"Essentially, it's a matter of correcting thinking, believing that you have what you shouldn't have, so he wants to correct this."
"Idiot." Lucifer said coldly: "Whether I deserve it or not is never up to him."
"From this point of view, it's actually quite simple to deal with him." Shiller picked up the water cup on the table, poured two cups of water, handed one to Lucifer, took a sip of his cup and said: "The first strategy is to ignore him completely. If you don't pay too much attention to him and just go on with your life, he will be unable to achieve his aim of correction and will naturally be filled with anger and resentment."
"I would like to do that too." Lucifer sighed: "But he's becoming more and more outrageous, not only sending people to investigate my new bar, but also constantly instigating conflicts in Heaven and provoking the Demon King of Hell. If we let him continue to disrupt, no one will be able to have peace."
"Then you can adopt the second strategy, make a call to Michael. Archangel Michael embodies the pure heart of justice, he won't allow Gabriel to stir up war with these small moves. In this way, you don't need to handle it personally, and can also humiliate him, reminding him of his place."
Lucifer's expression changes slightly, his eyes shift subtly, and says: "That's a good idea, but Michael can't really control him. That guy is way too rigid, only capable of preaching religious rhetoric. Gabriel is far more cunning than him, and can easily fool him."
Then, Lucifer frowned and asked: "Since there's a lower and middle strategy, there must be an upper strategy as well, right? Out with it, let me hear it."
But Shiller shook his head and said, "These first two suggestions are not great, but they don't require much effort. But the upper strategy is completely different, even the results it can achieve are not on the same scale as the previous two."
Lucifer's hand stiffened a bit, but he still asked curiously: "What kind of results can it achieve? Can it kill Gabriel?"
Shiller shook his head and said: "Angels are immortal, but being tormented spiritually is even worse than dying physically. I can't make Gabriel die, but I can make him mentally breakdown."
Lucifer slowly narrowed his eyes. He leaned forward, looked at Shiller and asked: "And that is?"
With all the mystery in his smile, his hands resting on the table, and his previously expressionless grey eyes suddenly focusing on Lucifer, Shiller said.
"You return to Heaven as Lucifer Morningstar, resume your position as the supreme Archangel, and then judge Gabriel for his numerous sins, expelling him from Heaven."
"Cough, cough, cough!" Lucifer erupted into a series of violent cough attacks, almost as if he was coughing his lungs out.
He pointed at Shiller, then at himself, then again at Shiller; opening his mouth, then closing it, then opening it again. He looked at Shiller in disbelief and asked: "What did you say?"
"Are you kidding me?! I've fallen from grace! How could I possibly return? Moreover, the current Archangel is Michael, what does that have to do with me? How can I expel Gabriel???"
"Think carefully, Lucifer." Shiller leaned further forward, keeping his eyes fixed on Lucifer's, and Lucifer found himself instinctively drawn towards those focused grey eyes.
"Are you really unable to do this, Lucifer? Think rationally about the things you just questioned. Do you really have no chance of doing this? ... Let's go one by one."
"Firstly, can you return to Heaven?"
"I..." Just as Lucifer was about to refute Shiller, Shiller said: "I'm not asking if you want to, but whether you can or not."
"I... can." Lucifer prolongs the last note, then says reluctantly: "There's no place in the world I can't go, including Heaven, Eden, and all those other seemingly sacred places mentioned in the Bible. When I was young, God took me to those places, I still know the way."
"Good, so if you returned to Heaven, would Michael give up his position as the Archangel for you?"
The expression on Lucifer's face became even more amusing as his features twisted and contorted, eventually managing to squeeze out, "He... he probably will."
Lucifer scrunched up the muscles around his eyes and covered them with his hand, saying, "You don't know, Michael is just a stubborn stickler for the rules. He believes everything the Bible says. The Bible says that angels cleanse the world of all evil on God's behalf, spreading love and virtue. He believes that whoever can do this best should be the Archangel."
"Moreover, he believes that genuine repentance is the highest virtue of all living beings. You know, those kinds of redemption arguments. If he sees me willing to return to Heaven, he will undoubtedly be overjoyed, run back to Eden to continue his guard duty, and leave the position of Archangel to me."
"Very good, so, can you judge Gabriel?"
Lucifer carefully pondered for a moment, then said, "That fool is not entirely without flaws. Azazel has evidence of him sending his subordinates to Hell to gather information, just the charge of inciting angelic fall alone, would make Michael want to smite him on the spot. I reckon if I suggested banishing Gabriel, Michael wouldn't object."
After Lucifer finished speaking, he leaned weakly against the chair, looking utterly forlorn. Meanwhile, Shiller continued to lean forward, his upper body almost crossing the midpoint of the table.
"Do you know how shattered Gabriel will be? You've easily abandoned what he coveted for thousands of years without suffering any punishment. Then, when you turn around, everyone so easily forgave you, even rejoicing in your act of repentance, even celebrating it."
"You discarded what he cherished with ease, he wanted to teach you a lesson, to make you understand that disrespecting God's love will always lead to punishment. But after your carefree antics, you gained an even higher status."
"And all this came without reason, not because you were better than him, performed better than him, but simply because of God's arbitrary favoritism."
The coldness emerging from Shiller's eyes as they slightly lifted was bone-chilling for Lucifer.
"But God's authority has long been ingrained in his mind, he can't bear any resentment towards the creator. All those knife-like feelings of hatred and jealousy, they will be swallowed by him, shredding his innards like a storm, causing inexplicable, never-ending pain."
"In the end, he won't hate God, he won't even hate you. He will only hate himself. There is no suffering in this world deeper and more relentless than what these kinds of people inflict on themselves."
Lucifer swallowed and pushed his chair back a little with his foot, twisting his head and saying, "I think you're being a bit too extreme. I'm calm now. Gabriel hasn't actually done much wrong, so I don't think I need to be this upset."
Shiller returned to his usual posture, his back against the chair, his hands crossed on his lap. He looked at Lucifer with a meaningful gaze, saying, "You decide everything. If you change your mind, come find me here. I will be waiting for you."
As Lucifer left the Forgotten Bookstore, he sighed heavily. He felt a hint of relief in his heart, thankful that he had controlled his emotions and hadn't fallen for the devil's temptation, otherwise, he would end up like Constantine.
Lucifer had intended to return to Hell and find Azazel, to tell him to quickly get rid of Constantine, not to get involved in Constantine and Shiller's affairs, otherwise, he would fall sooner or later. But he felt that his mind was still a bit chaotic, so he decided to first go back to his bar in Seashore City to cool down.
As soon as Lucifer landed from teleporting, he smelled a strong scent of blood. Startled, he walked briskly into the bar, only to see a floor full of dead bodies.
A painful groan came from behind the bar. Lucifer quickly rushed over to help up the woman lying in front of the liquor cabinet. He looked down at the wound on her abdomen and asked, "Wheat! Wheat, what happened to you?!"
Suddenly, he sniffed the air, because he recognized a familiar scent from the aura in the air.
A few seconds later, an angry roar echoed through the bar.
"Gabriel!!!!!!!!"