Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 961

Chapter 961

The rain fell in an unrelenting torrent, as if the sky itself had been pierced, and the constant growl of thunder echoed like the fury of the heavens.

Through the deluge that promised to cleanse the oppressive summer air, a man moved with deliberate care beneath the trees.

The weather did not appear to trouble him. He just walked, steadily and without pause, like someone engaged in a long search.

His drenched garments were stuck unpleasantly to his skin.

But the man was not concerned with his own discomfort. His only worry was for the object he carried, hoping it would remain dry.

Cradling it against his chest, he pressed on for what felt like a very long time.

He walked without stopping, pushing through the tall grass until his eyes found a giant, ancient tree.

…“Haah.”

A soft, relieved exhale escaped him.

He had located the one he sought.

After searching for the better part of a day, he was finally successful.

…“What are you doing here?”

He tempered his relief, allowing a sharp edge to enter his voice.

He couldn’t help himself. He was not yet composed enough to speak softly.

At his question, the woman who was sitting with her head on her knees beneath the tree slowly looked up.

…“Why did you come to find me?”

Her reply was blunt.

Though her head was raised, her eyes refused to meet his.

He understood she was avoiding his gaze on purpose.

He watched her quietly for a moment before reaching out to brush her rain-soaked hair from her cheek.

She might have swatted his hand away, but she didn’t.

“It’s cold.”

She let out a short, derisive laugh at his words.
“Cold? Weren’t you the one complaining about the summer heat?”
“…I had no idea it would rain.”

He wasn’t a deity. How could he have known?

If he had known a storm was coming, he never would have allowed her to run off.

“No, that’s just another excuse.”

The man suddenly found the situation absurd and shook his head.

Then, with great care, he retrieved something from within his embrace.

He unfolded a piece of cloth and draped it over the woman’s head, patting it gently into place.

It was meant to dry her.

And in the moment their eyes were obscured by the cloth, the man spoke.

“I’m sorry.”
“….”
“I admit my words were too harsh. I never should have said that to you.”
“….”

The woman offered no reply.

But he knew her silence meant she was listening.

“It’s truly cold out here. You can hate me all you want, but can’t you do it somewhere warm and dry?”

He watched her carefully for any reaction.

It was only after he finished that she finally responded.

“…You must never tell me to leave again.”
“Alright. I was wrong.”
“The entire world can say that to me, but you cannot.”
“I understand. I won’t say it, not even in anger.”

“And… you have to come find me. Every single time.”
“I will. However many times it takes.”
“…Promise me.”

She held out her pinky finger to him.

The man looked at it for a long moment before letting go of the cloth and linking his own pinky with hers.

Their fingers intertwined.

Only then did the woman seem to relax.

She pulled the cloth from her head.

Her beautiful violet eyes crinkled into a smile.

“Did you know?”

She looked incredibly lovely, smiling through eyes still glistening with moisture.

That was the thought that passed through the man’s mind as he watched her.

“You said I could hate you.”

The woman reached out and gently touched his cheek.

“But that is the one thing I cannot do.”
“….”
“It is truly frustrating, you know.”

Her fingers left his cheek, and then, suddenly, she held her arms out to him.

“Hold me.”

Without a word, he drew her into his embrace.

And as if it had never been falling at all, the rain ceased.

A rainbow arched across the clearing sky.

The woman smiled as she looked up at it.

And the man—

Even then, he could not stop turning her words over in his mind.

No matter what.

No matter what occurred.

He had to find her.

He repeated the vow to himself again and again.

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

Swoooosh—!!

A sound like a great downpour filled her ears as her eyes opened.

“…”

Had she fallen asleep for a moment?

Her head ached.

It felt like she had been remembering something—

But if it was only a fleeting dream, she could recall nothing.

It was always this way.

Every time she felt on the brink of remembering, it would slip away.

She felt she ought to hold on, that she must not let it go—

But she could never manage it.

Instead, it was simply washed away with the rain.

“…Ugh.”

Abruptly, she clutched a hand to her chest.

Right over her heart.

“Hnn….”

It was painful.

Was she wounded? No, that wasn’t it.

This was not a physical injury—it felt like something deep within her was burning.

“Hh… Hh…”

Why did it hurt so much?

She didn’t know.

She didn’t even recognize that this feeling was sorrow.

She didn’t identify this discomfort as anger.

She only knew she detested it.

But what, exactly, did she hate?

She didn’t know.

She was simply filled with an overwhelming hatred for something—for anything.

“…”

Looking down at her hand, she remembered—

A small hand, clenched into a fist, striking someone.

“…”

She stared at it for a long moment—

Then, smack.

She suddenly slapped the back of her own hand.

She hadn’t held back. A red mark quickly rose on her skin.

It hurt.

Being injured was painful—

But the ache inside was far, far worse.

“…”

It was wrong.

That was the word that came to her.

But what, exactly, was wrong?

Was it him who was wrong? Or…

‘Am I the one who’s wrong?’

Was it wrong for her to have hit him?

Why had she struck him?

Rubbing her throbbing hand, she buried her face in her knees once more.

‘…He must hate me now.’

If she went back, he would surely despise her.

Her sister had told her—if you do something wrong, you simply apologize.

Would it be alright if she apologized now?

She agonized over it, but found no answer.

More than that, she was afraid.

Afraid that even if she said she was sorry, he would not forgive her.

But why?

Why was she so terrified of that?

Who was he to her?

Who was she to herself?

She didn’t know.

From the moment she was born, she had asked herself that question—

But she had never discovered an answer.

‘From the moment I was born…’

The moment she first came into existence.

As she thought about it, another question surfaced.

‘When was I born?’

Why had she come into existence?

And for what purpose?

The instant she considered it—

Throb—!

“Urgh…!”

The woman clutched her head.

A sudden, excruciating pain had lanced through her.

“Uuuuh… Uuugh….”

The pain was unbearable, and she let out a weak groan as she held her skull.

Srrk.

She felt a hand gently cover hers.

A warm hand.

As soon as it made contact, the pain began to recede, little by little.

When the agony had finally faded, she lifted her head, her eyes slightly reddened.

Standing before her was a young man, drenched from head to toe by the rain, his expression fierce and rough.

“…Ah, fuck….”

His irritated glare and deeply furrowed brow made the depth of his anger perfectly clear.

Seeing it, the woman flinched involuntarily.

“Are you out of your goddamn mind? You punch me in the gut and then just run off?”
“…Uh… Uh…?”
“What do you mean ‘uh’? What, have you got flowers blooming in your damn head? It’s pouring rain, and this is what you decide to do?”

He shook his head roughly, annoyed at how soaked he was.

Water sprayed in every direction.

“Goddamn it. Even this cursed place gets rain. And it’s just as fucking relentless as everything else.”

Tsk, tsk.

Clicking his tongue in frustration, an energy surged from his body.

Whooosh!

A wave of heat erupted, instantly vaporizing the moisture from his clothes.

Sizzle.

The water evaporated in an instant, his clothes drying completely. The falling rain now sizzled away before it could even touch him.

Fwoosh—!

Then, he directed that same heat toward the woman, drying her off as well.

Once she was dry, he looked at her in silence.

“Hey.”

“…!”

At his voice, she instinctively tried to turn away—

But clamp.

Gu Yangcheon grabbed her face with both hands and turned it back toward him.

“Don’t look away. Look at me properly.”

“…”

“Did you have fun punching me and running?”

“…”

“I asked if you enjoyed it. Do you have any idea how long I’ve been searching for you?”

She didn’t respond.

She should have pushed his hands away, but she couldn’t.

Her fingers only twitched hesitantly.

“This is fucking ridiculous. You cause a mess and then just disappear? You ruined everything.”

“…”

“I should’ve gone after you, but I couldn’t. Do you get that?”

At his words, full of disbelief, the woman finally spoke.

“…Then… why didn’t you follow me?”

If it bothered him that much, why hadn’t he just chased after her?

Her tone was one of genuine confusion.

“…”

This time, Gu Yangcheon did not answer immediately.

Was he hesitating?

After a long silence, he averted his gaze slightly and muttered,

“…Good question.”

His tone made it clear—he didn’t understand it himself.

“…Fuck. I should have gone. Why the hell didn’t I? Am I seriously just an idiot?”

It sounded more like a lament than an answer.

Hearing it, the woman simply stared at Gu Yangcheon.

“Ah, never mind. I probably wouldn’t have caught up anyway. Ah, fuck. This is all your fault!”

“…What is?”

“You piss me off. And why the hell is it still raining?”

He ruffled his own hair violently before standing up.

“…Shit. It’s all screwed now.”

There had been something he needed to do—something important.

But everything had gotten tangled up.

That frustration made him let out heavy sighs.

Then, turning back to her, he spoke.

“Quit just staring at me and get up. Are you planning to sit here getting soaked all night?”

“…”

The woman, silent, slowly stood up.

For a moment, she considered reaching out to him.

But she didn’t.

She could tell instinctively—he wouldn’t take her hand.

“Move it. I’m not waiting for you, so don’t drag your feet.”

After confirming that she had stood, Gu Yangcheon started walking.

Despite his words, his pace was noticeably slower than usual.

“…”

Seeing that, the woman quickly caught up to walk beside him.

“Ugh, don’t stick so close.”

Gu Yangcheon grimaced in disgust—

But he didn’t push her away.

The woman watched him for a moment, then turned her eyes upward.

“…A rainbow.”

“What?”

“There’s a rainbow.”

Hearing that, Gu Yangcheon glanced up at the sky.

“…The fuck are you talking about? Are you blind? Do you not see the rain pouring down?”

The sky was still dark, the rain falling hard—there wasn’t a rainbow in sight.

And yet—

“No, there’s a rainbow.”

She saw it.

So clearly, as if it were right in front of her.

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

Mangye’s Celestial Nature.

A place so revered that countless people called it the very dwelling of the heavens.

No one knew its exact location.

And no one could set foot here without the master’s permission.

Thud.

Someone appeared there, landing softly.

Drip.

Droplets of water fell from the figure, likely from the rain they had just passed through.

Just as the droplets were about to hit the ground—

Whoom—!

A pulse of energy rippled, suspending them midair.

“…”

Observing the frozen droplets, a woman in a black mask—Yarang—knelt without hesitation.

“You’ve returned.”

A voice sounded from ahead.

Soft, elegant.

And with it, the faint scent of flowers drifted through the air.

“How was your little excursion?”

Violet-red eyes settled on Yarang.

Ssss—

A rustling sound accompanied the appearance of pure white fur around them.

Step.

Before long, the quiet sound of approaching footsteps reached her ears.

“My daughter.”

“…”

Yarang did not answer the call.

“The outside world is raining, isn’t it?”

At the question, Yarang gave a small nod.

“I see… No wonder my hearing felt clouded.”

The woman closed her eyes lazily, as if she had just realized something.

“So the rain finally falls, after so long.”

Her voice, carrying clear exhaustion, made it obvious—she did not welcome the rain.

“But.”

Her eyes opened again, and her gaze settled on Yarang.

“You must have seen what you needed to see, haven’t you?”

“…”

Yarang didn’t respond verbally.

Instead, she moved her hand.

Seeing that, the faintest trace of interest flickered in the woman’s otherwise weary eyes.