Three items

As soon as Lumian entered the Basement, he noticed the items on the three silver platters.

They were a seemingly ordinary White Gloves, a pair of Tea-Brown Gold-Rimmed Glasses, and a button that looked like it was made of gold.

Seeing that Lumian was examining the Mystical Item, Mr. K, sitting in the Red-Backed Chair, introduced it in a low, husky voice. "That Gloves is called ' Circus.' It can provide you with some weak but rather unique Mysticism techniques, including creating a gust of wind, generating a fog, affecting the target's vision with a sudden burst of Flash, Freezing enemies by touch, and opening most doors without the need for Key. It can also take you directly through solid walls."

"This suits your need for Mysticism methods, but you must remember that even if you just carry it with you, it will cause you to get lost more frequently, and sometimes, getting lost can lead to unfortunate encounters."

"Price: 18,000 Felkine."

Like the "Magician" Sequence 8 of the "Apprentice" Pathway mentioned in Aurora's Witchcraft Notes... While those abilities aren't particularly strong, if used as support, combined with traps or my close combat and Pistol shooting, they might have surprising effects in certain situations... Lumian was quite satisfied with the positive effects of the "Circus" Gloves, which effectively compensated for his lack of Mysticism skills and his weakness of being powerless in certain situations.

However, the Negative Effect are also quite severe. For "Hunter" who are good at tracking and identifying routes, getting lost more often means completely losing one of their major strengths and being at risk of misfortune at any time. Moreover, this doesn't need to be worn; even just stuffing it in a pocket will affect Lumian.

Mr. K turned slightly to the side, glancing at the Tea-Brown Gold-Rimmed Glasses, and said to Lumian, "Do you remember that painting from the last gathering?"

A painting? Lumian suddenly recalled the Oil Painting that had made him dizzy just by looking at it.

The painting was said to have been painted by an Beyonder before their death. It was brightly colored, with bizarre patterns and a mesmerizing scene, as if the artist had gone completely mad before their death.

"I remember." Lumian nodded.

Mr. K continued, "After the owner of that painting died, his Beyonder Characteristic, mixed with strange powers, merged with his glasses, forming a rather unique Mystical Item."

"It allows the wearer to see things they couldn't see before, and occasionally, to gain some insight into the true nature of the world..."

Upon hearing this, Lumian immediately recalled Aurora's words, "Don't look at what you shouldn't see, don't listen to what you shouldn't hear."

He couldn't help but think to himself, "Aren't these glasses the complete opposite of what you'd expect? They're practically suicide weapons!"

"This has absolutely nothing to do with my two needs..."

Mr. K glanced at Lumian, his low, husky voice echoing in the small Basement:

"Seeing the world from another perspective, and seeing many things that were not previously visible, the wearer will be filled with the urge and desire to paint, and each painting produced will have a slightly supernatural effect. For example, if you paint a Sea, it will cause the witness to experience mild drowning."

Similarly, you should be able to imagine that when you're not painting on a canvas, but rather on your own face with various Cosmetics, you can achieve a great camouflage effect and subtly suggest to everyone who tries to closely examine your face that it is your true appearance for a certain period of time.

"Remember, once you've painted a 'new' face, you absolutely must never look in the Mirror again, otherwise you'll start to believe that's the real you, and then, from the outside in, your mind and body will gradually Mutation, and you'll become a completely different person."

Similarly, you can't maintain that new face forever. After three hours, your self-perception will slowly be influenced by it until you completely believe that you are it, and it is you.

It sounded like hypnosis and suggestion through a "Psychiatrist" Pathway, but it was completely different in other aspects... Considering That One artist's death, could there be some power or aura left behind by some Evil God? Lumian quickly analyzed the possible extraordinary realm of that Mystical Item.

Mr. K turned his gaze to the Tea-Brown glasses:

"Its owner was originally a ' Lawyer,' so it can also help you to Distortion the target's thoughts, perceptions, and conclusions to some extent through language, actions, or a series of processes."

"You can probably guess its Negative Effect. Seeing things you shouldn't see and gaining insight into the world's truth without sufficient protection will expose you to unknown dangers. Perhaps one day, you will die a bizarre death like That One painter, leaving behind only an incomprehensible painting."

"Price: 15,000 Felkine."

This corresponds to Sequence 9, "The Lawyer," right? Is it valued for the strange power that comes with it? Hmm, this doesn't fully capture the "Lawyer's " abilities. Aurora's Witchcraft Notes state that "Lawyer" possess exceptional eloquence and logical reasoning skills, adept at finding loopholes in the rules and weaknesses in their opponents, thus creating an atmosphere favorable to themselves and achieving ultimate victory. They can also influence their targets' judgments, thoughts, and conclusions through language, actions, and pre-set procedures. Furthermore, they are highly skilled at utilizing the power of order... Lumian reviewed the corresponding Mysticism knowledge in his mind.

As for the manifestation of "Lawyer" traits, such as how to utilize the power of order, he had no idea what it looked like, because Aurora didn't know either.

In summary, the Tea-Brown Gold-Rimmed Glasses perfectly met Lumian's need for better disguise, and also provided some Mysticism methods that required advance preparation but were not as troublesome and complicated as the five Ritual Magic of the "Mendicant Friar".

The only problem is, it's really too dangerous!

Lumian pondered for a while, not making a final decision, and waited for Mr. K to introduce the button that looked like it was made of gold.

Soon, Mr. K's low, husky voice rang out again:

It's called a ' Flare,' named after a deceased ' Light Suppliant.'

"It allows you to gain additional buffs such as Courage and strength through singing, enables you to sense the presence of Undead and Evil filth, and allows you to use some spells and Ritual of the Sun realm, making it very suitable for dealing with targets such as Undead Spirits."

"After wearing it, you will yearn to sing, find darkness and cold unbearable, and unconsciously long for Sunlight and warmth. If you do not take it off for more than 35 minutes, you will become a true believer in the ' Eternal Blazing Sun ' and Devout praise the Sun."

"Price: 20,000 Felkine."

It can solve my problem of not being able to fight Undead Spirits, and the Negative Effect are tolerable... The problem is that the targets it can target are too limited... Lumian fell into deep thought, unsure which item to choose.

His Rationality told him he should choose either "Flare" or "Circus," but he could never make up his mind.

He preferred the brown -Tea-Brown Gold-Rimmed Glasses, which satisfied both of his needs.

If he only wears it when attempting to disguise himself or when painting works with supernatural effects, and chooses a sufficiently safe environment, he can effectively avoid most of the negative effects and prevent seeing things he shouldn't see or the so-called reality of the world.

In other words, it was not an item that had to be worn all the time; Lumian could choose when to use it.

In this way, he can create a "Spirit Wall" in advance, like performing a "Summoning Dance," to keep out anything abnormal.

Thinking of the seal on his body, the "coincidence" of Fate, and the fact that he still had to perform the "Summoning Dance" from time to time, Lumian said with a kind of relief that the more debt he had, the less he was worried. "I want those glasses."

Mr. K seemed somewhat surprised by his choice, and after a few seconds, he asked, "Are you sure?"

"Confirmed." Lumian took out a small cloth bag full of Banknotes and counted out a full 15,000 Felkine.

Mr. K didn't try to persuade him further, and chuckled in a low, husky voice, "You're crazier than I expected."

He seemed to appreciate it.

After having the Waiter accept the 15,000 Felkine, and handing the Tea-Brown glasses to Lumian, Mr. K nodded and said, "You can try it now; it's safe enough here."

Lumian ran her fingers over the frame and noticed that, despite being made of metal, it had a strange rubbery feel.

Let's call you "Mystery-Peering Glasses"... Lumian thought of the extraordinary Pathway her Older Sister had taken.

The next second, he put those Tea-Brown Gold-Rimmed Glasses on the bridge of his nose.

Almost simultaneously, he saw multiple images from different angles:

There was a mottled ceiling, a speck of blood in the corner, the back of Mr. K that he shouldn't have been able to see, and the Waiter standing guard in the corridor outside the door...

Lumian also saw darkness, a shadow, a gaze from an unknown source, and a face hidden in the shadows:

His thick black hair, delicate features, deep-set Eye Sockets, Gloom pupils, and skin that belied his age were all concealed by the Hood, only visible from an upward angle.

That's... that's Mr. K's face? Lumian suddenly realized.

Images from different perspectives and positions flooded his mind, making him feel dizzy and increasingly unwell, while he felt an overwhelming urge to draw them all.

Lumian quickly took off his "Mystery-Peering Glasses," and what he saw immediately returned to normal, but the urge to paint still lingered in his heart.

He sighed and said, "I can still handle it."

Mr. K offered a brief reminder:

"Use it in familiar and safe settings whenever possible."

After saying goodbye to Mr. K and leaving the headquarters of The Spiritism Magazine Agency, Lumian took a carriage back to the Honest Market District.

As he passed through the Memorial Hall District, something came to mind:

"I need to prepare some canvases, Paintbrush, Paint..."

"Although I can only draw simple sketches, and I'm not very good at them, the quality of the drawing and the accompanying supernatural effects should have nothing to do with each other. Maybe the more Distortion and ugly it is, the better the effect..."

Fifteen minutes later, Lumian, who had disembarked from the carriage earlier, found a shop selling items related to Oil Painting.

Upon hearing the price, he couldn't help but ask, "What? 160 Felkine?"

"160 Felkine for a single roll of canvas?"