Childhood Friend of the Zenith – 397 (Part 1)



397 (Part 1)

There is a plant called Guibi Grass (鬼非草).

It only blooms in the humid regions of the western areas.

Though it appears beautiful it is a type of poisonous plant that induces terrible hallucinations if swallowed even by mistake.

In some circles there are rumors that unorthodox sects use it to create hallucinogens for sale making it one of the most notorious poisonous plants.

Furthermore it is also used to extract confessions from criminals and when taken to extremes is employed in torture.

Swoosh.

The Poison King knows.

He knows that Guibi Grass has its own unique flavor.

If one has sufficient resistance to poison it could be a highly sought-after plant across the nation.

Of course ordinary people neither have nor can develop such resistance to poison.

That is why the Poison King liked Guibi Grass.

Only he… No to be precise it was a tea that only the Tang Clan enjoyed.

He could savor a better taste at a much lower price than other expensive tea leaves.

On a night when the full moon bloomed.

Slurp.

The master of the Tang Clan the Poison King was sitting alone on the floor sipping Guibi tea.

He preferred this tea over strong liquor.

The only difference was that all such teas were made from poisonous plants.

As he enjoyed the scenery while taking a few sips someone approached from behind the Poison King.

A woman cautiously approached his side bowing her head in respect.

“…Did you call for me Master?”

Her name was Nahi.

On the surface she worked as a servant of the Tang Clan.

But in essence she was part of an assassination group secretly operated by the Tang Clan.

She was the Vice Captain of the Beichagui Team (備察鬼隊).

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Without turning his gaze to the approaching Nahi the Poison King spoke.

“How does it look?”

Hearing his words Nahi slowly knelt on one knee.

Keeping her gaze on the ground she began to report in a calm voice.

“The three stationed on the left side of the entrance. The two assigned to the Trading Company and the four members placed inside. All nine have been discovered.”

Nahi started her report about an incident that had occurred a few hours earlier. Upon hearing this the Poison King looked at Nahi with a peculiar expression.

He seemed displeased.

“Is your report incorrect?”

“…”

“Ten people including you. They must have all been caught by Mister?”

“…I apologize. I will rectify it.”

Nahi’s head bowed even deeper. The Poison King was right.

She too had been discovered by that young man.

Nahi’s white hand clenched into a fist.

– It seems that person is not someone who should be working as a servant.

The young man’s words buzzed in her ears. How had she been caught?

Was her response inadequate?

No.

She was quite skilled at hiding her presence and she believed she was good at it.

Moreover she had been sincere in her actions due to the Poison King’s orders.

The young man Gu Yangchen seemed to have recognized her the moment he saw her.

‘The first nine I could understand somehow.’

The fact that she had been exposed was unexpected for Nahi.

Did the Poison King read her thoughts?

He smiled slightly and said “Don’t worry too much. Thanks to you I experienced something interesting.”

“…”

The Poison King grinned and took another sip of Guibi tea.

At first it had been a simple test.

He had heard so much about the remarkable young man that he had become curious and decided to play a little trick.

As soon as he entered the entrance the young man scattered warnings like a warning sign.

To think he would even discover Vice Captain Nahi.

She was a person who had reached the pinnacle of her skills as an assassin.

If Nahi wished she could have risen to a significant position even entering the assassin group led by the Demon King.

The young man had recognized her without any hesitation.

‘How did he do it?’

To the Poison King it was simply fascinating.

Moreover thanks to Nahi’s telepathy he had been able to erase the presence of his daughter who was hiding at a distance.

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If Nahi had noticed she would have easily sensed the presence of Tang So-yeol who was hiding in the back room.

The Poison King had already used considerable qi to take precautions.

Recalling that the Poison King had to chuckle inwardly.

‘…At this age I’m going through all this for my daughter.’

He sighed at the absurdity of it all.

Furthermore although it was indeed for Tang So-yeol like everyone else the Poison King had initially disliked Gu Yangchen.

What father would want to give his precious daughter to a fool who would only toy with her?

At first he had thought to tear him apart by any means necessary if he ever came to see him.

But now he had somewhat different thoughts.

‘At that age reaching the threshold of the realm…’

The Poison King was convinced when he faced Gu Yangchen directly.

He was clearly beyond the peak and had reached the threshold. Reaching the threshold before even coming of age?

That would be a record on par with the historical level of pre-Wuhan.

Considering Gu Yangchen’s potential and future it was not bad—no it was an outstanding position.

The Poison King believed that Gu Yangchen was destined to become the world’s best in the future.

It felt as if he had inherited his father’s talents.

Looking at that.

In the end he did not ‘disapprove.’

But he believed his child would be different.

He envisioned that his child would break through the Central Plains which was currently dominated by the Three Zons and reach the highest position.

Moreover contrary to the rumors of Gu Yangchen being a lecher he did not seem to be that way.

It might not be the case but wasn’t it said that heroes often had a penchant for beauty?

Considering Gu Yangchen’s value he could surpass that level.

Especially since his daughter was in a state of being unable to live without him.

‘No wonder she’s so infatuated with him.’

The Poison King shook his head recalling his daughter.

He knew that his daughter’s discernment was somewhat far removed from that of ordinary people.

He wondered where he could find a person who could satisfy Tang So-yeol’s discerning eyes.

…And then a person who fit her perfectly appeared right before him.

If Tang So-yeol was so deeply infatuated with Gu Yangchen that she would run away from home the Poison King was willing to acknowledge it at this point.

If it had been a mediocre person he would have torn him apart by any means necessary.

But if it was Gu Yangchen who was already making a name for himself across the Central Plains at such a young age and had a high possibility of becoming the world’s best in the future the Poison King could be satisfied.

‘I never expected him to give such an answer in front of me.’

The Poison King recalled what Gu Yangchen had said at the dining table just before.

– I don’t want that.

When he had told him to stay away from Tang So-yeol Gu Yangchen had boldly declared that to the Poison King himself.

Unless he broke off the engagement with the Namgung Clan he had told him to stay away from Tang So-yeol.

Gu Yangchen had declared that he would do neither.

How could that be?

Was it a childish rebellion that he could afford to make because he was still young?

Whatever it was it was still a selfish statement.

But the Poison King believed that Gu Yangchen had the talent to bear such selfishness.

If Tang So-yeol had not intervened and continued the conversation he might have heard a deeper answer.

It was somewhat regrettable that he hadn’t heard it properly because Tang So-yeol couldn’t hold back and intervened.

The Poison King nodded slightly recalling that much.

‘Yes to take my daughter away he must at least be the world’s best.’

She was a daughter he had cherished like a treasure.

It would be better to send her to someone with a guaranteed future than to an incompetent fool with nothing.

‘If there’s something that concerns me in the meantime.’

If they were to become engaged in the future.

It would be the fact that he would have to send his precious daughter as a concubine.

That was not something the Poison King could easily permit.

It would create a gap with the Namgung Clan of all places.

Clink.

As he swirled the tea in his cup the Poison King exhaled.

‘This part… will be hard to concede.’

It was said that the engagement had already been made.

Even so it didn’t matter. There were ways to handle it.

The problem was that it might not be a very clean method.

After swallowing the tea he had been swirling the Poison King took a breath and looked at Nahi saying.