Chapter 82: Teyvat's Internal Strife
"Childe Tartaglia. But you can just call me Tartaglia." The ginger-haired young man grinned, the thrill of the recent clash still dancing in his dull blue eyes as he smoothly lowered his stance and stowed his weapon. He rolled his shoulders, exhaling a satisfied breath. "Friend, to be completely honest with you, I don't really know who you are either. Someone in our organization just mentioned you were an FBI elite. Said you could put up a good fight. Naturally, I couldn't refuse a suggestion to meet you." He chuckled, brushing a stray lock of hair from his forehead. "I have to say, he was right. You are quite capable."
Shuichi Akai watched the young man's relaxed posture. Only when he was certain the immediate physical threat had ebbed did the FBI ace allow the rigid tension in his own muscles to fractionally unwind. His sharp green eyes narrowed. "Childe? Is that your codename in this organization?"
"Hmm, something like that." Tartaglia tilted his head, his smile bright and entirely unhelpful.
'Something like that?' Akai kept his expression perfectly neutral, though his mind raced. What kind of amateurish answer was that? The situation remained dangerously opaque, and he needed actionable intelligence. "Then, may I know who exactly told you about me? Who sent you here to cause trouble?" Akai kept his tone even, devoid of accusation. "I must admit, I am very curious about the root cause of today's unexpected disaster."
Tartaglia simply spread his hands in a theatrical gesture of innocence. "I have no idea why he targeted you. But hey, you can always ask him yourself."
"And where might I find him to ask in person?" Akai pressed.
"Oh, he is right behind you." Tartaglia jutted his chin toward the space over Akai's shoulder.
A cold spike of adrenaline hit Akai's chest. His breath hitched. He pivoted sharply, his hand instinctively hovering near his holster. Someone had bypassed his legendary situational awareness entirely.
A tall man stood leisurely in the doorway of the living room. He had his arms casually crossed over his chest, leaning his weight against the doorframe as if he had been watching the entire spectacle unfold for hours.
Seeing that he had finally been noticed, Kaeya offered a lazy, brilliant smile and raised a hand in greeting. "Hello there, Mr. Shuichi Akai. The FBI's renowned ace."
Pushing off the doorframe, Kaeya strolled into the room with the measured, elegant stride of a noble. He gestured gracefully toward the plush sofa in the center of the room, silently inviting the sniper to take a seat. Tartaglia, meanwhile, completely ignored the newcomer, having already thrown himself onto an adjacent armchair with his long legs stretched out in front of him.
Akai forced his hand away from his weapon. He slowly exhaled, reigning in the sudden spike of combat readiness. He moved to the sofa and sat down, keeping his posture guarded but outwardly relaxed.
If they wanted him dead, they would have struck from the shadows. The fact that they were initiating a conversation meant the immediate threat of violence had passed., engaging two highly skilled operatives simultaneously in an enclosed space was tactical suicide. He would listen to their demands before deciding his next move.
Settling into the cushions, Akai fixed his piercing gaze on the man with the eyepatch. "May I ask who you are?"
"Kaeya Alberich," the man replied smoothly, his single visible eye glinting with amusement. "The very person your FBI colleagues have been so diligently staking out lately. I assure you, I am merely an ordinary tourist. At most, I conduct a few minor business transactions along the way. Yet, your relentless surveillance has caused me quite a bit of unnecessary trouble." Kaeya suppressed a sigh. Because of these federal bloodhounds, he hadn't been able to spend any decent time playing with Klee over the past few days.
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, the playful smile never leaving his face. "Therefore, I decided to come here and explain things to you in person, Mr. Akai. I am hoping you can instruct your people to stop appearing in my vicinity. If another misunderstanding occurs in the future, and conflicts arise, you cannot guarantee that every agent will be as highly skilled as you are." Kaeya's voice dropped a fraction of an octave, the warmth vanishing from his tone. "Next time, we might not be so merciful."
Akai raised a single eyebrow. The pieces clicked into place. This entire orchestrated encounter—the sudden ambush by Tartaglia, the silent infiltration by Kaeya—was nothing more than a theatrical display of force. A warning shot fired across the FBI's bow.
Seeing the grim silence from the sniper, Kaeya leaned back, instantly restoring his affable demeanor. He knew better than to push a cornered wolf too hard. "Of course, we are fully aware of the ongoing blood feud between your agency and the Black Organization. However, those grievances have absolutely nothing to do with us. Essentially, we maintain a strictly transactional relationship with them. We have zero intention of interfering with whatever grand plans the FBI has for dismantling those crows—not unless there is a substantial benefit in it for us." Kaeya spread his hands, mirroring Tartaglia's earlier gesture. "How about that? Doesn't that prove our sincerity?"
Akai ignored the rhetorical question. He locked eyes with Kaeya. "I have heard you mention 'our organization' several times now. Yet, I still do not know the name of the syndicate you both belong to."
"Oh, it is just a minor organization," Kaeya replied with a dismissive wave of his hand, his tone dripping with false modesty. "I am certain you have never heard of it. We call ourselves Teyvat. Within the organization, I belong to the Mondstadt branch. I am mostly responsible for external communications and public relations. Tedious work, really."
"A communications officer who can bypass my perimeter undetected," Akai noted dryly. "I am afraid your esteemed organization is teeming with hidden monsters. That hardly sounds like the 'minor' group you claim it to be." Shifting his gaze, Akai looked at the ginger-haired fighter lounging in the armchair. "And what about Mr. Tartaglia?"
Before Tartaglia could open his mouth, Kaeya answered for him. "He belongs to the Fatui division of the Snezhnaya branch. But that is hardly important. You really do not need to worry about them. They have never been particularly popular within the ranks anyway."
Tartaglia, who had been contentedly staring at the ceiling, snapped his head up. His eyes narrowed, a flash of genuine annoyance crossing his boyish features. "Hey, that is a bit much, don't you think? How exactly is Snezhnaya not important? Did you conveniently forget who just did all the heavy lifting for your little warning mission?"
Kaeya scoffed, a mocking sneer curling his lips. "Heh. Did I ask for your help? You are just a battle-crazed hound who could not resist jumping in the moment you smelled a fight."
"I still did the work," Tartaglia shot back, leaning forward aggressively. "Besides, you talk a big game for someone whose branch is so weak. I seem to recall that Mondstadt's boss was completely defenseless when our Fatui's Fair Lady paid him a visit."
Kaeya's knuckles turned white as he gripped the armrest, though his face stretched into a chilling, plastic smile. "Oh? Is that so? Well, I heard that your precious Fair Lady was later mercilessly cut down by Inazuma's boss. Tell me, Tartaglia, did you attend her funeral? I hear it was quite a gloomy affair."
"So what if I did?" Tartaglia sneered, his competitive streak flaring. "That Inazuma woman might be a powerhouse, but she is completely isolated. Hell, even her own created child abandoned her to join our Fatui ranks!"
Kaeya let out a dark chuckle. "Fascinating. Speaking of being abandoned and used, I heard a certain Harbinger spent months acting as Mr. Zhongli's unwitting wallet, only to be spectacularly tricked in the end. I wonder how that poor, gullible fool feels about it now?"
Tartaglia's face flushed slightly, his jaw tightening. "I admired Mr. Zhongli's vast knowledge! I willingly paid for his expenses out of respect!"
"..." Kaeya stared at him with an expression of deep pity.
"..." Tartaglia glared back, refusing to break eye contact.
A heavy, awkward silence descended upon the living room.
Shuichi Akai sat perfectly still on the sofa, helplessly watching the two deadly operatives bicker like petty schoolchildren. He blinked, processing the sheer absurdity of the situation. He had merely asked a standard probing question to gauge their hierarchy. He never expected it to ignite a bitter, deeply personal feud right in front of him.
As he replayed their rapid-fire argument in his mind, Akai felt a rare headache forming. Mondstadt's boss was robbed by Snezhnaya's executive. Snezhnaya's executive was then executed by Inazuma's boss. Inazuma's boss had a child who defected to Snezhnaya...
None of it made tactical sense. If the various regional departments of this 'Teyvat' organization were actively sabotaging, robbing, and outright murdering each other's executives, how on earth were they still functioning as a cohesive syndicate? How could two men from warring factions sit in the same room and execute a coordinated ambush against an FBI agent?
When Kaeya and Tartaglia had first revealed themselves, their teamwork had seemed flawless. There had been no hint of this deep-seated departmental animosity. Akai's curiosity deepened into genuine apprehension. Just who was the supreme leader of this Teyvat Organization? What kind of terrifying, god-like mastermind possessed the sheer charisma and power required to leash such a chaotic, bloodthirsty group of subordinates and force them to work together?
Akai wisely chose to keep his mouth shut. He had no intention of interrupting their squabble. Every insult they hurled at each other was a goldmine of internal intelligence.
Unfortunately for the FBI ace, the argument did not last much longer. Kaeya and Tartaglia seemed to simultaneously realize they were airing their dirty laundry in front of an outsider. With a synchronized, irritated huff, they broke eye contact, dropping the subject entirely. After all, these were old grievances, and bickering over past betrayals accomplished nothing in the present.
Smoothing down the front of his vest, Kaeya smoothly reverted to his professional, aristocratic persona. "Returning to the matter at hand," he said, his voice cool and authoritative. "I expect you to call off your dogs, Mr. Akai. Cease all surveillance on me and any other members of our organization you might stumble across."
Akai met Kaeya's unyielding gaze. He could sense the absolute assertiveness radiating from the man—a silent promise of violence if his terms were rejected.
Reluctantly, Akai gave a slow, measured nod. He had to agree, at least for now. The FBI's primary objective was the eradication of the Black Organization. They simply did not have the manpower or the resources to wage a two-front war against another highly capable, deeply entrenched syndicate. Until this Teyvat Organization proved themselves to be an active, obvious threat to public safety, provoking them was a tactical error he could not afford to make.
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