Takumi promptly let go, releasing Hundred Personas and simultaneously freeing the others.
Hundred Personas hurriedly scrambled to her feet, grimacing as she rubbed her aching wrist where he had pinned her.
Forcibly calmed down, Hundred Personas looked at Takumi standing nearby. The sandstorm had obscured his features earlier, making it hard to see him clearly. Now, she finally got a good look at his true appearance.
His black hair was slightly long and a bit messy. Hideous burn scars covered half his face, but looking at the unmarred half, it was clear he used to be quite handsome and refined before being disfigured. He held a flag with an unrecognizable crest in his left hand, while his right arm was a cold, iron prosthetic.
Beyond that, if Hundred Personas had to pick the single most striking feature about Takumi, she would undoubtedly say it was his eyes.
Within his clear, contrasting pupils, a cluster of warm yet unyielding flames burned quietly. It was just... the irrepressible exhaustion etched into the corners of those eyes slightly marred the beauty of it all.
"I apologize for using such methods to force you to abandon your operation. But if you don't mind, once I finish my business here, I'd like to travel with you—"
"I mind! I mind very much!"
Before Takumi could finish, Hundred Personas bluntly cut him off.
Although she could tell from the diffused emotions of his heart that Takumi harbored no malice, the fact that she had been utterly helpless against him moments ago left her feeling deeply humiliated and incredibly awkward.
"Hmph! Leave the woman here, we're leaving!"
Hundred Personas huffed proudly, like a tsundere, then turned and signaled her subordinates to retreat.
The moment the words left her mouth, she vanished into the sprawling sandstorm with a quick step. Possessing the [Protection from Wind] skill standard to all Old Men of the Mountain, she could completely ignore the sandstorm's interference.
Her subordinates exchanged glances, but since their boss had already bolted, they had no choice but to drop the hostage and frantically sprint after Hundred Personas.
"Sigh..."
Takumi smiled helplessly.
He had merely wanted to tag along with Hundred Personas and the others to the village of the People of the Mountains. Having [Revelation] to guide his way, Takumi didn't actually need them to lead him; he just wanted some company on the road.
Now that they had left early, Takumi traveling alone would actually be faster. It was hard to say which outcome was better.
Takumi looked down at Nitocris, who had been unceremoniously dumped on the ground.
He had to admit, her sleep quality was incredibly impressive. She had been tossed onto the ground twice now and still hadn't woken up.
"Hey, hey. Time to wake up."
Takumi crouched down and gently patted Nitocris' cheek.
"Stop messing around... let me sleep a little longer..."
Nitocris rolled over, swatting Takumi's hand away while mumbling incoherently.
"Come on, this isn't exactly a bed, you know..."
Feeling the sting of sand whipping against his own face, Takumi was even more speechless. He genuinely couldn't fathom how Nitocris managed to sleep in a place where you'd eat a mouthful of sand just by breathing.
And sleep so soundly, at that.
Figuring conventional methods probably wouldn't wake this "goddess of sleep," Takumi shifted his gaze to the two "rabbit ears" on top of Nitocris' head.
If I tug on these a couple of times, will that wake her up?
"—Who's there?! The 'ears' on my head are a catalyst symbolizing Horus! You absolutely cannot touch them casually!"
Sensing "malice," Nitocris jolted awake instantly. She leaped to her feet, clutching her "ears" and staring with wide eyes.
"...Eh?!"
Now fully awake, Nitocris looked out at the sand dune completely engulfed in a raging sandstorm and was instantly dumbfounded.
Wait! Shouldn't I be sleeping in my room inside the temple? How did I suddenly end up in the middle of the desert?!
"Did you take me out of the temple?!"
Nitocris demanded, leveling a dead-serious, interrogating tone at the only human standing in front of her.
"It wasn't me."
Takumi shook his head.
Hearing this, Nitocris blinked. The serious expression vanished from her face, replaced by a slightly goofy, endearing look of confusion.
"Oh, so it wasn't you... Then how did I get out here? Did I sleepwalk?!"
Knowing she was a restless sleeper, she even started doubting herself, clutching her head and letting out a soft, tragic whine.
"No, the reason you're out here is because the 'Old Man of the Mountain'—actually, never mind. It's nothing worth worrying about."
Takumi originally intended to explain, but decided against exposing the Assassins' failed plot. Changing the subject, he said:
"I am a Master from Chaldea—for now, I suppose you could call me the last Master in this world. I came here to meet the Sun King who rules over this desert. I was hoping Miss Nitocris could introduce me."
"Chaldea? Master? Oh! So you're the Master the Pharaoh said would arrive here sooner or later!"
Repeating the two terms Takumi had used and taking in his rather "battered" appearance, realization dawned on Nitocris.
Without waiting for Takumi to reply, she continued:
"In that case, follow me! The Pharaoh mentioned ages ago that as soon as you arrived, I was to bring you straight to him!"
With that, Nitocris took the lead, marching toward the distant pyramid temple with a slight bounce in her step.
Hundred Personas' vigilance was dialed up to eleven, yet this one has absolutely zero guard up...
"Thank you."
With a faint sigh of marvel, Takumi followed behind Nitocris.
"Hehe, no need to thank me! Just thank the 'Pharaoh'!"
***
The closer they got to the pyramid temple, the weaker the sandstorm became. By the time they reached the base of the pyramid, not even a trace of the sandstorm remained.
The blistering desert sun beat down directly on the area. Looking toward the cluster of houses situated not far from the pyramid, Takumi could see numerous humans toiling away.
This was the territory of the Sun King. The Sun King, Ozymandias, Ramesses II, the King of Kings... In short, he had many titles. He was a Pharaoh of ancient Egypt's Nineteenth Dynasty, the most famous Pharaoh of ancient Egypt, and was known as the son of the Sun God, Ra.
He was also frequently compared to Gilgamesh and Karna, making him one of the "Golden Three."
And the colossal pyramid standing before Takumi wasn't a structure built by human hands. It was Ozymandias' ultimate Noble Phantasm, [Ramesseum Tentyris: The Shining Great Temple Complex (EX)]. It possessed rule-breaking capabilities across all categories—offense, defense, Authority, and calculation. It essentially hit every single category a Noble Phantasm could have. Furthermore, as a Reality Marble, it even possessed absolute defense against Purge attacks.
It was absurd beyond belief. Even the Knights of the Round Table, blessed by the Goddess Lion King, were practically helpless when faced with this ultimate Noble Phantasm. If multiple Knights of the Round Table didn't attack it simultaneously—and pay a heavy price doing so—it was highly unlikely they could ever breach it.
If Takumi had to fight this King of Kings, he had to admit that as long as Ozymandias remained inside this grand temple, his only option would be to run. There was no helping it; possessing no truly overwhelming offensive methods aside from his Runes, Takumi genuinely had no way to crack an omni-directional turtle shell like this.