and onto the sidewalk next to the main road, and booting up the Tuber app Lucielle quickly got a ride arranged.
'I'll definitely arrive on time since there was a Tuber right around the corner from the central station. Hell maybe I'll even arrive early if this driver is a speedster. Lucielle greeted the driver as she slid into the back of their vehicle and then they were off. The ride was only 30 minutes long since the streets at this time of night in the town were usually deserted.
The Tuber driver was surprised when he saw the size of the mansion at which they had arrived at. Lucielle was already used to Ramons' house even though it was a huge mansion with a modern design with several bedroom and living rooms as well as a large and majestic garden that put Lucielles' lawn to shame. After coming here so many times, Lucielle had naturally gotten used to the place. Of course, it's not because she got used to it that she didn't think that the place was beautiful, it's just that she was no longer shocked every time she came. But that didn't stop her from enjoying the view of the well kept-garden.
Having come so often to her friend's house, when the security guards at the front gate saw Lucielle step out of her Tuber, they asked no questions from her. They opened the gate and let Lucielle in, which surprised some people who were being questioned by them at the time, leaving them wondering who was that angelic young woman who entered was.
The path from the gate she just passed to the house was over 100 meters, but Lucielle was in no rush . She always loved to take her time in the walk to the house, since being in such a beautiful and relaxing environment helped her to clear her mind. She was prone to sudden epiphanies whenever she strolled through this garden.
After a few minutes of walking, Lucielle arrived at the mansion's entrance. Before she could enter, she saw a luxury car coming towards her. It was a luxurious Mercedes Starlight. The vehicles engine rumbled as if it wanted everyone to know it had arrived.
Lucielle only observed the beauty of the car a little, since she was very fond of cars, even from a young age, but soon she lost interest. As she turned to enter the mansion, the car stopped beside her and the driver got out of the car to speak with her.
"Are you the valet? Don't even think about scratching this little beauty," the driver of the car said as he looked at Lucielle before pointing to the car.
Lucielle did not understand for a moment and looked around for someone else that he could be talking to but realized he meant her. She looked at the man with amusement and answered, "I'm not a valet."
Hearing what Lucielle said, the car owner looked her up and down as he assessed her. 'She may be pretty but those cheap clothes don't fool me. Maybe she's just a waiter who was late?' The man thought before answering in a commanding tone. "Then find a valet and tell him to park the car." Lucielle lost her amused expression at the tone of this little mans order and replied with a frosty tone of her own, "No," before turning around and entering the mansion.
As if it were her own house, Lucielle walked without concern to the party area and looked for Ramon. When she came in, Ramon was taking to some old men - presumably his father's business partners. Not wanting to disturb Ramon, Lucielle went to the food table to get something to eat since she had eaten nothing since before the raid earlier that day.
Looking at the spread of sophisticated and chic food spread, Lucielle sighed in disappointment. 'This fancy rich person food really isn't to my tastes. There is just never enough to actually fill your stomach. I'll never get why these people think it's classy to starve yourself at a party.' Piling her plate with the few foods she actually liked, Lucielle made her way to a corner to eat as well as people watch while waiting for Carlos to join her.