Chapter 998: Kaousi, Loss of Contact

Seventon, Old City District, in a nameless small tavern near Morien Tower.

In the dappled firelight of the hearth, a tall figure appeared abruptly behind a thin wooden pillar in the tavern, yet the newcomer had no intention of hiding at all.

Almost at the same moment the figure appeared, a voice filled with dissatisfaction rang out: "Lander, are you really going to indulge Kaousi?"

"Of course not, but sulking like you are isn't a way to solve the problem either; we still need to sit down and talk!" a cold voice devoid of obvious emotion sounded from beside the hearth.

At the same time, another kindly voice also issued an invitation, "Stop being angry! Come have a drink first! This matter can be discussed slowly!"

"Discuss? What is there to discuss with him!"

Badijiaer walked out from behind the pillar in a huff, came to the side of the hearth, plopped down onto a low cork chair, grabbed a wooden wine cup from the table, gulped down a drink, and only then said:

"Don't forget, Kaousi is already dead; at least in the eyes of the vast majority of people, he has been dead for a long time. Now that he wants to reappear, do you know how much trouble this will bring us!"

"He said he is willing to appear with a brand-new identity, so wouldn't that be fine? Besides, why should we worry so much about the internal affairs of Giles Tower!"

The one speaking was Haruisi, a Great Arcanist of Fenwick Tower. Although he also felt in his heart that this matter was somewhat improper, it was difficult for him to raise any objections.

It would have been better if Haruisi hadn't said this, but as soon as he did, it irritated Badijiaer again. He stood up from the cork chair with a swish, walked in front of Haruisi, and questioned him:

"What kind of talk is this? What do you mean by appearing with a new identity? Does he take us all for blind? Does he take the Elves outside for blind?"

To this, Haruisi indicated that he could see and hear nothing, completely ignoring Badijiaer's angry gaze, just fiddling with the wine cup in his hand.

Seeing this scene, Badijiaer became even more furious, but before he could make any extreme move, he was already separated by Huo En. While handing wine to Badijiaer, Huo En advised:

"Don't you know Haruisi's personality? He is the Boneless Grass on top of Patricia Mountain; whichever way the wind blows, that is the way he leans. Don't mind him, let's drink!"

Huo En saying this made the anger in Badijiaer's heart subside a little, but at the thought that it was actually Huo En standing on his side at a critical moment, his sensitive heart felt awkward again.

He did not take the wine handed over by Huo En, but just snorted coldly, returned to his previous seat, poured himself a cup, and then didn't drink it, just left it there, and fell silent.

Ahem—

As the convener of the group, Lander had to speak up in this situation. He gave a light cough to get everyone's attention, and then said in his usual calm, almost indifferent voice:

"The current situation is indeed a private matter for Giles Tower, but we of the Seven Towers have a tradition of mutual support. It is impossible to let Giles Tower continue to be in chaos; this is not only a loss for the Seven Towers, but even more so a loss for Netheril."

After finishing, he paused for a moment to observe everyone's reactions, especially Badijiaer's. Seeing that he remained silent, Lander continued:

"None of us anticipated that this would be the result after Princess Xiya's Ascension to Godhood. Although she did indeed succeed, she has also, in fact, lost contact with us."

"And the successor she previously designated, with Master Bailun missing, is hard-pressed to become an existence on par with us in a short period of time."

"Kaousi restricting us from intervening on the grounds of Giles Tower's internal affairs and demanding to take charge of Giles Tower again can be considered reasonable."

After finishing, Lander paused again, but this time Badijiaer did not remain silent; instead, he let out a long sigh and said:

"I can still remember the scene when Princess Xiya asked us to look after Sikumu; I remember you all promised!"

"Furthermore, if Kaousi regains control of Giles Tower, he will inevitably try his best to erase the Princess's influence. This may not necessarily be in the interests of the Seven Towers, nor in the interests of Netheril."

"No, my view is exactly the opposite!"

The one speaking was Hadelaien of Jannick Tower. Since Badijiaer was willing to sit down and talk, he stated his own view—

"We all know that Kaousi 'died' during the incident of the stolen Nether Scroll. Along with him were other Controllers of the Seven Towers who died, either truly or falsely. On one hand, the people needed an explanation, and on the other, it was to paralyze the Elves."

"But now that nearly a hundred years have passed, Netheril has become stronger, but a conservative atmosphere has also risen. Kaousi's return can not only bring back the pioneering spirit and the spirit of cooperation and mutual benefit of our predecessors, but it is also an invisible form of Stun for the Elves."

"Badijiaer, how do you know that Kaousi didn't stand up precisely because Master Bailun went missing? Otherwise, he hadn't shown his face once in decades; was he just waiting for today?"

"Also, don't forget that when Kaousi 'died' in such a hurry, although there was a designated successor, it was Master Bailun who first took over temporarily, letting Giles Tower get through its most difficult period before handing it over to Demonst. After that, Demonst chose Princess Xiya; besides following tradition, it may not have been without the intention of repaying a debt."

"Now that Kaousi has come forward, how do you know it isn't to pave the way for Sikumu? Badijiaer, I ask you, if you were to personally teach Sikumu, how long would it take for him to become an existence on par with us?"

Hadelaien's words struck Badijiaer's heart one by one, especially the last sentence; Badijiaer did not have enough confidence to teach a Great Arcanist.

Of course, even if he could, he could not intervene. The Seven Towers were indeed closely linked in interests, but not so closely that he could interfere with the leadership of another faction.

Now, his last bit of stubbornness was merely that Sikumu was the successor personally designated by the previous leader, Princess Xiya. Setting that aside, there was indeed very little he could intervene in.

And this was precisely what made him most furious.

After a long while, Badijiaer squeezed out a sentence, "Did Kaousi tell you all this?"

"No!"

Hadelaien shook his head, "But besides believing this, what else can we do? Forcefully push Sikumu to take over? That is not a good thing for him, nor for the Seven Towers!"

"You—"

Badijiaer was suddenly speechless, but he still insisted on his own view:

"I still disagree. A Great Arcanist who has been clearly dead reappearing has too great an impact. Right now, Princess Xiya has successfully achieved Ascension to Godhood, and we should be keeping a low profile; it is really not the time to provoke the Elves again."