You can run from fate, but you can’t hide from it.
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Makoto Morishita
Translation: Amanda Haley
Lettering: Rochelle Gancio
What They Say
The Ennead priesthood has given Im a new objective: Return to Egypt and use “Damnatio Memoriae” to wipe the record of Prince Djoser clean from the world. But when Djoser suddenly shows up-in the flesh?-the plan is forced to change. How will Im cope with seeing his friend again…when his only option is to kill him…?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Imhotep is given his new mission to not only prevent the resurrection of Djoser but to erase him from existence. Little does the priesthood realize, someone already freed Djoser from eternal sleep. A clay shell marches the world in his place, and the group didn’t even need to go to Egypt to find him. Djoser has tracked Im down in Japan.
Most of this volume is one spectacular battle against Djoser. The former pharaoh cannot be stopped by ordinary attacks. He almost mortally wounds Harugo and toys with Im’s indecision. Im doesn’t want to erase his former friend from existence. That wouldn’t bring back the dead. All that would accomplish is hiding the sins that were already committed.
Harugo recognizes that Im can’t land a killing blow on Djoser while his heart isn’t in it. It takes a combination of threats to friends and obvious peril to finally make Im buckle down and confront what his former friend has become.
Throughout all of this is the strings of fate. Many times the others point out to him that all of this is happening because he went against the will of the gods. Yet Im can’t believe that fate would cruelly throw only abject despair into his future. Priest Khonsu is another who doesn’t think fate is all it’s cracked up to be. He has witnessed the cruel nature of the priesthood and how it uses young victims’ anger and hatred to turn them into weapons to fight magai. Khonsu lurks about as a bridge between Im and the Ennead, but his motives are a mystery. I presume he wants to take over the priesthood himself but it’s hard to know what he really desires.
This entire volume isn’t one long battle though. In the aftermath, there is a change in plans to stay in Japan. While the others head off into the night to take on local threats and wait for Djoser’s next move, the group realizes they need to get stronger to stop the enemy. With all of that downtime, Im shows up in the least likely place, Hinome’s school. She too struggles with the thought of losing the friend who saved her from a life of loneliness. The injustice of it all lingers over her even while Im becomes the weird transfer student wunderkind. Which closes out the volume with a small, silly gift from Im to her which is extremely cute and fitting.
There are only a few extra gag comics for extras, as well as a page of translation notes.
In Summary
Ah yes, fate versus free will. The Djoser that Im knew is long gone. In his place is an evil construct that taunts his opponents mercilessly. While Djoser pulls no punches Im cannot set aside his memories of his friend. The struggle between Im and his decision is the focus of this volume and it plays out from the battlefield in a visceral representation of what is at stake. This volume is a big improvement over the last and goes far to make Im a more likable protagonist. It also sets up the role of Khonsu is in this conflict, creating a third wheel that threatens to jeopardize the priesthood.
Content Grade: B +
Art Grade: B +
Packaging Grade: B +
Text/Translation Grade: A –
Age Rating: Teen
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: May 26, 2020
MSRP: $15.00 US / $19.50 CAN
