After Qixuan's explanation...
"Paimon: You said her name is Nahida, and she's also a worshipper of Lesser Lord Kusanali?"
"Lumine: So cute."
Lumine knelt down and gently rubbed Nahida's face.
"Qixuan: Nahida knows a lot about the Grass God. Let's take her with us."
"Paimon: This... alright."
"Nahida: Thank you, Paimon. Have some candy."
Nahida took out a candied date from her pocket.
"Paimon: Hehe, Nahida, you keep it. Paimon has lots of yummy things already."
At this moment, the two followers of King Deshret were still insulting Greater Lord Rukkhadevata.
"Tarik: Hmph, we must not let Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, that traitor, and her people off lightly! In the future, when King Deshret takes revenge on Sumeru, everyone but us will face retribution."
"Paimon: Huh... traitor? What's going on?"
"Lumine: Why don't we go ask first?"
Qixuan looked at Nahida and asked, "Are you alright?"
Nahida shook her head and said, "I'm fine. I don't care about these things. I actually don't know that period of history either (whispering)."
...
"Tarik: Hmm? Who are you? Can I help you?"
"Lumine: We are Akademiya students."
"Tarik: Students? Heh, what are Akademiya students doing in Port Ormos instead of Sumeru City?"
"Lumine: I want to inquire about information on 【something】."
"Tarik: Heh heh, you're quite sensible. Do you have enough money?"
Just as Lumine was about to take out money, Qixuan stopped her, then took out a money pouch and said, "It's all here. If the information we get isn't accurate, hehe."
"Paimon: (Waaah... even though it hurts to part with this money, we have no choice but to give it now...)"
"Tarik: Mhm, don't worry, it's guaranteed to be accurate. Here, this paper has the 【merchant】's address written on it. You can go there and pick out what you want. Hmm? Why aren't you leaving yet?"
"Lumine: We still want to ask a few things."
"Paimon: Right, right! We're actually very interested in the King Deshret... Lord you just mentioned. After all, we... uh... are archaeology students!"
At the mention of the words 'King Deshret', the two men became as excited as if they'd been given a stimulant.
"Tarik: Heh heh, alright. Since you're so generous, I can tell you a few things."
"As you can see, we, the people of The Eye of Ahernar, are loyal followers of King Deshret. Back then, King Deshret established a great nation in the Desert, which is our homeland. Its level of development was far superior to Sumeru's current state."
Qixuan sighed, looking at the serious expression on Nahida's face.
"Tarik: King Deshret was truly the 【God of wisdom】, but unfortunately, King Deshret was betrayed by someone he trusted, and even his title of 【God of wisdom】 was stolen by her."
"Paimon: Are you saying...?"
"Tarik: Yes, it was Greater Lord Rukkhadevata! This shameless villain destroyed King Deshret's civilization, and our ancestors were forced to flee here, to live at the feet of our enemy."
As he said this, Nahida's expression began to turn unpleasant.
"Tarik: Moreover, she and the Akademiya people covered up the truth of that year, portraying herself as benevolent and kind. Hmph, it's truly disgusting."
"However, King Deshret is not truly dead, because some people in the Desert have already heard a divine oracle: King Deshret is currently being resurrected! We will certainly welcome back our God. At that time, whether it's the followers of that betrayer or the Desert dwellers who have forgotten their God, all debts will be settled!"
The other person said, "If you're trembling with fear, converting to King Deshret now might still be in time, hahaha..."
"Lumine: King Deshret is coming back?"
"Tarik: Hmph, there's nothing to discuss about this with you Akademiya people. Alright, let's stop here."
Just then, a voice came: "Wait a moment, you've been deceived by him."
"Paimon: What?!"
Everyone looked to see a man with the aura of a grand scholar approaching.
"Tarik: It's you again! You Akademiya madman!"
"Alhaitham: Yes, it's me. I told you before, if you refuse to sit down and talk with me properly, I will do something to make you uncomfortable."
"Listen, all of you, the address he gave you earlier is fake. These people go around claiming to provide information about 【something】, luring people to their territory. Once people arrive there, they'll first keep evidence that you wanted to buy 【something】, and then use that to extort all the money from you."
"Tarik: Shut up, Alhaitham! What do you want by constantly ruining our business?!"
"Alhaitham: I told you that day: I want to negotiate terms with your boss."
"Tarik: Our boss has already said he won't negotiate terms with you!"
"Alhaitham: He said that before, but that doesn't mean he'll still think that later."
"Tarik: I'm telling you, don't force us to resort to violence! We usually don't get rough with Akademiya people because it's hard to clean up, but for a madman like you, things might be different."
"Alhaitham: If 【forceful dialogue】 is your answer, then fine, I accept. After all, even Gods used war to determine the fate of Teyvat. But if we never find a way to communicate, what I do next won't be as simple as you losing a few deals."
Qixuan whispered to Nahida via telepathy, "Sumeru still has capable people."
"Nahida: Alhaitham, I know him. He is a very excellent 【scribe】, with extraordinary talent and wisdom."
"Alhaitham: I will hurt the reputation of your Eremites—I know you people value that. I am very confident that once I take action, your boss will actively come to me, but by then, some things will already be irreversible."
"Also, I have a suggestion: you'd best tell your boss exactly what happened today. Don't let him blame you later for not delivering the message."
"Tarik: What did you say!"
"Alhaitham: Think carefully, which of my past words have I not fulfilled?"
"Tumat: Big brother... this madman, he..."
"Tarik: Fine... If you truly wish to die, next week, today, at four in the afternoon, we'll meet at the pier in front of the Pharos Lighthouse. Don't blame us for being impolite then!"
Just as the two were about to leave.
"Alhaitham: Slow down. Leave their five hundred thousand Mora."
"Qixuan: No need. You can spend it."
"Paimon: Ah?! This!"
"Tarik: Hmph, see that?"
Then the two left.
"Lumine: Why didn't you want it back?"
Nahida was also very curious, but she thought of a possibility, then looked at Qixuan.
"Qixuan: A pile of Mora made of sand. That's all they deserve to spend."
"Alhaitham: Oh? Interesting."
Just then, the owner came over and said, "Oh dear, sirs, you've angered those gentlemen. What will become of my humble shop now? And the bill for their table just now..."
"Alhaitham: Boss, it seems like the number of guests in your shop has decreased significantly lately. Are they all busy spreading messages to students?"
"Ayman: Ah, this..."
"Alhaitham: You're already doing business with those bad guys, and you stammer when I ask you a question? How can that be? A meal's worth of money as our hush money is very cheap."
Then Alhaitham left.
"Paimon: That person just now felt so powerful, it's just that..."
"Qixuan: His words are very powerful, aren't they?"
"Paimon: Yes!"
"Lumine: He seems to know a lot of things. Should we go ask him?"
"Paimon: Nahida, you come along too."
"Nahida: Okay."
Everyone chased after him.
"Paimon: Phew, we caught up! Wait a minute, your name is Alhaitham, right?"
Alhaitham stopped and said, "What is it?"
"Lumine: Thank you for your help just now."
"Alhaitham: No need. My target was them anyway. You provided me with an opportunity. We're even now."
"I advise you to stay away from those guys. Since they didn't get any money from you, they might still cause you trouble in the future. Alright, that's all."
"Paimon: Wait a minute, we still have some things to ask you. Since you just exposed their deception face-to-face, that means you must know the real information about 【something】, right!"
"Alhaitham: Who are you? Why are you inquiring about this?"
"Lumine: We are Akademiya students."
"Alhaitham: Students? You should know that those people would 'do business' with you not because they believed your nonsense. At least to me, you don't look like Sumeru scholars at all."
"Paimon: Uh... aren't you going to deal with those people tomorrow? We're very capable, take us with you."
"Qixuan: Alright, Lumine, you don't need to say that when talking to a scholar of 【wisdom】. We have traveled through Mondstadt, Liyue, and Inazuma, and have met the Gods of various nations. Our main goal is to find her brother, whom we haven't found yet. So we wanted to come to Sumeru to meet the Grass God, but since there was no way, we could only look for things related to 【Gods】."
Nahida, beside them, was a bit confused: Find me?
"Alhaitham: I see... I've heard of you. How about this, I accept. You're looking for a merchant who sells that kind of thing, right? Do you have paper and a pen? I'll give you one of the addresses; you can try your luck there."
"Just meet me at the pier at the agreed time. Though it doesn't matter if you don't come."
"Paimon: Uh... since you're willing to tell us the merchant's information, can you tell us what 【something】 actually is before that?"
"Alhaitham: ...I should really doubt whether your claimed experiences are true or false. You don't even know what the item is. Alright, how much do you know about this thing?"
"Paimon: Uh... we know this thing is probably related to the Akademiya. Not only are Eremites trading it, but some students are also looking for it. Uh, it seems there's also..."
"Lumine: It seems to be some kind of 【knowledge】."
"Alhaitham: You actually know most of it. You probably haven't seen the real thing, so you can't combine this information."
Then Alhaitham took out a 【Canned Knowledge】 and said, "It's the 【item】 you're looking for."
He then immediately put it back.
"Paimon: Ah, I didn't get a clear look... What was that ornament-like thing?"
"Nahida: Is it 【Canned Knowledge】?"
"Alhaitham: You're looking for the Grass God and you brought a child?"
"Qixuan: Don't mind her."
"Alhaitham: Alright, just as this little girl said, it's called 【Canned Knowledge】. Simply put, it's a device that can store a certain amount of specific knowledge, equivalent to a smaller Akasha. As long as you connect it to your Akasha Terminal, anyone can quickly obtain the content stored within."
"Lumine: Anyone?"
"Alhaitham: Yes, anyone. Unlike the Akasha, which has complex rules and strictly reviews what knowledge can be obtained, 【Canned Knowledge】 will unconditionally give you what's inside."
"Paimon: Sounds amazing."
"Alhaitham: Basically, it's a convenient and harmless knowledge base. However, it's regrettable that privately possessing and trading such items is illegal in Sumeru."
"Because it was created to allow scholars to store knowledge acquired from the world into the Akasha, and it should be immediately destroyed after use. After all, some people are always dissatisfied with their fate. However, in recent centuries, the content of Canned Knowledge flowing out of the Akademiya has been mixed, and in Port Ormos, truly valuable goods have become a tool for the Eremites to accumulate wealth."
"Paimon: Sounds like a crooked merchant."
"Qixuan: Paimon, this is much worse than a crooked merchant."
"Alhaitham: Alright, that's all I have to say."
"Lumine: I heard the Akademiya recently also..."
"Alhaitham: So your real goal is here... However, I don't think our current transaction is enough for me to answer that question."
"Lumine: I can add conditions."
"Alhaitham: Still not giving up? Alright, then let's go somewhere with fewer people to talk."
Meanwhile, the two King Deshret followers who had already returned.
"Tarik: Hmph, Alhaitham? What is he, to dare dictate to us?"
"Tumat: Hmph, exactly. He's just a complete madman. The boss definitely won't let him off."
"Tarik: The boss went out to handle some matters. Oh, by the way, check if the amount of money is correct."
The two opened the money pouch, which contained shining Mora. But just as Tarik picked up a piece of Mora, it suddenly turned into sand in his hand.
"Tarik: This! What's going on?!"
"Tumat: I don't know!"
"Tarik: Ah!!! It must be Alhaitham! Alhaitham, I'm not done with you, just wait!"
Just then, Tarik suddenly felt a dizzy spell, then collapsed and fell asleep. Tumat, who was about to help Tarik, also felt unwell and immediately fell asleep.
(Being young means being bold, falling asleep instantly.)