It's the shadow of the murmur.

The shadow spread from under the bed, from the fireplace, from the corners of the robe, from the depths of the heart, from all places where the sun could not shine, thick and sticky like oil, it wriggled and stood up, condensed into a dark human form.

Monber, dressed in a suit and leather shoes, sat across from Thoth, and although they were dressed differently, their eyebrows and postures were so similar, like the inside and outside of a mirror. A sense of being out of the world came over him, and Thoth thought to himself, "I've rarely dressed so formally before, and this is going to give a speech?" Race lessons? Meeting? "Perhaps it was because he had been lazily nesting in the Royal Academy for two whole days, and he had long since lost the vigilance he had with Solomon, and the string in his head had not yet been tightened.

"Tired?" Meng Bai asked.

"What?"

"In order to maintain a semblance of peace, you will not spend less effort than on the battlefield." Meng Bai's tone was soft, but the words he said were very weighty, "Because you know that the empire was established because the six gods could not agree, and on the other hand, if they agreed, it would not be difficult to destroy this huge country. Will you have the energy to finish that by then? ”

Thoth whispered, "And when their living space is compressed to the extreme, that's when they come to an agreement. ”

He selectively ignores the doubts of his other self, and he does not dare to think about them, because those things that are decided by a lonely person cannot be shaken in the slightest.

Meng Bai's smile was friendly and dangerous: "But isn't this what you want to see?" ”

Thoth's pupils shook, and he raised his head suddenly.

"Why are those witches who destroy families, sprinkle plagues all over villages, and have innocent people's blood on their hands, but they can still be blessed by the powerful, talking and laughing in the shadows of their clothes and temples? Could it be that in the eyes of those nobles, a hundred and ten lives are no match for a good-looking skin? ”

"Why is it that those children, who are only fifteen or sixteen years old, when they should be literate or hyphenate or learn a trade, are imprisoned and violated by a group of fat-headed fellows, and their bodies are full of unsightly traces? Their future has been ruined in such an unreasonable manner, why do the perpetrators still think it is their honor? ”

"Why is it that a person in a high position can sacrifice someone alive just because of a 'disrespectful look'? Watching the corpse turn to ashes in the flames, listening to the pleading and wailing fade, but always smiling, as if it had killed not a man, but a lamb...... What is life to them? ”

"Something like this happens every day, and the ruling class condones it." "The lives of the commoners and the lowly are nothing but a mustard to them, and the virtues proclaimed by the Creator are far less important than their pleasures and honors...... You know the sin and depravity that lies beneath the glory, like a beautiful robe full of cavernous caverns. ”

"Rather than sewing in vain, let's light a fire of purification—"

"Go and destroy, the end of destruction is new life—"

"Bump—"

The strings screeched violently, the illusion shattered by the loud noise, the sun was still shining, and Thoth felt chills all over.

"Ridiculous!"

He squeezed the word out of his teeth with almost all his strength, and his fingers dug into the strings without realizing it.

The fluttering is the sound of birds flapping their wings.

Amun, who had finished his two painted skins, thought he would see a scene of a well-behaved hidden sage in the eyes of his colleagues, draped in sheets, in pajamas, barefoot, playing the lyre with his legs crossed or translating old writings—perhaps he would draw a little figure on a piece of papyrus before he could write a few words, and on the table there were tomato sauce fries that he begged a doppelganger to bring from the docks—according to Thoth, he would rather go to the docks and get a cheap snack full of oil smoke and unhealthy, Don't eat a lamb chop with red wine under the crystal lamp, and deal with all kinds of people in the process.

But the truth is very different from what he guessed, and Amon straightened his monocle - even though it had nothing to do with sight.

Thoth sat upright, writing something with a blank face, and from a distance it looked densely packed with charts and charts of regular geometric figures. The loose pajamas were replaced by tight robes in a deep purple hue. All in all, he was at odds with the celebration of the founding day from head to toe, and even Trensost, who was known for his one-eyed and strict self-discipline, would be willing to bow down.

Amun's impression was that even in the early days of the glorious era, when people were busy rebuilding after the war, Thoth would never give himself overtime, cherishing every Sabbath and holiday, and preferring to visit restaurants and pastry shops for new tastes rather than earn an extra fee, or engage in creative activities, allowing his thoughts to turn into notes, blocks, symbols, stickmen, and bouncing on papyrus.

"Why, is Solomon so unscrupulous as to squeeze his subordinates on holidays?" In the next second, Amon appeared behind Thoth's chair, and his tone was unabashedly yin and yang, but it quickly got stuck, because there were a few big words written prominently on the piece of paper-

"Statistics on the prayers of believers on the north shore of the sea during the 32nd ~ 33rd years of the Solomonic calendar and the current situation of life reflected behind it"

The angel's hand on the back of the chair shook at the time of "......", and the title was a bar chart with the words "successful career", "good health", "urgent help", "family marriage and love", "with the help of strength", etc., and further down there were line charts and pie charts, and Thoth was analyzing the degree of mystery's intrusion into the daily lives of ordinary people based on the "Extraordinary Item Lending Registration Form" that came up from the sacrifices of believers. As a born mythical creature who does not need believers and has never been, Amon suddenly felt a pressure - this is an indescribable human nature, and students under the exam-oriented education system should be deeply aware of this, and wail "Don't roll, don't roll, don't roll".

"You're here."

Thoth looked back at Him, the weariness in his eyes flashing with a gentle smile.

"I finally understand why the god of war can't infiltrate your city-state." Amon stared at the pillar of "love marriage" and found that it was especially high for two months a year. "Because He is definitely not as ...... as you are Exhaustive. ”

"You think I'm too nosy?"

Amon was noncommittal and clicked on the "Family Marriage" column, "I remember that you don't have emotional authority. ”

"In order to catch exotic fish, people in the coastal areas often go out to sea for a month. At first, a pearl diver prayed to me because she missed her fiancé, so I sent a bluebird to bring back her husband's token, and when the news spread, the bluebird became a 'messenger for lovers'. ”

Speaking of which, Thoth's eyes bent into two arcs of purple moon, radiating a nostalgic glow.

"Well, how do they always resemble in strange places."

The words were soft, but Amon heard them clearly, and the worm's heart twitched inexplicably, and he quietly changed the subject, about the two "painted skins"—one a self-portrait of a hidden sage, and the other a self-portrait of his legendary "elven lover", who, at the last time they met, asked him to take them to all paths, and to shake them before the eyes of extraordinary beings of every person.

Thoth removed the paper, spread the skin on the table, and traced the dummy's facial features, which had become blurred with the passage of time, in blood-soaked ink. His concentration in painting is the same as that of his execution, but when it comes to creative activity, his expression loosens a little, his exhaustion and numbness are replaced by the brilliance of deliberation, and the vigor of life soaks the brow and eye of the "elven lover" like spring rain, and her smile is full of enchanting beauty, and finally Thot scratches his fingers and brushes his slightly upturned lips.

"For the sake of me helping you run errands, can you satisfy my curiosity? Like who is she? ”

"Famous actors of our time." Thoth put away the pen and ink and waited for the skin to dry naturally.

Amon raised his eyebrows suggestively, "That's it?" ”

Thoth glanced at him, "If you're expecting some peachy news, you're going to be disappointed...... Sit tight and beware of falling into a concussion. ”

Amon was sitting in a dangerous, non-replicating high-backed chair, with the first two legs hanging high and the back two legs swaying back and forth in a frightening way with a small friction surface as a fulcrum. Hearing this, the Angel of Time not only had no intention of repenting, but also cocked a chair leg, spun around like an acrobat without danger, and shook his head with a straight head—if Newton had known about it, he would probably have been so angry that he would have risen from the coffin in anger by this operation that beat all the laws of mechanics.

"Heck, since it's not peachy news, it doesn't hurt to reveal a little, right? Please—" Amon blinked, a hint of curiosity about the baby, which was his forte. Even if he knew that he was pretending, Thoth would not have a problem with him.

But this time, Thoth was silent.

Angry? Amon gently pressed each chair leg to the ground.

"People in our time will go through a very important exam. This exam was as intense as crossing a single-plank bridge, so everyone worked very hard and was very tired in order to reach the heights they wanted, and I was no exception. "In order to keep going and not collapse early, many students will imagine their post-exam pleasures, big meals, travel, beautiful clothes, long-awaited love, and so on." And my father, in order to motivate me, said that if I got in, I would ...... How many points? Anyway, as long as I met that standard, he would buy me her anniversary limited edition album. ”

With that, Thoth raised his chin at the thin skin, and Amon lowered his legs.

"Then my father got my wish, and I flipped through the beautifully wrapped booklet a hundred times, so much so that I couldn't help but reproduce her appearance when I painted the skin." After a bit of reflection, Thoth remembered what was going on, "How are they doing?" ”

"Don't think about fooling angels, especially those who are highly inspired."

Thoth sighed, "I think so. ”

"But demigods and below are generally tricked around." Amon added the second half of the sentence as if comfortingly, "By the way, how did you forge the spirit thread?" None of the master puppets of the Zarathu family saw the clue. ”

"Personal Confidential." Thoth smiled mysteriously, looking at the little crow who was still curious in the last second, he became disdainful in the next second, and couldn't help but sigh that he was so quick to turn his face.

"It's like I can't do it...... Anyway, now the whole imperial capital is singing the praises of your love story with the elves, and although the princess seems to be quite dismissive of the rumors, her face is not good, and she would have wanted to hand you an invitation. ”

But I don't know where to go. In fact, many people are trying to invite the Hidden Sage to a social event, only to discover that He does not have a mansion or manor, at least not on the surface.

"Huh? Oh, that's good. ”

Clouds of shimmering information floated in the air, and Thoth held his breath and put them into the two painted skins in a certain order—the emperor and princess were more concerned about whether the two painted skins could fool the angel's eyes after being transformed than whether the royal family had folded face, which was a rather challenging subject.

It was clear that he was so angry that he jumped to his feet two days ago, but now he is so indifferent that he seems to have nothing to do with him.

"How did you think of how to reject Solomon?" Amon could only think of this one possibility.

"Too lazy to think about it." Thoth placed the last piece of information in the mouth of the painted skin and raised his eyes, "He's a lawyer, I can't talk about him." ”

"After watching the play two days ago, we chatted for a while in the private room. He said that there is no basis for affection, and that there will only be resentment between the two sides, and he said that feelings can be cultivated slowly in marriage and family life; I said that I enjoyed contemplation in celibacy more than in running a family, and He said that raising offspring was a sacred and honorable duty from which I would derive more satisfaction than ever before; I said that it was also very laborious to deal with the relationship between the heirs and the believers, and he said that the heirs have my blood in my blood, continue my life, and are the thousands of incarnations of me in the world, and the believers should love them as they love me......" Thoth's voice was calm and fast, "I almost said: I'm sorry Your Majesty, I'm not interested in becoming a relative of the royal family, you can find someone else." ”

"I admit He has a point, but I can also feel His disdain for my way of being in the world." Thoth sneered, "In that case, what are you talking about, just escort me to the wedding scene." ”

Amon was silent for a moment, "I don't think so, but if He really ......"

"Then I'll ......"

"Just?"

"I'll ......," Thoth pondered for a moment, "do you think it's better to go to Medici's house or to marry the serpent?" ”

“……”

"Huh? Isn't it funny? ”