Childhood Friend of the Zenith

"Kwaaaah!

"A young man collapsed, his agonized scream ripping through the air.

Blood streamed from his ruined eye socket, soaking his trembling body.

"Young master!

"Several figures rushed toward him in a panic, but before they could reach him, I lightly tapped my foot against the ground.

Thump—!

Whoooosh—!

A crushing force surged outward, pinning them in place.

"Urgh…!

" "Guh…!!

"Their bodies buckled, collapsing under the pressure.

One by one, they sank to their knees, writhing.

I ignored them, my gaze fixed on the wretch before me.

"Kugh… huuugh…!!!

"He clutched the gaping hole where his left eye had been.

His entire body trembled, his fingers digging into his own bloodied flesh.

I crouched down, leveling my gaze with his.

His remaining right eye twitched violently as he met mine.

"…Huuu… kugh… why….

"For a moment, I hesitated.

Ah.

That was a mistake.

I hadn't meant to rip it out—I just acted on impulse.

The eyeball rolled in my palm.

The texture was sickeningly slick, yet firm.

A clean extraction, at least.

Tch.

Nasty.

Disgusted, I tightened my grip.

—Squish!

The eye burst in my fist, its fluids seeping through my fingers.

I flicked my hand, scattering the remnants onto the ground.

His expression shattered.

Watching his own eye get crushed, he made a sound that was neither a scream nor a sob.

I met his horror-stricken gaze and spoke.

[That eye didn't suit you.

]"…Huuuugh…!!

"A mistake, sure.

But it didn’t matter.

I had wanted to break something anyway.

Terror radiated from him.

He wanted to scream, to lash out.

But he didn’t.

He couldn’t.

And why would he?

His father, the so-called leader of this place, was sprawled behind him—too broken to even die properly.

Not a single one of them had the guts to move against me.

I glanced at the others still standing in the distance.

Their faces were pale, their bodies tense.

[Are you just going to stand there and watch?

] [Your leader is dying like a dog in the dirt, and you’re doing nothing?

]"…!

"They flinched.

Only now did they dare look at their fallen master.

His condition was beyond saving.

Anyone with a shred of sanity could see that.

And yet, not one of them took a step forward.

Why?

Because they were afraid.

Afraid of me.

—Tsk.

Clicking my tongue, I turned my back on them and strode away.

The hole in the far wall was already there.

I'd made it while pounding their leader into the ground.

As I approached, I cast one last look at the crumpled heap of a man and spoke.

[You put on a decent show.

] [But that's all it was—an act.

What a disappointment.

]Krrrrrk.

His mangled body convulsed, his breath ragged.

Even now, he still had his pride.

I sneered.

[Let’s hope the next one I meet isn’t such a waste of time.

]"…!

"Before he could even respond, I leapt through the opening.

—BOOM!!!!

The moment I was gone, the mansion erupted with panicked voices.

It was only now that they realized— The nightmare had already ended.

******************The night’s events had passed, and time moved on.

By the time the sun began to rise, the pale remnants of moonlight had faded behind the growing dawn.

I moved toward the back of the building, scanning for any signs of movement.

Nothing.

Even when I focused my senses, there was still nothing.

And then—“Cough.

”Only then did I finally let out the cough I had been holding back.

A bit of blood dripped down.

I wiped it off roughly with the back of my hand, pressing a hand to my chest.

Fucking hell.

‘This hurts like a bitch.

’No matter how well I had controlled the battle, the aftermath wasn’t small.

Pain throbbed through every inch of my body.

The internal damage wasn’t severe, but the pain was very real.

I had pushed my energy too far.

‘Trying to end things quickly forced me to go even harder.

’I had poured everything I had into that fight.

Knowing I had taken some internal damage, I tried to finish it as fast as possible.

‘…That bastard was tougher than I expected.

’Much tougher.

Especially—‘His body was too damn solid.

’Every strike had landed weaker than I thought it would.

At first, I assumed his muscle reinforcement was concentrated in his legs.

But that wasn’t it.

His whole body had been enhanced.

‘With muscles like that, it’s not just durability—his grip strength would be insane too.

’The bastard was clearly a martial artist specializing in close-quarters combat, relying on his legs.

His kicks carried devastating power.

And like a dumbass, I blocked one with my arm.

The bones in my left arm had nearly fractured from the impact.

It would heal soon enough, but—‘If I hadn’t reinforced it at the last second, it would’ve snapped like a twig.

’If I hadn’t instantly wrapped my arm in energy, I’d have ended up looking pathetic.

I flexed my fingers and shook out my left arm.

Every movement sent sharp pain through my bones, but it was bearable.

‘But the real issue isn’t my body…’I clenched my fist, checking something else.

‘My energy is gone.

’The power stored in my heart—completely depleted.

I had burned through everything in that fight.

And yet, despite that, there was still a smile on my lips.

Why?

‘Because this is interesting.

’Something had changed.

Normally, I would’ve been gasping for breath by now.

But during that fight, I realized something had shifted.

Even when I pushed myself past my limit, my energy had lasted longer.

‘It’s not that my total energy increased.

’So what was it?

A change in the way I used it?

I didn’t know for sure.

But the difference was undeniable.

‘The only thing that’s changed is my mastery of sorcery.

’I had learned from that old turtle.

And I had succeeded in executing Cheonma Divine Art once.

That was it.

Could that alone have altered something fundamental?

I had no way of knowing.

But one thing was certain—‘Thanks to it, I ended the fight much faster.

’The same amount of energy had produced significantly greater force.

It wasn’t a breakthrough in my cultivation level.

It wasn’t an increase in energy reserves.

And yet, my raw power had grown.

‘So… sorcery really does enhance martial arts?

’The higher my mastery of sorcery, the stronger my martial arts became.

If that was true—‘Looks like I need to start bothering that old bastard more often.

’The turtle clearly hated me for some reason, but that didn’t matter anymore.

Now, I had a reason to stick to him like glue.

Even if he despised me, I’d drain him dry.

I had just resolved myself to that when——Tsk.

A sharp clicking sound made my eyes snap open.

I turned my head—Thunk—!

Something struck my neck.

Not a blade.

A finger.

A dry, bony finger had stabbed into my throat.

I slowly raised my gaze.

From the shadows, crimson eyes glowed down at me.

“…What the hell?

”"You idiot.

"It was Shin Noya.

He was staring at me like he had just found something foul on the bottom of his shoe.

I hadn’t even noticed his approach.

Realizing this, I bit my lip.

"Just because you spread your senses out doesn’t mean you can let your guard down.

The fight’s over, but that doesn’t mean you can let your brain shut off, you moron.

"Noya struck exactly where it hurt.

"…""If I had been holding a sword instead of my finger, you’d be dead right now.

""Yeah, well, that’s only because you’re Noya.

If it were anyone else, I’d be fine.

""Hah.

"I shot back a retort, but Noya only scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief.

"You do realize that’s a pathetic excuse, right?

""…"I didn’t answer.

That silence was as good as admitting it.

"Be careful.

""…Yes, sir.

"He didn’t press the point further, just left a low warning.

That was worse.

I scratched the back of my head, forcing a grin.

Only then did he withdraw his finger from my throat.

"Did you handle things properly?

""Yeah.

I took care of it—"Before I could finish, Noya jabbed a finger into my chest.

—Thump.

I instantly slapped a hand over my mouth.

I had nearly screamed.

"…Kh—fuck…""You’re acting all nonchalant, but your body’s a wreck.

"He shook his head, looking at me like I was some kind of mutant.

"You goddamn lunatic.

If you’re hurt, act like it.

""…And who’s the lunatic here?

You could’ve just asked instead of stabbing me.

""Oh, so you’d have given me an honest answer if I had asked?

""…"…Yeah, probably not.

So I had nothing to say.

—Tsk.

Noya clicked his tongue again.

"Your body, your problem.

But at least try not to be completely stupid about it.

""…I’m telling you, this isn’t that bad.

"I swallowed down a groan and pushed myself upright.

This was fine.

Nothing was broken.

Nothing was missing.

—Crack.

I rolled my shoulders, aligning my bones.

Noya clicked his tongue again.

"…Freak.

""So?

Why are you here?

You should just go back already.

""Back?

The sun’s not up yet.

""…Right.

Guess you don’t leave at night, huh?

"I nodded.

He had mentioned that before.

"You still have something left to do?

""Not really.

I handled everything, but…"I glanced toward the distant manor.

The Blue Clan’s territory.

"I just want to see how they handle things before I leave.

"Once daylight broke, chaos would unfold.

I wanted to see it play out before deciding on my next steps.

Especially—"Do you know where the Divine Tree is?

I don’t think it’s in that direction.

"A more pressing matter had come to mind.

The Divine Tree, hidden somewhere in Yahwol.

I needed to find it.

Noya had said it existed somewhere in Yahwol, but I had felt nothing in the Blue Clan’s domain.

Actually, was it even something I could sense?

‘I need to know where it is before deciding what to do.

’Destroy it.

Or do something else with it.

But I couldn’t act until I knew its exact location.

And so, I turned to Noya for an answer—"Oh, that?

"He responded without hesitation.

"I know where it is.

""…What?

"He said it so casually.