It was, in a single term, wealth. Pure, astonishing wealth.
There wasn't just a singular mountain; the gold piled up as far as the eye could see. Its sheer amount was enough to create a golden glow as bright as a star as it reflected whatever unseen light source shone upon it.
The gold took many shapes. There were bars, small coins of many different sizes and currencies, statues and statuettes, and even entire thrones. They seemed to originate from many different cultures and time periods.
It wasn't simply gold alone though. There were an uncountable number of miscellaneous objects and trinkets scattered in between – their colours standing out from the pure gold. Sapphires, emeralds, diamonds, and assorted jewellery. Some were unrefined and as large as his head, while others were in small shapes, cut neatly. Many of them were ores and uncut gemstones that not even Cyril recognized.
A singular look at any one of them screamed of wealth, not to mention all of them at once.
"What in the world…" The sight was enough to take Cyril's breath away as it caught in his throat. It was as if he forgot how to breathe for a moment.
"Does the sight please you?"
Sirius stood at the side, wearing a slight smile. He seemed satisfied with the other man's reaction.
"Even if this is impure gold, the sheer amount of it is... I've never seen this much wealth in my entire life. I doubt even an entire nation could compete." Cyril inhaled sharply, turning his gaze above the mountains.
He couldn't quite tell how far the gold stretched, but it was enough to fill his entire vision. It was almost like a mountain range of treasure. Just by judging the distance, it would take a week to scale to the highest peak.
"There's so much gold it's ludicrous. It almost makes wealth itself useless…" Cyril turned to Sirius. "Why are you showing me this?"
His eyes were slightly narrowed, displaying a suspicious look.
"I'm impressed. You are cold sober, unaffected by the view. That takes willpower. I remember when I was first here, it took me a good ten minutes to compose myself enough to even speak straight." The old man looked out the window, his expression wistful.
"If it's the demons I've heard about, nothing comes without a catch."
In not just religion, but the many portrayals that Cyril had seen in his life, demons were not something one could joke around with. If you were to lose your footing around one then you wouldn't even be alive to regret it. He couldn't allow himself to relax.
"Please don't be so blatantly suspicious, I mean no harm. Remember that you are one of us now, you are to be a demon within Mammon's own party."
"…" His words held logic, but Cyril remained unconvinced.
"I have brought you here for one reason. It is simply to show you the benefits of following the Lord."
"What do you mean?"
"I have been through the same experience as you have, and to top it off, I am a fellow human. Therefore, I know best the emotions you are experiencing right now." Sirius patted Cyril on the shoulder. "I understand your suspicion, it is reasonable. Even if you were chosen, why serve a demon so simply? What is stopping you from not, or from performing your duties half-heartedly?"
"Hm… burning in eternal torture? I don't know about you but it's a pretty good reason for me."
"Yes, but that is ruling through fear. This, however," The old man gestured to the mountains below. "is benefit."
"You mean… this can all be mine?"
"Indeed. This is a display from the Lord, it is merely a small example of what potentially awaits you as a demon."
"Wait, this is Lord Mammon's treasury? God damn. A prince of greed, truly worthy of his title."
Cyril looked over the mountains, amazed, but Sirius only tilted his head at him in astonishment before breaking out into a small chuckle.
"No, Sir Surrey. The Lord's wealth cannot be so meagre, not even remotely so. His hoard is one filled with treasures and knowledge beyond your wildest imagination."
"M-meagre?" If Cyril was astonished before, he was now dumbfounded.
What sort of wealth could call such a scene meagre? It definitely didn't have to do with simply quantity, as the amount of gold before him was staggering.
"Indeed. It is not wrong to say that everything of value in the world belongs to him."
Sirius' words were brief, but Cyril caught the keyword. It was everything of value. This didn't simply mean gold or jewels.
"This is the stash of one of Lord Mammon's retainers, so to speak. He was originally mortal, like you, and has given us permission under the Lord to view it."
"Hm…" Cyril sunk into contemplation for a while at the man's words, but soon nodded his head in understanding. "I see. If you were putting me down before and making me aware of the danger, now you're motivating me."
It was a simple yet effective method of the stick and the carrot. Failure meant torment, but success…
Cyril swallowed a mouthful of saliva at the thought of the gold before him.
"You are quite perceptive, that is good." The old man nodded approvingly in response to Cyril's words. "But then again, that is to be expected. Who among us of Lord Mammon's followers are not? We are those consumed by greed, those who, in life, have been embroiled in no small amount of business, commerce, treachery, and gain."
Sirius' words caused him to nod again.
The manner in which he spoke and acted, along with his adept acting skills, reminded Cyril of a merchant or sly businessman. As a conman himself, he had a large amount of experience with cunning people like this.
"Just the promise of no Hell is enough of a motivator for me, but fine. You've successfully tempted me."
In front of such wealth, how could he possibly not be tempted? Sirius definitely knew this, which was why he showed it to him.
While Cyril knew he was being manipulated, the benefits were such that he simply had to shrug it off.
"But I don't understand, how does a demon gain gold? Let me rephrase that. What are my responsibilities as a demon under Lord Mammon?"
"That, Sir Surrey, is simple. For now, you must merely do as Lord Lucifer told you. For now, you must survive."