Chapter 414 - 413: I’m Helping You, Brother!

In a flat area of Dragonspine, Albedo stood face-to-face with another person who looked exactly like him, both holding Swords. It was clear what their purpose was.

(The Indestructible: So annoying! From now on, I’ll just call him Abe Shao. Why bother with all the fuss?)

Abe Shao looked at Albedo with a slightly angry expression. Why did this defective product get so many things? He was clearly the perfect one; everything Albedo had should be his!

He and Albedo were both creations of their teacher, but he had been in a dormant state and had only recently awakened.

Because of his appearance, the people of Mondstadt mistook him for Albedo, and he took the opportunity to stay in Mondstadt as Albedo for a period of time.

During this time, he felt the respect of the Mondstadt residents towards him. He was very satisfied with their attitude, but he understood that their respect was not for him, but for Albedo, that guy who was clearly inferior to him.

He wanted to take everything from that guy. Before that, he still needed to acquire the alchemy Albedo mastered, otherwise it would be difficult for him to maintain this disguise.

In his plan, he would go to Albedo’s camp while Albedo was out, find alchemy-related materials, and take them away.

He was confident that he could master all that content in a very short time. After all, strictly speaking, they were both the same, so there was no reason why he couldn’t master what Albedo had.

As a result, before this plan even began, Albedo appeared before him with a weapon, attacking him without a word, as if to kill him.

This was only natural, after all, he was going to take everything from Albedo. If Albedo was truly clever, he would surely see this and deal with it in advance.

"No, I’m not trying to kill you. I just hope you can calm down and talk properly. If your attitude doesn’t improve, even if you get past me, you won’t get past Miss Delezie."

Albedo sighed. Strictly speaking, they were both creations of their teacher, and he was also his brother. If he could, he didn’t want to do anything to Abe Shao.

If he had the same talent as himself, or even surpassed it, Albedo would be very happy to recommend him to the Knights of Favonius, allowing him to become an asset to the Knights of Favonius.

Before that, he needed to confirm whether Abe Shao would pose a threat to Mondstadt. If he could pass the test, the next step would be to gain Durandal’s approval.

For most people, this would be a simple matter, but for Abe Shao, it was somewhat difficult.

Why? Because Abe Shao had already been attacked by Durandal as an enemy. Making Durandal trust someone who had once looked at him with hostility was simply too difficult.

But no matter what, he had to at least try. He should still have a few days to complete this task. He hoped his nominal brother would be smart, otherwise he would have no choice but to deal with him.

"Miss Delezie? Who are you talking about?"

"She knows of your existence. You should have met her. You just need to know that she is very powerful, and her status in Mondstadt is very high. If you can’t make her certain that you pose no danger to Mondstadt, your only outcome will be to be dealt with by her."

"I’ve met..."

Abe Shao pondered for a moment, recalling the people he had met during this time. Among them, few could be addressed by Albedo in such a way.

Hmm? No, that’s not right. If it’s just about being powerful, Abe Shao remembered seeing someone like that outside Mondstadt previously.

At that time, he was planning to follow the elf who constantly pestered Albedo, hoping to learn about Albedo through her.

When he went to find Klee, there was an unfamiliar figure beside her. She noticed his presence, and not long after, he was attacked by a terrifying monster.

If that monster was summoned by her, then her level of danger was indeed very high, and he couldn’t deal with her.

He couldn’t understand why such a dangerous person would stay in Mondstadt and be trusted by so many people. If she wanted to do something, with the ability of that monster, she could fill Mondstadt with blood in an instant.

"Why do you trust her? She is even more dangerous than I am."

"Because her actions are worthy of our trust. From the time she arrived in Mondstadt until now, almost every resident of Mondstadt has received her treatment. Many lives have been saved because of her; she has brought untold hope. This is why people are willing to trust her."

This trust was not given to her by others, but created by Durandal herself. There were also people in Mondstadt who knew of her danger, but none of them worried about Durandal.

Why? Because they knew Durandal’s true nature was kind, and this kindness was the main reason everyone trusted her.

"She is also one of those who guard Mondstadt from the shadows. If you enter her sight and are deemed a dangerous person by her, she will eliminate you. The reason I came to find you this time is to have a good talk with you."

Albedo put down his weapon and continued, "You don’t need to integrate into Mondstadt as me; you don’t need to replace anyone at all. I can vouch for you. Even if you can’t gain trust at first, I believe that as you show your goodwill, everyone will trust you."

Abe Shao lowered his head in silence. Albedo’s suggestion was very tempting, and he also didn’t want to live as someone else, but... could it really be done?

"Why are you telling me all this?" Abe Shao asked, "I want to kill you and take your place. By doing this, aren’t you worried that I might act against you someday?"

"That is certainly possible, and I have considered such a thing. But... I am willing to give you this chance, after all... we are the only beings in this world who can be ’brothers,’ aren’t we?"

Abe Shao’s pupils constricted slightly. Brothers... They were both artificial humans created by their teacher, so they could indeed be considered ’family’ in a certain sense.

Albedo treated Klee as a younger sister, and Alice often told Albedo to call her mother, but he knew that Klee and Alice, strictly speaking, couldn’t be considered his family.

Abe Shao was different. If he could, he wanted to help Abe Shao; this was also his contribution to his family.

Abe Shao had never thought about ’family affection.’ He had been awake for too little time, and combined with his constant jealousy of Albedo, he hadn’t considered it in that way.

Or perhaps because he was born relatively recently and had experienced fewer emotions, he wasn’t yet entirely clear about what ’family affection’ truly was. But... he didn’t dislike this feeling of having someone to rely on.

"Do you think I still have a chance?"

Abe Shao suddenly asked this question. Did he really still have a way to gain Durandal’s approval and become a part of Mondstadt?

"I..."

"Do you think you still have a chance?"

Suddenly, a third voice joined their conversation. Albedo and Abe Shao both turned, seeing Durandal sitting on a nearby rock, quietly watching them.

The moment they saw Durandal, two clones appeared behind Abe Shao. They snarled at Abe Shao, and if Durandal gave the command, they would immediately attack.

"You escaped last time. This time, there are two of you at once. Let’s see how you’ll escape now."

"Wait... please wait, Miss Delezie. I understand your thoughts, but please give him a chance. He hasn’t done anything to harm Mondstadt. Please, for my sake, let him go."

Albedo quickly stood in front of Abe Shao, blocking the attacks of the two clones.

"Not having done it doesn’t mean he won’t do it in the future. You have feelings for Mondstadt, which is why we trust you. But he has no feelings for Mondstadt and could easily lose control. If he does something to harm Mondstadt in the future, can you take responsibility for him?"

Durandal trusted Albedo. Albedo’s concerns about losing control could also be resolved by her, which reduced Venti’s worries and Mondstadt’s potential hidden dangers.

But Abe Shao was different. His existence was similar to Albedo’s. Leaving aside the same problems as Albedo, just the fact that he had no sense of belonging to Mondstadt meant he could harm Mondstadt without any psychological burden.

Durandal could not simply accept Abe Shao because of Albedo’s trust. This was not in Mondstadt’s best interest, and she did not want to regret it when disaster struck.

"Of course, I am willing to bear all risks. If he truly does such a thing, I will personally apprehend him and accept the Knights of Favonius’ judgment with him."

Albedo’s unhesitating answer made Abe Shao’s eyes behind him incredibly complex; he felt an emotion influencing him.

Durandal jumped down from the stone and slowly approached Albedo, waving her right hand to push Albedo aside, making Abe Shao face her directly.

When Abe Shao’s gaze met hers, he suddenly widened his eyes, looking at Durandal in terror.

The originally lovely Durandal suddenly became terrifying, and her astonishing aura made him breathless, causing his legs to give out and him to fall to his knees.

Abe Shao finally understood why Albedo had come to warn him; he couldn’t possibly be Durandal’s opponent. If he dared to attack Durandal next time, he would be dealt with before he even had a chance to think.

Only after letting Abe Shao fully experience her aura did Durandal retract it, returning to her usual demeanor.

"I cannot decide this matter. If Jean and Diluc agree, we can try letting him live in Mondstadt for a while. But that doesn’t mean he has passed; we still need to observe his future development. If he cannot gain approval, then I will still deal with him. Can you accept that?"

"No problem, I believe he will gain approval. What do you say?"

"...I will try my best to do so."

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It might not seem tempting right now but who knows what the future holds?

"And If you’re enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"