"Amun-Ra?"
Jay raised his eyebrows, a flicker of genuine confusion crossing his face as his gaze remained fixed on the man with long, silken black hair.
The Divine Aura emanating from the figure was staggering, a superheated golden radiance that seemed to burn on the very atmosphere of the desert. The confirmation from the black grail floating silently beside him only served to pop even more questions into his mind. He had expected many things in this Land of Sun, but the interference of the Sun God was not one of them.
Jay then straightened his posture.
High above, Amun-Ra's golden eyes stared down with a terrifying indifference. They met Jay's dark hazel gaze with the weight of eons behind them. Finally, the ancient deity opened his mouth once more.
"Zayyn Illya Kovalenko... You shall not kill him if you truly wish to finish this game."
Jay furrowed his eyebrows at the words of the former Chief-God of the Ancient Egyptian pantheon.
What? I can't finish the game if I kill Ares? Jay thought.
After a while, he opened his mouth.
"I don't understand... How would killing him change anything? Isn't the goal of this game to gather as many points as possible, challenge Aten, and defeat him? That's how the game is supposed to be played, isn't it? Well, at least according to... him," Jay muttered.
Jay then reached into the thin air beside him. And suddenly, a spatial rift tore open with a rippled sound, and from his pocket dimension, he pulled a small figure. Enveloped in an obsidian chain, a certain game administrator was yanked through the rift.
"Miu!!" MiuMiu screamed as it was suddenly pulled out by Jay, only to realize it had returned to Heliopolis as the sandy breeze washed over his fur.
"Please, let Miu-"
Jay cut him off.
"Hey, is the goal of this game to collect as many points as possible?" Jay asked in a flat voice.
MiuMiu stopped talking as he nodded quickly.
"And if no one is able to challenge Aten within a certain time limit, will he kill every single player?" Jay asked.
"Miu!" MiuMiu nodded once again, his tail twitching nervously.
Jay then shifted his gaze from the black cat toward Ra who still floated in the sky with his pair of black wings. Though the Sun God's expression did not change, as if he already knew all the information MiuMiu had given.
"You do not understand... This game was never about killing each other," Amun-Ra replied, still unfazed by Jay's effort to challenge his beliefs.
"Then what is it for?" Jay shot back.
Amun-Ra suddenly fell silent as if contemplating something. He then closed his eyes for a few seconds before opening them once again.
"That... I don't know."
Truthfully, he himself did not know why He would do something like this.
"What?" Jay raised his eyebrows in disbelief. The uncertainty in Ra's answer, despite telling him what to do and what not to do to be able to finish this game, baffled him. How can someone be so shameless?
"You're not making any sense," Jay continued, though his expression didn't change.
"Either you give me a good reason not to kill that man over there who just tried to kill me, and even your daughter Sekhmet not long ago, or feel free to try and stop me yourself," Jay said as his Avesta scanned the divine aura emanating from Ra, then he glanced at Ares, who was slowly losing consciousness, bleeding heavily as his wounds failed to regenerate under the effects of the Divine Sun.
Amun-Ra contemplated Jay's words as he closed his eyes.
Thousands of years had passed since he last heard anything about the outside world, yet even in his wildest imagination, he had never expected a human to rival his strength. Even if he was far from his prime during his time as the chief god of the Ancient Egyptian faction, it was still unthinkable. And beyond that, Jay's ability to wield the Divine Sun. Let alone a human, no one other than him, Aten, and Sekhmet should be able to use that Divine Power.
But what was the point of life if one already knew every single thing about it?
'A human who has surpassed even my Kill Points,' Ra thought.
And then, as the Sun God opened his eyes, the temperature of the dunes seemed to spike instantly.
"Well... if you refuse to listen to my words, then I have no choice but to stop you, even if it means using force," Amun-Ra said,
And suddenly, his golden radiance flared intensely, turning the sky into a blinding sheet of white. The clash of Jay's myriad-colored spirit aura against the aura of the Divine Sun blasted the sand dunes apart, the sheer pressure crushing the smallest particles of sand into dust as the two forces ground against each other, threatening to level the entire region.
But then-
"Zayyn-kun!"
From the distance, a flash of silver and pink cut through the golden haze. There, the famous Vanadis Chariot appeared, its silver frame gleaming as it skidded across the dunes and landed beside Jay. The sudden arrival caused both Jay and Ra to pull back their energy and the crushing pressure vanishing as quickly as it had appeared.
Standing atop the silver chariot were Freya, Rossweisse, and the bird-helmed god, Thoth.
Thoth then immediately stepped down and positioned himself in front of Jay, Freya, and Rossweisse, facing the Sun God.
"Ra-sama... please stop. These people saved me from death. They are not the ones who started the fight," Thoth said.
"Ra-sama... Please stop. These people saved me from my death. They are not the ones who started the fight," Thoth said, his voice respectful but firm.
Ra's expression shifted slightly. He slowly descended from the sky, his pair of black wings unfurling with a majestic sweep before he touched down on the sand. He walked toward Jay and the others, passing the impaled and wounded body of the God of War.
"Thoth... didn't I tell you to avoid fighting anyone, especially those outside our faction? I thought I sent you only to bring Sekhmet back," Ra said. Though there was no animosity in his voice as he said that and looked at Thoth.
"That's... Sekhmet dragged me into the fight. It wasn't my intention... I apologize for my failure, Ra-sama," Thoth replied, bowing his head.
"No, it's fine. What matters is that no one has died yet," Ra said, his gaze briefly shifting toward Ares before returning to Jay.
Their eyes met.
"Zayyn Illya Kovalenko..." Ra muttered.
Jay simply stood there.
"I understand from your words that you were brought to this place without your knowledge, and certainly without your will. So I understand your intention to gather as many points as possible, defeat Aten, and leave this place. As a human, you might think this is how we gods entertain ourselves by killing one another. A distasteful stereotype that even I, as a god, cannot deny some of us possess." Amun-Ra said as he glanced back at the impaled God of War.
He then turned to Jay again.
"But whether you believe me or not, this game... this entire ordeal... is not about how many points you can gather by killing each other." Amun-Ra paused before finishing his thought.
"You cannot win this game alone, no matter how strong you are," he said, his golden eyes meeting Jay's dark hazel gaze.
Jay sensed no deceit from Amun-Ra, nor did the grail indicate that he was lying. But-
"You would still save him... even though that man just threatened to kill your daughter and your people?" Jay asked, glancing at Thoth.
"Forgiveness or not, that is my daughter's and Thoth's right to give. I do not try to put my morals over anyone but myself. That is why I can only tell you what I believe in. Whether you listen to me or not, I will still stand by the things I believe... The choice is yours, Zayyn Illya Kovalenko," Amun-Ra said.
There was no arrogance or sense of superiority in his voice, despite him being perhaps the strongest god Jay had encountered here.
And now, Jay was faced with two choices.
Should I fight him here, kill Ares, and collect the player points... risking my energy before even facing the final boss of this game? Or... Jay thought.
He continued.
...should I follow my original plan and just go against Aten directly?
It was not a difficult choice. If he could simply find Aten, then why fight another god just to gather points and challenge him later? If he could reach Aten directly, that would be far more efficient.
Though, there was still one problem.
He did not know where Aten was.
And a part of him still lingered on the Sun God's words.
'Why would he risk fighting me just to protect a man who tried to ruin his plan?' Jay thought. None of this conversation was making any sense.
Every time he uncovered a new piece of information, it only led to more questions instead of answers.
There was also something he needed to confirm regarding this point system.
Jay's thoughts drifted back to the moment he received the notification after killing all three of Ares' summons. His Divine Horses.
'Why did I get a point for killing a summon? No...' Jay's eyes shifted toward the silver-haired Valkyrie standing beside Freya, who was looking at him with a complicated expression.
'Since Rossweisse is here as Freya's bodyguard, does that mean she's also counted as a player? And what even qualifies as a player? Maybe I should ask her about it later...' Jay thought.
And then, he turned his gaze back to Ra.
"Let's assume I believe you about not killing anyone. I will still bring Ares with me to kill him just in case you are wrong about this... belief of yours. How about that?"
"Then you would be throwing away your only chance to escape this place," Ra replied harshly. His eyes narrowed.
"Then I'll just simply kill Aten myself," Jay said flatly.
"Stop speaking nonsense. No one can defeat Aten in this place."
"And why is that?"
After a slight silence.
"Because here, within Heliopolis, Aten cannot be killed... nor defeated. He is beyond such concepts... Aten... Every Chief God of the Ancient-Egyptian faction is a True Immortal in this Land of the Sun, for the god and the land are one and the same."
Ra's voice lowered, heavy with certainty.
"The Sun God is the land itself..."
A brief silence followed.
"Aten is... Heliopolis."
Ra's words stunned everyone present. The revelation shook Freya and Rossweisse, who had only been listening until now. Even Jay furrowed his brows, though it at least answered one question, which is why the grail kept insisting that Aten is here.
Meanwhile, Thoth lowered his gaze, as if he had known this from the very beginning.
After a long silence, Freya hesitated a little bit before slowly opening her mouth.
"Then... what is the point of collecting points if Aten cannot be defeated?" Freya asked, her face filled with worry before it suddenly turned pale with horror.
"Does that mean we simply can't get out of here!?" she yelled. Hearing this from anyone would have been one thing, but hearing it directly from the former Chief God of the Ancient Egyptian faction gave the words undeniable weight.
Ra nodded as he turned to face them all.
"Now do you understand my perspective? Why I believe all of this fighting and killing is meaningless in the end?"
Jay remained silent, contemplating the Sun God's words.
But Ra continued.
"Because in the end, this is—"
"...an impossible game."
Silence fell over everyone. Freya and Rossweisse struggled to process how they had ended up here, only to be told that everything they were trying to do might be pointless. The pink-haired Goddess of Beauty, Love, and War then slowly turned her gaze toward Jay.
'What are you going to do, Zayyn-kun?' Freya wondered, thinking about how his plan to escape by killing Aten might change after hearing Ra's words.
But Jay did not care whether Aten could be killed or not.
For no existence could prevail against theNonexistence.
The only thing that still lingered in his mind was-
'What is even his goal to begin with? Power? He already has more than enough of that. The only explanation left is that this is all just entertainment for him... which makes him even more of a dickhead than I thought,' Jay thought.
He then lifted his gaze and met the Sun God's eyes once more.
Then he glanced at Ares.
Seeing no point in collecting points anymore, Jay let out a quiet sigh.
"Do you know where Aten is?" Jay suddenly asked, causing Amun-Ra to raise an eyebrow.
"Hm? Why are you suddenly asking that?" Ra paused, then realization dawned on him as his eyes widened.
"No... Did you not hear what I just told you!? No one can kill him! Trying to find him, and even more unthinkable, defeat him, would only mean throwing your life away for nothing..." He continued.
"So you won't even tell me... I see, then I've just been wasting my time here..." Jay muttered as he turned his back.
As his myriad-colored aura faded, the black gauntlet and the dozens of throned spears impaling Ares dissolved into thin air, as if they had been absorbed back into nature itself.
"Wait, Zayyn Illya Kovalenko!" Ra called from behind him, but Jay ignored him completely.
Freya and Rossweisse wore stunned expressions, their gazes shifting back and forth between Ra and Jay. Before Rossweisse then looked at the goddess in front of her.
"Freya-sama... what should we do?"
Freya paused for a moment before making up her mind.
"Rose-chan... let's follow Zayyn-kun for now."
"Eh, but-"
"Waiting here will just lead us nowhere. And besides... I have a feeling Zayyn-kun has some idea how to defeat Aten. He's not the type to act unless he's confident about it, after all," Freya said. As she thought how he had just defeated two of the strongest War Gods without even breaking a sweat, leaving the three-way battle virtually unscathed.
Rossweisse hesitated for a second before nodding. The two Norse women hurried after Jay, leaving Ra, Thoth, and the nearly dead Ares behind on the sand.
Ra simply watched Jay's retreating figure in silence until Thoth's voice broke it.
"What should we do about him, Ra-sama?" Thoth asked.
"I will ask Nehebkau to follow them just in case he actually manages to meet Aten. But for now, let's treat that guy before he dies," Ra said, gesturing toward the God of War lying helplessly in the sand.
"Yes."
***
Meanwhile, back at the place where the Egyptian Goddess of War was pinned like a statue, Jay stood in front of the brown-skinned woman, his gaze fixed on her with a contemplative look. Behind him, Freya and Rossweisse were quietly discussing something between themselves.
"Well, well... what should I do with you?" Jay said.
"Hey! This isn't funny! Let me go!" Sekhmet snapped, struggling despite being unable to move even an inch.
Jay stood before Sekhmet, contemplating what to do with her. He could take her along in case he needed to use the Divine Sun again, since her divine aura was still required for it. But on the other hand...
"Hey, do you know where Aten is? It seems your father refused to tell me, even though he clearly knows," Jay said.
"Well, he is just scared of that bastard Aten... just like he's always been. It's nothing surprising," Sekhmet spat, her eyes flashing with defiance.
"So, do you know where he is or not?" Jay cut her off, his voice sharpening.
"Of course not! That bastard could be anywhere. I'm not interested in fighting someone who can't be defeated, so I couldn't care less where he is right now," Sekhmet replied.
"I see. Then I gue-"
Before Jay could finish his sentence, Sekhmet's expression shifted to something more cunning.
"But I know someone who can locate where he is." Sekhmet suddenly said.
Jay's eyes widened slightly with her words.
"... Locate?" He muttered.
Sekhmet nodded.
"And who is this someone?"
"My sister," Sekhmet said, a sharp grin finally touching her lips.
Jay raised his eyebrows.
"Your sister?"
Sekhmet nodded as she said.
"Yep, my sister... Bastet."
_________________________________________
A/N:
I'm really sorry for the delay with these past two chapters. I just got back from a trip, so updates should return to normal from here on out.
And I really enjoyed discussing with yall and reading your thoughts on the previous chapter, lol. Keep the discussion going!
Thank you!