The Rise of a Special Forces Soldier Abandoned by a Wealthy Family

The night gently enveloped the Hellfire mercenary group's base.

The smoke of the day and the fatigue after training gradually dissipated, and the air was filled with the faint aroma of meat and the scent of earth from the barbecue grill.

In a relatively secluded corner, Zero, Iron Pit, Little Sparrow, and Cold Thorn sat around a small campfire, enjoying a rare moment of leisure.

Several plump, juicy wild rabbits were roasting over the campfire, caught that afternoon by Tiedun using a homemade trap.

He was clumsily trying to turn the rabbit over, muttering to himself:

"Is it done here? Oh dear, it looks a bit burnt... Zero, you have sharp eyes, check if it's cooked through?"

Zero leaned against an ammunition box, toying with a shiny bullet in his hand. Hearing this, he lazily glanced up at it:

"Does it matter to you whether it's medium-rare, medium-well, or well-done? In the end, it all goes into your bottomless pit anyway."

"Hey! Boss! I'm doing this for your own good! They taste better when they're cooked through!"

Iron Pile protested, but saliva involuntarily dripped down its throat.

The little sparrow sat cross-legged to the side, her beloved tablet resting on her lap, but the screen was dark.

She was drawing complex circuit diagrams on the ground with a small twig, humming an off-key nursery rhyme, and occasionally sniffing the air.

"It smells so good... Tie Dun, hurry up, I'm so hungry I could eat a whole cow!"

"What you're eating is called birdseed," Leng Ci blurted out abruptly. He was sitting in the shadows a little further away, carefully polishing his dagger with an oilstone, his movements focused and gentle.

"Cold Thorn! Who are you calling a bird feeder?!" The little sparrow, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, jumped up to snatch his dagger. "If you're so capable, then don't eat it!"

With a flick of his wrist, Leng Ci deftly dodged the dagger, his tone completely flat: "The facts. Compared to Tie Dun."

Zero watched the two bickering and couldn't help but smile.

This relaxed atmosphere is invaluable to them.

"Alright, alright, stop fooling around. Take the iron block down, that's enough, or it'll turn into charcoal." Zero said.

Tiedun felt as if he had been granted a pardon and quickly took the roasted rabbit down.

Ignoring the heat, she tore off a hind leg and handed it to Number Zero, then tore off the largest one and handed it to the little sparrow!

He grabbed the remaining half and started gnawing on it, his mouth stuffed full, and mumbled indistinctly:

"Mmm...smells good! It smells so good! Much better than that pig slop in the cafeteria!"

The little sparrow carefully blew air into the air, nibbled on the food, and its eyes squinted into crescent moons with happiness.

Cold Thorn silently accepted the foreleg handed to him by Iron Cudgel and ate it quietly, but at a surprisingly fast pace.

After eating and drinking their fill, the four of them lay back on the grass, gazing at the unbelievably dazzling starry sky above them.

Far from the light pollution of the city, the stars here are big and bright, seemingly within reach.

"It's so beautiful..." the little sparrow murmured, "It looks... just like the one I saw on the roof of my house when I was little..."

After she finished speaking, the atmosphere suddenly became somewhat quiet.

Iron Cudgel slowed down his chewing, and Cold Thorn stopped wiping his dagger.

Zero gazed at the starry sky, his eyes deep, and remained silent.

"Hey," Tie Dun suddenly sat up, trying to break the momentary silence, and scratched his head:

Come to think of it, the few of us... it seems like we've never talked about family matters before, huh?

I've almost forgotten what my parents look like, but I remember my dad was incredibly strong; he could lift me up with one hand...

My mom's pancakes are so delicious...

His voice gradually lowered, tinged with a barely perceptible sob.

The little sparrow hugged its knees, rested its chin on them, and spoke softly:

I... I remember my house had a small courtyard, and in the courtyard there was a very big osmanthus tree. In autumn, the whole courtyard was filled with fragrance...

My mom makes sugar cakes with osmanthus flowers...

My dad... always seems to be wearing glasses, reading a book... her eyes were slightly red.

Cold Thorn remained silent, but he gripped the dagger tightly, his knuckles turning slightly white. After a long while, he spoke in a very low voice, as if talking to himself:

"The house was big... the lawn... it was very bright... there was an airplane in the yard... and then... I don't remember..."

They all knew perfectly well that Ironclad, Little Sparrow, and Cold Thorn were not born to belong to this bloody battlefield.

They came from that distant land called the Dragon Kingdom.

In the hazy fragments of memory, there is the warmth of home and the outlines of my parents.

But they are children cruelly torn apart by fate, "commodities" bound by the evil human trafficking chain, originally destined to be transported to some place in Africa to suffer unknown hardships.

It was a raid by Hellfire on a human trafficking ring that unexpectedly rescued them and, by a twist of fate, brought them to Baroque, where they eventually came together.

They miss home so much that it hurts to the core.

That is the softest, most tender corner of my heart, the one I dare not touch easily.

"Boss," Iron Dun suddenly looked at Zero and asked in a muffled voice, "What about you? You seem to be...?" Little Sparrow and Cold Thorn also looked at Zero.

Zero gazed at the starry sky and remained silent for a long time.

The campfire cast interplay of light and shadow on his face.

"Me?" He chuckled softly, a laugh carrying a desolation and indifference beyond his years.

"I have no home. Or rather, this fortress, this battlefield, is my home. All I can remember are the days I spent here."

His words silenced the other three.

They knew that Zero's origins were even more mysterious, and perhaps even he himself didn't know where the root of it lay.

In comparison, their vague yet warm fragments of memory seem so precious.

The little sparrow suddenly rubbed its eyes hard, its voice trembling with tears, yet it tried its best to appear strong:

"It's okay! We're family now! Zero, you're the eldest, Iron Dun is the big, goofy older brother, and Cold Thorn is the quiet, reserved older brother! Together, we're family!"

Tie Dun nodded heavily, his eyes red, and put his arms around Little Sparrow and Cold Thorn's shoulders (Cold Thorn stiffened for a moment, but did not push them away):

"Yes! Sparrow is right! We're brothers! Closer than blood brothers!"

Although Leng Ci didn't speak, he nodded very slightly.

Zero looked at the three of them, a barely perceptible warmth seemingly flashing in his cold black eyes.

He sat up, picked up a branch, and poked at the campfire, causing sparks to crackle.

All I know is that I am a Chinese from the Dragon Kingdom, just like you.

"Home, of course we have to find it. And we have to search hard for it."

Zero's voice, though not loud, carried an undeniable killing intent and power.

"But not going back like this, all humiliated. I'll go to the Dragon Kingdom sooner or later. But not as a victim in need of pity, nor as a nameless wanderer."

His gaze swept over the three men, his tone calm yet containing an astonishing determination:

"We must become strong enough to control our own destiny, strong enough to make those who have hurt us pay the price. I will lead you to be strong enough... to return home in glory."

"At that time," Zero's lips curled into a confident, even arrogant, smile—

"I want everyone to know that the four of us brothers crawled out of hell and stand at the top of this world!"

His words were like a flame, instantly igniting the light in the eyes of the other three.

"That's right! Follow the boss! Stand at the top of the world!" Tie Dun roared excitedly.

"Go home!" The little sparrow clenched its tiny fists.

Leng Ci nodded heavily, his eyes resolute.