Secrets of the Tomb Main Story 2-1: Day of Prayer Miracle
Overview
- Stage Cost: None
- First Clear Rewards:
Astral Memory x10
Guide
- Hover to view spoiler content.
Script
Hessu Ruins
The Day of Prayer has finally come. Go to the Hessu Ruins with the NXX members to get to the bottom of things.
You: Today's the Day of Prayer...
You: There also seems to be far more visitors who've come to the Hessu Ruins. I guess they're all here for the Day of Prayer?
Artem: I wonder how this all mythical pharaoh will display her power...
Marius: I hope it won't be too obvious. If the trick is revealed at a single glance... then that'll make things too boring for me.
Luke: Well, that might not be a bad thing. If we can see through the charade instantly, then we can solve this case faster.
You: Oh! I think Ms. Arkwright is coming over!
You: Just a moment, everyone. I should say a word of hello to her.
Scarlett Arkwright seems to have something to say. Have a chat with her.
Scarlett Arkwright: Hello, Ms. [Player]. Did both you and Dr. Richter end up coming here?
Scarlett Arkwright: Today is the Day of Prayer. I'm sure you two will witness the same miracle that captivated me.
Scarlett Arkwright: Hmm? Did you bring your other friends as well?
You: Ah... Well... Yes. We are on a group tour.
Scarlett Arkwright: Excellent. The more, the merrier.
Scarlett Arkwright: In that case, should I tell your friends about the almighty pharaoh, Hepharet?
You: Thank you for your offer, but we want to look around a little more before the ceremony starts.
Scarlett Arkwright: All right, I'll see you at the ceremony later then.
Talk to the NXX members to find out if they made any discoveries in the ruins.
Luke: ...
You: Luke, what's wrong? Why do you look so serious?
Luke: I overheard a visitor telling someone else the secret to pharaoh Hepharet's immortality...
You: Hmm? What did that person say?
Luke: That person said that the priests that served Hepharet mastered the mystical arts of being able to reshape flesh and bone.
Luke: So, whenever the pharaoh's body grew weak or fell ill...
Luke: The priest would then use this secret technique to replace the Pharaoh's body with a young and healthy one.
Luke: And that was how Hepharet achieved her immortality. She was able to constantly repair her mortal flesh.
You: ... That doesn't sound scientific at all.
You: That being said, this idea of constant replacement... Hmm, isn't that quite similar the metabolism of our bodies?
You: So in a way... it's not entirely out of the realm of science.
Luke: Yeah, if a person can constantly replace their aging cells, then that person will never grow old. They might even become immortal.
Luke: I feel like this whole thing is quite absurd, but... there's a weird kind of credibility to it.
You: Well, it's only possible in theory...
You: For the people that lived in ancient Khaimit... this level of technology beyond their reach.
Artem: Why do they need a water jug? Hmm...
You: Huh? What water jug?
Artem: Look over there... I noticed that quite a few of the visitors brought jugs of various sizes with them today.
Artem: Also, those jugs seem to be empty...
You: Now that you mention it... I actually do see someone walking around with a water jug.
You: What are they doing? Is there some special ritual going on today?
Artem: Well, it might be one of the customary activities the people do on the Day of Prayer... Let's just see how things play out.
Vyn: ... That is a fairly intriguing theory.
You: What's interesting?
Vyn: A visitor just told me that the mummy of Pharaoh Hepharet is actually not in the Rubis Museum...
Vyn: Instead, she is living an eternal and happy life with her secret lover in the Hessu Ruins.
You: She's living eternally underground? That's no different from being a mummy to me...
You: Wait a minute... That sounds oddly familiar...
Vyn: Hmm? Did someone else say the same thing?
You: Yes, it's that weird guy we met in Rubis before. He also said Hepharet was not in the museum...
Vyn: It seems like a group of people sincerely believe the rumors circulating about the pharaoh.
Marius: Miss, I just heard a very interesting story. Wanna hear it?
You: What is it?
Marius: Take a guess.
You: ... If you heard it in the Hessu Ruins, then I'm guessing that there's a good chance it's related to the ruins themselves?
Marius: Well... You got half of it.
Marius: I just heard someone say that the great pharaoh Hepharet will descend upon this land and rule Khaimit once more.
Marius: And when that time comes, the Hessu Ruins will be reconstructed and turned into the palace of the pharaohs once again.
You: Huh? That just sounds like a bunch of mumbo jumbos...
Marius: That's what makes it interesting. I think the guy who made this stuff up must have a talent for writing novels.
It's finally time for the prayer ceremony. Quickly have a look around the stone slab.
A commotion stirs within the crowd. Shortly after, a mass of people rush toward the east exhibition area.
While engrossed in your chat with the others, you raise your head and see Scarlett Arkwright waving at you from within the crowd.
The ceremony is finally starting.
Hessu Ruins
You: Hmm... I guess this is the prayer ceremony?
After walking into the exhibition area, you realize that this space, now packed with visitors, is no longer the same as before.
Luke: Something... feels a bit weird.
You see a group of people creeping around the stone statue, seemingly chanting something.
Among them are teenagers and elders, people from Khaimit, and visitors from foreign countries.
The Hessu Ruins is no longer the mysterious and quiet place that you remembered, but something more akin to a gathering place for devout followers.
Vyn: ... They are all here, just as I expected.
You: Hmm?
Vyn: The missing people. Look at the ones next to Ms. Arkwright... They are all people who mysteriously went missing from Stellis City this past month.
You: !!!
Artem: ...
The participants of the ceremony spontaneously place money, gold, and silver trinkets next to the pharaoh's statue, as if giving an offering.
In this day and age, it's quite rare to see so many banknotes in one place. You feel slightly dizzy from the sight...
Can the earnest prayers of the visitors really call forth the pharaoh?
Is it actually... possible?
Marius: Look! What's that?
Luke: A person? No... It's a shadow!
You: Oh my...
While you are stunned at the sight, the scenery inside the stone chamber morphs. A light blinks to life in the center of the dim room...
Mysterious white mist gather and swirl around the stone slab and the people kneeling in front of in a show of devotion.
Amidst the white mist, a figure seemingly dressed in the garment of ancient pharaohs slowly descends on top of the stone slab...
The shadow rests on the slab. Her figure is slender. Her features are blurred, yet mysterious.
At that very moment, the people inside the stone chamber reach a feverish crescendo...
Tourist A: Oh great pharaoh, please heed our prayers.
Tourist B: Your divine highness! Please show me the way...
Traveler C: I swear to forever follow in your footsteps, oh great pharaoh. Please grant me eternal life!
You: ...
The whole experience is extremely surreal.
Your intuition tells you that there must be some secret behind this whole thing that you have yet to uncover.
However...
By the time you regain your inquisitive mind, the mysterious white mist has already begun to dissipate.
And alongside the white mist, the mysterious shadow also disappears into nothingness...
You: Ah! It disappeared!
Marius: That was pretty out there. What just happened?
Vyn: I am unable to think of an explanation. That really was an intriguing phenomenon.
Artem: I want to look at that slab again. There might be some other markings there.
Luke: Come on, let's go over.
You: Okay!
Summary
Character(s)
