Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1001

“It’s not over yet!” It’s always the same thing! It’s a phrase I’m tired of saying, but as always, cleaning up after something is harder than starting it. The war was over, but the hellish cleanup remained. And the main person in charge of that cleanup was always Lee Hyun-soo. ‘Why am I even in England!’ Logically! Wiggins and Master should be handling the cleanup of what happened in England! Why am I running around like my feet are on fire! ‘Ugh, damn it.’ But I couldn’t bring myself to complain. Right now, Wiggins and Master were dealing with something more serious than the cleanup. Thanks to Kang Jin-ho causing a massive explosion when he entered the Round Table, the place was now surrounded by the military and police. The British upper echelons couldn’t not know that the Round Table was here, and as soon as they realized the Round Table was exposed to an external attack, they mobilized the military and police. It’s absolutely forbidden for the military of the outside world to get involved in the affairs of the Murim world [martial arts world], but… since we caused an explosion without telling anyone, we had no excuse either. Thanks to that, Master and Wiggins, who had the highest public recognition, were running around trying to resolve the situation. Even if they rushed over, if Master and Wiggins showed their faces and said it was nothing, they would have no choice but to accept it. Master and Wiggins were the representatives of the British Murim world. But…. ‘That’s why I’m going crazy.’ Since the two people who should be handling the situation were out of the picture, the only one who could run around was Lee Hyun-soo. Kang Jin-ho and Bator were not the type of people who would be helpful in this kind of situation, and it was hard to communicate with Bang Jin-hoon. It was only thanks to Chevalier and the Knights of the Garter that Lee Hyun-soo was able to somehow manage the situation. And decisively…. “This way.” At Lee Hyun-soo’s gesture, the knights silently nodded and went into the room. After confirming that everyone had entered the room, Lee Hyun-soo opened his mouth in a low voice. “I’m saying this just in case, but it’s best not to try anything reckless. Remember that one person’s resistance can make things difficult for everyone else.” There was no answer. Click. Lee Hyun-soo closed the door and sighed. ‘At least this is a relief.’ In fact, this was an absurd situation. Of the forces the Round Table could mobilize, those here were less than a tenth. But their numbers were more than ten times the total number of the Assembly that came here. Controlling such people was practically impossible. But they showed no signs of resistance at all. Kang Jin-ho’s divine might, which had literally overturned the Round Table, was clearly imprinted in their minds. ‘Master’s presence must have helped too.’ It was none other than Master who had calmed the hall that had fallen into chaos. Master had declared to them that there would be no more sacrifices and promised to normalize the Round Table. With Knight Levo’s neck broken, they had no justification to resist. Of course, it wasn’t like they could have resisted even if they had a justification. Lee Hyun-soo chuckled. ‘It’s funny when you look at it like this.’ The Round Table operates through a system. The system has many disadvantages and many advantages. But the advantage that should be demonstrated in this situation was that it was not affected by human emotions or situational variables. A situation where the person who took the position of Master dies during battle? It was a situation that would have caused other groups to panic, but within the Round Table, there was a perfect manual for it. There wouldn’t have been a single person who didn’t know who should take the Master’s position and how to deal with it. But that manual was not executed. Kang Jin-ho’s existence tore apart the principles, systems, and manuals that the Round Table had so revered. A single being that no countermeasure could work against had disrupted everything like a foreign object that had gotten into a perfectly functioning machine. That was also one of the reasons why they couldn’t move right now. Of course, the fact that Kang Jin-ho was staying within the Round Table was a major factor, but there was also the fact that they didn’t know how to rebel or resist in a situation where the system had collapsed. ‘What if the situation was reversed and we were captured here?’ We would never have been so docile. Bator, Bang Jin-hoon, and Wiggins were not the type of people who would quietly accept being bound by the enemy. Even Lee Hyun-soo and Lee Myung-hwan would have tried to resolve the situation on their own, regardless of Kang Jin-ho. But they couldn’t do that. When the commander disappeared, they became powerless like puppets with their strings cut. It would have been different if all the people who could give orders had died, but since some of the knights and the former Master were still alive, they couldn’t acquire the right to command on their own. So they had become as listless as wilted plants. It was an interesting result. “Chief.” “Yeah.” “The guys over there are all locked up in the rooms. They went in willingly.” “I guess so.” “But will this be enough? It’s not like it’s hard for those bastards to break down the doors…” “It’s okay.” Lee Hyun-soo shrugged. “There won’t be anyone who breaks out.” Lee Myung-hwan looked confused. Lee Hyun-soo smiled slightly and added. “Because there’s nothing for them to do even if they break out. It’s not like we’re going to swallow the Round Table anyway.” “Isn’t that something they can’t be sure of?” “They can be sure.” “Huh?” Because they have eyes. Lee Hyun-soo smiled. It wasn’t for nothing that he had turned Wiggins around in that urgent situation. Everyone would have seen Master and Wiggins standing together on the Assembly side. The symbolism of the former Master and the symbolism of the former Knight of England. Add to that the realistic threat that this place was in England. If all of that was put together in their minds, they would have concluded that it was more beneficial to return to the old Master’s system than to resist for no reason. There might have been resistance under normal circumstances, but with Kang Jin-ho and the Assembly having taken control of the Round Table, the return of the Master was good news for them. “Not everyone is as stupid as you.” “Hey, I’m smart.” “Whatever, man.” Lee Hyun-soo waved his hand. The fact that he could joke like this was a miracle in itself. Since there were almost no injuries or casualties, they could afford to relax. But Lee Hyun-soo knew that this result was not their success. ‘To be cold about it, it’s our side’s strategic failure.’ Lee Hyun-soo felt responsible. Even though he had entrusted Wiggins with the role of defining the Round Table’s power and measuring the appropriate force, Lee Hyun-soo was not in a position to avoid responsibility for what others had done. If he had lived like that, Lee Hyun-soo would not have been in this position. Even if Wiggins had said that this was enough, it was Lee Hyun-soo’s job to prepare for unexpected situations. But this time, neither Wiggins nor Lee Hyun-soo knew the true power of the Round Table. ‘The Elder Knights were definitely a variable.’ They had never imagined that there would be so many people that strong. The biggest enemy that Wiggins and Lee Hyun-soo had assumed was the Knights. What would have happened if Kang Jin-ho hadn’t been here? Kang Jin-ho’s power was also one of the forces they had anticipated. But if they had replaced Kang Jin-ho with the power that Wiggins and Lee Hyun-soo had thought was enough? ‘Annihilation.’ The moment the Elder Knights appeared, the Assembly would have been annihilated here without a single person escaping. It was chilling to think about. In the end, this best-case scenario was closer to a coincidence that was possible because the variables they had were not greater than the variables the Assembly had. If Kang Jin-ho hadn’t been able to handle the Elder Knights, Lee Hyun-soo would have been a corpse buried somewhere by now. Lee Hyun-soo licked his dry lips. ‘We lack information.’ The way the Assembly and the Yeongnam Association had been fighting each other was no longer viable. In the past, the Assembly and the Yeongnam Association knew each other inside and out. Perhaps Lee Hyun-soo knew Lee Joong-geol better than Lee Joong-geol knew himself. That’s why they could predict each other’s movements, and that’s why they could maintain a tense standoff for so long. But overseas was different. Unfortunately, the Assembly’s overseas intelligence capabilities were almost non-existent. If you look at the cause of this situation, it stemmed from the fact that they had to rely entirely on Wiggins’ memory to measure the Round Table’s power, even though they had to fight the Round Table. If Lee Hyun-soo had been able to investigate and obtain information about the Round Table, he would have been able to find out about the existence of the Elder Knights, and if that was the case, he would have prepared more troops. Or he would have given up on the expedition itself. ‘This won’t work.’ Their opponents were no longer in the country. Japan, China, and now even Europe. To continue fighting in the future, they needed more information. Lee Hyun-soo turned his body, thinking that he would have to strengthen the overseas intelligence network as soon as he returned to the Assembly. “But Chief.” “Yeah?” “Where is the Lord?” “…He’s probably resting.” “Shouldn’t we call a doctor? His injuries weren’t a joke.” Lee Hyun-soo smiled bitterly. ‘He’s a strange one.’ The more he saw Lee Myung-hwan, the stranger he became. In Lee Hyun-soo’s eyes, Lee Myung-hwan was a sly guy. He seemed to only do what he was told, but he had a hidden ambition, and he seemed stupid, but he had a smart side. It was strange that such a guy showed such intense loyalty to Kang Jin-ho. ‘Well.’ Ambition changes depending on the situation. No matter how fierce Sejo [a historical Korean king known for his ambition] was, if Munjong [another historical Korean king] hadn’t died early, he wouldn’t have dared to show his ambition on the surface. Perhaps he would have used his abilities well and left his name in history as a great royal. Ambition is ultimately revealed when there is no power to suppress it. As long as Kang Jin-ho was alive, Lee Myung-hwan’s ambition would never be revealed to the world. So, for now, it was enough to use him well. “The Lord will take care of himself.” “Still…” Lee Myung-hwan still looked dissatisfied. “Okay, I’ll ask him once.” “Yes.” “That’s enough, and you go check on the injured guys. There will definitely be some who are hurt but can’t say anything.” “They’ll take care of themselves.” Lee Hyun-soo looked at Lee Myung-hwan with a dumbfounded expression. “…You said the Lord needs a doctor?” “That’s because he’s the Lord.” “What about the others?” “They’re not kids, they should take care of themselves.” Lee Hyun-soo stared blankly at Lee Myung-hwan before nodding. He was definitely a bit off.