Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 902

Chapter 902

One hundred and fifty years.

The sheer number left my thoughts utterly vacant for a second.

A century and a half? Not mere months?

“What… what kind of absurdity is that?”

Noya had only been gone from my body for a handful of months. How was it possible that more than a hundred years had elapsed?

I demanded an answer again, unable to accept it, but Noya’s face was completely grave.

“I lost count for far more days than I kept it. The true length of time is probably even greater.”

“What on earth…”

“This entire area was just barren ground when I first got here. Totally dead. So, I decided to plant one single tree.”

My eyes moved with his words. A colossal tree, so huge it blotted out the sky, entered my vision.

“That… is the one?”

“Indeed. It’s gotten rather large, hasn’t it?”

“It’s unbelievably huge.”

Even considering the passage of time, the tree was unnaturally strange. Even if Noya’s claim of 150 years was accurate, for a tree to reach such a size was nothing short of miraculous.

“I just don’t… get it. So…?”

“It’s alright. You’ve been slow on the uptake for much longer than a day or two.”

“Could you hold the jabs and just explain…?”

“Ah, my apologies. It’s force of habit.”

It was maddening, but I bit back my anger and continued.

“Noya, are you telling me you’ve been here for 150 years? And in all that time, you founded the Mount Hua Sect? But back in my world, it’s only been a few months?”

“Oh, so you’re finally catching on.”

“No, I am not.”

Time moved at a different rate. Was it that over a century had passed in this place, while just a few months went by in Zhongyuan?

If that was true…

“…Why didn’t you come back earlier?”

If he had given his word to return in a few months, what kept him here for all that time?

At my question, Noya scratched his head, appearing a little sheepish.

“Well, I couldn’t get back, could I?”

“What do you mean, you couldn’t?”

I scowled at his reply.

“You told me there was a way to return.”

“That’s because I took that fellow at his word. How was I to know it would end up this way?”

Noya made a face as he added,

“Besides, technically, I landed in this predicament while trying to do what you asked. So why are you the one complaining?”

“…”

He wasn’t wrong. I had no retort.

“…I apologize.”

I offered a genuine apology, and Noya looked at me with a strange expression.

“Well, that’s a surprise. I thought you’d be stubborn to the last.”

“I’m not that far gone, am I?”

“Aren’t you?”

“…”

His self-assured tone was incredibly irritating. Was I truly such a rogue?

Even so, 150 years was too much.

How could anyone withstand such an incomprehensible span of time?

Was Noya lying?

‘No.’

Impossible. The Noya I knew wasn’t one to tell tall tales.

If it was true, then he had genuinely spent more than a century in this place, building the Mount Hua Sect from nothing.

As I turned it over in my mind, a glaring problem emerged.

“…Noya.”

“Go on.”

“…How are you not dead?”

“…Are you trying to hex me?”

“No, I’m being serious.”

Setting aside the years and the impossible tree, the fundamental question remained.

“You’ve lived for an impossibly long time.”

“So you are cursing me.”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

No matter how I said it, it came out wrong. My intention was sincere.

‘Did Noya live another 150 years in his own body?’

From what I understood, he was already past eighty. Martial artists aged slowly and lived long lives, but to survive an extra hundred and fifty years?

Even more bizarre was…

‘He looks exactly the same as he did in the mental realm.’

Noya’s appearance hadn’t changed one bit from the image I’d seen in that space.

How was that possible?

“You still have a body, you haven’t aged, and you’re still here. Explain.”

When I laid out my reasoning, Noya gazed at me quietly.

“Hmm.”

Was it a difficult question? He tilted his head slightly before answering.

“When I first arrived here, someone spoke to me.”

He went on in a measured, explanatory tone.

“They offered to let me borrow their body for a time.”

“…Borrow their body?”

“Correct.”

“Who?”

“You know, that creature that was always growling inside you.”

“Kurung…?”

“Ah, yes. A very fitting name. Quite inventive of you.”

“Thank you. I thought so.”

“…”

I could feel Cheonma staring at the back of my head with a peculiar look, but I ignored it and focused on Noya.

“So, you’re saying Kurung let you use its body?”

“Yes. Because of that, I haven’t aged a day and have been using it quite comfortably.”

“…”

It was too much to process.

How could that being have lent its body to Noya?

‘That enormous thing was Kurung.’

The gigantic, roaring beast I had seen with my mother. It had been as massive as the tree.

Then…

‘What is it?’

What kind of existence was Kurung, that it could not only lend its body to Noya but also live inside of me?

Furthermore…

‘My mother said she attached it to me. Why were they fighting?’

What had started the battle when my mother appeared so suddenly?

The questions multiplied.

Just then—

“Leader!”

A voice called out from farther away.

“Hm.”

Noya gave a nod to the speaker. It was a young boy, one who actually looked his age, unlike the other “small” individuals I had met here.

The issue was…

‘…He isn’t human, either.’

He had animal ears and a tail, very similar to my mother.

“You’ve returned!”

“Yes. Have you been well?”

“Yes!”

The boy’s smile was bright and sunny. His face was innocent and happy. Then, his eyes moved to me.

He tilted his head a little, his eyes meeting mine.

“Who is this? Another new disciple?”

“No, this one is too dull to be any use.”

“Oh, I see.”

“…What kind of thing is that to say right in front of me?”

“You’re not even human, are you?”

“That’s a bit much, isn’t it?”

This time, it actually hurt. To make it worse, the boy accepted the statement without question.

“I’ll see you later, then! Goodbye, slow-witted hyung!”

“Slow-witted…”

“Work hard.”

“Yes!”

The boy bowed courteously and then ran off.

I stared in disbelief at his retreating form when—

“Pfft.”

A quiet laugh broke the silence.

I turned to see Cheonma standing there, his face as impassive as ever.

“…Did you just laugh?”

“No.”

“But I heard you laugh.”

“I did not laugh.”

He denied it firmly, but something felt off. It really had sounded like a laugh.

“Tch, tch… Stop dawdling and come along. We still have much to talk about.”

Noya turned and walked off without a backward glance. Watching him go, I frowned and muttered under my breath.

“He hits me, insults me, and then just walks away. What a brute. How is he some kind of revered sage? He’s just a common hoodlum.”

“You could at least keep those thoughts to yourself…”

“If I’m going to think it, why not say it?”

“…”

Noya spun around suddenly, and I flinched, expecting another strike.

“Well, I may not be much better, but you’re a piece of work too, kid. You’ve had your share of beatings and still can’t learn to hold your tongue?”

“I need to speak my mind to feel satisfied.”

“Well, I suppose that’s fair.”

Noya nodded as if he agreed. Maybe I would avoid a hit this time.

The moment the thought formed, a sharp pain exploded on the top of my head. My neck bent under the impact.

“Even so, some things warrant discipline.”

“…Dammit.”

I rubbed my aching head, cursing quietly. I’d seen it coming, but I still couldn’t evade it.

“Tch, tch.”

I looked around, still nursing the throbbing pain. The boy who had run off earlier was now holding a sword among a group.

Though their appearances were wildly different, the sword forms they practiced were identical.

Watching the gathering of non-human beings, I asked the question that had been bothering me.

“About what you said before.”

“Hm?”

“You mentioned that bull was nearly a demon. Did you mean…”

I gestured toward the strange beings around us.

“…they were all in a similar state once?”

“…”

Noya was silent for a beat, but thankfully, he soon replied.

“That’s right.”

“Then how are they here, and not demons?”

The elderly figures and the beast-like children didn’t strike me as demonic.

“Did their worlds not get destroyed?”

I wondered if perhaps their worlds had been spared, allowing them to avoid becoming demons.

“No, every one of them was annihilated.”

Noya’s response was absolute.

“…Then how did they avoid becoming demons?”

“…”

At my question, Noya stroked his long beard. His plum-blossom-colored eyes held a faint emotion—pity.

“Kid.”

“Yes.”

As we walked, a small building came into view. It was the most modest and simple structure I had seen so far.

Could that be where Noya lived?

“You asked me before what this place is.”

“Yes.”

Walking toward the dwelling, Noya began to explain.

“Some refer to this world as an act of mercy.”

“…Mercy?”

“Yes, mercy. Out of all the countless lives whose worlds were erased, only a chosen handful are brought here. They don’t become demons; instead, they make a life in this other world.”

Hearing that, my eyes widened.

His words meant…

“Beings from realms you’ve never even imagined arrive here every single day. That is why this land is named Mangye (The Myriad Realms).”

The Myriad Realms.
The name meant a convergence of countless worlds.

“This is where those who were meant to die instead arrive by chance. For that reason, some call it the world’s mercy. And others…”

Noya paused, turning to face me, before speaking another word.

“…call it paradise.”

That term struck a familiar chord.

“Haha, isn’t that ironic?”

Paradise.
That was the very ideal the Blood Demon had pursued.

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

In the quiet of the room, a woman leaned back slightly, her half-lowered eyes open just a slit.

Her amethyst eyes, mirroring the sky and stars of this land, and the long tails flowing behind her, commanded an undeniable aura.

The woman, whose breathing was calm yet carried a faint strain, repeatedly creased her elegant brow as if troubled.

Her slender, jade-like fingers tapped lightly against her furrowed forehead.

‘This is odd.’

A persistent, heavy discomfort remained.
Her irritation mounted, her delicate brow knitting tighter.

‘Why?’

Why did she feel this way?

The origin of her disquiet was a face she had seen recently.

‘Why does it keep resurfacing in my thoughts?’

Was it because it was a face she hadn’t encountered in so long?
Or was it because she believed such things were long erased, making the memory more pronounced?

She considered this, but it didn’t feel like the entire answer.

‘I cannot comprehend it.’

The face had unquestionably been that of a dragon.
A species that had sinned, broken cosmic laws, and faced eradication. They had been exiled from Mangye as their sentence.

And yet—

‘They have appeared again.’

How could such a species show itself in this land once more?
It defied her understanding.

‘The Dragon King must still be suffering his punishment.’

That arrogant and detestable being had vanished from sight long ago.
How, then, had this circumstance come to pass now?

And more importantly—

“…It is irritating.”

Of the two young dragons, the face of one in particular lingered, stirring a deep unease within her.

A dragon with intense blue eyes.
Its black fur and fierce gaze left a sharp impression.

‘Why?’

She didn’t know the reason, but that dragon’s face kept clouding her thoughts, leaving her increasingly disturbed.

As she pondered this, sinking deep into her frustration—

[My master.]

A man materialized in the room, kneeling before her.

[The captain has returned.]

“…”

At his words, the woman straightened slightly.
If he had returned, did that mean the mission was accomplished?

Had they succeeded in killing the dragon?
The thought sent a faint tremor through her chest.

[However, he reports that he was unable to fulfill your command due to unexpected interference.]

“…I see.”

Her eyes flickered almost imperceptibly.

“Failure? I had expected him to succeed.”
[An outsider intervened and prevented the mission’s completion.]

“…Hmm.”

An outsider.
At that word, her expression tightened briefly.

Lately, this outsider had become a significant nuisance.

“I offered my mercy… Why would they make such a choice?”

It was perplexing.

They had made a mutual agreement, satisfying each other’s wants. Why, then, had he chosen this path?
And more than that, how had he managed to succeed?

Breaking the terms of their covenant should have been impossible. What method had he used?

As the woman sank deeper into her thoughts—

[What is your command?]

The man asked, looking to her.

“I am unsure.”

Her reply, uncharacteristically hesitant, left him visibly startled.

[…]

His reaction betrayed his surprise at her vague answer.

“I will need to consider it for a time.”

[…Understood.]

Though he had questions, he pressed no further.
His master’s word was always final. He was certain this instance would be no different.

With his faith in her unwavering, the man bowed and fell silent.