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Chapter 11: The Question of Dvalin's Downfall
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As the video screen faded, the Q&A system chimed in once again:
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[Teyvat's Q&A officially begins!]
[Question: Who is responsible for turning Dvalin, the former Dragon of the East Wind, into the current Stormterror?]
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A: Wendy
B: Fatui
C: Abyss Order
D: Demon Dragon Durin
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[You have one minute to think, then the answering phase will begin! If no one volunteers to answer, the system will randomly select a participant!]
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This question sent shockwaves through everyone witnessing it. It wasn't the sudden appearance of the Q&A itself that startled them, but the weight of the information contained in the question.
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[Jean: "Wait, what?! The Stormterror that's been plaguing Mondstadt is actually Dvalin, the legendary Dragon of the East Wind?"]
[Lisa: "What an unexpected revelation... Dvalin, the same dragon who once protected Mondstadt, has fallen so far to become Stormterror..."]
[Venti: "Dvalin, my old friend... you must be suffering..."]
[Diluc: "The Knights of Favonius continue to disappoint. How did they fail to recognize such an obvious truth?"]
[Jean: "Indeed, this is our failing. We mistook the noble Dragon of the East Wind for a demon dragon..."]
[Noelle: "How heartbroken Dvalin must be. The city he once guarded has forgotten him and now fears him."]
[Barbara: "Lord Barbatos, we have made such a terrible mistake. Please punish us for our foolishness."]
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At that moment, the entire population of Mondstadt began to realize the painful truth. They finally understood why, despite the violent winds caused by Stormterror, the damage had been relatively minor. There had been no fatalities, only broken rooftops and damaged homes.
And why, in every roar of Stormterror, there was a note of sadness.
Dvalin still loved this land. He remembered the people he once swore to protect. But this love had been betrayed, and the people he had protected were now afraid of him.
The people of Mondstadt were filled with regret and self-reproach.
In contrast, those from other regions of Teyvat were puzzled by Mondstadt's reactions.
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[Xiangling: "Dvalin, the Dragon of the East Wind? Mondstadt has dragons too? Is it like the Geo Archon for Liyue?"]
[Xingqiu: "Not quite. According to my family's records, Barbatos, the Anemo Archon, appointed four winds to guard Mondstadt, and Dvalin, the Dragon of the East Wind, was one of them."]
[Beidou: "Ah, I see. So, he's like one of Liyue's adepti? He must be incredibly powerful if he was Barbatos' trusted guardian."]
[Hu Tao: "What a magnificent dragon! Imagine how grand it would look pulling a coffin! Maybe I can convince Lord Barbatos to start a new business with me!"]
[Sangonomiya Kokomi: "Wait... did I hear that right? Hu Tao, are you serious?"]
[Yun Jin: "Hu Tao, please! You're unbelievable! A dragon pulling a coffin?"]
[Yanfei: "Hu Tao, maybe take a moment to read the room? Don't you see the faces of the Mondstadters? They're all devastated!"]
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Despite the solemn atmosphere in Mondstadt, Hu Tao's comments lightened the mood for those in the Q&A chat group. Though many of them were shocked at her audacity, they couldn't help but laugh a little at her bizarre ideas.
Hu Tao, however, wasn't done yet.
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[Hu Tao: "I was just kidding! Even if I wanted to, I wouldn't be able to communicate with a mad Stormterror, right?"]
[Hu Tao: "But speaking of which, Dvalin must be incredibly powerful as Barbatos' chosen. Who could be strong enough to corrupt him into Stormterror?"]
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Her question shifted the focus back to the mystery at hand, and once again, the people of Mondstadt grew serious. Dvalin had been one of the strongest beings in Mondstadt, a direct subordinate of the Anemo Archon. Who could have had the strength or influence to turn him into the terrifying Stormterror?
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[Rosaria: "Do we really need to think that hard about it? That bard's been acting suspicious from the start. He must be behind all of this."]
[Diluc: "True. The Abyss Order and the Fatui are always up to something, but Wendy's behavior makes him look the most guilty right now."]
[Albedo: "I agree with Diluc. Wendy is far more suspicious than the other choices we've been given."]
[Venti: "Hey, why do you keep suspecting me? I've already explained that all I did was play my harp to soothe Dvalin!"]
[Kaeya: "And you think we'll just take your word for it?"]
[Amber: "Yeah! If you're so capable, why didn't you calm Dvalin down sooner? Why wait until things got this bad?"]
[Ying: "And why did you run away the moment we met? It's definitely suspicious!"]
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Amber and Ying's accusations left Venti at a loss for words. He couldn't very well explain that he had run off because he wasn't ready to reveal his true identity as Barbatos, could he?
And as for why he didn't intervene earlier... well, as a god who spent most of his time fishing and drinking, it was already impressive that he'd gotten involved at all!
But none of that would sound very convincing, so Venti hesitated.
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[Venti: "Uh..."]
[Venti: "Anyway, I promise I'm innocent! Believe me!"]
[Paimon: "What do you mean by that?!"]
[Kaeya: "Enough talk. We should just arrest him already."]
[Rosaria: "Agreed. The sooner we get him in custody, the sooner we can finish work."]
[Jean: "Uh..."]
[Jean: "Mr. Wendy, if you keep resisting, I'm afraid we'll have no choice but to officially consider you a prime suspect in the Stormterror incident."]
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Jean felt conflicted. While she didn't believe Wendy was truly responsible for Dvalin's corruption, his evasiveness wasn't helping his case. She would have been happy to clear his name, but that required his cooperation.
If Wendy didn't start offering better answers soon, she'd be left with no choice but to arrest him.
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