The Beloved Guide Was Forced in a Love-Rival Shura Field - Chapter 31

At the same time, deep within the Empire, inside a chamber surrounded by eerie blue streams of data.

Ross wore a perfectly tailored black long coat, his silver-gray short hair glinting with a metallic sheen under the dim light. His fingertips tapped across the glowing screen, pulling up the live surveillance feed of Room “1107” in the First Military Academy’s dormitory zone—inside, that silver-haired youth lay quietly asleep, his face completely defenseless in slumber.

As the latest intelligence arrived, Ross’s lips curved into a cold smile. His deep, magnetic voice carried a trace of cruel amusement.

“Oh? Headed for the front lines?”

“What a convenient little prey, walking right into my net.” His long fingers traced across the screen along Ning Ning’s face, his gaze dangerous and obsessed. “I thought I’d have to work harder to lure him out from that turtle shell of Xie Lin’s.”

He lifted his hand, and an invisible mental command sliced through the air like a blade.

“Relay to Night Owl Squad—move the operation ahead of schedule.”

“Let our ‘Moon God’ have… a pleasant dream, on his last night in the Imperial Capital.”

Almost at the same moment, in Room 1107 of the First Military Academy dormitories.

Xie Lin had just settled Ning Ning onto the soft bed. He had barely managed to take a second look at that adorable, sleeping face when a sharp alarm shrieked through his encrypted terminal.

“Marshal, Teacher Gu is here.” The voice of his orderly came from outside.

Before the words had even faded, Gu Qingfeng had already pushed the door open.

He held a portable light-brain in his hands. On the enormous star map projected above it, clusters of red light—the markers of the Zerg—were gathering toward the Seventh Sector’s border line with unprecedented speed and scale.

“Marshal, look.” Gu Qingfeng presented it before him, his face still carrying that ever-gentle, harmless smile. “Urgent reports from the border. The Zerg’s movements are abnormal—not foraging or migrating.”

He paused, then cast a meaningful glance toward the peacefully sleeping Ning Ning. His voice was soft, yet every word struck like a blade. “It’s more like… they’re conducting some sort of organized, carpet-style search.”

“The capital is full of hidden dangers. Sooner or later, something will reach for a treasure that doesn’t belong to it. Rather than leaving Ning Ning here, why not…”

He smiled lightly, as if making a casual remark, yet the proposal was shocking:

“Why not let him join the frontline comfort delegation and go to the Seventh Sector? Under your very eyes, Marshal—surely that’s the safest place for him, isn’t it?”

The moment the words fell, the room seemed to lose all its air, the temperature plummeting.

The pressure around Xie Lin dropped sharply. He did not roar in anger. Instead, he slowly lifted his head. In his dark-gold eyes there was no fire—only a dead silence, colder than a storm’s eye before it breaks.

“No.”

The single word squeezed out from his throat—icy, hard, carrying a will that brooked no argument.

At that moment, Ning Ning stirred, roused by the suffocating tension. He rubbed his eyes drowsily, when suddenly the lively voice of System 89 rang out in his mind.

【Ding-dong! Detected surge in Love-Rival Energy! Random Self-Destructive Mission Triggered: “The Sickly Coquettish Baby”!】

【Mission Goal: Claim the Marshal’s insignia—his badge of honor and authority—under the excuse of feeling unwell and needing comfort.】

Ning Ning snapped fully awake, inner alarms blaring. 【System, be human for once! That thing isn’t something you can just ask for! This is like sticking your hand into a tiger’s mouth to pull out its fangs!】

He blinked in confusion at the two men locked in silent confrontation, catching the word “frontline.” His survival instincts clashed with the suicidal mission target in his head.

Wait… the front lines?

Dangerous, yes. But that also meant he could rightfully stay by Xie Lin’s side, far from the predators circling inside the academy. Wasn’t that basically a paid vacation with top-tier security? And he could complete the mission at the same time!

Got it!

His violet eyes lit up instantly, like stars flaring into brilliance. Propping himself halfway up from bed, he looked at Xie Lin, his tone still hazy with sleep but tinged with sudden excitement.

“I want to go!”

Xie Lin’s expression darkened completely. He had never spoken to Ning Ning so sternly. Each word was heavy with suppressed anger and fear.

“Don’t be foolish. The front lines are no playground.”

“Xie Lin…” Ning Ning flinched at his icy tone, his excitement evaporating in an instant. His eyes grew wet, shoulders shrinking in on themselves like a small animal scolded by its master.

“Marshal, you’ve frightened him,” Gu Qingfeng immediately stepped forward, voice gentle, gaze sliding toward Xie Lin’s taut profile. “Look—even the capital isn’t necessarily safer than the front lines right now. And besides, Ning Ning himself wants to go.”

Xie Lin’s breath caught.

Rationality told him Gu Qingfeng was right. This could be a trap; keeping Ning Ning in the capital meant he could not guard him every moment. Yet his heart could not accept the thought of exposing Ning Ning to even the faintest shred of danger.

Just then, a cool hand tugged lightly at the sleeve of his uniform.

Ning Ning had shifted closer, sitting up beside him. Tilting his face upward, those violet eyes shimmered with a thin mist of tears, gazing at him with utter dependence.

The iron tension gripping Xie Lin’s body eased, almost against his will.

He felt Ning Ning’s weight leaning against him, trusting, vulnerable. Soft silver hair brushed against his arm, sending a ticklish current straight to his chest.

【Inner OS: If you’re going to act, commit to the full role! Office worker rules—anything for an early clock-out!】

Lowering his lashes, Ning Ning’s long dark eyelashes cast a fragile shadow across his cheeks. His voice came out light and hoarse from sleep, as if afraid of being refused again.

“I won’t be a burden…”

As he spoke, his fingers idly rubbed against the cold metal of the Marshal’s insignia at Xie Lin’s sleeve—slow, feather-light motions brushing at the very edges of the man’s nerves.

He lifted his gaze again, eyes like galaxies reflecting only Xie Lin’s figure. That naked trust and reliance was more devastating than any S-class psychic assault.

Xie Lin felt his defenses crumbling piece by piece. His throat bobbed, all his refusals choking into silence.

Seeing the Marshal’s face soften, Ning Ning grew bolder. He leaned closer still, pressing his forehead lightly against Xie Lin’s arm—like a young beast seeking comfort, soft flesh against unyielding armor.

“Please?”

The gesture brimmed with coquettish charm, yet also claimed a kind of innocent possession, as if declaring that this powerful Marshal belonged to him.

Xie Lin could clearly smell Ning Ning’s faintly sweet, fever-tinged milk-scented pheromones mixing with his own cool laurel fragrance. The blend shattered his reason, filling him with the urge to fuse the boy into his very bones.

He surrendered completely.

“…Alright.”

One word—draining all his strength and principles.

【Ning Ning’s Inner OS: Success! …Ah wait, the badge! I almost forgot!】

He didn’t pull away. Instead, he nuzzled his cheek against Xie Lin’s arm, murmuring softly with a hint of nasal whine.

“But… I’m still a little scared. If you could lend me this… I’d feel safe.”

His finger tapped deliberately against the Marshal’s insignia.

The air froze again.

Even Gu Qingfeng’s smile stiffened for a beat.

What he wanted was Xie Lin’s insignia—never once separated from him, a badge not only of honor but also a crucial beacon of his spiritual power.

Xie Lin looked down at the boy, at the hopeful dependence in those eyes. His last line of defense collapsed with a crash.

Wordlessly, he unfastened the insignia from his sleeve. The cold, weighty metal grew warm in his palm before he guided Ning Ning’s hand forward and placed it solemnly into his soft grasp.

“Hold onto it.” His voice was hoarse, ragged. “Don’t be afraid.”

【Ning Ning’s Inner OS: Got it! Time to slack off again—wait, no! Am I really going to the battlefield now? Somebody save me!!】

Xie Lin drew a long breath. In the end, he still couldn’t bring himself to speak harshly to the boy. He ruffled Ning Ning’s soft silver hair, his tone returning to gentle—yet leaving no room for negotiation.

“But you must stay on my flagship the entire time. My personal guard will protect you. You will not leave my sight for even a moment.”

“Okay.” Ning Ning nodded obediently, though the little abacus in his heart clattered away with excitement.

【Perfect! Paid vacation with elite bodyguards—this fortune, I’ll take it!】

Gu Qingfeng’s smile never wavered as he watched, but in the depths of his eyes flickered a shadow of something darker.

Sometimes, the strongest fortress is the easiest cage to breach. And Xie Lin had just carried his own weakness into the most dangerous place of all.

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