Chapter 589: [The Journey of Sun] [3] [We Meet Again]

’...Liraz?’

The little spirit rubbed its head against my fingers before letting out another cheerful chirp.

I slowly lowered my hand as the energy collected in my palm dispersed.

’...How is he here?’

I quickly turned around and began to walk so as not to draw more attention toward myself.

If Liraz was here, then there was a chance for me to get out of this place. I didn’t have to take the risk of blowing up the pillar.

"Chirp."

The little bird puffed out its chest as though it was happy with my decision.

I thought I would hear words of disbelief or anxiety from the goddess in my mind, but she was completely silent.

Perhaps even she hadn’t expected Liraz to appear, or perhaps she simply couldn’t interfere with it.

I gently stroked the bird’s tiny head. "...Where are we?"

"Chirp."

Liraz tilted its head, returning the look of confusion back to me.

"I know. You’re probably asking me the same thing."

The little spirit suddenly spread its wings as much as it could.

A stream of blue starlight flowed from its feathers before gathering into a tiny floating map.

"...What?"

I had no idea he could do such a thing.

But my focus quickly shifted to the map he was showing, a map of a solar system.

Eight golden stars surrounded a far larger sun, and every one of those stars was connected by brilliant golden lines.

Except, the eighth connection was incomplete.

It flickered on and off as though something was missing.

’The pillars...’

Does that mean the real structure or ritual for the Outer God rank was actually situated around the sun?

My head slowly turned back toward the golden pillar that shone.

’So, these pillars are mainly triggers that will start the ritual and not the actual structure?’

Amunet’s calm voice echoed through my mind once again.

’Now you understand why destroying one is meaningless.’

I remained silent, which she took as an indication to continue.

’The formation has already anchored itself to the world. Even if you erase one pillar... another will simply be raised.’

"...Then why tell me?" I asked inwardly. "You could have simply let me die."

"..."

And now she had turned into a statue once again.

I sighed and shifted my focus back to Liraz, who was breathing heavily after showcasing the map.

"...Where did you get the map, though?" I asked, rubbing his head.

"Chirp!!"

"....Yeah, just as I thought."

I don’t understand bird language, you stupid chicken. How am I supposed to interpret your chirping?

Liraz puffed up angrily, making him look like a stuffed doll.

"Chirp!"

He flapped his tiny wings against my forehead.

"...Ow."

It didn’t hurt though. In fact, the little peck barely carried enough force to be called a hit.

Still, it somehow managed to offend me. "...I feel an urge to eat chicken now."

"..."

I stared at him, and the bird stared back.

After several awkward seconds, I let out a defeated sigh.

"This conversation is going nowhere."

As if agreeing with me, Liraz also sighed.

"Chiiirp..."

Is this motherfucker mocking me?

’Urgh, I don’t have time to play around with the bird.’

Taking a deep breath, I controlled myself before thinking about my next course of action.

While thinking about it, I arrived at an empty place and willed my body to move.

Without any problem, I floated into the sky at a speed that was too fast for a normal person to see.

’...Right now, I do know there is a way to get my soul out of this place.’

As long as Liraz could reach me, there had to be a connection between this world and my own.

Stopping high in the sky, I turned my body toward the south before flying in that direction.

This time, I made sure to restrain my speed.

Even so, the scenery below changed unbelievably fast.

Cities disappeared behind me in moments.

The fertile land surrounding the Nile gradually gave way to endless golden sand.

Towering dunes stretched as far as the eye could see.

The farther south I travelled, the fewer signs of civilization remained.

Only scattered villages and small oases broke the endless sea of sand.

"..."

In just a few minutes of travelling, I finally arrived at a different city that was also hosting a golden pillar.

I slowed my body and gently lowered myself toward the ground until my bare feet touched it.

The spirit form of Liraz returned into my chest as I moved toward the city.

"...Hm?"

I had only taken a few steps when I felt the presence of a God approaching me.

Before the god could even reach me, I was already aware of who he was.

’...Set, the brother of Osiris.’

Unlike Osiris, whose presence felt calm and heavy like a mountain, Set’s divinity was violent.

It resembled a raging sandstorm that sought to bury everything beneath it.

I quietly continued walking, running now would only attract suspicion.

A few moments later, a figure landed several dozen metres ahead of me.

Not a grain of sand was disturbed.

He had long crimson hair tied behind his back and sharp amber eyes that seemed capable of seeing through a person’s soul.

Dark bronze armor covered his muscular body while a long khopesh rested at his waist.

His jackal-like ears twitched once before his gaze settled upon me.

Then, ever so slowly, the man lowered his head. "I am grateful for your presence in the city of Heliopolis, my lord."

"....."

I should really get accustomed to the fact that I am in the body of Amun-Ra when he was at his peak.

No God of his world, dead or alive, would dare challenge his authority.

"You may rise," I tiredly acknowledged his presence.

The man straightened his back as he spoke. "I am terribly sorry for not completing the task you gave me, my lord."

’Task? What task is he talking about?’

Outwardly, however, I didn’t allow even the slightest change to appear on my face.

I simply looked at Set in silence.

The God of Deserts remained standing with his head lowered. Sweat slowly rolled down the side of his face.

’...He’s nervous.’

The task must be important for whatever plans Amun-Ra had woven in this era.

"You had one job," I said coldly, behaving as though he had made a grave mistake.

"It was out of my hands, my lord," he replied nervously. "I tried my best, but--"

"Deal with it quickly," I cut him off. "Otherwise, no desert would be vast enough for you to run from my wrath."

"...I understand."

Ignoring the God, I walked past him into the city of Heliopolis, which, even though worse than Memphis, still had people as happy as those there.

’...This is sickening to look at.’

The streets were quieter than those of Memphis.

Most of the buildings were little more than mud-brick houses that had begun to crack beneath the desert heat.

The scent of Amunet’s authority was even stronger here.

’What the fuck is she even doing?’

I stopped the urge to sigh as I kept walking through the streets.

Suddenly, I noticed an odd number of people rushing back into their houses.

It was an odd phenomenon because the sun was still high---

When I looked up, the sun was gone, and the sky was turning darker.

’...What?’

It was the middle of the day just a while ago. Where did the sun go?

A dark crimson twilight spread across the heavens at an impossible speed.

The temperature dropped sharply, and the lively streets that had been full of laughter only moments ago descended into panic.

"Inside!"

"Hurry!"

"Close the doors!"

Merchants abandoned their stalls without even bothering to gather their goods.

Within less than a minute, the bustling streets became almost empty.

’...What the fuck is happening?’

As if all the confusion wasn’t enough, I felt the space around me shift.

In a split second, I was transported to an entirely different place.

It was a black sea of darkness that had no sky or land, only endless black water.

A horn echoed across the endless darkness. Ripples spread in every direction. The still water began to rise.

Entire mountains of black water climbed toward the sky before collapsing back into the abyss.

A low hiss echoed through the darkness.

It was so quiet that an ordinary person would never have heard it.

The hiss grew louder until it became a roar capable of shaking the heavens themselves.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!

The sea exploded apart, and from the parted waters, an unimaginably enormous head emerged from the abyss.

Crimson eyes bigger than entire cities slowly opened.

Golden fangs longer than mountains reflected my body. The creature’s body continued rising.

It was a kilometre long, then it became ten kilometres.Before long, it was fifty kilometres and still it didn’t end.

Its endless coils wrapped around the black sea like continents, with scales as dark as the void itself.

’Fuck!’

I immediately got ready for battle even though I had no idea how to fight against such an abomination.

I blinked my eyes, and the place I was in changed once again.

’Huh?’

Now, I stood in a void with countless eyes staring into my soul.

"We meet again."

A deep voice echoed right behind me.