“…” Kline once again felt why Amun was the god of mischief. At this moment, he no longer had the energy to make a remark—he simply wanted to immediately end the projection of the historical fissure and escape the presence of Amun, no, the presence of Amuns. The charred corpse that had been parasitizing him wiped away the soot from his face and, smiling, spoke before Kline vanished: “Don’t worry. You are merely a projection from the historical fissure; I cannot truly parasitize you. And you yourself must know that I am not alone—your ability to mount an effective counterattack is limited.” “What exactly do you wish to say?” Kline, holding a simple lantern, paused thoughtfully, then picked up a fragment of statue that was black on the outside and red within, and asked cautiously. At that moment, Amun had taken on the form of Kline himself, the only difference being that his skin remained somewhat dark. He adjusted his single-piece crystal spectacles, chuckled warmly, and said, "You know I've been aware of your quest for that dark, shadowed magical wolf, seeking the 'Miracle Master' exceptional trait from it—something I've also been eager to obtain. How about we play a game? Whoever secures it first shall win." What's the point of this? Wouldn't I have abandoned my pursuit, and you have failed to act, if we didn't play this game? Kline paused for a moment, then shook his head firmly: "I decline." He had no intention of listening to any conditions Amun might propose—each word from a top-tier deceiver only served to weaken his position. Amun smiled calmly, without a trace of annoyance, and shook his head: "You'll regret this. Originally, if I win, I'll exchange the 'Miracle Master' exceptional trait and the 'Mysterious Servant' exceptional trait with you for the 'Source Citadel,' and grant you a period of time to begin relocating your organization's secret gathering." "And now, I can only consider directly stealing your fate, bearing the erosion from its very roots. Well, though it's risky, it's also sufficiently exciting—I'm ready to embrace it. Let's see who ultimately becomes the dominant force. With my father's experience, I believe I won't perform too poorly." ... What? Erosion from the roots? Experience from the ancient sun god? Klein had originally intended not to delve further into the extraordinary traits of the 'Miracle Masters' or the 'Source Citadel' with Amun, but upon hearing this, he found himself intrigued. He recalled Amun's earlier description and asked promptly, "Do you mean the very first Creator?" He was eager to understand exactly what kind of insurmountable fate the 'Source Citadel' might bring upon him. Amun gently pressed the edges of his single-frame glasses, looked at Klein for several seconds, and then suddenly smiled, "I think it's better that I don't answer this question directly, because no matter which word I use, you won't believe a single one." "Well, then, just tell me— I'll judge the truth myself!" Caine suppressed the impulse to speak out immediately and calmly replied, "Perhaps you haven't quite crafted your reasons yet." Amun smiled without the slightest hesitation, "That's perfectly fine with me." "Hm, sometimes, the truths you discover on your own carry more weight than those told to you by others. If you have time, you should wander more around the God-Abandoned Lands—you'll find many clues. Of course, if you're brave enough to enter Chernobyl, you'll learn even more." ...Caine didn't press further. He gazed quietly at the collapsed church bathed in the dim, golden light, and casually remarked, "Did the Dark-Wolf of the Shadow discover your presence, prompting its hurried migration?" Amun gently nodded, "It wasn't just me—it also sensed the gaze of 'The Hangman.' For millennia, it has remained hidden in the God-Abandoned Lands, and thus is highly attuned to such matters." "A Sequence 2, or even Sequence 1 angel, should be able to hide and survive in the land abandoned by God—yet here they are, merely managing to eke out an existence. The conditions here must be quite harsh indeed. In his mind, Kline murmured a few idiomatic expressions before continuing, "You must have left behind several copies of yourself in the Silver City—why not try to prevent my resurrection there? "Why not send stronger copies to intervene?" Amun pressed his right index finger against the lower edge of his single-spectacle glasses, smiled, and replied, "That would force you to choose resurrection outside, which would complicate my subsequent tracking efforts. Instead, if we remain somewhat relaxed—thanks to the 'miracle-worker' exceptional trait of this abandoned land—you are likely to revive here. Then, throughout the game, the only unforeseen variable I need to consider would be the 'Hanged Man' and the Ulus, among others." "Exactly as I thought..." Caine said thoughtfully. "Even within the same region, once you exceed a certain distance, your true form and your duplicates should no longer be able to instantly merge or exchange positions, correct? You were able to revert to your true form right upon entering the God-Abandoned Lands initially because the disturbances from 'The Source Fortress' also affected this area, alerting your true form and prompting it to head to the entrance in advance, didn't you?" Amun listened with a smile, then instead of answering, asked, "Do you think that's the case? Do you think I've reverted to my true form now?" Caine raised his right fist, pressing gently against his mouth and nose, pondered for a few seconds, then smiled. "I suspect your other duplicates are currently setting up the appropriate rituals to allow your true form to descend directly..." As he finished speaking, his form began to rapidly fade and dissolve. The maintenance of the historical rift image was thus terminated. In the wilds outside the ancient city of Noth, where Caine had been hiding, the air suddenly stirred, and a multitude of ethereal single-spectacle glasses materialized in the sky. They densely clustered around Caine's form, as though saying, "Finally, we've found you." Yet Caine's figure itself began to fade and vanish swiftly. Already, when Amun placed the single-spectacle glasses back onto his right eye, Caine's true form had returned from the ancient historical layers into the present world, swiftly retreating through the extraordinary abilities of "flame leaping," aided by the "Paper Angel." The reason Caine's historical image could engage in relatively normal dialogue with Amun was that, fundamentally, he was a secret figure—a projection of Quinzas Colg transformed into Gelmans Sparo—endowed with the "spirit worm" originating from history, which was under the control of the Caine image outside the city. Meanwhile, as Caine's true form swiftly retreated, he frequently entered and exited the historical rifts, intermittently restoring consciousness to the outer projections, thus maintaining control over the secret figure. This caused Kline, whenever he spoke to Amun, to frequently pause in thought, gaze off into space for several seconds, or struggle to recall what the other had just said. Facing the God of Deception, Kline could never afford to be careless! After leaving the ancient city of Noth, he circled twice more, then ascended into the gray mist, using the "True Vision" to inspect the surrounding area before easing his pace. The creeping erosion from its source—was Amun perhaps deceiving him? Indeed, he would eventually have to visit Chernobyl, but only after becoming a Miracle Master and gaining sufficient self-defense strength, or else he'd be delivered there as a gift. Kline carried the lamp offered by Daniz, walking casually through the increasingly darkening undergrowth. Thanks to this experience, he now had a more profound and tangible understanding of the dangers in the lands abandoned by the gods. The extreme, chaotic distortions, the zealous cultists, the fallen angels, the roaming bands of Amun, the mythical creatures hidden in the darkness, the malevolent deities watching everything from somewhere—fragments of divine power that I can summon, that others can also invoke—indeed, this is a land forsaken by the gods, far more perilous than I had imagined. While marveling at this, Caine refocused his attention on the issue of the Umbran wolf. Honestly speaking, in pursuing this mythical creature, Caine did not feel he possessed any particular advantage. Whether it came to his knowledge of the god-forsaken land or his grasp of the target's nature, he far surpassed neither the Amun who have explored this place for over a thousand years nor the devoted followers of the "True Progenitors" engaged in home-based defense. "My only advantage is that I share the 'Seer' path with the Umbral Wolf, and I possess 'The Source Citadel,' creating a strong synergy in our exceptional traits—this will exert a certain influence on fate and judgment. However, Amun, as the King of Angels on a similar path, also exhibits a powerful synergy with the Umbral Wolf, and his effects won't fall far short of mine... perhaps not quite as strong, though." Kline pondered carefully, then suddenly had a revelation—his greatest strength. That strength was: he was weak. Indeed, relatively weak compared to Amun, the 'True Maker' Servant, and the Umbral Wolf. In most situations, this is a disadvantage, but at certain moments, it might actually provide exactly what Kline desires. "Since I am less advanced and less powerful, I can instead become the Umbral Wolf's hunting target. While it's difficult for me to find Him, perhaps it's better if He comes to me." An "ancient scholar" might not particularly interest the Umbran Mythic Wolf, but if this scholar can also stir the "Source Keep," then it becomes quite another matter... I could quite easily periodically awaken the "Source Keep" or leave behind a lingering misty aura, thus luring the Umbran Mythic Wolf out at will." Kline found himself increasingly convinced that this approach was not only feasible but achievable. Of course, it would undoubtedly be extremely dangerous—just one misstep might bring in Amun, or even the "True Maker"—and the Umbran Mythic Wolf might choose to observe quietly before launching a sudden assault, leaving Kline no time to prepare. "Before adopting this strategy, we must make thorough preparations... no need to rush." Kline exhaled, then reached out and plucked from the air a fragment of a mythic wolf statue, black on the outside and red within. Though he had been prevented from fully obtaining this object due to Amun's obstruction, he had already seen it and held it in his hands—its intrinsic level was not particularly high. At this very moment, Caine needs to use this fragment to reverse-engineer the last hiding place of the Umbran Wolf, gradually uncovering the wolf's habits and patterns. In the endless wilderness under the rule of eternal darkness, Caine carries his dimly glowing lantern, makes a few observations, adjusts his course, and steadily advances deeper into the wilds. Bekland, Hillsdon District. After having gone on a single journey abroad, Folsie finally receives a letter from her teacher, Dorian Gray Abraham.