Their silhouettes easily surpassed the height of the crops, allowing her not to get lost and to catch up with them in a few quick strides. Neither of them had noticed the young human's sudden stop, and she didn't want to bother them by recounting what had happened. It was normal for her body to be on alert; she was completely unfamiliar with the place. Everything seemed strange and unusual, and Anaïs knew her sometimes paranoid mind tended to daydream and imagine the worst based on simple details.

"It's here, beneath us. We will have to dig," announced Anubis as the amulet glowed and vibrated intensely.

He pulled out a few barley stalks to reach the soil, then Isis took over by crouching above the small cleared area. She brought a hand close, without touching the ground, then closed her eyes to concentrate. For the first few seconds, nothing happened. Then, suddenly, Anaïs could feel the earth vibrating under her feet. It was barely perceptible, but the sensation resembled a small-magnitude earthquake. The goddess had used her magic to command the earth and the roots to bring them what they sought. A small hole formed at the spot under her fingers, something digging the soil from the inside, then a shroud appeared. It covered an object about the size of a handball.

"What part is it?" Anubis inquired, hurriedly.

Now that they possessed the first piece, the alert could be given at any moment. Isis gently picked up Osiris's part with both hands. The love she had for her husband was evident in the way she held his flesh as if it were the most precious thing she had ever been given to carry. With her delicate fingers, she grasped the shroud and unwrapped the piece to reveal one of the most vital organs for a living being.

"It's his heart," she noted without a hint of disgust at holding such a thing in her divine palms. "How ironic that he decided to keep this part closest to his home. Murdering and dismembering his body wasn't enough for his twisted mind; he had to taunt us as well?"

"It was I who buried it here," a female voice rose that Anaïs did not recognize.

Immediately, Isis covered the heart with the shroud and held it against her chest to protect it. Anubis, on guard, transformed into a jackal, ready to pounce on the individual who had surprised them in their secret quest. He moved closer to the two women, positioning himself in front of them to shield them from any sudden attack. The silhouette of the intruder gradually became clearer through the barley field. Anaïs had to squint due to the harsh sunlight to observe the newcomer and saw a woman with braided black hair, violet eyes, and surreal beauty. She wore a beautiful golden dress hidden under a faded khaki linen cloak to remain unnoticed. She was a tall woman with a slim waist and a curvaceous figure. She could have been a model in the modern world.

"Nepthys? What are you doing here?" roared Isis, wary.

Seth's wife? That such an abject man could have such a wife... I see where Anubis gets his beauty from, she mentally chuckled while looking at the jackal god, who had not abandoned his defensive stance even in front of his biological mother.

"I want to help you," she explained, raising her hands to show she came in peace. "Seth wanted to keep Osiris's heart in the palace to ensure you would never find all the pieces."

"How did you manage to retrieve it? I doubt Seth let you take it willingly," Anubis questioned sharply, not believing the woman's words.

"My husband thinks the organ is still sealed in its box. I replaced it with the heart of one of our deceased servants so he wouldn't suspect anything."

Nephtys spoke calmly as if she were facing two wild, wounded animals that could attack at any moment, which was indeed the case. Her diction was slow, her voice low, her tone honeyed, and her words calculated. She had the stature of a queen, undeniably. She spoke with her head held high and her body straight, with the dignity of her status. Anaïs didn't know her and couldn't judge her acting skills, but she seemed sincere at first glance. At least, that was the impression the young human had, and her instinct supported this assertion.

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The two deities seemed to agree, as Isis relaxed and Anubis resumed his human form, although his closed expression reflected lingering suspicion. He didn't trust her at all. His adoptive mother welcomed Nephtys more kindly, even allowing herself to smile at her. She was not resentful toward her husband's mistress.

So, it's just me she half hates, great. Sharing the husband is fine, but no one approaches the son, right? Anaïs concluded mentally, narrowing her eyes to observe Nephtys.

She was not fond of authority or individuals—especially women—telling her what to do, a sentiment inherited from Madame Hammer, one of the main supervisors at the orphanage who had never liked Anaïs and her best friend and made sure they knew it.

"Thank you," Isis exclaimed, approaching the queen and taking her hands in hers to express her gratitude.

Nephtys smiled in turn, reassured that her help was accepted and that her sister-in-law treated her with kindness and respect. Seeing the two stunning women side by side, and Anubis a meter away with his seductive face and brooding demeanor, it was clear that Anaïs didn't belong in their exclusive circle of deities. She was pretty for a human, she knew that, but she didn't have the grace and elegance of these two women who, besides being goddesses, were also queens. In comparison, she was just a simple peasant with a commoner language. Nephtys completely ignored her presence after quickly sizing her up when she arrived.

"Well, well, well," a new voice rose through the barley stalks, masculine and deep this time. "I suspected you were plotting something, my dear wife. It's a good thing I had you followed today."

A mountain of muscle approached their position with a dozen soldiers in bronze armor by his side. Their armor was gold-plated, indicating their belonging to the royal garrison. Anaïs didn't need to know this era to understand. Their chests were so smooth that the sun painfully reflected off them, and she had to look away to avoid being blinded. At the center of this battalion was Seth, the King of Egypt, or rather the Usurper of the throne. He was a tall man, nearly two meters, a real colossus whose muscular build was intimidating. He had hard features and a perfectly trimmed beard, along with brown hair tied in a high ponytail. He was as attractive as he was frightening, though Anaïs leaned more toward the latter descriptor at this moment.

"Get down," Anubis murmured in front of her. "Take the amulet and leave."

She complied, almost on autopilot, hiding among the crops and moving close enough to the god to retrieve the jewelry he let slip to the ground, his palm facing the young woman so Seth wouldn't see anything. Once she had the object in her possession, Anubis moved his fingers, urging her to leave. Adrenaline had taken over, allowing her to obey without faltering. Her brain had frozen when it realized they were trapped and that the king and his escort would not let them leave as if nothing had happened. Of course, the little human had no chance against a god and his armed soldiers. Now, only her instinct guided her body, allowing her to follow the jackal deity's orders.

Go, go, go, her mind repeated as she almost crawled to move the stalks as little as possible.

Anubis had bet on the fact that Seth hadn't paid attention to Anaïs since her body had been hidden behind the mother-son duo until then. If he chose to ignore the presence of humans like his wife, the possibility that he hadn't seen her and wouldn't suspect her disappearance was real. And even if he was aware, it gave her time to distance herself since the two deities could hold off their enemies. He would never suspect that the amulet was in the young woman's hands and not with Isis or Anubis.

At least, that was what the trio thought before Anaïs, still crouching, suddenly stopped when her eyes fell on a pair of sandals. She looked up, panicked, to find a soldier who had drawn his weapon and dared her to move. Her heart raced, her pulse echoed in her ears, and her instinct screamed that her life would end here. Her hand gripped the ankh firmly against her chest for strength, a habit she had developed after returning from her vacation. When her gaze met the soldier's and her body straightened and turned in a last-ditch effort to run towards the two deities to save herself, she realized she wouldn't survive this encounter. He had seen she had the amulet, and caught off guard by the young woman's desperate move, the soldier didn't hesitate and attacked.

A second later, a searing pain cut off Anaïs's breath, forcing her to stop. When she looked down to find the source of her agony, her wide eyes met the tip of the blade that had pierced her body, her heart, and the hand she held against her chest. The pain was so intense that her body froze, unable to move. Her legs finally gave out, her knees hitting the soft ground as the soldier withdrew his sword from her flesh.

Anaïs felt like she was watching the following seconds from outside her body, a third-person observer of her death. The amulet in her hand glowed, and when her fingers loosened from the jewelry, she realized her assailant's blade had shattered it into a thousand pieces. Anubis and Isis had turned around, their faces horrified, helpless witnesses to her fall and imminent death. She met Anubis's gaze as her vision began to darken, then slipped into total unconsciousness.