The journey to Bubastis did not involve walking.
Nyx placed her hand on Maxime's shoulder, murmured a few words in a language that made the air itself vibrate, and suddenly the twilight temple vanished. The world folded in on itself like crumpled paper, colors blended into a chaotic slurry, and Maxime felt the very unpleasant sensation that his stomach was trying to escape through his ears.
Then they were elsewhere.
The desert stretched as far as the eye could see, rolling dunes of an almost unreal gold beneath a blazing sun. The air was dry, scorching, so different from the eternal twilight of the Temple that it took several seconds for Maxime's eyes to adjust. In the distance, emerging from the sand like a mirage, rose a massive structure: a temple of pink sandstone and black granite, its columns carved with hieroglyphs that seemed to glow with their own light.
The Temple of Bubastis.
"I'm going to throw up," Maxime announced in a strangled voice.
"No." Nyx held him firmly upright. "Dimensional travel affects new divinities. It will pass."
Maxime took several ragged breaths, fighting the nausea twisting his guts. Gradually, the discomfort receded, replaced by a crushing sensation of heat.
"Why is it so hot?" he grumbled, wiping his forehead. "I thought I was semi-divine now."
"You are. But environmental comfort is not a passive ability at your level." Nyx, for her part, seemed perfectly at ease despite her stellar night-gown, which should have been a furnace under that sun. "You could learn to regulate your body temperature with mana, but it would be a waste. Save your resources for combat."
She pointed toward the distant temple.
"Bastet knows we are here. She probably knew even before we arrived." Her gaze swept the desert warily. "Which means she's had time to prepare a welcome."
"What kind of welcome?"
"With her? Impossible to say." Nyx began walking toward the temple, her feet leaving no imprint in the sand. "Bastet is… capricious. One moment she's charming, seductive, almost maternal. The next, she can disembowel you simply for the pleasure of seeing the color of your blood."
"You're really reassuring."
"I'm not here to reassure you. I'm here to keep you alive."
They walked in silence for several minutes. The sand crunched beneath Maxime's boots—he had been surprised to discover that Nyx had provided him with a complete outfit for the journey: black leather trousers, a loose white shirt, reinforced boots, and a cloak that rippled in the hot wind. He looked like an adventurer straight out of a video game, which was ridiculous and strangely appropriate at the same time.
[DISTANCE TO TEMPLE: 847 meters]
[ALERT: Hostile presences detected]
[Guardian Sphinx x4 — Level 12–15]
The Codex displayed the warning a second before the sand exploded.
Four creatures burst from the dunes with perfect synchronization. Massive lion bodies, eagle wings spread wide, human faces frozen into masks of impassive judgment. Their eyes gleamed with liquid gold, and their claws were as long as daggers.
Maxime instinctively summoned his sword of darkness, taking a defensive stance.
"Nyx?"
"Handle them." She had teleported onto a nearby dune, arms crossed. "Consider this your final exam."
"You're joking?!"
"Never during combat."
The first Sphinx attacked.
It was fast—far faster than the Corrupted Shadows. Its wings propelled its massive body forward like a living missile. Maxime dodged to the side, his new Agility of 21 allowing him to move just fast enough. The Sphinx's claws tore through the sand where he had stood a second earlier.
No time to breathe. The second dove from the sky, beak open in a cry that ripped through the air. Maxime rolled and slashed upward with his Imbued Strike. The blade bit into the right wing. Golden blood splashed across the sand.
[GUARDIAN SPHINX — HP: 78%]
The third and fourth attacked simultaneously, encircling Maxime. Pack strategy. Lethal coordination.
Shit.
He couldn't dodge all of them. So he didn't try.
Maxime charged the third, feinting a high strike, then pivoting at the last moment to strike low. His sword severed the Sphinx's forelegs. The creature collapsed with a howl that echoed like shattered divine judgment.
But the fourth was on him. Claws raked across his back, tearing through his cloak and the flesh beneath. Pain exploded—white and blinding. Maxime dropped to his knees.
[CRITICAL INJURY: Deep dorsal lacerations]
[HP: 72%]
[HEMORRHAGE: Ongoing]
The first Sphinx was charging again, jaws open, ready to tear out his throat.
Time slowed.
Not literally—Maxime had no power of temporal manipulation. But his mind accelerated, that part of Eros which understood combat on an instinctive level taking control.
Dodge? No, too slow. Block? The impact will shatter my arm. Attack? I'll be shredded before—
So what?
An impulse. From nowhere and everywhere at once.
Desire. Use desire.
Maxime didn't understand. But he obeyed.
He plunged inward, into that reservoir of mana pulsing at the core of his being. But this time, he didn't seek raw power. He sought something more subtle. An essence. The very essence of what Eros was.
The desire to live. The desire to win. The desire to dominate.
And he projected it.
An invisible wave swept across the battlefield. All four Sphinx froze instantly, their golden eyes widening. Their bodies trembled. Then, one by one, they knelt.
[SKILL UNLOCKED: DOMINANT PRESENCE (RANK D)]
Description: Projects the essence of Primordial Desire, forcing lower-level beings to acknowledge your divine authority. Duration and effectiveness depend on the difference in power.
Cost: 45 Mana
Mana: 88/178
Maxime panted, blood still flowing down his back. The Sphinx remained kneeling, heads bowed, trembling.
"Speak," he ordered, surprised by the authority in his own voice. "Who sent you?"
The first Sphinx slowly raised its head. When it spoke, its voice was a strange harmonic, masculine and feminine intertwined.
"Lady Bastet. We guard her temple. We test those who dare approach."
"A test?"
"All must prove their worth." The Sphinx bowed its head deeper. "You have succeeded, Ancient One. We recognize your essence. We remember what you were."
A shiver ran through Maxime. What I was.
"Let us pass."
"As you command."
The four Sphinx rose, spread their wings, and flew toward the temple. Within seconds, they were nothing more than dots in the blazing sky.
Maxime collapsed onto the sand, the pain in his back becoming unbearable now that the adrenaline ebbed.
Nyx appeared beside him instantly, kneeling in the sand.
"Idiot." But her voice was gentle. "Why did you use a skill you don't control? You could have completely drained your mana."
"I… didn't have a choice." Each word cost him an effort. "They were going to kill me."
"No." Her hands settled on his back, and the familiar cold of her magic flooded the wounds. "I would have intervened before that. But you did something remarkable." She leaned in, her mouth close to his ear. "You accessed a fragment of your true power. Dominant Presence. That was one of your signatures. Lesser gods bent the knee at your mere approach."
Maxime grimaced as his flesh slowly knit itself back together. It hurt—far more than the first time she had healed him.
"Why… does it hurt more?"
"Because the wounds are deeper." Nyx continued her work, relentless. "You won't die, but you will bear scars. Even gods keep scars from the wounds that matter."
Several minutes passed. Eventually, the pain faded into a throbbing numbness. Maxime could move again, though stiffly.
[HP: 91%]
[HEMORRHAGE: Stopped]
[PERMANENT SCARS: +4]
"You really would have intervened?" he asked as he stood with her help.
Nyx looked him straight in the eyes.
"Always." Then she smiled, almost mischievous. "But I like watching you fight. It's… exciting."
Before he could respond, a voice echoed from the temple, warm and playful, like a purr.
"How touching. Eternal Night playing nursemaid."
Maxime and Nyx turned as one.
A figure now stood at the temple entrance, several hundred meters away yet perfectly visible. A woman with bronzed skin, tall and supple, dressed in almost transparent white linen that concealed none of her generous curves. Short black hair framed a face with feline features: almond-shaped emerald eyes, full lips stretched into a predatory smile. Cat ears emerged from her hair, and a fluffy tail swayed lazily behind her.
Bastet. Goddess of Joy.
[BASTET — LEVEL 34]
[DANGER: EXTREME]
[Fragment Guardian: Incarnate Passion]
She descended the temple steps with liquid grace, every movement calculated to draw the eye. When she spoke again, her voice was an intimate murmur despite the distance.
"So little Eros has returned." Her green eyes fixed on Maxime with predatory intensity. "Less glorious than I remember, but…" She licked her lips. "…still just as appetizing."
Nyx stepped slightly in front of Maxime, defensive posture.
"Bastet. Return the fragment."
The cat-goddess burst into laughter, a musical and dangerous sound.
"Return it? Oh, dear Nyx. Where would the fun be in that?" She stopped about twenty meters away, her tail lashing the air. "No, no. If he wants that fragment…" Her gaze slid over Maxime, undressing him with her eyes. "…he'll have to earn it. Like before."
"How?" Maxime's voice was steadier than he would have thought.
Bastet smiled, revealing canines slightly too sharp.
"A game. My conditions. My ground." She gestured, and the massive temple doors opened with a rumble of stone. "Enter, little god. Prove to me that you deserve what you seek."
"And if I refuse?"
Bastet's smile turned feral.
"Then I keep the fragment. And you remain incomplete. Eternally."
Nyx placed a hand on Maxime's arm.
"It's a trap."
"Of course it's a trap." Bastet shrugged. "But it's also your only option. So?" She extended a hand toward the dark entrance of the temple. "Will you play with me, Eros?"
Maxime exchanged a look with Nyx. She shook her head imperceptibly—a silent warning.
But he didn't really have a choice, did he?
"I'm going in." He started walking toward the temple. "Alone."
"NO." Nyx's voice cracked like a whip. "I'm coming with you."
Bastet wagged a finger, mocking.
"Ah-ah. My game, my rules." Her eyes gleamed. "The little god enters alone. Or not at all."
Maxime turned back to Nyx. She was trembling—rage or fear, impossible to tell.
"I'll come back," he promised. "I swear it."
"Maxime…"
"Trust me."
He turned away before she could reply and walked toward the temple entrance. Bastet stepped back gracefully to let him pass, her smile widening.
"Brave. Stupid. But brave." She leaned in, her mouth close to his ear. "I can't wait to see if you're still as… talented."
Maxime ignored the shiver running down his spine and crossed the threshold.
The doors slammed shut behind him with the sound of a tomb.
Darkness swallowed him.