A journey through the desert was exceedingly boring.
The scenery was monotonous, wherever one went, all that met the eye was sand, sand, and more sand.
Aside from the occasional cactus, there was scarcely any other sight to behold.
Hunting for sand scorpions, scarabs, and sand snakes that slithered sideways across the dunes, leaving behind strange patterns, was one of the few amusements available to desert travelers.
However, after joining Neht's caravan, Alaric gained another source of entertainment, questioning Neht about Egyptian customs and local affairs.
As a merchant, Neht was among the few Egyptians who traveled extensively. Though not a high official, he was still fairly knowledgeable about various regions of Egypt.
Thus, as a traveler newly arrived in Egypt, Alaric naturally treated him as a source of information.
Out of respect for the "noble" Alaric, Neht answered all of Alaric's questions, some of which even struck him as rather naïve, without holding anything back.
At the same time, he became increasingly convinced of Alaric's identity as a foreign traveler.
After all, some of the things Alaric asked were common knowledge to any Egyptian, yet this young man, clearly well-educated, knew nothing about them. It was obvious he had not been in Egypt for long.
Because of this, Neht's admiration for Alaric only deepened.
"To have the courage to travel alone to a foreign land, Mr. Thoth is truly remarkable," Neht flattered him.
"You must be very capable, sir. Otherwise, you wouldn't dare set out alone. After all, even Egypt is quite chaotic these days."
"Oh? How so?" Alaric asked with curiosity.
"Ah, you're an outsider, so it's no wonder you don't know. In truth, Egypt's turmoil has been a long time coming," Neht explained.
"Egypt used to be the strongest, most expansive, and most peaceful kingdom among all nations.
But my grandfather told me that ever since Pharaoh Pepi began his reign, everything changed.
He often said that Pharaoh Pepi was far too weak, local governors ignored his orders entirely.
Each province went its own way, some even raising private armies and collecting their own tolls."
"That sounds terrible."
"Indeed. From that point on, all merchant caravans had a hard time. After Pharaoh Pepi died a few years ago, things only grew worse.
As we conduct trade across Egypt, most of our earnings go to those governors. Prices everywhere are sky-high now, some citizens can't even afford spices."
For Egyptians, spices had always been a widely demanded commodity. Even women among the common folk liked to rub scented oil into their hair.
"So many people can't survive like this?"
"You're right," Neht nodded.
"My grandfather heard it from my great-grandfather, back then, there weren't nearly as many desert bandits.
Now, whenever we travel, we have to bring along several strong slave guards."
Alaric glanced at the nearby slaves. Several of them were indeed quite tall and imposing, far from ordinary slaves.
The curved blades hanging at their waists made it clear they possessed real fighting power.
However, Alaric caught something odd in Neht's words.
"Your great-grandfather?"
"That's right. My great-grandfather lived through the reign of Merenre I, before Pharaoh Pepi. Egypt was much more peaceful then.
You might not know this, but Pharaoh Pepi ruled for ninety-four years."
A reign of ninety-four years was truly a miracle among mortals, how many successors would have died off in that time?
It seemed this Pharaoh Pepi was the longest-reigning monarch in human history.
Marveling at the Pharaoh's longevity, Alaric continued to ask, "And then?"
"And then?" Neht shook his head.
"After Pharaoh Pepi died, Merenre II succeeded him. This Pharaoh was nothing like his father, perhaps he had been suppressed as heir for too long.
Though he was ambitious and eager to achieve great things, he was far too rash.
He clashed with the officials constantly, plunging the entire country into even greater chaos."
Neht's tone carried clear mockery, showing his disdain for Merenre II.
"So you're saying the current state of Egypt is partly his doing."
"Exactly," Neht nodded.
"When those big shots fight among themselves, it's people like us who suffer. Because of them, corvée labor and taxes keep increasing, and many can't survive.
Still, he paid the price for his actions."
"The price?" Alaric asked, puzzled.
"People say Pharaoh Merenre II died of old age, but I don't believe it.
Pharaohs possess divine power, under normal circumstances, living as long as Pepi should have been possible. Merenre died in his seventies.
How could he have simply wasted away so easily? Rumors say he was assassinated by his ministers."
"For ministers to dare lay hands on a descendant of the gods, that's truly audacious," Alaric sighed.
"Tell me about it," Neht echoed. "Two Pharaohs dying within a single year, how could Egypt not descend into chaos? It's just a pity for Merenre's young bride.
Widowed at such a young age, and then treated as a puppet… though with a husband that old, whether she remained chaste hardly mattered.
No, that's not right, when it comes to Pharaohs, perhaps ordinary logic doesn't apply.
After all, even at such an advanced age, Pharaoh Pepi managed to father Pharaoh Nitocris."
When it came to gossip about great figures, even people of this era showed keen interest, no different from those of later times.
"But who exactly is Pharaoh Nitocris?" Alaric asked, though he had already heard a familiar name.
"Ah, Pharaoh Nitocris is indeed one of the few good Pharaohs," Neht said, his tone tinged with respect, an emotion absent when he spoke of Pepi or Merenre II.
"Like Merenre, she is a child of Pharaoh Pepi. But she was born when Pepi was already old, so she is very young, only twenty years old now.
Moreover, she was also the queen of Merenre II."
Impressive. Not only incest, but also an old man with a young wife, these Pharaohs really knew how to play.
Neht continued, "After Pharaoh Merenre died, the ministers simply pushed Princess Nitocris onto the throne as the new Pharaoh.
She was, after all, Pepi's daughter. But I think those ministers merely wanted someone young and easy to control."
Even an ordinary merchant knew of such matters, Nitocris's situation must have been quite miserable indeed.