Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 1159

Chapter 1159

Crackle—!!

A profound blue. Or perhaps, a flash of stark white.

The faint energy coiled around her pupils shimmered, emitting a nearly imperceptible current. It was a feeling I recognized intimately—one that set my nerves alight.

‘That’s Lightning Qi.’

A force that emulates the very essence of lightning. An offshoot of Lightning Qi.

And more precisely—

‘…The Namgung Clan’s Lightning Qi.’

A martial art born from the Azure Sky’s Thunder, forged within the Namgung Clan. For an instant, I questioned my own judgment, but I knew it was impossible for me to be wrong.

‘I’ve encountered it far too often.’

I had seen it innumerable times from Namgung Bi-ah.

And beyond that—

‘From watching the Celestial Master. And also…’

When I had wielded Thunder Fang, I had sensed it then, too.

My body, imprinted with these memories, left no room for doubt:

That was unmistakably the Namgung Clan’s Lightning Qi.

The pressing question was—

‘Why does Hyun Soyeon possess it?’

How could she contain Lightning Qi within her?

“…Lady Hyun? What is the meaning of—”

I began to ask, my voice guarded and wary—

Thud!

“…!”

She abruptly launched herself forward, collapsing against my chest.

My reaction was delayed. I faltered, uncertain how to respond, and the moment slipped away.

Because I detected no trace of malice.

What should I do? Should I push her away now?

As I stood there, paralyzed by indecision—

Tight!

“…Huh?”

Hyun Soyeon, who had buried herself against me, suddenly locked her arms around my neck, and my entire frame went rigid.

I had no idea what to do with my own hands, leaving them suspended awkwardly at my sides.

“…Lady Hyun, what are you—”

“I found you.”

“…What?”

“At last…”

Hyun Soyeon murmured words that made little sense.

Then, her grip relaxed slightly, and she tilted her head back to look up at me, her gaze unsettlingly close.

“I finally found you.”

“…!”

The sight of her eyes made my own widen in stunned disbelief.

Something was profoundly wrong.

Her expression.

This was not the Hyun Soyeon I was familiar with.

Her hair remained black, but her eyes now shone with an unnatural blue light.

Her entire presence felt… distorted.

This was not the person I knew.

‘…This is…’

And yet—

It brought to mind a face I knew better than my own.

The person I was reminded of every single time I looked at Hyun Soyeon.

“You—”

Acting on pure instinct, I forced out the words stuck in my throat.

I had to know.

“Are you…?”

Just as I began to speak the name—

“Wait.”

The blue-eyed Hyun Soyeon cut me off.

“I… will come to you.”

Crackle—!!

With those brief words, Lightning Qi erupted from her body.

For a split second, she blazed with a brilliant light—

And then, just as suddenly—

Fwoosh—!

“…!”

Hyun Soyeon went limp, consciousness deserting her.

I swiftly moved to catch her.

“What in the world?”

She had fainted, just like that?

I shook her gently, but she gave no response.

There was no other option.

Bzzzt—!

I released a surge of my Internal Energy (Naegi), jolting her awake.

“Ugh…!?”

With a sharp gasp, Hyun Soyeon’s eyes fluttered open.

Disoriented, she bolted upright and glanced around in a daze.

“What…? What just happened…? Huh? Young Master Baek?”

Then, noticing she was in my arms, she blinked in surprise.

“…What’s going on? Why am I here? Oh… don’t tell me?”

Hyun Soyeon flinched and quickly wrapped her arms around herself.

“…Did you bring me here for some… improper reason?”

“Don’t be absurd.”

“So it is that?”

She flashed a mischievous grin, clearly teasing.

I scowled.

“But seriously, why am I here? Where is this?”

“…You have no memory of it?”

“None. I went to sleep, and now I’m suddenly here… Wait, do I sleepwalk or something?”

“……”

I swallowed hard.

She genuinely remembered nothing.

Which meant—

‘Was that truly her?’

Was the Hyun Soyeon from moments ago actually the same person?

‘…Namgung Bi-ah.’

The aura she had radiated—

There was no mistaking it.

It was the presence of Namgung Bi-ah.

**********

Morning.

It was the first day I awoke in this new residence.

As the soft calls of birds announced the breaking dawn, I rose from my bed.

“……”

I had not slept a wink.

How could I? After the night’s events, my thoughts were a chaotic whirlwind.

‘What in hell was that?’

What had actually transpired?

After Hyun Soyeon came to, I had sent her back to her quarters. I only advised her to visit the infirmary later as a precaution.

‘…That was Namgung Bi-ah.’

That fleeting consciousness within Hyun Soyeon’s form—

No matter how I turned it over in my mind, it was Namgung Bi-ah.

There was no chance I could ever misrecognize her.

It was undoubtedly her.

But—

‘How?’

How did she manifest through Hyun Soyeon’s body?

I had no answers.

‘This is an entirely different world.’

This place was a constructed reality.

And yet, Namgung Bi-ah had broken through.

The Namgung Bi-ah I knew.

Even if she had used Hyun Soyeon as a vessel, it had been her.

Which made it all the more inexplicable.

‘If this world existed in the same timeline, perhaps I could rationalize it…’

But this was decades in the past—from the era when my father was still a young warrior.

How could Namgung Bi-ah possibly appear here?

And more importantly—

‘She said she would come.’

She told me to wait.

That was the most disquieting part.

‘Something is occurring.’

Something was unfolding in the world I had left behind.

Something dire.

‘Damn it.’

Whatever it was—

It was bad that I was unaware of it.

This could only mean—

‘Something must be happening back there.’

In the Mangye, the Celestial Master (Shin Noya) had once cautioned me—

That time moved at a different pace here compared to my original world.

Though Shin Noya had only been gone for a few years, in the Mangye, he had experienced what felt like an age.

I had clung to that discrepancy, believing I could return before any significant events transpired—

But now—

If Namgung Bi-ah herself had reached out—

Then something major might already be underway.

Meaning my assumptions—my entire plan—could have been utterly misguided.

‘Shit.’

Frustration simmered within me.

So did a sharp sense of urgency.

‘I need to move faster.’

Whatever was happening, I needed to conclude my business here.

Quickly.

Exhale.

I released a long, slow breath.

To do that—

I had to begin acting. Now.