People followed the cries and saw it:
A huge snow-white lion was running down the street.
Its body was massive and powerful, white fur as pure as fresh snow, glowing softly under the lantern light.
Golden eyes shone faintly in the night, full of majesty yet brimming with intelligence.
"W-whoa… that lion is huge!"
"Wait… it actually looks really pretty… that fur's way too pure, right?"
"Whose is it? Don't tell me it's some kind of immortal beast?!"
Some pedestrians stumbled back in fear; others were mesmerized by the lion's beauty and couldn't help quietly praising it.
The snow lion itself seemed oblivious to the stir it caused.
It padded forward unhurriedly, steps light and clean, like a stream of white light gliding through the night.
At last it trotted gently to Kairo's side and lowered its head, nuzzling his shoulder in a familiar, affectionate way.
Instead of a terrifying monster, it looked more like a gigantic, gentle cat.
In an instant, all gazes locked onto Kairo.
Inside the inn, the boss and a few busy staff members had been working as usual.
Hearing the commotion outside, they came out curiously—
And walked straight into the sight of a massive snow-white lion standing at their door.
The boss almost jumped backwards.
"Th-this… this is…"
He stared, completely stunned.
Good grief… they only checked in last night, and today they've brought back a lion this big?!
He remembered clearly: just yesterday, Kairo and his companions had been personally escorted here by the Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing—Keqing herself—who arranged their rooms.
And now, after just one day, they'd somehow acquired a giant snow lion?
That progression felt just a bit too insane…
"U-um… honored guest…"
The boss took a deep breath, forced himself to focus, then hurried up to Kairo and asked carefully:
"This lion… is it yours?"
His tone carried obvious caution.
The sheer size of the lion was one thing; what worried him more was the possibility that this was some wild beast.
If that were the case, it'd be a disaster.
The nearby staff wore similar expressions: shocked, but also… curious.
Because the snow lion wasn't roaring or rampaging; it sat calmly beside Kairo, posture relaxed, gentle, very much like a well-trained spirit beast.
"It's… really beautiful," a staff member couldn't help whispering.
Their eyes lingered on that flawless white fur, full of admiration.
"If I hadn't seen it myself, I'd think this was some kind of huge white horse…"
"Seriously, this is unbelievable…"
The murmurs spread, and a few curious passersby stopped as well.
Paimon saw the crowd thickening and tugged anxiously on Kairo's sleeve.
"This is bad, the snow lion's attracting way too much attention!"
Kairo didn't look particularly surprised.
He calmly stroked the lion's head, then looked at the innkeeper and answered in an even tone:
"It's mine."
The boss blinked, not expecting such a straightforward answer.
But then he thought about it again—this was the guest Keqing herself had arranged lodging for.
If that guest owned a mysterious lion on the side…
…well, maybe that wasn't that strange.
"Ahem… I see, I see."
The innkeeper gave an awkward laugh, then said carefully:
"Then… please take good care of it."
"After all… a lion this big might frighten the other guests. That would be… troublesome."
Liyue didn't exactly have a big, clear sign saying "no large beasts allowed in city limits," as far as he knew.
Kairo nodded slightly and patted the snow lion's head.
The lion immediately reacted: it lay down obediently, taking on an utterly non-threatening posture, even swishing its tail lazily.
"Don't worry. It won't hurt anyone," Kairo said, calm and certain.
If there weren't so many people, I'd just turn it back into a statue right now, he thought.
The innkeeper's tense shoulders relaxed a bit at that.
He still felt this whole thing was surreal, though, and couldn't help glancing back and forth between Kairo and the lion, quietly sighing to himself:
This guest… is definitely not ordinary.
The staff and onlookers, seeing the lion's soft behavior, gradually let go of their fear and shifted fully to curiosity and admiration.
"Seriously, this lion is gorgeous…"
"Yeah… never seen a white lion this clean and this imposing…"
"I kind of want to touch it…"
"You dare?"
"...On second thought, I'm good."
The snow lion, almost as if a bit embarrassed, lowered its head and bumped gently against Kairo's arm again, as if seeking extra reassurance.
A few people gasped out loud:
"Wow, it really understands its master!"
Kairo just smiled lightly and stayed silent.
He gave the lion's head another pat, signaling it to stay close.
The innkeeper finally waved his arms to disperse the crowd.
"All right, all right, that's enough. Don't disturb the guests."
The onlookers slowly scattered. The night quiet returned to the street.
"Um… should I… prepare a separate room for your… pet?"
The innkeeper couldn't quite help himself and asked again, cautious and probing.
That huge white lion was not only oversized, but the entire coat was impeccably smooth—this clearly wasn't any ordinary animal.
Was it really okay to let something like that sleep in a room?
Kairo shook his head.
"No need."
He reached out and rubbed the snow lion's head again.
The lion narrowed its golden eyes, flicked its tail, completely unconcerned by any of this, and followed Kairo inside the inn with quiet, heavy steps.
The boss's mouth twitched as he watched them go up the stairs, emotions complicated.
—They're really just… taking it straight into the room?!
—Just what kind of guest is this…?
Some staff couldn't resist whispering to each other:
"Can it even fit in a bed…?"
"Shh. Don't ask. Lady Keqing herself brought them. If he wants to keep a snow lion, we just… pretend it's normal."
"...Good point."
The innkeeper drew a long breath and gave up on further questions.
He just made a mental note:
From now on, when cleaning that room, prepare for a lot of fur.
Upstairs, Kairo opened his door.
Lantern light from the street slipped in through the window lattice, casting a warm sheen over the room.
The furnishings were simple and neat.
A delicate glazed lamp hung by the window.
A pot of hot tea sat ready on the table.
The air carried a faint agarwood scent, gently soothing.
As soon as Kairo sat on the bed, he felt the mattress sink slightly.
He glanced aside and saw the snow lion spring lightly onto the bed.
For a creature its size, the landing was amazingly light—no loud thud, barely a wobble from the bed curtains.
It walked over, stretching luxuriously, then curled up beside Kairo with natural grace.
Its golden eyes half-closed in a lazy, contented squint.
"..."
Kairo raised a brow, about to make a remark, when the snow lion stretched its front paws forward and subtly adjusted its position—
As if very used to this sort of arrangement.
Then it settled at the head of the bed and lay down, perfectly positioned for Kairo to lean on it.
Paimon, still hovering in the doorway, blurted out:
"Wait wait waiiit— is it going to be your pillow?!"
"Looks that way," Kairo replied.
He leaned back without ceremony, resting against the lion's side, his head sinking into the thick fur around its neck.
The lion's warmth and fluffiness wrapped around him, pure comfort.
The snow lion raised its head slightly to glance at Kairo, then gently wrapped its tail around his arm, an intimate little gesture of protection.
For a moment, Kairo felt a strange familiarity.
This guy feels like it was born to be a "guardian."
Paimon watched, eyes wide.
"This is so unfair! You're really using a lion as a pillow?!"
That dense, soft white fur looked like the highest-grade luxury cushion imaginable.
Combined with the lion's cozy body heat, it was honestly overkill levels of comfort.
What made it worse (for Paimon's envy) was that the lion clearly enjoyed it.
Its tail stayed curled lightly around Kairo's arm, like it was happy to be his shield.
"This looks way too comfy…" Paimon muttered.
Her eyes suddenly lit up. She whirled toward Ying, voice full of excitement.
"Hey hey hey!"
"How about we sleep in Kairo's room tonight too?!"
"We can all use the snow lion as a pillow!"
"..."
The air froze for a few seconds.
Ying had been calmly watching.
But the second she heard that, her whole body stiffened.
Her heartbeat stuttered, and a faint blush crept across her cheeks.
Her mind flashed back to a certain memory—
Just a short while ago, when she'd stayed in Kairo's room, she'd woken up in the morning to find herself tucked tightly into his arms.
She had no idea when she had started sleeping that unguardedly…
Thinking about that, her face grew even redder.
She instinctively brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and turned her face slightly away.
Trying to sound casual, she said:
"No… it's fine. No need."
But the tiny stutter in her voice betrayed how forced her calm was.
Paimon flew up to her face, eyes wide with confusion.
"Ehhh? Why not? The snow lion is so soft and warm, don't you wanna try?"
Ying's heart sped up even more. The tips of her ears were definitely pink now.
She forced herself to think straight, then replied, trying to sound justified:
"At worst… we can just borrow the snow lion tomorrow."
She tried hard to sound serious and rational, but the faint panic in her eyes gave her away.
"..."
Paimon sighed, folding her arms and pouting.
"Fine… guess we'll wait till tomorrow…"
She really, really wanted to experience the "snow lion pillow," but if Ying insisted…
She'd just have to endure it.
"Let's go back and sleep then."
Paimon shook her head and followed Ying out of Kairo's room.
As Ying stepped through the doorway, she dipped her head slightly, lips pressed together, ears still tinted pink.
She walked forward, forcing herself to appear as calm and composed as usual.
But once her back was to Kairo, the corners of her mouth unconsciously curved up just a little, and some quiet, subtle emotion flickered in her eyes.
It wasn't that she didn't want to try using the snow lion as a pillow…
It's just that…
Thinking of certain possibilities, her face heated up again.
She quickly sped up and slipped into her own room.
Inside Kairo's room, he closed the door and settled in, prepared to fall asleep resting against the snow lion.
But just as he lay down—
He froze.
Because right there in front of him, in midair, lines of glowing text appeared again.
[Because you have only just arrived on the Luofu, and were even guided around to admire the Luofu's scenery for an entire day by General Jing Yuan, you have entered the field of view of the "Secret Prescription" of the Alchemy Commission.]
[The Secret Prescription has been investigating you and has decided to secretly place you under重点观察—focused surveillance.]
[Faced with the Secret Prescription's covert observation, you choose…]
[Option 1: Observe quietly. Pretend nothing is happening and go on acting normally in the Luofu—neither deliberately hiding nor deliberately exposing yourself. If the Secret Prescription wants to watch, let them watch to their heart's content. Sometimes the best move is staying still, forcing them to reveal a weakness instead.
(Reward: Demon-Yin Soldier. You can summon a Demon-Yin soldier who unconditionally obeys your orders. A Xianzhou soldier who has not yet fallen completely into frenzied madness; their body is no longer human, only endless proliferating mutations remain. It is said that in the Age of Boundless Life, people of the Xianzhou would fall into a state known as "Demon-Yin Body.")]
[Option 2: Voluntarily "defect." Go straight to them and openly declare your willingness to cooperate. Since they're going to spy on you anyway, flip the board and get them to accept you instead. Maybe you can gain special intel from the inside, or even become a member of the Secret Prescription and win their trust.
(Reward: Sprout of Ever-Life. A newly budding shoot from an ancient divine relic. The source of the Xianzhou's endless lifespans, the remnant of the Abundance's divine miracle. Countless years ago, an emperor's obsession with immortality drove the Xianzhou war fleet to cross the starry seas in search of an immortal prescription. "I would transform all ages, and let my dynasty endure forever. But the heavens cap the years, and mortal power has an end. Thus I send nine war-arks to ride the tempests of the sky, to seek the immortal elixir.")]
[Option 3: Complain to the Luofu. Go straight to Jing Yuan or another Luofu high-ranking official and righteously declare: "Someone is spying on me! This is the Luofu, not some random place where shady organizations can freely stalk foreign guests!" See how the Luofu reacts. They've long been aware of the Secret Prescription's existence, merely turning a blind eye. Cooperate with the Luofu to round up every last member of the Secret Prescription.
(Reward: Jade-Marrow Wind-Bone Plaster. An ointment made by burning Qingrou horns and Cold-Food Jade into ash, grinding into powder, and mixing with large quantities of herbal extracts. Deep green in color and pleasantly fragrant, it promotes the healing of muscle injury and fractures. Strictly forbidden to take orally!! "This leg's ossification is already very advanced. We have to amputate." "Please, doctor, isn't there any prescription that could save it?" "Even if I wrote one, you wouldn't follow the instructions.")]
"The Secret Prescription is watching me now?"
Kairo stared at the floating text, his expression turning subtle.
He'd only just hit the Luofu, and he'd already been marked by the Secret Prescription?
And just who exactly were they supposed to be?
The rewards, as usual, were off the charts.
There was even something like a Demon-Yin soldier listed.
Thinking back to his earlier reward, the Eternal Winter Shadow, Kairo supposed this wasn't that surprising anymore.
As for Option 2 and Option 3…
those rewards didn't feel very… safe.
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