The light curtain faded, but the newly released trailer dropped like a depth charge into Sumeru—especially the Akademiya and its surrounding regions—triggering shockwaves and chain reactions.
Port Ormos, black market.
Merchants who once lurked in shadows now scrambled like startled cats.
"Insane! How did the sky screen know about Canned Knowledge?! It even called out Port Ormos!"
"Hide the stock! Now!"
"Damn it, the Matra will sweep us clean! Business is over!"
"Who leaked this? If I find out—!"
Panic spread like plague. Prices collapsed. Canned Knowledge was dumped or destroyed in haste, dealers desperate to avoid Cyno's blade at their throat.
The Akademiya, Sumeru City.
The great halls, usually calm, broke into whispers and uproar.
"Canned Knowledge? Mental pollution? Could this be true?"
"Scholar Faruzan? I know her—she did take leave, said she was unwell…"
"And that notice—Cyno's decree—why was it plastered on the sky screen like a mockery?!"
"Is the Akademiya really—"
"Shh! Do you want to be dragged off by the Matra?"
The scholars trembled. The sky screen's credibility was undeniable—Inazuma's revelations had proven that. Now its finger pointed at the Akademiya. Those who had dabbled in Canned Knowledge went pale with dread.
Sanctuary of Surasthana.
Within the sea of data streams, Nahida opened her emerald eyes, troubled.
"So the dangers of Canned Knowledge are revealed… but this way… the turmoil will grow worse."
She reached for more, but discussion of "sky screen" and "Canned Knowledge" was already being censored and erased.
Aaru Village.
The desert folk watched, not with pity but with laughter.
"Look! The high and mighty scholars poisoned by their own tools!"
"Serves them right! They took our resources, mocked us—now their shame is shown to all!"
"Well done, sky screen! Drag their filth into the light!"
Long-buried hatred found release.
Gandharva Ville.
Here, outrage hit hardest. Many rangers had seen scholars ruined by Canned Knowledge.
"So it was that stuff! I knew Scholar Faruzan's symptoms weren't normal!"
"What is the Akademiya doing? Why won't they ban this poison?!"
"And they dare announce 'information control'? The real anomaly is them!"
Tighnari's ears twitched in agitation, his brow furrowed. His gaze slid toward Orien, standing calmly on a nearby bridge. Suspicion deepened. Collei, meanwhile, shrank, haunted by Faruzan's pained image.
At the storm's heart—the Matra headquarters.
Cold metal halls. Suffocating pressure.
Cyno stood before the screen, watching his own decree roll mockingly beneath the trailer. His aura froze the air. The other Matra dared not breathe.
Humiliation. Challenge.
This wasn't just exposure—it was insult. The sky screen declared: You target anomalies, yet ignore your own corruption.
Cyno's fist tightened on his staff. Red eyes glowed with brewing thunder.
"Report." His voice was ice.
A subordinate stepped forward, trembling. "R-report, Great Matra. Signal source untraceable. Shielding exceeds known methods. Energy signatures match Mondstadt and Inazuma's sky screens. Likely either outside Sumeru… or using extreme concealment."
"Outside?" Cyno snapped, gaze sharp. "Then how was this insider knowledge—Faruzan's collapse—broadcast? Did it fall from the sky?"
The subordinate bowed low. "Forgive me! But… we identified a suspect. A day ago, a self-proclaimed shipwreck survivor named Orien was taken in by Tighnari. His entry coincides with the trailer's timing. And… instruments detected abnormal, complex lightning traces on him. He claimed it came from a storm. But readings showed otherwise."
"Orien…" Cyno whispered the name, eyes narrowing. "Where is he?"
"Still in Gandharva Ville."
"Good." Cyno seized his scarlet staff. Killing intent spread like wildfire. "I will 'invite' him to cooperate."
"Seal every exit. No one leaves without my order."
"Yes, Great Matra!"
The hunt began.
Back at Gandharva Ville, Orien smirked at his system panel.
[Break Value +99 from Port Ormos dealers!]
[+66 from Akademiya scholars!]
[+999 from Cyno! (Maximum Fury!)]
[+250 from Sage A!]
[+233 from Sage B!]
[…+? from Nahida (Concern).]
"Tsk. Cyno's fuming." He chuckled. Yet beneath, he felt the cold, sharp pressure of pursuit. Not Raiden's crushing wrath—but nearer, deadlier.
The crocodile had bitten the bait.
He wasn't afraid. This was his plan—draw the Matra's gaze, muddy the waters, and slip away toward Port Ormos, where the black market's panic hid the trail to the god-making project.
His escape was ready:
Mirror of Water and Moon (Kyōka Suigetsu) to create illusions.
Thunder Shadow Flash (Kaminari Kage Sen) to move.
Stealth and Concealment (Sennyū Inton) to vanish.
Guerrilla Tactics (Yūgeki Senjutsu) to maneuver.
Seven chances in ten to slip past Cyno himself.
Just then, Collei ran up, panicked.
"Mr. Orien! The Matra—they've surrounded the Ville! Cyno himself—he's coming here! Master Tighnari says to hide—quickly!"
Her concern warmed him. But Orien only smiled.
"Thank you, Collei. Tell your master… he was right to suspect me."
He looked past her, to the bridge where a figure approached—wolf-headed helm, crimson eyes, staff in hand. Every step struck like thunder, suffocating the air.
"Some things can't be run from."
Orien cracked his knuckles, eyes blazing with mischief.
"Watch closely. See how I…"
"…slip from the Great Matra's grasp."
His form blurred.
Mirror of Water and Moon!
An illusion of Orien stood smiling in place.
Meanwhile, his true body vanished into a flash of lightning—Thunder Shadow Flash!—and melted into the treetops, aura erased by Stealth and Concealment.
Cyno froze, eyes narrowing on the "Orien" before him.
"Seize him."
(End of Chapter)
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