Gift from Amon

"Hey, interesting. You know me?"

"Did that Paranoid introduce me to you? Hmm, no, that doesn't seem like his style. So where did you learn about me? And how could you recognize me at a glance?"

The young postman wearing a Monocle smiled as he approached, reaching out to pat Cyril on the shoulder while looking him over from head to toe.

"Relax. I'm just curious about what that Paranoid is plotting again, so I came to take a look."

"Of course, it wouldn't matter even if you didn't relax. He won't know I'm here, and you won't be able to send any message out."

Cyril silently watched Amon, who was dressed as a postman. It was not that he wanted to remain silent; Amon had stolen his voice, along with his thoughts of running away.

"Your mental activity is really rich, all jumbled up. Is this how you guard against the Spectators around you? It's rather unusual."

"Since you aren't satisfied with this gift, how about I give you another one?"

"This time, go to the church of that grumpy old pigeon. Grumpy old pigeon—what an interesting name. You're much more interesting than that Paranoid. Interested in following me? I can make you my attendant."

"The kind of attendant who gets promoted straight to King of Angel?"

Cyril hurriedly shut his mouth. His voice had returned too suddenly, and before he could stop himself, he had voiced his inner snark.

"If you like, that wouldn't be impossible."

Amon wore a troubled expression, but at some point, a crystal Monocle had already appeared in his hand.

The moment Cyril saw the Monocle in Amon's hand, he instinctively took a step back. Yet his body strangely moved one step forward instead.

"So proactive. It seems you really like it..."

Amon sighed as he pressed the Monocle in his hand toward Cyril's eye socket.

Cyril stood there blankly. He could not even form the thought of running away, much less lift his leg.

Damn it, if you've got the guts, stop controlling me...

(@[]@!!)

Wait, no, I was wrong... Don't come any closer!

Before his terrified eyes, the Monocle Amon had been pressing toward his eye socket fell to the ground.

Amon curled his lip. "Tsk, boring."

Cyril lowered his head to look at the Monocle at his feet, only then realizing that a Marauder's parasitism could not infest something of a higher status than itself. And his status was far above that of a King of Angel.

Phew~

Cyril let out a long breath inwardly. Although the crisis had not yet been resolved, not being parasitized was already the best possible news.

The postman Amon in front of him looked at him and sighed. "I really just wanted to give you a gift. Why won't you believe me?"

"That Paranoid and I are brothers. Since he thinks highly of you, isn't it perfectly normal for me to add another investment?"

Cyril remained silent. He suspected that Amon could not steal too many of his memories or thoughts; otherwise, he would not be acting so calm right now.

Did Adam protect my memories?

"What a hassle." Postman Amon frowned at the night sky overhead and suddenly complained before looking back at Cyril.

"We don't have much time. Have you decided what kind of gift you need? For example, how about this?"

As he spoke, he reached into the air and pulled out an eye-sized "diamond."

Cyril's heartbeat sped up uncontrollably. He recognized the identity of that "diamond"—it was an Astrologer Beyonder Characteristic.

Although he knew Amon harbored ill intentions, he still could not stop himself from drooling with desire inwardly.

After taking a deep breath, he shook his head and refused. "This is too precious. I can't accept it."

"Too precious?" Amon smiled lightly, the corners of his mouth curling upward.

"It seems you're short on money. That's easy to solve."

The smile on Amon's face became more obvious, as though he had thought of something amusing. Then he reached into the air and pulled out an asymmetrical black classical wallet, tossing it into Cyril's hands.

"This is Jacob's Wallet. Although there's nothing inside it, you can take anything you want out of it. With it, you'll never lack money again."

"The only problem is that you need to watch out for the original owners around you coming to cause trouble."

The moment he finished speaking, the darkness around them suddenly brightened. Cyril saw the ground beneath his feet turn into a dark, unfathomable sea woven from countless subconscious minds, while the pitch-black night sky became a spiritual sky that covered everything, filled with seven colors.

A beat later, he realized that he had entered the Collective Unconscious Sea, entered the Mind World.

Between the deep sea and the vast spiritual sky, a giant figure composed entirely of light appeared abruptly.

Amon's face darkened instantly, and he ground out two words through clenched teeth.

"Adam!"

The giant made of light stood still with both hands raised, as though he were merely an image from the past.

"Let there be light!"

Following the giant's voice, endless light surged forth, enveloping Cyril and covering Amon as well.

He did not know what had happened to Amon, but Cyril felt his body melting at an unimaginable speed, like a chunk of wax thrown into a furnace.

Fortunately, that "melting" did not last long. The light around him receded, and he discovered that he had returned to his room.

"Or perhaps the light didn't recede. I was moved out of the battlefield."

He had barely muttered that when he saw a mild-faced blond priest appear before him.

After pausing for a moment, he solemnly bowed to the other man. "Good evening, Mr. Adam."

Adam nodded gently, then said in the same calm tone one might use to discuss the weather, "It is his nature. The more you stop him from taking part in something, the more interested he becomes. He will find ways to approach it, understand it, and then either join in or ruin it."

Though Adam did not name him, he was obviously referring to Amon. The meaning was equally obvious: he had been targeted by that brat who liked wearing a Monocle.

"At least he can't parasitize me."

Though that might make Amon even more interested in me.

With a bitter smile, Cyril handed Adam the black classical wallet Amon had given him.

Adam merely glanced at it without taking it. "It's a little toy Amon made. Keep it. Even if you gave it to me, you would still receive another one. He has enough Worms of Time to waste."

"..."

As expected of a King of Angel who had gathered most of the characteristics of the Error Pathway. He really was extravagant.

Noticing Adam's wording just now, Cyril asked curiously, "This isn't Jacob's Wallet?"

Adam laughed softly. "A thief doesn't need to prepare a wallet for himself."

Cyril: ...

All right, that did seem to be the logic.

After a brief pause, he looked at Adam and carefully asked, "Can you place some restrictions on the Worms of Time inside this?"

Adam did not refuse. He took the wallet, and the pad of his right index finger lightly swept across its surface. One intricate, three-dimensional mysterious symbol after another spread beneath his hand, forming a complex network like scales that wrapped around the entire wallet before quickly fading away.

After finishing, he handed the wallet back to Cyril. "Amon will no longer be able to influence you through it, nor will he be able to accurately locate or monitor you, except when it is subjected to external stimulation."

"It has no obvious negative effects, but due to Amon's personality, it will not be easy for you to obtain what you want when using it."

"Also, do not use it in front of Beyonders of a higher Sequence than yourself. People who have had something stolen tend to be rather irritable."

Cyril nodded seriously... Understood. Using it made it easy to get beaten up.

When Adam did not leave immediately after returning Jacob's Wallet, Cyril hesitated for a moment before suddenly understanding. Adam had seen the question in his heart and was waiting for him to ask it.

After carefully choosing his words, he asked curiously, "Why didn't you help Amon obtain the final Worm of Time Beyonder Characteristic? With your help, he would have a high chance of becoming the Lord of the Mysteries."

"With the help of a Lord of the Mysteries, recovering your authorities and characteristics would also become much smoother."

Adam looked at him and calmly asked in return, "Why do you think that is?"

Uh... Cyril forcibly cut off his urge to complain and hurriedly said,

"You have another plan?"

Adam shook his head slightly. "Even the most outstanding Author cannot make everything in the world develop according to his wishes."

"Many times, we must make choices and compromises."