New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

Chapter 1034: What Kind Of Friend

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There was a stunned silence for a moment before David lost his temper.

"What the hell did you let him go there?! That sly old fox was a hundred percent going to keep Gu Fang there, at the very least as a torture candidate, for leaving his post! How could you even think letting him go there was a smart move?!" he shouted, this time vocally, alerting

the others to their conversation.

Kary looked at him, shouting in the back of the narrow tunnel, and stepped in their direction. "What's going on?" she asked Alex in a whisper.

Alex looked at her with a worried smile, unsure telling her was a good idea. He knew Kary was of good heart, and, like David, they would want to storm the place, albeit for different

reasons.

But he couldn't hide it from her either. David was already making a scene out of it.

"Have you even tried getting him back?! Or are you too much of a coward?!" David shouted again.

Alex leaned closer to Kary so that the shouting wouldn't drown out his voice.

"Gu Fang apparently went to the Zhong Kui four days ago when we entered the dungeon, and Jack hasn't been able to reach him for three days. His last message said I'm sorry, boss," Alex explained, all the while David kept shouting at Jack over the line.

"Don't you think I know that, you asshole?!" Jack finally shouted back.

David shut up instantly, the roar of Jack's voice making his voice choke in his throat.

"What, you think I can't connect dots so obvious that a child could see the full picture? Do you think me a fool?" Jack asked, his voice lowering back to normal.

David gritted his teeth, trying to calm down as well.

"Then why did you let him go?" he asked through a clenched jaw.

Jack sighed loudly, the tiredness of his body audible in that exhale.

"Because Fang wasn't just my assistant, Mr. Magnus. He was also my friend. What kind of friend would I be if I stepped in between a man and his family?" he asked, sounding exhausted.

David was about to start a tirade again when Alex put a hand on his shoulder, shaking his head.

"Jack. You said that China locked its borders. How strongly do you think that is?" Alex asked. Jack took a moment to reply, having a clue of where this conversation would lead. He was weighing whether he wanted to send kids to get his friend back.

"It's pretty strongly enforced. But I doubt they would catch a plane flying under radar altitude, especially one conceived to be as hard to track as the one you are in. But this isn't a good idea, Alexander. You guys would stick out like a sore thumb in China right now."

Alex smiled at the warning.

"You let us worry about that, old man. I can already tell that two of my team want to knock on the Zhong Kui's doors. And I can't say I'm not also partial to that idea. We'll find a way to be discreet. Sit tight."

Alex was about to hang up the call when Jack called out his name.

"Alex, wait."

"Hmm?" Alex hummed.

"Thank you. You don't know what this means to me," Jack said before the line clicked.

David turned to look at Alex, his face filled with resolve.

"I don't know if we'll be able to get in and out covertly, but I do know this. We are knocking on some old fuck's doors," he said with a grin.

Alex smiled at him, but didn't respond to his enthusiasm.

"Let's get back to the top of the volcano, guys. I've about reached saturation of being in tunnels," he instead said to all the others.

Everyone seemed enthused at the idea of being under the open sky once more, and they weren't asked a second time.

Using the pathway Ri-Chu had constructed on their way in, the group walked back to the top of the crest of the fortress-looking mountain and stopped at the edge, looking out at the open

sea.

"I bet this view looks amazing at sunrise," Kary said, her mind looking at the romanticism of a place like this.

Jin-Sil giggled at her comment.

"You know, the name actually means this. In olden times, the Seongsan Ilchulbong was referred to as either the Seongsan or the Ilchulbong. These names mean Fortress Mountain and Sunrise Peak.

"They only changed the name in 2016 to include both since tourists kept getting confused at being told two different names for the same mountain. But this mountain's principal attraction is seeing the first sunrise of the year. It quickly becomes crowded that day," Jin-Sil explained, giving them a brief history lesson.

Killian looked at the young lady and chuckled.

"You know your history well, Jin-Sil. A bit of a history buff on your off times?" he asked, teasing her.

"Hey, you can't blame a person for being patriotic. I love my country, even though I feel like everyone here wants to move to America," she giggled.

It was common amongst the younger generation, who wanted to move to America and see the American dream for themselves. The older ones knew better than to believe all they saw on

television.

Killian smiled at her.

"Indeed, I can't blame you for being patriotic. I'm just surprised you know even more minor things like these. In England, some people barely know the history of their own town. It's sad, really," he said, his expression turning mockingly sad.

The sun was high in the sky above their heads, and as Alex and David made it to the peak themselves, hanging back from the others for a discussion they would rather not have

everyone hear, they looked at the ocean themselves.

"To think home is so far out that way," Alex mockingly said, looking eastward.

"Far? The hell you mean, far? You can literally teleport, asshole. Out of everyone, home is the closest to you," David joked, punching him on the shoulder.

"In any case," Alex said, rolling his eyes at David.

"We know everyone is excited to return home, but we might have a detour to make. Of course,

I won't force anyone to come, and we can bring the ones who want to return home to their country before going on that errand. But your help would be appreciated," he added.

"What errand?" Liu Yan asked, his curiosity piqued.

Alex looked at him, sighing internally.

"Well..."

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