With his mind in a jumble of thoughts, Sam drifted off into a deep sleep.
When he woke up the next day, it was almost noon. He scrambled out of bed in a hurry—sleeping in until midday while staying as a guest in someone else's home was beyond embarrassing.
Stepping out of his room, he saw Qiuye busy preparing lunch. Xuan and Xia weren't home. Qiuye smiled when he spotted Sam.
"You're awake! Did you sleep well last night?"
"I slept great! The animal hides were so soft and comfortable—thank you!" Sam replied with a smile, even though he'd actually tossed and turned all night, his mind reeling from Xuan's story.
Xuan had been the first person he'd met in this world, and he'd always been kind to him. Even though Sam was a mature adult in his mind, he couldn't help but develop a sense of attachment to this tribe and its people.
That's why he wanted to do something for Azure Mountain Tribe—not just to complete the system's tasks and upgrade, but genuinely, from the bottom of his heart.
"That's a relief. Lunch will be ready soon."
Sam ran a hand through his messy hair, then stepped outside to fill his small water bottle with clean water for a quick wash-up.
He really needed to make a toothbrush. Ever since he'd arrived in this world, he hadn't had a proper brush. He could ask Xuan if there was any beast fur suitable for making bristles. He also remembered that willow branches could be used as a primitive toothbrush—maybe there were similar trees around here? He could check with the system about that later.
Speaking of the system… he'd already completed the first main task, and all the other functions had been unlocked. But Xuan had shown up last night, so he hadn't had time to explore them yet. Today, he could finally take some time to study them properly.
Spitting out the last mouthful of water, Sam wiped his mouth and went back inside the house.
Qiuye had already set out the lunch. Glancing at the portions, Sam asked,
"Won't the clan leader and Xuan be back for lunch?"
Qiuye shook his head. "They went to join the patrol team. If there's nothing urgent, they won't be coming back for lunch. Xuan's an adult now—he has a lot of responsibilities to take on. He can't just laze around like he did when he was a reserve warrior."
Taking the food Qiuye handed him, Sam sat down on a stone stool. When he'd eaten his fill, he looked up at Qiuye and asked,
"How can I get my own house in the tribe? Do I need to make some kind of contribution first?"
Qiuye looked at him in surprise. "You want to live alone?"
Sam blinked, confused, but nodded anyway. "Yes. Is that not allowed?"
"It's not that it's not allowed—any tribesman can build a house in the village," Qiuye explained, then added with a warm smile, "But you can stay here with us. Xuan's going to move out soon anyway—you don't have to worry about taking up space."
Realizing Qiuye had misunderstood his intentions, Sam quickly clarified. "No, it's not that! I just feel bad about imposing on you like this. It's really kind of you to let me stay, but I don't want to be a burden."
"But you're not an adult yet, are you?" Qiuye said, looking even more confused. "A young sub-beast can't live alone. If you don't have family, another household will adopt you. You really don't have to feel bad about staying here."
Qiuye had actually talked to Xia about adopting Sam last night, and Xia had fully agreed. He genuinely liked this young sub-beast.
"I *am* an adult! I'm twenty-two years old!" Sam exclaimed, shocked.
But Qiuye looked even more shocked than he was. "But Xuan told us you hadn't come of age yet."
"I've never even discussed my age with Xuan!" Sam said, utterly bewildered. What on earth had given Xuan the impression that he was still a child?
"Oh! Then he must have misunderstood. I'm so sorry," Qiuye apologized quickly.
"It's okay, it's okay! Maybe I did something that made him think I was younger," Sam said, relieved that the misunderstanding had been cleared up.
"Even so, you can still stay here with us—until you find a partner, at least," Qiuye insisted.
In his mind, young beastmen without parents were raised collectively by the tribe. But young sub-beasts were different—they weren't as tough as the cubs, and they needed more careful care to survive. So they were usually adopted by a stable household in the tribe. After all, sub-beasts didn't eat much—raising one more mouth was never a problem for a family with adult beastmen.
As for the young beastmen, they started learning hunting skills at the age of four. The adult instructors would take them into the patrol zones to practice hunting small prey, so they could always supplement their diet with extra food. Beyond the fixed rations the tribe provided, older cubs could always find ways to hunt something for themselves.
"I really appreciate your kindness, but I still want to live on my own," Sam said firmly. He had the system to worry about—if he lived with them for too long, there was a risk that his unusual abilities might be discovered. Besides, he needed his own space to develop things that would benefit the tribe.
Seeing that Sam was serious and not just being polite, Qiuye didn't push the issue any further. He just said with a hint of disappointment,
"I understand. Since Xuan is planning to build a house to move out anyway, he can help you build yours at the same time." Then his eyes lit up with a new idea, and he added cheerfully, "You two can build your houses close to each other! That way, if you ever need help with anything, Xuan can come over right away. And you can always come over to our house to visit, too!"
"Great!" Sam didn't refuse this offer of kindness. He could tell that Qiuye genuinely liked him and had even wanted to adopt him. It made him think of the things Xuan had told him last night.
Seeing Sam agree, Qiuye's face broke into a wide smile, his eyes crinkling with happiness.
Qiuye was an incredibly warm and approachable person—spending time with him felt like a breath of fresh air. By the time Xuan and Xia came home that evening, Qiuye had already started calling Sam by his given name instead of his surname.
While Qiuye was preparing dinner, Sam stayed by his side to help. Even though he didn't have much cooking experience, the tribe's cooking methods were extremely simple—just roasting or boiling food. So he picked it up quickly. After all, he was still staying as a guest here, and he didn't want to just sit around doing nothing.
During dinner, Qiuye brought up the topic of Sam wanting to live on his own.
"Xuan, when you build your house, you can help Sam build his too."
"He's not staying with us? He wants to live alone?" Xuan reacted exactly the same way Qiuye had that afternoon. Xia had also mentioned Qiuye's idea of adopting Sam to him earlier.
"Yes, that's what Sam wants," Qiuye said, cutting off Xuan before he could ask more questions. "We've already discussed it. You two should build your houses close together—so if he needs help with anything, you can go over right away. Now hurry up and eat—we can talk about the details tomorrow."
"Then you can only go to the patrol team for half the day these next few days," Xia said, quickly making arrangements for Xuan after listening to Qiuye. He wasn't actually that surprised by Sam's decision to live alone—he'd only been a little surprised that Qiuye had agreed to let a "young sub-beast" live on his own. But looking at Sam now, he thought maybe this sub-beast was just younger-looking than his actual age.
With all three of them agreeing to the plan, Xuan didn't ask any more questions. Instead, he turned to Sam to discuss the details of the house.
"What kind of house do you want to build? Any special requirements?"
"Hm… the main thing is that I want to enclose a small plot of land near the house—preferably a piece of land where I can grow things," Sam replied after thinking for a moment.
After dinner, Sam helped them clean up the stone pots and bowls, then went back to his room and sat down on the stone bed.
"System," he called out in his mind.
"Present, host," the system responded immediately.