The Protagonist is Always Intimidating Me - Chapter 7

“……”

Suddenly, Bai Meng submerged everything below his neck into the water, his expression conflicted as he glanced at Mo Hankui. “Um… Lord Hankui, could you maybe tone down that stare? It’s starting to look a bit… hungry.”

“……” Mo Hankui, unfazed, averted his gaze without a change in expression.

Bai Meng nodded in understanding. “I get it. It’s my cuteness. It’s totally normal that you can’t resist. You’re still young, after all!”

Mo Hankui: “……” No, stop saying nonsense.

“Lord Hankui, how about I give you a back scrub? I’m a professional!”

“Shut up.”

“Then maybe you could help me out? I mean, I feel embarrassed to ask, but cleanliness is more important…”

“……”

Fearing he might lose control and actually hit Bai Meng, Mo Hankui stepped out of the pool with a long stride.

His wet gray hair clung to his back, and the scar across his waist, though healed, was still visible. Bai Meng squinted, silently observing.

As Mo Hankui reached for the robe hanging on the screen, a sudden sharp pain shot through him, as if lightning had pierced his chest. Unable to control himself, he immediately shifted back into his snake form.

Bai Meng hadn’t expected Mo Hankui to transform so abruptly. Seeing the cold vertical pupils of the giant snake staring at him, he stiffened and sank further into the water, almost blending in with the jade stone beneath him. “W-why did you suddenly…?”

Before he could finish, Bai Meng vanished from Mo Hankui’s sight, disappearing into the water as a small white blob sank below the surface.

“!!!”

Mo Hankui’s gray eyes contracted sharply, and his massive snake body thrashed through the pool in a desperate search, but he couldn’t find the small figure anywhere.

With no other choice, he shifted back to human form and spent a long time searching through the water. Finally, in a small, uneven crevice, he found a wet, bedraggled little creature covered in drenched white fur.

“……”

Feeling himself being lifted, the small ball of fluff slowly opened its eyes. Those large, black eyes, now misty with water, looked especially pitiful. “QAQ!! Someone poisoned the pool!”

Mo Hankui: “…Bai Meng?”

The small creature nodded slightly, then let out a soft achoo, causing Mo Hankui to freeze in place.

Seeing the little furball’s drenched state, Mo Hankui hurriedly used his own robe to dry it off. Once the tiny creature was clean and its fur was fluffy again, Bai Meng had already fallen into a drowsy sleep, curled up snugly in his palm.

Looking down at Bai Meng, Mo Hankui pressed his lips together, feeling as if something had punctured his heart and allowed a sticky, sweet sensation to seep in—tinged with sourness, but overwhelmingly sweet.

—If he had lived in modern times, he would have known that this feeling has a term: “being overwhelmed by cuteness.”

……………

The next morning, Mo Jiuge finished leading a patrol around Xingge Hall and stood before Mo Hankui to report. “Your Highness, we didn’t find any suspicious individuals… Considering the massacre from a few days ago, we’ve likely already weeded out any spies.”

The previous night, their master had suddenly issued an urgent order, instructing the guards to search the entire Xingge Hall again, suspecting there were still intruders hiding inside. As a result, the entire guard team had been mobilized early in the morning, but nothing unusual had been found.

“Could it have been a mistake?”

In a private chamber, Mo Hankui frowned as he listened to Mo Jiuge’s report, his long fingers tapping rhythmically against the sandalwood table, the sound deep and resonant. The others stood quietly, heads bowed. Mo Hankui looked at his most trusted guards, his expression serious. “Last night, someone tampered with the water in my bath. It caused me to lose control and revert to my original form.”

“!”

Shock flickered through the eyes of the assembled guards. For a beastman, reverting to their original form signified a weakened state. While their regenerative abilities were strongest in beast form, their offensive capabilities and reflexes were greatly diminished, making them extremely vulnerable. Losing control of one’s form could only mean severe injury or extreme weakness.

The guards exchanged uneasy glances. Dismissing most of them, Mo Hankui gestured for Mo Jiuge to stay. The two walked in silence toward Mo Hankui’s quarters, the atmosphere heavy with tension.

“If there’s such a substance in play, then the entire beastman dynasty could be at risk…”

“It won’t come to that,” Mo Hankui said as they entered the inner hall. “Any common drug would be detected quickly, unless it’s made with blood from an Abyssal Demon. But only the strongest demons can hunt those…” His brows furrowed deeper. “I hope I’m just being paranoid…”

“The guard patrols need to be extra vigilant. Xingge Hall’s turn to guard the Abyss is coming soon, and we can’t afford any mistakes.”

“Understood.”

Mo Jiuge said nothing more. Then, as if struck by a thought, he asked, “Your Highness, you mentioned that the substance caused beastmen to lose control. How are you feeling?”

“I’m fine. But I’m more concerned about him…”

Mo Hankui pushed open the door to his study. On the table, nestled in a fruit basket, was a round, white ball of fur, shifting slightly. Mo Jiuge stared in disbelief at the fluffy, plump creature, no bigger than a mouse, yet somehow more adorable and pudgy.

“Hi, Jiuge~”

Mo Jiuge: ????

Realizing what he was seeing, he gasped. “…Bai Meng?!”

Bai Meng: “(⊙v⊙) Yep!”

A long, slender hand reached out and lifted the little creature, gently rubbing it in the palm. Bai Meng let out a soft whimper, his round, fluffy body quivering slightly, with his tiny tail twitching.

Without saying a word, Mo Jiuge shot up and bolted out the door. “I agree—this hall’s security needs to be significantly increased!”

Bai Meng: “?”

Mo Hankui: “……”

As the guards made their way through the palace grounds, their normally composed captain suddenly appeared, his face inexplicably flushed.

“Lead your teams to search the entire hall three more times! Tighten patrols! And if anyone suspicious is found, bring them to me immediately!” he commanded. Then, with a stern expression, he added under his breath, “And find out what kind of drug they gave to Bai Meng…”

The guards: “……”

They were suddenly very afraid of their captain.