Chapter 167

Translator: adomman

Editor: Snorri

Gabriel took the parchment and asked: “The letter to me is also an order, yet I can’t read it until after I fight Amon? But Your Highness, my mission is to assassinate him, so if I am still alive by then, that would mean…”

Maria interrupted her with a wave of her hand. “You don’t have to say anything, an order from the Empire is an order and I won’t make you go against it, but I also know exactly what kind of person you are. …Gabriel, how long have you been by my side?”

Gabriel replied: “It has been six years since I first met you in Cape. Maria, if you are not the Adoratrice, would you have any other command for me right now?”

Maria looked out the window with a faint smile. “Whether I’m the Adoratrice or the girl named Maria, I sincerely would like to thank you. Everything that I wish to say is already written in the letter. …Is there anything else you would like to say to me before you set off for the mission?”

Gabriel stood up and said word by word: “This is a very difficult mission, and since the Empire has appointed me to execute it, I have a few requests.”

Maria nodded. “It’s only right to have requests when accepting such a mission, go ahead.”

Gabriel: “It’s impossible for me to go alone, I will need the assistance of mages, at least one supreme mage.”

Maria replied: “I have just discussed this with the three High Priests, and there will be a supreme mage working with you. Idu was once the Chief Priest of the An-Ra Legion, and he has volunteered to go with you on this mission. He also said that he will not return until the mission is completed.”

Gabriel was slightly startled and said: “The continent is so huge, I can’t be searching for him aimlessly, nor do I feel comfortable conducting a manhunt openly. That’s why I need the Empire to send secret agents to find the exact location where Amon is hiding before I take action. I am a noble supreme warrior after all, and things should be done in this way to match my status. Same goes for High Priest Idu.”

Maria simply replied: “Rightfully so, as it should be! The two of you will only depart for the mission upon receiving the accurate location of Amon.”

Gabriel: “Lastly, I will need a weapon.”

Maria: “The various weapons and armor collected by the Shrine of Isis are at your disposal, no matter how precious or expensive they are, as a reward for carrying out this mission, the chosen equipment will always belong to you.”

Gabriel shook her head. “I don’t need the Shrine’s weapons, I just need all the supreme mages and craftsmen of the Shrine to repair one weapon for me. It is the battleaxe that I used when I was fighting Enkidu. Many parts of the weapon were damaged, and I had used various precious materials to reforge and mend it such that it has almost completely changed the materials that it is made of. Now I need the help of all the supreme mages and master craftsmen to forge it into a perfect weapon.”

Maria: “I will satisfy your request and mobilize all the manpower to help you rebuild this weapon. You can set off when the weapon is complete since the Pharaoh did not set a time limit for completing the task.”

Gabriel bowed. “Thank you, Your Highness!”

Maria looked at her meaningfully. “Your requests are perfectly reasonable, Gabriel, it seems that you’ve learnt to do things by the book.” Back then, when Gabriel was ordered to go to Cape to escort the Adoratrice candidate Maria, she was all by herself. Even though she was a supreme warrior, she did not even have a single attendant as she travelled a thousand miles. But now that she was ordered to assassinate Amon, she had so many requests to make.

Gabriel replied: “Because this is about carrying out the orders of the Empire, not fulfilling my own wishes, so why not follow the official rules?”

Maria nodded again. “Alright, everything will be done according to your wishes.”

They had finished discussing the matter, but Gabriel did not leave. She stood there hesitating for a moment before finally managing to say: “Your Highness, may we have a few personal words?”

Maria smiled faintly. “This is a private occasion, feel free to say what you want.”

Gabriel let out a long sigh. “I’m not used to talking like this, but I have to say it. The Empire appointed me to assassinate Amon, don’t you think that they are simply using others to do their dirty work? The Supreme General is not a criminal or guilty of anything, but he is to be removed for the good of the Empire. However, don’t forget that Amon himself is probably the best assassin on the continent, since he is capable of capturing a king alive, which is much harder than assassinating a king.”

Maria withdrew her gaze from the window and looked at the table with her head lowered. “It is said that Seth has given an oracle, there will be assistance from a god’s emissary regarding this matter.”

Gabriel: “I don’t care who is assisting, if I die in this mission it will be as if someone is using Amon’s hand to remove me. I have experienced something similar before, before I became a supreme warrior, but this feels completely different. After I’m gone, what about you? This is clearly directed at you.”

Maria seemed to say to herself: “I know Amon, perhaps even better than he knows himself. The test that you are going to face is not about him. That is why I asked you to read the letter after the battle. …Don’t worry, I’m not the same little girl I was back then,I no longer need your constant protection.”

What she was saying was that Gabriel’s assassination would never succeed, because the supreme warrior was no match for Amon, and she knew with certainty that Amon would not kill Gabriel.

Gabriel, however, did not refute anything and continued: “I am well aware of your situation. As the Adoratrice of the Shrine of Isis, you have become a symbol of the old covenant between the gods because of the new religious reforms of the Pharaoh, so the next step is bound to target you, since a change in your identity and status is required for the reforms concerning the gods to be a complete success. “

Maria lifted her head. “I understand, but no matter what, I am still the same me! I hope you will also remember that as people come into this world, they will eventually have to leave, so what is the faith that they seek?”

Gabriel had more to say, but she stopped talking. Then she bowed to the Adoratrice and took her leave. Maria got up and went to the window. As no light was lit in the room, the darkness was all around and the starlight spilled onto her through the window. She stood there quietly looking into the distance, and nobody knew what she was thinking about, but she remained like that for the whole night.

……..

Amon traversed the mountains and fields at night, when the stars were bright, but he always felt the eyes of someone watching him. It was dawn at last, and he stepped onto an official road, the road that led out of the Ejyptian borders along the coast to the city of Syah in the Kingdom of Hittite. It was the same route that he had taken when he had led the An-Ra Legion, and not far ahead, there was a checkpoint.

Dawn had just arrived, and there was no one else on the road. The guards on duty were making a fire to cook their breakfast, and the smoke from the fire was slowly rising up in the distance. A few warriors with spears opened the wooden gate in front of the checkpoint and saw Amon walking over with a short scepter kept at his waist and his hands behind his back. Due to the peace treaty with the Kingdom of Hittite, the usual checks at this checkpoint were not strict, but now that orders had been received to apprehend Supreme General Amon, the people passing through were to be questioned carefully.

As Amon walked in the thin morning mist, the soldier on the other side shouted out, “Traveller, what is your name, where are you coming from and where are you going?”

Amon replied in a loud voice: “My name is Amon. I am going to the Duc Plains, and I have heard that the Ejyptian Empire is looking for me.”

All the soldiers in the checkpoint stopped whatever they were doing, then they ran out in formation with their weapons. Amon walked over, but the soldiers lowered their heads as if they didn’t see him, so Amon said once more loudly: “I am Amon!”

Suddenly, a soldier said to the person next to him: “Yesterday I heard thunder so loud that it shocked my ears and left a buzzing sound. When I woke up this morning, I couldn’t hear anything clearly.”

Another soldier replied: “That seems to be the case for me as well, I keep hearing a ringing sound in my ears.” The officer of the checkpoint came over and said to Amon: “Traveller, you are not carrying anything, so there’s no need for checking. You need to pay five copper coins to cross the checkpoint, but if you don’t have the money, I can lend it to you.”

Amon understood that these soldiers were unwilling to apprehend him, but according to the laws, if one saw a fugitive but did not take action, one would be held accountable in the future. Amon had wanted to announce his identity and then break through the checkpoint. He did not want to make things difficult for anyone but the soldiers guarding the checkpoint unexpectedly reacted in this way.

He could not say anything else, so he handed the officer five copper coins and said: “Thank you, I have money.”

With that Amon walked out of the checkpoint, dozens of soldiers lined up, pointing their weapons at the ground and bowing in greeting. Not far ahead was the sea coast, and further north along the coast would be the Syah Desert. Amon had not left the borders for long when he suddenly heard the sound of galloping of a horse behind him. There was a man riding a horse who had caught up with him.

He stopped and looked back. The rider was the officer of the checkpoint. The officer came near and jumped off his horse before bowing towards Amon and handing him a package. “There is a desert ahead, you will need food and water.” Then without any further words, he turned and jumped onto his horse, preparing to leave.

Amon asked a question: “Who are you?”

The officer replied: “My name is Vanliart, I was a cavalryman under Captain Mahu in the beginning. I grew up with Mahu and Misphi together, and it was also old Mahu who taught me body arts.”

Meeting like this, it was obvious that the other party was waiting here for him since some time ago, and Amon couldn’t hide even if he wanted to. After ascending the dune, he asked: “Are you waiting for me? I don’t remember ever meeting you.”

The man smiled and pointed to the chair across from him. “Strange friends can also sit down and drink wine together. There are not many people in this world who can sit safely across from me and drink. Does Supreme General Amon have the guts to do so? What do you think of the wine here?”

Amon pulled a chair over and sat down. “I can tell that the wine is excellent from the scent. You really put in the effort to prepare such great wine in such a desolate place, is this specially prepared for me?”

The man also sat down and replied: “It is for the sake of entertaining you and also for my own enjoyment. Life is not an easy journey, so why not treat oneself well?”

Amon nodded, “I can tell that you are a man who knows how to indulge himself. While waiting for someone in this desert, you set up a tent and a banquet like this, like a king on a picnic. Can you tell me your name, and what you want with me?”

The man said without missing a beat: “I heard that you are very smart, so guess who I am?”

Amon shrugged his shoulders. “How would I guess? Why don’t you just tell me which god sent you?”

The man said: “When the sun rose, I enjoyed the radiance bestowed by the gods on the plains; when the shadows of the mountains were shortest, I longed for eternal youth and beautiful love; when the gods fell and my home was gone, I roamed alone with my bleeding old wounds at sunset. Is that old song talking about you or me? The favored lover of Mourrin, Amon.”

Amon suddenly remembered something, and he narrowed his eyes before asking: “Ugallu the Lion King?”

The man smiled slightly. “You surely aren’t stupid, I’m the Lion King Ugallu!”

Amon was surprised. “I’ve heard of your legend, but our paths have not crossed before, so why did you come to me specifically? If it’s because of Goddess Mourrin, I don’t think it has anything to do with me. If you choose to block my path, I will still continue to walk my path.”

At this moment, another powerful force suddenly appeared from underground, and three human forms surged from the sand dunes not far away. A powerfully muscled man and two voluptuous beauties emerged out of the sand, but they were old acquaintances again. Amon stood up and exclaimed: “Scorpion King! Why are you here too?”

Girtablullu walked into the tent with his two companions, sat down and smiled. “After hundreds of years, the Lion King has finally come out, more powerful than ever before. I heard that he wanted a duel with you and had invited me to be a judge. Come, let’s drink to that first!”

After sitting down, Girtablullu hugged the two female scorpions as they sat on his lap. One poured wine into a cup, while the other held the cup up and fed it into his mouth. Girtablullu emptied the cup and smacked his lips. “Good wine! Ugallu, you always know how to indulge yourself, but it’s a pity that you still have to pour your own wine. Why don’t you bring some lionesses? Are you still thinking of Goddess Mourrin in your heart, or still afraid that the goddess might be jealous?”

Ugallu poured himself a drink and said: “Girtablullu, we haven’t met for over two hundred years, have we? You’re still the same, just more handsome and stronger than before. I don’t recognize these two beauties though, you must have raised them during the last two hundred years? …Have a few more drinks if the wine is good, and when you’re done, come be the judge for our duel.”