Victor’s thoughts scrambled, the pain clouding his mind. What just happened? How did he hit me from that angle?
Lucian didn’t stop. He moved like a machine, his face devoid of emotion, his movements precise and ruthless. Another punch followed, landing directly on Victor’s already damaged nose. Blood sprayed into the air, splattering onto Lucian’s hand and face.
Victor’s body crumpled. He hit the ground hard, the back of his head bouncing off the cold tile floor with a resounding crack.
“Pakkk!” The sound echoed, sharp and final.
The restaurant erupted into chaos.
“Ahhhh!” Screams rang out from the onlookers. Girls clutched their faces, and others scrambled back from their seats, their expressions a mix of horror and disbelief.
“Someone stop them!” a panicked voice cried out.
Jimmy, still seated with Garry, tsked quietly, shaking his head. “That ended faster than I expected,” he muttered, leaning back in his chair.
Lucian, however, didn’t hear any of it. He stepped over Victor’s limp body, his blank gaze fixed on his target. He dropped to his knees, straddling Victor’s torso as he grabbed the man’s collar with blood-streaked hands.
Victor’s eyes fluttered weakly, his consciousness slipping, but Lucian didn’t care. His fist reared back, and with unrelenting force, he brought it down on Victor’s face.
“PAAK!”
“Say that again,” Lucian hissed, his voice low and chilling, devoid of warmth. His fist came down again, connecting with Victor’s nose.
“PAAAK!”
“Say it one more time, huh?” Lucian’s tone was unnervingly calm as his punches grew heavier, each strike more brutal than the last.
Victor’s face, already bloodied and bruised, grew unrecognizable. His nose was visibly broken, blood pouring freely and pooling on the floor. Lucian’s knuckles were slick with blood, but he didn’t stop. His eyes were blank, unfeeling like a predator toying with its prey.
“She’s not a toy. She’s not a doll you can just ask for,” Lucian growled, his words punctuated by another punch. “PAAK!”
Victor’s head jerked with each strike, the dull thud of flesh and bone echoing through the restaurant. The onlookers cried out again, some turning away, unable to watch the brutal scene unfold.
“Stop it! Someone stop him!” a woman shrieked.
Lucian didn’t even register the voices. His focus was singular, unyielding.
“She was someone I loved,” Lucian whispered, his voice dropping to a chilling, detached tone. Another punch landed, sending a fresh spray of blood into the air. “She’s not your property. She’s not anyone’s property. She’s a person.”
His breaths were steady, his movements mechanical, as though nothing could pull him from the spiral of violence.
“PAAK! PAAK! PAAAK!”
Victor’s face was blank, his consciousness long gone, but Lucian didn’t stop. His punches grew harder, each one laced with an unrelenting fury. Blood splattered across Lucian’s face, dripping down his cheek like war paint.
Jimmy finally stood, his chair scraping loudly against the floor. He exchanged a glance with Garry, who nodded silently.
“Lucy,” Jimmy called out, his voice firm but not harsh. He stepped forward, his broad frame casting a shadow over the scene. “That’s enough.”
Lucian froze mid-punch, his fist trembling in the air. For a moment, he didn’t move, his blank eyes staring down at Victor’s ruined face Slowly.
Lucian let go of Victor’s collar, his bloodied hands dropping limply to his sides. His chest rose and fell with steady breaths, but his vacant eyes betrayed no emotion no satisfaction, no regret. As he stood, his body swayed slightly, exhaustion tugging at him, yet his movements remained unnervingly calm. He turned to Jimmy briefly, his expression blank.
For a moment, it seemed as though it was over.
But then, without a word, Lucian turned back toward Victor’s broken body. His hands clenched tightly, the blood on his knuckles cracking as it dried. Slowly, he reached down and grabbed Victor’s collar once more, jerking him upward with an almost mechanical motion.
“PAAAK! PAAAK! PAAAK!”
Lucian’s punches came down with relentless fury, his voice trembling as he spoke, though his tone remained eerily steady. “She wasn’t my property!”
“PAAAK!”
“I loved her!”
“PAAAK!”
“She wasn’t for anyone to control!”
Blood sprayed into the air with every impact, painting Lucian’s face and arms in crimson streaks. Victor’s head snapped back with each punch, his face now barely recognizable a swollen, bloodied mess. Every strike sent fresh splatters across the tile floor, the sound of each impact brutal and raw.
“Lucy!” Jimmy’s voice cut through the chaos, desperate and firm. He couldn’t bear to see his friend like this, consumed by a darkness he didn’t recognize. Jimmy leaned down, grabbing Lucian’s arm with hands, trying to pull him back.
But Lucian didn’t stop. His body moved like a machine, unyielding, as if he didn’t even register Jimmy’s presence. The punches kept coming, each one heavier than the last.
“Damn it, Garry, help me!” Jimmy grunted, his voice strained as he struggled to pull Lucian off Victor.
Garry jumped into action, grabbing Lucian’s other arm. Together, the two of them tried to pry Lucian away, their combined strength straining against his unrelenting grip. But Lucian was immovable, his body locked in a cycle of rage and violence.
Victor’s head lolled to the side, blood pouring freely from his nose and mouth. His consciousness had slipped away long ago, but Lucian didn’t stop.
Max’s voice rang in Lucian’s mind, soft yet firm, cutting through the haze of his emotions. [Host, enough. Stop. If you continue, the world will intervene. Victor is near death his blood loss is critical. You must wake up before it’s too late.]
Lucian’s movements faltered, his arm freezing mid-punch. For a moment, his blank eyes flickered with a faint trace of awareness.
“Hm,” Lucian hummed softly, as though acknowledging Max. But his rage wasn’t entirely spent.
“PAAAK!” One final, devastating punch connected with Victor’s face, the force so brutal that the sound echoed through the restaurant. Blood splattered across Lucian’s hand and face as he finally let go of Victor’s collar.
Victor’s limp body crumpled to the floor, hitting the tiles with a sickening thud. His head bounced slightly before settling, the faint sound sending ripples of unease through the now-silent restaurant.
Jimmy stumbled backward as Lucian finally let go, his breath coming in shallow gasps. Garry stood frozen, his hand still outstretched, his eyes wide with shock.
Lucian turned his head slowly, his blank gaze landing on Jimmy. Blood dripped from his hands, staining the floor beneath him as he took a single step back.
“It’s done,” Lucian muttered, his voice devoid of emotion. His tone was calm, chillingly so, as though the violence he’d unleashed moments ago hadn’t even registered in his mind.
Jimmy stared at his friend, his jaw clenched, his hands trembling slightly. “Lucy…” he began, his voice low and uncertain, but he stopped himself. There was nothing he could say.
Lucian turned away, his footsteps leaving smudged streaks of blood on the tile floor as he walked toward the somewhat. The restaurant remained deathly silent, the air heavy with tension and fear.
Garry finally found his voice, muttering under his breath, “What the hell just happened?”
Jimmy didn’t answer. His eyes stayed locked on Lucian’s retreating figure, a mixture of concern, shock, and something deeper flickering in his gaze.
Lucian didn’t look back. His steps were steady, his expression unchanged, as if the chaos he left behind was just another part of his story.
—