The old man had always been self-important, talking incessantly.
At last, Reilo had gotten a basic understanding of the situation here and finally spoke up.
"I heard that near the old Saint Grand Fort, many people were still hiding in caves and grottoes, waiting to be rescued. Some of those places had even become safe havens and secret bases for many powerful scholars. Why doesn't the Academy..."
"Who told you that? Are you crazy?"
The old man jumped in fright and frantically signaled for Reilo to shut up.
"You!"
The old man looked as though Reilo were a hopeless case. He took out his pipe, rolled his eyes, and said, "I haven't seen you around before. You used to belong to the Academy Faction, right?"
"Uh... yes."
Reilo nodded in reply.
Scholars were generally divided into two factions: the Academy Faction and the Family Heritage Faction.
Before the Wasteland, in the Grand Duchy, the Academy Faction scholars led by the Royal Academician Committee made up the majority. Even so, some scholars from families with a thousand-year legacy remained. They didn't treat scholarship as a profession, but merely as a noble's pastime.
"No wonder you're so thickheaded!"
The old man said sarcastically.
"What's wrong?"
Reilo still looked confused.
"Hmph, you should think about what happened a dozen years ago! That great devil from the old Grand Royal Academician Committee ravaged the Grand Duchy, with the blood of countless nobles on his hands. He slaughtered nobles, great and small, city by city. The three deans are scholars of true noble lineage. They're too busy hiding to even think about making contact with that side!"
The old man took a puff on his pipe and grunted, "Even Master Seratos, the disciple of the Fladick Pioneer, yielded to that man's demonic might. What could