Los Angeles, the City of Angels, located in the southwestern part of California, has a history almost identical to that of Seashore City, both being major cities that grew during the Gold Rush era.
The Spaniards called this place heaven, and it's truly justified. The climate and scenery here are vastly different from the East Coast, filled with romance, relaxation, and a spirit of leisure.
Famous for its beautiful beaches are San Pedro Bay and Santa Monica Bay, which are more like tourist attractions to countless West Coast residents. Mexican-style streets and parks retain the cultural charm of the last century. With city parks and concert halls exuding sentimentality, not to mention the renowned Hollywood, this place has it all.
On a street not far from Disneyland in Los Angeles, a distinctively Spanish-style building stands at the corner. The first floor of the building boasts a shiny sign that seems somewhat at odds with the architectural style, yet it creates a sense of beauty where time intersects.
There's a simplicity to the name of this bar, constituted of just three letters: LUX, which could be understood as an abbreviation for Lucifer's name.
Under the radiance of the signage, unlike regular bars, there were no muscular guards all dressed in black with sunglasses. The bar seems unusually quiet. Pressing against the walls of this building, you couldn't hear music playing inside.
A creak, and the slightly weathered wooden door was pushed open, revealing a somewhat dark corridor. A few steps in, however, revealed lights as vibrant as neon.
The sound of heels clinking on the metal floor created a slight tremor. The female bartender behind the counter paused her hand and her eyes gleamed with a soft glow.
She tapped her finger lightly on the counter. After a beat, a figure in a black suit appeared on the mezzanine of the second floor of the bar, a glass of red wine in hand, his eyes skimming over the self-indulgent men and women on the first floor.
"Delilah? What brings you here at this time? Are you planning to surprise me?" Lucifer laughed and gave an attractive woman a hug.
The two of them sat down on a sofa nearby. The woman named Delilah laughed, "Please, you always say things like that. Back when I was chasing you, you were as shy as a little boy."
"Hey, don't be like that. On my turf, give me some respect." Lucifer leaned back on the sofa, lit a cigarette, and with a laugh, waved his hand dismissively.
"Time certainly flies, doesn't it?" Delilah took a cigarette from her bag, inhaling as she spoke, "My days of entertaining customers at bars seem like just yesterday, and everything I have today, I owe it to you..."
"We're friends. You don't need to say that." Lucifer took a puff of his cigarette. "When I first arrived here, it was you who helped me familiarize myself with Los Angeles and introduced me to the bar industry. Of course, I owed you..."
"You didn't have to do that much." Delilah gently stroked Lucifer's knee. "I know, someone like you, even without me, could accomplish anything."
Lucifer looked at Delilah's expression, slightly puzzled, "You seem a little weary? What's the matter? Overworked with the new album preparation? You can always unwind here, you're always welcome."
Delilah shook her head, a trace of confusion in her eyes, "Actually, I feel a little lost. I know that I'm better off now than before, but..."
At that point, Lucifer paused. He turned his head towards the entrance of the bar. An unexpected figure walked in, also in a suit, but with an umbrella in hand. In the mild night of Los Angeles, it appeared rather odd.
In the bar, the cool neon lights shone on Shiller's face. He removed his glasses and approached Lucifer. Tapping the ground with the tip of his umbrella, he said, "It seems I have arrived at an awkward time, interrupting an intimate rendezvous between you and this lady..."
"Pardon me for being rude, Madame… I believe you're a singer. What was it that your last album was called? The Red Flame?"
"It's Blue Flame, sir." Delilah nodded at Shiller. He had a smile on his face, "I'm sorry. I'm not much into popular music."
Lucifer pointed at the single sofa next to him. After Shiller sat down, Lucifer introduced him to Delilah. "This is my friend, Shiller, a psychology professor. He's an old fuddy-duddy who loves classical music. Just ignore him. He doesn't know the first thing about pop music."
Delilah chuckled, "Of course, vast majority of connoisseurs and critics with taste do not prefer pop. Unfortunately, I never learned much, so I don't quite understand various musicians. Otherwise, I'd love to appreciate some classical music."
"I don't fancy certain classical music critics either. They tend to place too much weight on theoretical knowledge and overlook the most important function of music, which is to bring joy." Shiller waved a dismissive hand.
"Really? Now you've piqued my interest."
Delilah, true to her reputation as a consummate bar singer and hostess, was quite the conversationalist. There was always a twinkling smile in her manner, filling those around her with joy.
The trio enjoyed their lively chat, which shifted smoothly from music to psychology. Leaning back in his chair, Lucifer said, laughing, "Delilah, this is a golden opportunity you know, you know how much this guy charges?"
"Flip open any current psychology textbook and you'll find his name there. To get advice from a man like this, even the money you earn from an entire album might not cover it..."
Delilah covered her mouth with her gloved hand, looking at Shiller in surprise. She then got up, shook hands with him and said, "My goodness, I never thought… you're a famous psychologist..."
"He exaggerates all the time. I'm just your average university professor." Shiller shook his head. At that moment, the bartender came over with drinks. Shiller took a sip of the icy cocktail, and felt a sense of relaxation.
"May I ask, which university do you work for?" Delilah asked curiously.
"Gotham University."
Delilah looked genuinely impressed and said, "You are indeed a renowned psychologist, you must be a good professor..."
Lucifer was laughing so hard he was almost bent double. "Everyone who's heard of Gotham reacts like that... Hey! Friends! Look! We have a Gothamite here!!!"
Shiller stood up and covered his mouth. Thankfully, the music in the bar was so loud that no one heard Lucifer's shout.
Shiller chatted with Delilah for a while, comforting her. Once they finished their drinks, Delilah stood up, took a deep breath, patted her clothes, and then said, "Thank you so much, Professor; I feel much better now..."
"I need to prepare for a signing event for my new album, so I must go now. We can chat another time." With that, Delilah winked at them both. Just as she was about to leave, Shiller stopped her and said,
"By the way, you might want to leave through the back door. When I came in, I saw a few cars filling up the parking spots outside. I was wondering who they were, but now it seems likely they're your fans. They might mob you if you go out this way."
Delilah looked surprised and then said, "You're right, I'm in a rush. Which way should I go?"
Lucifer pointed to a nearby door and Delilah quickly left. He returned to the bar, followed by Shiller. Sitting at the bar, Shiller turned to Lucifer and said,
"It's been a while since we've met; aren't you going to welcome your old friend with a drink or two?"
"Didn't you say you have amnesia?" Lucifer casually arranged the bottles on the shelf, checking today's bills as he did.
By this point, it was close to midnight. Groups of young men and women started leaving, and even the waitstaff were getting ready to go home. Shiller watched the flow of people heading towards the exit, then said,
"Didn't you claim to be all-knowing and omnipotent? Can't you determine whether I've really lost my memory?"
"I don't like using those abilities on my friends." Lucifer picked up a glass and began to polish it. "Unless necessary, I don't use any special abilities. If I enjoyed being all-knowing and omnipotent, I wouldn't be running a bar."
Watching Lucifer's movements, Shiller had to admit that this Son of God possessed a unique charm. That one part of him, the part that bridged both divinity and humanity, was the most attractive to Shiller.
God of the World or Man among Gods, that's the question that every being with superpowers must contemplate when living in the world.
Clark considered himself a human, never denying his godlike powers but intending to use them to help others.
But Lucifer, he chose to give up using his abilities, to be a real person. Like ordinary people, he was indifferent to things that didn't concern him. If it doesn't involve me, then I'm just going to stand by and watch.
This mindset intrigued Shiller. Clearly, this was also a fascinating subject to research, even if it couldn't be turned into a paper, it could pave the way for his psychological study of Clark.
"So, you'd rather stand there polishing glasses than pour me a drink?"
Many would have noticed that Shiller was up to his old tricks, pulling the same stunt he used on Bruce, pushing him to do irrelevant things during their conversations to establish a psychological upper-hand.
"Yes, this glass might generate $8 of revenue for me tomorrow. You? You don't even pay for your drinks." Lucifer scoffed, not playing into Shiller's hands.
"Is this how you treat your Pope? You don't even pay me a salary, and I can't even have a free drink?"
"Do you have any accomplishments to boast about?" Lucifer turned and asked Shiller, "How many followers have you brought in?"
"Are you sure you want me to recruit followers?" Shiller asked back.
Lucifer paused, and then said, "Never mind, why would I want followers? So they can pester me with prayers for every little thing every day? You know why God left Heaven? Because humans are too annoying."
"They want to take a day off every day, so they keep telling God how hard their jobs are, and so God really thought work was hard and left for a vacation. Understanding the thoughts of humans all the time can harm you, that's why I don't like using the Mind Reading Technique."
Lucifer had again changed the subject, but Shiller wasn't flustered. He simply rubbed his face and put on a sad expression, saying,
"I have a student, an incredibly intelligent and talented young man with a tragic background. He lost his parents at a very young age. The reason I'm here today is because I wanted to ask you, since you have the ability to resurrect people, could you..."
"Stop, what drink do you want?"