Paimon's eyes widened. "Wait, what? Those things are extracted from human brains?"
Alhaitham spread his hands. "With the Akademiya's current technology, yes."
[Paimon: So Divine Knowledge Capsules are that horrifying? Can people survive having them extracted?]
[Alhaitham: One or two extractions won't kill them. But repeated extractions—death is only a matter of time.]
[Paimon: Just thinking about it is terrifying.]
[Cyno: Damn those Sages. I will never let them get away with this.]
[Lumine: We won't either.]
[Furina: Mr. Neuvillette, how would such a crime be punished in Fontaine?]
[Neuvillette: Life imprisonment.]
[Cyno: The Grand Sage should be made to experience what it's like to have his knowledge extracted.]
[Alhaitham: Using humans as tools—they've already broken the rules and crossed the line into taboo.]
"Perhaps that's why they feel pain and cry out at night, when no one is watching."
Paimon was visibly shaken.
Lumine asked, "And you? How do you know about this technology?"
Alhaitham said, "I am the Akademiya's Scribe, after all. I've come across these research projects before."
"In any case, Razak's symptoms appear to be the result of having Divine Knowledge Capsules extracted from him. But something went wrong during the process."
"Or perhaps he couldn't control his curiosity and used that knowledge himself."
[Cyno: Either way, becoming like this was never his intention.]
Paimon said dazedly, "Now I'm confused. So anyone's brain can be used?"
Lumine thought for a moment. "Most of those mad scholars had come into contact with divine consciousness in the forest. Perhaps that's what the Akademiya is really after."
(It could even be said that this knowledge is also connected to the Fatui, Dottore, and Scaramouche—using it to turn Scaramouche into a god.)
Alhaitham agreed. "Yes. For some scholars, divine knowledge is what they've devoted their entire lives to pursuing. Extracting Divine Knowledge Capsules is just one of their more radical methods."
"Still, I've always been curious—what exactly do they hope to gain from knowledge related to the divine?"
"What is the Akademiya ultimately trying to achieve by chasing after these forbidden things at any cost?"
"I've spent considerable effort analyzing the contents of the Divine Knowledge Capsules. Unfortunately, I've found nothing. It seems my way of thinking is too different from theirs."
[Dehya: Alhaitham, you're not someone who would treat people as tools.]
[Cyno: Yes. I misjudged you.]
[Alhaitham: With your methods of enforcement, I wonder how many others you've misjudged.]
[Cyno: I will re-investigate and apologize.]
[Dehya: That makes you a decent Scribe.]
[Keqing: In critical moments, necessary measures must be taken.]
[Navia: I agree with that as well.]
Paimon asked curiously, "Alhaitham, don't you also want to obtain those so-called forbidden things?"
Alhaitham spread his hands. "Scholars naturally pursue the limits of knowledge. But I have no particular interest in the divine itself, so I can't match their fanatical attitude."
"If treating people as lifeless objects to extract knowledge from—if that's what they call academic progress—then the Akademiya might as well just shut down."
Paimon said, "It sounds like you're strongly opposed to this kind of thing."