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Childhood Friend of the Zenith (Web Novel) - Chapter 1157: The World of Ascension (87)
Chapter 1157: The World of Ascension (87)
This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl
Whoooosh—!!Flames brushed past my cheek. I had reacted too slowly out of sheer surprise. I frowned as I brushed away the energy.
‘Daughter?’
Did that woman just say daughter? Daughter?
She even said she was this family's daughter.
If I hadn’t misheard, then that was definitely what she said.
‘What the hell is she talking about?’
Daughter? Before I could even process that—
Kwoooosh—!
I dodged the flames whipping toward me. The woman was busy hurling fire at me relentlessly.
‘Her level... is around Five Stars?’
She had reached the level where the Nine Flames Firewheel Art had attained Five-Star proficiency. That meant her mastery of the technique and her martial prowess had reached that stage.
Fwoooosh—!!!
And at that level, she was spewing out a tremendous amount of flames all at once.
Her ability to regulate firepower was impressive, but—
‘That’s excessive.’
Did she even have enough inner energy to keep up that output? Her energy level was somewhat ambiguous. If she kept up this barrage for much longer—
“Huff... huff...”
“......”
Just as expected. The woman was already panting, clearly exhausted. She had nearly drained all her energy.
“You... goddamn... bastard...”
As I simply stood there watching, she glared at me with resentment in her eyes.
“You just... keep dodging... isn’t that... unfair?”
“...So I’m just supposed to stand still and let you hit me? That sounds even more unfair.”
“If I’m putting in this much effort to attack... you could at least take a hit or two...”
“What kind of selfish logic is that? Your conscience must be long dead.”
“Haa...”
She panted for a while before finally regaining her breath. Wiping the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand, she then asked—
“Why are you speaking informally?”
Her voice was calmer now. I smirked at her question.
“You started it first. Weren’t you asking for the same treatment?”
“Ah-ha?”
She chuckled at my response.
“So you think I should show manners to an intruder?”
“That’s perfect. I don’t plan on showing any manners to someone who threw the first punch either. It’s easier for both of us if we just drop them.”
“Ha.”
She scowled, momentarily at a loss for words.
Fwoosh.
“You're really pissing me off.”
Once again, flames surged in her palm.
“...I’m giving you some advice. You’d better not do that.”
“Sorry.”
Clench—!
She curled her fingers into a tight fist.
“I don’t usually listen to people.”
Boom—!
She kicked off the ground, shooting toward me.
I glanced behind me. With all this commotion, the gatekeepers would probably show up soon.
Or—
‘Someone watching from behind might react first.’
There was a good chance that someone was already observing from the shadows, waiting for the right moment. And if that wasn’t the case—
‘I’ll just have to make them move.’
With that thought, I stepped forward.
Thump—!
The ground trembled ever so slightly.
“Huh!?”
The shaking disrupted her balance. As her lower body wobbled, her upper body crumbled along with it.
I dashed forward in that instant.
She was now completely within my reach.
Realizing how suddenly the distance had closed, her eyes widened in shock.
I ignored her and reached out—
For her neck.
I was going to tear it apart.
With that intent, my hand lunged forward, but—
“Stop—.”
Whoooosh—!!!
With those words, flames exploded outward.
Clench—!
A man.
Gu Seongyeol had appeared and seized my wrist.
“Ugh!”
The woman, having lost her footing, collapsed to the ground in front of me.
“...What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Gu Seongyeol narrowed his eyes at me. Only then did I release the strength in my hand.
As my grip loosened, Gu Seongyeol also withdrew his hold.
“I was merely responding accordingly.”
My wrist throbbed. He had grabbed me with considerable force.
“It looked like you were about to kill her just now. You call that ‘responding accordingly’?”
“I knew you’d stop me. If I hadn’t done that, you would’ve just kept watching instead of stepping in, wouldn’t you?”
“......”
Gu Seongyeol fell silent for a moment, but then he looked back at me and spoke.
“I told you to wait.”
“Ah. My apologies for that.”
I flashed a grin.
“I don’t usually listen to people.”
Quoting what the woman had said earlier.
“Ugh, my body aches...”
Still lying on the ground, the woman slowly pushed herself up. Wearing an awkward expression, she glanced at Gu Seongyeol.
Meeting her gaze, Gu Seongyeol looked back at her in silence.
Once their eyes met, she asked—
“...Father. Am I in trouble?”
Father.
I clicked my tongue internally at that word.
From the moment she called herself a daughter, I had expected this. It seemed my guess had been right.
‘...Did Father have a sister?’
The woman was part of the Gu Clan. Judging by her lineage, she was the child of my grandfather.
Which meant—she was my father’s sister.
‘Did such a person even exist?’
Just like with Jin Yeonryeong, I had no knowledge of this woman.
Then—
“Gu Seon.”
Gu Seongyeol called her name. So, her name was Gu Seon.
It was a name I had never heard before.
“Yes...”
She hesitated before replying.
“What exactly did you do?”
“Ah, well, you see...”
Given the chance to explain, Gu Seon immediately pointed at me.
“I rushed over because I heard Mother was injured. But then this weird guy was just lurking around, hesitating as if he was about to break in. So I figured he was an intruder and decided to deal with him.”
“Deal with me? You mean you just started punching right away.”
I cut in with a sour expression.
“Hey! Can you shut up!?”
“Why should I? I have a mouth, and I can use it. It’s mine, not yours.”
“You little—!”
“Quiet!”
Gu Seongyeol’s stern voice cut through our exchange.
“Your mother is listening. Don’t act reckless.”
“But... he...”
“He is a guest brought here by your brother. Meaning, he is not an intruder.”
“Huh? Brother?”
At those words, Gu Seon’s expression changed.
“That block of wood came back? When...?”
“Probably when you were skipping training and sneaking out.”
“Ah-ha! I see!”
I didn’t know that! Gu Seon said, scratching her cheek sheepishly.
“I mean... If you’d just told me, I wouldn’t have attacked him.”
What was with her logic?
“Are you blaming me now?”
“I wouldn’t call it ‘blaming’... just saying that maybe, maybe it was a bit partially your fault too.”
“So you are blaming me. First, you throw flames at a guest without hesitation, and now you want to pin the blame on me?”
“When did I ever do that! You’re twisting my words!”
The moment we exchanged just a few words, the conversation twisted into an argument.
Ah, no matter how I looked at it, it was clear as day—I was fundamentally incompatible with this Gu Seon person.
"You—"
Just as she was about to start another fight, Gu Seongyeol, who had been holding back, seemed ready to step in—
"That’s enough, all of you."
"......."
"......."
At the voice that cut through the tension, both of us instantly fell silent like children caught misbehaving.
The words came from Jin Yeonryeong, who was lying on the bed inside the ruined room.
"......That’s enough."
"......Wife."
At her words, Gu Seongyeol turned to her with concern in his eyes.
"Seon, you too. What kind of rudeness is this?"
"M-Mother... it’s not... that’s not what happened...."
"Apologize. Now."
"Huh? Me...? But, I mean...."
"No excuses. Now."
Jin Yeonryeong’s tone was firm, leaving no room for argument. Gu Seon flinched at her mother’s sharp glare.
Her eyes trembled for a long while before she bit down on her lip, looking at me.
Then—
"...Sorry."
It was the most pride-wounded apology I had ever received.
"...Uh, sure."
Not accepting it would’ve been awkward, so I acknowledged it.
But that only seemed to offend her more.
"Damn it...!"
Muttering to herself, she spun around and bolted from the room.
"Seon-ah! Ugh...."
Watching her leave, Jin Yeonryeong sighed and pressed her fingers to her forehead.
"...I wonder when she’ll ever mature."
Her voice carried clear concern.
Then, her gaze shifted to me.
"...You’re the one they called Baek Yangcheon, correct?"
"Yes, Lady Jin."
"......."
"......."
For a moment, we just looked at each other in silence.
I had nothing in particular to say.
Meanwhile, she was staring at me with a focused intensity, as if trying to assess something.
'Should I explain myself?'
Elder Il’s claims were a mistake. I was not the biological son of the Gu Clan’s head.
Wouldn’t it be better to clarify that now?
As for the matter of the Blood Wheel Bead—Gu Seongyeol could explain that. That would be the smoother option.
'It wouldn’t be strange if Jin Yeonryeong disliked me.'
I was a child who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, claiming to be her husband’s son.
How many women in her position would welcome such a revelation?
'Even here, being an illegitimate child would be troublesome.'
I had already lived through that kind of treatment before—I didn’t need a repeat of it here.
Just as I was about to speak—
"Madam, the truth is—"
"...It must have been difficult for you."
"...What?"
I stopped mid-sentence.
That was not the reaction I had expected.
"For a child so young... how hard must it have been...."
Jin Yeonryeong’s eyes glistened with unshed tears as she looked at me.
What...?
What is this reaction?
I was baffled.
"Wait. Madam...?"
"...I asked you something terrible before. I sincerely apologize."
"...Pardon? What exactly...?"
"When I asked about your parents... you told me, didn’t you? That your father was still alive."
"...Ah, yes...."
Well. My mother was alive too.
I just hadn’t mentioned it because the situation was too complicated to explain.
My father was still alive. That much was true.
The problem was—
"...Losing your mother, and yet, the one father you had was nowhere to be found. How painful it must have been."
"......."
Jin Yeonryeong had completely misunderstood.
"No, Madam. That’s not what I meant at all. I was never— I’m not the Clan Head’s son—"
"No. Go ahead and call yourself his son. You don’t need to hesitate."
"Madam, at least listen to what I’m—"
"A child should be able to call their father their father... It’s only right. Baek Yangcheon—no, Baek Gongja. You’ve been through a lot, but from now on, stay here with us."
"That’s not what I—"
What do I do?
She had completely misunderstood everything, and my words weren’t getting through.
Jin Yeonryeong had already fully accepted me as Gu Seongyeol’s son.
"...Somehow, I always thought you resembled Cheolwoon more than Seongyeol...."
"......."
Even my appearance was playing a role in deepening her misunderstanding.
Wait.
Did she just say I looked like Gu Cheolwoon?
"Do I... look that scary?"
"...Do I look that fierce?"
"What?"
"What did you just say?"
At the same time, Gu Seongyeol and I turned to stare at each other.
...This guy?
I was so dumbfounded that I almost voiced my thoughts out loud.
But then—
"...What do you mean by that?"
"...!"
A heavy voice suddenly cut through the air.
All eyes in the room turned toward the source of the voice.
There—
"Let go of me, you brute! Do you think brute strength makes you superior!?"
Gu Seon, who had been captured by a large hand.
And—
"That thing you just said. What did you mean by it?"
The man who had dragged her in.
Gu Cheolwoon.
His expression made it clear—
He had heard everything.
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Hello everyone, 3 chapters so far, we will continue today, but it will be later. Good luck to everyone!
