Tower of Heaven

"Anubis."

It was a single word, but it was spoken in a place where words were never meant to exist. It reverberated through the space, turning the silence into something else.

WHOOSH!

A huge sound came from the darkness below as the one residing there reacted. Undoubtedly, that aura also indicated the presence of a Divine Being. More specifically, a Demon.

With two Divine Entities in his vicinity, the fact that Atlas was able to stand and speak, even as a living soul, was unbelievable.

Anubis, the gatekeeper of the underworld, kept his gaze on Atlas’ body. However, he did not speak.

Atlas never expected him to.

He remembered those conversations he had with Horus.

"Anubis is one of the most loyal people you’ll ever see. He’s a role model, in a way, but I grew up thinking he was also an enemy."

Horus had spoken with a wry smile on his face, looking up at the sky knowing Anubis was not looking back.

"Because when everything happened between my parents and my uncle, he didn’t move. He stayed at the gates of the Underworld and allowed my family to be torn apart. My father used to always say that he was his most loyal aid, the person who could always be trusted no matter the situation. The fact that he didn’t help us…well, you don’t need to try very hard to imagine how my younger self took it."

He had a list in his mind. He knew who had sided with his uncle and who had supported his father until the end. As he made that list in his mind and added Anubis to it, his father was the one to tell him otherwise.

"He heard me cursing Anubis on my own one day and asked me why I bore such resentment. When I explained it to him, he just laughed. You know what he said to me?"

Horus chuckled as he thought of the memory.

"He asked me what I thought would happen if Anubis left the gates of the Underworld."

Actually, while Horus’ father did have a position as the King of the Gods, he was primarily the ruler of the Underworld. It was his domain and the source of his authority. If it weren’t for such connections, Horus’ mother would have never been able to resurrect him.

What would happen if the person who had been dutifully guarding those gates left them alone?

What would happen if he allowed Osiris’ realm of authority to be invaded by others as they pleased?

Anubis was the very reason why Horus and his parents were able to survive. Anubis was the reason why Set couldn’t completely overthrow the Ennead in one fell sweep.

He was stalwart, loyal, and would never betray the duty he was given no matter the circumstance.

It made sense that he wouldn’t easily entertain the words of the living.

Atlas had no place here. If he decided to act aggressively, he would die. Otherwise, he was free to leave. Nobody would stop him.

If Atlas was anyone else, leaving would have been the wisest idea. However, he needed information.

"Will you answer my questions?"

When Anubis didn’t respond, Atlas kept pressing.

"I am looking for two people. I need to know if they are present in your Underworld."

"I will do anything or give you anything in return for any information you provide."

He put the Death Relic in his inventory knowing he wouldn’t be able to access his spatial ring. He pulled it out and offered it up as tribute, but it did not sway the Guardian God. РÃΝОᛒƐṩ

Atlas furrowed his brows.

’This won’t work.’

He needed to be frank, then.

"Do you know Horus?"

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For the first time, he saw a reaction. Just slightly, the corner of Anubis’ eye twitched. It was barely a movement, but Atlas’ sharp eyes caught it.

"I know Horus as well."

Atlas scanned the God’s face for any sign of anything.

"Even if you answer nothing else, answer this one question."

"Who is your King?"

Anubis’ eyes clearly widened. He certainly wasn’t expecting that question to follow the others.

His face moved more than it ever had for a single reason. Atlas asked him a question he could not refuse to answer.

Because in a time like this, as a God who had a significant role in the Society Legend, Anubis’ answer to that question would have a genuine impact on the conflict between Osiris and Set.

If he truly refused to answer, then he would be harming Osiris. In that sense, Atlas posed a question that would give him an answer regardless of what Anubis chose to do.

[You…are a tricky person.]

A voice that was deep and powerful like an indestructible wall.

[My King is none other than the King of Gods, Lord Osiris.]

He said that one sentence with all of his conviction. A wave of sweeping energy spread from his body as the world recognized his declaration. In front of his own eyes, Atlas watched the Legend of a Godly Society develop.

He grinned. That reaction from the world was more than enough confirmation of the veracity of those words.

"Horus is currently trapped somewhere in the Underworld. I am on a quest to find him. I need to know if he is here."

[...]

Anubis peered into Atlas’ soul. There was much he could see in those eyes that the average person could not glimpse.

[If you wish for me to answer you, then take my test. If you are truly the Prince’s acquaintance, you should already be aware of its meaning.]

Atlas nodded. He glanced to the side at the elephant in the room. No, rather than an elephant, it was a massive golden balance scale half the height of Anubis. The two platforms were large enough for a single person of any species to stand on with some room left over, but only one of them was empty.

The other was inhabited by a single feather, the feather of an ostrich.

In normal cases, the heart of a passed soul would be placed on that scale to be weighed against the feather. As a living soul, Atlas himself was the heart.

When he stood across from that feather, it would weigh his sins. It would judge him against the ultimate principle of balance and tell Anubis of his alignment.

If he happened to outweigh that feather…

His eyes moved to the darkness below.

’That one will consume me whole.’

Atlas furrowed his brows for a moment in hesitation. He had his own concerns. His past life’s memories were incomplete, so he was unable to tell what kind of person he truly was back then.

’However, I trust in my character.’

He trusted the person he knew he was, so he stepped up to that scale without fear.

His body raised in the air on its own as he was pulled into its grasp. He was placed gently on the empty disk, left feeling a lightness in his body that was never present before.

The scale dipped immediately, reacting to his existence before leveling itself. The two sides swung up and down in relation to each other so subtly that it felt more like they were only swaying back and forth.

As Atlas looked at the feather, he felt another being looking back at him. No, he felt the gaze of a "concept."

A concept that saw parts of him that even he didn’t know about.

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