Childhood Friend of the Zenith – 427



427

**Chapter 428: It’s Been a While (3)**

By the time I arrived at the assigned quarters the first words I uttered were filled with annoyance.

“Ugh why do I have to share a room with you?”

I said this while unpacking my things.

Behind me a tall man was diligently unpacking his belongings as well.

That was Woo-hyuk.

I was in the same room as Woo-hyuk.

“Haha what can we do? They said there are no rooms available.”

“Damn it.”

The Tang Clan had crammed both me and Woo-hyuk into one room claiming a shortage of accommodations.

How could a large clan like the Tang Clan be short on rooms?

When I first heard it I thought they were just making excuses to avoid giving us a room.

However the expressions of the servants and the words of the clan leader seemed to convey genuine regret leaving me with no choice but to accept it.

By the way Cheol Ji-seon had come along too.

He was probably unpacking in a small room next door. As I continued to express my irritation Woo-hyuk chuckled and said

“I know it’s unfortunate that you’re not with your sister-in-law but just bear with it.”

“What the hell are you talking about you crazy bastard? Who’s your sister-in-law?”

“Well it’s hard to pick just one since there are so many….”

Whack-!

“Ugh!”

Woo-hyuk who had been spouting nonsense let out a scream after I smacked him on the back of the head.

“Stop it! Stop it!”

I had only brushed against him but ignoring the writhing Woo-hyuk on the floor I resumed unpacking.

The only thought in my mind was this:

I should unpack quickly and get some sleep.

Get notified for updates: https://discord.gg/93rmBjgP6B

That was all I cared about.

While I could use qi to relieve my fatigue I needed to rest properly at least once in a while.

When I had finished unpacking to some extent I turned to Woo-hyuk who was still rolling on the floor.

“I heard the banquet is tonight. Are you going to go?”

“Go? Where?”

As expected it seemed he was just pretending to be dramatic as he stopped rolling at my question.

Seeing this I added

“I heard the master is here.”

“Ah….”

The moment I mentioned the martial artist Woo-hyuk’s expression instantly hardened.

It was refreshing to see him make such a face.

“Maybe it would be okay to go a bit later.”

He had come all this way to meet someone yet he looked so reluctant. I wondered what kind of person could make someone like Woo-hyuk who usually didn’t care about such things feel this way.

I had never met a martial artist from the Mu-dang sect so I had no idea what to expect.

‘Guess I’ll find out when I meet them.’

After all I needed to meet them regarding the Noh-ya as well.

I was also curious as to why a martial artist from the Mu-dang sect suddenly possessed the Namgung Clan’s treasured sword.

The purpose of meeting the Mu-dang martial artist was simple.

I intended to hand over the Noh-ya to Namgung Bi-a.

The Sword Master was originally a martial artist of high standing but when she wielded the Noh-ya she displayed a monstrous prowess that was nothing short of terrifying.

The Noh-ya was the sword that could best harness thunder qi.

I didn’t know if she would give it to me but if she refused…

‘We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.’

Since I had no particular plan I decided to think about it after seeing her.

Just as I was organizing my thoughts Woo-hyuk asked

“What are you going to do until the banquet?”

What was I going to do? Well obviously…

“I’m going to rest.”

“Rest…? You?”

Woo-hyuk made a face as if he couldn’t believe my answer.

“…What’s with that reaction? I just want to rest. Do you have a problem with that?”

“There’s water too.”

“Do you want to die for real?”

I felt a sharp pain in my neck from his lame joke.

Ah this guy.

If he wanted to fold in half he should have said so beforehand.

As I was about to loosen my hands and approach him Woo-hyuk hurriedly continued

Join our discord and ping me to update more chapters. Discord: https://discord.gg/93rmBjgP6B

“No it’s just that rest and you don’t seem to go together.”

“What do you mean? How do I not go together?”

Is there anyone as lazy and fond of lying around as I am?

Seeing my incredulous expression Woo-hyuk let out a sigh and said

“You train all day. If you’re not training you’re always wandering around. I’ve never seen you rest.”

“…”

Hearing Woo-hyuk’s words I had to admit he had a point.

Throughout the journey I either trained or handled tasks and if I didn’t do that I would go out and hunt demonic beasts to absorb their energy.

Come to think of it I hadn’t rested for even a day.

It didn’t seem strange for Woo-hyuk to look at me that way.

‘I wasn’t this diligent of a person.’

How did I end up like this?

“Ah I don’t care. I’m going to rest today anyway.”

Just as I shouted that and was about to lie down I sensed a presence outside the door.

-Young Master!

“…”

Hearing the voice it was Tang So-yeol. Why did he suddenly appear?

A sense of foreboding washed over me.

-Are you there?

As the presence drew closer I opened the door and peeked out.

“Ah!”

Tang So-yeol upon seeing me approached with a bright smile.

“Why….”

Feeling an inexplicable sense of unease I asked and Tang So-yeol cheerfully replied

“Your father is looking for you! He said something came up!”

“…”

I wiped my face at Tang So-yeol’s words.

I was just about to rest… It seemed the world had no intention of letting me be.

Damn this world.

******************

After hearing Tang So-yeol’s words I headed towards the Poison King.

Honestly I didn’t want to go but if he was calling me so urgently something must be up.

‘It better not be anything serious.’

If it wasn’t urgent I was prepared to show my displeasure.

Whether it was the Tang Clan or whatever.

Since my direct blood relatives were nearby no one could stop me from wandering around the clan.

“Where are you going?”

I asked Tang So-yeol.

It wasn’t the direction of the Clan Head’s quarters.

“Oh my father is in the guest quarters.”

“Guest?”

A guest? Who could that be?

Could it be someone from the Mo Yong-hee side with the White Lotus Sword?

As soon as I had that thought Tang So-yeol seemed to sense my confusion and explained

“Oh it’s not the Young Masters but another guest who arrived a few days ago.”

“Hmm?”

Someone arrived a few days ago?

Ah?

‘Could that be why they said there were not enough rooms?’

Now I understood why they had asked to share a room with me.

It seemed there had been an unexpected guest which led to the shortage of rooms.

What was strange was that no matter how I looked at it these were prominent families and clans.

Was there really such an important guest that they would cram us into one room like this?

If the group didn’t care much about such things perhaps someone a bit more particular would have raised a fuss about it.

Of course I doubted there was anyone bold enough to question the Tang Clan.

‘Who on earth could it be?’

Moreover this guest had arrived when the Poison King was absent.

That meant they were someone significant.

By the time I arrived at the quarters I could see the Poison King standing in front.

I bowed my head and greeted him.

“I heard you called for me.”

The Poison King smiled slightly at my words.

“I’m sorry to call you like this just as your journey is coming to an end.”

“…It’s fine.”

If you know then why call me?

I wanted to spit that out but I held it back feeling exhausted from trying to control my emotions.

Lately it had been particularly difficult.

Suppressing my feelings with effort I asked the Poison King

“What is the matter that you called for me?”

How urgent could it be for him to specifically seek me out?

Noticing my sour expression the Poison King replied with a somewhat awkward look.

“The guest… asked for you to bring Mister Gu so I called you urgently.”

“Excuse me?”

I frowned at the Poison King’s words.

A guest is looking for me?

…A guest of the Tang Clan is looking for me?

I had no idea what he was talking about. Why would a guest be looking for me?

“Who is this guest that is looking for me?”

“First follow me.”

The Poison King said that and turned to walk into the quarters.

He didn’t even give a proper explanation and just walked in…

Frowning deeply I moved my feet.

If there wasn’t a reasonable explanation I might just explode.

This was the limit of my patience.

Tang So-yeol noticing my sour expression followed behind me.

The quarters we entered were quite spacious.

Compared to the quarters I was staying in it was almost double the size.

Even compared to the Clan Head’s quarters where the Poison King stayed it was a building that wouldn’t be out of place. Looking at it I thought

‘What kind of remarkable person is staying here to warrant such accommodations?’

It was clearly an extraordinary building.

I could guess that it was a space meant to host a guest who deserved utmost respect.

And now a person worthy of such treatment in the Tang Clan was looking for me?

No matter how I thought about it I couldn’t think of anyone fitting that description.

As I continued to follow the Poison King I noticed there was even a small garden inside.

It seemed a considerable amount of money had been poured into it.

After walking for a while the Poison King stopped in front of a door. He looked inside and said

“Elder I have brought Mister Gu.”

‘Elder…?’

I widened my eyes at the Poison King’s demeanor.

For the Clan Head of one of the four great clans to show such respect to someone.

After finishing his introduction the Poison King stepped aside slightly and looked at me.

“…”

It was a sign for me to enter the room.

Feeling a bit tense I moved into the room.

Just as Tang So-yeol was about to follow me the Poison King raised his hand to stop him.

It was a sign for him not to enter.

I cautiously approached the room and peered inside.

Who on earth could it be…

“Hmm?”

As soon as I spotted the person drinking tea inside a question mark appeared above my head.

The first thing I noticed was a boy whose bangs covered half of his face making it hard to see his features.

The boy noticed me and slightly nodded his head.

I recognized that face.

“You….”

The boy was none other than Jeong-gal Hyuk who would later become the brain of the Demonic Cult and be known as its chief strategist.

I wondered why Jeong-gal Hyuk was suddenly here but more importantly

‘The fact that he’s here means…?’

I quickly turned my head to look at the person sitting opposite Jeong-gal Hyuk.

The gaze of an elderly man with white hair and a body so thin that his bones were clearly visible was already directed at me.

Though he appeared shabby and frail it would not be an exaggeration to say that no one in the Central Plains could afford to ignore him.

“It’s been a while.”

His voice was high thin and sharp.

Despite his achievements and warm personality his cold gaze stood out.

“Elder…?”

“Hmm.”

He was a renowned physician said to be able to save anyone as long as they had a breath left in them.

Many people revered this great physician and called him by this title.

“It seems you’ve rolled around quite a bit while we haven’t seen each other. Judging by your appearance it’s quite evident.”