Chapter 7: No Royal Ride for the Damned

The three siblings stepped out of the house, locking the door behind them.

The street was quiet. Faded paint peeled off the small homes lining the block, and the fences were either bent, rusted, or missing entirely.

Despite the rough appearance, the neighborhood wasn't dangerous. It was poor, but not lawless.

Rodania didn't have much in terms of organized crime. Petty theft, sure. Drunk fights here and there.

But overall, criminal activity was low. The people here worked long hours and kept their heads down.

Lucian glanced around out of habit, then followed behind Scarlett and Jamie.

They walked along the cracked pavement, sticking to the shaded side of the street. A few people swept their porches or hung laundry. No one paid them much attention.

The bus stop wasn't far. They couldn't afford a car, so this was normal.

Either a taxi or the bus, whatever came first.

They were heading to the prison.

Lucian had walked this road plenty of times in his old life.

But this was the first time he was walking it to see the man he once called father.

As they walked, Lucian's thoughts drifted.

He had agreed to the demon's offer. That much was clear. He remembered shaking the hand, and the next second, waking up in his room like nothing happened.

He wondered how those powers were supposed to work. Were they automatic? Did he have to activate them? Could he even test them?

Lucian wasn't going to lie, he half expected some kind of dramatic transformation. A glow, a mark, maybe even a sudden six-pack and sharper jawline.

Instead, he was still soft in the middle, wearing the same oversized shirt and jeans that didn't fit right.

He let out a small chuckle.

Scarlett glanced at him. "Mmh? What's funny?"

"No, nothing," he said quickly.

Jamie leaned around her with a smug look. "See, big sis? I told you he smokes."

Lucian turned his head slowly and gave Jamie a sharp stare. So that's why their mom brought it up during breakfast.

Jamie grinned, then quickly ducked behind Scarlett as if she were a human shield.

Lucian narrowed his eyes, ready to respond, but before he could take a step, the bus rolled up in front of them.

He sighed and climbed in after his siblings.

There would be time to deal with Jamie later.

Soon enough, they got on the bus. It was packed.

Lucian scanned the aisle, noticing most of the seats were already taken. People were either dozing off or staring at their phones. The air was warm, filled with the quiet mix of chatter and engine hum.

He didn't want Jamie and Scarlett standing the whole trip. The ride to the prison wasn't short, and they deserved the comfort more than he did.

He also wasn't the type to start moving people. But then he saw it, a man had placed two oversized duffel bags across a double seat near the back. He sat by the window with large headphones on, staring out.

Lucian made his way over and gently tapped him on the shoulder.

The man looked up, a bit annoyed.

Lucian leaned in slightly, keeping his tone calm and respectful. "Hey, I hope you don't mind. I wanted to ask if my sister and little brother could take these seats here."

The man glanced down at his bags, then at Lucian. There was a pause.

Without saying a word, the man put his headphones back on and shifted his eyes back to the window.

Lucian stood there for another second.

The guy didn't even say no. Just ignored him completely.

As Lucian stepped back, he heard a quiet scoff from the man, followed by him looking down at his phone again like nothing had happened.

Lucian clenched his jaw, but didn't respond.

He wasn't the aggressive type. He never had been. Even as a kid, he'd avoided fights. He didn't push people. He didn't lash out.

But right now… he felt something.

It wasn't big. Just a faint, sharp tug in his chest. A small, unexpected urge to hit the guy. Just once. Just enough to knock that smug look off his face.

Instead, he turned and walked away, shaking his head.

Lucian didn't ask anyone else for a seat. He just stood there with his siblings and accepted the situation.

The bus was packed. There were no free seats, and unless he wanted to make a scene or get into an argument with a stranger over common decency, he wasn't going to get one. He had already tried once. That was enough.

He kept one hand on the cold overhead rail as the bus rattled over a pothole. His other hand stayed loose by his side. Scarlett stood next to him, holding the vertical bar near the aisle.

Jamie leaned against one of the side poles with both arms crossed, still playing on his cheap handheld game.

Lucian glanced back at the man with the duffel bags. The guy was fully reclined now, one hand resting behind his head, the other still holding his phone. The bags remained untouched on the seats.

Lucian shook his head once and looked away.

He didn't want trouble. Never had. But something about being ignored like that, brushed off without a word, stuck with him more than it should have.

He wasn't angry. Not fully. It was something smaller than anger, but harder to ignore.

Even after agreeing to a deal with a literal devil, Lucian still didn't look like someone who could command a room.

He had no sharp features. No scars or marks that made people think twice. His shoulders were broad but soft.

His arms didn't look dangerous. His shirt didn't cling to anything impressive. Everything about him said average.

And he knew it.

He didn't look like someone who could stand up for himself, much less intimidate anyone else.

If someone wanted to push past him, they probably would. If someone wanted to laugh in his face, he didn't look like the type who'd stop them.

In school, he had always been the kid you could ignore.

Not bullied in some dramatic way, but overlooked, pushed to the back of the line, left out of the real conversations.

He wasn't picked first or last. He was somewhere in the middle, where no one noticed you.

That feeling never left.

And right now, standing on a crowded bus with his little brother and sister next to him, it returned.

Lucian clenched the rail a little tighter. He didn't say anything out loud. There was no point. But deep inside, the idea sat with him.

If he was going to change anything…

He needed to stop looking like someone who couldn't.