Genshin Impact, starting from becoming the God of the Ocean

"Thank you for your trust, Your Excellency... By the way, I have a request regarding this expedition mission, and I hope you can grant it."

Archie hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"Oh? What is it?"

“I want to invite the Fools to join us.” After saying that, Archie hurriedly explained, “They have been requesting help. I think since the casualties will be their own responsibility anyway, we might as well take advantage of this opportunity to weaken the Winter Kingdom’s diplomatic corps. It’s a win-win situation.”

"Your Excellency, what do you think?"

Su Zhe smiled.

"Of course, Archie, you really are the pillar of Mondstadt."

...

Chapter 13: Scheme, Strike! Summoning the Wind Dragon, the Giant Beast Crushes!

"It seems they've reached an agreement."

The woman stood in the attic, her eyes fixed on what was happening in the square.

Although it was impossible to see clearly what was being said, one could roughly guess some of it from the cheers that were erupting at that moment.

"Hmph~ How laughable, Wind God! Is this the messenger you carefully selected?"

If she had previously harbored some vague expectation about this matter, at this moment, all that remained in her heart was an inextinguishable fire suppressed by the ice, ready to ignite at any moment.

The poor wind dragon was destined to be abandoned by its master.

However, neither she nor the other Mondstadt residents saw that, while everyone's attention was focused on the square, two figures were rushing rapidly into the church.

Even the nuns probably didn't notice that Miss Barbara, the priest, was standing nervously on the outskirts of the square, worried that her sister might be upset about the incident.

"Traveler, this way!"

Wendy waved to Ying, who was running towards her.

"How was it? Did no one notice?"

"Of course not, hehe~ This is too easy for the Traveler!" Paimon said with a smug look on his face. "Although there were many Knights guarding the Sky Harp, we still got it smoothly. I did it with the Traveler!"

Su Zhe's actions attracted the attention of the Fools; no one would have expected that the Knight of Honor would steal the Sky Harp at this time.

According to the game's storyline, the Fatui would keep an eye on Ying for fear of her causing trouble, and the Sky Harp's plan would fail because of their interference.

But now their attention is mainly on Su Zhe, so they naturally don't realize that Ying has secretly brought out the Sky Harp.

In reality, the Fools had no designs on the Sky Harp itself; otherwise, they wouldn't have just casually left it somewhere after taking it.

They had been watching Ying, so they were aware of Ying and Wendy's actions.

But now, they are assembling their troops, awaiting Su Zhe's summons.

"So? You busker, you got the Sky Harp, can you really use it to awaken Dvalin?"

"Um..."

"What does 'hmm' mean?"

"Well..."

Wendy stared at the Sky Harp for a while and realized that it had been stored for too long, and the wind elemental power contained within it had become quite weak.

Sigh~ He was quite helpless. This thing isn't a souvenir, so why does it have to be sealed up and guarded by so many people?

If you've been using it consistently, you might have noticed this change and then found a way to maintain the Sky Harp long ago.

Fortunately, he is the Wind God, so this is no big deal.

"Traveler, give me that tear."

Ying handed her tears to Wendy.

The purified tears of Dvalin contain pure wind elemental power, which can restore the power of the Sky Harp.

However, one drop was clearly not enough, and Wendy became conflicted again.

"Should we go beat up Dvalin again and then collect his tears?"

Paimon asked, looking rather naive.

Wendy spread her hands: "Dvalin's tears are not simply shed because of pain. For it, the pain of being forgotten is what truly touches its soul. The power of the Abyss curses this forgotten sorrow through poisonous blood. This is the only way. Otherwise, they simply cannot control Dvalin."

"However, Dvalin's pain has lasted for a long time, and his tears should be collected in many places in Mondstadt."

"Then let's hurry up." Diluc glanced at the square. "We don't have much time left."

...

On the other hand, after the public vote ended, Archie immediately began to gather his subordinates as the 'leader of the Dragon Extermination Squad'.

As a member of the Knights himself, he would naturally choose trusted and capable subordinates for this operation.

As for people like Kaia and Lisa who were close to Jean, he didn't pick any of them.

They claimed that Mondstadt also needed protection.

Although he valued the combat abilities of Kaiya and the others, there was no other way; now was the crucial moment for him to achieve his great ambitions.

More importantly, the Fools were participating in this expedition, and with their help, Archie was naturally at ease, especially since he and the lady had a secret relationship.

The Fools are recognized as the strongest armed force in the Seven Kingdoms. With them around, dealing with that crippled dragon shouldn't be too difficult.

Archie knew very well that the Fatui had secretly established a considerable presence within Mondstadt, including the unseen Executor 'Lady'. If he hadn't known this, the publicly known diplomatic corps would have been no match for Stormterror.

"Lord Su Zhe! I'd like to confirm with you again why I can't participate in this expedition?"

Inside the Knights' headquarters, Qin could no longer bear it after hearing Su Zhe's arrangements.

"Commander Qin, please watch your tone," Archie said solemnly. "This is the envoy's decision and the will of the Wind God. As children of the Wind God, all we can do is obey."

Jean frowned: "But how can I, as the captain, not participate in such an important event as the slaying of the Wind Dragon? Besides, Inspector Archie, you've dispatched far too few people this time. The majority of them are from the Fatui, which is very dangerous."

The Knights of Fatalis already have few men at their disposal, and Archie's trusted followers are even fewer. Under these circumstances, the Fatui would quickly gain the upper hand after the attack, which would be too dangerous for Mondstadt.

What if there's hope for Tvalin's recovery?

Qin was almost certain that even if they saw this hope, the Fools would not hesitate to order an attack.

From what she knew, these guys seemed to be eyeing Dvalin's powers as a follower of the wind god. Whether this news was true or not, the Fools definitely had no good intentions towards Dvalin.

"I disagree!"

Qin's attitude was very firm.

Su Zhe sighed inwardly.

He really wanted to be honest with Qin, but the current situation made it inconvenient.

Archie is a cunning old fox, while Jyn is, in some ways, an honest person. If she were to act even slightly out of character, Archie might just notice.

"Commander Jean, I know you're worried about the expedition, but if everyone goes, who will defend Mondstadt?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than someone suddenly rushed into the office.

"Report!" He looked at the three of them, and finally said to Qin, "Commander, Amber has sent word that she seems to have discovered the movements of the Abyss Monsters. She suspects they are the same group that attacked the city last time, and they are very strong."

"abyss!?"

Qin Weiwei paused slightly.

She remembered that those guys should have been scared away by Su Zhe back then.

Or is a larger conspiracy being hidden behind the scenes about to surface?

"Hmph~ So you're here again."

"Your Excellency, what exactly is going on?"

Archie was somewhat worried that something unexpected might happen at this critical juncture.

"The Abyss's actions have always been clear: they want to use Dvalin to deal with Mondstadt. I've been tracking them for a while now, but the more I learn, the more I realize that this attack by the Abyss is even more terrifying than we expected. They've prepared a lot for this."

"Now that Mondstadt has sent troops to attack Dvalin, they will certainly not let this opportunity pass. The next period is likely to be the most difficult time for Mondstadt."

At this point, Su Zhe's face turned serious.

"Chief Inspector Archie, if the monsters attack the city, the task of suppressing them may become..."

“My Lord!” Archie said in a deep voice, “The Abyss is doing this to stop us from dealing with the Wind Demon Dragon. We cannot let them succeed at this time, so I propose that the campaign continue!”

"The problem is that once most of our fighting force leaves Mondstadt, even with Captain Jean stationed there, we won't be able to withstand the Abyss's attack."

"I know, but if the envoy and the Knight of Honor are stationed here, there shouldn't be any problem, right?"

"I'm staying in Mondstadt with the Knight of Honor?" Su Zhe looked shocked. "Inspector Archie, are you serious? Although Dvalin is seriously injured and may only have one or two tenths of his strength left, he is still not someone that an ordinary person can deal with."

"Of course I know, but Your Excellency, humans also have their own strengths, don't they? This is Mondstadt's own crisis, and it should be resolved by Mondstadt's own strength."

Archie stood tall, upright and solemn, his eyes even gleaming.

In reality, Archie was well aware of the significance of this campaign to him.

If he responds to the people's call and resolves the dragon scourge that terrifies countless Mondstadt residents, then he can build momentum and, with the help of the Wind God's messenger, ascend to the position of Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius.

Su Zhe and Ying are too strong. If they join, they will get most of the credit for this expedition.

Conversely, if he did that, his position as regimental commander wouldn't be so easy to obtain.

After all, Jean has a very high reputation in Mondstadt, with supporters ranging from ordinary commoners to high-ranking nobles.

This was a huge gamble, no, perhaps for Archie, it was the only option.

This was also the choice Su Zhe gave him.

"Inspector Archie, are you sure you want to do this?"

"Yes, Your Excellency!"

“I disagree,” Jean said in a deep voice. “Lord Archie, if we rely solely on the people you lead, even with the addition of the Fools, our strength is probably insufficient. Doing so is too risky.”

"Chairman Jean, for Mondstadt, I am willing to take the risk!"

Archie's decision was significant.

"Your Excellency, please grant my request!"

After pondering for a long time, Su Zhe finally made up his mind with great difficulty: "Lord Archie, you are excellent, and I look forward to your good news... Well then, go and prepare, and may the wind god bless you."