Chapter 311
311 – [Theatrical Version] Valley of the Kings
After having a late lunch thanks to Mr. Sumire’s performance, we headed to the Valley of the Kings, west of Luxor, across the Nile River, before the sun set.
Just like the paved road we saw on the way from Cairo to Luxor, the Valley of the Kings, a famous tourist attraction, was well-paved for easy access by car.
But our destination is not a place where tourists are allowed to enter, but a place deeper than that.
Perhaps that’s why the jeep truck driven by Mr. Ryusuke began heading towards more and more deserted places.
As I was watching with my mouth open at the sight I had never seen before, Sumire, who was sitting in the passenger seat, opened her mouth.
“How much do you know about the Valley of the Kings, Mr. Kim?”
“Uh… “I only know what I learned from world history.”
“Then can you briefly explain the Valley of the Kings?”
“Then I am grateful.”
As I corrected my slumped posture and took a stance to listen to Mr. Sumire, Mr. Sumire smiled softly and pointed out his window.
“Valley of the Kings… So, Kings Valley is a group of huge tombs built during the New Kingdom. Originally, ancient pharaohs showed off their power and wealth by building huge pyramids, but ironically, they were too conspicuous, so they were forced to rob. Because they couldn’t stop it, the pharaohs of the 18th Dynasty started digging and building tombs in this valley that looked empty on the outside.”
After hearing that, I looked down the hill at the tourists and the entrances to dozens of tombs.
‘There was such a story in this valley.’
Seeing with certainty and seeing without knowing have different feelings.
With vague knowledge, I knew that the Valley of the Kings was the tomb of the Egyptian pharaohs, but I never thought there was such a behind-the-scenes story.
“However, even if it was buried secretly, it was eventually stolen again by the workers who built the tomb, so the tradition, which lasted about 500 years, ended in the era of Ramses The reason the secret tomb became known to the world was because of the efforts of numerous archaeologists.”
Sumire-san said that and took out something from the shelf on the passenger seat.
I looked into it and saw that it was a book with a picture of the Valley of the Kings printed on the cover.
“If you have any additional questions, you can refer to this guidebook.”
“Thank you.”
I was tired of playing games and had nothing else to do while I was gone, so I opened the book Sumire-san gave me.
“…”
A feast of spicy Arabic that fills your sight.
Just looking at the earthworm-like letters made me feel motion sick, so I quietly closed the guidebook.
I’ll have to look up anything I’m curious about later when I get home.
***
“Okay, we’ve arrived.”
After taking about an hour by car from downtown Luxor, we finally arrived at a sandstone area not far from the Valley of the Kings.
From noble mtl dot come
Since only the excavated areas are open to tourists, entry by anyone other than those involved is completely prohibited from here on.
If it weren’t for the support of Ryuji’s parents, I, an ordinary person, would never have been able to come here.
Shake!
When I got out of the car, a dry wind blew and hit my face.
“Ugh!”
The unique desert climate was unfamiliar to me, having lived in a country with four distinct seasons.
Yuika, who was next to me, said after seeing this.
“Can I give you a muffler?”
“Muffler?”
“In the desert, it is often used to cover the mouth and nose.”
As Yuika said that, she rummaged through her bag in her luggage compartment.
What was soon in her hand was a green muffler with yellow stripes.
“Thank you.”
The colors felt a bit flashy for me to wear, but it’s still better than nothing.
After putting the green muffler around her neck, I looked next to her and saw that Ryuji was also wearing a purple muffler around her neck.
After we both put on our scarves, we started walking, following Ryusuke and Sumire.
“Kim, what I’m talking about from now on is information that has not yet been published in academia. So, I would like to ask you to speed up the process.”
“Yes, I understand.”
After hearing the confirmation from me, Mr. Ryusuke nodded his head with a solemn expression and opened his mouth.
“Then, where should I start… Did you hear about Sumire earlier about the background of the Valley of the Kings?”
“Yes. I heard that the pharaohs of the New Kingdom built tombs underground because pyramids were easy targets for grave robbers.”
“Yes, that’s the consensus in academia. But we learned one huge thing last year.”
“What if it’s a huge truth?”
“This Valley of the Kings is actually nothing more than a huge fraud created to hide the tomb of a great pharaoh.”
Any great pharaoh…
My eyes naturally turned to Mahes, who was following behind us.
“That’s right. Mahes over there is the real owner of the tomb we’re going to now.”
Then Yuika, who was listening to our story, tilted her head and asked.
“Dad, what do you mean? Mahes?”
Then Mr. Ryusuke spoke to Yuika with a stern expression.
“Actually, there is a secret that me, my mom, and her brother have been hiding.”
While saying that, what Mr. Ryusuke took out of his pocket and his was a cat head-shaped decoration that he had seen when he went to visit Ryuji’s house.
“If my daughter touches this, she will understand what her dad is talking about.”
“… What do you think this is?”
“It is a sculpture of the goddess Bastet.”
When Ryusuke said that and held out her cat headdress, Yuika touched it with an expression of disbelief.
Immediately after,
“aaah!”
When I saw Mahes standing next to us, I screamed and sat down.
“W-What is it? This person? He wasn’t there just a moment ago, so where did he come out?!”
Yuika is embarrassed and stutters.
Mahes responded to Yuika’s appearance her by crossing her arms her her her.
[As Ryusuke said just now, he is the owner of the tomb we are currently going to.]
“So, are you saying you’re a ghost?”
[If you say it in your own words, it will be like that.]
Ryuji helped Yuika up as she was so shocked that she couldn’t even speak properly.
“Yuika, don’t worry. I’m not a bad guy.”
“Oppa, you see that person too?!”
“It’s a bit long to talk about, but yes, it looks good.”
“Yoosung oppa too?!”
I smiled awkwardly and nodded at the arrow that suddenly flew out.
“Yes. I can see it. It’s a case I got caught up in by chance.”
If I hadn’t touched that decoration when I first went to Ryuji’s house, I wouldn’t have found out about it until much later.
In the end, Yuika looked dumbfounded, perhaps realizing that she was the only one among the group who did not know Mahes’ identity.
“Could it be that you were the only one who was bullying me?”
Then Sumire said with an embarrassed expression.
“I didn’t do that on purpose. I thought you would feel uncomfortable staying at home if you found out about this, so I just delayed it a little.”
Mr. Ryusuke also quickly joined in making excuses.
“That’s right. It’s only been about three months since my dad and mom found out about Mahes’ identity.”
“Hmph! That’s it. I thought it was strange that Yoosung suddenly followed us on a family trip.”
Her family was embarrassed to see Yuika in complete sulk mode.
But fortunately, it was Mahes’s management skills that relieved this rigid atmosphere.
[Sorry. Girl.]
“?”
[The reason your family kept it a secret from you was by no means out of malice. Rather, I would like to protect you from any possible threats.]
Mahes said so and explained the situation she was in.
[The reason I’m here right now is because Ryuji jumped into the sand pit to save you.]
“Yes? What is that… “
To Yuika, who was surprised and asked questions, Mahes told her about what had happened.
Starting from the first meeting between Ryuji and Mahes, the story of following Ryuji to Japan, and the story of returning to Egypt after seeing and experiencing many things.
After the long and short story, Yuika was completely persuaded by Mahes.
“If that’s the case, tell me quickly, brother!”
“Apod!”
Ryuji jumps around like a frog after being hit by Yuika’s shin kick to vent his anger
However, seeing the smile on his face, he seemed happy that the misunderstanding had been resolved.
“Then it’s okay to go inside the ruins?”
“Okay.”
When Yuika finally gave permission, Mr. Ryusuke started walking ahead with an excited expression.
After walking for about ten minutes, we stopped in front of a huge rock. As I looked at it, wondering something, Sumire stepped forward and started touching the surface of the rock.
Crash!
Immediately after, a certain part of the rock was pushed inward, revealing a hidden door.
I looked down the dark stairs and muttered.
“Are we going down?”
“That’s right. Mahes’ tomb is down here.”
I nodded at Ryuji’s testimony that he had already been there last year and glanced back just before I went down the stairs.
Perhaps because it took some time to get here, the sun had already set over the tip of Seosan.
Perhaps, if you go down to the basement and come back up, there will be a dark sunset.
‘I hope nothing happens.’
With that in mind, I went down the stairs leading to the basement.
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