Michael's eyes widened, a flicker of shock sparking within them, as if his mind struggled to catch up with what he had just heard. His mouth parted, almost forming a silent question, while a faint crease appeared between his brows, adding a touch of unease to his expression.
"Lu…mian?" Michael repeated, "That's impossible" he muttered under his breath but still loud enough for Lumian to hear him
Lumian raised an eyebrow, "Impossible? I didn't realize it was impossible for someone to bear my name," He said, pretending not to know the reason why Michael was startled
Michael's surprise lingered for a heartbeat, but a shadow of fear quickly bled into his gaze, his breath hitching, as if something had just unsettled him to the core.
"Shut up, who are you?!" He barked, his violent outburst drew the attention of customers around to his booth
Lumian raised his hands up to show he meant no harm, "Like I said, my name is Lumi–"
Michael took hold of Lumian's collar, "Shut up," He said, cutting Lumian off before he could complete his sentence
"Hey, it's too early for this. You guys have an issue, take it outside," The Bartender said from behind the counter
Two buff men wearing match black shirts ; the doormen began to slowly approach Michael and Lumian.
Michael immediately realized that he had acted out of impulse and he was at fault.
"Shit," he muttered under his breath as he let go of Lumian's collars, "Everything is good here, we were just…talking,"
The bouncers glanced at Lumian and Michael suspiciously, "Is that so?" One of them asked Lumian
Lumian looked at Michael who had a guilty expression, it was a pitiful one. Like a child who had been caught doing something they should not be doing
The corner of Lumian's lips curved slightly, "Yes, we were just talking, we are sorry for causing a scene," He said with an innocent smile
The bouncers took one final look at both men and left,
"Thank you," Michael said shyly
"It's nothing, it's all I could do after getting yelled out and almost beat up." Lumian replied, slamming Michael with sarcasm
Michael felt a wave of embarrassment wash over him, "I'm sorry about that, I just thought you were someone else. Now that I think about it, it was a stupid thing to do. You look, sound and act nothing alike,"
Lumian laughed lightly, "And here I thought you just hated my name. I'm glad I'm not the person you thought I was, you looked like you were about to pummel me."
Michael stumbled and fell back into his seat, "Ahh, I'm sorry once again. Let me buy you a drink to make up for it."
"Isn't it too early for a drink? Besides, I don't drink, but you could buy me a nice sandwich,"
Michael chuckled, "You're right, it's too early for a drink, I promise I am not an alcoholic but sometimes a drink or two helps to clear the mind,"
Lumian looked at Michael from head to toe, he looked like had way more than one or two drinks.
The server brought Lumian's sandwich after a while, "So this other Lumian, what did he do to you to make you so enraged with him?" He asked after taking a bite of his sandwich
Michael looked at Lumian for a while, "Or am I being too forward?" Lumian asked
"No, I was just wondering where to start from. You see this…other Lumian is the absolute scum of the earth, filthy and disgustingly evil without a moral compass or even a shred of conscience.
It's not what he did to me, but what he has done to everyone who has the misfortune of being around him. He commits atrocious acts without thinking twice " Michael explained
'Damn, that's one way to put it. In a weird way, it makes my blood boil with excitement when he speaks about me like that. Perhaps I should get someone to just be singing my praises' Lumian mused
"This Lumian sounds like a terrible person, I see why you detest him so much,"
Michael's face hardened, "He is evil incarnate, or rather he was,"
"Was?"
"Yes, I–he died" Michael said, his expression softened into a remorseful expression and he downed another cup of pure spirit
"I see, that should be a good thing so why do you have such a sour expression?" Lumian asked
Michael averted Lumian's gaze, the bartender shot him a judging glance
"Ahh, I'm sorry if I asked something I shouldn't have"
Michael looked up at Lumian and their gazes clashed silently for a few seconds, Michael finally broke the silence
"What do you think the job of a hero is?" He asked
Lumian was taken aback for a moment by this question,
"Well…I am not a fan of heroes and masked saviors but If I was to answer I would say their duty is to protect the people."
Michael took a sip of his drink, "Protect huh? I see"
After that, Michael didn't say anything even remotely close about the Lumian he 'killed' or heroes.
It must have been the alcohol, but Michael ended up disclosing a lot about his personal life to Lumian. Most of it was about his job as an accountant and his beautiful wife, it was the latter part the Lumian focused on.
Angela, his wife, was crucial to his revenge scheme. He ended up getting new information about Angela, things like how she was a vegetarian, how she teaches a yoga class for pregnant women and even how sexually active she was now that they had just gotten married.
But Michael never mentioned anything about him being Voltstrike, it honestly impressed Lumian.
"Well I have to go now, can't have the Mrs waiting for me, these days she's been complaining about me coming home later than usual," Michael said as he stumbled to his feet
'Yes, this is my opportunity!!'
"Corruption" Lumian muttered underneath his breath as he supported Michael, "She's gotten to that nagging stage huh? My friends say that wives begin to nag when they're tired of a man" He added ever so nonchalantly as if it was nothing
Suddenly Michael's expression stiffened and he turned to Lumian, it was as if his tipsiness had completely faded. He stared at Lumian for a while,
"Did I do or say something?" Lumian asked feigning ignorance of his own words
Michael simply took a deep breath and calmed himself down
[The effect of Corruption is being resisted]
'Resisted? How?'
[Target has an unwavering heart and above average willpower thus he fights against the effect of your Corruption.
Alas! This does not mean it was completely ineffective, it just means that target is not experiencing the full effect of Master Lumian's skill.
Master Lumian may have to use his skill multiple times on the target to break down his willpower]
'I see, this will take longer than expected.'
"Goodbye Lumian, It was nice having someone to speak to, I hope we meet again" Michael said as he walked out of the pub waving at Lumian.
Lumian flashed him a bright smile as he waved back, but as soon as Michael left his field of vision, his smile disappeared, his eyes grew darker aand his entire demeanor changed.
"In time Michael, It's just a matter of time before I take everything from you and take you to the far reaches of insanity " Lumian muttered to himself