Undercover in Snezhnaya, My Teyvat Spy Life [73]

Fortunately, Venti didn’t hit him.

He didn’t even look angry.

On the contrary, he just grinned and went back to drinking, even clinking glasses with Artem as if nothing had happened.

It was as if Artem hadn’t just threatened him, but was simply talking to himself in the air.

Seeing him like this, Artem’s own aggressive stance faded away, and soon the two were just casually drinking together, raising their glasses again and again.

They ended up chatting about all sorts of things.

From poetry and folktales to legendary adventures, how to roast the perfect boar, and their takes on the cultures of Teyvat’s many nations.

Even Venti’s long-hidden stories came out, like the time he snuck into the Tsaritsa’s palace, swapped her scepter for a hilichurl’s club, and got chased by the Cryo Archon all the way from Snezhnaya back to Mondstadt.

Stories no one had ever heard before, even Eula, who had been so tense, gradually relaxed her clenched fists as she listened.

To the other patrons, it was just two old friends catching up, drinking and laughing the night away.

No one could have guessed that, right there among them, was Mondstadt’s own Anemo Archon, Barbatos.

Just like that, they drank from daylight into deep night.

Empty glasses filled and refilled, then swapped out for new ones, over and over again.

Artem, who always prided himself on his drinking, was soon feeling tipsy after keeping pace with Venti for so long.

Venti fared even worse.

Maybe he was in a particularly good mood—

After draining another big mug of dandelion wine, he gave Artem a big thumbs-up, then—thud!—collapsed on the table, fast asleep.

Artem tried shaking him a few times, but when Venti didn’t stir, he slurred to Charles, “Take care of my friend here.”

Hic—

“If you don’t look after him, tomorrow I’ll— I’ll tear this whole bar down, you hear me?”

After that drunken threat, with Eula supporting him, Artem stumbled out of Angel’s Share.

…

Walking back toward the Goth Grand Hotel,

Eula had to help steady Artem, who was swaying so much he nearly tripped over his own feet. She helped him sit down on a bench by the roadside.

“I’ll go get you something to sober up,” she said, ready to go to Good Hunter for some hangover soup.

But Artem took a deep breath, grabbed her hand with one and waved the other.

“No need.”

“Just need a minute to rest.”

“It’s been ages since I met a drinking partner like that. My body just needs to readjust.”

Thinking back on the wild drinking contest they’d just had, Eula couldn’t help but chide him:
“Just because you can drink, doesn’t mean you have to drink like that.”

“You two nearly drank Angel’s Share dry.”

Without even noticing it, Eula realized—maybe because Venti had acted so completely un-Archonlike—her own words no longer carried the reverence she’d had before.

“Hey.”

Artem leaned back on the bench, finding a comfortable position before saying, “If I hadn’t, how else could I have gotten him to agree to a deal?”

“!!!”

“When did you make a deal?”

Eula was genuinely confused.

She’d been sitting right there the whole time as they drank.

She was sure she hadn’t missed a word, but after Artem proposed the deal, the two of them just went on drinking and chatting, never mentioning it again.

So how did a deal get made, just like that?

“Heh.”

Artem chuckled, lowering his voice mysteriously:
“It all started when I explained how I could bring Mondstadt to ruin.”

“…?”

Now Eula was even more lost.

What does that have to do with anything?

Wasn’t it after that conversation they ran into the Archon, invited him for drinks, and had the talk at the bar?

“Do you know what the Anemo Archon’s greatest power is?”

Seeing her utterly bewildered, Artem suddenly asked.

“No…”

Eula shook her head, honestly.

“Let me tell you, his greatest ability is that every wind blowing across Teyvat is his eyes and ears.”

“Now you understand, right?”

Artem looked back in the direction of Angel’s Share, his tone full of hidden meaning.

“You mean—?”

He heard everything you said on the street?

Now Eula was starting to catch on, but grew even more confused.

“But what does that have to do with making a deal?”

“And you talked about destroying Mondstadt right in front of the Archon—by all rights, he should have struck you down on the spot.”

“How could he still sit and calmly make a deal with you?”

Artem grinned, shrugging like it was obvious.

“Want to know why I dared to be so reckless in front of him? Because he’s the Anemo Archon.”

“If it had been the Geo Archon or the Electro Archon, the moment I said something like that, you could start planning my funeral.”

“But the Anemo Archon—”

“I told you, he’s a softie.”

“Mere talk doesn’t faze him. Unless I actually did something—something that truly threatened Mondstadt—he wouldn’t even bother with me.”

Artem’s explanation didn’t just surprise Eula—it turned everything she thought she knew about the Archon upside down.

All the traditional stories and poems she’d grown up with described the Anemo Archon as a protector who saved Mondstadt in its hour of need, a god who tolerated no wrongdoing.

As long as the Archon awoke, he would surely bring freedom and blessings to Mondstadt.

That was the memory of the Anemo Archon etched into every Mondstadter’s bones.

But hearing Artem now,

it sounded more like the Archon preferred not to meddle at all, only stepping in at the very edge of disaster.

And thinking about what Artem said—that every wind was the Archon’s eyes and ears—

Eula suddenly understood.

“You wanted the Archon to hear all that?”

You wanted him to think you actually had the power to destroy Mondstadt, so he’d have no choice but to tolerate your threats? And then, in the end, agree to your terms?

“Exactly, though not quite,” Artem nodded, then wagged his finger.

“It’s not that he tolerated my threats.”

“It’s that he allowed me to threaten him. In fact, maybe he wanted me to—so we could negotiate.”

“Why?” Eula sighed.

Ever since she’d met Artem, she felt like she was becoming a walking encyclopedia of ‘why.’
All these mind games and schemes… she really wasn’t cut out for it.

Just listening to Artem talk, her head felt like it might explode.

It was just a few words, why is there always so much going on behind them?

Artem laughed, taking her hand and explaining gently:

“Because I wasn’t just bluffing. I really do have the means to turn those threats into reality—and not even the Anemo Archon would be able to find an excuse to punish me.”

“And don’t let his appearance fool you—he’s not some naïve kid. He’s lived for over three thousand years. There’s no way he’s as innocent as he acts.”

“He doesn’t want to reveal himself, and he doesn’t want to use Decarabian’s power either.”

“So, to protect Mondstadt, he’s always been testing me—my motives, my abilities.”

“Whether it was him seeking me out, letting me threaten him, listening to my terms, or testing my knowledge of Mondstadt, Teyvat, and the Archons while we drank—he was always gauging how much of a threat I really was.”

“When he finally chose to give in at the bar, that was the moment our deal was sealed.”

Eula was still a little lost:
“You mean the Archon came to you on purpose?”

Artem burst out laughing.
“Have you ever seen a bard singing in the middle of a disaster zone?”

“If he really just wanted Mora for wine, he’d be at the statue of the Archon, singing hymns.
Not here in the ruins, right on our path, singing ballads from a thousand years ago.”

He paused, seeing Eula still had something on her mind, and went on, “I know you’re wondering about those two conditions.”

“Let me put it this way:”

“The Anemo Archon doesn’t care if the Knights of Favonius are led by Varka or not. As long as someone keeps the Knights running, it doesn’t matter to him.”

“Because in the end, the one cleaning up Mondstadt’s mess isn’t the Grand Master,
it’s Barbatos and his follower, Dvalin.”

“And the [Gnosis]—sure, it looks important, but I’m pretty sure he hasn’t wanted it for a long time.”

“The boundless winds of freedom, shackled to Celestia by the [Gnosis]? That’s not the freedom the Archon wants.”

“Now, with just two things he doesn’t really care about, he can buy Mondstadt’s peace and stability. Why wouldn’t he?”

“That’s the Anemo Archon’s true thinking.”

Or so I guess, he added.

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This is a fan translation of 提瓦特之我在至冬做臥底 by 曉風殘月聽荷 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!