"Also, Jestor. Thanks a lot. Now that I know where you live, I'll certainly come to thank you personally someday."
...
Lucifer kept talking to Milena even after she left Jestor.
Before long, he finally reached the capital city, feeling a bit hungry.
People saw him and recognized him. There was not a single person who I didn't recognize. People ran away from him as if he was a monster. The crowded road became instantly empty.
"Do I hear screams?" Milena asked Lucifer over the call.
"Yeah, some people are running away from me, it seems."
"Should I ask what you did there? You're already so popular?"
"I did what I had to do to bring out a rat from hiding."
"You mean Xaen?"
Yeah. I almost had him, but he ran away at the last moment because of some interruptions."
"Won't he stay away from you if he ran away last time? And you're popular; he can always know where you are."
"He won't run, I think. I have a feeling he'll come out, what's why I left some bait for him. I'm just waiting for him to take the bait."
He pushed the door of a restaurant and stepped inside.
There was a wall TV inside the restaurant which was showing a news channel. The news channel was still talking about Lucifer and his personality.
Most of the people in the restaurant were busy in eating, but the ones who noticed him stood up in shock. They looked back at the TV before turning to Lucifer just to be sure.
The sounds of chairs being pushed back overwhelmed the restaurant and more and more people kept standing up.
They didn't know where to run. Lucifer was standing right at the exit. They had no way out. Most of them were scared that Lucifer was probably here to destroy this place like he destroyed the hotel.
Lucifer ignored the shocking expressions of the customers and walked to a window seat. He picked up the menu which was on the table and started going through it.
Seeing Lucifer distracted, the citizens started running to the exit. Lucifer doesn't bother blocking their path.
It was only when the staff of the restaurant started to escape at the end that he decided to intervene.
The door closed on its own, and a barrier appeared before the door, blocking it.
"Why are you all running?" Lucifer asked, raising his gaze. "If you leave, who will serve food here?"
The staff members turned to Lucifer, subconsciously stepping back.
"Get me your best dishes. I'm having a hard time selecting from the menu," he told the waiters before sitting back comfortably.
"Are you back to your bullying?" Milena asked Lucifer, laughing.
"I can't go hungry, after all. Time loop or not, I still get hungry," Lucifer responded. "Anyways, are you at the airport now?"
"Yeah, I just entered. In a few hours, I'll be in the air."
"Good. After a few hours, a live feed will be broadcast everywhere in the world. Don't forget to catch it live."
"Are you giving a speech?"
"The words and emotions will be mine, but I won't be the one giving it. Caen will give it in my place since I'm not there. In any case, that should be enough."
"You think he can act like you? I am not sure...'
"He knows how I am and how he should behave. I think he would do fine."
"So, what's your plan after having breakfast?" Milena asked, wondering if Lucifer had any plans.
"No major plans. I'll just keep destroying places that Xaen holds dear, forcing him out. Either he can return Eve to me, or he can watch everything he considered important being destroyed, including his reputation."
"Give Eve to you? What do you mean?"
"He has Eve. He set a trap, knowing we were coming here. Eve was caught in the trap that was set for me. I don't even know her situation at the moment since I haven't seen her since then."
"So that's why you're so impatient? Can I ask you a question?" Milena asked after thinking for a little.
"What?"
"If I was captured instead of Eve, would you still do the same thing?"
"Why are you asking this question?" Lucifer asked, confused what she was trying to say.
"It's a normal question. If I was in place of Eve, would your reaction and urgency still be the same?"
Lucifer didn't think about the question seriously and just had a neutral answer. "I would. No one can hurt what is mine and live."
"What is yours?" Milena asked. Her tone sounded a bit surprised. "Am I yours?"
"Of course you are," Lucifer replied, talking about her being his team member.
Milena momentarily went silent.
"I'm inside the plane now." She informed Lucifer after a bit, changing the topic. "You know, it hasn't been that long since we started talking, and I already feel like I'm out of things to talk about. How will we talk for days?'
"Let me ask you a question in that case. It'll give you something to talk about."
"Go ahead."
"What do you see in your future? Like what is your ideal future? What do you see at the peak of your life? A place where everything is perfect for you? What is that world like for you?" Lucifer asked.
The waiter served the dishes before Lucifer. He didn't know that Lucifer was talking to someone through his glasses. He just thought that he was talking to himself.
For him, that was the sign of Lucifer being mentally unstable, which wasn't hard to believe for him. He didn't interact with Lucifer much and stepped back.
Lucifer only had his gloves on his right. The other hand had damaged Gloves. Using his right hand, he picked up the bowl before him and gulped down the soup without even using a spoon.
On the other end, Milena lost herself in Lucifer's questions. Just what was his ideal world? What did he see for her future?
"I... I haven't thought about what I want from my future. I guess I was satisfied with whatever I had. In the future, after everything is settled down, I'll go back to the Divine Empire and govern my people. That's my perfect world, I guess."
"Nope." Lucifer wiped his lips as he replied. "You're just giving a political answer from what I can see."
"I'm being honest. I did have a dream about my future when I was going, but after becoming a Warlock, I can never go back.. A stable life is a perfect life for me at the moment."