LUCEM
Chapter I

One day, Mr. Jhonatan crosses a well-run city run by his toughest rival, Ahem Mayor, Mr. Adam.

Passing through the town square that looked like the festive festival market that night and was filled with the carefree laughter of the residents of Ahem city really disturbed his feelings at that time. Mr. Jhonatan, however he tried all this time, his town square never displayed the cheer he had hoped for. This doesn't seem fair.

It's a cold fight between two mayors! They chase each other and bite, yes, they are like dogs chasing cats and cats clawing at dogs and dogs biting at cats, it's an unstoppable cycle. But there's more to it than that.

As my sister Marbella said, it's just a story about humans and rats. And the hard part of that is deciding who the person is, and who the rat is. But just tell me it's a story about a story.

Let's begin! Partly it began, with a young postman coming to bring a letter from Mr. Jhonatan to my brother Marbella. We lived far away in the mountains and it was enough to torture any postman who came from cities far away in the lowlands.

This is part of the journey that postmen do not like. The road to my place passes through forests and mountains on broken, muddy and sometimes collapsed roads. There was a deep shadow and the scent of the forest among the trees.

Sometimes he thought there was a stalker who followed the pace of his vehicle, the sometimes faint and sometimes obvious muffling noises made his neck feathers crumble, several times he turned his head but remained invisible. But he's sure of it. They came from behind him, from the back seat of his vehicle, but there was nothing there except a large letter bag of canvas and the post boy's suitcase.

And on this journey, immense determination is key. He is very loyal to his duty. I silently admired the persistence he displayed whenever he came to deliver a letter or package to our place.

While enjoying the usual tea treat I served whenever he came, the young man of the post would tell me about the journey he had just been through, occasionally he was sure he heard shrill voices, whispering. And I, I will always listen and enjoy every story he brings no matter what his real or imaginations are.

The story of the journey of the post youth is sometimes long sometimes short. Usually after handing over the postman's letter will pass, moving towards the village where people gather more and the story will sound more lively there. But, he never missed me before that.

Staring at the young man's back until he disappeared far away, I turned my gaze to the only house on our side of the house.

Yes, there is only one neighbor currently near our house. He was a brunette young man, sitting alone on the porch of the house and enjoying a swing of a rocking chair, reading a book. He read slowly, and loudly, moving his finger over the words. He read. 'That's 'Daemoooooooonologie, ' the foreign word uttered a small, shrill voice of hers.

“Daemonologie?” ulang slowly.

'There is such a thing as too much pronunciation, son, ' said another voice, which sounded half-asleep from the inner side of the house.

“But you know the best about Daemonologie?” Marbella's voice was behind me.

“It's very far from this village. It was far from Mount Colonomis. It's far from anywhere where the Supervisory Commander once said, that he's the creator of Daemologie would have us boiled alive if he'd ever seen or heard of us. And it's not very modern.

The bad road. There are many hills and valleys to be climbed. People don't move around much up here. So, the news doesn't spread very quickly, okay? And we don't have police. Mars, we can make a lot of money here!”

'Marbi?' I said carefully.

“Yes, Mars!?”

“You don't think what we do is, you know ... dishonest, right?”

There was a pause before his voice, '

“Well... we take their money, Mars.”

Marbella wiggled the white envelope stamped by the mayor's office in her hand.

"Well," said Marbella in a soft voice, "but what you have to ask yourself is: who are we really taking the money from?"

“Good. And that means... what? I've told you a little before.”

'mm...'

“That's government money, Mars,” Marbella said casually. “Say!? Government money.”

“Government money,” I repeated Marbi's remarks obediently.

“Good! And what does the government do with money?”

“Emm, they ..”

"They pay the army" Marbella cut. “They fought. In fact, we may have stopped a lot of wars by taking that money and putting it in a harmless place. Society will give us the title of hero, if they think about it.” Marbella said, lifting her chin as she stepped inside.

I followed his steps.

"Some of the city looked very poor, Marbi," I said hesitantly.

“Hey, then, it's just the kind of place that doesn't need war.” Marbella said.

I glanced from the window, the boy concentrated, and his lips twitched in the book he was holding.

“That's right, Marbi. But, didn't Mrs Mascherano ever say we shouldn't live with deceit.”

“Listen, Mars, trickery is the core of man,” Marbella said.

“They desperately want to cheat each other all the time so they choose the government to do it for them.

As for us, we give them the value of money.

They got a terrible rat plague, they paid the rat controllers, all the rats followed these controllers out of town, jumped up and down, and it ended the plague, everyone is happy that no more fiddling with rice, rice fields and fields, the government can be re-elected by a grateful population, a common celebration all over the place. Money is well spent, in my opinion.” Said Marbella who had now sat on a wooden chair in the middle of the reading room.

"But there's only a plague because we made them think there was, '" I said.

“Well, my dear, the other thing all the small governments do in spending their budget money is catch rats, okay? I don't know why you today bother with it all?” Search Marbella.

“Yes, but we-'what if they realize that you've stopped?” Pursuing me.

Marbella ignored my question. I looked back out the window that started to darken because it was near dusk and also cloudy that shriveled. It's raining soon.

********

Daemonologie (literally, meaning the science of the devil). It is also commonly referred to as Demonology or Demonology.