Chapter 105. Scheme
Simply gathering enough people should have made this impossible for Faruzan to accomplish within only three days.
Unless—
A group of renowned Scholars had coincidentally gathered together somewhere, and Faruzan had happened to encounter them while traveling.
Only under such an absurdly unlikely circumstance could such a situation occur.
But how could that be possible?
Azar understood Sumeru's Scholars better than anyone.
He knew exactly how unlikely this was.
The probability of such a coincidence occurring was practically nonexistent.
One in a billion.
No...
Even that might have been an exaggeration of how impossible it was.
No one understood the habits of Sumeru Scholars better than Azar.
These people were either immersed in their research every day or on their way to conduct more research.
That was the true nature of Sumeru Scholars.
They were either busy or preparing to become busy.
Even Azar himself could not escape this fate. For the sake of the God Creation Project, he had been occupied for more than half a year without rest.
And yet, now his student was telling him that Faruzan had returned with renowned Scholars from all Six Schools.
"Is this Futsu Mitama's plan?"
Azar asked Dottore with a dark expression.
At this moment, aside from Futsu Mitama's actions, he could not think of any other explanation.
Of course, their plan had not been completely concealed.
The God Creation Project and the Akademiya's experiments within Sumeru City had already been partially exposed.
Therefore, Azar understood just how troublesome this situation was.
"Mm."
Dottore nodded.
Looking at Azar, he gave a faint chuckle.
"I will leave this matter to you. I suspect that today's events will reach their true conclusion. But delay as much as possible."
"As for Scaramouche... he is my responsibility. If the situation changes, I will naturally take action."
Azar's expression remained gloomy as he left.
He did not say anything else.
Because from Dottore's tone, he could already tell that the other party no longer intended to directly interfere with this matter.
Three days ago, Dottore had stopped Futsu Mitama completely.
The reason was simple.
At that time, Scaramouche had been at a critical stage.
If Futsu Mitama had interfered then, whether Scaramouche could successfully enter the Demon God Realm would have remained uncertain.
But now...
Scaramouche had already completed his transformation and could move freely.
Dottore's attitude toward him had also subtly changed. Previously, Dottore had been determined to act. Now, he would only intervene depending on how the situation developed.
Therefore, Azar no longer placed any hope in Dottore resolving this matter personally.
The current crisis—
He could only attempt to handle it himself.
After Azar departed, Dottore, the Lady, and Scaramouche fell into silence.
The atmosphere became strangely quiet.
Then Dottore spoke.
"Prepare yourself. It is time to fight, Scaramouche."
Dottore looked at Scaramouche and spoke calmly.
"Azar's situation has nothing to do with us. Because our plan is already nearing completion. There is no need to continue paying attention to the Akademiya."
"The only thing that matters now is Futsu Mitama."
The Lady nodded seriously.
She understood this very clearly.
The relationship between the Fatui and the Akademiya had always been nothing more than cooperation.
They had a common goal and used each other to achieve it.
Now that Scaramouche had successfully completed his transformation, the Akademiya could be discarded whenever necessary.
"How much longer do I have to wait?"
Scaramouche spoke with clear impatience. He was already eager to fight Futsu Mitama. He wanted to erase the humiliation from six months ago as soon as possible.
"Do not rush." Dottore remained calm. "Let us first see what Futsu Mitama intends to do."
At this point, there was no reason to act recklessly. Even if they wanted to hurry, there was nothing they could do except wait. If Futsu Mitama and his companions came to them—
Then they would simply meet them.
Dottore turned his gaze toward the Lady with interest.
"However... Signora, are you prepared?"
Hearing Dottore's question, the Lady's expression became somewhat gloomy.
She did not answer.
—
Meanwhile, Azar walked out from the underground area.
Passing through a group of Fatui soldiers, he entered a special elevator and returned toward the interior of the Akademiya.
"Great Sage Azar."
Alhaitham had been waiting there for some time.
He had always wanted to find an opportunity to enter the deeper areas of the Akademiya, but he had never found a suitable chance.
However, through Lesser Lord Kusanali, he had already learned about the situation unfolding at the Akademiya's entrance.
And now...
This was undoubtedly the perfect opportunity.
"It is you, Alhaitham."
Azar glanced at him. At this moment, he had no interest in wasting time with unnecessary conversations.
"Continue guarding this place. If anyone arrives, there is no need to stop them. Allow them to enter."
The people Azar was referring to were naturally the Fatui.
At this moment, he no longer trusted either the Matra or the Thirty.
There was no other choice.
The Thirty were too inefficient.
The Matra were too rigid.
But the Fatui... They were different.
They were willing to undertake any dirty task, any exhausting task. And even more frustratingly—
They seemed to enjoy doing it.
Sometimes, Azar could not help but wonder.
Why were other people's subordinates so reliable? Why were his own people always such a headache?
"Great Sage Azar, please allow me to speak frankly."
At this moment, Alhaitham decided to seize this opportunity.
He stepped closer and lowered his voice.
"The Fatui cannot be trusted."
Azar frowned.
His expression immediately became unpleasant. He was already dealing with enough trouble. Why did this person have to bring up such matters at this moment?
Alhaitham naturally noticed Azar's expression.
However, he continued seriously.
"I already know about Senior Faruzan's situation. I believe this is most likely a Fatui conspiracy. They intend to monopolize the results of the God Creation Project, so they are deliberately creating trouble for you at this critical moment."
Upon hearing Alhaitham's words, Azar's pupils contracted slightly.
A thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
Yes... who said that this necessarily had to be Futsu Mitama's doing? This could also be the Fatui.
Although Azar instinctively wanted to deny this possibility—
After all, the Fatui and the Akademiya currently had the same enemy.
Futsu Mitama. The future Electro Archon.
Theoretically, there was no reason for the Fatui to frame him.
Absolutely no reason—
No.
There was one.
"What are you thinking, Alhaitham?"
Azar stopped walking. His expression became slightly colder. Because he was a "smart person," he naturally considered countless possibilities.
However, he would not reveal his own thoughts.
Instead, he wanted to see whether Alhaitham had reached the same conclusion.
Time was running out.
There were too many problems waiting for him to handle.
The Akademiya currently had almost no available manpower.
And Azar had too many things to protect.
Alhaitham was now standing on the same side as him. Moreover, he was the one who had pointed out the Fatui's suspicious behavior. Depending on Alhaitham's answer—
Azar would decide whether to entrust this matter to him.
"It is simple."
Alhaitham remained calm.
"I suspect that today's situation was caused by the Fatui. They have too many reasons to do so. The people responsible for protecting the God Creation Project are the Fatui."
"And within Sumeru, the only force capable of informing so many Scholars in such a short period of time is also the Fatui."
"Therefore, I suspect that whether it was Senior Faruzan's safe departure or the current disturbance—It was all deliberate interference from them."
As Alhaitham finished speaking, a subtle light flashed through Azar's eyes.
He looked at Alhaitham with slight surprise. To be honest, Azar had not interacted with Alhaitham very much.
But there was no denying it.
What Alhaitham had said indeed made sense.
The matter regarding Faruzan was especially suspicious.
The Lady had claimed that she went to capture Faruzan, and according to her explanation, she had indeed managed to locate her.
However, because of Lesser Lord Kusanali—
The situation had been delayed for a considerable amount of time.
During that period, the Lady had not dared to act.
After all, if she truly captured Faruzan, there was a high possibility that Futsu Mitama would personally take action against her.
Therefore, the Lady had decisively chosen to retreat and hide underground, avoiding any further conflict.
And Alhaitham was correct about one thing.
Within Sumeru, the only force capable of gathering so many Scholars in such a short period of time—
Apart from the Akademiya's own Akasha System—
Was the Fatui.
So... was there truly a possibility that the Lady had deliberately allowed Faruzan to escape? That she had secretly informed the other Scholars and encouraged them to gather here, creating pressure against him?
Thinking about this possibility, along with the attitudes Dottore and the Lady had displayed earlier, Azar narrowed his eyes slightly.
His expression became colder.
"Good. Very good."
Azar muttered quietly. Although he understood that everything at the moment was merely speculation—
Although there was no actual evidence proving that the Fatui had done anything—
That was enough.
Speculation was already sufficient.
After all, he, Azar, was not a fool.
"What should we do, Azar?"
At that moment, several Sages and renowned Scholars arrived. Among them was Firnas, the Sage of the Kshahrewar Darshan.
Firnas's expression was also extremely unpleasant.
He had already received information regarding Faruzan bringing a large number of Scholars from the Six Schools.
And every single one of them was a renowned figure.
Firnas understood very clearly.
If this matter was not handled properly—The God Creation Project would be completely exposed. And he, along with the other Sages involved, would most likely lose everything they had built.
After all, the God Creation Project involved far too many things.
No matter how it was viewed—
This experiment was something ordinary people would never accept.
When the project was first proposed, if it were not for the immense temptation of creating a new Archon—there was no way so many Sages and Scholars of the Akademiya would have participated.
"I will handle this."
Azar spoke decisively.
"Firnas, you and Alhaitham will keep an eye on the Lady."
He was already suspicious of the Fatui.
Furthermore, the situation was developing too quickly.
He did not have enough manpower to assign people specifically to monitor the Fatui.
Therefore, the only choice was to send Firnas and Alhaitham to watch the Lady.
Firnas, being a Sage himself, was naturally suitable for this task.
"Ah?"
Firnas could not help but be stunned. He did not understand why Azar wanted him to monitor the Lady at such a critical moment.
Could it be—
This matter was actually connected to the Fatui?
The moment this thought appeared, Firnas's expression also changed. He looked toward Azar and nodded, indicating that he understood.
Azar then turned his attention toward Alhaitham.
"Remember, Alhaitham. If an unexpected situation occurs, protect Firnas immediately and report the details to me."
"Or..."
"Subdue the Lady if necessary."
Alhaitham nodded calmly.
He understood.
Seeing this, Azar also nodded.
He knew a little about Alhaitham's abilities.
As for whether Alhaitham could fight—that was not the most important thing. The main purpose was to have someone observe the Fatui and report their movements.
Of course, Azar still did not completely trust Alhaitham.
Otherwise...
He would not have sent Firnas together with him.
After giving these instructions, Azar gathered the other Scholars and Sages. He also ordered the Thirty to maintain order at the entrance.
As for the Matra?
Azar would have to be insane to let the Matra handle this situation.
—
After watching Azar and the others leave, Alhaitham's lips curved into a faint smile.
However, the expression disappeared almost instantly. He quickly returned to his usual calm appearance.
Firnas, whose expression remained grim, walked deeper into the Akademiya.
He also motioned for Alhaitham to follow.
Clearly...
He was preparing to confront the Fatui.
—
At the entrance of the Akademiya, a large group of Scholars stood gathered.
Leading them were Faruzan, Tighnari, Kaveh, Layla, and others.
They stood directly before the Akademiya.
"Why haven't they come out yet?"
Kaveh was becoming increasingly impatient.
He stared at the Thirty soldiers standing before them and shouted.
"Where is the Great Sage?! Where is Azar?! Tell him to come out!"
"What exactly is the God Creation Project?! Why has the number of weak and deceased people in Sumeru City suddenly increased recently?!"
"What happened to the Akasha System?!"
"And where is that Alhaitham guy? Doesn't he enjoy appearing in situations like this? As a Scribe, he is truly neglecting his duties!"
Facing Kaveh's accusations, the mercenaries of the Thirty remained silent.
Or rather...
They did not dare to say anything.
The number of Scholars standing before them was simply too large.
More than a hundred.
And every single one of them was an elite from the Six Schools. Any one of them had made contributions to the Akademiya.
Even if all six Sages gathered together—
Facing the questions of so many respected Scholars, they probably would not dare to casually respond.
Because since the founding of the Akademiya—
A Sage was ultimately only the academic representative of a single Darshan.
Only those who had made significant contributions and received recognition from countless Scholars could become a Sage.
And similarly—
If a Sage was unanimously rejected by the Scholars of their own Darshan—
Then they would no longer possess the authority they once held.
This was one of the reasons why Sumeru was different from Mondstadt, Liyue, and Inazuma.
Power in Sumeru did not solely come from strength or status. Knowledge and recognition carried equal weight.
Most of the Scholars present remained calm.
However, some of the more emotional ones had already begun shouting.
"Azar, that old bastard, come out!"
"Explain yourself!"
Inside the Akademiya, the other Scholars trembled. They had no idea what was happening. Why had the senior Scholars from different Darshans suddenly united? What exactly had happened?
Some Scholars who already knew the truth had complicated expressions.
They did not know what they should say.
And so...
Amidst the voices of the gathered Scholars, Great Sage Azar finally appeared.
Accompanied by his students and the Sages of the other Darshans.
"Silence."
Azar walked out with a dignified expression. He looked at the familiar faces gathered before him.
On the surface, he remained calm. But internally...
His heart was already beating rapidly.
What exactly was this situation? Why had all these renowned Scholars gathered here?
Seeing Azar appear, the crowd gradually quieted down.
The atmosphere became heavier.
"Azar."
Faruzan stepped forward. As a senior Scholar from a century ago, she was a living legend within the Akademiya. If there was anyone in the current Akademiya who could directly challenge Azar—
It was her.
Her reputation was sufficient. Her knowledge was sufficient. And her achievements were sufficient.
"Senior Faruzan."
Azar looked at her.
He took a deep breath. He already understood.
This matter...would not end peacefully.
An invisible pressure slowly descended upon the atmosphere.