"Angelina, I'll teach you how we run the back Kitchen first."
Once they arrived at his soy milk shop, Lucian felt like he was truly home again—comfortable, relaxed, completely in his element.
The Kitchen was his sanctuary. Only here did he feel like the Holy Son everyone called him—completely in control, and it felt amazing.
Angelina, brought in behind him, nodded vigorously. Clutching her apron with both hands, she said with bright energy, "Please teach me everything, Master Lucian!"
Exusiai and Croissant were on duty today, busy handling customers out front.
With Penguin Logistics' deceptively charming crew of beauties, the shop's business was thriving. And being in one of Lungmen's prime districts, it was a lifeline for office workers rushing to survive their mornings.
Lucian worked swiftly as he took orders, talking to Angelina while he cooked.
"My shop mainly does breakfast. Speed and freshness come first. Most ingredients are prepped the day before—we just cook them. Oven's on the left, steamer's on the right, fryer in the middle. Memorize what we sell and what tools each item needs."
"Yes, Master!"
Angelina pulled out a small notebook from her apron and carefully wrote down each step.
Ordinarily, with her looks, she'd be better off helping with customers—she was the type of girl who'd attract goodwill instantly.
But she knew. Even in Lungmen, the Infected weren't welcomed. The more she appeared in public, the more danger she'd be in. It was safer to limit her contact with strangers.
Honestly, she shouldn't be helping at all. Just being allowed to hide in Lucian's home should've been more than enough.
But Lucian waved away every concern she had.
People needed something to do. And if his goal was for her to settle down in Lungmen, she needed to learn the city—not hide in a room forever.
Angelina was a smart girl. She understood his kindness and accepted it gratefully.
After the morning rush passed, the flow of customers slowed, and the Kitchen grew quiet.
Angelina took the chance to speak softly. "Thank you so much, Lucian."
She smiled sweetly while helping him clean. "You saved me from the poli— I mean, from those officers, and that alone was a huge help. Then you let me shower, sleep, and rest safely. And Croissant, Exusiai, and Texas… none of them hate me for being Infected. They're all so kind to me. All of this… I don't even know how I'm supposed to repay it."
"It's not that dramatic," Lucian laughed. "By that logic, I've taken care of those three women for ages—shouldn't they be offering their bodies to repay me? You can repay them however you like, but for me? Just helping out around the shop is enough."
Angelina blinked curiously. "Lucian, have you known Croissant and the others for a long time?"
"The longest is El—she's my Childhood Friend. Croissant and Texas I met after coming to Lungmen. Picked them up off the streets, basically. Same way I found you."
Lucian reminisced; he hadn't realized so much time had passed.
He and Exusiai had originally come to Lungmen chasing rumors about Mostima, who had once worked at Penguin Logistics.
When they finally arrived, Oni cop Hoshiguma and the Rat King, Lin, helped him secure legal residency. Then he found Penguin Logistics.
But by then, Mostima had run away—clearly avoiding him.
That heartless, backstabbing woman could eat people but didn't have the guts to face them. Deep down, she was just a guilty coward.
Lucian had wanted to chase her down.
But reality hit: he had Exusiai to feed, he was broke, had no savings, and even if he blindly chased that woman, he'd never catch her.
So he chose to settle in Lungmen first—at least until he saved enough to try again.
It had been such a vague idea at the time… and now he'd lived in Lungmen for so long. Even got involved with the Lungmen Guard Department's officers. Life was wild.
Lucian left out everything about Mostima, giving Angelina only the broad strokes of how he got here.
He continued, "Thankfully, the boss of Penguin Logistics is also a weirdo. After I picked up Texas and Croissant, he—or rather, it—dumped the company's work on me and went off to run a bar. I'll take you there once you're old enough to drink. The place is pretty amazing."
"Ehehe. Thank you, Lucian."
Angelina's smile was full of happiness—like she'd gained an older brother.
Siracusa might be filled with mafias, but none of that had ever touched her life. Everything she knew came from movies.
But after meeting Lucian, she experienced more intense, exciting events than in her entire previous life. It felt as eye-opening as when she first became a courier.
More unbelievable than anything, though, was Lucian's unconditional kindness—so much that it overwhelmed her.
After some hesitation, she finally asked, a little uneasy, "Lucian… I really am thankful. But… honestly, why would you help a stranger like me?"
Lungmen was not kind to the Infected.
Sheltering one was risky and brought nothing but trouble.
If Lucian had family who were Infected, she could understand. But Penguin Logistics was full of healthy people. His excessive compassion made no sense to her.
This world was cruel enough to make unconditional kindness seem impossible.
"Why I help the Infected, huh… fair question."
Lucian paused his work, pondering how to explain.
He held out his hand seriously. "First of all, Angelina, you're a cute girl. I like cute girls, so I like you. That's one reason."
"Uu—! Lucian!"
Her face flushed instantly, and she thumped his arm in embarrassment.
But Lucian wasn't joking—just stripping away the polite phrasing and saying the truth plainly.
Enjoying the flustered girl's tapping, he continued, "There's another reason. I've hurt a lot of Infected in the past. I feel guilty about it."
"Huh?" Angelina froze.
Lucian's expression was completely serious.
He went on, "It's not a huge guilt. I'm not noble enough to go out and accomplish something grand. But to make myself feel better, I help out an Infected person now and then when I see one. Just small things. So Angelina, you really don't need to worry. I helped you simply because I wanted to. Honestly, it's mostly self-satisfaction. You don't owe me anything. The best thing is if we just get along without pressure."
Lucian smiled and gently played with her long, fluffy curls. The texture was phenomenal.
Angelina blushed but didn't stop him—too overwhelmed by how mysterious he seemed.
This Sankta… the more she thought she understood him, the more secrets she discovered.
But she also knew: you couldn't understand someone's essence in just a day or two.
The clever girl smiled radiantly. "Lucian is a good person. I can say that from experience. So you should be a little more confident, okay? …Kyah! "
Lucian rewarded the suddenly smug high school girl with a thorough hair-ruffling, filling the shop's Kitchen with lighthearted, cheerful air.