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Shēnléi let out a quiet tsk, the corner of his mouth tugging upward in something far too amused for a son who’d just been threatened with toothless wrath.

Spirits forbid the day your teeth dull, Mother, he drawled, voice smooth as river glass. The continent would lose its greatest natural predator.

He fell into step beside her, matching her pace with that effortless, almost arrogant grace of his—shoulders loose, head held high, every movement deliberate in the way of a man who’d spent his whole life being watched. Her tail bobbed, his ear twitched, and the faintest smile ghosted across his face when he caught her studying his jawline, the same way she used to when he was too young to hold still during grooming.

You can stop counting my whiskers, he murmured under his breath, tone warm despite the tease. I promise I haven’t misplaced any yet.

When she surged ahead—always the shield, always the blade—he followed with a quiet exhale, his gaze softening for the briefest heartbeat. No matter the world, the age, or the ruin, Bailu moved as though she belonged between him and every danger the world could conjure. Some things never changed.

At her question, he cleared his throat lightly, rolling his shoulders as if shedding the last of the swamp’s weight. Are you asking, he said slowly, or interrogating me? I can never tell with you.

He didn’t give her the satisfaction of a pause.

So far? Only a handful. The boy dragged back from the edge—Touying, if he ever decides to stop coughing long enough to stand upright. The faintest wrinkle of concern touched his brow, gone as quickly as it came. And Kexin.

There was a subtle shift in the air around his name for her—soft, warm, something lingering beneath the words he didn’t bother to hide but didn’t dare name, either.

She found me first, he said simply, eyes drifting forward as his voice softened. Like she always does.

A beat. Then the lazy smirk returned, a glint of slyness sparking in his gaze.

And before you ask, he added, no, I did not recruit a whole court while you weren’t looking. If anyone else is here, they haven’t made themselves known yet.

He caught her line about not scaring them and snorted—an actual, quiet laugh he didn’t bother to restrain.

Oh, yes, that puts me at ease, he deadpanned, slipping effortlessly into dry imperial sarcasm. My mother, the gentle breeze. The soothing welcome. The soft, delicate flower.

His tail flicked once, brushing hers as he stepped up beside her again.

Come on, he said, softer now. I’ll introduce you properly. Before you frighten them off with all your… charm.

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