Xin Hexue noticed the intruder from the corner of his eyes, and the sound of the dropped sword also drew Tisis’s gaze towards this elder brother he had never met before.
Out of curiosity, Tisis had once asked Xin Hexue about the situation in Upper Egypt, which of course included his two famous elder brothers: the Pharaoh of Upper Egypt and the lord known as the mortal incarnation of Anubis.
In Tisis’s imagination, the other party was a tall and brave warrior, with a young, bronze-colored body, and evenly distributed and firm muscles. In fact, judging by appearance alone, this was indeed the case.
But….
Why did this elder brother lack the decisive aura of a killer?
Tisis could smell the rolling hot scent of blood and dust carried by the wind, remnants left on the intruder’s sword and armor. The blood of the defeated had splashed onto him and, having not been washed off in time, had congealed into patches of dark red stains.
It was clearly a murderous quality, yet Tisis sensed that as this elder brother stood at the entrance of the courtyard, staring at them, he gave off an air of a dusty, abandoned dog.
He even saw envy or jealousy in those golden-brown eyes locked onto him.
But soon, Tisis felt a chill run down his spine.
Xin Hexue stepped forward, blocking the direct line between the two, and gently pushed Tisis. “Today’s archery lesson is over. Go inside the palace.”
Tisis originally wanted to ask about his uncle Huowen’s situation, but he obediently listened to Xin Hexue and returned to the palace.
Although he had grown a bit taller, strictly speaking, he was still a child. This was an occasion for adults now, and Tisis understood that.
But…
Tisis thought of his half-brother the Red King, and then of the Anubis he had just seen.
When people grow up, do they all become like this?
Once inside the palace, Tisis couldn’t resist leaning against the door behind him, secretly peeking out into the courtyard.
Seto-Anubis quickly embraced the Divine Envoy. The state of dependence he displayed was like a captive bird returning to the forest, or a wanderer returning to his mother’s embrace.
Tisis trembled as if he had discovered some shocking secret.
Should he tell his half-brother?
But his young heart understood that Huowen had not returned as promised this morning, and that terrifying, tyrant-like elder brother would not appear now to drive Seto away.
“Who is that?”
Xin Hexue heard Seto ask.
“The Red King’s brother. His name is Tisis.”
Seto didn’t seem satisfied with this answer. Or rather, what this person was called or his status in the mortal world wasn’t important to him. The answer he wanted was what this person was in Xin Hexue’s eyes.
Fortunately, Xin Hexue touched his still coarse, short hair, and then slid his hand down to his jawline. “Good child, you’ve grown taller.”
When Seto first met Xin Hexue, he had just passed his eighteenth birthday. Now, by the end of this large-scale war between Upper and Lower Egypt, he was almost twenty years old.
He had grown even taller than before, completely a man’s stature now. Of course, this didn’t mean he could thereby be free from his Mother Goddess’s embrace.
In fact, it only made it easier for him to hold Xin Hexue. He yearned for the Mother Goddess’s touch and love even more than before.
“Three hundred and twenty-seven suns and moons, I have missed you.”
Despite now being a head taller than the Mother Goddess, Seto removed his bronze mask and buried his face in Xin Hexue’s shoulder and neck.
His longing was like a winding river, spreading endlessly.
Xin Hexue soothed him, temporarily not asking about matters related to Shamule or Huowen.
Clearly, the fact that Seto could enter the Meret Palace so openly meant that this war was over, and the victor was decided.
……
According to common practice, after the struggle for rule over the Two Lands ended, Rahotep would have much work to wrap up: arranging for prisoners of war, redrawing the list of Egyptian official positions, deciding where to establish the capital of the unified Two Lands, promulgating new policies…
Originally, Xin Hexue thought that dealing with these pressing matters would keep Rahotep busy for at least another month before he could find some free time.
But Xin Hexue saw him on the seventh day and, as a result, boarded the golden solar boat returning to Thebes.
Just like the journey from the quarry south of Aswan to Thebes back then, now they were setting out from Buto to return to Thebes.
Unexpectedly, Rahotep acted as if nothing had happened. He didn’t ask about anything Xin Hexue had experienced in Lower Egypt.
It was as if the Divine Envoy had merely been a guest in Lower Egypt.
“I have decided to retain Thebes as the status of royal capital. Buto can serve as a secondary capital.”
Rahotep said this while they were inside the cabin. Through the window opened in the hull, they could see golden sunlight spilling onto the wide, blue surface of the Nile.
“Following your suggestion, Iah, I have set the term for the Nomarchs of Upper and Lower Egypt at five years, after which they will be transferred. They have now been reassigned to new Nomes.”
Egypt now had a total of forty-one Nomes. Some Nomarchs had already been replaced by other noble ministers appointed by Rahotep. For those Nomarchs who temporarily retained their positions, in order to sever their accumulated power networks in their original territories, Rahotep assigned them to different Nomes in Upper and Lower Egypt. Those originally serving in Lower Egypt were transferred to Upper Egypt, and those from Upper Egypt were transferred to Lower Egypt.
Frankly speaking, if the officials of Lower Egypt were forced to honestly choose a ruler between the Red King and the White King, they would still choose the White King. For the wise, their talents could be trusted and utilized. For the greedy, at least if caught, their corpses wouldn’t be hung on city walls, nor would vultures peck out their eyes.
Rahotep would at least preserve the final dignity of the nobility…the integrity of their corpses in this life. As for whether those bearing crimes could enter the afterlife, that would be decided after their death, when their hearts were weighed against the Feather of Ma’at. Rahotep was only responsible for ensuring the kingdom’s laws deprived the lives of the most heinous offenders, sending them into the River Styx.
Since it wasn’t wartime and they were traveling upstream, the voyage back to Thebes could appropriately be slowed down.
For nearly a month, they occasionally stopped at river bends along the Nomes on the route to inspect local conditions and assess whether subsequent policies could be smoothly implemented.
When the sunset fell on this day, the magnificent sight of Thebes appeared at the horizon’s edge. People lined the riverbanks to cheer in welcome, their numbers so great that from the deck, one could only see a mass of black heads moving.
When the figures of the Pharaoh and the Divine Envoy appeared together on the deck, the people of Thebes cheered jubilantly, praising the Divine Envoy’s wisdom and the Pharaoh’s brilliance.
It had been nearly a year since they last saw him. The atmosphere in Thebes was renewed. Thanks to the “legacy” left by the Divine Envoy before he was taken, the people of Thebes no longer suffered hunger this year. The improved, extremely drought-resistant miraculous golden corn had become a common food on their tables. Its yield was twice that of emmer wheat! They were also planning to build reservoirs, which would make enduring major droughts easier in the future.
Now, the Two Lands were unified. Thebes was the common royal capital of Upper and Lower Egypt, and those blessings would be extended to the entire Land of Golden Sand.
Looking at the people along the Nile, Rahotep said softly, “No one will suffer misfortune, no one will endure hunger. The river will fill the fields, the land will be rich and abundant, and the people will be proud because of it.”
“This is the Egypt you described to me, the one you wanted to see.” Rahotep turned to Xin Hexue, his eyes gradually becoming firm. “I will devote all efforts to our shared ideal.”
Xin Hexue responded gently, “I am witnessing its growth. You are a suitable king.”
The moment he received affirmation, Rahotep seemed unable to control his emotions. He grabbed Xin Hexue’s right hand. “I am promoting religious reforms. I hope Nefer Iah will become the supreme god here.”
“I will build the most magnificent temple in the kingdom for you. Our statues will stand below the pyramids. Even after thousands of years, people will know of our achievements.”
People fear time, but time fears the pyramids.
They are like the sun, moon, and stars, standing fixed in their positions, and will stand there eternally.
Rahotep planned with all his heart and soul, pointing towards the temple under construction on the west bank of Thebes. For a moment, he didn’t notice the change in Xin Hexue’s eyes.
“In half a month, the coronation of the Lord of the Two Lands will be held in Thebes.” Rahotep turned back, looking steadily into Xin Hexue’s eyes, his tone solemn. “I hope you will crown me, and place the crown upon my head.”
Xin Hexue was silent for a moment, and Rahotep waited patiently for his answer.
“You won’t have to stand in the sun for too long. I will arrange the entire ceremony. There might be quite a lot of people then, a grand scene. You only need to participate in one part of it, crowning me under the sun.”
“You can wear a long robe. It might be a bit hot, but this part will be over quickly, I promise.”
Rahotep kept speaking, and his pace gradually quickened. He gave the impression that he was actually becoming unsettled by Xin Hexue’s silence, although his expression remained well maintained.
Finally, Xin Hexue responded, “Of course, I will crown you.”
Rahotep’s tense shoulders and back relaxed, but the next second, his face went blank.
“After that, since the Two Lands are unified, I will have completed my mission,” Xin Hexue tilted his head slightly. “Before I leave, I would like to meet with Shamule.”
“…”
A long silence followed.
Rahotep stared at Xin Hexue, his eyes devoid of emotion. Until the sun in the west was swallowed by the waters of the Nile did he speak: “Dead. He is dead.”
The air seemed to stagnate, and Rahotep asked, word by word: “And you want to leave?”
He seemed to have connected these two matters, and all expression vanished from his face in an instant, the usual facade of generosity and benevolence he maintained completely withdrawn.
…..
Xin Hexue was pressed down into the bed. When he was in the royal city of Upper Egypt, he had always slept in this very palace, in this very bed.
Sometimes, Rahotep would also come over. After their nighttime talks ended, they would sleep together peacefully.
Now, the situation had abruptly changed.
The bed was in complete disarray, the curtains fell, and the ornate painted ceiling appeared upside down and chaotic to Xin Hexue.
The ring was forcibly stripped off and discarded on the floor.
[Rahotep Heartbreak Value +10]
Rahotep kissed his cheeks, moving to his pink lips. Urgent desire and a clamoring possessiveness made him like a lion, impatiently marking his prey. Their breaths intertwined, chaotic and warm, and their bodies pressed together so tightly there was not a gap to be found.
He sent his fingers into the secret place, the tips of his fingers already touching wetness.
Rahotep looked at his completely naked lover, and asked in a hoarse voice: “On the night the Sacred Bull Festival ended, our bodies were very compatible, weren’t they?”
Hearing no response from the person beneath him, his fingers squeezed in decisively. Xin Hexue groaned softly, his spine arching as if electrified and his chest thrusting upward. Hot air was exhaled from his slightly parted lips.
“The things Shamule did, I did them earlier than him.” Rahotep was simply puzzled, “Why?”
Xin Hexue opened his eyes, blurred with mist. His long-untouched body was being invaded again, and even accommodating fingers was difficult. His breath trembled uncontrollably, “You… you know?”
He was responded with a storm of kisses.
When the calluses on the side of Rahotep’s fingers rubbed over a certain spot, tears welled up in the corners of Xin Hexue’s eyes. Trembling, he pushed him away, “But that night of the Sacred Bull Festival was just an accident. Didn’t we reach an understanding then?”
“No!” Rahotep growled, like an injured lion, “It was not an accident!”
After loudly denying it, his suppressed feelings finally seemed to see the light of day, and he finally regained a sliver of reason.
“If it were just an accident, I should have casually called a dancer or someone willing to offer their body to the Divine Emissary, to relieve his troubles.”
“But later, both you and I knew what happened. It was not an accident, nor was it the bewitchment of alcohol. It was me.”
Rahotep kissed Xin Hexue’s lips, swallowing the Divine Envoy’s suppressed scream into his throat, saying bitterly: “It was me, who was infatuated with you.”
He took a deep breath. His fingers, thrusting in and out, withdrew from between his thighs, bringing out gurgling fluid. His strong arms effortlessly lifted Xin Hexue’s legs, “Now… look, we are about to become one.”
Xin Hexue arched his neck backward, his posture like a swan offering its neck for slaughter, making Rahotep feel as if he might tear this soft, white body apart with his thrust.
After just a brief moment of hesitation, an unbearable pain caused Rahotep to arch his back and wilt rapidly.
“Damn it!”
He uttered a rare curse.
By the time Xin Hexue reacted, Rahotep had straightened his clothes and strode away with a livid face, “I will return soon.”
….
In the dark, dreadful, damp prison of the Theban palace. There was only one window at the ceiling, just glass set into the dome, allowing moonlight and starlight to leak in.
In the center was a square pool. A massive iron cage was suspended in the pool, ensuring the prisoner could only be confined within the water.
Sharp weapons capable of causing injury were naturally not permitted in this prison. Even if this prisoner wanted to harm his elder brother through their shared perception, he could only do so by ramming the iron cage. If he did so, the guards would manipulate a mechanism and submerge the cage into the water.
It was a form of suffocating water torture. The buoyancy would make the prisoner stop ramming against the cage to avoid external injury, until the prisoner briefly lost consciousness, then the cage would be raised back up via the mechanism.
When Rahotep arrived here, he looked across the water and at the Red King within the iron cage.
Of course, he could not take Shamule’s life. The lives of the twin brothers were connected. He could only restrict Shamule’s movements through this method.
Shamule had just emerged from the water. His golden hair, now lacking its luster, clung to his face, like a lingering water ghost.
A dagger rotated in his hand, gleaming coldly.
Shamule sneered, “This is the soldier under your rule?”
Rahotep glanced at the guards standing watch. Both guards knelt down with pale faces, admitting their fault.
Shamule turned the tip of his dagger, pointing the sharp edge towards himself.
His frenzied eyes surged with a chilling red, “Don’t you dare attempt anything against my Ankh, you vile thief.”
Rahotep could not bear it anymore, “Shamule, have you gone mad?!”
His mask of magnanimity and calm shattered, as if one could hear the sound of the mask hitting the marble floor of the cell, breaking into pieces.
Shamule laughed mockingly, “Someone as boring, rigid and rule-bound as you, apart from this, do you have any skill at all that can bring happiness to my Ankh?”
