Chapter 597: [The Journey of Sun] [11] [A Night’s Freedom]

Looking back at him, I replied, "I found what your condition for winning is."

The smile on his face quickly disappeared, and his face turned grim.

For several seconds, neither of us spoke.

"Is that so?" Amun-Ra finally asked. "Enlighten me, what might that be?"

His voice was calm, but the confidence from before had disappeared completely.

I smiled and placed my hand behind my back as if I was the ancient one between the two of us.

"Why should I?" I asked, taking a step closer without a change in my voice. "Wouldn’t it make more sense for me to just keep it to myself?"

I met his eyes and continued. "Wouldn’t it be better to make you live in the constant fear of losing to me?"

"Knowing the condition and stopping me from achieving it are two different things, boy." He said, his voice deep and strained. "And there is nothing that you can do to stop me."

"Well, there are a lot of things that I can do." I replied without hesitation. "Like killing Osiris without taking his Authority over souls."

Amun-Ra’s expression changed the moment those words left my mouth.

Perhaps for the first time, I saw something close to genuine anger appear in his eyes.

"You wouldn’t."

His voice was quiet, but the pressure behind those two words made the entire darkness tremble.

I smiled. "Why wouldn’t I?"

I slowly raised my hand and pointed toward the endless darkness beneath us.

"Osiris is your piece, isn’t he? You spent thousands of years allowing him to develop his authority because you needed something from him."

I took another step forward. "So if I kill him before you can obtain that authority, then your plan falls apart."

"And you think you can handle the aftermath of killing him?" He asked after quickly regaining his composure. "There is a reason why I asked Set to kill him."

He stared at me with a blank look on his face. "You cannot handle the wrath of Isis, boy."

I stared at him for several seconds. "...Is that supposed to scare me?"

Amun-Ra’s expression remained cold as he looked at me.

"It is supposed to remind you that actions have consequences." His voice carried a strange calmness.

"She would never forgive you if you were responsible for his death. Even if you managed to defeat her, the consequences would extend far beyond this place."

He walked closer with a face that suggested that his knowledge was far better than mine.

"And you need to understand one more thing, boy." He said, his voice cold.

"The formation of the eight pillars is as important to me as it is to you... Without it, the game will never end, and you will remain stuck in this world forever."

"..."

I stared at him without saying anything.

The words made me rethink everything that I had taken as facts.

Until now, I had treated the eight pillars as something connected to the ritual of Amun-Ra.

I had never considered what would happen if I deliberately prevented their formation.

"Only Isis can complete the eighth pillar." Amun-Ra said, looking down at me. "Do you think she would do that if you killed her husband?"

I remained silent as I tried to process what he was saying.

"...How can I just believe your words?" I asked, keeping my eyes on him. "What if you are just lying?"

The God of Sun let out a strong laugh as he stretched his arms in mockery.

"Then go ahead and kill Osiris." He said while grinning. "See for yourself the consequences of your actions."

There was something about his confidence that bothered me.

He wasn’t trying to convince me.

He was almost encouraging me to test his words.

’...He’s too confident.’

If Amun-Ra were lying, then there was no reason for him to push me toward killing Osiris.

Unless...

’...Unless he wants me to doubt him.’

I slowly clenched my fists, the anger boiling my blood.

Every conversation with this bastard felt like walking through a maze where every path eventually led back to his plan.

"You’re awfully confident for someone whose plan can be ruined by a single death."

Amun-Ra’s smile widened as if he was waiting for me to say that.

"Because you still don’t understand the difference between ruining a plan and changing its outcome."

"What does that mean?"

"You believe that if Osiris dies before I obtain his authority, then I lose."

He stepped closer, his eyes carrying an almost pitying expression.

"But you have forgotten something important."

He pointed toward my chest.

"The condition for victory isn’t simply to stop my plans." Amun-Ra’s voice became quieter. "You need to fulfill your own condition."

"..."

He pushed his finger deeper into my chest as he growled.

"Our destiny is much more intertwined than you think, boy." He looked deep into my soul. "The only difference between us is Fate... which is on my side."

The God of Sun pushed me, and the world scattered around me like glass.

---

[Amun-Ra’s POV]

The familiar sensation of divine power immediately returned to Amun-Ra’s body as his consciousness settled back into the vessel he had abandoned.

At the exact same moment, the world began moving again.

The enormous body of Aposis moved through the endless ocean.

Its massive jaws opened, revealing rows of monstrous teeth as it lunged toward Amun-Ra without hesitation.

The God of Sun raised one hand, and a golden barrier immediately appeared before him.

BOOM!

Aposis’s jaws slammed into the barrier with enough force to split the surrounding ocean.

Amun-Ra didn’t wait for it to break.

His body disappeared in a flash of golden light, and he appeared above the serpent’s head.

He clenched his fist and brought it down with all his strength.

BOOM!

His fist smashed against Aposis’s skull.

The enormous serpent was forced downward, its body crashing into the dark ocean and creating a massive wave that spread toward the horizon.

Before Amun-Ra could follow up, the serpent’s tail suddenly emerged from beneath the water.

WHOOSH!

The massive tail struck him across the chest.

Amun-Ra’s body flew backward like a meteor before he stopped himself in mid-air.

Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

He wiped it away with his thumb and looked at the red liquid. "...You still have quite a lot of strength left."

Aposis answered with a furious hiss.

The serpent’s enormous body rose from the ocean once again.

Golden flames erupted around his body as Amun-Ra raised both hands.

A massive sun appeared behind him.

The ocean beneath them began boiling instantly as waves of heat spread across the endless darkness.

Aposis lunged at the sun with an open mouth, ready to devour it completely.

The darkness slowly bent as the body of the giant snake began to wrap under the gravity.

But the next instant, Aposis devoured the sun and shifted toward the God.

Amun-Ra twisted his body and narrowly avoided the attack before grabbing one of Aposis’s enormous fangs.

With a roar, he pulled, and the entire head of the serpent was dragged sideways.

Aposis responded by wrapping its enormous body around him.

The pressure immediately began crushing Amun-Ra’s body.

His bones cracked under the force, yet the God of the Sun didn’t release the fang.

Finally, he couldn’t hold on anymore and pulled himself away from the snake.

"ENOUGH!!" Amun-Ra roared as he looked at the enormous serpent with a tired expression. "Don’t you want to end this worthless fight?"

Aposis didn’t answer as the snake began to coil up his body like a tensed spring.

Amun-Ra spread his hands slightly. "Tell me, Aposis, don’t you want freedom?"

The snake finally answered, a brutal hiss escaping its throat.

"Frrrreedom?"

"My hatred for you..." Its enormous jaws opened slightly. "...is far greater than my love for freedom."

Amun-Ra stared at the serpent for several seconds as an unexpected smile appeared on his face.

"What if I give you my authority over the Sun?"

The serpent suddenly became completely still.

The silence that followed was almost suffocating. Amun-Ra had finally grabbed his attention.

The God of the Sun extended his hand completely. "So why don’t we make a deal?"

Aposis hissed at him. "A deeal?"

"Yes." The God of Sun responded. "Give me one thing, and I will give you one in return."

Aposis’s enormous head lowered until its eyes were level with Amun-Ra.

"What do you want?"

Amun-Ra smiled and answered sincerely. "Freedom from this fight just for one night."