Undercover in Snezhnaya, My Teyvat Spy Life [71]

Albedo had left.

He left with a head full of questions and no small amount of shock.

Watching Artem drink a vial of God Remnant as if it were nothing, Albedo was beginning to doubt whether the sample in his hand was even the real thing.

Even if he had made a mistake, there’s no way his master would have.
And besides, the malice infused within this substance was extraordinarily intense.

At first, Albedo assumed Artem wanted the stuff because he’d found a way to purify the lingering resentment inside. That way, he himself might even learn something new about handling God Remnants.

But what he could never have expected—

This guy just drank it straight down!

And then, as if he’d done nothing out of the ordinary, he declared—righteously, no less—that what Albedo was holding was a fake.

He even told him, in all seriousness, that the real thing was in the hands of the Fatui Harbinger known as “the Doctor” here in Mondstadt.

What was that supposed to mean?

Was he hinting that Albedo should go snatch it from Dottore?

Albedo glanced back, locking eyes for a moment with Artem, who was waving goodbye.

His brows furrowed deeply as he turned and left.

“What did you and Mr. Albedo talk about?”

Eula had just come in. She walked to the window, watching Albedo’s receding figure, and asked.

Earlier, Albedo had knocked on the door, specifically asking for “Artem Vetrovski”—
one, a senior Fatui Inspector, the other, Mondstadt’s Chief Alchemist.

With two people of such high rank meeting in private, Eula felt there were some secrets she shouldn’t be hearing. So, she’d left them alone.

But after Albedo left, curiosity got the better of her, and she couldn’t help but ask what the two of them had discussed.

“Nothing much,” Artem replied.
“I just gave him a taste of what Snezhnaya is all about.”

As soon as he finished saying this, the calm expression Artem had been wearing suddenly twisted. He hurriedly poured himself a cup of tea and rinsed his mouth for a long while before finally recovering.

This God Remnant reagent was truly disgusting.

If Artem had to describe it, it was that besides the main flavor, every kind of awful aftertaste was mixed in. If not for his strong willpower, he’d have thrown up in front of Albedo just now.

There was one thing he hadn’t lied to Albedo about:
That vial of God Remnant reagent had clearly been diluted countless times, the power of the God within was barely a trace.

Compared to Crepus’ Delusion, it didn’t even come close.

After drinking it, he’d only felt a slight flush of heat—nothing more.

To Artem, this kind of defective product was practically no different from a fake.

After rinsing his mouth, Artem smacked his lips and suggested, “Want to go out for a walk?”

He’d been busy for days now, issuing all sorts of orders for Mondstadt.

Eula hadn’t gone out on her own, staying holed up in the Goth Grand Hotel with him for days.

It was getting a bit stuffy, honestly.

Besides, the Fatui had been working hard lately at playing the good guys, earning a huge wave of goodwill.

Now, if they went out, it probably wouldn’t be like before—no more people pointing fingers behind their backs.

Eula considered his suggestion, then nodded. “Alright.”

With the Fatui’s heavy sponsorship, the disaster relief in Mondstadt had made rapid progress.

Fatui and Knights of Favonius worked side by side, almost as if they were competing—each side putting in every ounce of strength to rebuild homes.

But it didn’t take long for a winner to emerge.

Because the Fatui didn’t just rebuild houses and leave.

Whenever they finished repairs, they’d always leave behind brand-new furniture, plenty of supplies, and a generous amount of Mora.

Through their actions, they proved what they’d claimed before, that it was their duty to help their neighbor in times of need.

At first, Mondstadters hadn’t believed the Fatui could be so charitable.

But seeing was believing.

When they witnessed the Fatui not only fixing houses but immediately moving in furniture and delivering supplies—

The freedom-loving people of Mondstadt did not hesitate to show their gratitude, and soon there was an outcry, requests for the Fatui relief teams to visit their own homes as well.

So, as Artem and Eula once again walked the streets of Mondstadt, nearly every conversation they overheard was praise for the Fatui.

Of course, there were also plenty of voices criticizing the Knights of Favonius for their inefficiency.

Hearing such polarized discussions,

Eula remarked in surprise, “Is this what you meant by ‘the power of the people’?”

“Mm.”

Artem nodded, lowering his voice so only the two of them could hear as they walked.

“In my homeland, there was a great man who once said: ‘The power of the people is the greatest force of all.’”

“Of course, in a land ruled by gods, that’s not really realistic.”

“Because the will of the gods is supreme.”

“But Mondstadt is different.”

“Mondstadt has no god!”

“No god…” Eula sighed softly.

Artem went on:
“Back when I was still at the Snezhnayan military academy, I once ran simulations on the fastest way to bring Mondstadt to its knees.”

“First, engineer a widespread disaster. Then, descend on Mondstadt as saviors. By performing exceptionally, we could highlight the Knights’ incompetence. The sharper the contrast, the more we’d win over the people.”

“Next comes exposing scandals— for instance, Seamus Pegg training spies under the guise of taking in orphans; or Crepus Ragnvindr’s long-standing cooperation with the Fatui, endangering Mondstadt’s children; even conspiracies within the Knights to frame the city’s heroes.”

“Once these scandals broke, the three pillars controlling Mondstadt—faith, economy, and military—would see their credibility plummet.”

“After that, you just need to plant a few rumors—maybe stage another ‘Secret Pact of the Leeward Side’.”

“And when Mondstadters are thoroughly disillusioned with the Knights,
all it takes is one leader to raise their voice, and the city would turn on itself.”

“Then Snezhnaya’s army could intervene under the guise of helping the people, seizing the moment when the Snezhnayans already have public support, and help the rebels overthrow the Knights— repeating the war that overthrew the Lawrence clan a thousand years ago.”

“Defeat the Knights of Favonius, and Mondstadt would be completely under Snezhnaya’s control.”

“That is the textbook example of victory through harnessing the power of the people.”

Hiss—

Eula sucked in a breath, unable to believe it.

“That’s all it takes?”

“Of course, reality is never as simple as theory.”

Artem stopped walking and gave a low laugh.

“But, taking Mondstadt’s temperament and values into account, the odds of success are actually quite high.”

“…”

“Is this the kind of thing they teach in Snezhnaya?”

“What does Snezhnaya really want? To swallow up all six nations and unite Teyvat?”

After hearing Artem’s analysis on how to topple Mondstadt, Eula was visibly shaken.

“That’s just my own little hobby.”

Artem wagged a finger and smiled.

“Snezhnaya’s ambitions are vast, sure, but they’re not brazen enough to try conquering the other nations while the gods are still around.”

“I see…”

Recalling Artem’s past, Eula understood why he’d have thoughts like this. She even agreed:
“True. Not having a god really is Mondstadt’s fatal weakness.”

“Tsk. But Mondstadt doesn’t have that weakness anymore, does it?”

With that, Artem looked straight ahead, a faint smile curving his lips.

“Oh?”

“Hmm?”

“Eh???”

Eula, who’d been half-distracted, suddenly realized there was a deeper meaning to Artem’s words.

She quickly pressed him, “What do you mean by that?”

“Heh.”

Looking up, Artem grinned at the young man ahead, playing his lyre and singing for the crowd.

“Didn’t expect a little surprise on this outing.”

“The Anemo Archon, Barbatos.”

“You’ve finally decided to come home.”

---

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!