The group arrived at Caravan Ribat, where the rainforest meets the desert. From here, they could already see yellow sand stretching across the sky.
As they wandered through the streets, a figure suddenly appeared ahead, waving at them as if signaling them to follow, then quickly ran off.
The moment they saw him, Lumine and Paimon both exclaimed in surprise, "Ah! It's Alhaitham!"
Lora blinked, and Lumine immediately explained, "He's the Akademiya scribe we met when we went to Port Ormos!"
"So he's from the Akademiya?" Nahida hesitated slightly upon hearing this, wondering if they should avoid him for now.
Paimon quickly added, "Nahida, Alhaitham is someone we can trust!"
"It's fine, I'm here," Lora reassured her. Besides, she knew Alhaitham was indeed trustworthy. Though compared to Neuvillette, he wasn't quite as easy to trick. No, not as easy to persuade.
They followed after him and found him hiding in a very secluded spot. When he saw them approach, he gestured for them not to greet him yet and said, "Hide first, everyone."
They did as he said. Soon enough, several Eremites appeared where Lora and the others had just been.
"Damn it! We lost them! How are we supposed to explain this now?"
"Ah! Someone really was following us!" Paimon whispered in shock.
"It doesn't really matter if they follow us," Lora said calmly. "They can't affect us anyway. If anything, letting them tag along might reassure the Akademiya. Otherwise, who knows what kind of trouble they'd send next."
Both she and Nahida had noticed the tail long ago. Since they had come to the same conclusion, neither bothered to act.
"It seems your friend is quite confident," Alhaitham remarked, glancing at Lora.
"Oh, I'm pretty capable," Lora replied with a smile.
Alhaitham: "..."
"Um, Lora really is strong," Lumine added from the side. "Those people aren't a threat to us at all. Anyway, what are you doing here, Alhaitham? Are you heading to the desert too?"
Alhaitham nodded. "That's right. When we were investigating Canned Knowledge before, I learned that the desert was also involved. So I decided to come here and look into it."
"In that case, we can travel together again!" Paimon said happily.
Alhaitham did not immediately agree. "Whether I join you depends on your two unusual friends, doesn't it?"
He looked at Lora and Nahida.
"These two have no records whatsoever in the Akasha."
It was only natural for Nahida to have no records. The Akademiya would much rather erase her entirely from public awareness, so why would they leave any trace of her behind?
As for Lora, Dottore had already revoked all her access permissions, effectively removing her from the Akasha system as well.
So it made perfect sense that Alhaitham couldn't find anything on either of them.
Lora looked at him. "I don't mind. It's up to Nahida."
"If you're willing to travel with us, you're more than welcome," Nahida said. "However, if you do, you may encounter things you've never experienced before. Some of them might even be beyond what you can accept."
"That sounds rather challenging," Alhaitham replied, unfazed. "I am a scribe of the Akademiya. My task is to investigate Canned Knowledge, which already involves stepping into the domain of the gods. Nothing I encounter would be particularly surprising."
"In that case, let's head into the desert together," Nahida said.
With that, Alhaitham officially joined them, and the group continued onward.
"That's Aaru Village up ahead. The Akademiya exiles all the scholars who've gone mad to that place," Alhaitham said, looking toward the village near the Statue of The Seven in the distance.
"The desert is clearly part of Sumeru, yet it's been turned into a dumping ground for people the Akademiya doesn't want. That's just awful!" Paimon said angrily, now holding no goodwill toward the Akademiya at all.
"While I agree with you, I am still a member of the Akademiya. Try not to include me when you're criticizing it," Alhaitham reminded her.
But before he had even finished speaking, a figure crackling with lightning leapt down from a nearby sand dune. It was Cyno, the General Mahamatra of Sumeru.
The moment he landed, he charged straight at Alhaitham, and a fight was about to break out.
Watching them start fighting without a word, Lora felt a headache coming on. She snapped her fingers, stopping them in place.
"If you want to fight, do it somewhere else. Not in front of me. I didn't come to the desert to watch you two brawl."
Cyno turned to look at her and said calmly, "It seems you're on good terms with Alhaitham. Forgive my bluntness, but if it were me, I wouldn't believe a single word he says, nor would I ever take his side."
"Is assuming someone's stance right away your usual style?" Lora shot back.
Cyno fell silent for a moment, then looked at Alhaitham. "I won't waste any more words. Alhaitham, hand over what you're carrying."
"As expected of the General Mahamatra. Your instincts are sharp," Alhaitham said with a faint smile. Without hesitation, he slowly took out the Canned Knowledge.
"Huh? Isn't that Canned Knowledge? Didn't you already hand it over to the Matra back at Port Ormos?" Paimon asked in surprise, staring at the item in his hand.
Nahida watched quietly and said, "So you deceived the Matra and secretly kept the Canned Knowledge."
"In short, yes," Alhaitham replied with a nod.
"Why?" Nahida asked.
Alhaitham smiled slightly. "May I ask, are you interrogating me, miss?"
"Uh…" Paimon scratched her head. She wanted to say that Nahida absolutely had the authority to question him, but remembering Lora's warning to keep Nahida's identity a secret, she held her tongue.
Cyno spoke calmly, "Whether it's interrogation or arrest, that's the Matra's responsibility. Leave this matter to me. There's no need for any of you to interfere."