Chapter 39: The Libu Priestess
Nuru sat on a thick carpet, stroking his beard in thought.
But adhering to his principle of combining work and pleasure, he had summoned a slave girl to squat before him and tend to his big brother.
As the current chief of the Libu, Nuru always felt immense pressure. Recently, that pressure had been both painful and pleasurable.
It hadn't been easy for the Libu people to multiply and survive to this point.
Thanks to a neighboring tribe that was extremely good at fighting, not only the Libu but all nearby tribes often found their faces getting slammed into the dirt by that neighbor.
Even when couples wanted to sneak off into the wild for a quickie, they had no sense of security.
Anyone could understand how frustrating such a lifestyle was.
So, the Libu, who once lived in the fertile grasslands and hills of the east, had now migrated to the much more barren deserts of the west.
Not only had they moved, but they were enjoying a second spring — crushing and annexing many smaller tribes along the way.
Yet… it all felt rather pointless.
Sure, their faces got shoved into the dirt less often now, but that was only because the neighbor had found other faces that were even more fun to grind into.
On the contrary, if Libu warriors didn't willingly clock in and participate in the neighbor's face-smashing operations, the neighbor would come "to reason with them"—which really just meant they were about to get smashed.
Nuru hated the Egyptians. Those perverts liked to run around naked.
Getting rubbed down by perverts? No thank you!
Mmm, he really liked this speaking style he'd picked up from the priestess. It sounded so cool. Now, whenever he spoke, the men, women, and children in the tribe all looked at him with reverence.
Hiss—this slave girl was pretty good. He was in heaven.
"Chief! Chief!"
A young man who resembled him by about sixty or seventy percent came storming into the tent.
But he came in too fast and couldn't brake in time, kicking the slave girl who had been tending to Nuru's brother, sending her flying onto her back.
The result: Nuru's little brothers splattered all over the poor girl's face.
Nuru pulled up his pants and looked down at the slave girl, who wore an expression like, "Why has the world suddenly turned so sticky?" He thought to himself: If this kid ever gets stabbed one day, should I laugh or cry?
Nuru had over a dozen daughters, but only one son.
It made him wonder whether he had offended the gods somehow.
His daughters were mostly beautiful, hardy, and clever.
But this one son of his? Dumb.
So dumb that Nuru had, more than once, considered stuffing him back in and trying again.
Sure, the boy could fight—he'd rank in the top ten on any recommendation list—but still. A
s his son, being good at fighting should be the bare minimum! The issue was his intelligence! Why can't you just show the mental capacity of a normal human being?!
Dammit, how could I, someone so smart, end up with such a dumbass for a son? I'll ask the priestess later.
"Papa, did the priestess have any new prophecies?" he asked the boy.
Say no and I'll beat you to death! That's not optional!
"The priestess said the Egyptians have already set sail, and now we can reach out to the other tribes! Chief, how many slave girls do I get this time? Oh, and I want to screw their queen! I heard she's got huge boobs!"
Have all your brains gone into your "big brother"?!
Shouldn't I be the one screwing the queen? And once I do, I'm probably going to keep doing it. Doesn't that make her your mom?
Hmm? Have you forgotten what the priestess told you?
That no matter how big your mom's boobs are, you still can't sleep with her?
She even gave you a name—Northern High Child—to remind you! And now you're telling me you've forgotten all that?!
Nuru was furious.
But in the next moment, his anger died down—because two young foreigners walked into the tent.
One of them had distinctly Egyptian features. The other was a young girl of unknown ethnicity—Nuru still hadn't figured out which tribe she came from.
But she now held great prestige among the Libu.
She was called the priestess, and if not for the fact that she wasn't Libu herself, she would've replaced Nuru by now.
And frankly, Nuru had no complaints about that.
"Chief Nuru," the man spoke first. "Is there any issue with the Meshwesh people you contacted earlier?"
"No issue at all," Nuru replied, though he was feeling a bit uneasy. "They've already given their promise. I was just about to send Papa to inform them. Did something happen?"
"The Meshwesh warriors are already approaching your tribe. Did you contact them beforehand?"
"No!" Nuru's expression changed dramatically.
What were the Meshwesh planning? They should've known that moving without invitation amounted to a declaration of war against the Libu.
Could it be…
Nuru suddenly turned sharply toward the girl who had remained silent since entering the tent—the foreign girl who was their Libu priestess.
It had to be this.
At some point, a saying had started spreading among the desert tribes:
Whoever possesses the desert priestess shall become king of the desert—and even claim Egypt.
In that case, who said the priestess had to stay with the Libu? My tribe's scenery isn't so bad either!
Nuru knew those other chieftains must be thinking this way.
But he hadn't expected the first ones to act would be the Meshwesh! Weren't they supposed to team up to go to Egypt and snatch that big-breasted girl together?!
Those traitors! He got duped just because the priestess had small boobs!
Wait—was that killing intent?!
Nuru's sharp instincts as a seasoned warrior sent a shiver down his spine. He jumped into a guarded stance and looked around nervously.
Hey! Could it be a Meshwesh assassin?
But in the tent, aside from the still-silent priestess and her annoyingly chatty sidekick, the only other person was Papa.
Then the priestess finally spoke.
"Chief, are you still planning to waste your time—and that of your people—here? I've told you: you only have this one chance. If you miss it, all the tribes will continue to be enslaved by the Egyptians."
If it had been anyone else interrupting his paranoid scanning for assassins, Nuru would've fed them a knife.
But this was the priestess. That was a different story.
She was mysterious—not because of her small chest—but because she could prophesy.
When she and her companion had first arrived, they came with prophecies. And every single one came true.
That earned her massive prestige.
When she later joined the Libu as a supposed envoy of the gods, Nuru fully experienced just how black-hearted this woman was.
Since her arrival, the Libu had already swallowed over ten other tribes. Their strength had grown considerably.
Still, her chest was really small. If not for that, she'd be perfect.
At least, Nuru just couldn't convince himself to pursue a flat-chested girl. Even if she was the priestess.
Small chest… made him feel so empty during frontal positions.
Crap, he thought. Got distracted again.
"Priestess, the Meshwesh people's actions are an insult to the Libu—and to you as well. If we don't deal with them, we can't fight as one."
"You're saying they would be disrespectful to me?"
Well, no. We only like big boobs…
"Why aren't you saying anything?"
"No, I think they want to take you—use you as a weapon."
"That makes it simple then. I believe I have the ability to protect myself. Chief, please gather your warriors and come with me to meet them."
"Priestess… do you intend to absorb their warriors?" Nuru asked, lacking confidence. "That might be hard. Our strengths are about equal."
"If possible, I'd prefer that you be a little smarter," the priestess said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. Her beautiful little face wore an expression that made Nuru feel like he was the animal here.
"It's obvious—we can depart together. If Egypt's pharaoh returns, you won't get another chance."