"Do you know me?" Zainah asked, goosebumps rising along her skin.
Having closed his eyes to meditate, Sett ignored her.
She observed him warily.
This mummy was strange. It had crawled out of the wall, could speak, was calling her family, and seemed to know things she didn't know. Its appearance had also caused that magical crimson light all over her body.
Sett's focus, on the other hand, was on his current circumstance.
My mind is hazy, he realized. Is it because I am a mummy?
Why am I a mummy to begin with?
His memories, important and unimportant ones, were also returning in random bursts. I should run it through and think about everything once.
He was Sett. Sett Ramses VII, the 7th Emperor, the Pharaoh of Ehyut.
After failing to achieve Godhood against those immense crimson eyes—the thought send a chill down his spine—he had reincarnated using his Axiom of Reincarnation. His most important family: mother, daughters, wives, and other loved ones, all followed him as well.
For all the coincidences in the world, he had also woken up right infront of Zainah.
Hm. This much makes sense.
But for some reason, instead of being reincarnated as a human being, he was now a mummy.
"What year is this?" he asked, cracking one broken eye open.
"...384 ATR," she replied. Damn, how ancient is this thing?
"Just that much?" he frowned.
370 years since I used my Axiom to reincarnate. That's too short a time for me to wake up, isn't it?
Sett looked at his own hand.
The senses of a mummy were grayscale and anything was barely visible. His senses focused more on the warmth of life and coldness of death. Even Zainah was just a bundle of warmth in his senses.
He clenched his hand into a fist.
He didn't know if this was his own body or another mummy, but if he had to guess, this was probably the same body he lived in the past. The body of Sett Ramses. The height was the same, after all. A bit more than two meters tall.
But years of decay had made him weak, the energy of the Tomb Hearts he had consumed had vanished. Not to mention, due to having no Territorial energy to awaken it, his Axiom couldn't even be sensed.
To increase the power of an Axiom, one needed to attain a higher social status and gain control over more territory. But without that, he was weak.
Now, he was weak in all the possible ways.
As weak as a normal man.
No, in some regards, he was even weaker.
A decayed mummy.
Sett closed his eyes.
Why am I a mummy? Did I gain a new Axiom? What happened to the Axiom of Reincarnation? Did it get destroyed in the process of my reincarnation? Where are my other loved ones? Why is my
For now, his head was not clear enough to answer such questions.
Sett opened his eyes, finding Zainah pacing in circles around him. If it were not so dark, he could have made out her entire figure, face, and eyes.
Truly, he did wish to see it.
Zainah…
"You do love that little girl," he said with a smile.
"Of course I do, she is my sister!" Zainah bristled in agitation. "How are you going to save her?"
"I am not going to save her, you are."
"...YOU!"
"Calm down," he said, rolling his mummy eyes. "I don't have much power other than that of an above-average mummy's physical force. That's barely better than a human male, in some cases weaker.
"If we wish to go and get your sister like that in those depths, it's probably well beyond impossible."
He could feel her blank stare on himself.
"But you are different," he reassured, "you have an Axiom, right? If we use it well, with my cooperation and your Axiom, we can move down pretty easily."
They would still have to worry about the Guardians—there were more than one of those, surely—in the depth but if they managed to get a Tomb Heart, Sett himself should be able to handle them from then on.
"Hahaha, what a great idea, I should use my power to go save her," Zainah said with a despondent laugh. "Just that I don't have an Axiom. I am no Royal!" Aptly, she also added: "Believe me, if I can't get Zarah back, I am ready to die trying to kill you."
Sett stood up, supporting himself against his knees.
Axioms were the power of the Ramses Family—Sett's family. Legend had it that his ancestors mated with gods to give birth to children with magical abilities.
Thus, if you were not royalty, you cannot have an Axiom.
"To say my great Zainah, the Playful Puppeteer, isn't royalty," Sett said, chuckling disdainfully as he looked right at her. "Amusing. Amusing indeed. If you are not royalty, no one is."
"Great Zainah, the Playful Pop Tear?"
"Yeah, Great Zainah the Playful Poop. Anyway, it should be about time."
To awaken his own Axiom, which might or might not be a different one in this life, he would need to inject some energy into his body from a Tomb Heart or a Territory. He didn't have such a source of energy at the moment, but the energy from the Crimson Flower Mark must have awoken Zainah's Axiom.
Zainah suddenly felt puzzles click in her body, nerves shift, and bones realign.
Something!
SOMETHING WAS RISING WITHIN HER!
She grimaced. Her veins lit up a color of red, her hair flew in the air, and finally, amidst the brilliant light, Sett could see her naked figure in its whole.
And at last, Sett saw her.
A naked, female-shaped light of warmth. She still looked so similar. Even though he couldn't exactly see the beauty of her face or the color of her hair, he could easily picture her with his memories.
Hair as black as coal, slightly curly around the edges. Fair olive skin that had been tanned under the sun, with gem-like green eyes sharing the same place with her stunning face.
An abundant, yet perky, figure in all the right places.
His gaze focused on one thing.
The same mole was still on her thigh, the same tiny scar on her waistline.
It was Zainah. His wife.
Though she was a tad bit younger than the last time he saw her as his lazy sloth.
Zainah is still Zainah physically—sigh, the mental part is the issue. He pondered. Her soul should also be the same but her memories have changed, she has lived a life as a blank slate for years now.
She already had another life going on.
It's alright, her memories should slowly return.
Anyway.
17? 18? How old is she now? She must be so damn cute to look at with all the senses.
Step! Step!
Mummies shuffled toward them from all sides due to the commotion she stirred up.
A hole yawned open in one of the floors, swallowing a group of mummies in one big gulp. In another, a wall split apart, spitting fire that torched the rest to ashes.
Yet, one path stayed clear, and the last mummies charged down it, fast.
That was a death sentence if they all attacked Zainah at once.
Their bites were poisonous, after all!
Sett stood there, cool as ever.
I can burn my bandages and flee with Zainah. He strategized. But that seems unnecessary.
An elegant bone flute appeared in Zainah's hands.
She turned, blinking at the approaching horrors. She hesitated—but then steeled herself. The flute touched her lips.
A melody, playful and whimsical, filled the tomb.
The mummies froze.
Then, they danced.
Axiom of Playfulness—Ability: Song of Playfulness.
"Huyya, Huyya, Huyy!" Sett danced too.
"What are you doing?" Zainah asked, baffled.
"Adding sound to their dance."
"...You—" She exhaled sharply. "Whatever. Where's my sister?"
"You…" she hesitated. "Whatever, come let's go. Where is she?"
"Deeper." He looked into the dark depths. "And from now on, we should be safe with your Song of Playfulness on our side. Normal mummies can't resist it."
"...What about you, can you resist it?"
"I mean, no mindless creatures can resist the effects of the Song of Playfulness but sadly, I have a mind."
They began running, and while at it, she asked, "Won't I grow exhausted if I use this… Axiom, too much?"
"Oh, it's just a Tier 1 attack, you can use it till your throat is dry. No magical cost of magical power and whatnot—it uses the power of the world itself. You can't understand, so just do what I say."
"Tier 1?" Zainah asked, not understanding what that meant.
Sett frowned, she didn't even know that?
In ranking of cultivated strength, Tier 1 to Tier 5, the 5th Tier was the limit of mortal men, and Tier 6 was the domain of gods. In his last life, by becoming the Pharaoh, Sett had also reached Tier 5 with his Axiom.
"I will explain it later," he said.
Zainah nodded. She wasn't blind. This mummy was strange. But she could smell it—he was also a wealth of information. Power. And opportunity. If not for Zarah's crisis, Zainah would already be celebrating.
Axioms belonged to royals. And yet, a filthy street thief like her now had one. Her mind was filled with information and thoughts about her own Axiom. Infusion of instinctive understanding, as if she had suddenly gained a new limb.
Axiom of Playfulness…!
Without Zarah, it's useless.
Her fingers tightened around the flute.
She inwardly couldn't help but shiver.
An advice she had given Zara echoed in her mind.
Zarah, a thief has to always keep her eyes open. Even when asleep.
Never trust anyone other than themselves.
Never.
I will keep a clear eye on the mummy, no one ever gives things without expecting something else in return.
There is no free lunch in this world.
She had never gotten any advantage in life without sacrificing something else in return. That had been the pattern of her life. Somewhere, deep down, she knew—the price for an Axiom would not be cheap.
Thus, more than excitement, she felt fear.