Leaning against the balcony, Ningyan idly turned the flute in his fingers, his gaze drifting down to the street below.
A saleswoman had grabbed a goat beastman by the horn, yanking him back just as he tried to flee her stall.
The scene was already descending into chaos.
Beast folks gathered quickly, some eager to watch, others trying half-heartedly to break up the fight. The woman was a bear beastwoman. She was broad, towering, and built like she could snap bones without effort.
Even Ningyan wouldn't step into that.
He glanced down at the flute again, rolling it lightly in his palm.
He had found it in a drawer. The same drawer he had checked over a dozen times.
And it definitely hadn't been there before.
So who put it back?
"Come back here, you wretched beast!" the bear woman roared.
Ningyan looked up just in time to see her seize the goat beastman again as he tried to crawl away. The poor thing was already sprawled on the ground, gasping for breath.
