Pet King

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Fina wasn’t interested in listening to Zhang Zian and Richard talk about boy-girl relationships. During that chat, she went straight into the ruins alone.

Although there were no tourists, every inch of land and every broken brick and stone pillar here was a part of history. Walking amongst the ruins seemed to bring one back to an era more than 2,000 years ago.

The ruined wall carried small glimpses of its former glory.

What was worrying was that it did not seem to be properly protected. Many walls had cracked, and the iconic spire had been severely weathered. It would not be long before it was entirely eroded, although the measurement of time here was fairly long. In fact, as long as there was no torrential rain or earthquake for 100 years, it would not be a problem for several decades.

What surprised Fina was that it found some traces of life amongst the ruins. These were not the traces left by rare tourists, but the subtle traces of those who’d stayed for a very long time.

It jumped onto a broken wall and turned to look around. Coincidentally, Zhang Zian was also looking around, but his gaze was on the distant town of Siwa instead of checking out the vicinity.

Yes, someone should have lived here.

It saw a few houses at the foot of the hill on the other side. These were houses built in modern times, each of which was boxy and surrounded by a small wall that seemed to have no effect on keeping unwanted guests away.

Who lived here? Fina had no idea.

Even if it was an outdated pagan god, even if this was only a ruin, this was still a sacred place. How could mere mortals live here?

It looked back at Zhang Zian and Richard. They were still gossiping, though the details were unintelligible. It seemed that they would not be leaving any time soon. So it jumped off the wall and ran to the houses at the foot of the hill.

The hills were very short, about 20 or 30 meters high, far lower than the high-rise apartment buildings in the coastal city. They collapsed between several broken walls but soon came back as one approached the houses.

One of the houses seemed to have its door open. However, there were no movements or signs of anyone living in the space. The other doors were locked, and they were equally silent.

Fina cautiously jumped onto a windowsill without a window.

Indoors, it was very dark. Fina’s pupils adjusted, and everything in the room came into view.

There was no one there. The house was empty.

Obviously, no one lived here. Thick dust was everywhere, setting off an eerie vibe. Fina’s sudden appearance frightened the bugs residing in the house, making them crawl around. The furniture in the house held no value. The former owner seemed to have led a simple, normal life.

Why had the person chosen not to live in a big town that was highly convenient for daily living and lived in such a remote area instead?

Fina thought of the old lady who picked bottles up. She’d brought a dog to the pet shop to help him. Perhaps the people here survived by picking up bottles and therefore could not live in town.

It shook its head slightly. This did not make sense. There was no indication that the price of housing in this small town was expensive. One could also choose to live at the edges of town, where the prices would definitely be affordable. Was there any reason to live out here, so far away?

At this moment, it suddenly noticed a mark on the wall. The mark was not very clear. Someone who did not know what to look for might’ve dismissed the mark as a random scratch or something left behind by children.

It jumped into the house, and its pupils quickly adjusted to the darkness. It walked to the edge of the marked wall and used her claws to remove the ash and dust covering the surface of the mark.

So this was it.

Fina immediately understood what was going on. Its initial displeasure for the owner changed to respect and admiration.

This was the mark of a temple guard.

Over the past 2,000 years, the family of the temple guards had been living here, silently guarding the temple of God and the temple of Amon. Even after the destruction of the shrine and temple, they were still doing so…

Judging from the details of the room, the temple guard may have lived here for several years, but for some reason they’d abandoned these responsibilities that had lasted for more than 2,000 years.

Fina did not blame them. Even if the pharaoh was around, they would not be qualified to blame them either.

Their persistence in guarding the temple for more than 2,000 years was beyond the typical moral obligation of mere mortals. Even if they’d decided to give up, they could not be blamed.

Besides, they may not have given up. If they’d wanted to give up, they could have given up long ago. It was more likely that they’d…run out of offspring to take on the work.

Fina looked at the rundown house again with respect.

Human beings were social animals, and their instinct was to live in a society and have communal lives. The amount of discipline and perseverance one needed to have to stay in a chamber, alone, for more than 2,000 years, was unfathomable.

Who would be willing to marry and have children with a guardian of the temple, only to live in such an environment?

In the past, they could rely on the power of religion. The faithful believed that the pharaohs would walk out of the pyramids once more to rule between good and evil. The guardians of the temple could capitalize on the faith that people had in good prevailing. These traits would be highly attractive to women who believed that the guardians had good moral standards. They would be willing to marry and carry the next generation of temple guardians.

However, in today’s era, the faithful had all but disappeared, or at least those who believed in ancient Egyptian religions. No woman today would be willing to marry a temple guardian and stay here for the rest of her life. Therefore, when the last temple guardian died, the lack of an heir apparent to take over was to be expected.

The duty of the temple guardian was to guard the shrine and the temple of Amon, but now that the shrine and the temple of Amon were in ruins, they did not do their jobs.

Fina did not blame them. Secular power and the tides of history were not things that could be resisted by several temple guardians. When the local government bombed the temple more than a hundred years ago, they may have tried to stop it, but they’d apparently failed. They lived with the humiliation of not being able to do their jobs. That alone was worthy of admiration and a sign of their loyalty.

Few tourists came to visit, but there would always be people coming. Uncivilized tourists usually left behind their rubbish, yet not much could be found within the ruins of the shrine hall. These were signs of the temple guardians’ diligence and work.

A family unit consisting of dozens and even hundreds of generations stayed at the foot of the hills, bearing a responsibility that would never have an end. The hardships they had to bear were unfathomable.

Fina felt pity for them. If they had come a few years earlier, perhaps it could’ve had the chance to thank an actual guardian for his work.

Fina had come in from the window but chose the door for its exit. Standing at the door and looking at the empty room, it whispered, “Thank you to all of you! Your duty is done!”

A gust of wind blew from the open door and hovered in the room for a few moments. Then it exited from the window, bringing with it gusts of dust as it rose into the sky.