Childhood Friend of the Zenith
chapter-258

When was it, I wonder?

I believe it was around the time I was still suffering at the frontlines.

It happened when I was on night watch duty.

-Flame.

I abruptly turned my head towards the voice I heard while I was mindlessly gazing at the moon.

-You fucker, I told you not to call me that.

-Who cares, they say that you should always give your friends a nickname.

-Fuck… what kind of a nickname is Flame?

-Oh? So I guess you are not denying that we are friends then?

-Screw off.

After hearing the young man, I wrapped my head in pain.

It was impossible for me to have a normal conversation with that bastard.

The Water Dragon of Wudang Sect.

That crazy guy who was supposedly the best amongst the Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes might have looked lazy and easygoing, but when it was time, he displayed his true talent, while also showing that his personality was anything but normal.

-Anyway, Flame, do you know?

-Know what?

-How to survive against a group of beasts?

-…What?

I wondered what he was talking about all of a sudden.

Beasts? What beasts?

-Beasts? What? Are you talking about Demons?

-They could be Demons, or they could be humans.

-You said beasts first, so what are you prattling on about?

The Water Dragon started smiling after hearing my response.

Due to the dust accumulated in his messy hair, his face was dirty , but because of his natural handsomeness, he still looked like his smile would be able to win over girls.

That was why all handsome guys needed to die.

-I guess our little Flame is still naïve huh?

-What did you just say, you fucker?

-Humans can be beasts too. You know you saw it as well, right?

I frowned as soon as I heard the Water Dragon.

Just like it was now, the bastard’s gaze became chillingly cold at times.

Since he usually looked like an extremely cold person, seeing him with such a gaze made me rather uncomfortable, especially considering how he always had a smile on his face.

-Did I not tell you to not gaze like that near me? You want me to dig your eyes out?

-Flame, you know, you are the last one who should be judging other people’s eyes for not looking kind, you know.

-Shut up.

-I see your personality is still nasty as ever.

I felt like I would lose my mind if I continued talking with that bastard.

Snow Phoenix. Out of all the people, why did that crazy bitch pair me up with him for the night watch?

Though of course, even if I were to ask her that,

I paired you up with the Water Dragon because you are incredibly weak.

I knew I would hear an offensive response like that, so I decided to just bear with it.

The Water Dragon chuckled as he found something funny.

-Why are you laughing?

-I knew it. It’s really fun talking with you.

-Not for me, so please shut your mouth.

-Ubfubfubf?

-…Please, you insane fucker.

When I asked him to shut his mouth, he started speaking with his mouth closed.

He really was a maniac that transcended imagination.

-Am I not doing what you asked for?

-Ugh… my head hurts.

Could time not speed up a little bit? I might die of anger at this rate.

-Anyway, listen carefully.

-What do you keep telling me to listen to?

-About how to survive.

-If it’s just some nonsense like last time, I’m not even going to bother listening.

What was it he said?

He said that even if I became angry, I had to take hold of myself three times.

Since he was telling me to calm down when it was the other person’s fault, I didn’t even bother taking his words seriously.

-Nah, it’s a bit different from that.

-What is it then?

-The easiest way to survive…

When the Water Dragon spoke clearly, I unconsciously gave him all my attention.

For him to say it with such emphasis, I wondered what it was that he was about to tell me.

A way to survive huh? Did the Water Dragon have a secret method or something?

To satisfy my curiosity, the Water Dragon answered with a smile.

-It’s to never put yourself in a dangerous situation.

-…

-…What’s with that expression?

-I’m the retard for having hopes for you, even if it was for an instant.

-Hey, this is really important, you know.

-I’m sure it is, fucker.

How did it differ from something obvious? Like a person being able to become the Zenith with enough training?

Did he think that I intentionally jumped into dangerous situations?

-True, it’s not like you do it intentionally.

-…Did I just say that out loud now?

-Flame, I could tell from your expression.

-For fucks sake.

-Which is what makes you so fun.

The Water Dragon chuckled as if my face seemed funny to him.

Why was he laughing at another person’s face?

Should I just punch him?

-However, you have a tendency of jumping in despite knowing the danger.

-What?

-Sometimes, you run into danger despite knowing it.

-…

I couldn’t deny that.

Just as the Water Dragon said, I did willingly run into dangerous situations a few times, knowing well that I would be fucked.

-What does that have to do with anything though?

The Water Dragon made a strange expression on hearing my question. He seemed to be lost in thought.

-True, you always take it the wrong way whenever I jumble my words.

-What are you…

-I’m telling you to think before you act impulsively. You’re going to die at that ra- Hey, this is why I didn’t get straight to the point since I knew you would do this! Put out the flame in your hands! Everyone’s going to wake up.

-Who are you calling dumb?

-I’m just stating the obvious. If you know it’s dangerous, think before you act. It’s better not to act if you can’t take responsibility.

-Worry about yourself, I’ll be fine on my own.

-…Those are the least promising words I’ve heard.

In the end, our conversation came to a conclusion with me shooting flames at the Water Dragon after losing my temper.

The Water Dragon did tell me nonsense like that occasionally.

He somehow knew whenever I got angry and held me back every time, and he also saved me every time I was about to throw myself into danger.

At one point, I even suspected that he could read my mind, but I never took his nonsensical advice seriously.

Of course, it was only later down the line that I realized that his advice was helpful, but back then, I still didn’t know.

After all, humans were animals that learned through experience.

He warned me to not create a situation if I knew that it would turn dangerous.

It was pretty simple and obvious.

And yet, how was I not able to do that?

But to begin with, if I was good at it…

“…Could you back away a little? I become a bit heated when people get close to me.”

“…No.”

I wouldn’t have ended up in this situation.

Tap- roll.

I accidentally dropped the dumpling I was holding because they kept moving around.

In the end, I picked up another dumpling and yelled at the two cats on either side of me.

“Agh! Back off a little! Let me eat!”

Only after I shouted did it become quiet.

After that, I just thought about how this situation came to be while looking at the girls on either side of me.

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

My first mistake was taking the two of them to the streets to escape from the first situation.

The important point here wasn’t the fact that I took them to the streets, but the fact that I took ‘both’ of the girls at the same time.

If I was going to do that, I should’ve taken only one of them, but if I didn’t, that would become another problem.

The second problem arose because the relationship between the two was much worse than I thought.

I had come all the way down to the streets to escape my father's gaze, and I also wanted to try the restaurant in the Moyong Clan’s building.

It was managed by the Moyong Clan, so I was curious about it.

It seemed nice and their building was better than I expected. The clothes and accessories they sold were of high quality as well.

Because of that, most of the customers there were either owners of famous merchant associations, or girls from noble clans and Sects.

They were practically offering them money.

It’s probably thanks to their exclusivity.

It seemed like the accessories were made directly by the masters of the Tang Clan and I did not expect that they would make such accessories.

I thought they only made weapons.

It seemed like they also used gems while making these accessories to draw the attention of women.

Moreover, the quality was high and they were displayed in a manner that made it easy for people to see.

Won’t people steal if it's displayed like that?

Seeing the open display made me think as such, but of course, no crazy person would think of stealing from the Moyong Clan’s shop.

Things were fine until this point and it was interesting to see as well.

Since she managed the shop, Moyong Hi-ah didn’t seem that interested, but Namgung Bi-ah seemed to have some interest.

Afterwards, we ended up going to an inn recommended by Moyong Hi-ah.

She said that it hadn’t been that long since the Moyong Clan had been managing that place as well.

They had already built an inn in that time frame?

But how? You were also with me at the frontlines for a year.

I didn’t think that Moyong Hi-ah had managed to set this up all by herself, but if she did play a part, then I had to admit that she was talented in things like this.

Well, that was that.

But… The problem arose when it was time to eat.

“Young Master, please try this.”

“…But I already am?”

“This is a new dish made by our chef and he is confident about it.”

“Haven't I told you that I’m already eating it?”

It was nice that she kept offering me food,

“This…”

“…I told you… I’m eating it already…”

But it became hard to handle when I kept receiving food from both of them.

My stomach wasn’t a void, but if I only ate from one side and ignored the other, it would be problematic.

“Young Master, I heard that this is also tasty.”

After I barely managed to gulp one down, Moyong Hi-ah pushed another item.

I didn’t know what it was, but it seemed to be a bit red.

As I was about to eat it after letting out a short sigh…

Grab!

Namgung Bi-ah suddenly snatched the food from Moyong Hi-ah and ate it herself.

Unable to process what happened, Moyong Hi-ah became speechless and had a dumbfounded expression, but she immediately woke up from her stupor and stared at Namgung Bi-ah with her eyes sharp.

“…Sword Dancer…”

Despite Moyong Hi-ah’s cold voice, Namgung Bi-ah kept chewing on the food in her mouth.

Since her mouth was small compared to the amount of food she had eaten, it took Namgung Bi-ah a while to gulp it all down.

Gulp.

After she finally managed to swallow it all down, Namgung Bi-ah gestured with her hand while staring at Moyong Hi-ah.

“…This person can’t eat spicy food.”

“Oh…!”

After Namgung Bi-ah spoke, it looked like Moyong Hi-ah was struck on the back of her head.

It seemed she wasn’t aware of that.

And even I was surprised after hearing Namgung Bi-ah.

How does she know that?

I was wondering about how she knew that I was weak to spicy food when…

Oh.

I remembered Namgung Bi-ah handing me a cup of water at the banquet for young prodigies at the Military Exhibition of Tang in the past.

I guess that she remembered it from back then.

For her to remember something like that.

Knowing that I couldn’t handle spicy food, it seemed like she had eaten it in my place.

However,

“…Oof.”

Namgung Bi-ah wasn’t good with spicy food either.

On seeing her white skin become red after eating the spicy food, I burst out laughing, unable to hold it in.

“Why did you even bother doing something like that?”

“…Ough…”

It seemed like it was spicier than expected as she flapped both her arms.

I couldn’t stop laughing as she seemed so silly compared to her usual quiet self.

Dribble.

Namgung Bi-ah hurriedly drank the cup of water I had poured.

Because of how similar it was to what happened to me in Sichuan, it felt pretty refreshing.

“…Sigh, I didn’t expect to lose in this regard too.”

Next to me, Moyong Hi-ah had an expression of disappointment for some reason.

What did she lose in?

“As expected, I can’t underestimate you… Sword Dan- “

“Hi-ah.”

After she finally managed to get rid of the spice in her mouth, Namgung Bi-ah called Moyong Hi-ah after listening to her.

Was it the first time Namgung Bi-ah had called Moyong Hi-ah by her name?

“What did you just… say?”

“…I.”

Wondering if she misheard, Moyong Hi-ah tried asking again, but Namgung Bi-ah cut her off while pointing to herself.

“Fiancée…”

“…!”

Moyong Hi-ah’s eyes widened after hearing Namgung Bi-ah speak lightly.

It seemed like Namgung Bi-ah was saying that she was my fiancée, while Moyong Hi-ah wasn’t.

Moreover, because Namgung Bi-ah now had a small smile on her face, I saw Moyong Hi-ah clench both her fists in anger.

I wondered what they were trying to do instead of eating.

Thanks to that, I, who was watching this from the middle..

“…I feel sick.”

Didn’t know how the food entered my body.

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

After forcing down the food, I stepped outside.

The sun had set already and the moon had taken its place, welcoming the night.

However,

A lot has changed.

The nights of Shanxi that were quiet just a year ago, had changed a little in that span of time.

Bright lights filled the streets and I could see more people than before.

It was hard to say that this change was only due to the passage of time, so I assumed it was most likely because of the Moyong Clan’s shop built in Shanxi.

While I wondered if a single shop could cause so much change, I was also able to see how much influence the Moyong Clan’s name had when it came to business.

Now that I felt refreshed enough, I decided to return to the clan after walking a little more.

…It’s also difficult to watch the war taking place from any further.

The status quo between the girls following me was still the same.

It would have been better if they just had a physical fight at this point.

They didn’t seem to get along well and were also very incompatible with each other.

But I couldn’t just force them to be friends either…

Oh, right.

Now that I thought about it, I had forgotten about something.

I didn’t get to ask Moyong Hi-ah about what would happen to her if I went to Anhui.

Father said that he had already taken care of that.

…But because of the sequence of events, I forgot to ask her.

It was my mistake.

I should’ve at least asked her while we were eating.

Should I just go and ask her now?

I turned around immediately and looked for Moyong Hi-ah.

“Hmm?”

When I turned around, I saw Moyong Hi-ah staring at something in the distance.

When I looked in the same direction, I just saw an ordinary street.

Is there something there?

I decided to get a bit closer to Moyong Hi-ah and ask her.

“Hey.”

“Huh?”

Moyong Hi-ah had a look of surprise as she didn’t expect me to approach her first.

“What’s going to happen to you if I go to Anhui?”

“Huh?”

“The Lord told me that he has already taken care of it.”

“Did he not tell you?”

“He told me to hear it directly from you.”

He could’ve just told me himself, so I didn’t know why he insisted that I hear from her

After hearing me, Moyong Hi-ah suddenly opened her eyes conspicuously and gave a slight smile.

It was the look she had whenever she was planning something.

“…What are you thinking about?”

“Are you curious?”

“Huh?”

“I’m asking if you are curious.”

“A little?”

After my response, as if she was waiting, Moyong Hi-ah pointed at something.

When I looked in the direction she was pointing at, I just saw the same street that Moyong Hi-ah was staring at earlier.

“Please buy me that.”

“Huh?”

“If you buy it for me… I’ll tell you.”

She was pointing to a small necklace at the shop from the streets, and it just looked like a cheap accessory to me.

“What is that?”

“I just… want it.”

Moyong Hi-ah responded while looking away, and despite thinking that it was meaningless to buy it for her, I didn’t hesitate because of how cheap it was.

I made the purchase right away and gave it to Moyong Hi-ah.

“…Ah.”

After receiving the necklace, Moyong Hi-ah gave a small reaction, but it probably wasn’t because she thought that the necklace was pretty.

There was no way that Moyong Hi-ah would be impressed by a cheap necklace like that when she was already decked with expensive accessories.

“Thank you. I’ll take good care of it.”

Even so, even though it was just a cheap necklace, Moyong Hi-ah’s voice contained some warmth.

“You should’ve just bought it yourself if you wanted it that badly.”

“…It would have no meaning if I bought it myself.”

Moyong Hi-ah said along with a smile.

Hmm.

Come to think of it, this was the first time I’d seen her smile so brightly like th-

Zap.

“…!”

I suddenly felt Lightning Qi from behind.

I didn’t turn around, but it was obvious where such Qi came from.

“…Sigh.”

Only after hearing the small sigh did I realize that I had just made a huge mistake.