To the Wise

To the Wise is the first act of Nilou's Story Quest, the Lotos Somno Chapter. In order to unlock this quest line, the player needs a Story Key, must have completed Chapter III: Act II - The Morn a Thousand Roses Brings: Denouement, and reached Adventure Rank 40.
During the Story Quest, the Traveler helps Nilou and the rest of the Zubayr Theater handle a cease-and-desist order by the Sumeru Akademiya.
==List of Quests==
# The Warm Rhythm of the Streets
# Show Canceled
# The Reason We Are Gathered Here
==Summary==
;The Warm Rhythm of the Streets
Arriving at the Grand Bazaar, the Traveler and Paimon find Nilou puzzling over some goods stacked in front of her. Nilou tells them that despite the Akademiya interfering with the Sabzeruz Festival, it was still a success and thus the Zubayr Theater is hosting a celebratory event. She was also planning to bring items from the local shops for the event, but kept being offered freebies that she didn't have the heart to decline and are now too much for her to carry; the pile beside her is only the goods she hadn't yet dropped off to the theater, and there are still the goods from the shopkeepers that she needs to go back for. The Traveler offers to help, which she gratefully accepts.
After retrieving all the items from the shops along with the welcome assistance of professional porter Farhad, they have a small party at the stage, only for a man named Sharif to rudely interrupt and demand for manager Sheikh Zubayr. Sharif states that due to the theater constantly violating the Akademiya's rules, they have now decided to shut down and demolish the stage within 30 days. Zubayr protests over the lack of communication and suddenness, although Sharif does not care. Nilou explains to the Traveler and Paimon that the theater performs for the people, whereas the Akademiya deemed their shows not "intellectual" enough. During the argument, Inayah argues more with him, calling him Father, much to Paimon's surprise.
Nilou explains that Inayah did not get along well with her parents and ran away to stay at the theater. No one in the theater is sure of how they could win against the Akademiya, but through a private discussion, the Traveler suggests to Nilou that they beat Sharif in a debate, which does happen to be a favored form of conflict resolution in the Akademiya. When Nilou ponders who would do so, the Traveler and Paimon look at her, causing her to realize that they want her to be the theater's representative, something which she is unsure of. However, through their encouragement, she agrees to do so and decides to inform the others.
----
;Show Canceled
Convening the members of the theater, the group is baffled as they believe they'll be unable to best the Akademiya in a debate, with Inayah stating that her father is quite hard to handle. Despite this, Nilou is still confident and the others agree to the idea, since they have little choice. Talking with the other members and the locals, they also agree to support her and discuss their viewpoints of what they enjoyed about the theater.
As they head back to collect their thoughts, Nilou wonders where Inayah went before realizing that she might have not wanted to come back, as she has a gut feeling that Inayah felt responsible for bringing Sharif to the theater and demanding it to close. Nilou suggests searching the outskirts of the city, as she had a temporary camp where she took care of Inayah when she was unwell. When they arrive to investigate, they hear someone screaming and follow the sounds, finding Inayah being set upon by several Rishboland Tigers, which they kill.
Inayah feels guilt for believing herself to be the cause of the theater's problems, but Nilou convinces her otherwise. Convinced by her words, she agrees to help out at the debate. Returning to the city, the Traveler tells Nilou she's missing one more feature of the theater, which she realizes is that the theater is not merely a stage, but a place of belonging for the present and the future.
----
;The Reason We Are Gathered Here
Two days later, the debate begins with Safwan of the Akademiya serving as the debate's adjudicator and taking an oath of impartiality.
On the first topic, both sides argue about the usefulness of the theater. Safwan declares the victor inconclusive, since Sharif failed to provide any information to support his claims, while he felt that Nilou's was based on her opinion. As both sides had become somewhat heated with their words, he also warns them to keep their emotions under control.
On the second topic, Sharif quickly changes the subject to the procedural matters of the theater, as the Akademiya had constantly warned the theater for its performances, yet they did not make any change to comply with the rules. Nilou adjusts to Sharif's thoughts, stating that Sheikh Zubayr had complied with all legal and documentation requirements for the managing of theater operations, hence the stage could not be demolished. Sharif counters stating that inside discussions in the Akademiya would result in the same outcome. Safwan states that while Sharif's position was well supported, the demolition process only started after discussions, and thus threatening to demolish beforehand was rash and in violation of the rules.
Nilou believes to have won, but Sharif suddenly states that because the theater did not comply with the Akademiya's requests, they could simply revoke their license to perform, catching her off-guard, which Safwan agrees with. Nilou nearly lashes out, but the Traveler tells her to calm down and she does so. To counter his statement, Nilou explains that the theater is a place of belonging, since everyone has found a new life there. However, Sharif states that such relationships were only made in work operations, pointing out that scholars share their knowledge with all despite going separate ways once they finish, as they look to other projects. Safwan supports Sharif's conclusion more than Nilou's, worrying Paimon, but the Traveler believes that Nilou is setting him up.
Nilou then tries to talk about Inayah's will, but Inayah comes up to the stage herself to confront her father, stating that he's been wrapped up in his own world he couldn't understand relationships. Safwan demands order after the audience begins supporting her, but Sharif mysteriously states that it's a relief before walking away. Safwan follows him, ending the debate.
The group wonders if they've won before Nilou thanks the Traveler for their assistance, as she would've lost her cool otherwise. She explains to them how she became a dancer, stating that her skill was due to hard work and not any natural ability. When she witnessed her first performance as a child, she was captivated by the troupe's dancer who would become her teacher when she joined. However, she wonders about Sharif and Inayah, as she felt that he had a lot to say to her but couldn't. Nonetheless, she welcomes them back to the theater, stating that Inayah might join them.
Two days afterwards, the Traveler and Paimon watch Nilou's performance before she introduces Inayah as their newest member. After Paimon remarks about how they won, the Traveler points out Sharif's mercy, as he didn't have to agree to the debate and could've resorted to other actions against them. They then spot Sharif himself, who explains that he is currently suspended at his own suggestion, as his loss at the debate hurt the Akademiya's image. While he does not understand the theater's intentions, his curiosity was piqued. Nilou then brings Inayah to him and has the Traveler and Paimon step away with her, while they end up having an awkward moment. Sharif gifts Inayah a framed piece of amateur embroidery he'd made, demonstrating that he'd not forgotten about her gift.
Nilou states that Inayah would have run away had she not acted, much like Sharif was planning to quietly leave after the performance, and believes that it would be a while to reconcile, although she feels that taking it slowly is a step in the right direction. She also gives the Traveler a mini-replica of the theater that the troupe crafted themselves, as she knows they're traveling across Teyvat and thus wants them to keep their memories of the theater, stating that they're welcome back anytime.
==Characters==
==Soundtracks==
==Other Languages==
==Trivia==
* During the debate it is mentioned there were 27 precedents somewhat similar to the quest and 90% them were resolved some way. Number is confusing since 25 out of 27 is 93% and 24 out of 27 is 89%.
==Change History==
es:Para aquellos que son sabios
ja:智者へ
pt-br:Em Busca de Iluminação
vi:Gửi Người Trí Tuệ