Under The Influence

"Damn it, you're using your magic to influence me! You're such an asshole!" Sofia swore in annoyance as her body still limply lay on the bed.

Lucien lit his cigarette and sucked on it as if he didn't feel tired. He leaned his back against the head of the bed, where Sofia lay beside him.

"You asked me to do that! So stop blaming me!"

"Yeah, no problem! But you are really crazy, we did it five times and yet you are not tired at all." Sofia raised her head and crept up to Lucien who always had a cold and straight face.

"I did what you wanted, didn't I? And you must do what I said!"

"What else do you want from me? I've already given you everything!" Sofia smiled seductively, hoping Lucien would give her one more kiss.

Lucien stared at her for a moment, he didn't know what had brought Sofia this far to him. But he's starting to think that he can take advantage of Sofia's feelings for him.

"I need you to watch over Ruby for me!"

"Tch, you asked me to spy on your ex-wife? For what? Are you still obsessed with her?"

"She's still my wife, Sofia! She's my wife, we were never divorced!"

"She's with Victor now! Why don't you just give up and kill them both. You still love her? Tell me, you still love Ruby after the betrayal she did to you?" Sofia's emotions start to go wrong after realizing the feelings that Lucien always tries to hide.

He tried to look into her eyes and he saw pain and destruction. He loved her so much that it was difficult for him to leave her feelings behind.

Sofia got so close that their noses were almost touching. For the first time she saw so much love in this man's eyes and that love was not for her. It hurt Sofia, she loved Lucien so much, wanted him so much that she wished she could always be with him. But when he is gone, he will be quickly forgotten. Just like it happened to him and he wanted Lucien to realize it.

"I loved you back then, even though I know your feelings for me back then were incomplete. You took advantage of my position and I too could only ignore it. As long as I was with you, I was willing to be your pawn. But when I die, I must let myself be separated from you. In a few years you are forgot me and found another love. You got married and then here you are, died and resurrected as a demon. Lau realized that the woman you loved forgot you quickly and lived with her new love. You know what that means, Lucien? Love true never existed. When you die everyone will forget you, they will only cry for a moment then they will laugh again with other people. Painful isn't it? That's how I feel. But I'm grateful because I didn't get to see you married and happy with Ruby, I met you just when you had been forgotten."

"You are comparing yourself and me?"

"Yeah, didn't we go through the same thing? I thought that was punishment for the betrayal you did to me!"

Sofia smiled contentedly, she didn't expect that she could finally laugh at Lucien's suffering.

"I betrayed you once, Sofia! You died in an accident and that was not my intention. It took me seven years to open my heart and accept a new love. I met Ruby and married her. My ex-boss Victor tried to rape my wife, I got angry and beat him. Then he took revenge on me and asked the assassin to kill me. What did I do wrong that I had to go through all that? Do you think it's fair enough that you died in that accident while I was still alive? Is it fair when a man tries to be a good husband, works for his wife until the afternoon, but he has to watch his wife being abused by someone he once trusted so much in his life. Someone he already considers like a brother. I died without anyone knowing, buried in the forest until my body was only bones remain. Nothing remains but the pain I carried to death. Do you think that's fair enough? My wife, whom I previously protected and defended from someone who abused her, is living with that person. You wouldn't know the pain, Sofia! Because the love you have for me is just a childish obsession that makes me have to roam this world with no purpose other than waiting for me to give up and place my soul in your hands!"

Lucien got up from the bed and walked away from the quiet room. Sofia was speechless, she realized that she had made a mistake. He just couldn't tell Lucien that he felt very jealous and wished that she was the woman Lucien loved.

"Why? Why do I still feel this suffocating love? Shouldn't this love be gone? It's been more than 10 years, why do I still love him? No...! Get this feeling away from me...! I don't want to be tormented Again...!" Sofia screamed hysterically, her anger and uncontrollable emotions almost made the fox power come out of her body.

He doesn't understand what really happened to him? Why should he continue to harbor feelings that should have long since disappeared and turned into deep hatred.

***

Claude welcomed Lucien's arrival with great joy when Lucien walked up to him. Even though he had heard the information from Jayden, he still wanted to hear it directly from Lucien.

"Lucien, I'm glad you came today! I know it's not a pleasant thing to come to a mansion that's so far from downtown. Since you've come, I congratulate you on your success in your first assignment. I'm impressed you did well. "

Claude smiled broadly like a clown in a horror movie which actually made him look scary. Lucien felt reluctant to show her any particular reaction.

"What's your decision?"

"Decisions? What decisions?" Claude was surprised because Lucien really didn't want to mince words with him.

"A decision about my status in the group? Do you want me to stay or go back to the casino table?"

"Didn't I say before that you will hold both? You are too special to be in the same place, Lucien and I don't want to waste your talent."

"You're starting to talk like that bastard again!"

"Victor Schneider?"

"Who else?"

"Hahaha... I always seem to remind you of your beloved boss, don't you think? Is that why you're always cold to me?" Claude said. Lucien just kept quiet and looked at him coldly. He didn't want to waste energy responding to Claude's joke.

"Your ambition and greed are exactly the same as his. Taking advantage of other people's power for your goal of world domination, do you not believe in your own abilities so you have to make it your valuable asset?"

"Lucien, this time you're the one who actually reminds me of someone. Someone who is very strong, stubborn and sharp-mouthed. Just like you, he really hates being under other people's power. He is the type of solitary beast who prefers to be alone than live in a group like wolves. But the difference is he's a big black cat and you're a wolf, I can understand if a cat chooses to walk alone. But a wolf, that's something rare especially for a wolf who should be the alpha in a pack ."

"I think it's because you have succeeded in influencing Jayden to have the same ambitions as you. You know that you can use his powers that's why you don't want him to rush to kill his revenge target. I know why a cunning creature like you actually became an alpha instead, Claude! Because you are very good at using your mouth to sway other people's minds, just like Victor. You are people with insane ambitions-"

"If a man doesn't have the ambition to master something, then one day someone else's ambition will dominate him. It doesn't matter if you are more genius, talented and more powerful than Victor, if you don't have ambition, then you will become his slave. What will you do?" what happened to you is enough to prove that a man can never be anything if there is no ambition in his life. A man will only be a man, he will never be a leader, he will never be at the top of the highest hierarchy if he does not have ambition! Come to your senses, Lucien! Stop playing it safe. You're too naive and think that shouldn't happen to you. You should know that terrible things can happen to anyone, whether it's fair or not. Victor got rid of you not because he wants your wife, but because he has tested your loyalty in the end preferring love that is useless than continuing to serve him who has given you everything."

Claude's words he could not deny, he hated to admit it. But he knew that what Claude said might have some truth. He still can't believe that Victor really loves Ruby. He knew Victor very well and how he was never satisfied with just one woman. Maybe soon Ruby will be dumped by him. The only reason why Victor killed him was the refusal he kept giving when Victor repeatedly persuaded him to come back to him.

Yes, he knows how naive he is. He always played it safe by following Victor's every whim, whether it was true or not because at that time he always thought that Victor was the only person he trusted and understood his situation. But as time went on, she was no longer able to allow herself to continue to be held by Victor and she slowly tried to free herself, hoping that in the end Victor would let her go.

***