"The great, dignified, benevolent Goddess Isis, the Mother of Fertility and Hope; the God of Horus, who protects Eygut and illuminates the world with an inextinguishable light; the Father Nuven, who was born in the Lotus of the Beginning and created all things; the Ennead, who lives at the source of the Holy River; all the gods who rule the earth and the sky! Please hear my prayer, the oracle of the gods. Only the purest and most devout heart can win the mercy of the gods. I am willing to offer my all to Isis. Please grant me the Tear of the Gods … "
Eco Maria was praying to the gods in a remote town on the border of the Hittite Kingdom, which belonged to the Empire of Eygut. In this remote and desolate place, the town of Duc was not small. It had hundreds of families and two thousand residents. The mayor, Dusti, was a noble with the title of Lord of Hittite. He was also a citizen of the Empire of Eygut and enjoyed the privileges of being a citizen of the Empire of Eygut.
The reason why the mayor of such a remote town was so prominent was because of its special status. Duc belonged to the southernmost part of the territory of Syah, which belonged to the Hittite Kingdom. Syah was famous for its three products, which were the most important commodities traded by the Hittite Kingdom to the Empire of Eygut: iron, parangons and cedar wood.
Iron could be used to make the sharpest weapons, especially those refined by skilled craftsmen. Iron could be used to make armor and swords that were both sharp and tough. It was a symbol of strength, a weapon for guarding and plundering wealth. Many countries on the continent produced iron, but the output was still very limited. The production and trade of iron were strictly monopolized by the government. Hittite was the most famous iron. Although the iron output in Duc was not high, it produced very rare refined iron. Almost all the adults in the town were miners and blacksmiths.
Cedar wood, produced in the western highlands of Hittite and in the mountains on both sides of the Euphrate River, was the best material for shipbuilding after being soaked in cold water, dried in the sun, dipped in oil and baked. Ships built with it could travel in lakes, rivers, and seas. Not only was it used by armies, but it was also necessary for merchants to travel between countries. The town of Duc did not produce cedar wood. Although there were many cedar trees in the east of the town, it was hard to imagine that a giant cedar tree could be cut down and transported from the mountains.
The most important product of Duc was not fine iron, but parangons. Parangons were very rare on the continent. The Syah state of the Hittite Kingdom was one of the major producers of parangons, and the town of Duc produced almost half of the parangons in the entire Syah state. Every country on the continent needed parangons, especially the noble priests of the shrines who had mastered the supreme divine incantations.
Many commoners and slaves did not know what the God's Stone was used for. They had only seen the God's Stone embedded in the scepter of the priests or the armor and weapons of the noble warriors. It seemed to be a symbol of status, wealth, or divine power. The God's Stone itself was the most expensive currency on the continent. One parangon was worth twenty times as much as the same weight of gold, and it was inseparable.
The most common parangons were used as the noble currency. They were the same in texture, size, and shape. Their weight was also the standard of measurement on the continent. "Baht" was the weight of a parangon. It was said that the extravagant priests even used parangons as the standard weight on the scales.
Eco Maria came to Duc with Rod-dick, the governor and priest of her hometown. Of course, what she prayed to the gods was not an ordinary parangon, but the legendary Gods' Tear. Only by obtaining it could she be recognized by the high priests in the Temple of Isis in Montefiore and become the Adoratrice of the Goddess Isis. According to the legend, only the purest summoning could communicate with the gods and receive the Gods' Tear, which meant that her identity had been recognized by the gods.
Icho Maria's prayer was so sincere, but in fact, every single parangon produced on the continent, including the precious Gods' Tear, was not given by the hands of the gods. Instead, it was mined by the hands of the miners.
Maria's residence was at the southern end of the town, near the Temple of Horus. It was one of the most beautiful courtyards in the town, and it was originally the residence of the mayor. Like other towns on the continent, the most important building in the settlement was the temple, which was used to worship and worship the local guardian gods. The magnificence of the temple was also a symbol of the prosperity of a city.
Of course, the temple in Duc could not be compared to that in a big city, but compared to other ordinary towns, the Temple of Horus here was magnificent enough. It was built with tall white boulders and inlaid with dark green stone sculptures. The white marble used to build the pillars was imported from other places, and the Lapis Lazuli was a local specialty of the nearby mountains. It might be expensive in other places, but it was the most common stone material in Duc.
There were two main temples of similar size in the town of Duc. One was dedicated to Horus, the guardian god of the Empire of Eygut, to show the submission of this place to the Pharaohs Of Eygut. It was built in the south of the town, and its main body was made of white marble. The other temple was dedicated to Mourin, the guardian god of Hittite, who was widely worshiped in Hittite, Assyr in the northeast, and Bablon in the southeast.
The Hittite Kingdom was an alliance of dozens of city-states. Although the great Empire of Eygut had conquered this place, the Pharaohs Of Eygut allowed the Hittite people to worship their own guardian gods in order to better manage the place. They did not destroy the original temple, but at the same time, they ordered the people to worship Horus, the guardian god of Eygut.
Maria prayed in her room on the second floor. She prayed like this every morning after washing up, before lunch, and at night. She had been in Duc for three days now. She was so devout, respectful, and meticulous that even Gabriel, a well-trained templar, could not help but praise her in his heart. He thought that she should meet the requirements of a Adoratrice and that the gods might pity her.
In the territory of the Empire of Eygut, there were two vast fertile lands along the Nile River, called the Upper Eygut and the Lower Eygut. Gabriel was a warrior sent by the Temple of Isis to protect Maria in Montefiore, the capital of Eygut. He answered the report and request of Rod-dick, the chief priest and governor of Eygut. The Temple of Isis would send people to protect anyone who passed the test of the gods and was qualified to become the Adoratrice of Isis.
When Maria was praying, Gabriel was standing downstairs at the gate of the courtyard. She had a heavy sword hanging on her waist. Both sides of the sword edge were inlaid with a parangon. Even in an environment where there was no danger, she still wore a silver armor meticulously. Her expression was solemn and solemn. From this position, she could see the green-gold dome of the Temple of Mourrin on the other side of the town. She pursed her lips, and there was an imperceptible sneer in her eyes.
Obviously, the guardian warrior of the Temple of Isis did not like the god worshiped by the foreign races. However, the Pharaohs Of Eygut had allowed the original temple to be preserved here, so she could not say anything. Her duty was only to protect Eco Maria. She did not have to care about other people's business.
Gabriel's figure was slender and tall, sexy and muscular. Her face had the obvious characteristics of a different race in the north. Her skin was fair, her nose was straight, and her eyes were a mesmerizing blue. Her golden curly hair was draped over the silver armor, and her temperament was so gentle and firm. She was young and beautiful, but the children in the town who were playing and throwing stones at each other unconsciously stayed far away from the courtyard. They did not dare to play at the gate.
When people saw her, perhaps the first thing they noticed was not that she was a very beautiful woman. Around her, there was an invisible sense of self-confidence, pride and majesty, as if it was full of power, without any restraint or concealment.
Gabriel was the only guardian of the courtyard. The Temple of Isis had only sent her one warrior to protect Eco Maria, one of the candidates for the Adoratrice. But Gabriel also knew that in the Temple of Horus in the town of Duc not far away, there were sixty fully-armed elite soldiers of Rod Drick stationed there.
Obviously, this Lord Rodrick did not believe that she could protect Maria by herself. Although the desert between Eygut and Hittite was full of danger, it was a bit exaggerated to bring so many elite soldiers with her. Lord Rodrick did not say anything out of the good manners of a noble, but Gabriel could sense his dissatisfaction.
Gabriel did not care at all. It was not only because of her manners, but also because of her noble pride.
… …
On the other side of the town, in a small building near the Temple of Mourin, Rod-dick was holding a glass of wine and looking at the courtyard where Gabriel was staying through the window. His brown eyes were deep, as if he was thinking about something.
It seemed that this Temple Warrior from Memphis was not used to hiding her power and always made her aura public. This was not surprising, as one of her duties was to promote the dignity of the gods. But for a hereditary noble like Rod-dick, this was not a good habit. People always needed to hide something. They could not expose all of their power to potential enemies. They only showed their real power when the time was right.
The fight for power and wealth was always cruel. People needed to be prepared at all times, show the right amount of deterrence, and leave a trump card for emergencies.
The Temple of Mourin was not far from the small building he was staying in. Lord Rodrick did not think there was anything wrong with it. People on this continent worshipped all kinds of gods, big and small. Some were the gods in the legends, and some were the guardian gods that the local people thought of themselves.
The Pharaoh of the Empire of Eygut claimed to be the human incarnation and spokesperson of Horus, the son of the gods, and the king of the gods who ruled the upper and lower Eygut. The traditional guardian god of the lower Eygut was the goddess Isis, the mother of Horus. Her main temple was located in Montefiore, the capital of the lower Eygut. Almost every country on the continent was ruled by a combination of monarchy and theocracy. The monarch was known as the spokesperson of the gods. The Temple of Isis in Montefiore was the most important power center of the lower Eygut.
This time, the Temple of Isis only sent one warrior to protect the candidate of the Adoratrice of Cape. Lord Rodrick was obviously dissatisfied. He felt that he and the state he represented were being looked down upon. Cape was located on the northeast border of the Empire of Eygut, the closest place to Bablon and the Hittite Kingdom. Outside the border was a vast and desolate desert, which could not be compared with other rich and fertile city-states.
Its geographical location was very important, but it did not bring all the benefits to Cape. Once there was a war, Cape would be the first to bear the brunt of it. In the seemingly peaceful era, it was an important port for trade with the northwest countries, full of countless opportunities.
Now the Hittite Kingdom had surrendered to the Eygut, but Lord Rodrick vaguely heard that many lords of the city-states of Hittite were not reconciled to the fate of being a vassal and always wanted to unite and rebel secretly. It just so happened that the Temple of Isis was selecting the Adoratrice. Of course, Dick hoped that the Adoratrice would come from Cape, which not only represented the glory of the city-state, but also the power of the Temple of Isis and the whole of the lower Eygut to protect Cape in case of conflict in the future.
Dick certainly did not want anything to happen to Maria, so he brought his most elite guards with him. Such a force was obviously superfluous to protect one person across the desert. Of course, Dick had his own plans. He had become the governor and chief priest of Cape at a young age, holding the power of the state and the state. In addition to his prominent status, of course, he also relied on his own talent to maximize the benefits of one thing.
The Temple of Isis only sent one person, which was good for Dick. It saved him a lot of bribe. Seeing Gabriel, Dick had a feeling that this Guardian of the Temple of Isis was different from many greedy priests. She was like a proud rooster who disdained to accept any bribes. And it seemed that she had no concept of wealth at all.
Gabriel didn't seem to know how expensive the sword she was wearing was. She just hung it around her waist. If she was walking alone, the sword wouldn't be able to protect her. Instead, it would attract bandits. Even Rod-dick was surprised that Gabriel came to Cape from Montefiore alone with a sword. She was so lucky that she could arrive safely! Maybe it was because the bandits along the way knew who she was and did not dare to offend the Temple of Isis.
In the name of protecting the Adoratrice and serving Lord Gabriel, the caravan was, of course, packed with all kinds of supplies, mainly the most popular wine and food in Duc. With Lord Gabriel around, the checkpoints on the border between Ejypt and Hittite would naturally pass without any inspection, and of course, without collecting any taxes.
The parangons mined by the residents of Duc had to be handed over to the city in the form of taxes. The law of the city stipulated that one out of every ten parangons belonged to the residents. That was the reward they deserved. At the same time, Rod-dick, of course, knew that Mayor Dusti, who had the power to levy taxes in Duc, would not be so selfless. He must have kept a lot of parangons in his hands.
Parangons were a kind of currency, worth twenty times more than gold of the same weight. It was the same in Duc. But Duc was both rich and poor. Apart from parangons and iron, the barren land only had a small amount of barley to feed the people. All other necessities of life and enjoyment had to be transported from other places. The location of Duc was so remote that everything was many times more expensive to transport than in other places.
The people of Duc might not know that they were probably the wealthiest people on the continent. At the same time, Duc was also the most expensive place on the continent. Although the taxes on the trade routes were very high, a successful trade could still be profitable.
In order to provide cover for the goods he was transporting to Duc, Drick organized a caravan from Cape States to accompany his caravan. The merchants were naturally willing to follow Lord Drick's caravan. This was a guarantee of absolute safety and the cost of mercenaries could be saved. Besides, with Lord Gabriel and Lord Drick around, the tax collectors at the checkpoints along the way would not try to extort money from them. The merchants were very grateful to Lord Drick, who was considerate to his people. Many nobles and officials would not take such good care of merchants.
During dinner, Lord Drick and Mayor Dusti had a pleasant conversation. What was even more pleasant was the transaction between them. Both sides were very satisfied. In addition to the parangons, Lord Drick also bought precious fine iron from Mayor Dusti. This was smuggling, a secret that should not be revealed to outsiders. The two of them had a tacit understanding while enjoying the delicious food and wine.
Although the transaction was pleasant, Rod-dick did not like this place, especially when it was filled with a smoky smell that made him very uncomfortable. He felt a little anxious. He did not know when he would have to wait.
The reason why he brought Maria here was not only to do business with her, but also to obtain the Gods' Tear. The high priests of the Temple of Isis had announced an oracle that a Gods' Tear would be given to the human world, and the one who obtained it would be the Adoratrice of Isis.
Rod-dick had his own ideas about this. The Gods' Tear was nothing more than a more precious parangon. If it really appeared, it would most likely be in the place where the highest concentration of parangons was found. Taking advantage of the geographical location and waiting in Duc would be the best way to get the Gods' Tear first. Of course, this was also a gamble, but it was a gamble that would be profitable no matter the outcome. If he succeeded, everything would be perfect.
He told Maria that he received the guidance of Isis in his dream, and Maria told Gabriel about it, persuading him to cross the desert border to come to Duc.
Maria had been praying devoutly every day since they arrived in Duc, but Rod-dick, who made up the lie, was getting impatient. In this small town, where blacksmiths' furnaces were burning everywhere, Lord Drick could not stand the harsh environment. He did not want to stay another day. He could not help but think of the legend about the Gods' Tear again.
He was already a little drunk. He cursed in his mind, "The gods' mercy? Is it the will of the gods, or a lie made up by the priests? When did this ancient oracle start to circulate? It's just a stone. No matter how precious it is, it's just a stone with some use. Instead of praying to the gods, it's better to ask the miners for help. Does the Gods' Tear mean that she is the Adoratrice? Then who is the miner? Maybe he's a dirty old man! "
Just as he was thinking about this, a gust of warm wind blew in from outside the window. Dick shivered inexplicably and sobered up. He quickly pressed his hand on his chest and prayed, "Great Goddess Isis, my thoughts are not disrespectful to you. They are just an honest expression."
At this moment, Rod Drick suddenly froze. He seemed to have sensed something. It was a mysterious energy fluctuation, both mysterious and unfamiliar. The unpleasant heat of the furnace and the inexplicable chill seemed to have been soothed by something. He traced the source of the fluctuation to a house on the edge of the town.
Rod-dick immediately put down his cup and shouted, "Come in, Judah! The Gods' Tear may have appeared. Do as I say!"
… …
Gabriel, who was standing solemnly, suddenly raised her head and looked in a certain direction of the town. She felt a mysterious and familiar fluctuation of power in the air, both subtle and clear. Her eyes flashed with an inexplicable light of relief as she looked back at Maria's window.
… …
"Ding!" A crisp sound was heard, followed by a faint buzzing sound that echoed in the room for a long time. Amon was holding a heavy hammer and smashing it on a fist-sized round stone that was shining with a dark light.
The iron hammer looked so heavy, bringing with it a sharp sound of wind as it fell, but when it fell on the surface of the stone, it became as light as a feather, only emitting a crisp "ding" sound.
Amon's posture of holding the hammer was a little funny. His hands were placed in front of him, and his entire upper arm was attached to the handle of the hammer. He was not too tall. After all, he was only fourteen years old and had not yet fully grown into a man.
However, the muscles all over his body were very strong and sturdy. When he swung the sledgehammer, there seemed to be little snakes slithering on his bulging muscles. According to the rules of Duc since ancient times, a child of his age was not qualified to mine parangons by himself. Using the unique hammering technique of Duc to crack open the core of the ore was the last and most crucial step to obtaining a parangon.
But today, he had to do it at home, because his father was drunk again. His hands were trembling and he could not control the hammer. Tomorrow, he had to hand over a parangon.
**
Young Master Xu's Note: The first chapter contains a bit too much background information. Thanks to the help of my book friend "Prajna", I made a background map of the continent and marked all the places mentioned in this chapter. It is recommended that you read the text according to the map, otherwise you may easily get dizzy.
List of Characters in this Chapter
Eco Maria: The candidate of the Adoratrice from the State of Cape, Empire of Eygut. She may become the Adoratrice of the Temple of Isis in Montefiore. The Empire of Eygut is divided into the Upper Eygut and the Lower Eygut. Montefiore is the capital of the Lower Eygut.
Dusti: Mayor of the town of Duc. The town is located on the border of the Hittite Kingdom of Syah. The Hittite Kingdom is a vassal state of Eygut.
Rod-dick: Mayor of the Kingdom of Eygut and Cape States.
Gabriel: Guardian of the Temple of Isis in Montefiore.
Amon: The son of a blacksmith in Duc.
Background of the Gods in this Chapter
Horus: The main god and king worshipped by the people of Eygut. The Pharaohs Of Eygut are said to be the incarnation and spokesperson of Horus in the human world.
Isis: The mother of Horus in the myths and legends, the Patroness of the Lower Eygut and the Holy Mother worshipped by the people of Eygut.
Mourrin: The goddess widely worshipped in the regions of Hittite, Assyria and Bablon. The Patroness of the people of Duc since ancient times.
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