Nak's True Identity

Andy spent every day trying to find a way to leave, and a week passed in the blink of an eye. Nak was still being sent out on patrol every night, while Andy would lie in the small cave assigned to him and sleep soundly. He had only one room, and from the information he occasionally gleaned while chatting with others, it was a standard single-occupancy unit. In the Quilboar community, a single-occupancy unit was synonymous with being a bachelor.

Quilboar were actually not the low-level beast-type race Andy had imagined. On the contrary, they were a very ancient race. Their ancient heritage could be traced back to around the time of the mythological wars of antiquity. Back then, the Quilboar were self-sufficient, living a life free from worldly disputes.

After the War of the Ancients, the continent split into two. The reduction in landmass brought life-altering pressure to the Quilboar; as food and living space constantly dwindled, they were forced into war with another ancient race, the Tauren, to compete for the ever-decreasing resources.

Wars occurred intermittently, with both sides tasting victory and defeat. Under these survival conditions, the Quilboar gradually developed a bellicose and reclusive character. As for Nak, he was simply an anomaly among the Quilboar. Although the current Quilboar had cognitive deficiencies, one could not call them stupid; it was merely that this long-term self-imposed isolation had caused their current state.

The occurrence of war meant that attrition was imminent. To prevent their race from losing combat effectiveness, the Quilboar had to increase their reproduction rate, and the Tauren were no exception, doing the exact same thing.

After thinking of ways for several days and trying many of them, Andy had almost lost the motivation to leave. He had once attempted to escape at night, but just as he was about to cross the Quilboar's thorn wall, a piercing alarm rang throughout Razorfen. A squad of nearby Quilboar guards quickly surrounded the perpetrator, Andy. Andy exhausted every pleasantry, explaining that he had been sleepwalking, and it was only when Sonata finally appeared that Andy's predicament was resolved. However, it became even harder to attempt a night escape after that.

He had also thought about following Nak out on patrol to slip away under the cover of darkness, but unfortunately, Nak wouldn't let him tag along. Nak said he was still too young and didn't need to do such hard labor. For this, Andy cursed Nak under his breath more than once; he didn't know where the man got the idea that he was small. In terms of height, he was nearly twice Nak's size, and he was an Elf on the verge of turning eighteen. Of course, he didn't dare tell Nak that he was an Elf; in fact, even if he did, Nak wouldn't believe him.

Andy gave up on escaping and could only continue to helplessly play the part of a Quilboar. But doing nothing all day didn't feel right, yet everything was already being handled by others—what could he possibly do? Hey, Andy slapped his forehead as a new idea struck him.

From then on, Andy transformed from a problem child with memory loss into a neighborhood gossip. He spent his days darting around the Razorfen Quilboar tribe, digging up trivial matters. Who had a wife who gave birth to triplets, whose hen had grown two heads, who was with whom in a same-sex relationship—he knew everything clearly, even which wife had slept with other male Quilboar.

Of course, all of this relied on his Elf System; for things he couldn't find out, he would simply climb over walls to steal "classified information." These matters could only be kept in his heart, to be savored only when he was bored.

It wasn't that Sonata was unaware of Andy's behavior, but he couldn't be bothered to care. He had always been suspicious of Andy being a Quilboar, so as long as Andy didn't cause any major trouble, Sonata simply let him be, doing whatever he pleased.

On this day, the sunlight was just right. His definition of "just right" was the kind that wouldn't bake a person alive. Having stayed here for so long, he had gradually adapted to the local climate.

With nothing better to do, Andy exercised his gossip skills again, but today, he was inquiring about Nak, that dim-witted Quilboar.

An elderly Quilboar happened to have nothing to do and recounted Nak's past to him. Although the old Quilboar believed that talking behind someone's back was impolite, after Andy swore not to repeat it, the old Quilboar treated it as Andy keeping him company.

Nak's full name was Nak Razormane. Sonata Razormane was Nak's uncle and the current Thornweaver elder. The previous Thornweaver elder, Flar Razormane, was Nak's father and the Great Chieftain of the entire Razormane Tribe. It was Flar who led this branch away from other Quilboar and away from the war with the Tauren. The war was gone, but it brought them poverty, isolation, and ignorance of the world.

Flar originally had four sons, including Nak. The other three sons had died while fighting the Tauren, leaving only Nak. After Flar died, Nak should have inherited his father's position as Thornweaver elder and served as Great Chieftain. However, his uncle Sonata had tried his best to obstruct this, claiming that Nak was the son of Flar's concubine and had no qualifications to inherit. Moreover, Nak's abilities were not outstanding, and in the eyes of many, he was even a bit slow, so the people defaulted to Sonata's approach.

Sonata successfully became the Thornweaver elder, governing this Quilboar tribe. Nak never had much resentment from beginning to end; the position of Thornweaver elder meant nothing to him, and he didn't have such grand ambitions—he just wanted to take a wife and live a good life.

After Sonata took power, he didn't dare do anything to Nak; after all, he was his eldest brother's son, and even if he was a child of a concubine, he was still a son, and still his nephew. To avoid gossip from others, he kept Nak well-fed and cared for. A few years later, Sonata found a wife for Nak, a female Quilboar. By Quilboar aesthetic standards, Nak's wife was considered the best-looking female in their tribe.

Hearing this, Andy felt an urge to vomit when he thought of Nak's wife.

Nak lived a mediocre, obscure, and honest life. As the Quilboar saying went, Nak was just destined to be a fool for his entire generation. After finishing, the old Quilboar sighed and said, "That's just Nak for you. If it were anyone else, they would have ripped Sonata's head off! That Sonata, he really has no talent."

The old Quilboar looked at the sky and said, "It's getting late, I should head back. Don't you go saying these things came from me!"

Andy nodded, and only then did the old Quilboar leave with peace of mind.

As the sunset dipped below the horizon and the twin moons of Azeroth arrived on schedule, Nak walked out of his cave, greeted Andy, and took a torch to go out on patrol.

Watching Nak's departing back, Andy let out a soft, involuntary sigh. He had begun to sympathize with this Nak; having his status stolen by someone else and still living his life without a single complaint—perhaps this non-confrontational personality was the key to his ease.

Andy walked back to his single-room cave, glancing at the moon in the sky as he entered. When would he ever be this at ease?