1281 - Childhood Friend of the Zenith

Namgung Jin's reaction was clear. Even as he gasped for air, he responded to the words 'Thunder Fang' and 'Hyun So-yeon.' That was all the confirmation needed. "You. You knew, didn't you?" Squeeze. "Grr...!" He applied more pressure. "Why are you pretending not to know? Do you really have a death wish?" Thoughts of torture ran through his mind. The killing intent weighed heavily, attempting to think rationally, but it wasn't easy. After all, this was about Hyun So-yeon. To be more precise... 'Namgung Bi-ah who resides within her.' Something involving Namgung Bi-ah, who inexplicably exists within Hyun So-yeon. Knowing this, he couldn't just stand by. "Answer me. Did she give you the Thunder Fang?" As he posed the question, he loosened the grip slightly. He needed the man to talk. "How did you...?" "How I know doesn't matter." At the same time, it also didn't matter how she came to possess the Thunder Fang. It wasn't surprising, considering Namgung Bi-ah was residing in Hyun So-yeon's body. The important thing was... 'The aura of the Thunder Fang I sensed from Namgung Jin back then.' The aura of the gray-tinted Thunder Fang felt altered but was familiar. 'Initially, I thought it might be due to divine power.' But it seemed too strange to be mere divine power. Daring to judge... 'It's the real Thunder Fang.' He concluded that it was indeed the true essence of the Thunder Fang. Therefore... 'How did Namgung Jin possess the Thunder Fang that Namgung-hyung should have right now?' This needed to be clarified. "Lord Baek... please wait...!" Mi Hyoran tried to intervene, perhaps finding his attitude too aggressive. "Come any closer, and this one dies." "......!" He threatened with an aura of killing intent. It was a warning not to interfere. He was serious. If this was what they wanted from him, he had to be certain. "The Thunder Fang. How do you have it?" "Grr..." "I've asked twice. The next will be the third." Even though he was issuing warnings, he honestly had no intention of killing him. If things got out of hand, he had considered turning him into a demon, but that would require significant energy, so all options had to be tested first. "What is that Thunder Fang?" The third question came, yet Namgung Jin only squirmed, still refusing to answer. Just as a sigh escaped from him and he prepared to exert more force... "...Received..." Namgung Jin sensed something and spoke up. Hearing this, he paused. "Received?" "...Yes..." "The Thunder Fang? How?" Received it? He looked over Namgung Jin's body. At this point, he had already conducted a body search. There was nothing that resembled the Thunder Fang in sight. "Are you saying you received the Thunder Fang from Lady Hyun?" "...Yes..." "How? The Thunder Fang requires a handle to be used." Namgung Jin's expression shifted again, finding it unusual that he knew so much. "How could you know..." "I heard some things too, so stop talking nonsense and answer truthfully. How exactly did you receive the Thunder Fang?" "..." The Thunder Fang is not an item that can be passed around. Generally, it's a mystical tool that cannot even be wielded unless chosen. The will of the Thunder's First Sword contained within it is what makes the selection. To his knowledge, Namgung Jin hadn't been chosen by the Thunder Fang. 'Hyun So-yeon. Or rather, did Namgung Bi-ah give it to him?' The fact that it could be handed over and accepted puzzled him. Moreover, without even seeing the handle, how had he received it? As he stared at the guy, full of questions... "The Thunder Fang... the handle is not the main component." "What?" He revealed information that was new even to him. "The handle isn't the main component? Then what is?" "...The Thunder Fang... it's the blade that's the core. I borrowed that blade." "...The blade?" The blade of the Thunder Fang. 'Isn't it just the thunder energy?' It is formed of thunder energy. The blade of the Thunder Fang is crafted through the user's thunder energy. I've used it myself, so I know. At that time, I also used my flame energy to create the blade. But... 'The blade created is actually the main component?' Moreover... "You borrowed and received it from her." Borrowing the blade. He couldn't comprehend this concept. "You're not explaining enough. How can it be given and received?" "...I don't know." "What?" My face contorted at Namgung Jin's response. "You don't know?" "I just... borrowed it from her. In the first place... I didn't even know how Lady Hyun had the Thunder Fang." "..." Upon realizing this, it made sense. 'This guy wouldn't know.' That Namgung Bi-ah exists within Hyun So-yeon. That the true owner of the Thunder Fang is Namgung Bi-ah, not Hyun So-yeon. '...If indeed the blade is the core and essence as Namgung Jin claims.' Was it that it wasn't about carrying the handle but integrating it with his body and soul? 'If so, it somewhat makes sense.' If it's blending with the blade itself, then Namgung Jin using it and the Sword Empress using the Thunder God Ascendancy could be considered. 'I thought it was about union with the divine sword. But is it actually the power generated through complete understanding of the Thunder Fang?' The hypothesis stood, but there was no certainty. After all, it wasn't his treasure to wield. Regardless, what mattered right now was... not the blade of the Thunder Fang. "So. Where is Lady Hyun?" The whereabouts of Hyun So-yeon. He needed to extract that information from the man. "Grr..." "Receiving the blade implies there was a significant circumstance. What was the reason for Lady Hyun to hand the blade over to you in that situation?" "...It was an apostle's attack." "What?" "To be precise, the day before the apostle's attack... Lady Hyun approached me and said she felt I needed to have it rather than her." "..." It was the day before Namgung Jin was captured by an apostle's assault that Hyun So-yeon sought him out to lend the Thunder Fang. 'Why?' Why make such a choice? "Did she disappear after that?" "…That's my last memory." "Damn." The curse wasn't directed at Namgung Jin—it was merely an expression of frustration. With those words, he released the pressure from Namgung Jin he had been holding. Thud. "Guh... Gasp." Namgung Jin exhaled the breath he had been suppressing. After letting go of him, he retreated a few steps. 'Hyun So-yeon handed over the Thunder Fang and then vanished.' It was as if she had anticipated the apostle's attack. Why did she do that? He had no idea. 'Hyun So-yeon. Or rather... Namgung Bi-ah's whereabouts remain unknown.' His brow furrowed. What on earth was she up to? What was her goal with all this? Chew. Unknowingly, he began to chew on his thumbnail. The gnawing sensation made him spit it out shortly and look back at him. "So. That's all the information you have?" "...What?" "You. You know more than just that." "..." "Saying you've forgotten everything is a lie. Your eyes suggest otherwise." "...That's not—" "You saw something in there, didn't you?" "...!" "As expected." Taken to a place where it was said he'd become an apostle. He saw something at the heart of it, with the Sword Empress becoming the central figure of the apostle. Namgung Jin's reaction made it clear. "What did you see... Never mind." Mid-question, he sighed. "I'll leave the rest to you." Having done this much, there was no need to push further. He planned to leave the rest to Mi Hyoran and Tae Hoan. "...Lord Baek?" "Judging by your reactions, you ought to know what to do. I'll be stepping out for now." He had been overly stressed. His head felt as if it were burning up. If he didn't manage himself well, he might do something irreversible to Namgung Jin. 'That can't happen.' Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't matter if he did. But now things were different. Namgung Bi-ah had done something to Namgung Jin. For that reason alone, it wasn't the time to meddle with Namgung Jin. 'She must be aiming for something.' That's why she handed over the Thunder Fang, though how she managed to do that remained a mystery. 'Tsk.' He wanted to drag her back and demand answers. What was she doing all this time? How did she end up here, and why? It would have been smoother if she had just stayed put. 'Why get involved?' He muttered internally, though the thought that it might be his fault made him feel uneasy. Thunk. As he turned to leave Namgung Jin behind... "Excuse me..." Someone called out to him. It was the Poison Phoenix. "Yes." Hiding my weariness as best as I could, I responded, noticing her cautious demeanor as she approached me with a question. "Lord Baek." "Yes, go ahead." "Um... By any chance." She kept trailing off. What is it? Feeling irritable, I found himself reacting sensitively. But having no desire to show anger to the Poison Phoenix, I held back. Then she asked. "Are you in some kind of deep relationship with Lady Hyun?" "...What?" What nonsense was this? Upon hearing it, the carefully maintained facade crumbled. "Oh, no... From what I heard earlier, you seemed very passionate." "...." Perhaps seeing my expression, the Poison Phoenix appeared flustered. Passionate, was it? I suppose so. 'To others, it might appear that way.' It could look as though I was a man driven mad by the need to find Hyun So-yeon. But it wasn't like that. "It's nothing like that. It's just..." "Oh." A look of realization spread across the Poison Phoenix's face. I continued quickly, reading her expression. "Lady Hyun resembles my fiancée. That's all. It just made me more attentive." "...Ah? Fiancée?" "Yes." "You have a fiancée, then." "Yes, I do." A woman with vibrant white hair. He thought of the woman who died searching for the moon for him. "She's very precious to me." "Oh-." The Poison Phoenix froze like a statue. Bowing slightly, I regarded her with a nod. "...Then, I’ll excuse myself." Passing by, I thought. Words I'd never utter before Namgung Bi-ah. The words he said with the most disingenuous intent, causing me to feel slightly dishonest about myself.