Lyra and Linden put the helmet on the middle-aged man's head. It then gets connected to the PDA to start the memory extraction process.
"Now, we only need to wait," said Lyra.
She then looked around the room and found the items that Owen brought. They are a red book, a dead chicken carcass, and a few small plastic bags filled with liquid.
"Uwah… These liquid, blood?" muttered Lyra. She stuffed all of those —and the chicken carcass— into the larger plastic bag. She then tied it very tight, sealing it from the outside air.
Lyra then picked up the red book and read it. The book itself is not thick. From the outside, people can guess it has around thirty to fifty pages.
She looked toward the unconscious man.
"I wonder how he got this book," said Lyra.
"Senior, what is inside the book?" asked Linden.
"What do you think is written there?"
"Hmm… All about the summoning magic circle?"
"Well- That. I have only skimmed through the book, but it should list all the detail of this particular magic circle. How to build, how to use, and other details."
"Can I read that?" asked Linden. To which Lyra passed the book to him.
Linden opened the book and skipped through a lot of written content before he found a sketch of the summoning magic circle. He then walked around the room, comparing the magic circle that was etched on the floor with the drawing in the book.
"How is it? Same?" asked Lyra. She is standing beside Owen, waiting for the memory extraction to finish.
Linden nodded, "Yes, totally the same."
He then opened another page and found a page that list the sacrificial items like a chicken carcass and other animals' blood.
Linden's gaze turned toward the sealed plastic bag. "Senior, what will we do with all the items? Throw them away?"
"Well, what else can we do with that? We will take the book and throw the rest out," said Lyra. "Right, have you finished reading that? If so, can you check the integrity of the dimension border? He has not done anything, but better to check it."
"Sure,"
…
A few minutes later.
*ping*
The notification comes from the helmet-like machine, indicating the end of the memory extraction process.
"It is done," said Lyra. "Let's move. We will take the plastic bag and the book with us."
She then took the tool from Owen and put it back into her bag.
"Senior, what about him? We leave him in this place?" asked Linden. His index finger pointed to the unconscious man at the center of the room.
"Hmm? Yes?"
"Is it okay to do it like that?"
"It is okay. The effect of the anesthetic will be up soon. He will wake up in around five minutes."
"Hmm?" Linden put his right hand on his chin, "Senior, what about his memory? Won't he remember getting attacked by you in this place?"
"He won't. The tool we use to extract the memory also deletes his memory about us.
"He will remember walking to this place. But he will not know about how he slept inside the room. He will also not remember why his bags were missing."
"Is that so? That is convenient."
"It is- Oh, right, make the bird keep following him. We will observe him for a little longer.
"Let's go," said Lyra. In her hand is the plastic bag filled with items for sacrifice. Meanwhile, the red book is in Linden's hand.
They walked out of the building and moved toward the hotel once again.
***
A few hours later.
Inside the hotel room, both Linden and Lyra are watching the memory of Owen. His memory has been analyzed by the system.
Now it could be seen just like seeing a movie from Owen's point of view. Not only that, but the system has also categorized it, making it easier for Lyra to search for things.
Right now, the screen displays a scene where Owen is sitting in a cafe. He was looking at his phone, checking the clock again and again. His ordered milk coffee has started to cool down.
After he waits for a bit longer, finally, Owen can see a man walking toward his table.
"Sorry. I am a bit late. Need to finish something," said the man. He opened the menu book before continuing, "So, I heard you have some difficulties in your business?"
"Yes. Sorry to call you when you are this busy. So, it is like this …"
Owen tells the problem that his business has. He has tried to expand his small company a lot of times. But all of them ended up in failure. He has asked many people, followed their advice, and even hired more professional help. But it was all for naught.
This time, he decided to ask the man in front of him. Actually, Owen has only met the man in front of him a few months ago. But in that few months, they have become closer.
Owen also knew that the man in front of him was not some random man. That man is a successful business owner who has decided to take a little break in this small city.
"You see… Getting busy doing business all the time is not good for anyone. It makes your body and mind tired, which leads to a worse decision. Take a break," said the man.
"Is that so?" asked Owen. His voice was small. He did not sure if the advice would be the correct move. His business is at an important time. And he needs to constantly monitor it.
The man saw the hesitation in Owen's eyes. He picked up two books from his bag and put them on the table. One black book and one red book.
"I will give you these- Wait, sorry. This one. After you have finished that book, I will give you this one."
The man slides the black book toward Owen. The red book, on the other hand, got put back in the bag.
***
Linden, watching from behind Lyra, reacted, "That red book… Is this book, right?"
In his right hand is the red book that they take from Owen. It has the same shape, the same thickness, and even the same cover.
"Yup. The same book," said Lyra, confirming Linden's assumption.