Chương 34: Chapter 33

Adam kept his eyes shut as they traveled through the desert, focusing entirely on recovering every scrap of mana he could. The journey seemed to stretch on endlessly beneath the freezing moonlight. Eventually, however, he felt their pace slowing and was forced to open his eyes. Their destination was near. Glancing around as far as his bindings allowed, he immediately realized they were in far deeper trouble than he'd imagined. They had arrived at the base of the mountain-sized pyramid.

An even larger Army of the Dead wandered the surrounding sands. The army they had fought before had been composed of level 65 undead led by a level 70 mummy general. This one was entirely different. The soldiers patrolling the pyramid's base ranged from level 75 to 80, every single one an elite. At their head stood a level 90 named boss. Bakari, Undead Commander (BOSS) - Lv. 90 Bakari was also a mummy, but unlike the others, he looked almost human.

Thin strips of cloth wrapped his emaciated frame, while patches of gray skin remained visible beneath the bindings. His sunken face held an unsettling intelligence that the lesser undead lacked. The mummy general spoke to him in a language Adam couldn't understand before handing over control of their bindings. Bakari accepted the transfer without ceremony and guided them toward the pyramid itself. The structure was protected by colossal stone constructs.

Adam immediately recognized them as the sand golems Granessa had warned them about near the oasis. Most were around level 80 and possessed humanoid bodies topped with the heads of various beasts. The creatures guarding the entrance, however, were something else entirely. On either side of the massive gateway crouched two enormous beasts with the bodies of lions and human faces. Unlike the one Adam knew from Earth, these versions actually had noses. Sphinx (BOSS) - Lv.

90 The towering creatures were each the size of small mountains. Their sheer scale made the pyramid behind them seem even larger and more imposing. Adam stared upward, trying and failing to comprehend just how massive the structure truly was.

"How the hell are we supposed to escape this?" he muttered under his breath. Even at full strength they would have struggled against a single sphinx. Now? They were exhausted, wounded, and bound. Even if they somehow escaped Bakari, there were tens of thousands of high-level undead between them and freedom. Maybe if Mei woke up and summoned Skysandra again... But even then, Adam wasn't sure the roc queen could fight her way through an army like this. There were just too many.

"Ugh..." As they passed beneath the shadow of one of the giant sphinxes, Mei finally stirred within her bindings. She blinked several times, her expression groggy and unfocused as she looked around.

"Where...?" she mumbled.

"Mei, wake up! Quick!" Adam called. Right now, she and the feather hidden inside her inventory were their only hope.

"Huh...? What? Why?" Her eyes widened as she finally noticed the layers of mummy cloth wrapped tightly around her body.

"What the heck?! Is this bondage? Which freaky bastard did this to me, Adam?!" Adam sighed. Normally he would've pinched the bridge of his nose. Unfortunately, his hands were currently unavailable.

"Call Skysandra. Hurry." Bakari glanced back at them with a lazy expression, seemingly unconcerned by their conversation. Clearly, he wasn't worried about them escaping.

"Sure, sure," Mei said. She concentrated. A few moments later, panic spread across her already pale face.

"I... I can't access my inventory!"

"What? Why?" Adam could still access his own inventory without issue. So what was different about hers?

"It's the side effects of magic fatigue," Granessa explained.

"Normally, when someone uses too much mana at once, they suffer from magic drain. In severe cases, they can even die." She shifted slightly within her bindings before continuing.

"Magic fatigue is much rarer. It's what happens when someone channels far more mana than their body can safely handle, but survives because the mana itself comes from an outside source. Their body begins breaking down under the strain and refuses to process magical energy for days, weeks, or even a month depending on the severity." She looked at Mei.

"That includes opening system menus." Mei's face went white. The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"Eh?! I've been crippled?!"

"Essentially." Bakari glanced over his shoulder once more. This time, genuine interest shone in his hollow eyes.

"Interesting. No wonder the pharaoh ordered all three of you captured." His gaze lingered on Mei.

"Magic fatigue is no ordinary affliction. To experience it suggests either extraordinary magical talent or possession of an incredibly rare treasure." His toothless mouth stretched into a wide grin.

"Perhaps both." A dry chuckle escaped him.

"You three will make a wonderful addition to my troops once the pharaoh is finished with you." His grin widened further.

"I'll personally commission the finest funeral bindings for each of you." Bakari's dry mouth cracked at the edges as his grin continued to widen impossibly.

"I'll even disembowel you three myself." None of them responded. The true despair of their situation was finally beginning to settle in. Without Mei's ability to access her inventory and summon Skysandra, they had no way out. Only death. And afterward, an eternity spent as mummified servants in the pharaoh's army. As those gloomy thoughts swirled through their minds, they were dragged deeper into the pyramid. They passed through vast hallways lined with gold and precious jewels.

Ancient murals covered the walls, depicting many things, such as kings, curses, and armies of the dead marching beneath the desert sun and kneeling before a crowned ruler. Massive pillars carved with hieroglyphics supported ceilings so high they vanished into shadow. The deeper they went, the more oppressive the atmosphere became. They climbed impossibly long flights of stairs that seemed to ascend forever.

By the time they finally reached their destination, Adam had completely lost track of how high they had traveled. The summit of the pyramid had been hollowed out into an open-air throne room. Three sides stood completely exposed to the desert sky, allowing warm winds to sweep through the chamber. In the center rested the oasis they had seen from afar, its crystal-clear waters surrounded by large palm trees and flowering plants that seemed impossibly vibrant amidst the barren wasteland.

Beyond the oasis stood a curved wall of carved gold that reflected the sunlight like a second sun. Built directly into that wall was an enormous throne. Upon it sat a figure Adam hadn't expected. A small girl. She appeared no older than ten. A blue-and-gold pharaoh's headdress rested atop her head, while a luxurious golden silk gown draped over her body. The garment was clearly designed for an adult and pooled around her tiny frame in excessive folds. At first glance, she looked almost harmless.

The illusion vanished the moment Adam looked closer. Her skin carried the same sickly gray hue as Bakari's. Her limbs were unnaturally thin, and her body appeared malnourished and emaciated. She was undead. Just like every other inhabitant of this cursed desert. Yet unlike the mindless corpses roaming below, unmistakable intelligence shone within her single black left eye. Where her right eye should have been sat a golden artifact crafted in the shape of the Eye of Ra.

Hatshepsut, Ruler of the Desert (Elite BOSS) - Lv. 95 Adam immediately felt his stomach tighten. The pressure radiating from her tiny body was on par with the Lord of Flesh. Possibly stronger. Bakari immediately dropped to both knees and bowed his head.

"Great Pharaoh Hatshepsut, the trespassers are here." He tugged on their bindings and forced the three of them forward. The little pharaoh remained silent. Her lone eye slowly swept across the prisoners. Adam. Mei. Then Granessa. The gaze lingered on the orc woman for several moments. Bakari reached into his inventory and withdrew the enormous blood orb he had received from the mummy general. The sphere was nearly the size of a small pool and churned with crimson liquid beneath its surface.

Holding it with both hands, he presented it to his ruler. With a casual flick of her wrist, the blood orb floated across the chamber and came to rest before her throne. Hatshepsut inhaled deeply. The blood within the sphere visibly diminished. As she breathed the blood in, faint color returned to her cheeks and her gray skin took on a slightly healthier appearance.

"Ah~" Her eyelid drooped in satisfaction.

"The purest virgin blood. Good." The voice that emerged from her mouth made Adam's skin crawl. It was deep, husky, and breathless. Every word carried a subtle seductive quality that had absolutely no business coming from the body of a child. The disconnect between appearance and voice was so severe that Adam felt a shiver of revulsion crawl down his spine. With another flick of her wrist, the blood orb shot across the chamber and plunged into the oasis. The crystal-clear water instantly turned a bloody crimson.

Within moments the entire oasis had transformed into a lake of blood. The liquid thickened visibly, becoming dark and viscous as the metallic scent of iron filled the throne room. Hatshepsut watched the transformation with quiet satisfaction. Then she pointed toward Granessa.

"Bleed her dry." The little pharaoh's expression never changed.

"I need more."