Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 826

“Are you okay?”

“Hyung!”

“Oppa!”

As Kang Jin-ho appeared, the children who had been warming themselves by the fire rushed towards him. Kang Jin-ho hugged the children, his eyes scanning them intently.

‘No major external injuries.’

Some children had scrapes or minor ligament injuries, but none seemed to have wounds that required immediate treatment.

Kang Jin-ho inwardly sighed in relief.

“Hyung!”

Han Jin-sung approached him.

“Are you okay?”

“Ah… Hyung, I’m fine. I wasn’t hurt.”

“Good. That’s a relief.”

In the end, there was only one choice Kang Jin-ho could make.

It wouldn’t have been difficult to get just the children out safely. But doing so would have inevitably meant sacrificing others. Even Kang Jin-ho couldn’t save both the children and everyone else when the water tank burst.

He believed he had made the best choice. But he couldn’t help but feel a nagging unease.

‘Will such luck be possible next time?’

It wouldn’t be easy.

The day might come when he would have to weigh the lives of his acquaintances against the lives of strangers and make a choice. What choice would he make then?

‘It’s not a matter of choosing.’

Kang Jin-ho didn’t bother looking for an answer.

If choosing is difficult, then don’t choose. Right now, his abilities are limited, so he has to make choices. But if he had the same power as Jeokcheon [a powerful, possibly mythical figure], he would have had no trouble saving both the children and the people.

In the end, the answer is obvious.

To become stronger.

Kang Jin-ho arrived at a clear answer.

‘Yeah, that’s what it was after all.’

The answer that he had been consciously avoiding, the answer that was like Jeokcheon, the Demon Lord.

The solution to everything that happens because of weakness is ultimately to become stronger. And today, Kang Jin-ho had obtained the first key that would make him stronger.

‘It’s ironic.’

Even though he wasn’t particularly training, even though he wasn’t trying to achieve anything intensely, he was actually getting stronger faster than in the past.

In the early days after returning to this world, it was natural. His level of achievement was that high. But normally, as one approaches their original level, the speed slows down, yet Kang Jin-ho’s speed wasn’t decreasing at all.

Up close, there might be fluctuations, but from afar, the steepness doesn’t seem to slow down at all.

“Oppa.”

Jo Mi-hye’s body, nestled in his arms, was cold. Kang Jin-ho frowned slightly.

“I’m sorry. It’s my fault for suggesting we come to a place like this.”

“Ah, no, Oppa. Who would have known something like this would happen? You did it for us.”

They could have blamed him.

These were children who had barely escaped from a place where their lives had been on the line. It would be almost impossible for them to think rationally. Yet, these children were trying to defend Kang Jin-ho.

‘How warm.’

Their bodies were cold. But inside, a warm feeling could be felt.

Kang Jin-ho slightly curled up the corners of his mouth.

‘Yeah, that’s right.’

Why was he so attached to these children? Why couldn’t he leave the orphanage?

It was because of this warmth.

When he first returned to this world, Kang Jin-ho felt a sense of unfamiliarity. Even though it was a world he should be familiar with, a world he had longed for, the feeling he felt was closer to unfamiliarity than stability.

This warmth filled that unfamiliarity.

A warmth that accepted him regardless of who he was. Just the fact that someone needed him gave Kang Jin-ho a sense of stability he couldn’t feel anywhere else.

‘So that’s why.’

When others asked why he was so attached to the orphanage, when they asked if it was really necessary to go that far, Kang Jin-ho couldn’t give them an answer.

He had only made clumsy excuses, saying he just wanted to go with them, that he wanted to be different from before.

But now he knew.

‘I wanted to protect this place.’

Because it was a place he could return to, a place where he could rest.

It wasn’t a one-sided act of giving. He was already receiving a lot from the children at the orphanage.

Kang Jin-ho’s hand, which was holding Jo Mi-hye’s back, tightened.

“Excuse me.”

At that moment, several rescue workers approached Kang Jin-ho and the children.

“We are assessing the injured. We need to know if there are any seriously injured people or anyone whose condition is not good.”

Kang Jin-ho glanced at the children.

“Anyone not feeling well?”

No one answered. They looked at each other. They were looking for someone who was in worse condition than themselves. Even at times like this, they were thinking of others first, which was frustrating.

“It doesn’t seem like anyone is seriously hurt.”

“Even if you feel okay, you must tell us immediately if you feel unwell or if your condition changes. Just because you feel okay now doesn’t mean you’ll be okay later.”

“We will.”

“And even if you feel fine, you should still get a check-up. However, I’m sorry to say that there are so many injured people that we can’t transport everyone by ambulance. If you have a vehicle, would it be possible for you to go directly to the designated hospital for treatment?”

At that moment, Kang Jin-ho’s eyebrows twitched.

But he quickly relaxed his expression. With so many people injured here, it was impossible to transport everyone to the hospital quickly.

“We will.”

“Ah, then the designated hospital is…”

Lee Hyun-soo, who had approached them unnoticed, casually interjected.

“You can talk to me about that.”

“Ah… yes.”

The rescue worker followed Lee Hyun-soo to the side. After exchanging a few words with the rescue worker, Lee Hyun-soo grinned and approached Kang Jin-ho.

“It’s not far from here. There’s a bus, so we can move by bus.”

“Okay.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

‘I should go.’

Judging by their condition, there didn’t seem to be any major problems, but Kang Jin-ho wasn’t a doctor. Just because his martial arts were high didn’t mean his medical skills were high.

Kang Jin-ho had a history of curing illnesses like Hwang Jung-hoo’s, but that was limited to illnesses he could see with his own eyes.

In terms of overall ability, he couldn’t match a doctor who had professionally studied his field.

What Kang Jin-ho needed to do was to remove the turbid energy from the children’s minds before they went to the doctor.

“Chairman.”

“Hmm?”

“From what I hear, they seem to be doing surgical diagnoses, but it doesn’t seem like they have any trauma care prepared. I’ll prepare that separately.”

It certainly seemed necessary.

Removing the turbid energy might solve most of the problem. But he couldn’t be sure it would be perfect. Again, Kang Jin-ho wasn’t a doctor.

“Please do.”

“Yes.”

Lee Hyun-soo bowed his head lightly.

“But what about Director Jo?”

“Chairman.”

“Hmm?”

“People, you know.”

Lee Hyun-soo gave a sly smile.

“Sometimes, they need to be hit to come to their senses. Of course, it would be best if it could be resolved through conversation. But just because it can’t be resolved through conversation doesn’t mean we can give up, does it?”

It was the kind of statement that would make educators who said not to hit even with a flower foam at the mouth.

And Kang Jin-ho had no intention of agreeing with that ruthless statement.

“I don’t think that will make him come to his senses?”

“I’ll do my best.”

“Well, then…”

Kang Jin-ho shrugged and turned his attention away from Jo Kyu-min. He was a grown man, so he would take care of himself.

“And…”

Kang Jin-ho’s gaze turned to the building.

Water was still leaking from the hole in the wall.

“What’s the situation?”

“It seems there was some shoddy construction. They apparently used acrylic that was thinner than the standard to make the water tank.”

Kang Jin-ho frowned slightly.

He didn’t want to say that shoddy construction itself was a crime. Kang Jin-ho had committed countless greater sins in his life. He had no intention of branding them as villains and punishing them just because they had done shoddy construction.

But the fact that the result of that shoddy construction had directly harmed Kang Jin-ho was a different matter. The children could have died.

If it had been a natural disaster, he could have let it go, but if it was a man-made disaster, he couldn’t help but hold the person who caused it responsible.

“Where are they?”

Lee Hyun-soo gave a bitter smile.

“It’s not something the Chairman needs to get involved in. They’ll probably be going through hell from now on. This isn’t a world where people don’t have trauma from major accidents. They’ll be suffering from all sides from now on. Of course, they’ll go to jail, and if they’re lucky, they might get out early, but…”

Lee Hyun-soo looked at the leaking building and sneered.

“This will now be a junkyard. They won’t be able to recover any of their investment. They’ll have to tear it down and sell the land, but even that land will plummet in value because of the image. They’ll be left with nothing.”

“I see.”

Kang Jin-ho quietly nodded.

“They probably brought in a lot of investors, so all they’ll have left is debt.”

“Money isn’t enough.”

“That’s quite harsh, Chairman.”

Lee Hyun-soo said firmly.

“People who don’t care about money won’t care whether they have it or not, but for people who struggle for money, losing all the money they had is a huge shock. And if they’re burdened with debt, their lives will be hell. They’ll be going through hell without anything else.”

Seeing that Kang Jin-ho’s expression didn’t change even after hearing that, Lee Hyun-soo laughed.

‘He’s so harsh.’

Sometimes he’s a very compassionate person, but other times he seems to have no blood or tears. Of course, Lee Hyun-soo welcomed the harshness towards these kinds of trash.

“Even if that doesn’t ease your mind, it’s right to punish them in another way.”

“Another way?”

“Yes. The power you have, Chairman, isn’t just violence. It’s time you realized the power you have.”

“…Power?”

Kang Jin-ho tilted his head.

What power could the General Assembly have other than in the martial arts world? What power was he talking about?

“If you wish, I will move the congressmen who have connections with this side. And I’ll put some pressure on the judiciary as well.”

“The judiciary?”

“They’ll probably rot in jail for quite a while.”

“Hmm.”

Kang Jin-ho quietly nodded.

“I don’t want anything more than necessary.”

“Yes.”

“But they have to pay for the sins they committed. I hope there won’t be any lenient sentences.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

As Kang Jin-ho turned towards the children, Lee Hyun-soo wore a serious expression.

‘He’s very angry.’

The fact that the children were almost hurt seemed to have angered Kang Jin-ho. It was understandable, but it was also worrying.

The only beings that should be able to shake Kang Jin-ho’s emotions were his family. If another being became precious to him, that would mean more weaknesses.

‘First, I need to strengthen the security around the orphanage.’

If he couldn’t change Kang Jin-ho’s mind, he had no choice but to support him. It was the role of a subordinate to make sure his master could walk his path without wavering.

Lee Hyun-soo turned around, thinking that he might have to get involved in Kang Jin-ho’s welfare projects.

Now, he had to release the tied-up Jo Kyu-min.