Sett raised both of his arms. "Wait!" he shouted.
Egrith ca to a halt.
Sett took a deep breath. "I don't think you should be concerned about right now. Your world is in danger."
Both the Pharaoh and Egrith frowned.
The Pharaoh, especially, beca incredibly concerned. After all—so many foreigners had appeared in their world. What was going to happen to his world? Were they destined to live and die in this small place?
Before this event, the Pharaoh had been determined to spend his life inside his palace, but now, the sa opulent palace as before looked like a cage.
Sett's arm swept toward the horizon, his finger pointing like an arrow. The palace stood stark against the sky, its silhouette jagged and imposing. The Pharaoh and Egrith turned, their faces hardening as they followed Sett's gesture. But as their eyes adjusted to the scene, their expressions shifted—first to confusion, then to dawning horror.
The city was bathed in an unnatural red glow, as if the sun had bled across the sky. Flas licked the edges of the palace, devouring its grandeur with a hunger that seed almost alive. The fire was hot enough to distort the air. It burned with a deep, crimson hue, swallowing stone and wood alike.
Sett looked at it with a deep gaze.
"Your world is ending," he said, his voice almost casual. "And here you are, wasting your breath on ."
The heat reached them even from afar, a searing wind that carried the scent of ash and ruin.
The Pharaoh imdiately stood up.
"What's going on?!"
"Sobody invaded the palace!" A bellowing shout ca from the palace—surely another strong Tomb Raider at Egrith's level. "He is strong. And there is more than one person!"
The Pharaoh took a step toward the palace, his instincts screaming at him to act. But then he hesitated, his gaze snapping back to Sett.
Sett raised his arms. "If I were you, I wouldn't ss with —not right now. After all, who knows what kind of abilities I have?" He smiled. A dangerous smile. "I might be a monster in disguise, you know?"
"Your world is ending," Sett replied, his tone flat, final. "That's all there is to it."
The words struck the Pharaoh like a physical blow. Deep down, he knew they were true. This had been coming for a long ti—a reckoning he had tried to ignore. But now, faced with the flas consuming his legacy, he felt the weight of his choices pressing down on him. Could he afford to waste ti on this stranger?
Was it even worth the risk?
But can he leave here without dealing with this man?
This man seed to know a lot about what was happening. The Pharaoh's gut told him that.
Could he even deal with this man so easily?
Was it even necessary to deal with this man?
Just over a minor argunt with his son?
The Empire's benefits ca before personal feelings.
Sett smirked. "Is your son's useless pride or the empire more important, shouldn't you be going to the palace? Your base is burning now, anwhile I will always be here. I have nowhere else to go, after all."
The Pharaoh's indecision hung in the air for a heartbeat longer. Then, with a sharp nod, he turned and sprinted toward the palace, his robes streaming behind him.
"Egrith, with !" he barked.
That made the Prince's heart fall to his stomach.
That was right.
He had been forgetting sothing.
What was he thinking, fighting an enemy he didn't know anything about?
Wasn't he courting death?
What if Sett had so powerful abilities?
Egrith looked at his palm.
Slowly, his face beca imnsely deep.
He had a terrifying realization.
A deep urge to kill himself appeared in his heart.
He had been having that urge since the mont he learned that he was a fake. And now, that urge had been making him fight such an enemy with abandon.
His princely teachings had taught him otherwise—always know what your enemy is capable of.
But he had ignored those.
Maybe half of that was his own confidence in himself.
But the other half…
So, that was it.
He had wanted to be killed by this unknown man.
Egrith's face paled, his breath coming in shallow gasps. He glanced at Zainah and Zarah, their faces unreadable, before his gaze settled on Sett. The man stood like a colossus, his shadow stretching long and dark under the dying sun, engulfing Egrith completely.
"You should go," Sett said, his voice calm but firm. "The fire won't wait."
Egrith's jaw clenched, his fists trembling at his sides. With a final, frustrated growl, he turned and leapt from the wall, his heart heavy with regret and sha.
Sett watched him go, his expression unreadable. Then, with effortless grace, he turned to Zainah and Zarah. Without a word, he pulled them into his arms, his grip firm but gentle. Zainah stiffened, her eyes wide, while Zarah smirked, her usual defiance shining through.
In one fluid motion, Sett stepped off the wall, the three of them falling through the air. Zainah's breath caught in her throat as the ground rushed up to et them. But the wall was tall, it would take so ti to reach the ground.
And.
At that mont, Zainah had the sa terrifying realization that she had had when Sett announced that he was going to fight Lord Burrhen.
At that point, she hadn't dared to voice it. But now, her thoughts ca unbidden.
Perhaps, Sett was never the one fighting against Lord Burrhen.
Perhaps.
Lord Burrhen was the one fighting against him.
And if that were the case.
This Pharaoh—he is the sa.
All of them Sett's elaborate chess pieces.
Toys swinging on a thread.
As they floated down through the air, she leaned up and pecked him on the lips.
He never let a kiss end with a peck.
She was overwheld by his passion while midair.
But when they landed, he did so elegantly. He landed on the ground, listone cracking under his foot. But the girls were unhard.
He let Zainah climb down and finally, the big sister had to confront her little sister. Zarah's conspiratory smile was anything but elegant.
Sett and the little girl high fived each other.
Then, Sett walked forward. "Let's go."
They quickly followed him.
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