Fernandez and Kirhas gradually slowed down. The sounds were disappearing. Screams, eerie wails. Soon, only the rustling sound of the sandstorm blowing around them remained.
“Your Excellency, this is…”“Shh.”
Fernandez quickly put a finger to his lips and made a hand signal. ‘Something’s here.’ They stopped and scanned their surroundings.
The sandstorm suddenly intensified, and silhouettes emerged from beneath the dust.
Statues. Despite the traces of time, the statues still stood, holding curved swords with blades as blue as the sky. Their arms were crossed over their chests, gazing somewhere in the distance.
Fernandez stepped a few paces away from Kirhas. He raised his hand to the sky and clapped. Simultaneously—
-Crash! Boom!
A curved sword flew and embedded itself where he had been standing. Not just one. At least five curved swords appeared from different directions, piercing through the sand and dust, striking the spot where the sound had come from.
Fernandez had already moved away.
He quietly observed the statue holding the curved sword. It was a type of golem, densely packed with magical circuits.
‘It reacts to sound.’-Its performance has degraded. Has the logic circuit been damaged?‘Or perhaps the caster’s control has weakened.’
Fernandez raised his head. There was a point where the wind direction changed. He took Kirhas’s hand and walked in that direction.
If the flow of magic was like a wave, this was the densest, upstream flow.
-Whooosh…
The dust gradually dispersed. The field of vision widened. One by one, the objects around him came into view.
The floor, half-buried in sand, seemed to be part of a road. The straight, neatly laid tiles showcased high-level stonework.
And on either side of the road stood statues. Like soldiers in formation, evenly spaced, one by one. As the view widened, Fernandez narrowed his eyes and looked ahead.
‘This is the Pharaoh’s Path.’
This was the road leading to the royal palace. Stone golems, carved in the image of gods protecting the Pharaoh, stood in a long line, gazing toward the end of the road. Despite the years and sandstorms, they remained in the same stance, exuding a sharp aura…
-Whooosh.
The wind swept away the dust. The view cleared completely. The blue sky became visible.
He was standing in the eye of the sandstorm, at the very center.
The clear sky was cut into a perfect circle. Just a few meters beyond this spot, the sandstorm still raged.
-Screeeech…!!
The cry of a hawk echoed beyond the sky. The hawk, flying gracefully, circled once and then descended, disappearing toward the end of the road. At the end of the road stood a massive altar.
[Approach.]
The golems on both sides spoke in unison. As Fernandez stepped forward, Kirhas grabbed his sleeve. She hastily made a hand signal. ‘Beware of traps.’ Roughly that meaning.
Fernandez chuckled, ruffled her hair, and moved forward. Kirhas, drawing her sword, guarded his back, vigilant in all directions.
*
There was no interference all the way to the upper level of the altar. Even the magic circuits activated as a precaution seemed unnecessary. The statues guarding the altar simply stared blankly toward it.
The altar was made of pure white marble. Not just reflecting the midday sun, but emitting a soft glow on its own.
Intricate carvings filled with gold and the unique stone paintings of the Empire of Ashit adorned the steps of the altar.
He stepped on it.
One step at a time.
And finally, he reached the top of the altar.
“……”
There were three figures. No, three ‘things.’ Mummies, almost perfectly preserved, were slowly waving ornate feather fans. Two mummies, dressed in palace servant attire and adorned with various ornaments, stood there.
And between them lay ‘her.’ On a massive throne decorated with glittering emerald-colored jeweled beetles… A stunningly beautiful woman lay there.
No, a mask of a beautiful woman. Likely modeled after her appearance in life. A mummy wearing a finely crafted mask of gold and various dyes lay there, looking down at him.
“Lavirata…”[One of my names.]
The voice was as beautiful as a heavenly melody. Normally, the Wraith Sovereign’s forces lack vocal cords and do not communicate through physical sound. Therefore, this was a type of magic that directly spoke to his mind.
Such meticulousness even in the smallest details. Fernandez smirked. It was practically a waste, bordering on vanity.
[Savior. Why do you attack us?]
Surprisingly, Lavirata showed no hostility. Despite having buried thousands of troops under the sand with a single spell and unleashed wraiths to harvest the survivors beneath the sand.
“Savior.”[You have driven away the darkness of Ashit and restored light to me and the heroes of Ashit. Ashit owes you. Savior. Why do you oppose me?]
Ah, so she knew about that.
From Fernandez’s judgment, Lavirata was an exceptionally skilled mage. The group called the Conclave, revived by Mumto, was itself a remnant of the Empire of Ashit…
