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Childhood Friend of the Zenith (Web Novel) - Chapter 1155: The World of Ascension (85)
Chapter 1155: The World of Ascension (85)
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I thought.“Hm.”
And then I thought again.
“Mmm...”
I wanted to cross my arms and contemplate, but that felt like too much at the moment. Instead, I wracked my brain as hard as I could.
I kept thinking, searching for a way to salvage this situation.
“Hm!”
And after all that thinking—
Nothing. This is already fucked.
There was no solution. No way to reverse this.
Even if I thought a hundred times, a thousand times, the answer was the same.
Fucked.
Completely and utterly fucked.
Cold sweat trickled down my back as I surveyed the situation.
And it wasn’t just me.
“...Wife?”
Gu Seongyeol, who had just been threatening me a moment ago, was frozen as well.
“...T-this can’t be...”
Gu Ryun, the one who had blurted it out, was equally dumbstruck.
And then there was Jin Yeonryeong—
“...Son?”
She stood there, pale as a ghost, staring at me in complete shock.
“Division Commander... What are you saying...?”
“A-ah... Well, that is...”
“A son? That Baek warrior is...?”
Jin Yeonryeong turned her trembling gaze toward me.
“...You’re his son?”
“...Lady Jin, it’s not—”
Gu Ryun tried to explain, but—
“Kh...!”
He clenched his teeth, as if making some sort of firm resolve.
Oh, shit.
I had no idea what it was, but whatever it was, I really needed to stop it.
“Wait, Elder—no! Great Warrior, hold on—!”
I quickly tried to intervene, but—
"It’s true...! This child is the hidden bloodline of the family head...!"
“Goddamn it.”
Gu Ryun didn’t stop. He spilled everything.
A shocking revelation burst forth.
“...What?”
Meanwhile, Gu Seongyeol stood there, utterly bewildered.
Because this had come completely out of nowhere.
“...What is this nonsense—No.”
In a fluster, Gu Seongyeol turned to his wife.
“No, it’s not—”
“...What?”
But Jin Yeonryeong was too stunned to even react properly.
“Not what?! Stop making excuses!”
Apparently furious with Gu Seongyeol’s response, Gu Ryun grabbed his collar again.
“This isn’t just speculation! The Blood Wheel Pearl activated! We confirmed it with Cheolwoon’s blood! That kind of reaction is impossible unless you’re family! Are you still going to deny it?!”
“...The Blood Wheel Pearl activated?”
Gu Seongyeol’s gaze snapped toward me.
“...”
“...”
“...Ah.”
A brief silence.
His crimson eyes glowed.
A voice rang out in my head—
–Answer me.
–Who is your father?
“...”
So he’d figured it out.
I clicked my tongue inwardly and answered.
–The man who happens to be your son, Grandfather.
–...
At my response, the family head furrowed his brows.
When I told him that my father was his son, Gu Seongyeol let out a low sigh.
Gu Ryun, however, became even angrier.
“Stop trying to avoid this, Family Head! If you’re a man, take responsibility! Are you still going to deny it? Fine, let’s bring out the pearl again and—”
“There is no need.”
Smack.
Gu Seongyeol knocked Gu Ryun’s hand away.
“What?”
“...It is enough.”
His voice was heavy, his expression twisted in frustration.
“...He is my child.”
A sigh escaped him as he admitted it.
“...Ah...”
At those words, Jin Yeonryeong staggered and collapsed.
“Whoa—!”
I rushed forward, catching her in my arms.
She had already lost consciousness.
“...Take her to the physician.”
Gu Seongyeol spoke grimly.
“And...”
He turned to me.
“You will come to the Family Head’s chamber.”
“...”
“There are things we need to discuss.”
It was a tone that reminded me of the times my father used to scold me.
*********
After taking Jin Yeonryeong to the physician, I followed Gu Seongyeol to his quarters.
Creaaak.
The door shut behind me as I entered, revealing a familiar sight.
Even in my past life, I had seen this place—the Gu Family Head’s chamber.
Thud.
Gu Seongyeol sat down in his chair and pressed his fingers to his forehead.
The room was dark.
The only thing visible in the dim light—
Were his two glowing, crimson eyes.
After a moment, he spoke.
“...Light a fire. The room is dark.”
“...”
He already knew I could use the Nine Flames Firewheel Technique.
There was no reason to hide it.
Snap.
I flicked my fingers, and blue flames ignited the lanterns.
Fwoooosh—!
“...”
Seeing the color, Gu Seongyeol tilted his head slightly.
His expression was filled with displeasure.
“...Something inhuman has mixed into your flames.”
“It just turned out that way.”
“That is the very thing we must avoid the most. A member of the Gu family... entangled with inhuman forces?”
“...?”
He was scolding me out of nowhere.
The Gu family must avoid anything inhuman?
“What’s with that look?”
“It’s just... this is the first I’ve heard of it.”
“What?”
“Yeah?”
At my response, he looked at me like I was the crazy one.
“...You mean to tell me... you know nothing about the Gu family?”
“No, I know what I need to know.”
“To what extent?”
“How much do you know, Family Head?”
“...”
“I was joking.”
Seriously. This family had no sense of humor.
“I know what the Gu family exists for. That much is clear.”
“...Ha.”
Hearing that, Gu Seongyeol let out a dry chuckle.
“And yet, you never even became the Young Master?”
“...Well.”
In my past life, I had been the Young Master.
Just... not anymore.
The real problem was—
Even as the Young Master, I didn’t know all that much.
The things I had learned were limited to:
The purpose of the Gu family’s existence.
The truth about our bloodline.
And—
The things buried underground.
Countless, unknown inhuman entities.
Their existence beneath our very feet.
“...I don’t understand.”
That was Gu Seongyeol’s reaction.
He genuinely could not comprehend what I was saying.
And now, I was the one growing confused.
“...Was I supposed to know?”
“Did that fool Cheolwoon tell you nothing?”
“We weren’t exactly close. We weren’t the type to have deep father-son talks.”
I had never heard of it.
That we shouldn’t entangle ourselves with inhuman beings.
That there was more to the Gu family’s history.
I had never heard any of it from my father.
Why?
I couldn’t understand. As I was trying to process it—
"Then..."
Gu Seongyeol spoke, his face deeply contorted.
"...The burden he could not carry—was it left for the child to bear alone?"
“...What?”
"A foolish choice."
Gu Seongyeol bit his lip. His face was full of regret.
“...What do you mean? No, more importantly—”
At this point, I had to ask.
"Do you really believe who I am?"
I had outright said, I am your son’s son, and yet he accepted it without question. That was odd, to say the least.
At my question, Gu Seongyeol looked at me with sharp, gleaming eyes.
"No matter how strange the situation may be, the heat within your body and the burden you carry prove it. Besides, in a world where even stranger things have happened, this is hardly surprising."
“...”
That... actually made sense.
"What is your purpose here? Why have you come, having failed to fulfill your burden?"
“...It’s not like I wanted to be here.”
I had been dragged here.
I was about to explain the situation when—
Gulp.
“...”
My lips parted, but then shut again.
Something blocked my throat, preventing me from speaking.
“...Damn.”
I scratched the back of my head.
I can’t talk about it?
I had just learned something new.
Apparently, I couldn’t tell anyone why I was here.
It was something I hadn’t even realized before, since I had never tried saying it out loud.
"It seems I can’t say it."
I answered honestly.
Hearing that, Gu Seongyeol’s expression darkened.
"A restriction."
“Maybe. I don’t know, but that seems likely.”
I wasn’t completely sure, but it felt that way.
"No matter how I look at it, I cannot understand... How did you come here as the Scorched One?"
He said it again.
The Scorched One.
I had lost count of how many times I had heard that now.
"...That damned ‘Scorched One.’ What even is it?"
"...You don’t even know?"
"Am I supposed to know?"
Had my father hidden this from me too?
"The Scorched Ones are those who disrupt the world’s balance. They scar the fragile barrier holding it together. In simpler terms, they are things that should not exist."
“...”
Things that should not exist in this world.
That’s me, huh?
That did seem to fit. But—
"...How did you recognize it immediately?"
"Because it is the duty of the Family Head. It is impossible not to know."
“...What?”
The duty of the Family Head?
That shocked me.
So that was one of the responsibilities of the Family Head?
Detecting the presence of those who should not exist?
"...Wait."
My mind went blank for a moment.
Then—
Was that why...
Was that why my father, despite being the Family Head, often left the estate?
I had always assumed he was handling matters related to the Great Magyeong Gate or Magyeong Gate.
But if that wasn’t the case—
If he had been going out for this instead—
It suddenly made sense.
"The Scorched Ones do not follow the flow of time or history. They are simply perceived the moment they exist. And it just so happens that one of them... is my grandson."
“...”
"If you did not come here with a purpose, then leave. This is not where you belong."
At Gu Seongyeol’s words, I swallowed dryly.
“...Yeah. I know that too.”
I knew.
I wanted to leave.
But I couldn’t.
I wanted to say more, but—
"Family Head!"
A voice called out from outside.
"Lady Jin has woken up...!"
“...!”
At those words, Gu Seongyeol immediately shot to his feet.
"...We will finish this later. Wait here."
“...Huh? What?”
The moment he heard that his wife had woken up, he ran straight out.
For someone who had been nothing but grumpy and irritable this whole time—
His face was suddenly filled with nothing but worry.
...Damn.
His love for his wife was intense.
“...Seriously?”
And now I was just... left here.
He just dumped me and ran off.
As I sat there, baffled—
Oh, right.
I suddenly remembered something.
Reaching into my robes, I pulled something out.
A sealed letter.
The one I was told to read upon arriving at the Azure Dragon Division’s destination.
It was about a top-secret mission.
“...Huh.”
To be honest, I had completely forgotten about it.
Since I was alone, I figured I might as well check it now.
But the moment I unfolded the letter—
“...?”
I froze.
Because the words written on it—
[Investigate any unusual occurrences at the front lines.]
“...?”
The front lines.
That incredibly familiar phrase made my expression twist.
