"Wow, a room for three people, this environment is much better than I expected!"
In the dormitory, a mixed-race man with a head full of messy blonde hair raised his hand to brush the strands off his forehead, looking at the bright and clean room with three neatly made beds, nodding in satisfaction.
He turned around, and his gaze fell on the other two roommates who just entered. His face instantly blossomed into a warm smile.
One of them seemed to be about forty years old, with a beard, and a constant weariness between his brows, yet his exposed arms were muscled and revealed a sense of robust strength from years of rigorous training.
The other was a young man, with skin so pale it seemed almost sickly, and his eyes were devoid of emotion, scanning others with no sign of mood shifts, as if the people before him were nothing more than air.
"Hey, guys! Since weâll be under the same roof, why not get to know each other first?" The blonde man cheerily took the initiative to speak, showcasing his naturally sociable personality,
"My name is Kane, Iâm a Spiritualist!"
Saying this, he first cast an enthusiastic gaze at the weathered man, his tone eager.
The older man raised his eyes to look at him and simply nodded slightly: "Xue Wuyang."
"Surname Xue? What a coincidence!" Kaneâs eyes lit up, his tone even more friendly, "I had a best buddy with the last name Xue when I was in school; unfortunately, we drifted apart after graduation and rarely keep in touch anymore. Brother Xue, since weâre roommates, letâs look out for each other!"
His words were extremely sociable, and then he turned his gaze towards the constantly silent young man, his smile undiminished: "Friend, what about you? Whatâs your name?"
The young man glanced at him, said nothing, and simply walked to the bed by the window, bending down to organize the bedding.
Although the sheet was already neatly laid, he tirelessly pulled at the corners repeatedly, insisting on no creases before stopping.
"Hey, donât be so cold!" Kane didnât feel awkward at all, stepping forward with a light tone, "We see each other day in and day out, itâs good to know each otherâs preferences so we can avoid conflicts later on, right?"
He opened his mouth, like a chatterbox that couldnât be stopped: "Iâm a pretty easy-going person, no other faults, just that I canât stand snoring. In school, I had a roommate who was a two hundred-pound big guy; his snoring was like thunder every night, it nearly drove me insane, I eventually had to grit my teeth and move out. As for hobbies, I like playing cards. Do you play Wayne cards? Theyâre really interesting. I used to..."
"Can you just be quiet?"
A cold voice abruptly interrupted Kaneâs incessant chatter.
The young man finally straightened up, looking at him with furrowed brows full of impatience.
"Do we need to know each other?" His tone was openly distant, "Why do I need to tell you my name?"
Kane was momentarily stunned, then blinked and said matter-of-factly, "Of course we need to! Weâre roommates; weâll see each other frequently. If I donât even know your name, calling you âheyâ, would you like that?"
He emphasized seriously, "Calling someone by their name is the minimum respect, right? If you keep calling me âheyâ, I wonât be comfortable. So, friend, whatâs your name?"
Seeing Kaneâs persistent questioning, the young manâs temples throbbed furiously, he took a deep breath, turned his head, and coldly said three words:
"Zhou Ziming."
"Zhou Ziming! Nice name!" Kane instantly beamed, completely unaware of the otherâs impatience, "How about I call you Little Zhou in the future? Little Ming is too common, Little Zhou sounds better! You can call me Kane, or Kaka; my buddies all call me that..."
Once he started talking, it was like a flood, flowing endlessly.
Listening to the buzzing sound on the side, the silent Xue Wuyang couldnât help but twitch the corner of his mouth, and Zhou Zimingâs temples were thumping more vigorously. Looking at this overly energetic blonde man, a thought suddenly popped into his mindâ
No way, I canât stay in this room, I must change dorms!
"Ding dongâ"
A crisp knock on the door suddenly broke the dormâs noise and silence. Immediately, a steady male voice came from outside the door: "Xue Wuyang, Kane, Zhou Ziming, you three come out for a moment."
The three of them exchanged looks, stood up quickly, opened the door, and walked out.
Outside the door were two soldiers in uniform, standing tall, their expressions solemn, clearly showing they were well-trained elite.
"Brother, whatâs the matter?" Kane was the first to step forward, his face full of sociable smiles, asking politely.
"Someone wants to meet you, follow us."
The soldierâs tone was flat, leaving a sentence and turning to walk outward, without any extra explanation.
"Hey, wait a minute!" Kane hurried to catch up, persistently asking, "Who wants to see us? Give us a hint, so we can prepare mentally."
He kept calling "brother," but the soldier didnât turn back.
Until Kane continued to ask incessantly, the soldier in front suddenly turned around, his eyes sharp as a knife, and coldly shouted: "Shut up!"
Kane was startled by the cold shout, instinctively pursed his lips, and then responded with a grievance: "Oh..."
Seeing him suddenly subdued, Zhou Ziming, who had been tense due to the unknown summons, suddenly relaxed a bit, a quick flicker of an unnoticeable gleefulness in his eyesâthis chatterbox was finally shut up.