It goes back to that point.
Anyone who has prepared to travel to the DC Universe knows what the Bar of Light in Los Angeles means.
"Lucifer, huh..."
Ian swallowed, muttering under his breath.
"Huh?"
Madison's ears seemed sharp. "How do you know that guy's name? Yeah, it's that chuunibyou—someone actually named himself Lucifer Morningstar."
"That's just ridiculous. He sounds like a washed-up rock singer. It totally wastes that handsome face. You're definitely much better than that damned bar owner in that regard."
Madison's sharp-tongued sarcasm remained consistently reliable.
Ian glanced sideways at Madison. The blonde girl was judging the Devil's taste with an expression of utter disdain, clearly having no idea who she was criticizing.
"Little delinquent."
He suddenly spoke.
"Yeah?"
Madison looked at her deskmate suspiciously.
"I hope you can be a good person in the future and go to heaven." Ian sincerely offered his blessing. However, Madison just rolled her eyes and snorted.
"I don't believe in heaven or hell, and good people can't make it in Hollywood." That was Madison's dream, to become a Hollywood superstar.
Ian didn't explain, just sighed softly. Just then, another wave of perfume approached. It smelled a little cheap, far inferior to Madison's taste.
A girl with wavy brown hair, holding a necklace in her hand, happily walked toward Ian. Her eyes held a hint of expectation.
This was Emily.
A classmate who had "accidentally tripped" in front of Ian more than ten times.
"Ian, you didn't come to school yesterday, were you sick?" Emily greeted Ian immediately, her face showing intense concern.
"Are you cursing me to be sick?"
Ian frowned slightly, his focus quite odd.
"..."
Emily's expression froze, then she forced a smile and held up the necklace in her hand. "Okay, I misspoke. Could you please help me put this necklace on?"
"It was a birthday gift from my mom this morning." She elongated her tone, emphasizing the words "birthday gift."
"My mother also gives me birthday gifts on my birthday." Ian merely gave Emily a clear-eyed look, then lowered his head to organize his textbooks.
The conversation seemed to have stalled.
A flicker of awkwardness crossed Emily's face. A male classmate nearby, seeing this, immediately enthusiastically approached her, smiling broadly as he said, "Let me help you."
He was a helpful, good student. However, the freckles on his face had exceeded the appropriate range, which was probably why Emily immediately pulled her hands back.
"No need, thank you."
She remained polite but was very firm in her refusal. The male student was left bewildered, standing there at a loss, the kind-hearted boy not yet understanding why.
"I'm dying of laughter."
Seeing this, Madison burst out laughing, clutching her stomach. She lay down on the desk, her shoulders shaking violently. "Hahaha! Emily, your acting is terrible!"
She didn't forget to insult her rival even while laughing.
"Mind your own business, Miss Montgomery!" Emily spoke hatefully, her tone indignant. Madison, however, didn't seem to care at all about the warning.
She even intended to fuel the fire.
"Your big sister is in a good mood today, so I'll teach you for free what the correct way to use Ian is." With that, Madison unclasped the necklace around her neck.
"Fasten this for me, study freak." Madison turned her back to Ian, and while speaking, she flipped a ten-dollar bill onto the book Ian was reading.
The next moment, Ian instantly sprang into action, skillfully taking the necklace. His fingers nimbly looped around Madison's blonde hair, fastening the clasp. The entire process definitely took no more than three seconds.
He was highly proficient.
Especially the speed at which he tucked the ten-dollar bill into his pocket—it was lightning fast.
It must be said.
Madison was indeed quite wealthy.
For a middle school student, this was definitely a considerable amount of pocket money. Thus, the large bill overcame Ian's laziness, and the knowledge in his textbook couldn't defeat Alexander Hamilton.
Its power was only one-tenth weaker than Benjamin Franklin.
That was already very strong.
"See that? That's professional."
Madison looked at Emily somewhat provocatively, taking back the five dollars Ian gave her in change—the Son of Superman had his own integrity regarding labor for pay.
"You just wait! Bitch! Don't let me see you after school!" Emily, whose expression was already ugly, became furious at this sight, gnashing her teeth, stomping her foot, and turning to leave.
As for her threat.
Madison remained unconcerned.
"Seriously, where did you skip school to yesterday? Don't tell me you went to a bookstore." Madison continued chatting with Ian, taking out nail polish and starting to paint her nails.
"I didn't skip school."
Ian corrected his deskmate's wording.
"I took a sick leave."
He showcased his rigorous precision.
"Oh? Sick leave?"
Madison aimed her shiny nails toward the sunlight.
"Of course it was sick leave. My parents took me to see a psychiatrist." Ian felt no need to hide it, seeing a psychiatrist wasn't unusual in the US.
After all—
Therapy is pretty normal here. People tend to be open about mental health, which is why psychological services are always in such high demand.
"Is this a misery competition?"
Madison was surprised to hear this.
"Is there a prize for winning?"
Ian once again demonstrated his unique focus. Madison curled her lip and gave an eye-roll that would definitely win her the championship in any eye-rolling contest.
"I see a psychiatrist often too. Even if there were a prize, I'd win." She held and rotated her hand, trying to get the sunlight to shine on her freshly painted nails.
"What did your doctor say?"
The blonde girl asked casually.
Ian thought for a moment.
"The doctor said I have a slight mental problem."
He chose not to hide it.
Madison heard this and scoffed, "All psychiatrists are like that. They love to scare people, otherwise, how would they make money? The key is how you view yourself."
Her words actually had a philosophical ring to them, making it hard to imagine they came from a middle school student whose grades were single digits in every subject. Ian pondered for a moment after hearing this.
"I think my psychiatrist's diagnosis of me was a bit too conservative. To be honest, I think my mental issues should also be at the level of the school's top-ranked student."
His tone was serious.
"Huh?"
Madison was stunned.
"You have to compete in this too? Is your competitive spirit stronger than mine?" Madison exclaimed that this was outrageous, looking at Ian as if he were some inexplicable, unknown creature.
And just at that moment.
The teacher for the first class began the lesson. Just as the teacher was discussing the "turning point of World War II," a deafening roar suddenly erupted outside the window.
Immediately following.
The ground shook violently.
Several students screamed and dove under their desks.
The history teacher, however, merely glanced out the window, then returned to the podium and tapped the blackboard, calmly pushing up his glasses. "No need to panic, everyone."
"It's just another plane crash... it won't affect your class. In Metropolis, this is completely normal. Superman has surely already rescued those unfortunate passengers."
The history teacher talked about the plane crash as if he were just discussing the weather, his tone incredibly calm—one can only say, Metropolis truly lives up to its reputation, being right next to Gotham.
It really does have some "city" character.
"Cool."
Madison whistled under her breath.
A group of classmates also looked enlightened and understanding, quickly accepting the history teacher's reassurance. The harmonious atmosphere returned to the classroom.
"..."
Ian's expression was mixed. He turned to look at the thick smoke rolling in the distance outside the classroom window, wanting to speak, but finally chose to blend into the collective harmonious atmosphere.
The one who was just talking about his mental state.
Now felt like he might be the only normal person in the classroom.
No one even realized.
That the crashed plane had already exploded?