Chapter 214 - 214: The Gray World
Lucifer and Grandpa Chi stepped inside the theater, which was already pretty crowded. Fortunately, it wasn't full yet. They sat on the seats as the movie was about to start.
Soon, the movie began. The story seemed simple at first glance, but there was something complex as Lucifer watched the movie.
It seems to be a story about two brothers whose parents were murdered. One of the two brothers joined the righteous Variants while the other brother joined the Dark Variants, all to get their Revenge.
Both brothers held different beliefs as they approached their goal, and it ultimately resulted in the two of them becoming enemies.
The story perfectly depicted the struggles of these two Variants as they tried to get their revenge while struggling in their organizations.
Even then, as it was a righteous movie, it depicted the Dark Variants in a really negative light. By the end of the movie, the second brother realized that he had made a mistake by joining the Dark Variants. He betrays them and joins the righteous Variants.
The two brothers kill the Dark Variants, destroying their organization. They even finish their revenge, and the movie ends.
The cheering of the crowd echoed in the theater as the movie was over. But Lucifer was still silent.
He didn't know why, but he felt something inside him as he watched this movie. He couldn't help but wonder what this feeling was.
"It's a stupid movie," Grandpa Chi muttered as he stood up. "Let's leave."
He and Lucifer left the theater and walked on the street, right beside each other.
"Grandpa, why did you say that it was a stupid movie?" Lucifer asked, curious.
"Because they just showed the Dark Variants as monsters. They didn't show them as humans that had desires and emotions. It seemed like they were trying to make them seem as bad as they could."
"I mean, this movie could have been so much more realistic if they hadn't made it just black or white. There's a lot of the gray area in between that they could have explored," the old man answered.
"Grandpa, aren't the Dark Variants bad? From what I heard about them, it was pretty close in the movie," Lucifer responded.
"It's not about bad or good. Because the definition of it is subjective. Good people also do bad deeds, just like bad people also do good deeds," Grandpa Chi answered.
"It's pretty complicated, but I believe as long as the people have this mentality, we will never have true peace."
"True peace?" Lucifer inquired.
"Yeah. No matter where you go, you'll hear the news about destruction and death because of the battle between Dark Variants and Righteous Variants. It just doesn't end," the old man answered.
" The whole world is drowning in what seems like a cold war that will stretch for decades. And I doubt it'll ever stop. At least not until both sides come to the table and understand each other," he further said.
"But I doubt it'll happen. For this to happen, the world needs to change. I doubt it'll ever change."
"As I said, I'll die before I ever see a peaceful world with no murders and destruction. One day, all of us will destroy this world ourselves. We won't even need Dungeon Dwellers," he continued.
His words were profound, making Lucifer lose himself in deep thought. Two sides, and both wanted each other destroyed.
Was it possible for them to change? He wondered if it was possible, but as he understood Grandpa Chi, he believed the old man was right.
This world wasn't black or white. There was a lot of gray in it too.
"I mean, it's not only the Variants. Even humans do the same thing. Wage wars on other human countries and destroy each other. What for? This world will never change," Grandpa Chi said as he sighed.
"I guess it can only change if the god himself comes down, smacks everyone to the ground, and forces them to live without destroying anything. But even that's impossible," he continued.
"Oh right. It's your birthday, no disappointing talk. So, what's next on the plan?" Grandpa Chi asked, remembering they were here to celebrate.
"Ah, right. I forgot about that. It's already eight. Let's eat dinner fast and go back, or I'll be late. Come fast," Lucifer suddenly let out as he stopped another cab and went into a cheap hotel.
He and Grandpa Chi had dinner and left the hotel.
It was ten in the night, and the road they walked on was almost empty.
"There are only two hours left. The ride back would be an hour long. I guess we finished on time," Lucifer said, smiling. "Thank you for this perfect day, Grandfather!"
"No. I should thank you instead. For spending this precious day with me," the old man answered as he rubbed Lucifer's head again.
"Now, let me stop a cab."
As the old man walked to the road to stop a cab, he suddenly stopped as he saw a little girl running towards him.
It seemed like a twelve or thirteen year old girl. Her clothes were covered in dirt, and there was fear on her face.
A few men could be seen chasing after the little girl.
The little girl soon reached the old man as she hid behind him. "Help! Please help me! Save me from them!"
"Little girl? Who are they?" Grandpa Chi asked.
Even Lucifer approached the girl, frowning.
"They kidnapped me!" The girl said as tears came in her eyes. "I managed to escape after a long time, and they're chasing me! Please save me! Help me!"
"Grandpa, you take care of the girl, I'll take care of them," Lucifer said, cracking his knuckles. These people really dared to kidnap a kid? He couldn't stand by and watch.
In any case, they were just humans. Even though he wasn't allowed to use his powers, he could easily take care of them.
"Kid! Step out of our path! That girl belongs to us!" One of the four middle-aged men told Lucifer. "If you give her to us, we'll allow you and that old man to leave safely."
" Did you really think you're in any position to decide if we will leave safely or not?" Lucifer answered, frowning.
"Looks like you won't understand like this!" the man said as he ran towards Lucifer, attacking him with his bare hands.
Lucifer couldn't help but scoff at this attack. After his three years of training, the attacks of these amateurs looked childish.
Lucifer calmly moved to the side as he dodged the punch while also using two of his fingers to hit the neck of the man.