Cyno suddenly appeared before them and said coldly, "Now, tell me everything from beginning to end, in detail."
Passerby B stepped forward and demanded, "Who do you think you are? Where did you come from?"
Cyno extended five fingers, lightning crackling at their tips as he summoned his weapon. "I have no patience. You heard what I said."
[Paimon: So decisive. So overbearing.]
[Cyno: This is the simplest way to gain submission. Speaking softly to people like this is completely useless.]
[Paimon: Why is that?]
[Cyno: Because they bully the weak and grovel before the strong. They don't respond to reason, so we don't need to reason with them either.]
The two passersby cowered on the ground. "Sir... what exactly do you want to know?"
Cyno withdrew his weapon and asked coldly, "What's this about King Deshret's resurrection?"
Passerby A replied, "I heard it from someone while drinking. They said there's a rumor that the mad scholars are disappearing, and King Deshret is about to be resurrected and rule this land again. I didn't make this up!"
"It's true, sir! The people of the desert have long been unable to tolerate those Akademiya folks. They dump their madmen on us and won't let us live decent lives."
"If it were you, sir, would you want to live like this? So the radicals are even more excited about these rumors than I am. We're all hoping for King Deshret's early return."
"They also say that once King Deshret is resurrected, taking the land beyond the Wall of Samiel will only be a matter of time. They're all willing to contribute and earn military merit under King Deshret's command."
[Dehya: All those lofty words, but it's really just about getting rich through plunder. They're too afraid to do it themselves—they need King Deshret to come back first. These desert dwellers embarrass me.]
[Paimon: I see. Bullies who cower before the strong.]
[Cyno: A bunch of disgraceful people.]
Cyno glanced at them sideways. "Is that so?"
The two passersby quickly begged for mercy. "We really don't know anything more! Please don't lay a hand on me just because I repeated a rumor. Otherwise, everyone here would be guilty—everyone's the same as me."
Paimon said, "So the people here support King Deshret and dislike the Dendro Archon."
Lumine corrected her, "They dislike the Akademiya people, not the Dendro Archon."
[Dehya: From birth, we've suffered all kinds of unfair treatment. Every child of the desert harbors resentment toward the Akademiya.]
[Cyno: And that resentment has been cleverly redirected toward the Lesser Lord Kusanali.]
[Paimon: That's absolutely despicable!]
[Cyno: Yes. Absolutely despicable. The Sages must pay the price.]
Cyno looked at the passersby. "Where are these radicals you mentioned?"
The two thought for a moment before answering, "We haven't seen him the past few days. He's probably not here. We're not lying—he really isn't here."
Cyno said, "It sounds like you radicals aren't closely connected."
Both nodded at the same time. "Of course not. We only know each other by name."
Cyno continued, "I have many ways to silence you, and many ways to prevent you from passing messages."
"You two stay put at home. Don't let me find out that either of you has tried to contact anyone. Don't make any moves until I've finished investigating this matter. Otherwise, even Candace won't be able to protect you."
[Dehya: Cyno is still kind at heart. The Sages, on the other hand, couldn't stand Alhaitham—they were ready to turn him into a mad scholar...]