Paimon said, "Using the weakness for incense to lure them away—but what benefit does the culprit get from doing this?"
Lumine offered her guess, "It might be for King Deshret's resurrection. That's the only related event so far."
Isak cried bitterly, "Please save Grandfather! Please save him! Grandfather has never done anything wrong. Please help him."
Paimon nodded. "Since that's the case, we'll go bring him back. Isak, don't worry—we won't let the bad guys get away."
Lumine and Paimon then returned to Aaru Village and exchanged information with Candace.
After listening to Paimon, Candace nodded in understanding. "So that's it. Someone used a certain incense to lure away the scholars exiled to Aaru Village."
Dehya said, "King Deshret's resurrection? I've never heard anything about that. As for that incense you mentioned—as far as I know, it's a product that's popular on the other side of the Wall of Samiel."
Just as Dehya spoke, someone nearby deliberately moved closer and hid by a wall to eavesdrop.
[Paimon: Someone's eavesdropping! Someone's eavesdropping!]
[Dehya: Yes, indeed. But I would have noticed even if you hadn't pointed it out. If I couldn't, I might as well switch careers.]
[Cyno: In our line of work, keeping aware of your surroundings at all times is standard procedure. The cost of information leaks is severe.]
[Paimon: I see.]
[Lumine: Thinking back, when we were in Liyue, we never noticed Ningguang's informants.]
[Ningguang: How could these rabble compare to my elite operatives?]
[Paimon: So Ningguang's people are elites.]
[Ningguang: Not entirely. Many of them are street vendors—their main job is doing business, and collecting information is just a side job.]
[Dehya: Ah, in that case, I might not have noticed them. If they weren't acting so suspiciously...]
"Incense is usually something scholars use. But as you can see, there are barely any normal scholars around here. It wouldn't sell for a good price. And making incense requires very fine craftsmanship—nobody in the desert has the patience for such thankless, low-profit work."
"Someone who could do this must have support from inside the Wall of Samiel."
Cyno nodded. "That makes sense."
Paimon spread her hands. "Then what should we do? Should we look for clues near the Akademiya?"
Dehya said, "Normally, that might be the case. But since I'm here today, you're in luck. You mentioned that the person who leaked the information got it from a rumor at a tavern, right? I also love going to taverns to drink. I know a thing or two about the radicals they mentioned."
"Aren't they the former butcher Engur, the pockmarked bandit Delavar, and the bearded scimitar-wielding Jabari? Those three are quite notorious."
"These people all share a common trait—they're short on money. The harder their lives get, the more they're willing to believe in King Deshret. For them, King Deshret's resurrection is the only chance to overthrow the Akademiya."
[Ningguang: Believing in King Deshret is like a lifeline for them.]
[Dehya: Exactly. They see it as their only hope. Desert people don't have opportunities. Many times, we don't have a choice.]
[Ningguang: ...]
[Paimon: I remember Ningguang was very poor as a child too. She built her fortune through her own efforts.]
[Ningguang: But in Liyue, no one discriminated against me, no one deliberately denied me opportunities. And now, I don't discriminate against anyone either.]
"Only by throwing Sumeru into chaos can they fundamentally change their miserable lives. I suppose that's how they think, which is why they became radicals."