Chapter 22: Time to Reveal — I Am the Wind God Barbatos
"Seems… Miss Lisa's lesson yesterday still wasn't enough for you…"
A flicker of coldness flashed in Lumine's eyes. Gritting her teeth, she said this and looped her arm around Su Han's waist. In an instant, her slender arm tightened.
With a sharp exclamation, Su Han was hurled several meters away in a German-style bridge throw, only to be hit immediately by Lumine's elbow smashing into his abdomen.
"Ugh—"
"Time for a feast, time for a feast!" Paimon clapped her tiny hands, grinning from ear to ear.
Lumine shot Su Han another glare. Even little Paimon's turning bad all because of you!
"You weren't supposed to go with Amber to test your glider license?" Su Han dusted himself off, his face darkening slightly.
He should never have taught Paimon the meaning of those words. At this rate, foodie Paimon might turn into… a rogue Paimon? Shit!
Lumine stood with one hand on her hip, lips curling slightly, radiating that classic tsundere pride.
"Hmph, isn't a glider license something a genius like me can handle effortlessly?"
"And I even helped Amber catch a famous treasure-hunting criminal—the Strange Bird."
"Uh-huh… so impressive," Su Han replied absentmindedly, barely paying attention.
Lumine continued, "Also, here's a secret. This morning, I ran into Kaeya. He said he encountered an Abyss Mage while cleaning a temple. He thinks the abnormal behavior of the Wind Drake might be related to the Abyss Order. He's investigating the situation now."
Su Han frowned. "The Abyss Order?"
"That's a group of inhuman monsters—an organization hostile to humans. Sounds dangerous. Be careful yourself."
"I will. Although Kaeya doesn't exactly inspire confidence."
"By the way, where's Amber?" Paimon asked.
"She's escorting the Strange Bird back to Mondstadt, so I returned ahead of her. She said she'd wait at the cathedral, but I went by just now and didn't see her—probably off on another mission."
"Lumine, since you're here, there's something I want to talk to you about. I'm taking you to the Symbol of the Heroes of Mondstadt to meet someone."
"The Symbol of the Heroes of Mondstadt? I know, I know! That's the big tree!" Paimon squealed.
"Yes, that very conspicuous tree! We passed it when we first arrived in Mondstadt."
Lumine tilted her head. "Going to the Symbol of the Heroes to find someone?"
Su Han smiled mysteriously. "Don't you feel that bard holds many secrets? He said he'd be waiting for me there. Venti can talk to dragons—I think he might be our breakthrough in communicating with Teyvat. Maybe we can uncover even more secrets from him."
Lumine's eyes lit up, and she nodded vigorously.
---
In Mondstadt's Windrise, a towering ancient tree stood, its branches sprawling. Legend had it that this tree was personally planted by the hero who saved Mondstadt, Vennessa. Even as a sapling, bards had sung of it. Now, that sapling had grown into the Symbol of the Heroes of Mondstadt.
"I knew you'd come."
Afternoon sunlight dappled Venti's cloak with shadows of leaves. He sat beneath the tree, holding a bitten apple.
His long, white-silver legs stretched out lazily, completely unashamed under the watchful eyes of the visitors.
Paimon licked her lips, starving again.
"Venti, what's the interesting thing you mentioned?" Su Han stepped forward.
Venti blinked his emerald eyes, pinching a green apple core between his fingers, and lightly tapped it against his lips. "Open your mouth…"
Su Han frowned. "What do you—"
Quick as a flash, Venti stuffed the green core into his mouth.
Lumine drew her sword, pointing it at Venti's throat, her voice cold: "What did you do to him?"
[You have consumed (Superior Anemo Core). "Ride the Wind" skill upgraded to max level.]
[Ride the Wind (Lv. 10): When used while your back faces enemies, movement speed increases by 100%.]
Su Han felt warmth in his chest. "Don't worry, Lumine. I'm fine."
Venti watched expectantly. "Well? Did your teleportation technique improve?"
Su Han shook his head slowly. Venti tapped his chin. "Hmm… can't rush perfection, I suppose."
"Too bad—I was hoping your teleportation would level up."
"It's not entirely useless. Another one of my abilities improved greatly."
As they say, the mouth that eats is short, the hand that receives is soft.
By receiving two gifts at once, Su Han couldn't possibly dislike Venti.
"Venti, why would you give me something so important?"
Venti smiled faintly. "Your aura felt… familiar. You appealed to me, so I gave it to you. It's a coincidence, really—just something I picked up along the way. Not important to me."
"But this reminds me to ask… How can you use your teleportation technique without channeling any elemental energy?"
Su Han's eyes glinted. "That's a long story. My teleportation… actually comes from none other than Lord Barbatos, the Anemo Archon of Mondstadt himself."
Venti tilted his head. "?"
Su Han continued, "I remember it was a cold winter. The Wind God appeared before me and asked, 'Young man, would you like to learn my unique teleportation technique?' All I had to do was pay 998 Mora, and he'd teach me. That's how I got it."
Lumine scoffed. "You really think I'd believe that?"
Paimon giggled. "Yep! I can vouch for Su Han. I'm coming clean—I'm actually the Wind God Barbatos."
"Ha! Young man, I didn't expect you still remembered back then. Nine out of thirteen returned—you still owe me 9,980,000 Mora!"
Su Han blinked. "?"
Venti cleared his throat. "Actually… I've been keeping a secret. I am Wind God Barbatos myself."
"Hmm?" Lumine eyed him suspiciously.
"Pfft, get out of here. You're just like Paimon, taking advantage of me," Su Han muttered.
Venti: "…."
Lumine, unfazed by the back-and-forth, turned to Venti. "Su Han says you're knowledgeable. We want to ask you something."
"Go ahead," Venti replied.
"I want to know more about the Wind God."
Venti stroked his smooth chin. "Barbatos? He disappeared from Mondstadt long ago. Liyue still has Rex Lapis, Inazuma still has the Raiden Shogun—but the people of Mondstadt haven't seen their god for ages. Why ask about Barbatos? Is it… because of Teyvat?"
Paimon: "Ah… well, it's about the god…"
Lumine interrupted: "A scholar named Lisa told me the history of the dragons."
She recounted, in detail, everything she had learned from Lisa.
After listening, Venti rubbed his chin, thoughtful. "I see. So that's how Lisa, the Mondstadt scholar, interprets things. It makes sense. Conflicts have escalated because both sides have resorted to violence—but the original hatred wasn't born of neglecting the Four Winds' guardianship. It wasn't natural. It's corruption… that's the root of it."
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