Undercover in Snezhnaya, My Teyvat Spy Life [67]

Staring at Boreas as he gradually faded into nothing, Artem waited expectantly.

But even after Boreas had completely vanished, there was still no trace of the “dregs of a god” he’d imagined, nor any of the usual game drops.

Boreas simply dissipated into the air—without a trace.

“…?”

Artem blinked, glancing suspiciously around the ruins, even taking a few deliberate sniffs.

Only then was he sure. There wasn’t just no residue—there was no trace of a god’s resentment, either.

“You already got the sword, didn’t you? What else are you looking for?” Eula asked, watching him poke around in confusion.

Artem scratched his head and answered honestly, “Uh, just wanted to see if the Wolf King would drop anything good after dying.”

“You know how it is in Inazuma light novels. Some mythical beast dies, maybe it leaves behind some bone, or drops a legendary weapon or rare treasure.”

Eula rolled her eyes. “You’ve read too many light novels.”

“Maybe,” Artem said with a grin, slinging [Wolf’s Gravestone] onto his back as he and Eula left together.

As for why Boreas disappeared so cleanly—he had a guess.

Boreas was only a lingering soul. No godhood, no divine flesh—at best, a magical beast with the power of a god. His body was just wind and ice, not true flesh and blood. So, it made sense that nothing was left behind.

A shame there was no god’s power to claim, but [Wolf’s Gravestone] in hand meant Artem’s arsenal was finally complete for close combat. That alone was something to celebrate.

With business in the wilds wrapped up, Artem didn’t linger outside Mondstadt any longer and headed back into the city.

This trip had been fruitful—and left Mondstadt in chaos.

First, there was Dvalin’s rampage. The combined dragon disaster and windstorm not only caused massive destruction but also ground all of Mondstadt’s trade to a halt.

Then, the original North Wind Guardian Boreas was slain by Artem and Eula, with Varka’s apprentice Razor disposed of as well.

Now, Mondstadt’s East Wind Guardian was mad, its North Wind Guardian was gone. Trade was paralyzed, the storms continued to ravage the outlying villages, and Bishop Seamus Pegg had been murdered.

In just a few days, Mondstadt was back in crisis—almost as bleak as the days before Artem had gone to Snezhnaya.

And the architect of all this? Quietly slipped back to the Goth Grand Hotel, unnoticed by anyone.

“So you finally decided to come back.”

In the office, Dottore eyed Artem, half-lidded, his look full of malicious amusement.

“What are you staring at me for?”

“You noticed how much smoother recruitment went these last few days I was gone?”

With Arlecchino backing him, Artem felt none of the dread toward Dottore that most Fatui officers did. Nor did he need to.

He figured all the chaos he’d sown in Mondstadt was enough to earn the merit needed for a Harbinger promotion. Once he got back to Snezhnaya and got his reward, he could leapfrog Childe into the ranks. Then, as equals, Dottore would have nothing on him.

But Dottore was sharp. He saw right through Artem’s scheming.

“Recruitment was a little easier. So what?” Dottore snapped. “Still nowhere near my target numbers.”

He snorted. “And whose fault is that? It was your ridiculous treaty. Recruiting has been a nightmare with all those restrictions.”

Artem shot back, “So this is my fault now? It was just me and Krupp at the table back then, and you know how many Favonius Knights showed up? They sent a whole company! If we didn’t sign, they would’ve chopped us up right there.”

“You’ve been here long enough—why haven’t you gone to rip up that treaty yourself?”

Dottore gave him a withering look. “You think I haven’t thought of that?”

Snezhnaya’s never had qualms about breaking agreements—it wouldn’t be the first time.

Why bother negotiating when you can force your way through?

Except the Grand Master of the Knights was unusually tough—and he’d even called in two helpers who looked formidable.

Especially that blond brat.

The way that kid looked at him was exactly how Dottore looked at his test subjects.

It had irritated Dottore so much that he started a fight right there in the Knights’ headquarters.

To his shock…well, not just shock—he realized it wasn’t just “maybe” he couldn’t win. He truly couldn’t beat all three of them together.

The humiliation still stung.

So when Artem brought up tearing up the treaty, Dottore could barely stop himself from snapping.

“…?”

Sure enough, Artem’s brows shot up. “You lost to Varka?”

“Think about it,” Dottore said coldly. “The Grand Master is skilled, but he can’t beat me. Not by himself.”

Artem pressed, “So did you run into Albedo and Alice?”

“If you mean the blond kid and the elf woman who dresses like a giant red apple, then yes.”

“No wonder…” Artem smirked. “You went up against the three strongest fighters in Mondstadt. No wonder you lost.”

“That does make things complicated. Let me think…”

He rubbed his chin, pondering.

“That dragon—you tried to drive it out?”

“Yeah. Looked like a fun experiment. I wanted to catch it, but it ran off,” Dottore grumbled, still sour about it.

A creature favored by the wind god—a rare experimental specimen, and it escaped.

“You didn’t use that to your advantage?” Artem pressed.

Dottore frowned. “What do you mean, use it?”

“Come on! You helped Mondstadt drive out Stormterror. That’s a huge favor, isn’t it?”

Artem sounded exasperated. “That was your chance to squeeze the Knights for some perks! Even if you couldn’t use it to break the treaty, you could’ve at least demanded some privileges.”

“A bit of publicity could have boosted the Fatui’s standing—and you’d have recruited even more.”

“Honestly, what a waste!”

Dottore’s mood, already soured by Dvalin’s escape, soured further. He’s right. Why was I only thinking about recruitment? I could’ve wrung so much more out of them…

“So what now?” Dottore demanded, still ordering Artem around as if none of this was his fault. “That dragon’s terrified, it won’t come near Mondstadt again. So what’s your plan?”

“Tch, always ordering me around.” Artem scoffed. “If that dragon won’t come, let’s just give Mondstadt another one.”

“Let it cause some havoc, then you jump in and drive it out—maybe even kill it. The Knights will owe us another big favor. Everything gets easier after that.”

Dottore narrowed his eyes. “How did you know I caught another dragon?”

Artem ignored the question. “Doesn’t matter. You can control it, right? Just follow my lead. Otherwise, you’ll never finish your recruitment plan.”

Seeing Artem so full of confidence, Dottore just snorted. “Fine.”

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T/N: author admits the stories been too harsh and has drifted a bit and will try to fix these issues in the future... i'll give it another shot

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!