Childhood Friend of the Zenith

Shortly after thinking of a way to find Namgung Bi-ah, I had the urge to drop everything and rush out immediately.

But with so little information to go on, I had to hold myself back—for now.

Even so, I wouldn’t be able to hold back for long.

I was already at my limit.

When I left the Palace Lord’s quarters, I found the White Lotus Sword waiting for me.

“You’re here?

”The look I gave her wasn’t a pleasant one.

How could it be?

She was the one who told me to meet the Palace Lord as soon as I woke up, and yet all I got was a heap of trouble.

Seeing my expression, the White Lotus Sword gave an awkward smile.

“It seems something happened.

”“Oh, something happened, all right.

Something absolutely awful.

”Not only was I interrogated in the guise of a meeting, but I also endured a series of miserable events.

If my body had been in better condition, I would’ve thrown everything aside and stormed the Palace Lord’s chamber.

The fact that I couldn’t do so was what frustrated me the most.

Naturally, my feelings toward the White Lotus Sword, who guided me into this mess, weren’t particularly warm.

Not that it mattered that we hadn’t seen each other in a long time.

Without wasting any time, I asked her:“Did you know?

”A question loaded with many meanings.

Did she know that my meeting with the Palace Lord was just a pretext for an interrogation?

And—“Did you know he was from the North Sea?

”Did she know that Woo Hyuk was from the North Sea, specifically from the so-called Blue Wolf family?

I asked with that implication, and the White Lotus Sword gave me a bitter smile.

“I didn’t know what the Palace Lord intended with your meeting.

”“And now?

”“If you explain it, I’ll listen carefully…”She seemed to know that something serious had happened.

Her expression wasn’t good.

Seeing this, I clicked my tongue inwardly.

“Never mind…”There was no point pressing someone who didn’t know.

I could press her, sure, but at this point, doing so would just be taking out my anger on her.

“Let’s move on to the next question.

”“…”When I asked about Woo Hyuk, the White Lotus Sword hesitated, her lips slightly parting.

“If you’re asking about that boy… I haven’t known for very long.

”“So, you’re saying it’s true.

”“…”Woo Hyuk was from the North Sea.

Moreover—“He really did instigate a rebellion, didn’t he?

”“…Yes.

”Hearing her confirmation, I clenched my teeth.

‘What the hell is that bastard up to?

’When Namgung Bi-ah said she was heading to the North Sea, I hadn’t wanted to let her go.

But since she was going with Geoseon, the White Lotus Sword, and Woo Hyuk, I’d felt reassured.

Woo Hyuk was a strange guy, sure, but he wasn’t the type to cause trouble.

Even if something went wrong, I thought he’d handle it somehow.

‘And yet, that bastard caused the biggest mess of all.

’My head throbbed.

‘A rebellion?

Seriously?

’What rebellion could there possibly be in a stable land like this?

A guy who seemed to have no ambition at all was leading a rebellion—it made no sense.

‘Why?

’What was the reason for it?

If Woo Hyuk really instigated a rebellion, not just as a participant but as the one who set it off—‘What’s the reason?

’What could have driven him to do it?

The first thought that came to mind was that he must have had a reason.

If he’d gone so far as to create this chaos, there had to be a significant cause.

That was the kind of person he was.

Ironically, I still believed in him, at least to that extent.

[Go ahead.

] [Thanks for being my friend all this time.

]“…”His words and face just before he almost died came back to me.

Damn bastard.

If he didn’t want me to forget, he could’ve at least avoided smiling while dying.

Forcing the aggravating memory aside, I asked the White Lotus Sword another question.

“Then, what about her… No.

”I paused for a moment before frowning and continuing.

“What about Namgung Bi-ah?

What happened to her?

”It felt strange to say her name out loud.

But now wasn’t the time to hold back.

“Bi-ah…”Hearing my question, the White Lotus Sword hesitated momentarily but seemed to know.

If she didn’t give me a proper answer here, I wouldn’t hold back anymore.

Loaded with that emotion, my gaze bore into her until she finally spoke.

“…Bi-ah was guarding the Palace Lord.

”“Guarding?

”I was caught off guard by the answer.

Guarding him?

“Are you saying she was the Palace Lord’s bodyguard?

”“At first, she was assigned to guard the princess or other blood relatives, but…”“Hold on.

”I interrupted the White Lotus Sword before she could continue.

There was something more urgent to ask.

“…Why was she acting as a guard?

”Why was Namgung Bi-ah suddenly playing the role of a bodyguard?

She left to train—why was she doing this instead?

I’d heard bits about it before, but it still didn’t make sense.

The White Lotus Sword answered:“From what I heard, Geoseon made a direct contract with the Palace Lord.

”“Geoseon?

”She must have meant Wudang’s Geoseon.

That old man made a deal with the Palace Lord and put Namgung Bi-ah in a guard role?

‘Has that old man lost his mind?

’He’d gotten my permission to send her off for training, and this is what he did?

Putting her to work instead of letting her train?

I could feel my anger rising.

Still, I suppressed it and pressed on.

“So she was acting as the princess’s guard for a time?

”That was what I’d heard before, about her continuing to operate as some kind of "White Fox.

"“Yes, she was.

”“Then why has this turned into such a disaster?

”If she was guarding someone, she should’ve been by their side.

Why was she the only one missing?

“…”The White Lotus Sword’s expression became complicated.

That look made me all the more uneasy.

“During the chaos caused by the rebellion, while they were rushing to a safe haven…”As she explained, I couldn’t help but grimace.

To escape, the Palace Lord had to leave the palace and move.

Even then, enemy forces were relentlessly pursuing them.

The situation had become so dire that—“She volunteered to act as a decoy, didn’t she?

”“…”To ensure the Palace Lord’s safety, Namgung Bi-ah had thrown herself into the fray to divert the enemy’s attention.

And in doing so, she was now missing.

That was the story, wasn’t it?

Moreover—“And no other traces were found at the site of the battle…”Muttering to myself, I felt anger rising again.

In this unfamiliar and inhospitable land, she’d thrown herself into danger for the sake of a man who was no help at all.

It sounded absurd.

But contrary to my anger, my mind was growing cold and calculating.

This didn’t sit right with me.

It bothered me.

‘Why would she do that?

’Why had Namgung Bi-ah chosen to act as a decoy?

Was it really for the peace of the Palace and the Ice Palace?

No, that couldn’t have been it.

I believed there had to be another reason behind her actions.

As my chilled thoughts tried to piece together the puzzle—“I’m sorry…”The White Lotus Sword’s apology broke through my thoughts.

“If I’d been there, I should have taken her place…”Her voice was laden with guilt.

She truly regretted not being able to go instead of Namgung Bi-ah.

Looking at her, I asked:“Where were you at the time, Senior?

”It wasn’t an accusation.

I wasn’t blaming her for not going.

I didn’t doubt the White Lotus Sword.

Even though I didn’t know her well, I believed she wasn’t the type to take the coward’s way out.

“…At the time, I was already on my way to the safe haven, carrying someone else.

”She had been escorting someone other than the Palace Lord, so she wasn’t part of the main group.

If that was the case—“What about Geoseon?

What was he doing?

”“…”What had Wudang’s Geoseon been doing?

If Woo Hyuk had started a rebellion, where was Geoseon now?

As his teacher, he wouldn’t be in a good position either.

Hearing my question, the White Lotus Sword said:“…Will you follow me?

”Without giving a direct answer, she led me somewhere.

It wasn’t far.

We arrived at a quiet space on an upper floor of the cave, devoid of guards or much activity.

There, I saw a single bed.

And on it lay someone.

The one lying down was, surprisingly, Wudang’s Geoseon.

The problem was—‘What the hell?

’His condition was far from normal.

His left arm was nowhere to be seen.

The rest of his body didn’t look any better.

He was barely clinging to life.

"What is this…?

"Why was he in such a state?

Geoseon was a martial artist of Hwagyeong rank and one of the top hundred masters of Zhongyuan.

How could someone of his caliber end up like this?

As the question crossed my mind, the White Lotus Sword began to explain.

"It happened on the day the rebellion began.

"She continued, "Woo Hyuk appeared, carrying Geoseon, covered in blood.

""That bastard?

""Yes.

"Hearing this, my eyes widened.

Woo Hyuk brought Geoseon here?

"He suddenly showed up, left Geoseon in our care, apologized, and disappeared.

That was the last we saw of him.

"He left his dying master behind and vanished?

And on the very day the rebellion began?

‘The rebellion was his doing.

’It made no sense that he would leave his master in such a state after instigating such chaos.

What the hell was going on?

As my thoughts raced, trying to piece things together, an idea struck me, and I turned to the White Lotus Sword.

"You mentioned earlier that you carried someone to safety.

Was it Geoseon?

""…"Her silence confirmed it.

I took that as an answer and began to connect the dots.

The White Lotus Sword had carried Geoseon to a safe haven.

Namgung Bi-ah, in the meantime, had acted as a decoy while escorting the Palace Lord, disappearing in the process.

Was all of this just a coincidence?

At first, I thought the timing of the rebellion had been planned perfectly.

But now—‘It wasn’t timing.

It was orchestrated.

’The situation was created intentionally.

My head throbbed.

If Moyong Hee-ah or Jegal Hyuk had been here, it would’ve been much easier to make sense of this mess.

But with my limited mental capacity, it was hard to put everything together.

While I couldn’t blame everything on Woo Hyuk, one thing was certain.

‘He’s involved.

’There was no doubt he was entangled in this.

And on top of that—‘Something about the end bothers me.

’The circumstances surrounding the White Lotus Sword, Geoseon, and Namgung Bi-ah taking on the decoy role all felt off.

Tap-tap-tap.

Without a desk to drum my fingers on, I ended up tapping my waist instead.

What was I missing?

There was something there, but I couldn’t reach a conclusion.

What was slipping through my grasp?

As I was lost in thought—Tap.

My tapping stopped abruptly.

"We’re continuing to scout the area, so you should…""I’m going out for a bit.

""Huh?

Wait—!

"I didn’t wait for the White Lotus Sword to finish and stepped outside.

Originally, I’d planned to check on the others first.

But even that was pushed to the back of my mind.

I wandered through this unfamiliar place without much direction.

‘I can’t think of anything.

’No matter how much I tried, I couldn’t reach any clear conclusions.

The lack of information and the suddenness of it all made it impossible.

However.

There was one thing I could say for certain.

‘Woo Hyuk had a hand in Namgung Bi-ah’s disappearance.

’Was that conclusion based on tracing their movements?

Not exactly.

While my reasoning pointed in that direction, this was mostly my gut talking.

It had always been this way.

I’d think things over endlessly, only to end up following where my instincts led.

This time was no different.

It was purely instinct and speculation, yet I was somehow confident.

Confident that my thoughts were correct.

So what should I do about it?

‘What do you think?

I told the Palace Lord already.

’I’d go find him myself and ask.

That was the conclusion I’d come to from the start.

Find Woo Hyuk and demand answers.

Why he did it.

I’d ask and get my answer.

And if he refused to answer— I’d beat it out of him.

‘To do that, I need to find Woo Hyuk first.

’If my instincts were right and he was connected to Namgung Bi-ah’s disappearance—Then there was a way to track him down.

Vrrr—!

A presence, distant but clear, resonated like a pulse in my chest.

It was almost as if it was calling out to me.

That’s the place.

I didn’t know exactly where it was, but the presence was unmistakable.

I couldn’t be certain that Namgung Bi-ah or Woo Hyuk would be there.

But at the very least—‘The Thunder Fang is there.

’The Thunder Fang, which Namgung Bi-ah would’ve had, was definitely there.

Given that the Thunder Fang was an object that only a few could handle, there was bound to be a trace of Namgung Bi-ah.

For now, I’d head there.

With that thought in mind, I began to move.

As I did—[…Please—!

Please open it—!

]I heard a voice shouting from somewhere.

A voice I recognized.

It wasn’t far.

Was it on an upper floor?

Without hesitation, I moved toward the sound.

I suppressed my presence as I walked.

Fortunately, the path wasn’t too difficult to navigate.

After walking for a bit, I reached the direction of the sound and saw what appeared to be an entrance, guarded by several individuals armed with weapons.

Good.

I almost smashed my way through without knowing where to go, but this seemed to be the right place.

Near the entrance, I saw her.

“Princess… You mustn’t do this—!

”"That’s nonsense!

There’s no way… I have to see for myself!

"The silver-haired woman, her pale beauty unmistakable, was pleading desperately with the guards.

It was Yury.

"…There’s no way Vioe-gun did that…!

There must be some explanation!

""Princess!

That man is a criminal who committed treason.

How can you say such things?!

""He couldn’t have started a rebellion…!

He promised me…!

"Her voice cracked as she shouted, tears welling in her eyes.

One of the guards responded.

"It seems the princess is not in her right mind.

Escort her to her room immediately.

""Yes, sir.

"At the order, one of the guards reached out toward Yury, likely to restrain her.

But—His hand never touched her.

It passed her by as he crumpled to the ground.

Thud.

The guard collapsed to the floor.

"What the…?

"Another guard reacted but—Thunk!

"Guh—!

"The second guard was struck in the jaw and knocked unconscious in an instant.

"…Huh?

"Yury looked startled, as though unable to process what had just happened.

She didn’t seem to understand what was going on.

I spoke to her.

"That thing you were just saying.

""…!

"She turned quickly, startled by the voice from behind her.

There I was.

"Say it again.

"I stood there, looking at her.