Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1184

Tap!

The sound of feet kicking off the ground was crisp. Yoshinobu ascended the hill and finally set foot on the grounds of the General Assembly.

Following him, the elite of the Shinichi-kai also finished climbing the hill without exception. Those lined up momentarily surveyed their surroundings.

‘Why is it so quiet?’

Yoshinobu frowned.

No matter how lax the security might be, they couldn’t possibly be unaware of their arrival. From the national highway to here, it must be at least 1km. In the meantime, there were dozens of CCTV cameras, and it was absurd that not a single person was monitoring them.

“Did they run away?”

“…No, they did not.”

“The information could have leaked!”

“Of course, that’s a possibility. But even if Kang Jin-ho knew that we were advancing here because the information leaked, he wouldn’t have run away.”

Yoshinobu scowled.

He couldn’t understand what he was saying.

“The higher-ups have determined that Kang Jin-ho’s personality makes it impossible for him to flee. It will never happen.”

“Even if he knows we’re coming, he won’t run away?”

“Yes!”

“Then how do you explain this situation?”

“That, I also…”

Yoshinobu gritted his teeth.

‘What kind of nonsense are you spouting?’

Never run away?

What kind of bullshit is that?

Even the Japanese generals who are remembered as great commanders in history did not hesitate to flee if the situation seemed unfavorable. ‘Never retreat’ means to fight with that mindset, not to actually never retreat in battle.

But the head of the General Assembly is not running away and only fighting back even though this much force is coming?

“Stop talking nonsense and find him right now! If that bastard runs away, all our plans will collapse! Right now!”

Yoshinobu, angered by their complacent response, was about to issue a direct order when his hand stopped.

At the same time, his body also stopped.

Yoshinobu stopped all movement and slowly turned his head.

He himself didn’t understand why he was doing this. But his head was turning towards one place, ignoring his will.

The place where his gaze stopped.

Yoshinobu’s gaze was fixed on the glass door on the first floor of the General Assembly’s central building, where the lights were off.

Because Yoshinobu’s actions were so striking, the others also followed his gaze and looked at the door of the General Assembly.

‘What is it?’

Everyone narrowed their eyes.

Something red was flickering.

The mountains were extremely dark. In places where there was no artificial light created by humans, it was so dark that one could not distinguish anything even an inch ahead.

Because of that darkness, the light was even more vivid.

A red dot of light flickered briefly and then disappeared.

Yoshinobu narrowed his eyes further.

That is…

Then, the light flickered again.

Yoshinobu realized what the light he was seeing was.

‘A cigarette?’

A red dot appeared and disappeared in the darkness. Its shape and speed were reminiscent of a cigarette light.

As if Yoshinobu’s thoughts were correct, even footsteps began to be heard.

Squeak.

It would have been a small noise normally, but in the desolate mountains where even breathing could not be heard, the sound of the door opening echoed like a ghostly cry.

Thud, thud.

Along with the low footsteps, a man walked out of the building from the darkness. The cigarette in his mouth emitted a white smoke along with a red light.

“Yoshinobu-sama!”

“…I know.”

There was no need to hear it.

He already knew.

Yoshinobu’s body began to tremble slightly.

‘How did we evaluate him?’

A lucky man who quickly devoured the empty land of Korea thanks to being born in Korea.

But his abilities were not to be ignored, and now he was a capable man who was uniting Korea and threatening Japan.

And…

‘The weakness of Korea that can quickly dismantle the Korean martial world if he can be eliminated.’

This was the Shinichi-kai’s assessment of Kang Jin-ho.

Perhaps that assessment was accurate. There was nothing particularly wrong with it.

But Yoshinobu thought this assessment was completely wrong.

When evaluating a person, if the most important element of that person is missing, it doesn’t matter how detailed the evaluation is, it is meaningless.

The most important thing in evaluating Kang Jin-ho is not his power or his abilities.

The moment Yoshinobu confirmed Kang Jin-ho with his own eyes, he was able to realize that fact.

Thud, thud.

Kang Jin-ho, who had walked calmly to the training ground, raised his hand and grabbed the cigarette.

“Hoo…”

Kang Jin-ho slowly exhaled the cigarette smoke and looked up at Yoshinobu.

Flint.

The moment he met his eyes, Yoshinobu almost took a step back without realizing it. The fact that he was able to desperately hold back his instinctively moving legs was not because he was brave, but because there were too many people watching him from behind.

“Quite…”

The man.

Kang Jin-ho calmly looked around at the people filling the training ground and then opened his mouth.

“You’ve come a long way.”

Yoshinobu swallowed hard.

His lips and throat dried up instantly, making even swallowing painful.

The clear pain in his throat made Yoshinobu snap back to his senses.

‘Am I this nervous?’

It was possible to be nervous.

That was not strange.

But it was definitely strange to be nervous while facing a single person with a thousand elites behind him.

One thousand.

A force that could wipe out any group without a trace. With this power, they could crush even the Yamashiro-gumi of Kanto [a major Yakuza group] without leaving a single foundation stone.

The reason they left the Yamashiro-gumi alone was not because they lacked power, but because there was nothing to gain. They thought that the damage and aftermath they would have to endure in the process were not worth the benefits of destroying them.

That was the extent of their power.

A power that was more than enough to face a nation. Yet, Yoshinobu was struggling even to open his mouth.

It was not something that could be understood with his head.

Before his head could even come up with an interpretation, his body shrank back first.

Yoshinobu bit his lip tightly.

An incomprehensible situation was unfolding, but it was foolish to try to interpret this situation. The important thing was not to find the cause, but to respond.

There were people watching him now. If he showed weakness in front of them, their morale would be quickly eroded.

“Are you…”

He forced strength into his unopening mouth and continued to speak. Fortunately, his voice was not much different from his usual voice.

“Kang Jin-ho?”

Kang Jin-ho, hearing Yoshinobu’s question, quietly held the cigarette and deeply inhaled the smoke. Then, he slowly exhaled the cigarette smoke.

“That’s the dumbest question I’ve ever heard in my life.”

“…What?”

“Didn’t you come here to kill me?”

“And now I have to confirm who I am myself. How interesting.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled softly.

Yoshinobu’s face flushed momentarily as he realized his mistake.

“I…”

“I am Kang Jin-ho.”

Yoshinobu closed his mouth.

It was subtly difficult to time it right. He hadn’t even said a few words, and Kang Jin-ho was already grabbing and shaking them.

“I acknowledge it.”

Yoshinobu took a deep breath.

His pride and self-esteem were making him falter. If he acknowledged that the opponent was great and that he was incomparable, there was nothing difficult.

He was not trying to fight Kang Jin-ho as a martial artist. Now, he had to be a thorough subordinate and a general leading an army.

Wasn’t it ridiculous that he was showing off his pride when a thousand people had come?

Yoshinobu was not a fool. If he didn’t have the ability, he wouldn’t have been able to rise to the high position of the head of the Shinichi-kai. Wasn’t it the glory he had gained after overwhelming and defeating numerous competitors?

“You are amazing.”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Yoshinobu without a word.

“I wouldn’t have been able to be so calm in front of a thousand people. I admit it. You are the first martial artist I have ever seen.”

There was no ambush.

There was no support.

Yoshinobu’s senses were clearly telling him. The building was not completely empty, but there was no one inside who could be considered a threat.

Kang Jin-ho was truly standing in front of them alone.

Regardless of whether it was possible, just standing here confidently made Kang Jin-ho a person worthy of recognition.

“You are strong. You certainly deserve to rule the Korean martial world.”

Yoshinobu took a deep breath and put strength into his stomach.

“That’s why you are more valuable. Today, we will kill you and establish the Shinichi-kai’s spirit here. The fact that we killed Kang Jin-ho will remain an eternal achievement for our Shinichi-kai. You can be happy. We acknowledge you. So, we will do our best to kill you. As martial artists.”

Yoshinobu drew his sword and pointed it at Kang Jin-ho.

His face and posture were etched with reverence and determination. At the same time, those who were lined up also glared at Kang Jin-ho with determination.

Perhaps this was the greatest respect.

The fact that a thousand elites were going to do their best against a single person meant that they acknowledged that the value of that one person was no less than that of a thousand elites.

For a martial artist, there could be no greater respect than this.

But Kang Jin-ho’s reaction to that respect was cold.

“You talk a good game.”

Kang Jin-ho took a deep drag and threw the cigarette to the ground. Then, he stomped on the cigarette and rubbed it out.

“As martial artists?”

The corners of Kang Jin-ho’s mouth slowly curled up.

“You guys?”

Yoshinobu frowned at Kang Jin-ho’s sneer.

“Are you going to tell us not to call ourselves martial artists when we’ve invaded? How naive.”

“And you’re even stupid.”

“…You!”

Kang Jin-ho raised his head and looked at Yoshinobu.

Yoshinobu unconsciously tightened his grip on the sword.

The atmosphere changed completely.

The deep and broad feeling that had been felt from Kang Jin-ho until just now had disappeared. Instead, a rough feeling that made his heart feel like it would explode just by making eye contact pressed down on Yoshinobu.

“You found my location well.”

“Very well.”

Kang Jin-ho bared his teeth and smiled.

“How do you think that was possible?”

Yoshinobu’s eyes shook slightly.

“Our intelligence is…”

“Where do you think that information came from? Isn’t it strange? You got the information that I was here. And until you arrived here, I was waiting here well.”

Yoshinobu glanced at the strategist next to him. The strategist’s face was pale.

“Who do you think gave you that information?”

“It’s funny.”

Kang Jin-ho stretched out one hand to the side.

The space rippled, and two long swords were drawn from within.

Yoshinobu’s eyes widened at the strange sight he had never seen before.

Kang Jin-ho smiled wryly as he drew his sword from its sheath.

“Moths that jump into the fire don’t know that they are jumping into the fire. Yes… just like you guys.”

The world began to sink into a deeper darkness.

Into a darkness from which there was no escape.