Rebirth of a Mercenary: The Ace Mercenary Forced to Be the Beloved of the Group

Half an hour before lights out, the dormitory in Group A was filled with the steam from a hot shower and the faint smell of laundry detergent.

After taking a shower, Bai Ye leaned against the headboard of his lower bunk, flipping through the book "Introduction to Tactical Topography." His hair was still damp, with a few stray strands clinging wetly to his forehead.

Xuanxiao leaned down from the upper bunk and tried to make small talk.

Lu Xiao suddenly tumbled off the upper bunk. He landed silently, a smile on his lips that sent chills down Xuan Xiao's spine.

"Little Cabbage, Little Owl," he said, hands in his pockets, tilting his head to look at the two of them, his tone as if inviting them to a movie, "Want to see something fun?"

Bai Ye looked up from the pages of the book, staring at him with a puzzled expression. He was instinctively wary of Lu Xiao saying the words "fun," but this time his expression was so innocent that Bai Ye's wariness lessened.

"What's fun?" Xuanxiao asked without any suspicion.

He climbed down from the top bunk, patted Bai Ye on the shoulder, and said with an optimistic tone that seemed to have forgotten the pain of past wounds, "Come on, come on, the lights aren't out yet anyway, let's go check it out. It's rare for the vice-captain to treat us to something fun and not mess with us—right, vice-captain?"

"Of course." Lu Xiao's smile remained unchanged.

Bai Ye closed the book, glanced at Lu Xiao, then at Xuan Xiao, and finally stood up and nodded.

The three walked through the corridor and turned into the dormitory area. Zhao Xiaohu and Qian Duoduo's dormitory was at the end of the corridor. The door wasn't closed tightly, and warm yellow light and the intermittent sounds of their conversation shone through the crack. Lu Xiao pushed open the door and stepped aside to let Bai Ye and Xuan Xiao go in first.

The dormitory wasn't big, with two bunk beds, a table, and two chairs. Zhao Xiaohu was sitting on the lower bunk wiping his food bowl with a cloth, while Qian Duoduo was hunched over the table flipping through a well-worn cookbook. When they saw Bai Ye and Xuan Xiao enter, they both sprang up from their beds and chairs.

"Brother Ye! Brother Xiao!" Zhao Xiaohu's voice rose half a tone, his round face squishing with laughter.

He rushed to Bai Ye in a few strides, then abruptly stopped the car—he remembered how Xuan Xiao had glared at him and driven him away when he tried to talk to Bai Ye that afternoon, so he cautiously maintained a safe distance. "Why are you here? Are you here to check on us? We're fine! Really fine! We're okay now that we've thrown up! Duo Duo even ate an extra bowl of rice!"

Qian Duoduo nodded vigorously behind him, excitedly closing the cookbook, which had the words "One Hundred Home-Style Dishes" printed on the cover.

Lu Xiao walked in from behind Bai Ye and Xuan Xiao, coughing lightly. The sound wasn't loud, but Zhao Xiaohu and Qian Duoduo's smiles simultaneously froze.

"I'm here too."

Zhao Xiaohu and Qian Duoduo then noticed Lu Xiao's presence.

The expressions on their faces instantly changed from "excitement at meeting their idol" to "awkwardness at meeting their homeroom teacher." Qian Duoduo even subconsciously hid the recipe behind her back, as if it were some kind of contraband.

Zhao Xiaohu scratched the back of his head and chuckled twice: "Haha, squad leader, what brings you here so late?"

Lu Xiao did not answer immediately. He pulled up a chair from the table, sat down, crossed his legs, placed his hands on his knees, and changed his expression from a smile to a gentle one with apologies.

He sighed, his tone sincere as if he genuinely felt guilty about what had happened today: "On behalf of Group A, I apologize for what happened today. We were planning to proceed gradually, but the captain took you directly to see a close-range execution—to be honest, that scene was quite intense for you."

Zhao Xiaohu and Qian Duoduo exchanged a glance.

"Squad leader, you're so kind." Zhao Xiaohu sniffed hard. "Actually, it's our own fault for throwing up. Brother Ye and Brother Xiao are fine, only the two of us did..."

"Yes, yes, yes," Qian Duoduo nodded in agreement, "It's our mental fortitude that's lacking, it's not your fault. We'll definitely train harder in the future and try not to throw up next time!"

"You might throw up again next time," Lu Xiao said with a smile, patting Qian Duoduo on the shoulder, "but you'll get used to it after a while. To make up for the fright you had today, I've decided—" He deliberately dragged out the last syllable, pleased to see the two chubby boys hold their breath at the same time, "to treat you to instant noodles."

Zhao Xiaohu's eyes lit up. Qian Duoduo's mouth opened into a perfect circle, and the book "One Hundred Home-Style Dishes" slipped from his hands and fell onto the table with a soft thud.

"Really?!" the two exclaimed in unison, their voices echoing down the corridor.

"Of course it's true." Lu Xiao stood up, clapped his hands, and said, "Wait five minutes."

Five minutes later, he returned carrying a tray with two small yellow bowls on it.

Each bowl was crammed full of instant noodles, the noodles steaming in the hot broth, topped with a sausage and a poached egg, and accompanied by a few leafy greens. A layer of glistening oil floated on the surface of the soup, and the aroma of braised beef filled the cramped dormitory room, so rich it could entice you to sleep.

Zhao Xiaohu and Qian Duoduo's eyes almost popped into the basin.

"Thank you, Vice Squad Leader!" Zhao Xiaohu's hands were trembling as he took the basin. He couldn't wait to grab his chopsticks, scoop up a big mouthful of noodles, and stuff it into his mouth. He grimaced from the heat but couldn't stop eating.

Qian Duoduo sat facing him, also engrossed in eating, his wild eating habits completely disregarding the cook etiquette he had learned for a week at the supply station.

The two took a few bites before remembering there were people standing next to them. Zhao Xiaohu looked up, a noodle hanging from the corner of his mouth, and mumbled at Bai Ye and Xuan Xiao, "Brother Ye, Brother Xiao, aren't you eating?"

Bai Ye leaned against the doorframe and shook her head: "Not hungry."

Xuan Xiao stood next to Bai Ye and shook his head as well: "I'm not hungry either."

His gaze swept back and forth between the two small yellow basins, and he felt that something was not right.

It wasn't the instant noodles' fault—the noodles were perfectly normal, flavored with braised beef, the fried egg was golden brown, and the leafy greens were fresh and vibrant. Nor was it Lu Xiao's fault—although Lu Xiao's smiling face always meant someone was being ripped off, this time he genuinely brought over two steaming bowls of instant noodles.

So what exactly is wrong?

Zhao Xiaohu didn't think much of it and continued eating. After finishing his noodles, Qian Duoduo started drinking soup from the small yellow bowl, slurping it down loudly. In the middle of the meal, he looked up and exclaimed, "Vice Class Leader, you are the best person in the entire Broken Sky Realm."

Lu Xiao stood to the side, his hands in his pockets, smiling as he watched them eat. His smile was gentle and kind, like an old father watching his children eat their New Year's Eve dinner.

After the two had almost finished drinking the soup in the bowl, Lu Xiao bent down and whispered in their ears.

"These two basins were used to clean up all that brain matter today."