Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 960

Chapter 960

Time itself seemed to freeze.

The leaves, caught in their descent, hung motionless. Dust particles suspended in the air, and the constant chirping of insects was cut off abruptly.

The atmosphere grew thick and oppressive, devoid of any movement.

In that heavy, stagnant silence, I was the one who finally spoke.

“…What are you…?”

My words were directed at Yarang, my gaze fixed on her. I had no other choice.

“What the hell are you?”

My voice was harsh, grating.

Yet—

“…”

Yarang remained silent. She just stood there, watching me.

Those eyes.

Those lucid, golden eyes.

I bit down on my lip.

‘Why…?’

Why was I seeing that face peering out from behind the mask?

It made no sense.

Long, brown hair.

Pale, almost white skin, with eyelids that slanted slightly downward.

A beauty that was both striking and tranquil.

And those radiant golden eyes.

A face I had ached to see.

In my previous life.
And in this one.

And then—

‘This energy.’

The faint aura radiating from her was clawing at my very core.

If it had been merely her appearance mimicking that face, it wouldn’t have shaken me so deeply.

But—

‘This isn’t just a copy.’

It wasn’t only her face.

I could sense it.

That essence within her.
Those eyes looking back at me.

It was her.

“…You…”

Just what in hell was she?

What was she, to possess that face and that presence?

I was on the verge of seizing her and forcing an answer—

But—

Ssshhh.

Yarang bent down and retrieved her dropped mask.

Then, she placed it back over her face.

Whooong.

The energy I had sensed vanished completely.

In an instant.

All she did was put on a mask, and yet—

‘…Is this the same power as the mask the Shadow King gave me?’

The mask I used for my performances…

Its power felt disturbingly similar.

But—

‘That won’t work on me.’

Did she truly believe hiding behind that mask would make me forget what I had seen?

“Answer me. Why are you—”

Why are you here?

Why the hell are you in Mangye, looking like that?

And—

‘Why do you keep hovering around me?’

Just as I was about to demand answers—

Sssssshhhhhh—!!!

BOOOOM—!!!

Something plummeted from the sky.

The collision sent a powerful shockwave rippling through the earth.

Thud—!

Kicking up a cloud of dirt and debris, Cheonma landed.

Dark energy churned around her as she positioned herself in front of me.

“…You again?”

Cheonma spoke.

“I warned you last time.”

Her voice was laced with undeniable killing intent.

“The next time, I will end your life.”

Whoosh—!

As she spoke, a black energy began to coil in her hand.

‘That’s…!’

My eyes widened at the sight.

That was the Cheonma Sword.

The identical energy blade she had wielded in my past life.

Cold and merciless.

The sword that had slain the Three Elders and eradicated entire sects of the Nine Great Clans.

The power that had left nothing but devastation in its wake—

It was now materializing in Cheonma’s grip.

Ssssssssshhhh—!!!

It vibrated fiercely, as if consuming all the energy around it.

Savage and all-consuming.

Just looking at it made me tense.

Grasping that power, Cheonma moved.

She lunged straight for Yarang.

Seeing this, I immediately shouted—

“STOP—!”

But Cheonma didn’t halt.

This was disastrous.

I gritted my teeth, my thoughts racing—

Whooong—!

At that moment, something changed around Yarang.

Clang—!

“…What?”

Yarang had blocked Cheonma’s sword.

A blade had appeared in her hands at some point.

It was shaped identically to Cheonma’s sword—

But its color and aura were utterly opposite.

‘That sword….’

I stood frozen.

I recognized that sword.

The Anti-Demon Sword (Pama Geom / 破魔劍).

A blade of brilliant white.

The very sword Wi Seol-ah had once infused with her energy in my past life.

The sword designed to punish and slaughter demonic beings.

A sword that, on contact, would unravel and nullify all demonic energy.

Just like now.

Crackle—!!

The moment Cheonma’s sword met Yarang’s, it began to disintegrate.

Witnessing this, Cheonma scowled.

Her sword was already half-destroyed—

But she didn’t pull back.

Retracting her weapon, she moved her hand.

Shadows spilled across the ground.

‘Shit….’

She was activating her domain.

A field of pure demonic energy engulfed the forest, devouring everything like a tidal wave.

Thump—!

As the demonic energy washed over my feet, my own demonic aura thrashed wildly.

It reacted on instinct, resisting the foreign pull.

At the same time—

Fwoosh—!!

Flames ignited at my fingertips.

But—

They weren’t my black flames.

They were white flames.

‘…What is this now?’

Why in hell was this manifesting now, of all times?

I stared at the fire in disbelief, but I had no time to process it.

Thump—!

Cheonma stepped lightly on the demonic-saturated ground.

WHOOOOM—!!!

The earth heaved violently, sending waves of force outward.

A vortex formed, churning like a colossal tide.

The energy was moving to consume everything.

«Rise.»

At Cheonma’s command, the shadows surged.

The expanding darkness, devouring the surrounding energy, lunged toward Yarang.

It was as massive as the wave I had once created with my black flames.

That kind of force—

It was enough to swallow Yarang whole in an instant.

Should I allow it?

Before I could decide—

“…”

Yarang raised her sword.

Sssshhhhhhh—!

White energy coalesced around her.

Seeing this, my jaw went slack.

‘Moonlit Sword Dance (Wolseon Muggeom)…?’

She was unveiling her true power, as if telling me to be confused no longer.

The white energy solidified into tangible blades—

Blades similar in form to the one she held.

I knew this power.

It was Wi Seol-ah’s signature technique, in both my past life and this one.

In this life, she could barely manifest ten swords.

But the number I saw now…

It was many times greater.

Then—

Whoosh—!!!

Yarang unleashed the swords toward the oncoming wave.

BOOOOOM—!!!!

The blades pierced through the dark tide relentlessly.

The massive surge of demonic energy began to lose its form, collapsing.

As the towering wave diminished, nearing its end—

Whoosh—!

Cheonma surged forward, cutting through the remnants.

Had the wave merely been a diversion?

She closed the distance at a terrifying speed, swinging her sword.

Clang—!!

Yarang met it with her own.

Clang! Clang—!

The fierce sound of their collisions filled the air.

The two clashed at an incredible pace.

They were fast.

Not just fast—

But with every impact, the force between them released massive ripples of energy.

Each time Cheonma’s sword met the Anti-Demon Sword, it crumbled—

But Cheonma didn’t care.

She simply created another.

And another.

And another.

Their battle escalated.

At a glance, it appeared Yarang was being forced back.

And then—

Clang—!

Cheonma’s upward strike sent Yarang’s sword spinning into the air.

And in that opening—

She thrust her sword toward Yarang’s throat.

Clench—!

But the blade never connected.

Because I stepped in and caught it.

“…Enough already.”
“…”

Cheonma glared at me, her eyes sharp.

Simultaneously, pain lanced through my hand.

Naturally, I had caught it with my already injured hand.

I’d had no choice.

It was the only hand wrapped in Eternal Bind, making it the least damaged.

And—

Fwoosh.

The white flames enveloping my hand blocked Cheonma’s sword.

I watched them burn before speaking.

“Calm the hell down.”
“…Why are you stopping me?”

Cheonma looked at me as if she genuinely didn’t comprehend.

I didn’t understand either.

“What do you mean, ‘why’?” I snapped. “What about you? Why are you even fighting?”
“She was following you.”
“So what?”

What did that matter?

She was following me.

Why the hell was Cheonma interfering?

I clenched my jaw and turned to Yarang.

“…And you?”

I met her golden eyes.

“Are you planning to keep this up?”

“…”

She didn’t answer.

She simply stared at me for a moment before relaxing her grip.

The sword in her hand dissolved into energy.

At the same time—

Ssssshhhh.

The swords floating behind Cheonma also vanished into light.

Just now, Cheonma hadn’t achieved a clean victory.

Before her sword could land, Yarang’s Anti-Demon Sword could have struck her first.

‘…That confirms it.’

Watching their fight, I was certain.

‘She’s inexperienced.’

Her combat style lacked refinement.

She was nothing like the Cheonma from my past life.

Seeing it up close made it obvious.

This Cheonma didn’t know how to fight.

She just overpowered her opponents with sheer, brute strength.

And since her power vastly exceeded others’, it worked.

In short—

‘She’s a novice with absurd strength.’

There was no calculated precision or strategic finesse.

She was nothing like the Cheonma I had known.

Back then, she had been untouchable.

No attack, no force could reach her.

Only Wi Seol-ah’s Anti-Demon Sword had ever wounded her.

But now—

She felt within reach.

As if I could reach out and strike her.

Was this truly Cheonma?

And—

‘What is she…?’

No—right now, my mind wasn’t on Cheonma.

It was entirely consumed by Yarang.

This couldn’t be happening.

It was impossible.

And yet—

Every instinct in my body screamed that Yarang was Wi Seol-ah.

Not just Wi Seol-ah.

Wi Seol-ah, the Divine Sword.

To my eyes, Yarang was her.

No matter what the world claimed.

No matter how absurd the situation was.

I knew.

“…Why are you here?”

I repeated the same question.

Over and over.

She was Wi Seol-ah.

“Answer me… Why—”

I reached out to grab her hand.

But—

Swish.

Before I could touch her, she pulled away.

And then—

Clang—!

She conjured a sword again and moved to strike.

Clang—!

Cheonma instantly intercepted, parrying the Anti-Demon Sword with her own.

Fragments of energy scattered.

Seeing the white aura flicker in the air, I frowned.

“You…!”

Cheonma growled and moved to attack again—

But I grabbed her shoulder and stopped her.

This time, she didn’t charge.

She just glared at Yarang with a contorted expression.

Two identical faces stared at one another.

Yarang’s expression was hidden behind her mask.

But Cheonma…

Her face was raw with emotion.

It was the absolute opposite of what I had seen in my past life.

The contrast was deeply unsettling.

I bit my lip.

I couldn’t get used to this.

Then—

“…”

Yarang dismissed her sword.

She turned to look at me.

Even through the mask, I felt her golden gaze.

What was she thinking?

I couldn’t tell.

It was worse than unreadable—

It was utterly empty.

I had a mountain of questions.

But none of them emerged.

We simply stared at each other in silence.

And then—

Thud.

Yarang suddenly leaped into the air and vanished.

And I—

I didn’t move to stop her.

I just watched.

As she disappeared into the distance, leaving no trace behind.

And when she was finally gone—

“…Let go.”

Cheonma spoke softly.

It was only then I realized I was still holding her shoulder.

I released my grip.

My mind was in chaos.

I felt like I’d been punched in the skull repeatedly.

I struggled to regain my composure and looked at Cheonma.

She had turned away.

I stared at her back and spoke.

“Where the hell did you come from all of a sudden—”

Thud—!

“Guh—!”

Her fist slammed into my stomach.

A direct hit.

She had spun around and struck before I could react.

I had been too close to evade.

“Kh…!”

The impact drove me to my knees.

I hadn’t even been able to summon my energy to cushion the blow.

My bones felt like they were rattling.

“You… crazy… What the hell… was that for?!”

I tried to yell at her—

But when I looked up,

My words died in my throat.

Cheonma was staring at me.

And for the very first time—

Her expression was filled with sorrow.

I had never seen that face before.

Her lips trembled as if struggling to hold back words.

And then—

“…I don’t know… You… idiot.”

Barely forcing the words out,

She turned and flew away.

In the opposite direction Yarang had gone.

“…”

I remained on my knees, unable to move.

I could only sit there, replaying her words in my head.

‘…Idiot?’

It sounded like she had spent a long time searching for what to say,

Only to settle on the simplest insult she could find.

And honestly—

Nothing could have been more fitting.