Childhood Friend of the Zenith

“What do you mean by that…?

”Yuri looked at me with disbelief etched across her face.

She clearly found it hard to accept.

I nudged the dead man’s body with my foot, flipping it over.

His back came into view.

“…Huh?

”Yuri reacted with shock as she noticed something unusual—blood stains on the fur covering his back.

“They killed the person wearing it before and took it for themselves.

”It could have been from an animal, but…“The way they moved was awkward, like they weren’t used to the clothes.

”That wasn’t the only thing that stood out.

Their movements were subtly off, twisted by an unfamiliarity they couldn’t suppress.

When they saw us, they tried to act naturally, but…‘The tension they felt inside.

’The emotions radiating from them had been unsettlingly clear.

Tension?

Tension would have been understandable if outsiders had approached a hideout.

That kind of vigilance was normal.

But their tension wasn’t the defensive kind.

It was laced with the anxiety of needing to act correctly.

And most importantly…‘They didn’t react with caution.

’When we appeared, they didn’t show any sign of wariness.

That, above all else, was what confirmed my suspicions.

Then there were the other discrepancies—their lack of proper assessment of the situation, their hurried attempts to lead us somewhere…There were far too many things that didn’t add up.

As I explained briefly, Yuri’s face crumbled in disbelief.

“That’s impossible… This can’t be true…”“There’s no such thing as impossible.

”Even my own life was proof of that.

Nothing in this world was truly impossible.

“But… but this is a place that only the bloodline of the Ice Palace can access!

” she stammered.

Only the bloodline of the Ice Palace, huh?

Hearing her words, I nodded thoughtfully.

‘So that’s why she placed her hand on the wall earlier.

’There must have been some method or safeguard that only she knew about.

But even so…“Well, it’s breached now.

”“That’s…”“Do you think it’s not?

”Whatever the reason, the fact remained—it had been breached.

Even if this was a place only accessible to the bloodline, what did it matter now?

The situation was already upon us.

I examined the corpse as I thought to myself.

‘It doesn’t seem like they were trying to ambush us.

’They didn’t have the air of someone trying to kill us.

They weren’t skilled in deception either.

Their martial level was pathetically low.

‘Maybe they underestimated the strength of the princess’s escort?

’I recalled their earlier attempts.

Their force was laughable compared to Ubeom and Wooseok.

One was at the pinnacle of cultivation mastery, while the other, even injured, was in the Hwagyeong realm.

There was no way such weaklings could pose a threat.

Perhaps they were unaware of the strength of the Ice Palace’s guards?

That was unlikely.

‘If so, their intention must have been…’As I suspected earlier, they had likely been trying to lead us somewhere.

That might explain why they sent such weaklings.

“…This… this can’t be happening…”Yuri was still lost in shock, her demeanor a mess.

I approached the man Paejon had subdued and spoke to Yuri.

“Hey.

”“Y-yes?

”“How many children does the Ice Lord have, including you?

”“Why… why are you asking?

”“Tell me precisely, separating them by gender.

”She hesitated briefly but soon replied.

“…There are four of us.

”“The ratio?

”“One eldest son, one eldest daughter, the second son, and then myself.

”“Which of them seemed particularly ambitious?

”“What do you mean by ambitious…?

”Yuri froze mid-sentence, realizing what I was implying.

“Are you suggesting… that one of the bloodline has betrayed us?

”Her voice carried an edge of discomfort.

Judging by her expression, it seemed her family got along well—she didn’t even want to entertain the thought.

“I’m just asking.

”Yuri herself had said that only the bloodline could access this place.

And yet, there were enemies inside.

‘One of the bloodline could very well have betrayed them.

’It was the most plausible explanation.

A child of the lord vying for power.

In Zhongyuan, it wasn’t uncommon for family disputes over leadership to end in bloody massacres.

Yuri responded with a serious expression, “That’s absolutely impossible.

The bloodline cannot betray one another.

”“You seem awfully confident.

Is there a specific reason for that?

”“…”“The bloodline cannot betray one another.

”The phrasing was peculiar.

‘Maybe they’ve placed some sort of restriction on themselves.

’If that were the case, it would be both a convenient and cruel method.

Though Yuri spoke with such conviction, I couldn’t rule anything out.

But regardless…“It doesn’t matter.

”I tossed the corpse aside and grabbed the unconscious man by the neck, lifting him.

“If you don’t know, we’ll just ask.

”Hum…I directed my energy into the unconscious man.

Instantly—“—Guhk!?

”The man jolted awake, his mind snapping back to reality.

I tightened my grip.

Crunch!

“Ghhh…!

”Restricting his movements, I ensured he couldn’t act out.

Watching this, Paejon smirked and asked, “Shall I handle this for you?

”I chuckled softly.

He had clearly figured out what I was about to do.

Paejon didn’t know about my regression or what kind of life I had lived in my previous one.

Maybe he thought a youth like me would hesitate to torture someone.

But I was certain of one thing.

“No, I’ll manage.

”At least in this area, I was more capable than Paejon.

Turning my head, I called Seong Yul over.

“Come here.

”“Yes.

”There was only one reason I had called him.

‘He can detect lies.

’Whether he sensed them or something else, it was an ability uniquely useful in situations like this.

I brought Seong Yul to my side and loosened my grip slightly.

“Gaaah…”The man gasped for air, finally able to breathe again.

“Huff… huff…”His eyes darted around, trying to assess the situation.

“W-why are you doing this?

”Quick to assess, and even quicker to act like a victim.

As I stared at him silently, the man desperately turned to Yuri.

“My lady!

W-what is…!

”Yuri instinctively started to move, but I tightened my grip again.

Squeeze!

“Gugh!?

”I forced his mouth open.

And then—Crack!

“Ghhk…”I yanked out a molar and tossed it aside.

As expected, it had concealed poison.

Dusting off my hands, I spoke to the man.

“From now on, every answer you give must be the truth.

Lies won’t be tolerated.

”As I spoke, a cold fury simmered beneath the surface.

Anxiety clawed at me.

I suppressed it with sheer willpower, forcing myself to remain rational.

‘In times like these, think clearly.

’That was the only way forward.

I had repeated this mantra countless times before.

But that didn’t make it any easier.

‘This is a mess.

’The plan Yuri had laid out had gone wrong from the start.

The secured hideout.

The stable route to the Ice Palace.

That had been the goal.

But everything had gone awry from the very beginning.

‘Which means…’The situation was far worse than I had anticipated.

If so…‘What about Namgung Bi-ah?

’What state was she in?

What if something had already happened to her?

The thought made me want to destroy something right then and there.

But I had to endure.

Humans are too fragile, too easily broken.

Now wasn’t the time for destruction.

“What… What do you mean by that?!

”The man screamed, his voice trembling.

He wasn’t bad at acting—his desperate tone almost sounded sincere.

“What did you do with the ones who were originally here?

”“The ones who were here…?!

I don’t understand what you’re saying…!

”I glanced at Seong Yul after the man’s response.

Seong Yul caught my gaze and gave a subtle shake of his head.

A lie.

Seeing that, I reached out to the man’s face without hesitation.

And plucked out his left eye.

Squish!

“Gaaaahhhh—!!

”Blood spurted as the man’s agonized scream pierced the air.

Drops of blood splattered across my cheek.

The shock was evident in the faces of those around me.

Normally, I might have cared.

But not now.

Urgency was all that remained within me.

“Hrrgh… Arrghhh…”He groaned in pain, reduced to a one-eyed man in an instant.

I spoke coldly as I looked down at him.

“One eye is enough to see, isn’t it?

”My voice carried sharp barbs, my anger refusing to be restrained.

“If you lie again…”I had to focus all my willpower to keep my hands in check, to stop myself from tearing him apart then and there.

“I’ll rip out your liver and show it to you.

”Keeping him alive while inflicting excruciating pain was a simple task.

A human can survive without a kidney or two.

They won’t die immediately.

They’ll just suffer unbearable agony.

“Now, I’ll ask again.

”Roughly ten times.

That’s how many lies the human body can endure.

My past experiences had taught me that much.

“What were you doing here?

”The trembling of the man’s single remaining pupil was visible.

His body could endure, but his mind… How long could it hold out?

The answer to that question came quickly.

Four times.

He lied a total of four times.

By the fifth truth, he was dead.

Among the truths we extracted, there was one particularly damning revelation:The betrayal involved someone from the Ice Palace’s bloodline.

******************A vast expanse of ground.

Snow piled high atop it.

Amidst the fierce snowstorm raging overhead, the white snow was stained red.

It was all blood.

Among the countless bodies sprawled across the ground, not a single one remained breathing.

The blood that had poured from their wounds soaked into the pristine snow, creating a chillingly brutal scene.

Within this carnage—Cough!

A woman knelt to the ground.

Beneath the white fox mask she wore, blood trickled down her face.

A deep sword wound marked her abdomen, with blood flowing steadily from it as well.

“Huff… huff…”Her ragged breathing betrayed the dire state of her body.

It wouldn’t have been surprising if she collapsed then and there.

Yet, even in such a condition, she leaned on her sword like a crutch, barely holding herself upright.

“You look terrible.

”At the sound of a voice, the woman raised her head.

Before her stood the one who had caused this massacre.

She looked at the man and managed to speak.

“…Why…?

”Her voice barely escaped her lips, but her question was clear.

“Why did I do this?

”The man’s face twisted into a bitter expression as he repeated her question.

“Who knows?

I’m not sure myself.

”His voice was dry and devoid of warmth.

“Let me ask you something in return.

Why are you doing this?

”“…”“You and the palace lord are unrelated.

You’re just an outsider.

There’s no reason for you to protect him.

So why are you going so far?

”“…”The woman didn’t respond to his words, maintaining her silence.

He usually didn’t mind such quietness, but at this moment, it only frustrated him.

“…The one you should be protecting isn’t the palace lord.

”“…”Still, she gave no reply.

But there was one difference this time.

Sching.

“…!

”She slowly began to rise to her feet.

Even though the sword strike had narrowly missed a vital spot, her condition was such that standing should have been impossible.

Yet the woman straightened herself without so much as a groan, steadying her stance.

And then, she pointed her sword at the man.

“…Hah.

”So that’s her answer.

Realizing this, the swordsman let out a weary sigh.

She was still strong.

Perhaps she had grown stubborn from being so close to that friend of his.

Was there really no other way?

The swordsman bit his lips, a bitter taste filling his mouth.

After a long moment of hesitation, he finally made his decision.

“…I’m sorry.

”He raised his sword.

In his mind, there was no retreat left.

“This is the only way I know.

”“…”With the tip of his sword aimed squarely at her, any further conversation ended there.

After a brief pause, their silent standoff came to an end as the woman made the first move.

Shhhh!

Her blade shot forward with unwavering precision, despite her wounded body.

The swordsman swung his sword to meet hers.

At his fingertips, the exquisite techniques of Wudang unfolded.

Lightning energy clashed with the blade’s qi.

In that instant—BOOOOOM!

Their powers collided, unleashing a flash of light and a thunderous roar that echoed across the battlefield.

It was over in a moment.

The light faded as quickly as it had come.

Only one person remained standing.

The man, sword in hand.

Thud.

The woman collapsed to the ground, her strength completely drained.

“…”The man looked down at her with heavy eyes.

There was no sense of triumph.

Only a hollow emptiness—toward the situation, and toward himself.

He approached the fallen woman, lifted her, and slung her over his shoulder.

She wasn’t dead.

She had merely lost consciousness.

Feeling her faint breathing, the swordsman murmured quietly.

“…I’m sorry, sister-in-law.

”With those words, he walked away, disappearing into the snowstorm.

What remained in that place:The blood-soaked snow and the countless corpses left behind.

And the crescent moon-shaped hair ornament the woman had once received as a gift.