Undercover in Snezhnaya, My Teyvat Spy Life [27]

After leaving Angel’s Share, Artem Vetrovski walked toward the statue of Barbatos, the Anemo Archon—one of Mondstadt’s iconic landmarks—wearing a faint smile.

Hmph, Varka, you shameless old fox. If you can hand out empty promises, then I’ll just have to find my own way.

As he walked, Artem silently cursed Varka under his breath.

Eula was great in almost every way, takes good care of people, strong-willed, and was beautiful.

She could also cook, that was a plus.

It was just that, after years of subtle Knights of Favonius “education,” she had developed a kind of pathological loyalty to Mondstadt.

No matter how badly Mondstadt’s people treated her, she still shouldered the burden and pressed on, never wavering.

So, Artem had decided he’d have to set her straight about that.

If Mondstadt doesn’t want you, there’s always somewhere else that does.

Only by freeing her heart from Mondstadt could she truly travel the world with him, without worries.

Artem had already made up his mind:
Once his power was strong enough, he’d overthrow Snezhnaya, chop that body-snatching Dottore into pieces, and feed him to the dogs.

As for Mondstadt—

Father Coulsone was gone.
All the orphans who grew up with him had died at the “House of the Hearth.”

Artem felt no lingering attachment to Mondstadt anymore.

Whenever he thought of those orphans who’d died at the House of the Hearth, a cold light flickered in his eyes.

The Mondstadt underground’s rule for sending children to the House of the Hearth was ages eight to ten.

But Artem was an exception—he was in Mondstat until he was fifteen before being sent away.

The reason?
He was a prodigy.

He had no [Vision], but any sword skill or martial art came easily to him.

His guardian—the old priest Coulson, who’d found him abandoned in the wild and after seeing Artem’s talent, had become convinced he would be the next Arundolyn.

So when Seamus began gathering orphans to send to Snezhnaya, Coulson did everything he could to delay it.

He managed to hold it off for five years...
Until Artem was finally sent away at fifteen.

After that, in the House of the Hearth, Artem saw the other children who’d arrived with him die one after another.

If he hadn’t awakened his “cheat", he might have perished in the [Delusion] trials, too.

Coulson’s passing had been the final straw.

Since then, Artem had felt no ties to Mondstadt.

The only reason he still did jobs for Mondstadt, for the Knights of Favonius, was because Coulson had loved the city more than he loved himself.

It was to fulfill Coulson’s dying wish that Artem worked so hard, helping Mondstadt turn the tables against Snezhnaya, both in the open and behind the scenes.

But he only planned to do it for another four years.

By then, the Anemo Archon would have returned to Mondstadt, giving them the strength to stand against Snezhnaya.

That would be his chance to disappear.

Which meant he had to cure Eula of her unhealthy attachment to Mondstadt before then.

...

As Mondstadt’s most iconic landmark, the statue of Barbatos was always crowded.

There were citizens praying, clergy maintaining order, young couples treating it as a dating spot, and foreign travelers coming to admire it.

Tonight, it was livelier than ever.

Because it was the night of Barbara Pegg’s public performance—Mondstadt’s beloved idol, the deacon-in-training of the Church of Favonius.

At just fourteen, Barbara was the second daughter of Bishop Seamus Pegg, and the younger sister of Jean Gunnhildr, the Dandelion Knight.

Unlike her all-star older sister, Barbara lagged behind in both swordsmanship and scholarship.

But, guided by her father, she’d joined the Church and became a healer.

What truly made Barbara famous, though, was her angelic singing voice.

No one really remembered whose idea it was but one day, Barbara suddenly put on a concert in the plaza.

At first, it caused little stir.

After all, most of Mondstadt’s songs were old ballads sung by bards.

But Mondstadt was a city of freedom; people were quick to embrace new things.

After a few performances, everyone got hooked on her voice and infectious energy—some even began to hum along.

From then on, whenever Barbara performed, Mondstadters would drop everything, even drinking, just to listen.

“Tch. That’s a big crowd.”

Seeing the sea of people at the foot of the statue, Artem couldn’t help but click his tongue.

He’d heard Barbara was a phenomenon now, but seeing it in person was something else.

Still, Artem wasn’t interested in concerts.

His eyes darted around, quickly finding his target.

He slipped away to a quiet corner, checked to make sure he wasn’t being watched, and scampered up one of the columns surrounding the statue.

SWISH—

As soon as he reached the top, a spear flashed toward his throat.

Artem didn’t panic; he just grinned.

“Come on, Rosaria. Has it really only been a few days since we last met? Is this any way to greet an old friend?”

“Hmph.”

Rosaria withdrew her spear, a smirk on her lips.

“Didn’t expect our little Snezhnayan envoy to be a fan of Barbara’s concerts.”

Artem glanced down at the cheering crowd, curling his lip.

“Please. I don’t have that kind of free time.”

He pulled out a piece of paper, covered in over twenty names.

“There are traitors in the Church of Favonius. Here’s the list. Delivered today.”

Rosaria, who’d been casual a moment ago, turned deadly serious.
She tucked the intel away with care.

Only then did she look up and ask, “Your identity’s still safe?”

“Yeah.” Artem grinned.

“These guys are all small fry. They know there’s a mole, but not who.”

“Good.”

Relieved, Rosaria relaxed.

Artem added,

“Tell the old man—when it comes time for a purge, do it with a solid excuse. Move too fast, and even if I’m not exposed, I’ll be at risk.”

Rosaria nodded. “Understood.”

“One more thing—something big.”

“Go on.”

“The Fatui’s Second Harbinger—The Doctor—has issued an order: the Fatui are starting a draft in Mondstadt.”

“What!?”

Rosaria’s eyes widened, then her expression turned thunderous.

“Snezhnaya wants to conscript in Mondstadt? That’s absurd—insane! Outrageous!”

Artem sighed.

“This time, it’s a joint operation between two Harbingers. The goal is clear: to collect ‘experimental materials’ for The Doctor.”

“The other Harbinger is called ‘The Regrator’—the ninth seat. The richest of them all.”

“He’s providing unlimited funds for the operation, until The Doctor’s objectives are met.”

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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!