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Lucian appeared almost at the door of the warehouse, his gaze fixed on the floor, his mind blank. A mini golden Cortana suddenly materialized beside him.

She looked at him with a worried expression.

He didn't know what he was feeling. He thought he was going to feel guilty when he killed them but he didn't.

Yet deep inside he knew there was a feeling of excitement a thrill at how easily he had killed those gangsters.

Cortana looked at him, her golden form shimmering. The worried expression on her face turned grim as their connection deepened.

She understood that in his past life, he was a civilian, dreaming of a fantasy that would never come true. But now he had the power, the power to kill someone easily and that power was changing him.

Before Cortana could say anything,

Takeshi suddenly appeared, walking out from the darkness before Lucian could completely leave the warehouse.

"You missed one." Takeshi said, disappearing as quickly as he had come.

Lucian's eyes widened, and he quickly turned his head as he heard a weak scream, a sound that was cut short followed by a thud as something heavy hit the floor.

He heard Takeshi kicking something.

It was the woman's head. He stared at it, his face devoid of emotion as he observed her lifeless features.

"The mission was to kill everyone." Takeshi said as he walked past Lucian.

"I thought the mission was to kill those who received the black sand." Lucian said, his voice flat and emotionless.

"She was here. She saw what you did. That's enough reason to kill" Takeshi said, glancing at Lucian who was still staring blankly at the woman's head.

Lucian nodded, thinking, 'Looks like he's more ruthless than what I thought.'

"Do not make the same mistake again," Takeshi said before walking out of the warehouse.

Lucian stood at the warehouse door, staring at the ground, a strange emptiness settling over him.

The excitement and the thrill he had felt during the fight was gone.

Cortana materialized beside him, her golden form shimmering her eyes full of concern.

"Are you okay, Lucian?"

"Cortana, I still want to get stronger until I can relax myself." Lucian said,

His gaze lingering on the woman's head, now a gruesome reminder of the night's events. 'If the enemy was stronger, it would be my head rolling on the ground.'

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He didn't feel sick; he didn't feel guilty.

He knew he wasn't a good guy.

He wouldn't care about strangers.

Yet something felt off. The thrill he'd experienced, the ease with which he had taken a life.it was a facade. He needed to get stronger.

Cortana, sensing his turmoil, moved closer, her soul form shimmering gently.

"It's okay to get stronger, Lucian," she said softly, her voice was soft and comforting for him.

"I know you'll never help others unless it's right in front of you. That's just who you are. But what I'm worried about is that you're disregarding the lives of humans, like you did today." She gently patted his cheek with her small, glowing hands.

"For you, they might be strangers," she continued, "But every life has a story."

She didn't want him to become numb to the value of life. This wasn't a battlefield like her own universe where death was a constant companion.

"I'm sure you don't want your second life to just be a killer." Cortana said. her expression was serious. Her words were a plea, as she tried to guide him not be just a killer.

Lucian thought of his goal when he first joined the Ozunu clan five years ago. His primary objective had been to get stronger, not to kill but to survive.

Now he possessed this ability.

He wasn't a ninja, nor an Ozunu. He was a lucky man. This was his second chance and he would make sure he wouldn't regret anything.

'Every life has its own story.' He repeated the phrase as he closed his eyes. He knew he wasn't a good person. He was a selfish person who always focused on himself.

Yet, he didn't think it was wrong. He would focus on making himself happy, as well as those who were important to him. But he knew he couldn't just kill people like this.

Lucian opened his eyes and looked at Cortana with a smile. "Hahaha, you are making my hitman job more difficult."

He was happy because he knew without Cortana, he might have changed silently. She was his guide, his anchor.

Lucian walked out of the warehouse, disappearing into the shadows.

When he appeared on a rooftop, Takeshi was already there, and more and more ninjas were arriving.

Lucian looked at them with a smirk. 'Looks like these guys missed me.' He thought, knowing they were here. If he hadn't succeeded, he might have been the one to die.

"And he's back." Cortana said, feeling happy to have him back to his normal narcissistic self.

"So, are you going to escape now?" Cortana asked with a smile, trying to hide it. She already knew his answer, but she wanted to hear him say it.

Lucian, oblivious to Cortana's happiness, mentally shook his head. 'No, we're going back.'

"Why? You're already stronger. And although there are many of them, you can still escape if given a chance." Cortana asked, trying to hold back her smile.

'A year at most, and Raizo should be about to arrive,' Lucian said as he turned to Takeshi.

Takeshi looked at Lucian. "Let's go back. Asura completed his mission."

The other ninjas cupped their fists in a salute, bowing their heads.

"Congratulations, Asura."

Lucian nodded without any emotion while he thought, 'Yes, bow down to me, Asura. Now that I think about it, it's a handsome name for me.' He felt satisfied with himself.

Cortana rolled her eyes at him. He was back to his antics. As He wasn't fully focused on getting stronger.

As Takeshi blended with the shadows, the other ninjas followed, as did Lucian.

"Why do you need to wait for Raizo? You don't even need him to get you out of the Ozunu." Cortana said as she continued their conversation.

'Of course. It's because I still need to learn the last move he and Ozunu did in the movie,' Lucian said as he ran, his voice laced with a hint of defiance.

Although what he was saying was not the truth he was determined to master that skill.

"Oh really? We don't even know if that exists. Ozunu didn't mention any technique like that and even other ninjas haven't used it." Cortana said with a smirk.

"Tsk." Lucian clicked his tongue with annoyance as he turned his head,

not wanting to talk to her.

"Oh, come on. Just tell me," Cortana said, her voice laced with playful annoyance.

She couldn't resist teasing him.

'Just read my mind if you want to know,' Lucian said, rolling his eyes.

"That's boring. We don't do that," Cortana said, trying to pout.

Lucian smiled softly, looking at her expression. He loved her playful nature, and her eagerness to poke fun at him.

Lucian sighed, a deep breath escaping his lips. 'The other kids' he said, his voice softer now 'I need to make sure they got out.'

He tried to show no emotion.

He was remembering those children, their faces filled with fear, and he couldn't shake the feeling that he had left them in danger.

Cortana copied him with a poker face.

"I thought you don't care about strangers," she said, her tone laced with a subtle hint of amusement.

'I talked and saw them for five years. Although I didn't make friends with them…' Lucian's mind drifted back to the orphanage, to the images he had seen in the movies. He remembered the soldiers following Raizo, guns blazing, as they blew up the orphanage. 'Maybe in the movies that's cool,' he thought, 'but in this life those kids might be in pieces after that fight.'

'It's for my mentality, not for them. I don't want to regret anything.' Lucian continued, his voice revealing the inner workings of his mind. He was a person who always thought about the "what ifs" of a situation. He wanted to ensure he never had to live with any regrets.

He didn't want to ask questions,

he just wanted to do it for himself. He didn't want to have to think about it in the future, asking himself 'What happened to those kids? Are they alive? What if I had just helped them?'

"For you mentality, huh?" Cortana smiled brightly. She knew he just thought he was doing all this for his happiness, yet he didn't know how much joy his help would bring to others.

Cortana laughed at him softly, a sound like tinkling bells.

Lucian looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

As Cortana finished laughing, she called out to him.

"Lucian."

'Yes?' Lucian asked, focusing on the path ahead.

"Let's enjoy this second life with no regrets, and be happy for ourselves." Cortana said. She was happy to have him as a partner, as a friend.

'Of course.' he answered, nodding with a soft smile. Cortana laughed happily beside him, making the journey back to the Ozunu clan at night feel so warm.