——Just wanted to save you.

That was exactly what Fu Linyuan had told him back then.

Since his rebirth, Yu Bai hadn’t had much chance to practice speaking, so his vocal cords weren’t as used to forming human language as they had been in his previous life.

So even though he had rehearsed the words several times in his head, his pronunciation was still a bit off when he spoke them aloud.

But Fu Linyuan understood.

…There were just too many mysteries surrounding this little sea creature in front of him.

Why did he recognize a tracker and know how to remove it?

Why could he pick locks?

Why did he know what a bomb was?

Why, despite being so wary of humans, would he still attempt to communicate?

Why didn’t he run away?

And why did the people from the lab want to take him away?

Fu Linyuan only knew for now that keeping Yu Bai around didn’t seem to pose any threat. On the contrary, he might actually be a breakthrough in the investigation of the laboratory.

But none of these questions could be answered with certainty just yet.

At least not until proper communication could be established, Fu Linyuan knew there would be no clear answers.

Just wanted to save you.

That’s what the little mermaid had just said.

But strangely, even though Fu Linyuan was sure he wasn’t lying, his instinct told him that wasn’t Yu Bai’s true thought.

At the very least, he didn’t yet fully understand what he was saying himself.

A subtle, nearly imperceptible feeling of displeasure crept into his heart.

But looking down at the cake the little one was holding up to his mouth, the Imperial Marshal gently shook his head: “They’re all for you.”

Yu Bai didn’t notice Fu Linyuan’s change in mood. Seeing he wouldn’t eat it, he happily took both pieces of cake and scurried back to the sofa.

Outside the window, the scenery had unknowingly transformed completely: the pitch-black sky was now replaced by the warm orange hues of sunset, and the silhouettes of other buildings near the military port could faintly be seen.

This time, Fu Linyuan had officially gone to a base in the opposite direction of Tarl Planet to oversee military exercises. So by all rights, his first task upon returning to the capital planet should have been to return to the military headquarters, consolidate the reports, and deliver the complete briefing to the palace.

But due to one small variable, the Imperial Marshal, who usually went straight to headquarters upon landing, was unusually hesitant.

That small variable was Yu Bai.

In the original plan, there was no need to bring anything back from this mission.

Yet not only had he brought something back — it was a living being.

Well, to be precise, not a human.

Yu Bai’s features were far too distinct. Without a disguise device, there was no way to conceal his identity.

But because the structure of his ear fins was different from a human ear, the disguise device would fall off with even slightly vigorous movement.

Still, bringing him along…

Fu Linyuan glanced around as he thought.

Although the people coming and going inside the military building all seemed focused on their own tasks, many were secretly sneaking glances at the young boy trailing close behind their Marshal.

Having him around drew quite a bit of attention.

The little mermaid also sensitively noticed all the gazes coming from every direction.

Having grown up alone in the ocean, this was the first time he’d ever been the center of so much attention. Yu Bai felt awkward and out of place.

His keen senses picked up on even more details — the sound of military boots striking the marble floor, the rustling of papers, the light that dimmed slightly every few seconds in the corner, various mixed perfumes, people talking on phones, the beeps of AI assistants, the flickering of a screen in another corner, the repetitive movements of a cleaning robot…

Just crossing the short distance of a few dozen meters through the lobby overwhelmed his brain with endless trivial and useless details.

It was the first time Yu Bai had ever been surrounded by so many people and things, but fortunately, his mental strength had recovered considerably since the auction house incident.

In just a few dozen meters, he managed to adjust to the crowded environment.

Hmm… humans really do seem to like doing things together.

He thought, glancing one last time at the soldiers moving about in the lobby just as the elevator doors were closing.

—

The moment the elevator doors closed, the once noisy lobby miraculously fell silent for a few seconds.

Then came a wave of hushed whispers.

Gossip was human nature.

Let alone when the stoic Marshal — who had been the same for years — suddenly had someone new by his side. Naturally, everyone was a little curious.

“Hey, who’s that following behind the Marshal?”

“No idea. Doesn’t look familiar—not like anyone from the building.”

“And we don’t have anyone that young here, do we? Looks super well-behaved… maybe not even twenty?”

“Is he a relative or something? But isn’t the Marshal’s family all…”

“Hasn’t the Marshal’s mental power been getting more and more unstable? How does that kid dare stay so close to him? Isn’t he afraid of getting hurt by accident?”

“…That kid doesn’t seem to have any mental power. At least, I didn’t feel any mental fluctuations from him.”

“Same here, same here.”

“But this is the first time the Marshal has brought someone over, right?”

“Yeah, true. Why did he bring him?”

“Who knows… maybe ask Adjutant Duke later? He probably knows more.”

“Shh shh shh, don’t talk about it now. Save it for after work. If the Marshal catches you slacking off during work hours, you’ll get punished.”

Meanwhile, the two people who had already reached the top-floor office were completely unaware of the chatter going on.

Upon entering the office, Fu Linyuan began handling reports.

The setup here wasn’t much different from the office on the starship, so Yu Bai comfortably curled up on the sofa with his legs tucked under him and continued observing the scenery outside the window.

The sun was setting in the west.

Looking down from the office window, one could see the open-air training grounds below.

There were only a few mechas training at the moment — Yu Bai counted and found only six.

To the left of the training ground were other military department buildings, while the buildings on the right were generally shorter but appeared newer.

That was the Imperial Research Institute’s branch on the capital planet.

Looking even further, just above the horizon, Yu Bai vaguely saw a golden dome.

It looked like an upside-down golden bowl placed on the ground.

But as the sun continued to set and the light dimmed, that distant dome gradually faded into the night.

Viewing the night sky from the planet’s surface was different from looking into deep space.

Watching more and more stars appear, the little mermaid thought.

The night sky was a very deep blue, unlike the pure black of deep space.

He didn’t know what Fu Linyuan was doing with that square light screen behind his desk, but he looked very busy.

Under these circumstances, Yu Bai should have been a little bored with nothing to do.

But in truth, he had long grown used to entertaining himself.

Back before falling into the clutches of the lab, he had spent most of his time alone.

In this moment, as the little mermaid curled up on the sofa watching the stars, it felt almost like he had returned to that planet where he had lived alone for years.

On countless star-filled nights like this, he would float quietly on the sea surface, counting the waves as time passed.

Those lonely days had lasted until… the day the escape pod fell.

Even now, the little mermaid still didn’t understand why his only friend had betrayed him.

In his fading memories, that person had always seemed gentle, though quiet.

He could roast delicious fish, play beautiful tunes with leaves, carefully glue back a broken conch that Yu Bai had accidentally shattered, and lull him to sleep during his worst injuries.

Even when Yu Bai couldn’t see back then, he could still feel the quiet warmth of that person.

Hmm… Why, then?

Actually, if he had the chance, Yu Bai now wanted to take back the scale he had given that person.

His mother had said scales could only be given to true friends.

Since that person had sold him, they could no longer be friends.

And that had been his first shed reverse scale — the most beautiful one at the time.

He had secretly felt bad about giving it away for a long time.

Hmm… Maybe I should give it to Fu Linyuan instead?

He still hadn’t found the right chance to give him a gift…

The little mermaid’s thoughts drifted far, far away.

And at his desk, Fu Linyuan, busy with official work, looked up and happened to notice Yu Bai staring blankly into space. His fingers were absentmindedly playing with the hem of his clothes, clearly lost in thought.

The sight unexpectedly reminded Fu Linyuan of a child brought to work by their parent.

Quiet and well-behaved, just sitting obediently on the side.

Very likable.

His fingers paused over the report he was typing, and then he opened another dialogue window on the AI interface.

…The little mermaid seemed to like meat.

With that in mind, he contacted the kitchen staff and asked them to bring up two servings of roasted meat.

But when he glanced back toward the sofa, he saw the little one leaning against the backrest, his fluffy head tilted to the side, eyes closed, already dozing off.

…Even more like a child now.

His long fingers resumed typing the report.

But after only a few seconds, they paused again.

His eyes fell on Yu Bai’s curled-up legs, and he recalled how unstable he had looked when trying to stand in the alley earlier.

If he stayed in that position too long, his legs would surely go numb again.

And if he got a cramp…

Fu Linyuan’s gaze flickered slightly, and his fingers unconsciously curled on the keyboard.

A moment later, he finally stood up and walked over to him.

The tall man bent down and very gently lifted the already-sleeping youth, laying him flat on the sofa and covering him with a coat.

Then he dimmed the office lights.

Everything around them remained quiet.