1154 - Childhood Friend of the Zenith

The ominously red-tinted eyes seemed to burn intensely. The distinctive sharpness of the wretched family's eyes, and the body type that unmistakably marked his familial lineage, were clear to see. He didn't have the massive build of his father or the first elder. Like me and other members of the Gu clan, he had a smaller frame. In comparison. 'About the same level as me.' He stood about the same height as I did before my transformation. For a martial artist, it meant he was rather short. Moreover. '...He really looks terrifying.' I usually avoid making such comments, but the person I was looking at, the head of the family, truly had a frightening appearance. His sharp, slanted eyes exuded something fierce and threatening. Ah, damn. Is this how others feel when they look at me? '...I really dislike it.' Suddenly, I started to understand their perspective, and it put me in a gloomy mood. But no... this isn't the time for that. 'So.' This person is supposedly the head of the family? I was caught off-guard by the sudden appearance of this individual. "Oh my, you've arrived?" Jin Yeon Ryong smiled brightly at her grandfather. "You said you'd be late, but you came early." "...Hmm. My business finished a bit sooner than expected." "Oh, I see. Ah, this here is Baek Yang Cheon... a colleague of Cheol-woon." "..." With Jin Yeon Ryeong’s introduction, her grandfather's gaze locked onto me. It was as if something intense and electrifying had struck me. I stood up. "...I am Baek Yang Cheon of the Blue Dragon Squad. It's an honor to meet the head of the Gu family." "..." Her grandfather nodded instead of replying verbally. "Please, sit down. I'll bring out some tea." At Jin Yeon Ryeong's words, the head of the family sat down without hesitation, and Jin Yeon Ryeong briefly stepped out of the hut to get the tea. Suddenly, we were alone. "..." "..." What should I do about this uncomfortable and stifling silence? I hadn't expected to meet him like this. I didn't know what to say, so I just remained silent. What kind of situation is this? Why did it have to be in such a secluded hut that we ended up meeting alone? While my throat tightened and I was barely holding back a sigh— "What brings you here?" Her grandfather spoke to me first. I swallowed a dry gulp and was about to continue— "...For a mission of the Blue Dragon Squad—" "Wrong." Her grandfather cut me off and asked again. "I'm asking how you came to be engulfed in that haze." "...." Startled, I widened my eyes and looked at him. 'As expected.' My suspicions were correct. 'So you're the one caught in the flames.' That voice from before... I had wondered, and it turned out to be true. 'It was her grandfather.' The current head of the Gu family, he was the one who had spoken to me back then. What should I do? How should I answer this question? I deliberated on whether to deny it or admit it, but in the end, the answer I came up with was simple. "What is this 'haze' you speak of?" I neither denied nor admitted it outright. I had to start by asking the question. The haze. That word kept bothering me. "..." When I asked what the haze was, her grandfather's gaze shifted slightly. "You don't know what it is?" "No, I don't know, that's why I asked." "..." He reacted with a hint of curiosity. Suddenly—! "...!" He extended his hand, trying to grip my throat. Damn it. Smack—! I barely managed to catch his wrist. Really, why do all the men of the Gu family seem to default to grabbing throats first? Their temperament is truly infuriating. "...Why are you doing this?" As I tried to hold his wrist steady, his arm tensed with strength. He was strong. "..." Despite my query, her grandfather simply stared at me without answering, then— Whoosh—! "—!" The hand holding my wrist transformed into flames, releasing itself. In an instant, his free hand lunged for my throat again. Clench—! "Urk!" He finally captured my throat. I struggled to break free from the firm grasp as— Whoosh—!!! In the blink of an eye, flames engulfed my body. The red blaze was intense. While my entire body seemed to ignite, there was something peculiar. 'It's not hot.' The flames were not painful nor did they burn any part of my body. They merely embraced and moved around me. For just an extremely brief moment, something akin to an instant, the flames adhered to me. Fwoosh. It wasn’t long before they vanished completely, likely having been retracted by the head of the family. "..." Staring at him with amazed eyes, he spoke to me. "It's quite strange." "...What was that about?" "The burden doesn’t cling to your body. Despite being more than qualified." "..." "Which generation are you?" "...What?" "I asked which head of the family you are in the Gu lineage." "..." I was startled. This old man... 'He already knows I'm part of the Gu family.' Baek Yang Cheon or whatever—none of it mattered. He already knew I belonged to the Gu clan. Moreover— 'A head of the family?' He asked whether I was the family head. I denied it. "...I was never the family head to begin with." "What?" This time, it was her grandfather’s turn to be surprised. "...Not the family head?" "Yes..." "Then, you must be the young head? How could that be... how is it that the young head is...?" "I'm not the young head either..." "...?" Her grandfather fell silent. "...Not even the young head?" "Yes." "..." He looked at me with a gaze that seemed completely perplexed. What was with this stare? Just as I wondered about his mindset— "Then... how did you break the restriction? Without even being the young head... how did you...?" He inquired. "How did you master the Nine Flame Wheel Technique?" "..." The mastery of the Nine Flame Wheel Technique and the lifting of the restriction. This mention brought clarity to his curiosity. 'I see.' I had already heard of this. The reason for the Gu family's existence. To represent the vanished ruler of the central plains. To do so, rising to the position of young head grants the privilege—lifting the world's imposed restriction on strength. This was the blessing and the curse meant for becoming the substitute of the ruler's position. The fact that he mentioned the mastery of the Nine Flame Wheel Technique together with this means... '...Without lifting the restriction.' This implies that the Nine Flame Wheel Technique is a martial art that cannot be mastered without lifting the restriction. 'Hah.' I hadn't known this. It means that the Nine Flame Wheel Technique requires at least reaching the position of the young head to be mastered, doesn't it? '...What an absurd notion.' Truly, I had no idea. Had I not shed my old self and remained human, I either would have never mastered the Nine Flame Wheel Technique or would have needed to become the young head to do so. "Your body is strange, too. You are not human. Haze... why do you exist at all?" "Why are you asking why I exist? That's quite rude, don't you think?" As he kept referring to me as part of the haze, my irritation started to rise. Suddenly—! "Urgh!?" With a loud crash—!! Out of nowhere, her grandfather grabbed and threw me. With a huge sound, the hut shattered, and my body rolled outside. The force was indescribable. 'What was that?' As I barely landed on my feet and lifted my head, I saw— Whoosh—!! The sole of a foot. It pressed down on the ground where I stood. Boom—!! The pressure burst forth, pushing my body backward. Right where I had been standing, her grandfather's foot stomped down. Roaaaar—!!! The red blaze burst out, its heat was intensely fierce. "Ha—!" Suddenly instigating a fight, is it? Trying to harness my energy while looking at the blaze, her grandfather spoke from within the flames. "Answer the question properly. I am not in the mood for jokes." "...Haha." What am I supposed to do, seriously? 'What a cursed family this is.' That foul temper seems to be a family trait. It's a mystery how it never changes. Attacking me just because I didn't answer? What's his deal? If I hadn't dodged just now, my head would have been crushed by his force. Shhhhh—!! Her grandfather still wreathed in flames, asked me again. "I will ask you." As he spoke, flames erupted from his body and filled the sky. A vast expanse of sky turned color. Scarlet Sky. The flames dominated the heavens. "What is your purpose?" "..." Staring at that cursed sky, I sighed. It seems I can't just ignore this. "Well, then." Rumbling—!! I unleashed the energy within me and spoke to him. "If you're curious, why don't you try to find out?" It started with him. As I mentioned before, members of the Gu clan generally have fiery tempers. 'And I'm quite confident among them.' Even among such Gu clansmen, I'm exceptional. "You won't learn a thing until you get a good beating." That's how it always is. They just haven't been beaten enough. I was about to charge in with that thought when— "Enough—!!!" Boom—!! "Huh?" Something massive descended from the sky. Crash—!!! Amidst the impact, debris exploded, and energy scattered wildly. Through the chaos, a large figure shook off the debris and shouted. "What is going on here?!" A giant with red eyes. It was none other than Gu Ryun. "…The head?" Upon seeing him, her grandfather frowned. Thwap—!! Suddenly, Gu Ryun charged at her grandfather and clutched his collar. "What are you—" Her grandfather frowned in bewilderment when— "Gu Seong-yeol! You worthless human!!" "...What?" It was the moment I learned the name of the head of the Gu family. Ah, so her grandfather's name is Gu Seong-yeol. Storing this in my mind for a moment— "No matter if it's a child you didn't want! Do you think you can kill your own son just because you want to escape reality? And you still call yourself human!?" "...Excuse me?" "What?" Both her grandfather and I were stunned by Gu Ryun's accusation. Uh, that's not right. It was then that Gu Ryun, unraveling the misunderstanding, blurted out nonsense. A rustling sound came from another direction. There, standing— "Son…?" Jin Yeon Ryeong, who had dropped a bowl of medicinal herbs all over the floor, looked at Gu Seong-yeol with trembling eyes. 'Oh boy.' Seeing this, I couldn't help but laugh in amazement. 'What a mess.' It truly was chaos.