Paimon said, "Katheryne is a puppet? That feels like suddenly learning something huge."
"Then what about your own body? I remember you've always lived in the Sanctuary of Surasthana."
Nahida looked up at the sky. "This goes back a long way. After the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata left, the Sages found me, who had just been born, and brought me back to Sumeru. At the time, I was indeed young and powerless. The Sages placed me in the Sanctuary of Surasthana under the pretense of protection, and hardly ever paid me any attention after that."
[Ningguang: That's the scene that appeared in the birthday documentary. The young Nahida was taken away and locked inside.]
[Nahida: Yes. That documentary gave me a lot of confidence. In the future, I'll be able to have a real Sabzeruz Festival. People will happily gather around me in celebration.]
[Lumine: That might take a long time, though. Right now, most people in Sumeru don't even know who you are.]
[Nahida: I will work hard to become a qualified deity.]
[Dehya: I'll help too. I'll spread your name.]
[Lumine: You will eventually shine as brightly as the sun.]
[Furina: We could turn Nahida's acts of helping people into operas and perform them everywhere. People would come to know her quickly.]
[Lumine: That's a great idea.]
"But I know very well how much the Sages wished they had found the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, rather than me—who is proof that she is gone."
Paimon thought for a moment. "So the Sages have been confining their own new deity? How dare they? Why not teach them a lesson?"
Nahida said, "From a certain perspective, they're not entirely wrong. The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata was all-knowing and all-powerful. Even after her passing, the Akasha continues to empower this nation."
"And I... I'm far from worthy of the title God of Wisdom. I have no experience in governing a nation. My existence doesn't hold that much significance."
[Lumine: Nahida wouldn't use power against her own people.]
[Nahida: And from a certain angle, they haven't really done anything wrong.]
[Paimon: Now they absolutely and definitely have done something wrong!]
[Nahida: My power isn't enough to break through the prison.]
[Paimon: That's not protection by any stretch of the imagination. That's imprisonment.]
[Nahida: Fortunately, deities don't starve to death. Even without their attention, I'm fine. Besides, my consciousness can roam through the Akasha. I can see the land of Sumeru and help people with their problems.]
[Lumine: Nahida...]
Lumine looked seriously at Nahida. "In my eyes, you're already a very fine deity."
Paimon chimed in, "Yeah, yeah! Nahida, you already have many followers. Everyone who came to the Sabzeruz Festival truly loves you."
Nahida nodded. "Thank you for saying that. But since I can connect to the Akasha with my consciousness, I don't need physical freedom."
"For me, finding a way to save the world is the most important task. I'll keep searching for answers while striving to become a more qualified deity."
"Occasionally, I can take on the responsibility of the God of Wisdom and guide lost people. That's more than enough."
Lumine asked, "Do you know anything about the Akademiya's original plans?"
Nahida said, "The Akademiya's governance of Sumeru has never had any major problems. This is the first time I've seen them deviate from the right path. What happened? What goal could be worth such actions? Though the people in the city barely noticed anything unusual, if you hadn't broken the loop, Traveler, the situation could have become truly dire."