Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 936

Chapter 936

Crack—!!!

In a forest alive with brilliant hues, a flock of birds burst upward, their alarmed calls resonating among the trees.

The sun had not yet begun its descent.
The scarlet-tinted sky was broken by the dark shapes of the ascending birds.

They were innumerable, crowding the firmament,
and the one who commanded the sky from below watched them in silence.

Sway.

A woman’s enormous tail moved gently.
At the same moment, she lifted her arm, brushing it lightly.

“Hmm…?”

A feeling of disquiet clouded the woman’s lovely eyes.

Something was not right.

“What is this…?”

She shivered.
It was a sensation unfamiliar in all her long years.

What could this be?
The woman did not understand.

Something prodded at her arm, insistently.
It was not purely physical, nor was it exactly her arm—it felt as though it touched her very essence.

It was a feeling completely foreign to her.

“…”

The woman looked up at the sky, her expression inscrutable.

Where was it?
Where was this sensation originating?

The woman considered. Could it be related to the other odd feelings she had been having lately?

Her thoughts drifted like haze, as if her mind were clouded.

“How peculiar…”

She shut her eyes for a moment, and her sight was filled with quiet.
In that calm, something started to rise to the surface.

It was the picture of a face.

Whose face was it?

The woman pondered, but nothing distinct emerged.
She saw black hair—it belonged to someone.

Then, a pair of eyes.
Eyes that were slightly narrowed.

It seemed to be a man.
He wore robes of a deep crimson.

It was a form she had never encountered, and yet it felt oddly known.
Where had she seen this before?

What could provoke such a deep sense of yearning?

Even so, the woman could not say.

Then, the man’s gaze shifted toward her.

The intense red of his eyes made her go still.
His blank stare seemed empty of all feeling.

And yet.

As he looked at the woman, something began to fill his eyes.
Emotion bled into the void, and a smile gentled his stern features.

‘…What is this?’

Almost without thought, the woman pressed a hand to her chest.

It quivered. A pounding rhythm echoed inside her.
What was this? Why was it happening so abruptly?
As she questioned herself,

-…

The man spoke to her.
His lips moved, but she heard no sound.

What did he say?
The woman narrowed her eyes, straining to make out his words.

‘Ah…’

Beside the man, several small children materialized.

Two girls, brimming with playful energy.

A boy, who shared the man’s likeness but seemed more somber.
And a young girl held gently in the boy’s arms.

Four in all.

The sight of them made the woman’s heart swell even more.

Unconsciously, her feet began to move.

She wanted to draw near, but no matter how she stepped forward, the distance did not change.

Frantically, she stretched out her hand.
But she could not reach them.

The man, seeing her struggle, murmured something once more.

What is he saying? What is he trying to tell me?

The woman tried to decipher his words, but they remained just out of grasp.

And then.

Not the man, but the boy below also moved his lips as he looked at her.

His small mouth formed words.

Unlike the man’s, the boy’s words were clear.

-Mom.

“…”

The woman went utterly still at the sound.
What had he just said?

Was he speaking to her?
If so, why would he say that?

Bewildered, the woman stared at the boy.

Whoosh—!!

“…!”

The vision before her suddenly swirled away.

Everything dissolved like mist.

The crimson-washed sky returned, and the woman opened the eyes she had closed.

“…”

She softly passed a hand over her brow.

What had just happened?

What had she seen?

Strangely, she could not recall.
She had seen something, so why couldn’t she remember?
She had just witnessed it, hadn’t she?

The woman felt disturbed by this unnatural sensation.

It was something that had been occurring more often of late.
Brief visions, like whispers stolen by the wind, leaving her memory empty.

It was becoming a regular experience for her.

To see, yet be unable to remember, filled the woman with growing frustration.

‘Why.’

Why was this happening?
The woman wanted to end this unease.
Where had this problem started?

What could have triggered this sudden issue?

As she quietly reflected, a memory surfaced.

‘It started then.’

The day she discovered the disappeared abyss.

It was from that moment.
From that day, the woman had sensed that something was amiss.

“…”

Rustle.

Sensing something fracturing within, the woman slowly regulated her breathing.

With every breath she took, the very air shuddered around her.

It was a phenomenon caused by her existence, which was as immense as the heavens.

After a long moment of breathing in unison with the atmosphere, the woman’s eyes lowered, now calm.

“As I suspected. I must find it.”

If that was the beginning, then that must be the cause.

The encounter with the abyss.
And the sight of the dragonlings.
If those were truly the source of the trouble,

“Then I must capture them…”

Capture them.
And eliminate them.

If they were a blight upon the heavens, it was only right to remove them, and for the woman, such a task was not especially difficult.

The woman’s gaze turned toward the forest beside her.

“…”

There, a woman with brown hair and a black mask sat, appearing utterly spent.

Hearing the woman’s approach, she lifted her head.
Golden eyes behind the mask looked upward.

Looking at her, the woman spoke.

“My daughter.”
“…”

At her call, Yarang met her gaze.
She looked weary, drained.

“My poor child.”

The woman drew near gently.
With every barefoot step she took, flowers blossomed on the parched ground.

“It seems something corrupt has emerged in the heavens.”
“…”

If it was something that clouded her being, it was only right to eradicate it without delay.
She wondered why she had ever hesitated.

And so,

“Tell me what you have seen and heard.”

The woman said, stroking Yarang’s mask.

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

Crack—

Pieces flew in every direction.

Heavy dust choked the air, limiting sight, while fire danced across the cratered ground.

The oddity was that these flames were not the typical red or blue. Instead, they were turbid and dark.

At a glance, they seemed blue, but perhaps black, or even ashen gray.

The colors were not alike, yet from different angles, they gave off wholly different impressions.

Severe and coarse.

And saturated with a strange, palpable discomfort.

As I stared wordlessly at this bizarre energy—

“…Grrgh…!”

A sharp agony lanced through me, and I gripped my arm.

It was my left arm, the one I had just used to throw a punch.

“Grrk…!”

The pain forced my knees to weaken involuntarily.

My hand shook uncontrollably.

It wasn’t the kind of tremor that comes from withstanding great force.

It felt as if my muscles had been shredded.

Every joint in my arm felt feeble, while surges of unbearable pain washed through me.

And it wasn’t just my arm.

Looking inward, my whole body was in chaos.

The blood vessels, swollen and engorged, showed the signs of the tremendous strain I had undergone.

The backlash from the explosion had wrecked my body.

“Wow…”

The pain was so intense it drew a stunned groan from me.

What about my qi? I checked my core and let out a hollow laugh.

“Insane.”

Nearly seventy percent of my qi was expended.

This was far beyond anything I had ever used in my past life. That a single strike could consume seventy percent of my energy.

Sure, more than half was probably wasted due to my inability to control or sustain it properly.

Even considering that, the sheer expenditure was staggering.

My arm refused to respond.

It wasn’t a joint issue—it felt like total systemic failure.

“Hah…”

A laugh escaped me.

Does it have to be like this every time I try something new?

This was worse than the first time I used the Flame Prison.

Even worse than when I trained with the Flame Prison Star Spear.

Why is it that every attempt leaves my body broken?

The thought was both funny and—

‘Still.’

I smirked as I looked ahead.

‘It’s not so bad.’

Even with my body shattered, the outcome made it worthwhile.

And more importantly—

‘I was right.’

Merging two martial arts and weaving them together with sorcery to forge something new—

I had a feeling it would work, and I was correct.

Look.

‘I made something incredible.’

Before me, it was as if hell itself had been unleashed.

Even I could scarcely believe what I had done.

Even though the volcanic wave formed by Shin Noya was not as massive as Mount Hua, it wouldn’t have crumbled from a single punch.

Yet the power I released was overwhelming.

Had Shin Noya not stood there to block it, who knows how far it might have spread?

That was why.

It was no surprise that Shin Noya was staring at me in utter disbelief.

“…Kid.”

His martial robe was ripped and frayed.

His hair was slightly disordered, and his eyes were wide with shock.

And then—

“What in the world have you made?”

Even the sword gripped in his hand.

I liked all of it.

“…What do you think?”

I smirked and spoke to him.

“For a dragon, it’s not so—”

Before I could finish, my legs gave out.

I collapsed as strength fled my body, falling toward the ground.

Thud.

Someone caught me and cradled me in their arms.

A soft fragrance and the whisper of hair brushed against my nose.

Who…?

As my sight dimmed, I glimpsed a familiar face.

I couldn’t speak a word.

Because at that moment, consciousness left me.

 

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

Gu Yangcheon lost consciousness without saying another word. His body, slack and sprawled, appeared completely depleted of energy.

The woman who had been silently watching him carefully supported his weight, preventing him from falling further.

She was the one Gu Yangcheon called Cheonma.

“…”

Cheonma continued to gaze at the unconscious Gu Yangcheon. Her eyes roamed over him, as if inspecting for any wounds.

Satisfied that there were no major injuries, she gave a slight nod.

As she prepared to move, holding him—

“You should be resting, yet here you are causing a commotion,” Shin Noya remarked, dusting off his clothes.

Cheonma turned to look at him.

“If you’re hurt, you should recover. What’s the use of rushing here to look after that brat?”

“…”

Cheonma didn’t answer. She simply stared at him in silence.

“…What is it?”

Shin Noya tilted his head under her steady gaze.

“Are you going to scold me for leaving him like this?”

“…”

“Don’t bother. I got hit too, you know. Tsk, tsk. No respect for elders these days.”

And it wasn’t as if he had struck him that hard.

In fact, he’d even taken pains to set up the conditions for Gu Yangcheon to unleash his power.

Yet the fool had overexerted himself and landed in this state.

Feeling somewhat aggrieved, Shin Noya added, “I had my reasons for what I did. If there’s anyone to blame—”

“Are you alright?”

“…What?”

Shin Noya squinted at her unexpected question.

Alright?

“What do you mean?”

“Your body.”

“My body?”

Was she worried about him? Shin Noya let out a dry chuckle.

“Who’s worrying about who here? Kid, you’d be better off worrying about the one draped over your shoulder.”

“You’re in worse shape.”

“Your eyesight must be worse than I thought.”

Where was she even getting that from?

Though he shrugged off her concern—

“You’re in pain, aren’t you?”

“…”

Cheonma’s words, spoken with certainty, made Shin Noya fall silent for a moment.

His expression grew slightly solemn.

He realized she must have detected something.

“Don’t tell the kid,” he said after a pause.

Cheonma tilted her head slightly, curious.

“Why?”

“It won’t do him any good to know.”

“…”

“He’s more perceptive than he seems. Pretend you didn’t notice.”

“…”

“Understood?”

Eventually, Cheonma nodded.

That was enough for Shin Noya. Just as he thought the matter settled—

“What about you?”

“…What?”

“Aren’t you the same?”

Cheonma’s question was direct: wasn’t he just as vulnerable?

Hearing that, Shin Noya gave a soft laugh.

“Who knows.”

Perhaps he had been, once upon a time.

But now—

“Even if I am, I can’t afford to be anymore. So let it be.”

Cheonma considered him for a long moment before replying.

“Alright.”

Accepting his words, she carried Gu Yangcheon away, disappearing into the distance.

Left alone, Shin Noya stood motionless, gazing at his empty hand—the one not holding his sword.

“…”

The thin, weathered tips of his fingers blurred faintly for an instant.

He clenched his hand into a fist, then opened it again.

The hand returned to its original state, as if nothing had occurred.

As if everything was normal.