The cops frowned as they observed Lucifer and Zale before observing the alley. It was true that there was nobody there. Still, they didn't think that the woman was lying to them.
"I'm sorry, but I'll have to ask you to come with us to the station for interrogation."
"Well, that's unfortunate. We are honestly in a hurry. We are travelers, and we haven't eaten all day," Lucifer responded. "So I think we'll be leaving. Unless you want to arrest us for no reason at all? And I can promise that it won't be something you'll like."
He turned to Zale. "You owe me one now. Anyway, let's get going."
He started walking away with Zale, not caring about the cops that were standing there with the guns aimed at them.
The cops simply stared at them blankly, watching them defy orders. "Are you crazy or something?"
"Crazy?" Lucifer asked, seemingly confused. "That's a new one. I'm not though."
"Oh, next time you see the girl who told you about the murder, tell her that lying about such a thing isn't a good thing. She shouldn't do it next time."
Waving his hand, Lucifer walked away.
"Shall we stop him?" One of the cops asked the other.
"I don't know. There is something really odd about that person. I don't know what exactly it is though. Something tells me that we shouldn't stop him. In any case, there isn't really a body here."
"Yeah, I don't think he could've moved the body so fast without being seen. It might be wrong information, after all. Let them be."
The cops didn't chase after Lucifer and entered their cars again, taking the best decision of their lives.
They drove away.
"Now be more careful and don't leave so suddenly. Let me handle things if something happens next, alright?" Lucifer told Zale, walking to another person to ask for the location of a hotel.
"I still don't understand why the woman would tell the police about this..."
"It's because... Well, just know fear makes people do really stupid things sometimes," Lucifer replied.
He stopped another man and asked for directions.
Before long, he found himself standing before a hotel.
He entered with Zale and walked straight to the reception.
"Greetings, Gentlemen. How may I help you today?"
"Give us two of your best rooms. We need to stay here for a day."
"Of course. That will be our deluxe rooms on the top floor. Please finish the payment."
"How much would that be?"
"Only Thirty Zens for one day."
This was the point where Zale thought that Lucifer was going to use some trick to not pay, but to his surprise, Lucifer pulled out a wallet using his wind.
"Pay him the money." He told Zale as the wallet flew into his hand.
"Huh?" Stunned, Zale opened the wallet and paid the money, still confused why Lucifer had the money.
"Perfect. Just wait a sec; I'll call my men here to escort you to your rooms."
"I'll be right here," Lucifer smiled as he walked to the sofas nearby.
"Where did you get the money from?" Zale looked at Lucifer, showing the wallet.
"Let's just say it belonged to someone who isn't going to need it anymore," Lucifer answered lazily.
"You mean you stole it from the man you killed?"
"Nope. I found it on the ground after he was killed. It had dropped from his pocket. In any case, it doesn't matter." Lucifer shrugged.
"You know, sometimes I truly don't understand you. It's like you have a way to get to every goal, even if you need to take a much darker path."
"I shall take that as a Praise." Lucifer smiled. "Unfortunately, I can't reach all of my goals. Some goals still seem impossible to achieve without sacrificing myself."
"And what might they be?" Zale asked, returning the wallet to Lucifer.
"No, keep the wallet. It's useless for me." Lucifer said, not taking it b
"I meant about the goals you said you can't achieve?" Zale asked.
"I didn't say I can't achieve my goals. But the cost associated with it might be more than I can afford," Lucifer said, taking a deep breath.
He wanted to protect his father and mother, but he knew that it was going to be the end of his life if he did that.
Everything he had achieved would go to waste. The young man was certainly going to have a better life. He could also kill Varant and the others in this world if he wanted to not leave any threat, but that would really mess with his origins.
He didn't know if changing such things was going to mean that things were going to be alright.
What if he killed all the enemies and the future changed in such a way that his father never found him in the dungeon? What if he remained trapped his entire life there? What if he was found, but he never awakened?
How was he going to take care of the enemies that were going to come for him? He could kill all the enemies he knew at this time, but that wasn't enough to make sure that no new ones were going to come.
That's the conundrum he had. Should he trade his knowledge and his powers for the life of his parents? Or should he trade the life of his parents to keep himself the way he was and hold onto his knowledge and memories?
This was the biggest challenge he had faced since he couldn't just protect his parents without sacrificing himself. And he didn't believe sacrificing was the answer.
"What happened? Where do you lose yourself again and again?"
"Nothing. I suppose I'll tell you some things when it's my time to leave. You might not believe me even if I tell you right now," Lucifer replied as he stood up, noticing the staff calling for them.
He followed a man with Zale to the top floor.
The staff member brought Lucifer to the room but didn't leave. He just stood before Lucifer innocently. "Welcome to the hotel, sir. I hope you have a great day."
"Yeah," Lucifer replied.
The man still didn't leave. "Just call me if you need anything."
"Will do."
"I will be right here in case you need anything to help you."
"Are you going to leave or not?" Lucifer asked, rolling his eyes. Just what was this weird behavior.
"I think he is asking for a tip. I heard it was common practice in other places," Zale chimed in.
He opened the wallet and gave a note to the man.. "You have a great day too."