Since the Rtawahist was Azar's stronghold, his downfall had implicated a great many of its Havak scholars, who had suffered along with him. Now, very few Havak scholars in the Rtawahist remained qualified to compete for the position of Sage.
Sahar was one of them. The reason he had not become one of Azar's accomplices was not his noble character, but rather that his research abilities left much to be desired! His research abilities would have been of no use whatsoever to the God Project, and he was also getting old. His thinking could no longer keep up.
Thus, when Sahar learned that Azar had actually carried out such an enormous project behind his back, while he himself had known nothing about it, his feelings were mixed. He was relieved that Azar's scandal had not implicated him, but hurt that Azar clearly thought so little of him.
But then, an excellent opportunity presented itself to him, leaving him unable to remain calm.
Originally, Sahar had ranked near the bottom among the Rtawahist's Havaks. He had never entertained any thoughts of becoming a Sage. He was getting old and only wanted to retire peacefully. But now that the Rtawahist's Havaks had practically all been swept away in one fell swoop, Sahar actually stood tall among the remaining dwarfs.
This also let him see hope of becoming a Sage. After all, when it came to seniority, he had seniority, and when it came to academic achievements, he had seniority.
As long as he could become a Sage, even if he only served for a year, he would be entitled to retirement benefits at a Sage's level when he retired. Those were worlds apart from a Havak's retirement benefits.
Whether for the empty prestige or the tangible benefits, it was worth making an