Only then did Edward shudder and realise that two clear, thick, yet translucent and mysterious Worms of Time were hovering in front of both himself and Lilith, wriggling as they tried to burrow into that illusory Emperor's New Clothes wrapped around their bodies.
Startled, Lilith raised a paw and swatted one away.
Had Bernadette not wrapped him in the Emperor's New Clothes, Edward would likely have already been parasitised. He hurriedly waved his wand, casting Fiendfyre to engulf the worm. After a moment of twisted struggling, the creature was reduced to ashes.
But then Edward turned his gaze to the dozens of Amons surrounding them, and for a moment, panic set in. How were they supposed to fight this?
In the original novel, even the demigod Klein had to work with Pallez Zoroast, Snake of Mercury, Will Auceptin, and the concealment granted by Arianna to barely take down one of Amon's avatars through a highly specific ambush.
There was no way he and Bernadette could pull off something like that alone.
Just then, a shadow twisted and rose from the darkness, morphing into yet another form of Amon. Adjusting the monocle over his right eye, the figure smiled faintly.
"You know, there's really no need to be so hostile," Amon said lightly. "I'm just terribly bored and want to satisfy a bit of curiosity."
His eyes, behind the monocle, brimmed with amusement as he looked directly at Edward. "I can't shake the feeling…that there's something very important to me hidden within you. Yet it's like there's a veil—thin, gauzy, indistinct."
"If you don't want to be parasitised," he added, "you could just tell me. Once my curiosity is sated, I'll naturally leave."
Edward immediately understood what he was referring to: the uniqueness of the Door pathway. If Amon truly discovered that, it would spell disaster—there was a real chance the main body of Amon would descend immediately.
So Edward followed Klein's example from the original: he remained silent.
"Tch. How dull," Amon said with a mock sigh. "Looks like I'll have to check for myself."
He reached out with his long, fair fingers and gave a casual tug.
Edward instantly felt as though he had been stripped bare—his Emperor's New Clothes had been stolen!
"Oh? Are you just going to stand there? Because next, I plan to steal his life."
Ding-Ding!
A quaint copper bell materialised above Edward's head.
Edward quickly flicked a coin into the air. "My next Avada Kedavra will kill the Amon avatar in front of me."
The coin landed with the number facing up—failure.
Taking a deep breath, he prepared himself to activate Madman to the Right to reverse the outcome.
Though he knew that forcibly reversing such an absurd result would surely lead to an equally warped and terrifying consequence, it was still better than waiting to die.
Amon extended five fingers toward Edward, but his gaze shifted to Bernadette.
"If…you have no other trump cards left, you'll be dying alongside him."
Then Amon looked toward Lilith and suddenly laughed. "Hahahaha, now this cat is amusing. You've been trying to use Instigation on me this whole time. But even if you succeed, I'd still attack you afterwards, wouldn't I?"
Lilith, who had been glaring with all her might, froze for a moment at his words. "Oh…that's true."
"Or you could always incite me…to turn on my other parasitised avatars?"
Edward hurriedly pulled Lilith into his arms. "Don't listen to him!"
Just then, Bernadette reached into the Secret Door once more. But this time, she didn't withdraw her hand. Instead, she looked at Amon and said coldly, "You have two options. One: leave right now—your parasitism on all creatures here included. Two: Die with me."
Amon blinked, then burst into laughter. "I'm genuinely curious—what could possibly give you the confidence to think you can perish alongside me? …Ah."
His tone froze for a beat as realisation dawned. "Ah, so it's that. Yes…that could indeed kill me. But I'm just an avatar. Trading lives with me would be a loss for you."
"And don't forget," he continued, "as long as I decipher your ability, I can steal that object whenever I like. Then it becomes mine."
Bernadette said flatly, "Ten…nine…eight…"
"Come on now. If you really used that thing to kill me, my main body would instantly be alerted and come rushing in. That boy would still die. How about this—I let you go and take him instead?"
"Six…five…"
Amon scratched his head, looking rather aggrieved. "Why is it that every random person I run into seems to know me so well? None of you are willing to talk to me—how am I supposed to deceive anyone like this?"
"Three…two…"
"Alright, alright!"
Hands raised in mock surrender, Amon took a step back. "I'm leaving, I'm leaving, okay?"
"One."
Bernadette withdrew her hand from the Secret Door.
In it was a golden object shaped like a miniature kettle, its spout extending upward like a wick. Her fingers gently stroked the vessel's surface, and the wick silently ignited.
The flame it produced surged upward like a thick, syrupy liquid, forming a vague, distorted golden humanoid figure.
"The Magic Wishing Lamp—my third wish is…"
Almost as soon as she spoke, Amon vanished without a trace. With a series of crackling sounds, the people of Moon City, along with the surrounding monsters, collapsed to the ground.
Bernadette never finished her sentence.
Edward immediately tossed a coin for divination, confirming that Amon had indeed left. Yet he still didn't dare relax—he simply couldn't believe Amon would retreat so easily.
Just then, the distorted golden figure on the lamp opened its mouth.
"Well? Speak your wish."
"I no longer have a wish," Bernadette replied calmly.
The genie burst into laughter. "...Hahahahaha! Very well. But let me guess—your father only told you not to make three wishes, right? He never said mocking me would also lead to punishment?"
A pause. Then came a surge of unmistakable malice.
"Also, you scared that fellow earlier with an unfinished sentence—should I count that as your third wish? And whether it counts or not…is up to ME!"
Bernadette said nothing. She simply opened the Secret Door again and shoved the Magic Wishing Lamp back inside.
"Hey! Aren't you afraid I'll kill you? Hey—!"
Before the entity could finish speaking, the Secret Door had already shut.
Edward stared in stunned disbelief. "Are you sure…you'll be fine after doing that?"
The Magic Wishing Lamp likely housed a being suspected to be a part of the Great Old One—Son of Chaos. Even if it did appear somewhat "naive," having been tricked into a daze by two successive Lords of Mysteries…still, that was the Lord of Mysteries.
Wait a minute.
According to the timeline, this should have only been the second wish made on the Magic Wishing Lamp. Why did Bernadette just refer to it as the third wish?
Another divergence from the original plot?
At that moment, Bernadette's face visibly paled with exhaustion. She shook her head and said softly, "It's alright. What I did doesn't count as violating the Lamp's rules."
"Good—then let's get out of here, quickly!"
Edward pulled out a spare wand and cast Fiendfyre, incinerating all the monsters lying collapsed on the ground. Then he glanced at the unconscious citizens of Moon City, a chill running down his spine.
Some of those were high-sequence Beyonders…yet they were parasitised without even a chance to resist?
Is this the power of a King of Angels?
But that was just an avatar…
Without hesitation, Edward grabbed Bernadette by the arm and Apparated back to the camp where they had first encountered the people of Moon City.
As soon as they landed, Edward flipped a coin.
"Amon followed us."
The coin hit the ground—divination failed.
Bernadette's face regained a hint of colour. "You think he'll follow us?"
"It's not a matter of thinking…"
Edward's expression turned grim. "Amon will never give up."
From everything depicted in the original works, aside from that final moment when Klein risked everything and won a gamble against Amon—forcing him into retreat—Amon's deceptions had been constant and unrelenting.
When you think you've seen through his tricks, you've already been tricked.
When you think he's given up…that's just part of the trick.
Just like now. On the surface, Amon had seemingly fled out of fear of the Magic Wishing Lamp. But in reality, he was undoubtedly biding his time—waiting for the moment their guard slipped, so he could strike again.
Therefore, passively waiting was not an option.
The only way to be free of Amon…was to kill this avatar!
Ding.
Edward tossed the coin once more. "Amon's avatar is nearby."
Another failed divination.
Unfazed, he retrieved the coin and tossed it again. "There is an Amon in the vicinity."
As expected—failure.
Bernadette had witnessed Edward's bizarre form of divination before, but she still didn't quite understand what he was trying to accomplish. She didn't press the issue, though. Instead, she silently continued reinforcing the Emperor's New Clothes and Bell That Covers the Ears around them and Lilith.
Edward surveyed the surroundings and declared, "Amon, I know you're here. I want to make a deal."
Silence.
"I'll be honest. I was captured and brought here by the True Creator's people, but by some twist of fate, I escaped. Now, Ouroboros is actively hunting me down, and the True Creator may even take action personally. If they catch me, I'm dead for sure. So I want to take a gamble—make a deal with you."
Still no response.
"I can share with you the secrets I carry, but in exchange, I need you to get me out of the Forsaken Land of the Gods. Of course, I can't be certain my secrets are valuable to you. But you could wager on that—after all, it costs you nothing."
"I don't have much time left. If you can't get me out before the True Creator finds me, then you'll never uncover the secrets I carry."
"And we both know—you're nowhere near strong enough to face the True Creator head-on. Not yet."
Edward had spoken a long string of words in one breath, but the silence remained unbroken.
After a while, he exhaled deeply. "Your Majesty…I don't think Amon followed us."
"Then I'll begin praying to the god I follow, and ask "Him" to help us leave the Forsaken Land. Please keep watch while I do so."
Bernadette's gaze sharpened slightly. "Alright."
Edward pulled out a candle from his pouch, lit it, and burned the correct blend of essential oils, hydrosol, powdered herbs, and incense. Pressing his hands together, he began to pray in a soft voice:
"I pray for the power of the Night.
I pray for the power of Secrecy;
I pray for the favour of the Goddess;
I pray for the goddess to guide me from this forsaken land.
Night-vanilla, flower of the Crimson Moon, please carry my prayer to the Goddess!
Moonflowers, blossoms of the Crimson Moon, please carry my prayer to the Goddess!"
WHOOSH—
In the next second, the flame on the candle flickered wildly, and the ashes on the ground were swept up by a sudden gust.
"Pfft!"
A mocking chuckle broke the stillness.
"Hahahahaha—sorry, sorry. I usually don't laugh, no matter how funny things are…unless I can't help it."
With a playful laugh, Amon appeared out of thin air—wearing his signature long black robe and soft, pointed hat.
"Didn't you know? The power of the Seven Gods doesn't reach this place. Putting on that little show of praying to Evernight…pretending you could leave at any moment…are you just stupid, trying to insult my intelligence, or simply baiting me to come out?"
He adjusted the monocle over his right eye, smiling with amusement.
"Well, now that I've shown up…what exactly do you plan to do with me?"
———
[Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.