The servant who dragged Gu Xu away from the village center did not look like a servant at all.
He was tall—taller than most men in the Cheetah Tribe—with long, strong limbs and a straight back that made him look more like a spear than a man.
His hair was dark but tied differently from the tribe's style, and his clothes, though simple, were worn with a kind of discipline that made them look like a uniform rather than a servant's rags.
His name was Maki.
Everyone in the tribe knew of him, even if they didn't speak to him often.
He was a foreigner who had come years ago and somehow stayed. He was a warrior, but not just a warrior—he was a learned man, someone who knew about the other three tribes, their territories, their fighting styles, their alliances, and their grudges.
He advised Chief Lei Xu in matters of strategy and war, and because of that, even the nobles treated him with a strange mix of respect and suspicion.
But right now, this respected man was dragging Gu Xu roughly by the arm like a misbehaving child.
"W-Wait… I can walk…" Gu Xu said between breaths, his chest still tight.
Maki didn't respond.
He kept walking at a fast pace, his grip like iron around Gu Xu's arm. The village noises grew quieter behind them as they left the main path and entered the forest trail.
Branches scratched Gu Xu's arms as he stumbled along.
His skin still itched terribly, and he kept trying to scratch, but Maki's grip made it hard to move.
They walked for several minutes until the sounds of the village were completely gone.
Only the forest remained—wind in the leaves, insects buzzing, and the distant sound of water somewhere far away.
Then suddenly, Maki stopped.
He let go of Gu Xu's arm so abruptly that Gu Xu almost lost his balance.
Gu Xu immediately started scratching his neck again, breathing heavily.
"My skin— it's burning— I can't breathe properly!—" he said, panicking again.
"Stop making a fuss," Maki said curtly.
Gu Xu froze.
The man's voice was calm, but commanding and firm.
"It's annoying," Maki continued. "You are not dying. Stop acting like you are."
For a moment, Gu Xu just stared at him.
Then his face crumpled.
Yu Yunshang, the nobles, and the crowd weren't there anymore.
No one was watching except this servant.
So he started crying.
Not quiet tears.
But loud, messy crying like a child who had been holding it in for too long.
"I almost died!" Gu Xu shouted, tears running down his face. "Everyone was looking at me! They all hate me! My engagement is gone...The Chief hates me now! And you're telling me not to make a fuss?!"
He wiped his face angrily.
"You're just a servant! You have no right to speak to me like that! I'm a noble!"
For a short moment, the forest went quiet.
Then Maki laughed.
Not loudly.
Just a small laugh, like he had heard something mildly amusing. His face brightened.
Then he knelt down in front of Gu Xu so that they were almost at eye level.
Up close, Maki's eyes were sharp. Not cruel. Not kind. Just… sharp. Like he was always thinking.
"You really don't understand anything, do you?" Maki said.
Gu Xu glared at him, still crying. "Understand what?!"
Maki tilted his head slightly.
"You think being a noble protects you," he said. "You think your blood is armor."
He leaned a little closer.
"If I wanted you dead," Maki said quietly, "even if you are the Chief's nephew… you would be dead already."
Gu Xu's crying stopped instantly.
The forest suddenly felt very big and very quiet.
"Just ask yourself about whether or not you have been living a cushy life until now just because you're the Chief's nephew."
Maki reached to the side and picked a plant from the ground—long leaves with tiny hairs on them.
"This," Maki said, "is stinging nettle."
He brushed the plant lightly against the back of his own hand.
Within seconds, the skin began to redden slightly.
"It causes itching, burning, panic, breathlessness if the victim is frightened," Maki said calmly. "It feels terrifying, but it rarely kills. Hunters sometimes use it to teach children not to touch unknown plants."
Then he reached for another plant growing nearby. This one had broader leaves and a faint, clean smell when he crushed it between his fingers.
"And this," he said, crushing the leaves in his palm, "is the soothing herb. It calms the reaction."
He grabbed Gu Xu's arm before he could pull away.
"H-Hey—!"
Maki rubbed the crushed soothing herb onto the red, itchy parts of Gu Xu's skin.
It stung for a moment.
Then the itching started to fade.
Gu Xu blinked in surprise.
"You were given nettle in your drink," Maki said. "Crushed very finely so you would not notice. Enough to cause panic and make you lose control of your body. Not enough to kill you."
Gu Xu didn't know whether to feel relieved or scared.
"Who… who would do this to me?" he asked quietly.
Maki didn't answer.
Instead, after finishing, he gathered the leftover nettle and the soothing herb. He dug a deep hole in the soil with his dagger and buried both plants carefully, pressing the dirt down firmly and covering the disturbed earth with dry leaves.
Gu Xu watched this whole process silently.
"Why are you burying them?" he asked.
"To remove evidence," Maki said.
"Evidence of what? The poison?"
Maki shook his head slightly.
"Evidence that I healed you," he said. "If someone realizes you were poisoned with nettle, they may also realize someone helped you recover quickly. It is unlikely, but I do not like leaving trails for clever people."
Gu Xu felt a chill run down his back.
Maki stood up and grabbed Gu Xu's arm again, this time not as roughly, and started leading him toward the path that led to the poorer part of the village.
They walked in silence for a while.
Gu Xu's itching had mostly stopped now. His breathing slowly returned to normal.
But now that his body was calm… his mind started working again.
And the moment his mind started working again, he remembered where they were going.
Home.
To his father...his stomach twisted.
He slowed his steps.
Maki noticed immediately.
"You're afraid," Maki said.
"I'm not," Gu Xu said quickly.
Maki didn't argue.
He just kept walking.
After a while, he spoke again.
"You need to stop looking for love from other people," Maki said. "And start becoming useful to yourself."
Gu Xu frowned. "What does that even mean?"
"It means," Maki said, "you are going to die if you continue like this."
Gu Xu stopped walking.
"That's not funny," he said.
"I am not joking," Maki replied.
He turned and looked directly at Gu Xu.
"Someone most likely wants you dead before the final coming-of-age ceremony."
Gu Xu's heart started beating fast again.
"That's a lie," he said immediately. "Why would anyone want me dead? I didn't do anything to anyone!"
Maki looked at him for a long moment.
Then he said in a cryptic way, "Exactly."
Gu Xu didn't understand.
Maki continued walking, and after a moment, Gu Xu hurried to catch up.
"What do you mean exactly?" Gu Xu asked.
"To make it short, you are disliked," Maki said bluntly. "You are weak. You have no friends. Your father is hated. Your household is in ruins. If you die, it is convenient for many people."
Gu Xu felt like the air had turned cold.
"That's not true," he said, but his voice was weaker now.
Maki stepped over a fallen branch.
"Well," he said, "see what happened today."
Gu Xu didn't reply.
"The next time such an incident happens," Maki continued, "it might not be nettles. It might be something that actually kills you."
They walked in silence for a while after that.
"With your current status and reputation," Maki said finally, "At this rate, even if you die from foul play… no one in the tribe will cry very much."
Gu Xu stared at the ground as he walked.
His vision blurred again, but this time not because of poison.
He wanted to say Maki was lying, and wanted to think the tribe wouldn't do that.
He wanted to believe the Chief wouldn't allow it.
He thought of Yu Yunshang but the only things that came to mind were the whispers…
The laughter…
The way people looked at him…
The indignant way Yu Yunshang knelt…
And even the way the Chief looked disappointed…
Something deep inside his chest felt very cold.
Very heavy.
And very, very scared. He was frightened.
They left the forest and reached a small stream. The water flowed gently over smooth stones.
Maki stepped across easily and then turned to help Gu Xu, who almost slipped because he was clumsy and his shoes were worn.
After crossing, they continued along the dirt path.
Small cottages appeared one by one.
Old roofs.
Cracked walls.
Poor families lived here.
This was where Gu Xu lived too.
After a few more minutes of walking, Gu Xu saw it.
His house.
The small, run-down cottage with a crooked roof and a broken fence.
Even from far away, he could see a light inside.
His father was awake...
Gu Xu stopped walking.
Maki didn't pull him this time.
He just stood beside him and looked at the small house in the distance.
"You are afraid of the wrong things," Maki said.
Gu Xu didn't respond.
He just stared at the house, his heart beating harder and harder the longer he looked at it.
"I'll walk you to the door," Maki said. "After that, what happens inside is your family matter."
Gu Xu swallowed.
Then, slowly, the two of them began walking toward the cottage.