Chapter 153: Four Nations at the Gates of the Akademiya

"What do you mean by that?"

Although Venti asked this, neither he nor Zhongli looked particularly surprised.

"You should both have some awareness of it. A new storm is brewing toward Sumeru, and the structure that has remained unchanged for centuries is about to shift."

Ye spoke casually.

"In this shift, the Lesser Lord Kusanali will finally realize how foolish she has been in indulging the Akademiya. Unfortunately, by then, it will be too late. She will no longer have the power to break free and reclaim Sumeru whenever she wishes."

"So that's why you're being even more brazen now, directly plundering the Akademiya? Because the deterrence of the Dendro Archon will completely disappear?"

At Zhongli's words, Ye glanced at him sideways and said lightly: "You've misunderstood, Mr. Zhongli. On the contrary, it's because the Lesser Lord Kusanali is about to break free that I'm rushing to squeeze the last bit of value out of the Akademiya. Once she escapes, such things won't be possible anymore."

"Oh?" Venti feigned surprise. "Earlier you said the Lesser Lord Kusanali would fall into a situation where she completely loses her freedom. Now you're saying she's about to break free?"

Ye shrugged, looking somewhat helpless: "Because Lady Furina finally has a reason to act."

Venti raised an eyebrow: "What do you mean?"

Ye explained: "Lady Furina has always known about the Lesser Lord Kusanali's situation and has long wanted to rescue her. But the reason she hasn't acted is precisely because the Lesser Lord Kusanali has always had the freedom to choose whether or not to escape… In simple terms, the Akademiya is about to do something even more foolish than what they did five hundred years ago. They're giving Lady Furina, who has always restrained herself, a reason to step in and save the Lesser Lord Kusanali."

At this point, Ye paused, then spoke almost prophetically:

"For the first time in history, a war among the seven nations is about to begin. It won't be long before you see the Chief Justice of Fontaine leading the Goddess of Justice Corps to the gates of the Akademiya."

Huh? You ask why it's the Chief Justice and not the Supreme Bishop?

Haven't I mentioned this before? Military matters are mostly handled by Neuvillette.

When it comes to diplomacy, it's the Supreme Bishop's job, but if it's leading troops into battle, that's Neuvillette's responsibility.

As for the Goddess of Justice Corps, this is one of the military units Ye established for Fontaine during his governance. It's Fontaine's only external warfare unit… though there hasn't been any external warfare, so to the people of Fontaine, it's just a welfare unit.

The benefit lies in the fact that having a position in this unit means you can draw an extra salary.

Yes, an extra salary, because all members of this unit hold other positions. According to regulations, only when the Goddess of Justice Corps issues a summons do these members abandon all other work and gather under the banner of the Goddess of Justice Corps to carry out external warfare duties.

However, in the past few hundred years, this order has never been issued, so this unit is just a perk for drawing extra salaries. Everyone wants a position in it—after all, who wouldn't want extra pay?

If it weren't for not wanting to nominally become Neuvillette's subordinate, Ye would have taken a position to draw an extra salary himself. The salaries and benefit of the Goddess of Justice Corps are that generous.

…Of course, although this unit has never had any work, the screening process has always been the strictest in Fontaine. Getting a position isn't easy.

The current roster of the Goddess of Justice Corps is 3,132 people, including 130 Vision holders. The rest, though lacking Visions, are either highly skilled in combat or possess special talents.

The Goddess of Justice Corps is organized into squads. Each squad has one Vision holder as the squad leader, three Vision holders as deputy leaders, and 100 non-Vision holders, making a total of 104 members per squad. There are 30 such squads.

Above the squad leaders are five battalion leaders and five deputy battalion leaders, each commanding six squads.

Above the battalions is the overall commander and chief of staff.

The Goddess of Justice Corps is not under the jurisdiction of the Judicial Assembly but is directly commanded by Neuvillette, the Chief Justice, who also serves as the overall commander. As for the chief of staff… this is a position Ye recently added, filled by Fanseti, the Third Knight of the Holy Knights.

In addition to individual combat prowess, the Goddess of Justice Corps has access to Fontaine's advanced technology during wartime—hidden military assets that Fontaine has kept secret. After all… with gods presiding over the seven nations of Teyvat, there's been no external warfare to speak of, leaving these assets unused. Otherwise, the Goddess of Justice Corps wouldn't have become a perk unit.

However, the good times of leisurely benefits without work are about to end.

As Ye said, when Furina learns that Nahida has completely lost her freedom of choice, she will no longer stand idly by.

At that time, the Goddess of Justice Corps will march for the first time.

"So, are you interested in joining in? After all, the Akademiya's actions are an insult to the gods. Don't you want to make the Akademiya open its gates and have a proper talk?"

This was the amusement Ye was looking for.

Sumeru is a nation where the fun can be maximized, giving players the most satisfaction without worrying about the story falling apart.

Think about it—what would players most want to do after learning about Nahida's situation?

No need to think. When Ye played the game, he wanted to flatten the Akademiya.

Although, after coming to this world, he refrained from doing so for the sake of Fontaine's interests, that anger never disappeared—after all these years, he still wants to flatten the Akademiya.

So, what kind of scene would it be if four nations were to gather at the gates of the Akademiya?

It would perfectly fulfill all player expectations, absolutely hype and satisfying!

As for how to build this plot and make players feel fully involved, it's simple—was the Traveler's debt to three nations for nothing? Were the connections they built for nothing? It's time for players to realize just how much influence they've accumulated on their journey.