Genshin Impact Oneshots | X readers | X characters

Childe x Zhongli: Secrets Revealed

Third-Person POV

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A/N: So holy shit this was in my draft since 2021 and I cannot believe I only got to finishing what I started 2 years ago today. 

Enjoy!

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Anger bubbled within the young harbinger. The plan with Osial resulted in failure; not only that, he has been made into a fool. He hated being the puppet and being left in the dark. Signora didn't bother to explain to him the bigger picture, and now he's the villain of the story.

     The scapegoat.

     He sighed in annoyance. He hasn't met Zhongli after all of this; the man just vanished the second he paid for Baizhu's violet grass. A letter dropped in his front door; it was mail. Now what the hell does this person want with him?

     He knelt and grabbed the thing. His stomach twisted when he smelled the familiar scent of it. Damn it, what does HE want with him this time.

     Childe read the letter and strained himself from tearing it apart and throwing it to the hearth. That bastard wanted to meet up with him in Mt. Aocang and talk about something. He even wanted to share a secret, a truth, with him. Childe frowned. Zhongli was already late; he already knew the truth about him. His mind wandered to what they could possibly do there. Maybe the archon wants to fight with him. And Childe won't mind a final battle to death with an archon, nonetheless.

     But Mt. Aocang? That place was off-limits for humans to enter unnoticed. Childe considered the possibility that, in fact, the Adepti themselves wanted him to keep an eye on his activity. Or Zhongli chose that place because he knew the Adepti would be there... The place is surrounded by them, but if the archon personally invited him, that shouldn't have been a problem. Then again, do they know Morax is Zhongli?

     Even so, this whole thing was suspicious. And that place is miles away from Liyue Harbor.

     He sighed, that path was dangerous, but he knew that it would be fun defeating any hilichurl or treasure hoarder in his way. He tucked the letter back in his room and peeked out of his window. If he left now, he could reach Mt. Aocang in a day or two or maybe before sunset. He should make the guy understand he wasn't exactly happy about their little reunion.

     Then he went on his way.

...

Getting around to the location was harder than it should be. Instead of enemies, he came across more civilians than monsters. He doesn't like hurting innocent people, but he can't get risked getting attacked by those who want to hurt him. He expected the thrill of the battle, not... this.

     He can understand those feelings anyways. If one were to attack his beloved nation, he'd be the first to hunt them down.

     After the longest trek of his damn life, he arrived at Mt. Aocang.

     And there he was, on a table in the middle of a pond, sitting in a chair—all relaxed, like there wasn't an angry harbinger rushing to him at this moment.

     Childe arrived panting.

     Zhongli lowered his teacup slowly and tilted his head. "Ah, Childe, there you are. Won't you sit with me and have a cup of tea?" Childe was this close to shooting an arrow at him. Why was he acting so casually like the entire Osial fiasco didn't just happen? Is he buttering Childe up before backstabbing him? "And then we can talk about the contents of the letter I sent you."