Comic: Becoming a Phantom Thief to Steal Hearts

After finishing speaking, Lucas paused expectantly, but the childish voice that was often full of sarcasm did not sound.

He laughed self-deprecatingly, what on earth was he expecting? The contract between him and Archipal was obviously no longer stable, he should have realized this a long time ago.

Human beings are really creatures that like to deceive themselves and others.

Hearing Lucas' description, Tim felt a little complicated. He knew that Archipal was Damian in Lucas' world. He really didn't expect that Damian, who was still very self-centered, would have such a possibility.

It doesn't seem right. Damian is indeed very possessive and caring about the things that are divided into his own domain.

In front of everyone, Lucas didn't say much about Archipal, nor did he plan to talk about the conversation between himself and the consciousness of the universe.

If everything we had experienced before was just a test, it would be like a joke to everyone who had exerted their will and consciousness.

"The dark universe has begun to invade the world. I don't want to go back to the days of the past, so... I have to work hard to save the world." Lucas said.

"But does this have anything to do with you not being the leader of the Phantom Thieves?" Peter asked in confusion.

"Because, if... I don't succeed, I hope the Phantom Thieves can continue." Lucas lowered his voice, but the emotion in his words was much fuller.

Lucas' words silenced everyone.

Tim was the first to sigh. He patted Lucas on the shoulder, "You really like to take everything on yourself, Lucas."

In Lucas' stunned look, Tim continued, "As a native of this world, I feel that the responsibility of protecting this world should not be shouldered by you."

"That is to say, this is our world after all, and we need your protection!" Connor said in agreement.

"No, actually..." Lucas wanted to say something else, but was interrupted by Peter again.

"Yes, this is something that everyone should do together."

Lucas smiled a little, his friends will never let him down, they are all very good people.

but……

"But that's why I'm here," Lucas said.

"That's not the case." Connor quickly denied. He looked at Lucas seriously and said sincerely, "No one is born to do anything. I originally thought I should be Superman, but then I couldn't. It’s just the meaning given to me by others, you should find your own meaning!”

"Then did you find it?" Lucas asked.

"Huh? Aren't you still thinking about this?" Connor scratched his head subconsciously, and then quickly reacted, "Ah, no, you are not talking about me now!"

"I understand what you mean." Lucas nodded, "But there are some things that only I can do. Creatures from the dark universe will have an aura of despair. Once affected, in actual combat, It’s a fatal factor.”

"If it's just the breath..."

"It's not that simple!" Lucas shook his head, "Your mind will keep echoing all the sad and desperate things from birth to now, and there will also be many hallucinations of things you don't want to see, fearful things, many Sometimes you can’t even tell if it’s real or fake.”

"Is it something like Scarecrow's fear potion?" Tim asked.

"That's too cheap... After all, that kind of atmosphere is the despair that has settled in the world. The reason why you can't tell whether it's true or false is because it's just something that happened."

"Ah... In this way, the parallel world is originally a world derived from various possibilities."

"Well, for example, in a world where Connor might not have become Superboy yet, he might have been rescued while he was in a petri dish and work with Superman. This possibility is also possible." Lucas thought about the fragments. "These are normal things, but in some worlds you were injected with the Doomsday virus and went crazy and destroyed the entire metropolis."

Faced with Lucas' statement, Connor couldn't help but gasped, "This possibility is too scary!"

"It's scary, isn't it?" Lucas said softly, "But these are all things that really happened in a certain world."

"In that case, it's understandable." Peter murmured, "I can't imagine what it feels like to lose Uncle Ben."

Precisely because he almost lost him once, he wanted to cherish the important people in his heart even more, but the fact is that if Lucas hadn't been around at that time, Uncle Ben would have...

Peter covered his head, "If I were to see this scene, I don't know if I could stay calm."

"Ah, if it's an illusion of losing someone important..." Mindy frowned. Just as Peter thought of his Uncle Ben, she also thought of Big Daddy. Just thinking about this possibility made her feel very sad. Uncomfortable.

Gwen thought of watching her father chase Dr. Lizard's back.

Tim thought of his dead parents. In a way, if he had not pursued the path of Batman so persistently, his parents would not have left. Also... the life of a vigilante is often accompanied by accidents. , Tim really doesn't want to see his family and companions lose their lives due to accidents.

Raven thought of the destroyed Acharath. If she failed to escape the control of the Three Palaces and completely became his puppet, would she have to watch countless civilizations destroyed in her own hands?

People will always have cherished people and unfortunate past events, which are the negative scales in their hearts that they don't want to be touched.

Lucas' description gave Harry a sense of déjà vu. Thinking back to the process of obtaining the persona, he finally realized it.

"When I was in Father's Hall, I received a lot of negative emotions. There was a voice trying to make me believe that I was just a puppet and a puppet in Father's hands, and then you all abandoned me." Harry looked at Lucas, "Is this the influence of the Dark Universe?"

"Yes, but it's just a slight impact," Lucas said.

Those halls in New York were all allowed by the cosmic consciousness in order to train Lucas. They must have been expected by him, but what follows is a battlefield with real swords and guns, and it will never be that simple.

"What?!" Peter immediately looked at his best friend nervously, "So, during the final battle, something was very wrong with you, Harry. What kind of impact will that dark universe have on Harry?"

Faced with Peter's question, Lucas was actually unsure. He could only say, "I'm sorry, I don't know."

"It's definitely not good anyway." Gwen pursed her lips.

"There's no need to worry." Harry comforted Peter, "I feel fine now."

"But, Lucas, although you have been talking about the influence of the breath of the dark universe on us, in fact, you will also be affected." Tim suddenly said.

Lucas opened his mouth but didn't say anything. He was a little helpless. Tim was really too sharp sometimes.

"...That's true, but I originally came from the Dark Universe, so the impact on me is much less." Lucas offered his trump card, "The damage I cause to creatures from the Dark Universe is also much higher. "

"Um...what kind of restraint principle is this?"

"It's very simple. The world in the dark universe can only end in destruction. If you don't want to be completely destroyed, you can only fight and fight to get a chance to survive." Lucas lowered his eyes, "Abandon the world that is about to be destroyed and go to another world."

This was the mission that Lucas often performed with Archipald, to kill all the resistance forces in the new world. At that time, he didn't have to think about anything, he just had to carry out the order.

"In the fight against the dark universe, I am neither sure of victory nor confident in protecting you. I am no longer suitable to be the leader of the Phantom Thieves," Lucas said.

"Hey, but..." Mindy was still confused.

Lucas' reasons did not convince her. Even if they had to face an extremely powerful enemy in the future, they would always face it together. What does this have to do with Lucas insisting on resigning as the leader of the group?

But Gwen stopped Mindy who was about to say something else. She looked at Lucas softly and said, "Okay, we understand, don't worry, we will choose a new leader soon. "

Lucas breathed a sigh of relief, smiled slightly and said, "That's good."

Now, even the most obtuse person can sense Lucas's attitude.

After a major matter in his heart was resolved, a strong feeling of exhaustion surged up from his limbs. During this period, Lucas really experienced too much.

His body swayed, "Sorry, everyone, I'm a little tired and need to take a rest."

"...Well, have a good rest."

Everyone silently watched Lucas's leaving figure.

Tim's fists on the table tightened and relaxed. He had a strong urge to follow and ask everything, but Lucas looked too tired now.

Yes, he was fighting Hank Henshaw again, and was holding back the Three Palaces non-stop. Anyone would be tired from such a high-intensity battle, but why did he show such a sad expression.

"Why doesn't Lucas want to be our leader?" Mindy said dully, "There must be more than just the reasons he just mentioned!"

Gwen sighed, "But Lucas is serious, and we have to respect his choice."

"Alas." Hope shook his head and said nothing.

"Just now...Lucas was feeling very uncomfortable," Raven said.

She could see people's emotions, and while Lucas was calm most of the time, they were fluctuating just now.

"I'm the one who doesn't understand Lucas at all." Connor looked a little reluctant, "Obviously we are brothers, we should be the closest people."

What Connor said made Tim feel confused. Indeed, brothers should be the closest people. He once became friends with the ignorant Lucas. At that time, Lucas saw nothing in his eyes, even if he was pushed. He leaned against the wall, still expressionless.

Young teenagers would consider this arrogance and indifference, but Tim prefers to call it insensitivity.

At that time, Tim was also young and wanted to change the world. He was Robin and should help the weak around him, so he chose to protect Lucas, who was being bullied, and gradually became familiar with him.

Thinking about it now, maybe the familiarity he felt in Lucas was not his blood relationship with Bruce, but the despair of the city of Gotham.

"Lucas's own thoughts should indeed be respected. It's only now that I realize that I don't understand him a little bit." Peter smiled bitterly.

As one of Lucas' closest friends, Peter had never felt this way before, but it seemed that at some point, there was a deep gulf between them.

This really makes people feel powerless and they don’t know what to do.

"I don't even understand why he did this..."

"Maybe..." Tim said, "to gain the courage to make a desperate move."

After saying this, his fingertips trembled and he stood up hastily, "I'm sorry, I suddenly remembered something urgent."

"Ah, it's okay."

Tim hurried outside Lucas' room. He stood hesitantly at the door, his fingers curled on the door panel.

When he thought about that possibility before, he felt a surge of enthusiasm to look for Lucas, but when he actually came to the door, he hesitated.

After all, the relationship between them is no longer a pure friendship at the beginning, but has a hint of Schrödinger's brotherly relationship.

Just as Tim was struggling, the door opened.

"You're indeed here, Tim." Lucas said lightly. Because he was too tired, his tone was soft, and his voice seemed to be mixed in the wind.

"Did I bother you..." Tim said awkwardly.

"It doesn't matter, I... don't fall asleep that easily." Lucas turned sideways and motioned for Tim to come in.

"Ah, no need." Tim didn't intend to disturb Lucas for long, after all, he seemed to really need a rest.

"I just want an answer." Tim looked closely at Lucas's expression and asked, "Did something happen to Archipal?"

When these words were spoken, Lucas's expression changed obviously. He lowered his eyes subconsciously at first, his eyelashes trembling constantly, as if he was suppressing something, and gradually he calmed down.

"You're really sharp, Tim."

"So..." Tim spat out a word complicatedly

"I can't feel him anymore." Lucas lowered his head and said blankly.

So this is what it feels like to lose someone important.

After angrily questioning the consciousness of the universe and after the war, when I subconsciously wanted to talk to him, I suddenly realized that he would never respond to me again. This kind of confusion and emptiness was completely different from the feeling of blankness in the past. , as if a piece of his soul was missing, and his heart was slightly swollen and painful.

None of the problems matter anymore.

"Sorry to bother you, Lucas." Tim looked at Lucas deeply, "It's okay to cry if you feel uncomfortable."

Tim left.

Lucas closed the door, leaned against the door panel, and stared blankly at the empty room.

In a daze, liquid slid down his cheeks.