[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-childhood-friend-of-the-zenith":3,"chapter-childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-942":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Childhood Friend of the Zenith",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1240692,1667,"Chapter 941","childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-942",942,"\u003Cp>The murmurs grew louder, the words ringing in my ears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Did he say dragon?”“A dragon? What’s going on?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sound of voices swirled around me, joined by an oppressive wave of stares.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone had turned to look, reacting to the word that Myung Song had blurted out in shock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And it wasn’t just their gazes—it was the emotions I could feel emanating from them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was anger, fear, and even hints of resentment and confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the important thing was clear:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘None of this is positive.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every single reaction was filled with negativity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I glanced down at my palm, still throbbing. The skin looked like it had been melted away. Then, I turned my gaze to Myung Song’s hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘It’s that.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason my hand was like this was simple—it was because of Myung Song’s hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The metal gloves he wore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Touching them had done this to me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘…’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I narrowed my eyes, examining the gloves closely. I could tell immediately that they weren’t ordinary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘This is why I came here.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason I had bothered to visit the blacksmith at Mount Hua. The gloves confirmed it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I shook my hand out, flinging away bits of burned skin that peeled off in the process.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The damage wasn’t shallow, but the area was small enough that it would heal quickly if I left it alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘…Hm?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At least, that’s what I thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But something felt off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘The healing’s slow.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to my usual recovery speed, it was painfully sluggish—at least twice as slow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hid my hand behind my back, trying to ignore the oddity for now, though the stares continued to weigh on me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you… a dragon?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Myung Song’s voice broke through the tension, his gaze locked onto me as he asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What should I even say to that?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The question wasn’t just a question—it carried the weight of certainty. And if he was so certain, the reason had to be…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘It’s those gloves.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The metal gloves Myung Song wore. And also—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘The swords carried by Gubong and Seol Yeong.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The weapons wielded by Mount Hua’s first disciples.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I still hadn’t forgotten the time I beat the crap out of Gubong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During that fight, his sword had felt… odd. It hadn’t posed much of a threat to me, but there was something about it that lingered in my mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘That sword was strange.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I remembered the unsettling sensation it gave me during the fight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, it was easier to deal with him when he wasn’t holding the sword at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The memory had nagged at me, so I’d done some digging.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was worth investigating because the feeling had been so unusual. From that research, I had learned a few things.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Only the first disciples have unique swords.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’d only met two of Mount Hua’s disciples so far, but both had carried identical swords.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I confirmed this when I met a second disciple at Yahwol Palace and during a sparring match with a third disciple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both Gubong and Seol Yeong carried the same type of sword, and I felt the same unsettling aura from Seol Yeong’s weapon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, I asked Gubong directly about the swords.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I questioned him about where they came from, he told me they were custom-made by the blacksmith here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The origin was clear: the blacksmith and his forge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment I realized that, I had to know more about these swords.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘What are they?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What made them feel so ominous? And—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Is it the swords themselves, or is it the materials?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If it was the materials, what was so cursed about them?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, it was clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘It’s the materials.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The problem wasn’t the craftsmanship—it was the metal itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even as my burned arm throbbed painfully, I kept my gaze on Myung Song.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stared back at me, full of suspicion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had asked if I was a dragon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I met his gaze and asked in return, “Would it be a problem if I were?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Myung Song didn’t answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I could feel his unease intensify.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Silence has a way of amplifying emotions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Myung Song’s wariness rose, so did the tension in the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The atmosphere became increasingly hostile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hmm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I mulled over my options. What should I do?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be honest, I wanted to deny it, but—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘They’re already convinced.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was too late for that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides, the fact that they were so certain meant the metal was connected to dragons in some way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, Myung Song, what are you saying? There’s no way the honored guest is…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seol Yeong stepped in, trying to defuse the situation with a strained smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Well, they do call me that sometimes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I shattered her attempt at calming things down with my words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…What…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Myung Song gasped in disbelief, but it wasn’t long before his expression hardened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a loud clatter, he grabbed a hammer from nearby and pointed it at me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A dragon? Are you really a dragon?”“Well, that’s not good. Let’s calm down first.”“How dare you come here…!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as the word “dragon” left my mouth, Myung Song lunged at me, swinging the hammer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bang!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I sidestepped, and the hammer smashed into the ground, leaving cracks in the floor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How did you escape…! Have you come to torment us again?”“…That’s not what this is—”“Die!!”“Sigh.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wasn’t listening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a crazed look in his eyes, he swung the hammer relentlessly, destroying everything in his path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If this continued, the blacksmith’s workshop would be in ruins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had to stop him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stretching out my hand, I grabbed his collar mid-charge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eiii—!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Using a bit of force, I slammed him into the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Gah…!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even as he lay sprawled, he flailed his arms, trying to attack again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So I punched his jaw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Smack!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Urgh…!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The strike knocked him out instantly. Only after he was unconscious did the chaos settle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hah…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I straightened up, looking down at the unconscious Myung Song.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…”“A dragon… it’s a dragon…”“Why…? We barely escaped, and now…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The others in the workshop were still paralyzed with fear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If anything, subduing Myung Song had made things worse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, listen…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I tried to explain, but—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eek—!!”“It’s going to eat us alive…!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My words only seemed to fuel their panic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What should I do?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was stuck, scratching my head in frustration, when—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Honored guest… let’s just leave.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seol Yeong grabbed my arm urgently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Setting her basket of fabric and needles on the floor, she shouted, “I’ll come back for these later! I’m so sorry!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, she pulled me outside. Too confused to resist, I allowed myself to be dragged along.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>*************************\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seol Yeong pulled me along as we left the forge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her hurried steps carried us quite a distance in a short time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, the grip on my arm loosened. It wasn’t because she let go, but because Cheonma had grabbed her hand and yanked it away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let go. They’re not watching anymore,” Cheonma said, looking at Seol Yeong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Indeed, I couldn’t sense any lingering gazes with my heightened senses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even so, Cheonma seemed to glare at Seol Yeong with a strangely dissatisfied expression. Ignoring her, I turned to Seol Yeong and asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…What’s this about?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I needed answers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Honored guest,” Seol Yeong said with a serious expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you really… a dragon?”“They seem to think so, don’t they?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If everyone insisted on calling me that, it must be true, right? I shrugged and answered lightly, but her eyes widened in response.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing her reaction, I pressed further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why? Is it such a big deal if I am?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why was it such a problem? The Myriad Realms was a place where all kinds of races gathered. Surely a dragon wouldn’t be that unusual, right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Of course, I did hear dragons were extinct and couldn’t enter the Myriad Realms.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was that the issue? Even so, it didn’t seem to fully explain the fear and hostility I encountered back there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…If you truly are a dragon, honored guest, then yes, it is a problem.”“Why? What’s the reason?”“Do you truly not know?”“Would I be asking if I did?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I knew, I wouldn’t be questioning you.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My irritation was clear as I frowned, and she hesitated before continuing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t know all the details, but… I’ve heard that dragons vanished long ago because of something that happened. They can no longer set foot in the Myriad Realms.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That much I already knew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And that’s why those old men hate dragons?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No… it goes deeper than that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Deeper than the current situation?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then what is it?”“Well…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She hesitated again, chewing her lips as if reluctant to speak. But I needed to hear this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So I waited in silence until she finally said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I heard that before the dragons disappeared, Myung Song’s race was enslaved by them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her words made my brows knit instinctively.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Slaves?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Slaves? Did she mean the kind of slaves I was thinking of?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes. Actual slaves.”“…Wait, not a metaphorical term, but literally—”“Truly treated as subhuman, like property,” she said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Damn.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The dragons had enslaved another race. That explained the reactions I’d seen back there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘How did you escape…! Have you come back to torment us?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s what Myung Song had yelled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If what Seol Yeong said was true…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘They must have suffered greatly under the dragons.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How much suffering must they have endured to react that way?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their eyes reminded me…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Of how I view the Demonic Cult.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, it was more like the way I’d look at someone I had a truly wretched history with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was the best comparison I could make.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rubbing my chin, I pondered the situation. What now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As I thought, Seol Yeong spoke again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Honored guest… I don’t know why the sect leader brought you here, but…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her voice was cautious, her words carefully chosen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If he brought you here, I’m sure he had his reasons.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing that, I glanced at her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“However, considering Myung Song’s perspective… please don’t think too poorly of him.”“Why would I?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her cautious tone softened as I responded. If their circumstances were as she described, it wasn’t hard to understand Myung Song’s reaction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Relief washed over her face as she smiled. It seemed she’d been worried I would take offense and lash out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you for understanding… I’ll talk to him and make sure he calms down. I’ll ensure he stays out of sight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She spoke with a sense of resolution, but her last words made me interrupt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That won’t work.”“What?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her expression shifted to confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What do you mean it won’t work?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I mean, he can’t stay out of sight. I need to see him.”“You mean… you intend to meet Myung Song again?”“It doesn’t necessarily have to be him…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But judging by what I’d seen earlier, he seemed to be the one in charge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So for now, yes.”“But…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She trailed off, but her reluctance was clear. I could already guess what she was thinking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because I was a dragon, meeting with them would be difficult.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was the impression I got from her hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s fine.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I brushed off her concerns.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m not good at being friendly anyway.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If they were scared, I’d handle it accordingly. Unfortunately—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘I’m not in a position to be considerate.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t have the luxury of worrying about their feelings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If they feared me and kept their distance, that was even better.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Historically speaking—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Nothing is more effective for control than fear.”\u003C\u002Fp>",1907,"2026-06-05T15:10:21.117Z",1,"novelbin.me","a1dd8561df4eea7209ab6d12b83aee1f62ee76425ca2415b844d9ec7cdf5db81","childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-943","childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-941",974,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fchildhood-friend-of-the-zenith-cover.jpg"]