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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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The ominous, moonlit fog that had enveloped the world began to dissipate.
The moon, its gaze fixed on me, its baleful eye unblinking throughout the night, finally retreated before the rising sun, scattering stars in its wake.
We called it dawn. As the sun climbed above the horizon, the desert awoke.
“The sun rises.”
One of the women murmured, her finger pointing towards the rising sun. But between her and the sun, stood I.
The desert sun, its heat intense, was almost unbearable, yet I stood there, naked, bathed in its light.
It wasn’t painful, just hot, my head throbbing, my skin burning.
But the expressions on the faces around me, the shift in the atmosphere, were palpable.
The mockery and amusement had turned to shock and disbelief. In this moment, they were all interpreting me, assigning meaning to my actions, my presence.
I didn’t care.
I would deal with the consequences later.
I stood on the altar, my feet planted firmly on the stone, and ran my hand through my hair. A sticky mixture of sweat and saliva clung to my fingers.
And as I lowered my hand, the added weight of those few drops, my fingers brushed against my thigh.
And then, the familiar sensation of a soft tongue, the moist warmth of a mouth.
Nefer, as soon as my hand fell, had taken my fingers in her mouth, her lips closing around them.
There was a reverence in her actions, a sense of pride, perhaps. Or more accurately-
[Certainty].
Nefer was certain.
That I was the prophesied one,
The sun’s emissary, sent to restore Aaptukemen to its former glory…
She no longer seemed to care if it was true or not. Her unwavering faith, her belief that I was their savior, was unsettling.
“The sun has risen.”
“Sunrise.”
A strange tension rippled through the crowd.
Murmurs and whispers spread like wildfire,
Their voices growing louder, their excitement almost overwhelming.
“Silence!”
Homunculus, her face creased with displeasure, shouted, her voice booming through the chamber, momentarily stemming the tide of their rising excitement.
But it was a temporary reprieve, and everyone knew it. Homunculus glared at His Majesty, urging him to act.
“Your Majesty, banish them! Cast this outsider and this treacherous priestess into the desert! Let the sun and the sand be their punishment! Now!”
His Majesty, who had been staring blankly at Nefer and me for hours, our bodies intertwined, finally seemed to snap out of his stupor.
But he hesitated. Unlike Nefer, her fingers tracing my lips, her body writhing against mine, His Majesty seemed more concerned with his own survival.
“Ahem! Ahem… w-well, there’s no need to be so… drastic… we can simply… send him away as a tribute, a little earlier than planned…”
“Now!”
“Eek…”
Life was precious. Self-sacrifice was a rare and often foolish act.
His Majesty’s survival was likely due to his ability to adapt, to bend with the wind.
The males who survived on this planet all had their own unique strengths.
Mine was human ingenuity, amplified by Amy’s assistance, and His Majesty’s was his flexible, easily discarded pride.
He seemed to be genuinely concerned for my well-being, perhaps even feeling a twinge of guilt, but-
“A-alright… guards… banish them…!”
Faced with Homunculus’s unwavering resolve, and the threat to his own precarious position, his Majesty finally gave the order.
“What are you waiting for?! Can’t you hear the King’s command?! Are you deaf?!”
But the guards hesitated, even after Homunculus’s outburst.
Only two women in this chamber were certain. Nefer and Homunculus.
Homunculus, realizing that my presence threatened her position, her power, demanded swift action,
But the guards, their faith shaken, were confused, torn between obeying orders and upholding their beliefs.
I cleared my throat, preparing to speak.
All eyes were on me. I wasn’t used to public speaking, but I had to project confidence, to fight for my survival.
The words of countless ancestors, their speeches and pronouncements, echoed in my mind-
But what I said was crude, aggressive, and undeniably human.
“You bastards! I don’t care if you grovel and cower, or hide in your holes, waiting to die!”
My body, exhausted from hours of coupling with Nefer, felt weak and heavy,
But my voice, as I shouted, was surprisingly strong.
“But! I have a place to return to, and people to protect! So I’ll do whatever it takes…! Tribute, savior, whatever! I’ll do it!”
“Guards! What are you waiting for?!”
The guards, finally snapping out of their stupor, exchanged glances. Disobeying a direct order would have severe consequences.
So, they raised their spears, their sharp points aimed at me, and approached, but-
“…Get out of my way. I don’t have time for this.”
They hesitated, my words, my demeanor, giving them pause. Some even blushed, their hands trembling, dropping their weapons.
They weren’t exactly well-trained soldiers. And it seemed that Homunculus and His Majesty had also noticed their lack of discipline.
“You incompetent fools! Why are you so afraid…? Move aside!”
Homunculus, unable to tolerate their hesitation, stepped forward, her spear aimed at me.
The sharp point stopped inches from my throat,
And I flinched, momentarily startled…
“…I have someone to meet in this desert. If you don’t interfere, we won’t cross paths again. Banishment? I’ll leave on my own.”
I regained my composure and met Homunculus’s gaze, my voice steady.
My right eye, burning and aching, saw her with an unsettling clarity, as if I were wearing glasses, every detail of her face, every subtle movement, magnified.
Her eyelids, the faint freckles on her cheeks,
The twitching of her facial muscles.
My right eye, which had once only seen shimmering, white shapes,
Was adapting, integrating with my body, its function returning.
“…Fine. Get out of here, outsider.”
Homunculus clicked her tongue, her gaze lingering on my eye with a mixture of disgust and something else, then threw her spear on the ground and sat down beside His Majesty.
Perhaps she too sensed something unsettling about me.
She had ruled Aaptukemen for years, her power absolute,
But my burning gaze, my unwavering determination to survive, had planted a seed of doubt within her.
“Guards! Escort them out! Do I have to do everything myself?! You useless-”
Homunculus’s voice, sharp and impatient, finally spurred the guards into action. They led us away from the altar.
They could have dragged us out, but they seemed wary of me, their movements hesitant.
But it wasn’t just because of my performance, my display of virility.
“Hands off him.”
Nefer’s tongue darted out, her voice a low hiss, a warning to the guards. They must have been cursing their luck.
Caught between a rock and a hard place,
They had to obey, even though it felt wrong.
“Do not touch him.”
Nefer’s voice, usually so soft and gentle, was now cold and sharp, sending shivers down my spine.
She had definitely changed.
While her kindness towards me remained, it had become intense, almost frightening.
“Could he really be…?”
“The… prophesied one…?”
The other women, as they made way for us, whispered amongst themselves, their eyes wide with a mixture of fear and awe. And I, of course, reveled in their reaction.
If Homunculus, the most powerful figure in Aaptukemen, had turned against me, I would have had to spend the night with her, or live a life of quiet desperation, like the other males.
This was different from the forests and lakes I had known.
Aaptukemen was a more advanced civilization, with a rigid hierarchy and a diverse population.
So, I would use every advantage I could find.
If I became too valuable, too influential to be easily disposed of, perhaps I could even continue my search for the fingers and Nefer’s… whatever it was, without interference.
“Oh, Sun God-”
The desert women, waiting for their savior, were unsettled by my presence, my defiance.
Amidst their murmurs and whispers, Nefer and I left Aaptukemen. With each step, I felt the weight of their expectations, their anxieties.
I didn’t feel entirely comfortable.
I had been swept away by a current, a force beyond my control,
And the feeling of being adrift, caught in a torrent, was unsettling.
-Release the hounds-
…I doubted Homunculus would let me go so easily,
-The savior has arrived!
-Savior?
Their eager gazes, fixed on me, were also concerning.
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Chapter 8 – Prelude
End.
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