"Is Lora going to lead this revolution?" Lumine asked, looking at Lora.
Paimon frowned.
"But... Lora, aren't you a Liyue Adeptus? If you do this, won't it cause problems between Sumeru and Liyue?"
"No, who said I'm going to lead a revolution in Sumeru?"
Lora shook her head.
"There's someone even more suitable than me!"
At her words, both Lumine and Paimon turned to look at Nahida.
Nahida was silent for a moment before speaking.
"Let's return to Aaru Village first and continue our discussion there. As for these two scholars from Akademiya, bring them back to Aaru Village and keep them under guard for now."
"Alright!"
Alhaitham nodded.
The group returned to Candace's home and continued discussing their next course of action.
"The Sumeru Akademiya controls all the key powers in Sumeru. Resisting them won't be easy."
Dehya looked around at everyone as she spoke.
"And then there's that deity created by the Sages. Even though it's an artificial god, its power is likely beyond human reach..."
"On top of that, there are the members of the 'Fatui' Council," Cyno added.
"Don't worry about that new god Akademiya created, I'll handle it."
Lora had been sipping a drink. She removed the straw from her mouth and addressed the gloomy group.
"The 'Fatui' Council too, just leave it all to me. Beating them up is pretty much my specialty."
Dehya frowned at her.
"Are you sure you'll be okay? They're deities, after all."
"Paimon, tell them about my glorious exploits!"
Lora called out with a laugh.
Paimon quickly flew in front of everyone.
"In Liyue, Lora is known as the Adeptus of Purifying Water and Judgment. Previously, deep beneath the waters of Liyue, there was a terrifying god named Osial, the Overlord of the Vortex. He and his wife, Beisht, broke free from their seal, but in the end, Lora single-handedly subdued them. So she can definitely take on a deity."
"I had no idea you were this powerful!"
Dehya stared at Lora in disbelief.
"Ah, that's all in the past. It's nothing worth mentioning, really."
Lora waved dismissively, looking modest.
"Well then, next we must figure out how to defeat the current Akademiya. And who exactly should lead us in this 'revolution'."
Cyno withdrew his gaze from Lora and spoke in a measured tone.
"It's obvious!"
Lora walked over to Nahida and placed a hand on her shoulder.
Everyone's gaze fell on Nahida. Facing so many eyes, Nahida took a deep breath, nodded solemnly, and said,
"Leave it to me! I will restore a normal nation to the people of Sumeru!"
"No, no... What's going on? I'm a bit confused."
Dehya looked at Nahida in bewilderment.
"Isn't she Miss Lora's niece? How did she end up leading the revolution?"
Lora exchanged a glance with Paimon. Paimon immediately understood and spoke to the others, excluding Alhaitham.
"Because Nahida is the Lesser Lord Kusanali, the Dendro Archon of Sumeru."
"What?"
Dehya stared in disbelief at Nahida, who barely reached her waist.
There were no rules saying what a god had to look like, but this little girl who had been following Lora around these past several days, accompanying them on their adventures, was the Dendro Archon of Sumeru? The Lesser Lord Kusanali?
That was simply too surreal.
Cyno furrowed his brow, recalling the vision they had seen earlier at King Deshret's Tomb.
"Indeed... Nahida's appearance bears a striking resemblance to the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata after she transformed into a child in that vision."
"That's right. She is the Dendro Archon, your god."
Hearing this, Dehya's gaze toward Nahida became even more stunned.
"So, the deities have always been right beside us?"
It wasn't that no one had noticed the resemblance between Nahida and the childlike Greater Lord Rukkhadevata. They had simply assumed a deity could never be among them. So even after noticing the similarity, no one thought in that direction.
Who would have thought it was true?
Nahida really was the Dendro Archon.
Nahida nodded slightly.
"As you can see, I am Buer, the God of Wisdom, the 'Lesser Lord Kusanali' of Sumeru."
Cyno gazed at Nahida. After a moment of silence, he spoke.
"Cyno, the General Mahamatra, will spare no effort to fulfill your guidance and save Sumeru!"
As the General Mahamatra, carrying out the commands of the gods was also his duty.
"The people of the desert will also contribute their strength to you!" Dehya added.
"Then, shouldn't we come up with a slogan?" Lora suddenly asked.
"Um... Down with Akademiya?"
Dehya paused for a moment before blurting it out.
"A very concise and to-the-point slogan," Alhaitham remarked.
Lora shook her head and smiled.
"Down with the tyranny of the Sages! Sumeru belongs to the people!"
Actually, she had wanted to say "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity." It was a time-honored tradition of Fontaine.
"That slogan... isn't bad."
Dehya thought for a moment after hearing it.
It was indeed more polished and catchy than her own five-word phrase.
"Now that we've settled on a slogan, what should we do next?" Cyno asked, looking at Nahida.
"Reclaim control of Akasha."
Nahida addressed the group.
"The Heart of the Dendro Archon is used to sustain Akasha's operation and is controlled by the Sages. We must seize control of Akasha and expose the Sages' sins to the public."
"To achieve this, we need the power of the desert. Therefore, Dehya and Cyno, I want you to stay in the desert with Rahman to gather the desert's strength and hold off the main force of The Eremites (The Thirty)."
"No problem, leave it to us!"
Cyno nodded.
Dehya did not object either. For her, contacting Rahman was easy enough.
Nahida continued,
"Alhaitham, you will return to Sumeru City with us to gather evidence of the Sages' crimes. Look for an opportunity to reclaim Akasha, place the evidence within it, and make it public to all the people of Sumeru."
"Understood."
Alhaitham nodded.
Nahida added,
"That's the general plan. We'll proceed simultaneously on two fronts, the desert and the Rainforest. You can work out the specifics among yourselves."
Lora watched Nahida make decisions with such calm composure and precision, and could not help but feel a sense of pride, as if her own daughter had finally come of age.
Ah, she's all grown up!