Childhood Friend of the Zenith – 412 (Part 1)



412 (Part 1)

In the dark forest smoke rises.

The smoke which had been rising high is mixed with the acrid smell of burning flesh.

“Ugh… Aaaah! Kyaaaah!”

An unnamed man repeatedly screams in terror. Flames engulfing his body are consuming his flesh.

“Please… Please!”

Desperate he pleads with the one holding his neck but the other merely looks at him with the same expressionless eyes as before.

Despite the blank face the eyes are stained red like burning flames.

As the moonlight gently illuminates the scene the dirt floor previously hidden in shadow is revealed.

The exposed ground is particularly dark.

It is soaked with blood.

“…Grr… Hrr… Ugh.”

The man caught in the flames screams with all his might but gradually quiets down.

In the end he breathes his last.

“…”

Thud.

The young man who had been silently watching finally releases the man’s body.

The lifeless man collapses weakly to the ground.

The ghostly flames that had clung to him vanish.

“Huff….”

The one observing covers his mouth with his hand. The leader of the group the Captain has died.

Though the Captain had passed the age of forty he was said to have reached the pinnacle of his abilities.

Even the Boss had acknowledged his prowess yet he was helplessly killed by a young man who seemed barely of age….

‘What the hell… What is this?’

The man with his mouth covered could not comprehend what had just transpired.

The corpses lying behind the deceased Captain were no different.

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The first captured man had been reduced to ashes unrecognizable.

The others had died instantly with their necks broken.

The recently deceased Captain was no exception.

‘A monster… That’s a monster.’

The man trembles and begins to back away slowly but he must stop when he faces a wooden pillar blocking his path.

“Hah… Hah….”

His mind is already crushed under the fear of death.

Am I dying? Am I going to die like this?

A wave of terror rises and tears flow down his face.

He couldn’t even run away.

His legs were already crushed by that monster’s hands.

Creeeak.

The crouching monster stirs.

Flames still cling to the monster’s body.

The man facing the flames has only one thought.

‘It’s cruel.’

The warmth of the fire attributed to the Shin Seong was far removed from this.

He feels nothing.

And that in turn makes him even more afraid.

How can there be nothing contained within the flames?

No it’s not nothing.

‘…killing intent.’

The flames were like a mass of killing intent.

The reason he felt nothing from that monster was that everything was contained within the flames it emitted.

How much killing intent must one possess to be like that?

‘Flames…? If it’s flames.’

At that moment a rumor flickers through the man’s mind.

The most famous figure known as a fire master in the Central Plains.

A martial artist called a young hero leading the current era.

He had recently received a new alias after repelling the attack of the Great Demon and mercilessly eliminating the unorthodox sects.

That alias was none other than.

“Fire Demon….”

Crack-!

“…!”

Just as the man was about to scream from the sudden surge of pain the young man who had approached swiftly covers his mouth with his hand.

He doesn’t even know when it happened.

All five fingers are twisted in strange directions.

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“Grrr… Mmm…!”

“If you utter that damn word even once more I’ll rip your arm off next time. Even if you scream I’ll do it. I’ll let go in three seconds. You need to be quiet. Got it?”

The man nods repeatedly at the young man’s indifferent words.

There was no way to refuse from the start.

The young man quietly releases his hand.

Then the man must endure the rising pain in silence.

The red-stained eyes look down at him.

Finally kneeling on one knee he meets the man’s gaze.

“What’s your purpose?”

He asks the same question he had posed to those who had tortured him earlier.

In response the man speaks with a trembling voice filled with fear.

“…Y-You’ve already… already heard.”

“Is that all?”

“Y-Yes… Yes.”

The information had already been revealed by the first captured man.

He had been ordered to follow the Tang Clan’s transport and ascertain their route.

Even after hearing that the young man… no.

‘Fire Demon….’

The man grits his teeth as he recalls the young man’s identity.

He had become more brutal than anyone else when it came to eliminating unorthodox sects. It seems that saying was true.

‘I didn’t believe it thinking he was just a kid…!’

The truth of the rumor was far more terrifying.

How could he be so cruel? He was too frightening and bizarre to be called a member of the orthodox sects.

The form of torture he displayed was enough to make one wet themselves in fear.

He was using his flames better than anyone else for torture.

Could this truly be the person called the future of the orthodox sects?

As the man looks at the Fire Demon with trembling eyes the Fire Demon continues to speak with an expressionless face.

“There are a total of seven. Among them one is a second-rate five are first-rate and one is at the pinnacle.”

“…!”

The man gasps internally at the words that seem to grasp the levels of the group.

Because it was true.

The Captain was a martial artist who had reached the pinnacle.

The remaining ones were first-rate and he himself was a second-rate martial artist.

“Such a level is far superior for mere bandits. What the hell are you?”

“…Huh… Huh….”

“What’s your purpose? Huh?”

“I don’t know that….”

Szzzz-!

“Grrr…!”

He grabs one of the twisted fingers and burns it with flames.

The excruciating pain makes the man tremble uncontrollably.

After burning it for a while he asks again.

“Answer again.”

“I… I don’t know. Please… please….”

“Alright. Then let’s ask something else. Is the name of your highest superior Tang Deok?”

“Gasp…!?”

The moment the name of the Boss comes out of the Fire Demon’s mouth the man’s body trembles.

‘How…?’

How does the Fire Demon know the name of the Boss?

In the Central Plains he was only known by his alias and no one should know his real name.

Perhaps noticing the man’s reaction the corners of the Fire Demon’s mouth curl up.

That sight sends chills down the man’s spine.

How can a person smile so terrifyingly?

“Correct. That bastard’s tail is right.”

“…What the hell….”

“Why? Why are you trying to do something unnecessary when you should be staying quiet?”

“…Do you know the Boss?”

“Do I know him?”

In response to the man’s question the Fire Demon smiles with his eyes.

“I know him well enough to burst his eyeballs.”

“…”

No matter how he looked at it it was clear that it was not a good relationship.

The man’s plan to survive by using connections crumbles to pieces.

He endures the ongoing pain while still rolling his eyes in confusion.

He had information.

He knew that the Fire Demon was also part of the Tang Clan’s transport.

However no matter how outstanding he was rumored to be.

He had judged that his presence was not as threatening as that of the Poison King or the Clan Head of the Faction.

‘How….’

He recalls the bead the Captain possessed.

A magical item that eliminates the presence of its owner and those nearby.

Even if it was said to be a master of the Poison King level it was difficult to perceive unless one got close enough.

‘…How did this guy find me?’

What kind of being is the Fire Demon who penetrated such a magical item and infiltrated the surroundings without a care?

Could it be that he is stronger than the Poison King?

That’s unlikely.

No matter how much of a genius he was that would be impossible.

Then did he have another method?

“I can hear the sound of your eyes rolling from here.”

“…!”

Crack-!

“Grrk!?”

Another finger snaps.

Since it was already a twisted finger the pain was much worse.

“W-Why?”

“Oh sorry it’s a habit. I usually talk while breaking things. It’s not easy to kill that habit.”

It was not something to say with a smile.

To have a habit of torturing others?

‘Is this guy really a member of the orthodox sects?’

The man’s mind is filled with deepening doubts.

“Those bandits are unusually strong. Was it always like this?”

“…”

“Oh it’s not a question so you don’t have to answer.”

As the Fire Demon speaks the man’s back begins to sweat.

His voice was somewhat high-pitched as if he hadn’t fully gone through puberty.

The atmosphere was much softer than when they first met but.

The man instinctively knew.

That within that voice killing intent was seeping through.

“Honestly I wasn’t that curious about what you guys were saying. It’s all obvious anyway.”

He had originally intended to kill them all.

Then why…? Why take this form of torture?

“I had to pick out some humans. Those who are cowardly a bit clever and obedient.”

“…That’s.”

“Do you want to live?”

At the Fire Demon’s words the man tightly shuts his mouth.

Do I want to live? Of course he wanted to live.

It’s just that the existence of the Fire Demon asking that question instilled anxiety in him.

“I won’t ask twice. Answer.”

“I… I want to live.”

However he couldn’t let anxiety overwhelm him to the point of death so he had to answer.

Hearing the response the Fire Demon nods as if satisfied.

“Ah this is a personal question. How many people did you save who told you that?”

“…!”

“Silence is fortunate. That answer is enough. It should ease your mind a bit.”

Since he had never saved anyone he wondered if he was going to die like this.

However after saying that the Fire Demon does not take any further action.

What is this? Is he going to leave it at that?

Just as relief begins to rise another problem arises.

‘Is this really… living?’

His ankle was crushed rendering him unable to walk.

One hand was completely mangled.

He didn’t know about his hand but his feet were beyond any healer’s help.

This isn’t living at all.

Just as relief begins to turn into despair.

The Fire Demon grabs the man’s neck.

What is this? Didn’t he say he would spare me…?

“Let me say this in advance endure it. I don’t know how to be kind and gentle like the Heavenly Demon.”

“Heavenly Demon? What do you mean? Y-You said you would spare me…!”

“I will spare you. I need you alive to get the job done.”

With those words the man could see.

The Fire Demon’s eyes once stained red began to change to a shade of purple for some reason.