At the end of the alley stood a small, crumbling shrine. And sitting on the torii gate was a cat spirit he’d never seen before.

Lin blinked. “I thought I only had three cat spirits.”

The woman remembered the warmth of morning tea. The man saw the tiny wildflower growing from a crack in the pavement. The child laughed as a bubble landed on her nose.

Ukiekooki tilted his head. “The others guard your past, your passions, your pride. I guard what you forget to notice: the transience of joy.”

In the heart of a rain-slicked city, Lin Tianhua was an ordinary college student—until he wasn’t. One night, while dodging a sudden downpour, he stumbled into an alley that didn’t exist on any map. The air smelled of wet earth, incense, and… catnip.

“It has no weight,” growled Tiger. “We cannot fight what refuses to be solid.”