Egyptian Royal Gossip

Traveling through the desert was exceedingly boring.

The scenery here never changed. No matter where one went, all one saw was sand, sand, and more sand.

Aside from the occasional cactus, there was almost no other scenery to be found in the desert.

Searching for desert scorpions, scarabs, and sand snakes that wriggled sideways, leaving marvelous patterns in the sand, was one of the few pleasures available to desert travelers.

However, after joining Nahekt's caravan, Ye Ting found another source of amusement: asking Nahekt about Egypt's customs and local conditions.

As a merchant, Nahekt was one of the few Egyptians who traveled widely. Though he was not a high official, he was still rather knowledgeable about the various regions of Egypt.

Thus, as a traveler who had only recently arrived in Egypt, Ye Ting naturally treated him as a source of information.

Out of respect for the "noble" Ye Ting, Nahekt answered every question Ye Ting raised—some of which seemed exceedingly childish to him—without holding anything back.

At the same time, he became increasingly convinced that Ye Ting truly was a traveler from another land.

After all, some of his questions were things every Egyptian knew perfectly well. Though the young man before him was clearly highly learned, he knew nothing at all about them. He obviously had not spent long in Egypt.

For precisely that reason, Nahekt grew ever more admiring of Ye Ting.

"To have the courage to travel alone in a foreign land, Mr. Thoth is truly remarkable," Nahekt flattered him. "Mr. Thoth must be a very capable man, or he could never have set out alone. These days, even Egypt is terribly chaotic."

"Oh? How so?" Ye Ting asked curiously.

"Ah, you're a traveler from abroad, so it's no wonder you know nothing about it. In