As he sat down, Ed's gaze quickly swept over all the guests, most of whom he had never seen. One of the elven messengers was a surprise to him - it was Violetta, Norwe's sister.

Originally a little naïve and impulsive, always like a girl's elf, now sitting quietly by the window, gently bowing his head when he noticed his gaze, the arrogance and alienation that were unconsciously revealed in the past have been subdued a lot. To her right, another strange elf had black hair and black eyes, his face was slightly pale, but his expression was quite gentle.

It was only when Balk introduced him that Ed learned that this elf, who still looked very young, Alglo Linlu, was actually an elder. Around Sean, among the white-robed priests, Ed only knew York Tracy. Opposite the clergy, only two of the four mages had the emblem of the Archmage's Tower embroidered on their chests, and one was dressed in a plain, unmarked gray robe, about forty years old, with a shiny bald head, sleeves rolled up high, sitting with a big grin, and his exposed arms strong and powerful, like a warrior in a robe, and the other was much more low-key, huddled in the shadow of the curtains, as if he did not want to deal with anyone.

Without much politeness, Balk quickly got to the point.

He talked about the undead in the Staunbug sewers a month ago, and the crack that made everyone feel like they were enemies, but disappeared inexplicably...... But that's not the point.

In the time that Ed and Iss were gone, more rifts appeared silently across the continent. The closest is at the edge of the forest in Grivar, and the farthest is in the western suburbs of Balach – and this is only found because of its presence in populated areas.

Some of these cracks disappear quickly, while others stay where they are. Necromancers are often around, but they seem more like they've been drawn to them than the culprits who have torn the space apart.

Even when ordinary people didn't understand what these cracks meant, panic crept in. As he headed south from the Silver Tooth Mountains, Mork had heard of and even seen one of them—it was just over the Vinez River, so clear that it was as if the world were just a painting on paper, being torn apart little by little by an invisible hand.

And those who really understand the dangers are deeply divided over how to solve it.

Most clergy advocate that all found cracks be sealed as closely as possible. Not a complete closure like Iss could do, but like the tiny black hole on the island of the Holy Sepulchre behind the closure of the Temple of Collins by Ikabard...... Although he did not close at all in the end.

This is not unprecedented. ”

The old priest from the temple of Dick, the god of business travel, had a low, peaceful and powerful voice, which made people involuntarily listen attentively: "Nearly a thousand years ago, the same method was used to restore this world from chaos...... It takes a little time, but it's a good way to do it. ”

Sealing the entire crack with Shadow Silver Tin does not make it disappear immediately, but it can imprison it in place, isolating it from all magic, and according to the record, after losing the power that can be devoured, those cracks will eventually disappear slowly, just like a wound on a human body, if the infection does not worsen, it will always heal slowly on its own.

"And I've said it more than once," retorted to his mage, Archmage Tower, who did not hide his impatience: "Firstly, we don't have enough materials, and secondly, 'this situation' is not the same as a thousand years ago, when the crisis was inadvertently caused by the spellcasters, and now it ...... It's clear that someone did it on purpose. Isn't it a little ridiculous not to solve the fundamental problem, to just blindly close the cracks, like trying to put out the flames and ignore the people who set the fire?"

"Nobody ever said, 'Leave the people who set the fires'. "But at the same time, the fire that has spread is always going to be extinguished...... Playing with fire like the enemy will eventually lead to fire. ”

"It's not just water that can put out fires. Mondstadt's retort was distinctly sarcastic, "Doesn't it know how to light a flame to extinguish it more quickly......?" If our ancestors hadn't learned to play with fire, I'm afraid we would still be barbarians who drank blood. ”

Skyell Mondstadt is no stranger. Most of the mages in the Archmage Tower are proud to be disciples of the Lord of the Towers, but Mondstadt is an outlier among them. He was gifted and powerful, but he had no interest in fighting for power in the Archmage's Tower, and although he did not completely break away, he only stayed in the tower for ten years before traveling. Unlike most of the reclusive and paranoid mages, Mondstadt was a bold and straightforward man, and many of his friends were not from the Archmage Tower, so it was not surprising that he could be the representative of mages at such times.

Ed listened silently. He had already talked to his friends about it before dinner, and while he should have been on Sean's side, he felt that the mages' insistence was justified - there was danger, but if the rifts could be ...... With more knowledge of the world and forces beyond the rift, they are not so passive.

But he also understands that the purpose of some mages may not be so simple. They want not just to "understand", but to master and manipulate, as they did in the beneath the Branti Library, on the reef of the Gate of the Windstorm...... They want to find and control another power as the power of magic wanes.

That's perfectly understandable. Ed could sense that Mondstadt himself was not too selfish, and that it was better to have a deeper understanding of the dangers they faced, but no one could guarantee that others would be able to control their own desires and greed...... This is probably exactly what the proponents of sealing the crack fear.

Clergy deal with ordinary people more often than mages, and therefore have a greater understanding of human nature, and their caution is not just conservative. In fact, the reason why the two sides "almost fought" was also because a mage slipped into the vicinity of the already sealed crack on the western outskirts of Stunbuch, trying to channel the power beyond the crack into a gem. It was probably a necessary "collection" for the mage, but it did add fuel to the fire - the mage had not been able to control his spells, and he was almost swallowed when the rift widened in an instant, and he escaped with the help of the two priests who were aware of it, and the crack was not only cracked to a terrible extent...... Also disappeared.

Like a snake that sneaks away when it is full, leaving only a creepy, dangerous aura.