Faruzan wanted to be angry.
When someone stands in front of you, completely disregards your feelings, and blatantly guesses your mood, it's infuriating.
If they guess wrong, you're unhappy. If they guess right, you're still not happy.
Just as she was about to get angry, Rama dropped another bombshell.
"Lesser Lord Kusanali."
Faruzan spoke with respect, "Faruzan of the Haravatat, it's an honor to see you in person."
With the God of Wisdom brought into the conversation, Faruzan's little outburst seemed insignificant.
But... why would the God of Wisdom side with the desert people?
If she was siding with Rama, didn't that mean the Akademiya was truly finished?
"No need for such formalities, as I am not a qualified deity myself," Nahida said gently. "For the past five hundred years, I have not personally governed Sumeru. The rule has always been in the hands of the Six Sages."
"And they imprisoned me in the Sanctuary of Surasthana, forbidding any contact with the outside world."
"What!?" Faruzan's voice rose.
She really couldn't focus on the "small" issues happening to her.
In Teyvat's education system, the affairs of gods were truly significant, while the sufferings of mortals seemed somewhat trivial.
"How dare the sages do such a thing!"
She was torn between disbelief and questioning her sanity.
"Not angry anymore?" Rama asked.
"Don't joke with me," Faruzan pursed her lips, "I admit your diversion worked surprisingly well, alright?"
"I know it's hard for you to understand, given the education everyone has received," Rama said calmly. "But since everyone knows gods can die, it only shows that they are also a form of normal life."
"Perhaps compared to humans, they are born divine."
"But as long as they are bound by birth, aging, sickness, and death, they are just another form of life."
Not truly gods.
"You have no respect for gods at all," Faruzan noticed the difference in their understanding.
"There are no gods in the desert."
"Since the death of the Scarlet King, the desert has been without divine protection."
Even today, the faith in the Scarlet King persisted in the desert.
But Rama believed it was purely a belief born out of market demand.
The rainforest still had a god. If you didn't want to submit to the rainforest, you had to find a god to worship.
The desert had only the Scarlet King. If you didn't believe in him, who else could you believe in?
But he was already dead.
For a god who had died centuries ago, people might have remembrance and respect, but it was unlikely they had much faith and worship.
"The faith in the Scarlet King is entirely maintained by the Akademiya."
Rama's smile was mocking, "Without their oppression, a god who died centuries ago would have had his temples torn down."
"Rama's words and actions are always like this, please don't mind," Nahida's words were gentle. "He believes in power, not justice. He knows the truth but doesn't practice it, always acting for his own desires, making him not a qualified ruler."
Faruzan felt a headache coming on. She rubbed her temples and closed her eyes in pain.
Too many things had happened today, so much that she couldn't process all the information.
"You don't think he's a good person, do you?" Faruzan confirmed a question.
"But good or bad is not the ultimate standard for evaluating a person," Nahida knew the issue, so she provided an answer. "The Six Sages oppress the desert people and imprisoned me, but you are a genius scholar of the Akademiya, so you have no reason to betray the Akademiya."
"Because they are indeed very good to scholars, especially genius scholars."
At this time, the Akademiya had not yet taken action against the common people.
Faruzan's character wouldn't lead her to raise the flag of rebellion against the Akademiya because of the oppression of the desert people far away.
"But they imprisoned you," Faruzan said softly.
They were not discussing this topic but rather vying for another point of view.
"They imprisoned me, so it should be a personal grudge between me and them."
"I have never bestowed any favor upon any scholar. If a god has never blessed the people, then the beings on the ground have no need to offer loyalty and faith."
Unless you only fear the power that can kill you at any time, in which case, faith is just a tool for survival.
Nahida always held the truth, "Like the Geo Archon of Liyue, he is also a god but has never blessed the people of Sumeru. Would you offer faith to Morax?"
"If Morax suffers a disaster, would you feel indignant and think you have a responsibility to do something because of his suffering?"
The young god spoke softly, "Many things have nothing to do with you, so you don't need to worry about them."
This could be simply explained as, you don't want to do it, and you can't do it, so just pretend you don't know, which is best for everyone.
Faruzan let out a long breath, her expression confused.
"Do you have no expectations of the people of Sumeru?"
A god who suffered injustice and disaster yet had no expectations of her people.
"The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata gave enough grace to the people of Sumeru, but I am not Rukkhadevata. The people of Sumeru owe me nothing."
Nahida nodded calmly, "Therefore, I cannot have any extra expectations of them."
"But you are the successor chosen by the Greater Lord," Faruzan made a final struggle.
"The successor of the Greater Lord brings two blessings. One is to her—born divine. This special identity comes from Rukkhadevata's choice, so the God of Wisdom should rule Sumeru, making the kingdom prosperous and the people live in peace, which is to repay the grace of the Greater Lord."
"The other blessing is that the Greater Lord ruled Sumeru, bestowing blessings without asking for anything in return. Therefore, the people of Sumeru should rejoice in her successor. But you hastily judged that the God of Wisdom was not suitable to be the god of this kingdom without any mistakes made by her."
Rama's expression was playful, "Your judgment of blessings and the object of repayment is not accurate."
"The God of Wisdom has not abandoned her mission nor failed the expectations of the Greater Lord."
"The ones who failed Rukkhadevata's plan are you rainforest people."
Nahida took over the conversation, "Sumeru is not just the rainforest; the desert is also a part of the kingdom of Sumeru."
It's over.
Faruzan closed her eyes.
She could no longer find a way to defend the Akademiya.
(End of Chapter)