1319 - Childhood Friend of the Zenith

Creaaak. "Dad?" Space and time stabilized. As I focused again, I looked at Tolly who was in my arms and regained my composure. "……Haa." I exhaled a sigh. Then, I gently put him down for a moment. "This is driving me mad." "……Hmm?" "Wipe your nose." "You do it for me." "Are you crazy?" "Heesh……." He wiped away his tears and snot on his own. Watching this, I clicked my tongue inwardly. The information I had just received was giving me a serious headache. '……The Blood Demon. The Five Senses.' And the Heavenly Demon and Wi Seol Ah. 'This is insane.' I recalled the true goal of the Blood Demon. What he desired were the Five Senses and the restoration of his flesh and energy. Cheol Yeong had attempted a seal. The objective was to break it, fully resurrect himself, and then pursue additional purposes beyond that. '……If the Blood Demon had his way.' I'd heard of it before. 'Paradise.' He claimed to dream of paradise. I had wondered what he meant by that. 'No interpretation suggests anything good.' Just from his actions alone, it was clear his intentions weren't noble. "Hissss." I must prevent that. "……It means I have to protect everything." The Blood Demon must not obtain the Five Senses. Beyond that. 'Whether it's Wi Seol Ah…' Or the Heavenly Demon. I must ensure that none of them fall into the grasp of the Blood Demon. 'But.' If there is any question to consider. 'Why has there been no trouble until now?' Why, when the Blood Demon could act, did he not target the Heavenly Demon and Wi Seol Ah? 'Especially since the Heavenly Demon…' He even entrusted her to be raised in the Black Night Palace. In my previous life, that was the case. 'He could've gathered power himself, yet he let it mature more.' The same could be said for Wi Seol Ah. 'Then how about my past life?' I can't make sense of it. 'In my past life—.' The divine sword Wi Seol Ah killed the Heavenly Demon and saved the world. Peace should have been restored. 'And no trace of the Blood Demon obtaining the senses.' No sign of him absorbing those two was ever found. The Blood Demon entity itself didn't appear at all. 'What on earth is the situation?' What is truly happening? I could not understand. What is occurring? '……In this era, the Five Senses was born at once.' Hence the era of meteoric talent. They said it was a time when individuals with bizarre talents ran riot, an opportunity for the Blood Demon. This era supposedly marks his resurrection point. 'Yet there's no movement.' Why isn't the Blood Demon advancing? The ancestor claimed 'She exerted her power.' It wasn't hard to guess who "she" referred to. '……The Heavenly Demon?' The Heavenly Demon. The one who had sent me back in time. 'A woman whose depths only reveal more mysteries.' She isn't just a villainous monster; she seems inexplicably tied to me. 'Who are you, really?' I couldn't understand. "What do you want?" As I frowned, thinking of the Heavenly Demon. "What'd you say?" Tolly asked me. Right, this little guy was still here. "Hey." "Huh?" "How did you come here?" How on earth did this kid cross over? It was strange with Namgung Bi-ah, but this is just as peculiar. Even more so because— 'With Namgung Bi-ah, it was just her mind transferring.' Yet, this guy came over physically. When I inquired about it, he answered, "Uncle opened it." "……Uncle?" "Yeah." "Which uncle? Who's your uncle?" "Uncle Cheol Jiseon." "What……!" Cheol Jiseon's name came up? My eyes widened. "What did he do?" "I needed to find you…… Blue Mom found the way, and Uncle opened the door." "……Blue Mom?" The shocking moniker made my head spin. But amusingly, I had a sense of who that might be. '……Namgung Bi-ah, perhaps.' Who gave her the right to be called 'Mom'? As I tried to shake off the jolt to my brain, "……Namgung Bi-ah discovered the path and Cheol Jiseon opened the door." "Yeah." Cheol Jiseon can open paths to the Demonic World. It reminded me of what the ancestors once said. 'The sense of touch of the Blood Demon opens what shouldn't be opened.' If that's the case, it looks like Cheol Jiseon— 'Could it be he possesses the sense of touch?' Only then did it become clear how he could open paths to the Demonic World. There's no need to question what other talents he might have. That ability alone was mystery enough. 'And the others?' Based on what the ancestors said, I could predict a bit. As that wise person mentioned, 'They are drawn around me.' Due to my own karma, the Five Senses of the Blood Demon were gathering around me, allowing me to identify them. Though some still elude me. "……Exactly." What does 'finding the path' mean? What did Namgung Bi-ah gain from the deal? As I kept myself from succumbing to the headache, "Dad……." Tolly spoke to me. "What?" "……Finally. Let's go back now." "What?" "We found you, so let's go back……." Tolly said with anxious eyes. Go back? "I'm planning to." It's not like I don't wish to return. I soothed his uneasy head by gently stroking it. 'Wait.' I sensed something off. "Hey." "Uh……?" "Is something happening outside?" The way he reacted suggested trouble outside. I had knowledge of what Namgung Bi-ah mentioned. 'The flow of time differs from my perception.' When Shin Noya was in the Ten Thousand Worlds, the decades that passed meant less than a year to me, leading me to believe it would be the same for myself. But with the reactions of Namgung Bi-ah and Tolly, it seemed otherwise. "……How long have I been gone?" I inquired about how much time had passed since I disappeared. "Two years……." "……What?" "It's been two years since you vanished." Those words hit like a brick, and my mind went blank for a moment. "……Two years?" Too much time had passed. It had been two entire years? 'In that case.' What about the glimpse of my father that I had? And. 'The girls?' What happened to the girls around me? Chills ran down my spine. "The kids. What about everyone else?" "……Ugh." Gripping his shoulders tightly, Tolly winced in pain. Noticing this, I gently released my hold. "Tell me. What's happening?" "The moms… they're in danger." "……What?" "Grandpa's in danger too. Everyone's at risk…… Uncle Jegal Hyuk said we have to bring you back quickly." "……." My heart skipped at the mention of danger. My fingers trembled at Jegal Hyuk's directive. "We need to go soon……." "……." I narrowed my eyes. 'Ah, this.' It seemed there was no time left to ponder. My temperature was rising. As I reached out, intending to ruffle Tolly's hair once more, a voice intervened. -Do not be hasty. "……." The voice of the ancestor echoed. -What the child says is true. Time may have passed, but now it is different. 'What do you mean?' -Currently, time is frozen. Do not make hasty choices. '……Now?' Then does that mean it wasn't originally so? Shouldn't I have been informed at the very least? As I grit my teeth and considered. -It was necessary. This is some kind of absurdity. -…Take your choices slowly, I beseech you. I lowered my hand. Though the assurance of time being frozen provided some comfort, 'Still, the fact that two years have passed isn't different.' The time that flowed while I was absent still concerned me greatly. And more importantly—. 'The fact that they are in danger.' The thought of the children being in danger drove me to the brink. Could it be? 'Has the Blood Demon begun to move?' What if he has started acting to obtain the Five Senses as he had vowed? What about measures? Do I have anything in place to counteract this? In terms of deployed forces. 'Those of key interest are ineffective without me.' Due to their extreme danger, I needed to personally manage them for them to be of any use. If indeed. 'The Blood Demon started moving in my absence—.' Things had already diverged from my previous life. There were aspects I needed to seriously consider, especially now that I knew the Blood Demon's intentions. "……Damn it." I supposedly have time to make careful choices? 'Laughable.' What about granting me the leisure of making that time? Looking up, I gazed at the distant tree. It was where my mother was bound. 'Five days?' Father claimed he'd return to discuss matters in five days. 'Sorry, but.' Seems I can't afford that wait. 'Mother.' I wanted to ask. 'What exactly do you want me to do?' What am I supposed to be doing? The damned fate that supposedly wants me to follow desires; I don't know how to approach it anymore. 'Mother.' What if you perhaps. 'Wish for me to become a calamity?' I didn't think that was the case. But for not wishing so, this world seemed to incessantly urge me otherwise. I realized this when I touched Tolly. This suggestion to find the original body, to find the snake……. 'It was you.' I looked at Tolly. 'My original form.' The reason why he grows stronger alongside me. As my level increases, the more potent my aura becomes, and his form and size change accordingly. I finally understood now. 'The essence of a Dragon.' The true form possessed by a Dragon. The core of identity and aura. That seemed to be Tolly. Which means, '……If I absorb him.' I would fully awaken as a Dragon. 'The qualification as a Master would be fulfilled.' The last piece to the bizarre puzzle assembled from numerous mixed elements would register. 'Ensuring I become a calamity.' The unfocused potential of a master emerges, heralding disaster. "……." "Dad?" At his call, I turned my gaze. Beyond my mother and Muah, in a different direction. "……Let’s go for now." "Where to?" In response to Tolly's question, I answered. "Home." It was time to return home.