Childhood Friend of the Zenith

Finding the woman wasn’t particularly difficult.

No matter how vast Hanam might be, her striking appearance made her stand out far too much.

Even spreading a little information was enough to track her down quickly.

Yes, she stood out—no, she stood out far too much.

Pale blue eyes.

A subtle chill that seemed to linger in the air around her.

Her captivating gaze and the aura exuded by her appearance.

She reminded me of someone—the aloof girl from the Moyong family.

The only noticeable difference was that this woman had white hair.

Of course, if I scrutinized her, I’d surely find other differences, but they would require closer inspection.

In other words, she resembled Moyong Hee-ah quite a lot.

Not to the extent of the uncanny resemblance between Cheonma and Wi Seol-ah, but still.

“So, she’s the princess, then?

”The princess of the Northern Sea.

Specifically, the fourth daughter of the Northern Sea Palace Lord.

A pureblood descendant of the Northern Sea Ice Palace, visiting Zhongyuan for the first time in decades.

And—“A runaway troublemaker.

”The one who caused a stir as soon as she arrived in Hanam.

That same woman was now wrinkling her nose, as though something had annoyed her.

I stared at her, wondering what her issue might be, when she spoke up.

“Nice to meet you.

”It began with a light greeting.

Then she continued.

“Oh, you’ve found me, huh...

”Her voice carried a tone of regret.

“I thought I wouldn’t be caught until evening.

”Her words made me tilt my head slightly.

“How did you find me?

I planned everything so meticulously...

Hmm.

”Something about her behavior...

how should I put it...

“Running away is harder than I thought.

Don’t you agree?

” “...

”Listening to her, I couldn’t help but feel like there were countless things I wanted to say.

But what could I call this?

Ah, I realized.

“Disconnection.

”Yes, it was a sense of disconnection.

Her playful tone and scatterbrained demeanor created a peculiar contrast.

It wouldn’t normally be an issue, but the dissonance came from her appearance.

She could easily be mistaken for Moyong Hee-ah’s twin.

With a face that seemed like it would deliver cold and sharp words of reprimand, she acted like a mischievous tomboy instead, creating an unsettling impression.

I frowned slightly as I looked at her.

The princess of the Northern Sea.

A descendant of the Ice Palace Lord, who once fought the Sword Master to a draw.

Hmm.

Judging by her level, she seemed to be just barely first-rate.

Her age?

Likely past twenty.

“It’s not bad for her age, but…”It wasn’t outstanding enough to praise her abilities.

Even though I didn’t know much about the Northern Sea’s standards, by Zhongyuan’s, she would be considered an underachiever born into a prestigious family.

That seemed like a fair assessment.

As I evaluated her, she called out to me.

“Excuse me.

”The princess addressed me.

“I know I’m pretty, but isn’t it a bit much to stare at me so intently?

”“...?

”What did I just hear?

“You’re going to bore a hole into my face at this rate.

Really...

Men...

”With a sigh, she muttered something that caused the surroundings to fall silent.

Her unexpected remarks made my frown deepen.

“…Young Master.

”Tang So-yeol, who had been standing nearby, cautiously approached me.

“I think this lady might be a bit strange.

”I agreed wholeheartedly.

The fact that she bore such a resemblance to Moyong Hee-ah only made her behavior more unnerving.

“This won’t be easy.

”She was beautiful, no doubt.

She was confident enough to carry herself with such assurance.

Her level of beauty was rare even in Zhongyuan.

“But I have too many people like that around me already.

”I’d grown immune to it over time.

If it were the me from my previous life—an idiot through and through—I might have stared at her because I found her genuinely stunning.

Of course, that wasn’t the case now.

“How did she even escape with her level of skill?

”She had reportedly evaded not only the Baekhwa Trading Company’s escorts but also her own personal guards.

I couldn’t understand how.

“No matter how I look at it, she shouldn’t be capable of that.

”I had even observed the Trading Company’s martial artists; most were in the peak stage or even mature peak.

They weren’t the type of people a princess could simply run away from.

So how had she done it?

“I thought maybe she had reached the Transformation Realm…”After all, she was a descendant of the Ice Palace Lord, who had matched the Sword Master.

It seemed plausible.

But apparently, that wasn’t the case.

It felt like she had used some other method.

“Not that it matters.

”Delving deeper felt unnecessary, and wasting time on it didn’t appeal to me.

Looking at the princess, I said, “It’s time for you to return.

There are quite a few people waiting for you.

”I couldn’t keep the irritation out of my voice.

I tried to suppress it, but it wasn’t easy.

At my words, the princess’s expression shifted, her eyes lighting up with curiosity.

“Are you angry?

”Her gaze was one of genuine fascination.

What?

“Not angry, just a bit annoyed.

”I answered honestly.

I wasn’t quite angry—yet.

“Wow.

”The princess let out an exclamation.

What the hell?

What’s with this girl?

Should I hit her?

The thought crossed my mind before I could stop it.

It didn’t seem like she was trying to mock me, but something about her felt distinctly off.

“No one’s ever gotten angry at me before.

Zhongyuan really is fascinating.

”“What the hell are you even saying?

”It was a first for me too.

I’d never met someone so uniquely exasperating.

“Never mind that… Let’s just go.

”I moved closer to her.

Up close, she resembled Moyong Hee-ah even more.

She even had a beauty mark under her eye.

If I remembered correctly, Moyong Hee-ah had a similar mark too.

Could it just be a coincidence?

“...

Doesn’t matter.

That’s not important right now.

”I brushed aside the strange thought.

As I reached to grab her, the princess smirked faintly and spoke.

“You wouldn’t happen to let me go, would you?

”“No.

”I answered firmly, and she wrinkled her nose as though disappointed.

But just when I thought she was about to surrender—“Well, that won’t do.

”Whoooom!

“…Huh?

”Just as I was about to grab her and drag her along, her body began to emit a bright light.

What the hell was this now?

Fwoosh!

A sharp chill prickled at the tip of my nose.

It happened all at once.

Simultaneously, her physical appearance started to change.

Her body turned completely white.

What was going on?

As I stood there, stunned, the princess looked at me and began to speak.

“Sorry, I didn’t want to do this…”I didn’t know what she was about to do.

So I struck her on the back of the neck.

Thwack!

“Eek!?

”With a short cry, her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed unconscious.

The princess dropped to the ground with a thud.

Naturally, I didn’t bother catching her.

As I stared at her awkwardly crumpled form on the ground, I muttered to myself.

“She’s completely insane.

”I wasn’t sure what she’d been planning, but my irritation was at its peak.

What the hell was this?

While I glared down at the unconscious princess, someone called out urgently from behind me.

“Princess…!

”I turned to see Moyong Hee-ah, leaning against a wall, panting heavily.

“I found… huh?

”Her eyes widened as she took in the scene: the unconscious princess on the ground and me standing over her.

Moyong Hee-ah furrowed her brows, clearly unable to make sense of the situation.

I waved casually.

“Been a while.

”It really had been a while since I’d seen Moyong Hee-ah.

Unlike the others, she’d been too busy to make time for a visit.

Just as I was about to greet her further, she cut me off.

“Young Master.

”“Yeah?

”“…That… wouldn’t happen to be the princess, would it?

”No “how have you been” or polite pleasantries—straight to the point.

Typical Moyong Hee-ah.

“This?

”I nudged the princess’s body with my foot.

Moyong Hee-ah nodded.

“Probably.

”“...

”I wasn’t entirely sure since I hadn’t asked her directly, but judging by the circumstances, it seemed likely.

As realization set in, Moyong Hee-ah’s eyes began to waver.

“Then… why is the princess in that state?

”“She tried to run, so I knocked her out.

”“You hit her?

Knowing who she is?

”“‘Hit’ is a strong word.

I just gave her a light tap.

”I’d made sure to hold back enough that there wouldn’t be any lasting harm.

If I hadn’t, her skull might’ve cracked.

As I spoke matter-of-factly, Moyong Hee-ah massaged her temples, as though nursing a headache.

It seemed like the idea of me laying a hand on a member of the Northern Sea’s bloodline was a significant problem for her.

“…Ugh.

”Even so, she didn’t scold me outright.

Naturally—“If they didn’t want this to happen, they shouldn’t have let her escape in the first place.

”The fact that the princess had managed to run away was the real issue here.

Judging by the situation, Moyong Hee-ah must’ve been part of the group escorting her.

I hadn’t heard the full story yet, but I could guess as much.

So this was what Lady Mi Horan had sent Moyong Hee-ah to handle.

It made sense now why she’d gone so far away.

Understanding that didn’t improve my mood.

“Was Mi Horan trying to exploit Moyong Hee-ah’s Northern Sea bloodline?

”The more I thought about it, the more it seemed like that was the reason.

Since the princess was part of the Northern Sea’s royal lineage, Mi Horan must’ve figured that sending Moyong Hee-ah would be more effective.

A reasonable decision on her part, but it didn’t change the fact that she’d used Moyong Hee-ah.

I didn’t like it.

Still, I wasn’t about to bring it up.

Moyong Hee-ah likely knew all of this already.

The fact that she went along with it meant she’d accepted it.

It wasn’t my place to interfere.

I stretched out a hand and activated my qi.

Whoooom!

The princess’s body floated up into the air.

With a flick, I tossed her toward Moyong Hee-ah.

“…!

”Startled, Moyong Hee-ah hurriedly caught the princess.

“Young Master!

You can’t just throw her like that!

”“I don’t like touching other people’s bodies.

”It wasn’t that I found handling a woman’s body awkward.

I just found the idea of touching her specifically distasteful.

Hearing this, Moyong Hee-ah gave me a look of utter disbelief.

"Are you insane?

Using air manipulation for something like that?

"The application of qi techniques that could only be used by those who had reached the Hwagyeong stage.

And here I was, using it just because I didn’t want to touch someone else’s body.

Moyong Hee-ah seemed completely dumbfounded.

How I use it is my business.

It didn’t matter what others thought.

As long as it made things easier for me, that was all that mattered.

“Enough with the nagging.

Just take her and go.

We’ll talk later.

”I waved her off dismissively, but Moyong Hee-ah gave me a puzzled look.

“Talk later?

Aren’t you coming with me?

”Her question made it clear—she knew I was somehow involved in this mess.

I was curious about what exactly had dragged me into this situation, but now wasn’t the time.

“I still have something to do here.

I’ll join you soon; go on ahead.

”I had unfinished business to attend to.

Young Master.

A telepathic message from Tang So-yeol.

She seemed to have figured out why I wasn’t leaving yet.

I know.

Should I bring them down?

I turned my gaze toward the ceiling of a nearby building.

“No, I’ll handle it.

”Perhaps my glance at the ceiling gave me away.

Tap.

I felt a faint presence from above.

The next moment, it began to retreat.

Are they trying to run?

“I’ll go myself.

”With that, I pushed off the ground and leapt into the air.

******************Whoosh!

The masked figure moved swiftly, darting between buildings with incredible speed.

The rapidly changing scenery was a testament to their agility.

Even so, they swallowed nervously.

How did they notice me?

Their stealth techniques were supposed to be flawless.

Up until that moment, they hadn’t sensed even a hint of suspicion.

But then, in that instant—Our eyes met.

Without any warning, the young man had turned his head and locked eyes with the masked figure.

It was those piercing eyes that forced the masked figure to flee.

They knew I was there.

The thought sent chills down their spine.

No time to dwell on it now.

They had to escape.

I need to get back to the headquarters.

Reporting what had happened was their only priority.

Damn it.

They had been so confident earlier, merely observing when the woman had approached the formation.

Even when she glanced directly at the formation’s location, it hadn’t seemed like a serious issue.

Their orders were clear: observe and ensure the formation remained intact until tonight.

And yet, here they were—on the run.

At least the formation is still secure.

The fact that the others hadn’t figured out its purpose was a relief.

If they could just return and report, things might not escalate further.

“Where are you going?

”“...!?

”A voice rang out right next to them.

The masked figure tried to turn, but—Crunch!

A hand grabbed their neck and slammed them into the ground with overwhelming force.

Boom!

Crackle!

Their face smashed into the dirt, momentum dragging them forward and leaving a long scar on the ground.

The sudden impact left them disoriented.

Before they could process what had happened—Thud!

That same hand grabbed the back of their head and yanked them up.

“Guhk…!

”“Not bad.

You even managed to coat your face with defensive qi.

”The one who had caught them seemed mildly impressed.

The masked figure had instinctively activated defensive qi around their face at the moment of impact.

But now—Clench.

“Grahk!?

”The hand tightened around their jaw, prying it open and preventing them from biting down.

Crack!

“…Ugh!!

”Fingers forced their way into the masked figure’s mouth, gripping and yanking out a molar.

It was the one containing the poison pill meant for suicide.

The entire ordeal took only a few seconds, leaving the masked figure utterly stunned.

All they could see—no, all they could focus on—was one thing.

Eyes.

Even through their blurred vision, the assailant’s eyes were vivid and piercing.

Brilliantly blue, yet burning with an inexplicable intensity.

Just looking at them filled the masked figure with a suffocating sense of dread, as though their entire body were on fire.

“Hah… hah…”The fear left them gasping for air.

Their captor examined the extracted molar briefly before—Crush!

—crushing it effortlessly between their fingers.

Then, those terrifying eyes turned back toward the masked figure.

“Interesting.

”The young man’s lips curled into an unsettling grin.

“And who the hell are you supposed to be?

”