Childhood Friend of the Zenith – 539



539

The Hall Leader’s eyes widened at the strange words.

…Preferences?

‘Crazy?’

Only after hearing those words did I understand why the Poison King looked at me that way.

Did he really think I was taking Nahyi for a different reason?

“That’s not it. Am I crazy?”

“Does it matter? The term ‘heroic beauty’ exists for a reason.”

“No that’s not it…!”

“Anyway please take good care of my lacking younger sister. I hope to hear a different title next time we meet.”

“…What?”

“Hahaha!”

Saying that he patted my shoulder.

It didn’t hurt much but somehow I felt a heaviness in my chest.

This didn’t seem right so I quickly tried to clear up the misunderstanding.

At that moment Paewoo-cheol spoke to me.

“By the way Hyung-nim.”

“Yeah?”

“Where is Ji-seon Hyung-nim?”

He was asking about Cheol Ji-seon.

“Oh. That guy.”

Cheol Ji-seon who had been staying in Sichuan with me seemed to have changed after meeting the deity. He had been going in and out frequently.

When I heard that the deity would be joining us on this trip he was stuck in another carriage.

‘He must not want to see my face.’

It seemed there was some issue with the deity.

So I asked if he was thinking of going somewhere else.

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-…I think I should go with you.

He closed his mouth after saying that.

‘I was originally planning to drag him along anyway.’

Cheol Ji-seon’s abilities were necessary for me.

If he said he wanted to return to his family I had intended to stop him.

But since he insisted on not going it was a relief for me.

‘Otherwise I would have had to use somewhat violent methods to keep him. I’m really glad.’

As I nodded slightly Paewoo-cheol made a somewhat disappointed expression.

“…That’s too bad. Training with Ji-seon Hyung-nim was quite enjoyable.”

“…Wasn’t it just you who enjoyed it?”

It seemed like Paewoo-cheol was the one dominating Cheol Ji-seon and rather aggressively at that.

I still remembered Cheol Ji-seon who was flailing and struggling.

“I just thought Ji-seon Hyung-nim needed some training.”

“Well that’s true.”

It was hard to see him as a martial artist with that frail body.

His weak personality and timid voice only added to that impression.

Paewoo-cheol might have found Cheol Ji-seon frustrating.

But.

“Don’t worry.”

“Yes?”

“From now on I’m the one who will be training him.”

“Ah.”

It seemed he couldn’t bear to see that state.

From now on I had planned to train Cheol Ji-seon thoroughly.

‘He probably doesn’t know this yet.’

It would be unfortunate for Cheol Ji-seon but if I was going to keep him around I needed to train him a bit.

I intended to make him capable enough to play his part as a person.

As I was thinking this I heard a voice.

“Young Master. We’re ready.”

Moyong-hia approached and said to me.

Hearing that I looked around and indeed everything was ready.

And it was very neat and tidy.

“…Impressive.”

Anyway it was clear that Moyong-hia excelled in this area.

“Are we leaving right away?”

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

There was no need to delay any longer.

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I was busy too but it was time to leave so that the Tang Clan could work faster.

I decided to depart immediately.

I clasped my hands together and performed a clasped hands greeting to the Hall Leader.

“Then I will take my leave.”

This was a gesture not only for the Hall Leader but also for the Poison King.

Knowing this the Hall Leader quietly returned the clasped hands greeting.

In the meantime seeing Paewoo-cheol still looking disappointed I casually mentioned that he should come to the Gu family next time and moved on.

I immediately boarded the carriage.

Moyong-hia followed and got into my carriage.

Seeing that I asked.

“Why are you here? What about Senior Baekryeon?”

“Didn’t you hear…?”

“Huh? What?”

“My aunt went to Shanxi first.”

“…What?”

Moyong-hia said that as if she was somewhat exhausted.

She went to Shanxi first…?

“…Why…?”

“…I don’t know either. I don’t want to know.”

Moyong-hia said that as if she was fed up and then sat down next to me.

Why did Baekryeon go first?

No to begin with…

‘She was supposed to be my escort.’

The person who said they would protect me had forgotten that role and acted on their own.

She was always an incomprehensible person.

But now I decided to give up trying to understand her.

She was just a bit of a strange lady… Thinking that made me feel at ease.

As it was time to depart I was about to close my eyes for a moment.

Suddenly—!

The carriage door which had been closed burst open and someone rushed in.

“Ugh…”

The culprit was none other than Dang So-yeol.

The problem was that Dang So-yeol looked a mess.

Her hair was disheveled which was unusual for someone who usually managed herself well.

Her eyes were filled with deep fatigue.

“Miss Dang?”

Moyong-hia was so surprised that she asked.

“…H-Hard…”

“…”

Seeing that I couldn’t help but frown.

Given her condition it seemed related to the Dark King.

Fortunately she didn’t seem injured but Dang So-yeol couldn’t hold herself up and collapsed.

The carriage wasn’t very spacious so it felt like she was falling on top of Namgung-bi-ah.

Seeing that Moyong-hia asked.

“…Should I get her some water?”

“I’m… fine…”

Why did you come here again?

That was a mystery but I couldn’t bring myself to ask. I knew why Dang So-yeol was in that state.

“Are you okay?”

The only thing I could say was this.

I couldn’t ask if it was alright to go together or if she had made up her mind to go that way.

When I asked about the corrupted officials Dang So-yeol looked at me with tired eyes and smiled slightly.

“I’m okay.”

“…”

She looked exhausted but her voice had a certain steadiness.

Hearing Dang So-yeol’s response I bit my lip.

I had a lot to say but I couldn’t express any of it.

Not wanting to ask any more questions I simply closed my eyes.

Hiiing—!

Not long after the sound of horses neighing powerfully reached my ears.

The carriage began to move slowly.

‘Are we finally going back?’

I finally felt it.

The realization that we were going home.

How long had it been since we headed towards the Gu family?

Amidst the comfort I felt from the corrupted officials a bitter sense of unease rose within me.

Grug-!

The wheels began to turn.

They seemed to wobble at first but as the horses ran they naturally found their balance.

I closed my tired eyes and felt that movement.

The sensation of rattling.

And the feeling of the wind brushing through my hair from the window.

Even in this uncomfortable situation I could take a moment to rest thanks to the fact that one task had been completed.

Perhaps that was why.

On the way home I was able to get a proper sleep for the first time in a long while.

Thus.

As the carriage picked up speed time flowed quickly.

Time really passed swiftly.

Summer had passed.

Autumn had arrived.

Not long after autumn left and winter came again.

Such farewells repeated.

Three years.

Before I knew it three years had passed.

To someone else it might seem like a short time.

But in that short time countless events had unfolded in the Central Plains.

The first news was that the Tang Clan’s misdeeds had been publicly announced by the Murim Alliance.

The announced news was that the Sichuan Tang Clan had conducted human experiments for their own benefit.

They had been kidnapping children for many years for those human experiments.

As the news spread many were outraged.

-Punish the Tang Clan!

-How could an orthodox sect commit such acts!

The uproar was much larger than expected.

Although they beheaded the Elders who had planned the deeds that alone could not quell the anger towards the Tang Clan.

-The Tang Clan is no longer one of the four great families.

-How can we call a family that has committed such evil deeds by that name?

Such discussions began to circulate.

And the stories that started to spread in some circles gradually expanded throughout the Central Plains.

This was likely also due to the fact that the Tang Clan had halted all their businesses and entered a closed-off state along with their apology.

As the seasons flowed fewer and fewer people referred to the Tang Clan as one of the four great families.

The once-glorious tales of the Tang Clan faded away.

What remained now was merely speculation about which family would rise to take their place among the four great families.

The second incident was.

Starting from reports coming from Sichuan the information gathered by the alliance revealed that the low-grade demonic gates had indeed begun to open.

This caused quite a stir at the time.

The appearance of the red demonic gate which had not been seen for centuries.

As a result there was significant damage for a while.

Even when demonic beasts appeared the peace of the Central Plains was maintained because the danger level of the green and blue demonic beasts was relatively low.

Moreover it was also because the martial artists capable of dealing with them were of relatively low skill.

However the red demonic beasts were different.

Peak-level martial artists.

It was said that even several of them needed to band together to hunt them.

As a result the importance of peak-level martial artists surged dramatically.

Fortunately.

For over five years.

Moreover contrary to the expectations of suffering for ten years the damage caused by the red demonic beasts was significantly less than anticipated.

The reason was.

As soon as the news of the outbreak of the red demonic gate was conveyed.

An [Anonymous Informant] revealed methods to deal with the red demonic beasts through the opening.

-The red demonic beasts have a barrier made of qi.

-The barrier protects their entire body and rotates.

-While it has the ability to absorb qi if a peak-level martial artist concentrates extremely hard they can find a gap in the rotating barrier.

-Aim for that spot.

At first it was hard to believe.

But it didn’t take long for it to be proven true.

Thanks to that.

As the methods spread the expected massive damage was relatively reduced.

Additionally the frequency of the appearance of the red demonic gates was significantly lower compared to other grades.

What is important here is.

No matter what the name of the era called the era of peace had been tarnished.

The third incident was.

[The Alliance Leader of the Murim Alliance has changed.]

Immediately after Nakgyeom Jangcheon’s departure the alliance had to appoint a new Alliance Leader.

This led to political struggles.

The selection of the Alliance Leader was conducted secretly within the Murim Alliance so it was unknown.

However the information that was known was that there was a dispute between the Sect Leader of the Musang and the Clan Head of the Peng Clan over the position of Alliance Leader.

Not long after news came that the Musang Sword Master had risen to the position of Alliance Leader after Nakgyeom Jangcheon’s departure.

This was an unprecedented event.

It was the first case since the founding of the Murim Alliance that a martial artist from a sect became the Alliance Leader.

And.

The fourth incident was precisely.

The rampaging red demonic gate in Qinghai.

As a result the Sect Leader of the Kunlun Sect Qinghai Ilgyeom Eubi-jin was reported dead.