Sextus woke up first, got up and went to Sexta to shake her and wake her up.
?Sexta, SEXTA, WAKE UP, SEXTAAA!?
?Five more minutes, school starts late today, Mom.? Sextus decided to play a trick on Sexta, moved away from her and then said imitating his mother's voice:
?Today we're having pancakes for breakfast, if you hurry up and wake up.?
?I'm coming!?
Sexta stretched and realized she had been tricked by Sextus, but this time she decided not to get angry because she was too tired to argue with him.
?S-Sexta, why does your right eye now have a black moon instead of the pupil??
?A-ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! I LOOK LIKE A LOSER!?
?Actually, I have to say that the white moon and black moon instead of pupils looks good on you, but I'll keep that to myself.?
?Now that I think about it, what happened to that spirit gem??
?It's right here in my hand, can't you see??
The two noticed that Sexta's gem had turned a clear white and that the symbol that appeared on the gem was a black moon.
?WHAT THE!? SEXTUS, ARE YOU SEEING WHAT I'M SEEING?!?
?Yes, but honestly the clues that have been left up to this point had already made me understand this. Honestly, I'm not even that surprised anymore.?
?YOU'RE AN IDIOT!?
Sexta pouted and turned away.
?But…?
?But what, Sextus??
?But it would be interesting to find out what powers you have now that we've discovered this thing.?
Sexta got up and turned to Sextus, but in doing so she noticed that…
?S-S-S-S-SEXTUS, WHY ARE THOTH AND EVERYONE ELSE STILL HERE?!??
Sextus was paralyzed with fear, he didn't know what to do but decided that for once in his life he too would have to show a little courage, he closed his eyes, turned around very slowly, when he reopened them he saw that there was absolutely nothing and so he turned sharply towards Sexta.
?Know that SOME JOKES, ARE NOT AT ALL FUNN…?
Sextus could clearly see that Sexta was terrified by what she was seeing, and yet even if he turned around several times he continued to see nothing, but suddenly an hypothesis came out of Sextus's mouth.
?I understand, Sexta, now calm down for a moment, look at me and ignore what is behind me.?
?Y-YOU'RE MAKING IT SOUND EASY, BUT I KNOW YOU'RE KIDDING ME AND YOU SEE THEM TOO!?
?Alright Sexta, take a deep breath.?
Sextus, gesturing, tried to help Sexta who somehow calmed down by taking deep breaths as Sextus had said.
?Now, confirm to me that you see Seth and the others but less clearly than before, they seem more...transparent, right??
?E-exactly, but how do you know??
?Now you have to confirm one last thing, is there any difference between them and the Chikafuji twins' parents??
?WHY SHOULD I CARE ABOUT THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THEM RIGHT NOW?!?
?Trust me, try to remember if there are any differences.? ?Y-yes, there are differences, they don't seem to be able to see me now that you make me notice and it seems to me that they are surrounded by a thin black aura, while that of the Chikafuji twins' parents is white.?
?Exactly as I thought, the moons that are in place of your pupils show you what others cannot see.?
?What do you mean??
?Haven't you figured it out yet? Fine, I'll explain it to you, the white moon allows you to see the spirits coming from the celestial realm who seem to have a decidedly easy and stable access to the land of Nada, that is, the realm of living beings. The same cannot be said for the inhabitants of the scarlet realm who apparently are very, very limited in interacting with the physical world, fortunately. And you see the latter with the black moon, that's why there's that difference in aura, as you say, between the Chikafuji parents and Seth with his gang of monsters.?
?Aaaa, now it's all clear! Thank you so much, Sextus.?
Sexta for the first time gave Sextus a smile and he was totally bewildered, he didn't know how to behave, he had blushed completely, he began to look down with his hand behind his head and replied:
?No-no problem.?
The two left the room, and Sexta, after learning what Sextus had told her, tried not to notice the immense presence of ghosts from both realms that were there while going towards the stairs to go down and thank Karim for his hospitality. The two arrived at the main hall and saw that Karim was busy creating some strange drink, he was sitting at a table completely alone on which there were various bottles and vials to create who knows what concoction. While the two approached to see better, Karim noticed their presence and turned around.
?Hello, welcome back, have you rested enough yet??
?Yes, thank you very much, although I don't think we can say that we really rested, hehehe.?
Karim was perplexed by those words, but preferred not to ask anything, he thought that the two had done something indecent.
?Aaah, I understand, Sextus, you did some sports, huh??
Karim was nudging Sextus while saying this, to make him understand that he had figured out that they had done that thing.
?Well, you could say so, actually, it was a good run.?
Karim was imagining a very alternative horse race for some reason…
?Anyway, would you like to try some of my special drinks??
?Drinks…special??
?Yes, take for example this Fragum de glacies juice.?
Karim took two glasses and poured a bluish liquid into them.
?Please, try it.?
Sextus and Sexta wanted to trust him, took a glass each and began to drink that liquid, but spat it out immediately after feeling a strong smell of alcohol.
?Are you crazy! Look that Sextus and I are still minors, we can't drink alcohol, huh!?
?If you put it that way, I can't drink alcohol either because of my religion.?
?Excuse me, then how do you explain this??
?Well, it took me many years, but I discovered how to create drinks similar to juices that have the taste of alcohol while being non-alcoholic. Imagine that they also have the same effect, in fact you can even get drunk!! Isn't it fantastic??
?Absolutely not! Could you give us something good to drink to get this awful taste out of our mouths??
?Mmh, let me think…of course!?
Karim took two of the bottles and poured their contents into both glasses. The mix of those two drinks had created a liquid that was lemon yellow with light green shades. ?I'm sure you won't be disappointed, I've called this delicacy lemonade!?
?Don't even try, this isn't even remotely lemonade, you can see from a mile away that you mixed two of those fake alcoholic drinks of yours.?
?What are you talking about? They have the same color, and not only do they have the same color…?
Karim used hekau to generate a small flame on the tip of his index finger and brought it close to the glasses.
?You can even set it on fire!?
?If it catches fire, it means it's all alcohol!?
?Alright, then do you want some water??
Karim took another 2 glasses and poured a liquid as transparent as water into both.
?Karim, could you kindly recreate that flame and put your index finger near the two glasses??
?Certainly.?
Karim did what he had done before and the contents of the glasses caught fire.
?How come this one catches fire too??
?What do you want me to say, it must be flammable. What are you worried about, they have the same color!?
?YOU DIFFERENTIATE THE DRINKS ONLY BY THEIR DAMN COLOR!??
Sextus decided not to waste any more time with that weirdo and so.
?Let's go, Sexta, the Chikafuji are waiting for us.?
?Yes!?
Sexta and Sextus thanked Karim for everything and left, heading towards the Chikafuji workshop.
?That Karim is really a strange guy, isn't he Sextus?? ?He certainly has a very particular character, but that doesn't mean we should talk behind his back, it's rude!? ?Ugh, how boring you are when you do that!?
?It's called respecting your neighbor, if you think it's boring you're evidently a very rude person who can't respect the most basic rules of living in society.?
Sextus turned to Sexta and saw that she was starting to get angry, so he decided to end the conversation there. Sexta and Sextus stopped talking to each other but arrived almost immediately in front of the Chikafuji workshop, went up the steps and knocked on the door. Reiko opened the door as soon as she heard those knocks and welcomed them. ?Please, please, come in without making too much fuss. So, how did it go at Karim's? I hope you had a good time at his place.? Renjiro and Reiko were giggling while awaiting an answer and so Sexta got angry.
?So you guys were aware that his dishes are absolutely inedible, huh!??
Reiko calmed down for a moment and replied:
?It could be…but you have to admit it's too funny!?
Everyone burst out laughing together, even Sextus and Sexta when they thought back to the other's faces while ingesting those super spicy foods. After everyone calmed down, Renjiro resumed the initial conversation.
?Anyway, are you both ready to learn how the Ankhan work??
?Yes, I'm definitely ready!?
?I don't understand the reason for all of Sexta's emphasis but I'm ready too.?
Sextus was literally trembling with joy at the thought that he could finally use special powers like the ones he has always seen in anime and manga.
?It seems to me that you're the one who's definitely more excited between the two of you, hahaha. Anyway, let's start with the basics, let's see if among our spirit gems there's one that will choose you.? Renjiro, with Reiko's help, took quite a few spirit gems and put them on the ground.
?Let's start with Sextus, sit down in front of the stones and then put both your open hands in front of them.?
One of the gems suddenly rose into the air and went onto Sextus's right hand turning violet and the symbol of a white scale appeared on it.
?Good, it seems you have been chosen, Sexta now it's your turn, come closer.?
Sextus got up with his gem in hand and made room for Sexta, who put herself in the same position as Sextus with her hands open in front of the gems, but after a few minutes nothing happened.
?It seems your gem isn't among them, I'm sorry but we'll have to figure out where it is.?
Sexta, morally defeated, was about to get up when two gems placed themselves on both of Sexta's hands, the gem on her right hand turned white and the symbol of a black moon appeared on it, while the gem on her left hand turned black and the symbol of a white moon appeared on it. Everyone in that room was completely shocked, they didn't know what to say, until Renjiro began to speak.
?This is indeed something new, not only is your Ankhom Thoth, the legendary ancient spirit that is only spoken of in books, no one thought he really existed since he has never manifested himself, but also you have two spirit gems that were destined to be yours, a truly rare thing! The only other two people I know to possess more than one spirit gem destined for them are the old man Asahi and my father. But from what I know there is no one to have spirit gems with different shades.?
Sexta was very happy, she didn't know what to say and so she wanted to ask a question.
?But are the Ankhom and the Ankhan used to face monsters or magical creatures that we might encounter in this world??
?No.?
?Then are they used to defeat the demon king with his army by any chance??
?What is supposed to be a demon king??
?Never mind, it would be long to explain Renjiro, could you just answer me directly??
?Certainly…? To put it simply, the powers of the Ankhom and the Ankhan are used in everyday life in the most varied ways, but in general we don't use them to fight against other living beings because there is no reason to do so, although some use them to harm others.?
?I see, what a pity, I would have liked to be able to kill some monsters like in video games.?
?Video games? Monster? What are you talking about Sexta??
?Emh…?
?You can tell them Sexta, they seem like people we can trust.?
Renjiro and Reiko were increasingly curious to know what Sexta and Sextus were keeping secret.
?Well, you should know that Sextus and I come from another world.?
Both Renjiro and Reiko shouted the same exclamation in unison:
?EEEH!??
Reiko and Renjiro stepped aside for a moment to discuss quietly among themselves.
?But such a thing is not possible, is it Renjiro?? ?Well, come to think of it, Reiko, this explains why Sexta has Thoth as her Ankhom and two different shades of gems, with two destined gems. It also explains why Asahi, knowing that they would come here that day, asked us to explain to them how the Ankhan and the Ankhom work. And if you notice, they don't know anything about this topic.? Sexta interjected between the two and with a somewhat hysterical face said:
?We're still here, you know!?
?You're right, I apologize also on behalf of my sister for our rudeness, it's just that it's difficult to believe such a thing right away, you understand us right??
?Renjiro is right, Sexta. Think if two strangers, never seen in your city, suddenly declared that they came from another world. Would you believe them??
?Actually…?
?But we have decided to believe you. We have carefully analyzed what has happened so far and everything begins to have an explanation, taking into account what you have stated. Do you want to continue with the explanations?? ?Certainly!?
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?Absolutely yes!?
?Good, first of all choose what type of Ankhan you would like to set your spirit gems in.?
Sexta and Sextus thought about it for a while and Sexta replied first:
?I want two rings as Ankhan.?
?Are you sure of your choice??
?Yes, I want to put one on each hand, my instinct tells me to do so.?
?And if your instinct is what led you to this decision, then we are really in safe hands, Sexta.?
Sexta looked at Sextus with a murderous gaze, and he immediately turned away. After the waters calmed, Sextus expressed what he desired as Ankhan.
?As for me, I would like an anklet as Ankhan.?
?May I ask why this choice? It's quite unusual for someone to choose an anklet as Ankhan.?
?You should know that, in the world we come from, there are stories drawn on paper books. In these books, you can see the characters talking. My favorite character, the protagonist of a very beautiful story, uses kicks to fight. For this reason, I would like to resemble him a bit.? ?I see, that seems like an excellent choice!?
?I will forge them for you as thanks for allowing me to speak even indirectly with our parents.?
And so, while Renjiro headed to the back room to work, Sextus, Sexta and Reiko were happily chatting about all the curiosities they had about the land of Nada and those that Reiko had about their land until a question came from Sexta.
?One thing we've noticed is that there are no beds in this world, do you happen to know why??
Reiko had fallen silent and had become completely red in the face, Renjiro had just finished his work and was coming out of the back room and decided to answer the question in place of his sister.
?You should know that in this world beds are magical objects capable of shrinking so as to be carried anywhere and…?
Renjiro was becoming slightly red in the face.
?And what Renjiro? Now I'm curious.?
?And they are used to have long conversations with the person you are in love with while under the covers, I hope you understand what I mean.?
Sextus understood then that the bed was not present in Karim's inn for this reason and also understood what Karim meant by race, and began to blush, and in the meantime Sexta comes out of nowhere with:
?Aaaaa, that's why there was all that space between the two benches in Karim's place.?
Sextus to avoid any kind of misunderstanding said immediately after:
?You should know that in our world beds are generally used for sleeping, although from what I understand in this world you never sleep since there is no night, nor do you have the problem of fatigue.?
?Actually, we also get tired, but we simply relax for a moment doing something like reading or playing and after a while we feel completely rested.?
?How convenient it would be if it were like that in our world too. I wonder how many video games I could finish and how many anime I could watch…?
Sexta and Sextus thought.
?Changing the subject Renjiro, can I ask you a question??
?Ask me Sextus.?
?Have you and Reiko ever done the spirit gem test??
Renjiro began to think to try to remember.
?Now that you mention it I don't think I've ever done it.?
Renjiro and Reiko tried to do the spirit gem test and what happened is that in Reiko's right hand her mother's Ankhon with its spirit gem settled while in Renjiro's hands the father's two earrings with the respective gems which coincidentally had ended up among the other gems, or at least that's what happened for everyone, Sexta clearly saw Reiko's mother and father who had hidden those Ankhan among the spirit gems after their children had finally found them, they placed on them the spirit gems that were previously missing and then took their Ankhan simulating a flight to bring them into their hands, and it was while I was seeing that whole scene that they explained to me that when a possessor of a spirit gem dies, they can decide who to inherit it from and that's where the name spirit gem comes from only no one knows it, in fact there are no truly predetermined spirit gems, and at this point you will ask yourselves, how come when it happened with me and Sextus I didn't see anything? Simple! In reality I clearly saw figures offering the spirit gems only I didn't see their faces because I felt that I shouldn't, going back to the story, everyone in the room was completely shocked by what they had seen, they couldn't believe it, even Sexta was shocked but because she had seen everything that was behind that event and so everyone wore their Ankhan with the spirit gems set in them, Reiko put the ring on the index finger of her left hand, Renjiro put both earrings in both ears, Sextus put the anklet on his right leg and finally Sexta put a ring on the middle finger of her right hand and on the middle finger of her left hand.
?Well, now I would say that we are ready to start teaching you how the Ankhan work, you have to enter your inner world and speak directly with your Ankhom to know how your power works, how you can use it and what limits it has. At this point you will ask yourselves what all those names of Ancient, Major and Minor Ankhom are for, huh? Very simply, those names are only a part of their power. This means that part of your Ankhom's name will be, for example, Thoth for Sexta and Maat for Sextus, but it's up to you to find the complete name of your Ankhom. Until you succeed, you cannot use its powers. This derives from the fact that all the Ankhom are the descendants of the Ancient Spirits who created Nada.?
?So we have to meditate in practice to reach our Ankhom, correct??
?Exactly Sextus, this is the first part of the lesson on how to use the Ankhan and the Ankhom. Until you manage to pass this part, we won't move on. Before you ask, as you may have understood, the voice I heard during the disaster I told you about is my Ankhom. Only at that time I didn't know it yet, so I can already use my powers, while my sister Reiko's Ankhom is called Mitsuri Isis. Having said that, I would say we can stop wasting time with chatter. Start with the meditation!?
Sexta and Sextus began to try to meditate finding a relaxed position, but Sexta couldn't do it in any way because it's too difficult for her to stay still without doing anything. Sextus instead began to be surrounded by a violet aura and when he opened his eyes and realized that he had just entered his inner world, it was full of nature with the most varied colors, orange grass, trees made of black trunks and violet leaves, non-existent animals like rabbits with horns, whales that are floating in the air. It's truly a sensational place.
?Hello Sextus, welcome to your inner world.?
A young maiden greeted Sextus from behind him, he turned and saw her, she was simply beautiful, he was speechless at such a sight.
?Let me introduce myself, I am your Ankhom. My name is Sahara Maat.?
?If it's true that you are my Ankhom, how come you told me your name immediately without first subjecting me to some particular test to make you say it??
? Full Name
??????????????????????
Sahara Maat
? Age
??????????????????????
Unknown
? Height
??????????????????????
179cm
? Hair
??????????????????????
Green
? Eyes
??????????????????????
Green
? Ankhom
??????????????????????
Unknown
? Description
??????????????????????
In appearance she is a young maiden with green hair, she
has a white dress with many green leaves on top that start
approximately from the waist and then go down to the end
of the dress creating a subspecies of skirt made of leaves on
top of the dress, she has splendid green eyes like emeralds,
her skin tends towards green, she almost looks like a dryad.
Sexta looked at Sextus with a murderous gaze, and he immediately turned away. After the waters calmed, Sextus expressed what he desired as Ankhan.
?As for me, I would like an anklet as Ankhan.?
?May I ask why this choice? It's rather unusual for someone to choose an anklet as Ankhan.?
?You should know that, in the world we come from, there are stories drawn on paper books. In these books, you can see the characters talking. My favorite character, the protagonist of a very beautiful story, uses kicks to fight. For this reason, I would like to resemble him a bit.? ?I see, that seems like an excellent choice!?
?I will forge them for you as thanks for allowing me to speak even indirectly with our parents.?
And so, while Renjiro headed to the back room to work, Sextus, Sexta and Reiko were happily chatting about all the curiosities they had about the land of Nada and those that Reiko had about their land until a question came from Sexta.
?One thing we've noticed is that there are no beds in this world, do you happen to know why??
Reiko had fallen silent and had become completely red in the face, Renjiro had just finished his work and was coming out of the back room and decided to answer the question in place of his sister.
?You should know that in this world beds are magical objects capable of shrinking so as to be carried anywhere and…?
Renjiro was becoming slightly red in the face.
?And what Renjiro? Now I'm curious.?
?And they are used to have long conversations with the person you are in love with while under the covers, I hope you understand what I mean.?
Sextus understood then that the bed was not present in Karim's inn for this reason and also understood what Karim meant by race, and began to blush, and in the meantime Sexta comes out of nowhere with:
?Aaaaa, that's why there was all that space between the two benches in Karim's place.?
Sextus to avoid any kind of misunderstanding said immediately after:
?You should know that in our world beds are generally used for sleeping, although from what I understand in this world you never sleep since there is no night, nor do you have the problem of fatigue.?
?Actually, we also get tired, but we simply relax for a moment doing something like reading or playing and after a while we feel completely rested.?
?How convenient it would be if it were like that in our world too, I wonder how many video games I could finish and how many anime I could watch…?
Sexta and Sextus thought.
?Changing the subject Renjiro, can I ask you a question??
?Ask me Sextus.?
?Have you and Reiko ever done the spirit gem test??
Renjiro began to think to try to remember.
?Now that you mention it I don't think I've ever done it.? Renjiro and Reiko tried to do the spirit gem test and what happened is that in Reiko's right hand her mother's Ankhon with its spirit gem settled while in Renjiro's hands the father's two earrings with the respective gems which coincidentally had ended up among the other gems, or at least that's what happened for everyone, Sexta clearly saw Reiko's mother and father who had hidden those Ankhan among the spirit gems after their children had finally found them, they placed on them the spirit gems that were previously missing and then took their Ankhan simulating a flight to bring them into their hands, and it was while I was seeing that whole scene that they explained to me that when a possessor of a spirit gem dies, they can decide who to inherit it from and that's where the name spirit gem comes from only no one knows it, in fact there are no truly predetermined spirit gems, and at this point you will ask yourselves, how come when it happened with me and Sextus I didn't see anything? Simple! In reality I clearly saw figures offering the spirit gems only I didn't see their faces because I felt that I shouldn't, going back to the story, everyone in the room was completely shocked by what they had seen, they couldn't believe it, even Sexta was shocked but because she had seen everything that was behind that event and so everyone wore their Ankhan with the spirit gems set in them, Reiko put the ring on the index finger of her left hand, Renjiro put both earrings in both ears, Sextus put the anklet on his right leg and finally Sexta put a ring on the middle finger of her right hand and on the middle finger of her left hand.
?Well, now I would say that we are ready to start teaching you how the Ankhan work, you have to enter your inner world and speak directly with your Ankhom to know how your power works, how you can use it and what limits it has. At this point you will ask yourselves what all those names of Ancient, Major and Minor Ankhom are for, huh? Very simply, those names are only a part of their power. This means that part of your Ankhom's name will be, for example, Thoth for Sexta and Maat for Sextus, but it's up to you to find the complete name of your Ankhom. Until you succeed, you cannot use its powers. This derives from the fact that all the Ankhom are the descendants of the Ancient Spirits who created Nada.?
?So we have to meditate in practice to reach our Ankhom, correct??
?Exactly Sextus, this is the first part of the lesson on how to use the Ankhan and the Ankhom. Until you manage to pass this part, we won't move on. Before you ask, as you may have understood, the voice I heard during the disaster I told you about is my Ankhom. Only at that time I didn't know it yet, so I can already use my powers, while my sister Reiko's Ankhom is called Mitsuri Isis. Having said that, I would say we can stop wasting time with chatter. Start with the meditation!?
Sexta and Sextus began to try to meditate finding a relaxed position, but Sexta couldn't do it in any way because it's too difficult for her to stay still without doing anything. Sextus instead began to be surrounded by a violet aura and when he opened his eyes and realized that he had just entered his inner world, it was full of nature with the most varied colors, orange grass, trees made of black trunks and violet leaves, non-existent animals like rabbits with horns, whales that are floating in the air. It's truly a sensational place.
?Hello Sextus, welcome to your inner world.?
A young maiden greeted Sextus from behind him, he turned and saw her, she was simply beautiful, he was speechless at such a sight.
?Let me introduce myself, I am your Ankhom. My name is Sahara Maat.?
?If it's true that you are my Ankhom, how come you told me your name immediately without first subjecting me to some particular test to make you say it??
The elements of the Minor/Inferior Ankhom are:
Ifrit: its element is fire.
Nek: its element is water.
Golem: its element is earth.
Zephyr: its element is wind.
The elements of the Major/Superior Ankhom are:
Helios: its element is space.
Yukise: its element is ice.
Seth: its element is darkness.
Osiris: its element is light.
While the Ancient Ankhom possess something more powerful than elements and for this reason it would be limiting to call it that way, for this reason they are defined as powers and they are respectively:
Thoth: its power is still unknown.
Ra: its power is the sun.
Maat: its power is to control the quantity, state and form of living and non-living matter.
Isis: its power is to be able to heal any wound or disease.
Horus: its power is tornadoes, hurricanes and any devastating form of wind that exists.
Amun: its power allows to govern light and shadows/darkness.
Hathor: its power is the control of water in all its forms and dimensions.
Bastet: its power is to erect barriers of any type, from defensive to healing to offensive ones.
Anubis: its power is death and decay.
?What frightening powers the Ancient Ankhom have. Are you sure they are that powerful??
?Certainly, Sextus. Precisely for this reason, however, it is not possible to use them against other living beings. The primordial Ancient Ankhom impose a seal on the powers of their descendants that prevents their use when trying to use powers with the intent of wanting to use them against other living beings to do harm.? ?I see, they are truly geniuses.?
?Well, now as a first thing we have to understand how many and which Inferior Ankhom you can use. Both of you try to imagine creating a sphere of water, a fireball, a stone and a sphere of wind.?
Sexta and Sextus tried all of them, even though it took them a while, since they weren't exactly that good. In the end, after many attempts, both managed to create, albeit very roughly, all 4 things that Renjiro asked for.
?You haven't made great creations, but at least now we know that you can use all the elements of the Inferior Ankhom. Now it's time to move on to the Superior ones. You have to imagine creating light, hiding the light with darkness, creating something made of ice or freezing an object you are holding in your hand and, finally, you will have to imagine raising a powerful wind in this room.?
Sexta and Sextus tried the first two elements and both, albeit roughly, created a sphere of light and managed to slightly turn off the lights in the room with darkness. Sexta tried to create an ice heart, the attempt didn't go very well, however, while Sextus took a book from the shelves and partially froze it. Finally, both managed to raise a wind strong enough to move the objects in the room, but without managing to make them fall.
?Well, I must say that you surprise me every second that passes. You possess Ancient Ankhom which in itself is rare, but in addition you manage to control the elements of all the Superior and Inferior Ankhom. With a good deal of training, you will surely be able to control them in the best possible way and make good use of them.?
Suddenly, Renjiro and Reiko looked at each other and both nodded, as if they were communicating something. Reiko used the element of darkness to remove all the light around Sexta and Sextus, making them invisible to the eye. ?Stay still and don't make any kind of noise. Renjiro and I will explain everything to you later, for now get inside that closet.?
Sexta and Sextus, although not understanding what was happening, followed Reiko's orders and did what she said. As soon as they entered the closet and closed the two doors, they heard someone knocking very powerfully on the door and a shrill voice coming from outside shouted:
?Chikafuji twins, we know that you are hiding the stranger with the black spirit gem and his companion. If you don't want to have any consequences, hand over both of them immediately without resistance!?
Renjiro opened the door and found three guards waiting outside.
?Come in and tell us about this story, we don't know anything about it.?
?Who do you think you're kidding? We know very well that you know who we're talking about!?
?If you don't believe us, then please, you can check the workshop from top to bottom without any problems.?
The guards began to ransack the entire workshop and also the back room, without finding anything. Only one closet remained to be opened, but even opening it they couldn't find anything.
?We apologize for the disturbance, evidently we were given false information.?
?You don't have to worry, you were just doing your job. So, could you tell me the story of this stranger??
?From what we have heard from the inhabitants not long ago, some strangers arrived and one of the two seems to possess the black spirit gem, that of that nefarious legend.?
Renjiro pretended to be worried.
?But that's terrible! Who knows what atrocities and destruction that person could bring!?
?Anyway, we will now continue to look for them. They are a girl with long red hair and a boy with short blue hair. If you see them, notify us immediately, please!?
?We will definitely do so!?
The guards left the workshop and continued their search. As soon as the door was closed, making sure they had really left, Reiko let Sexta and Sextus out of the closet and, when she released the spell, both were red in the face like peppers. Reiko and Renjiro were dying with laughter, but no matter how much they asked what had happened, Sexta and Sextus didn't want to say anything. After everyone calmed down, Renjiro told them about one of the biggest problems in Nada. ?As you may have gathered from all this scene that just happened, Nada is not exactly a peaceful place. The pharaoh, the one who reigns over this land, Obai Sekhmet, since all that mess with the spirits that invaded the world of the living happened, has started to behave strangely. He has become much more protective of the people, he controls every single thing that happens in all of Nada, and he keeps close surveillance on anyone who enters and leaves the royal pyramid. Every now and then his advisor Kivohn comes here to collect a tax that we have to pay to be able to continue living in this city and not only here in Egyxo, all the inhabitants of the various cities of Nada are forced to do so.?
?What does this tax consist of??
?It consists of paying 80% of your assets.?
?And what happens if you don't pay this tax??
?Simple, Sextus, we would be executed on the spot.?
?Why has no one ever rebelled against such exploitation!??
?Because while we cannot use the Ankhom against other living beings, they can very well do so for some strange reason and they have given us a demonstration of it several times.?
?Wait, wait, what do you mean by they??
?All those who are linked to the pharaoh, who work with or for him, so his guards, the royal army, his advisors, can use the Ankhom against living beings to kill and do harm.?
?There's something strange here, we should investigate, but I don't think we are prepared enough for that yet.?
Suddenly, a deep voice began to echo in Sexta's head.
?Sexta, can you hear me??
?Loud and clear, you're Thoth, right? But how can you speak in my head??
?I am your Ankhom, it is natural that I can do so. There is no time to explain, you must reach my daughter in the celestial realm immediately. The royal army is coming, they have discovered you. Take Sextus with you and, of course, if you want, also Renjiro and Reiko.?
?The royal army, are you kidding? It's impossible and then how should I reach the celestial realm??
?Take everyone by the hand and strongly desire to go to a safe place. I'm sure you can do it.?
Suddenly, several steps were heard in front of the door. ?Chikafuji twins and the two strangers, we know that you are inside that building. But if you come out without resisting, you will be spared. You will have 10 seconds.?
The guard began to count down starting from 10. Everyone was in a panic, except for Sexta, for some strange reason. In their eyes, until that moment, it was as if she was totally immersed in her thoughts, since while they were discussing, she was clearly thinking about something else. ?Take me all by the hand, quick. There's no time to explain why, for once please trust me.?
?It's not that we have many other choices, we trust you!?
Everyone took Sexta by the hand and she began to concentrate, strongly desiring to go to a safe place, everyone together. Meanwhile, the countdown was almost over, but everyone was trusting Sexta's words. Suddenly, an explosive sound was heard and the door opened, but when the guards, together with the army, entered inside, they didn't see anyone. They searched the entire building from top to bottom, yet it seemed that all 4 had disappeared. They weren't even hiding with the powers of the Ankhom, and so, in the end, they left, pissed off that their search had been a failure.
