The warship hovered silently over the starport, its massive hull like a slumbering beast, poised and ready.
On the bridge, Milton stood side by side with a blue-haired female soldier, both gazing toward the distant battlefield.
That female soldier was none other than Gu Qing in disguise, operating under the mercenary alias “Lan Dai.”
Behind them, a mercenary female named Aisha sat with an expression of utter resignation—though, in truth, it was Ace·Mel himself.
He couldn’t help but suspect that he had offended the cosmos in a past life, because how else could he have been dragged into such absurd scripts by Gu Qing—a monstrous male under the guise of a male insect? Ever since Gu Qing entered his life, everything had derailed. From becoming a mercenary, slaying aberrant beasts, running the restaurant “Qing Yuan,” and now standing aboard a warship under the pretense of “kinship” for battlefield duties—it was nothing short of a cosmic disaster for a C-class male insect.
And it all began that night in the backyard of the small villa, after months of relentless training, when he finally forged his first stable mental blade. For Ace, it was the first time he had truly accomplished something using only his own strength. He had almost leapt with excitement, rushing to Gu Qing to report the success.
Gu Qing had merely glanced at him with an unreadable expression. “Good. Come with me.”
Ace had naively thought he was being led to celebrate, only to find himself told to pack his things—and informed that he was going to the battlefield.
“W-wait, the battlefield?!” He froze on the spot. “Male insects aren’t supposed to go to the frontlines! Am I supposed to die as a C-class male?”
In his understanding, it was the duty of female insects to fight, while a delicate male insect like him was meant to be protected, respected, pampered. Yet Gu Qing had never played by the rules.
Not only that, Gu Qing never treated him as someone to protect. Instead, he was thrust into every absurd and perilous path. Ace’s mind went icy with a sudden thought: the one who seemed least like a male insect might not be him—but Gu Qing.
Gu Qing possessed unmatched combat prowess and intellect. His actions and moods had subtly steered Ace’s own, yet despite the chaos, life under Gu Qing’s guidance was far more interesting than anything Ace had experienced before.
And yet, he realized—he had never truly considered who Gu Qing really was.
Just as he sank into these thoughts, Lan Dai suddenly turned, voice calm yet unannounced:
“He is my brother. From today, he will train alongside the female soldiers and participate in battlefield operations.”
“…What?” Ace’s heart nearly stopped. He whipped toward Lan Dai, disbelief written all over his face, as if he’d just heard some interstellar blasphemy.
He cast a desperate glance at Milton, silently begging the cool admiral to examine Gu Qing’s brain to see if it had snapped.
Milton, seeing this, only turned his head, choosing to play dead.
“Damn it, you two!” Ace screamed inwardly, trying to maintain a facade of composure.
The female soldiers on the ship whispered among themselves:
“My gosh, that’s Lan Dai’s brother?”
“With a brother that strong, he must be powerful too!”
“Perfect! With this new talent, this mission should be a breeze!”
Every pair of eyes fell on him, as if expecting the next battlefield god to appear. Ace wanted to leap overboard.
But in that atmosphere, there was no way he could say “I quit.”
He could only force a grim nod, tears practically streaming inside.
【What kind of karma did I earn…】
Ace’s life as an insect was being dragged into a bottomless quagmire—he had been assigned to one of the army’s most feared elite units: the Inferno Hunters.
Several team members, clad in combat armor and radiating lethal authority, stood at attention before the training ground. The Inferno Hunters were infamous: tasked with high-risk operations, special missions, and annihilation sweeps. Rumor had it that in three days you’d lose ten kilograms, in seven days you’d want to retire, and in ten days, seeing the instructors would make you instinctively kneel.
Ace barely stepped onto the training field before the female soldiers formed ranks, their eyes fixed on him, some curious, some brimming with anticipation.
“That’s Lan Dai’s brother?”
“He seems fragile… but if Lan Dai personally brought him, he must be skilled!”
“I heard he decapitated aberrant beasts in the mercenary corps—ruthless like a true warrior!”
Ace shivered, inwardly screaming: 【Please, don’t spread that! I’m just a male insect!】
A thunderous voice then roared:
“Aisha, rookie, step forward!”
He obeyed reflexively. Before he could speak, the instructor’s words struck like a hammer:
“First task: full gear, high-gravity simulation, carry 100 kilograms, complete within fifteen minutes. Fail? Do fifty laps back!”
Ace, in full armor, felt like a weighted sandbag, staring at the simulated high ground with a single thought: Will I even make it out alive?
“Go!”
The timer beeped, mercilessly signaling the start of hell.
Ace ran thirty steps, already calculating how he might fake illness. At fifty steps, he began to doubt whether Gu Qing harbored a death wish for him. After the first kilometer, his mind clouded, legs wobbly.
The female soldiers ran with energy, chanting encouragement:
“Keep going, Aisha! You’re Lan Dai’s brother—we’re counting on you!”
Ace felt like vomiting: 【Counting on me? I’m barely alive!】
The afternoon’s training was even worse. Live-fire shooting, mental stability tests, emergency battlefield medical drills, simulated explosive zones—nothing was skipped. Ace’s face was pale the entire day, limbs aching as if they weren’t his own. The instructor patted his shoulder with praise: “Your mental power is weak, but your resilience is impressive.”
He wanted to howl to the sky: 【I’m not resilient—I just have no choice…】
Night fell, training finally ended. Ace collapsed onto the metal floor, limbs sore, breathing painful.
Milton approached, voice calm as ever: “Still alive?”
Ace’s throat was dry; he weakly lifted a hand, giving a middle finger.
Milton smiled slightly, placing a bottle of nutrients beside him: “If you survived today, you’ve exceeded our expectations.”
Ace turned to glare at him, voice hoarse: “You… are trying to kill me…”
Exhausted, he glanced toward the towering figure conversing with an officer—Lan Dai.
That insect pushed everyone mercilessly, yet always remained composed, as if the sky were falling and he wouldn’t flinch.
【This… is really a male insect?】
A strange, complicated feeling rose within Ace. Despite being dragged onto this path half-deceived, constantly on the brink of collapse, he had survived. And somehow… he didn’t hate this version of himself.
He said nothing, gazing at the night sky, chest tight.
【How did I even get here…?】
No answer came. But he sensed one thing—if Gu Qing made him train again tomorrow, he would probably grit his teeth and go, and keep moving forward.
Even if this path had never truly been meant for a male insect, he thought, maybe… it could be for himself.