Woo was now troubled, unable to figure out the identity of the “lip thief” who had come to his cabin in the middle of the night. Since the person seemingly meant no harm, perhaps it was best to just forget about it. Wasn’t it all just for the sake of treatment, after all? As he tried to shake off these thoughts and absentmindedly turned his head, he froze again. The axe lodged in the tree stump was not the one from the day before.

“A… new axe?” He covered his mouth with his hand in shock. There were only two people who could have visited this place, both of whom would know about the axe. One was the Third Overseer, and the other was…

“Yes, Kang-oh.”

Woo slowly approached the axe as if entranced, and picked it up. It was clearly well-polished. The ax head was sharp, and the handle sturdy. As Woo carefully lifted it, it smoothly slid out with a swishing sound. No doubt, Kang-oh had seen the previous state of the axe, which was in a terrible condition the first time Woo came here, and prepared this one. And when Kang-oh saw Woo collapsed, he must have helped…

Woo hesitated for a moment and then planted the axe back into the stump. There was no reason to accept it. Even if he had to chop wood with his bare hands, he wouldn’t use this axe. He couldn’t let himself get accustomed to comfort. He couldn’t accept Kang-oh’s inexplicable kindness.

After setting the axe down, Woo picked up the pot and headed to the stream. Since the night’s exhaustion had drained his body, he needed to have a meal. Perhaps due to the fever that had risen overnight, his arms felt particularly weak. There was even a concern that once the pot was filled with water, the strain might cause him to drop it altogether.

Woo carefully fetched the water and began to walk back toward the hut. Every step felt precarious, but he couldn’t allow himself to falter. The harder things became, the more difficult it was to move forward once he’d stopped. This was something Woo had learned through harsh experience.

Finally, after reaching the hut, Woo revived the dying embers and placed the pot over the fire. He took a few handfuls of rice from the sack and added it to the pot, waiting for it to boil. His mouth felt so dry and scratchy that he wasn’t sure he could swallow solid food, so he decided to let it simmer and make porridge.

As he waited for the porridge to finish cooking, Woo kept glancing at the axe. It was evidence that Kang-oh had been here. Questions swirled in his mind: Why had Kang-oh come? And inevitably, the question that gnawed at him was… would Kang-oh come again?

That thought gripped Woo’s heart tightly. He didn’t want to know the answer. He didn’t want to hope. The heavens had never been so kind to Woo. While it couldn’t be helped that he had been dealt a harsh fate, the pain in his heart was something far harder to bear.

This must all be because he was a fragile human. If he had a firmer, tougher heart, perhaps he would have faced the truth he finally learned, instead of running away. But what’s done is done, and one cannot undo the past.

Woo, after blowing on the thin, bland porridge that hadn’t even been properly seasoned, finished eating and moved to gather more firewood. Since he couldn’t use an axe, his job was to snap the branches off fallen trees with his hands. After finishing that, he planned to gather dry branches from the nearby forest. Having endured the hardships of the previous night, he also intended to pick any medicinal herbs he came across as he worked.

He busily went about his tasks, meticulously planning in his head. Though his weak, sickly body didn’t respond as quickly as his mind commanded, as long as he persisted, there wouldn’t be much difficulty in achieving what he set out to do.

Though he didn’t find any herbs nearby that could immediately help with lowering a fever, Woo did come across a few wild plants near a creek, ones often used to ward off animals. If he placed them near the hut, the threat of wolves might be somewhat reduced. He quickly dug them up by hand and shook the soil loose from the roots. Fortunately, because they were by the creek, the soil was soft.

What was curious, though, is that even though the smell of humans should have attracted them by now, the sound of wolves still came only from far away. Woo vaguely thought that maybe Kang-oh, who often came and went, was doing something to keep the wolves at bay, preventing any beasts from approaching the hut.

Woo washed his dirt-covered hands in the flowing creek and, gathering the wild plants he had dug up, headed back to the hut. After planting them, spaced somewhat evenly around the campfire, he wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. That’s when he noticed his fingers were once again filthy with dirt. With a swipe, he hastily scraped them clean on his clothes.

In any case, he would get dirty again while walking around to gather dry branches, so he planned to clean everything in one go before dinner. As Woo moved towards the forest, he passed by the axe embedded in a tree stump. It was such a natural stride, as though he had completely forgotten about its existence.

He bent down and straightened up repeatedly to gather the scattered branches, the movement making sweat stream down his face. He could feel that his stamina was more depleted than usual, likely due to how strained his body had been the previous night.

“Such stubbornness, truly impressive.”

“…!”

Startled, Woo quickly turned his head towards the voice. Kang-oh was perched up in the tree. The branches there were especially thick, so Woo hadn’t noticed his presence at all. Moreover, because Kang-oh trained in martial arts under Ye Jin-rang, it was no surprise that he could conceal his presence perfectly.

“Th-Third Overseer,” Woo stammered.

He clumsily dropped several of the branches he’d gathered and threw himself to the ground, bowing his head.

“Didn’t you like the new axe?” Kang-oh asked, jumping lightly down to the ground. His clothes fluttered just a bit, and despite the movement, no dust arose, and there wasn’t the slightest sound as he landed.

“It’s… it’s not that…”

“Let me see your arm.”

From the beginning, it seemed Kang-oh had no intention of listening to Woo’s excuses, as he extended his hand. Woo bit his lip. It was only at that moment that he became acutely aware of his filthy hands. Kang-oh was asking to see his burned arm, but even though he had hastily brushed himself off, he couldn’t allow Kang-oh to touch his dirt-covered hand.

Perhaps Kang-oh had already figured everything out, as he didn’t ask twice. He simply took a step forward and, without any hesitation, took hold of Woo’s hand and lifted it up. The fact that dirt clung to his hand seemed to be of no concern to him. Woo simply lowered his head a little further, feeling regret for not having taken the trouble to wash his hands in the stream.

Still holding Woo’s hand, Kang-oh rolled up his sleeve and examined the wound, which had begun seeping pus again.

“With that arm, it’s no wonder your body couldn’t handle using such a worn-out axe.”

It was a tone as if he had expected it. Kang-oh clicked his tongue and took out some ointment from his coat. It wasn’t the golden wound medicine he had brought from before, but rather a remedy for burns, which he had thoughtfully prepared this time. Kang-oh applied the ointment on Woo’s burn with his fingers.

“Why, why…” Woo started to ask but trailed off. There was no benefit in asking Kang-oh questions. It was better to avoid getting involved with him.

“Why do you stop mid-question?”

“Be… because I’m just a servant,” Woo stammered.

At Woo’s reply, Kang-oh’s brow furrowed slightly. It wasn’t an attitude he particularly liked. Someone who shrinks and asks permission for every little thing—it was burdensome. He never would have imagined that a day would come where he would deal with someone like this on a personal level.

“I never forbade you from asking questions.”

But despite being told that he could speak if he had questions, Woo kept his lips tightly shut. Kang-oh, as if already expecting this, finished applying the ointment and withdrew his hand.

“Use the axe I provided you. If you truly are the faithful servant you claim, you should not go against your master’s wishes.”

Technically speaking, Woo wasn’t Kang-oh’s servant; he belonged to Master Jin-rang. But there was no harm in Kang-oh giving Woo orders. If it had been one of Black Sky Clan’s high-ranking officers, there may have been an issue with Kang-oh asserting his authority, but Woo was just a mere servant. Just a servant, no more than someone insignificant and unimportant.

“The reason I keep coming here… is because I find myself concerned about you.”

Despite that, his attention kept returning to Woo. On reflex, Woo raised his head. Kang-oh was looking down at him. Even though his intense gaze made Woo’s heart pound with nervousness, he couldn’t bring himself to look away from Kang-oh’s eyes.

“I intend to keep coming until I no longer find myself concerned. So, I hope you stay in good health, without being bedridden like last night.”

His words implied concern yet came out in a blunt and cold tone, devoid of any warmth. Woo’s eyes trembled, but not out of joy.

“You… you’re not supposed to be here—”

“I decide where I go and where I don’t. It’s not for you to interfere.”

Kang-oh drew a clear line. Having a good sense of what kind of person Woo, this servant, was, Kang-oh opted to simply notify him instead of seeking his approval. After all, whenever Kang-oh tried to explain anything, Woo would always shake his head vigorously, insisting it wasn’t right. But now, seeing that Woo’s frantic head-shaking had calmed down, Kang-oh felt he had made the right choice.

“You follow Master’s orders and take care of the trees in the wild hills. In the meantime, I’ll indulge my curiosity.”

Woo bowed his head deeply. “I… I will obey.”

With things turning out this way, Woo had little choice but to wait, praying for either the Third Overseer to show up soon or for Kang-oh to lose interest in him. His worry deepened.

---

Kang-oh was waiting for someone on the path leading into the hills. He had things to check up on, after all. Since the Black Sky Clan’s messengers had relayed information, it wouldn’t take much longer. While he waited, Kang-oh’s thoughts turned to Woo.

In truth, Kang-oh had only pretended to leave Woo’s side but had stayed near his hut. The memory of Woo’s actions—forcing himself to return a healing salve even while suffering from burns—was still vividly etched in Kang-oh’s mind, making it impossible for him to simply brush it off.

And after watching for some time, Kang-oh had seen him continuously chop wood with that dull axe the entire day… There wasn’t anyone around watching him, so Woo could’ve slowed down a little, maybe taken a break, but no—his unyielding nature was simply beyond reason.

The previous night, wolves had gathered around Woo’s hut, likely drawn by the scent of blood and pus. Kang-oh, his eyes gleaming sharply, unleashed his aura, intimidating them and driving them away. If he had killed every last one, there would have been no howling left and Woo would have assumed Kang-oh had no reason to revisit this place.

But even though Kang-oh never had any intention of indulging a servant’s concerns to begin with, the fact that he was minding Woo’s well-being in any way made him let out a bitter smile.

His head and heart were functioning in completely different ways. His body moved on impulse, and his gaze kept gravitating toward Woo.

Could that stubbornness be Woo’s true nature?