Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1263

“This matter is…”

At that moment, Bang Jin-hoon raised his hand.

“Hmm?”

“Excuse me, but may I say something first?”

“Of course.”

As Kang Jin-ho gave his permission, Bang Jin-hoon sighed softly and opened his mouth.

“You don’t need to offer any clumsy words of comfort.”

“That’s right.”

Bator and Wiggins nodded in agreement.

Kang Jin-ho looked at them, dumbfounded.

“I haven’t even said anything yet.”

“Well, you’re probably going to say something obvious. That this isn’t our fault, that the responsibility of management basically lies with the Chairman. So, if we’re going to point fingers, it’s your responsibility. And that we just need to do better in the future.”

Kang Jin-ho shut his mouth like a clam.

That was exactly what he was going to say.

Seeing Kang Jin-ho’s expression, Bang Jin-hoon chuckled and said,

“Honestly, Chairman, your patterns are too easy to read.”

“That’s right.”

“I agree.”

“I concur.”

Even Lee Hyun-soo chimed in, causing Kang Jin-ho to clear his throat.

“Well, you don’t need to look so down. The most shocked person here isn’t us, but you, Chairman.”

“…Huh?”

“Did you really think that nothing would happen when you gathered a bunch of kids like that? This is actually quite mild. It means that the management is actually doing a great job.”

Bang Jin-hoon smirked as he looked at Kang Jin-ho.

‘He has a subtly naive side to him.’

People aren’t good.

To be more precise, when people gather, there can’t be only good people among them.

Ordinary people commit crimes and cause accidents. Those who have learned martial arts are inherently rougher than ordinary people, and they have to endure more than them.

“When people gather, problems are bound to arise. Basically, accidents always happen in any organization.”

“That’s right.”

Bator nodded, his arms crossed.

“Of course. That’s why the Round Table [a reference to King Arthur’s legendary table, here implying a council of powerful individuals] has a separate body to monitor and judge its members.”

Kang Jin-ho let out a groan.

Seeing Kang Jin-ho, Wiggins smiled softly.

“Lord, do you think all of this is because education and norms weren’t properly established?”

“Somewhat.”

Kang Jin-ho readily admitted.

“That’s not entirely wrong. But Lord, humans aren’t machines. Just because you set rules doesn’t mean they’ll follow them. Even you are like that, aren’t you?”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

‘If anything, I’m worse.’

Kang Jin-ho is someone who has a duty to abide by the laws of South Korea. But he lives his life blatantly ignoring the most important laws.

“It’s not because they weren’t educated. It’s not because they didn’t handle it well. It’s just that people are like that. If people could live according to what they were taught from the start, there wouldn’t be a need to make laws to regulate and punish human behavior.”

Kang Jin-ho sighed.

He couldn’t argue with that.

Bang Jin-hoon smiled lightly at Kang Jin-ho.

“You know, you have a naive side to you.”

“Naive, my foot.”

Bator glared.

“While others were managing and teaching kids, you left it all to others and lived a carefree life, so you don’t know the inner workings of an organization.”

It was Bator, unusually hitting the nail on the head.

“Lord.”

Wiggins looked at Kang Jin-ho with cold eyes.

“I’m a little worried about saying this in a place like this, but since the opportunity has come, I’ll just say it. Lord, you’re looking at the Assembly with too much leniency.”

“Leniency?”

“They are not children.”

“They are adults who must take responsibility for their own actions. They are not subjects that the Chairman needs to teach and reform. Think of this place as a company. Which company takes responsibility when an employee commits a crime?”

Listening to it, it made sense.

“Saying that you won’t hold Director Bang responsible sounds good, but in reality, it’s not like that at all. In the first place, Director Bang doesn’t have the responsibility to manage them and prevent them from committing crimes.”

Kang Jin-ho subtly turned his head to look at Bang Jin-hoon.

Then, Bang Jin-hoon met Kang Jin-ho’s gaze with a wronged expression.

Kang Jin-ho was the first to look away.

“Teaching and passing on martial arts is something we can do as much as we want. Designating what members of the Assembly should not do is also something we can do as much as we want. But…”

“I understand.”

Wiggins looked directly at Kang Jin-ho.

“I think I know why you’re doing this, Lord. From your perspective, the members probably all look like children, like beings that need to be led. But sometimes, that kind of gaze can also oppress them.”

Kang Jin-ho sighed.

‘That’s why I can’t skip meetings once in a while.’

Kang Jin-ho has lived for a long time. In certain fields, there is no one with more insight than Kang Jin-ho. But those specific fields were too narrow.

Regarding martial arts, Kang Jin-ho is someone who doesn’t need to seek the opinions of others. But when it comes to dealing with people and leading an organization, he was a person with many shortcomings.

“And what Director Bang said is also true. The fact that the problem that occurred in an organization of this size is only this much is very encouraging. You shouldn’t be letting them off the hook, you should be rewarding them.”

Bang Jin-hoon’s shoulders rose high.

“Kuh, Director Wiggins knows a thing or two. Chairman, I didn’t say it, but this is really good management. I…”

“I got it.”

“…Geez, you’re so impatient.”

As Bang Jin-hoon grumbled, Kang Jin-ho chuckled.

Thanks to that, the atmosphere loosened up a bit.

‘Responsibility, huh…’

Kang Jin-ho wore a slightly bitter expression.

He knew what Wiggins meant. And what he said was right. Kang Jin-ho had a subtle obsession that he had to lead not only the members of the Assembly but also their lives.

Just like his surroundings were, and like the Demonic Cult [a fictional martial arts sect, often portrayed as evil or unorthodox] was.

But these people are not Kang Jin-ho’s family. They are people who must take responsibility for their own lives. The gaze that sees them as children or beings that need to be led can limit their potential.

“I understand what you’re saying, but…”

Kang Jin-ho looked at the directors with a firm gaze.

“But that’s only when there’s a clear responsibility for the wrongdoings committed.”

“Of course.”

Wiggins agreed as if it were obvious.

“It wasn’t something they did unknowingly, it was something they did knowingly. Of course, they can’t avoid punishment!”

Bator glared.

Kang Jin-ho, who nodded, turned to look at Lee Hyun-soo.

“Director Lee, you need to hurry.”

“Don’t worry.”

“And one more thing.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

Kang Jin-ho said firmly.

“I will not forgive drugs.”

“Understood.”

Lee Hyun-soo’s eyes gleamed.

He too had been involved with drugs in the past. It was something he had to do because Kim Seok-il wanted to raise funds in various ways.

That’s why Lee Hyun-soo knows how dangerous drugs are. Because it’s a common topic in TV shows and movies, ordinary people underestimate the dangers of drugs.

And the reason why Kang Jin-ho and the other directors are so sensitive about this is not just because drugs are dangerous.

“But Chairman.”

“Hmm?”

“There’s one thing… I’d like to tell you.”

“What is it?”

Lee Hyun-soo let out a low sigh.

“There are people who cooperated in smuggling drugs this time.”

“Catch them.”

The answer was simple. But the problem was not simple.

“They’re civilians.”

Kang Jin-ho narrowed his brows.

Thinking about it, it was obvious. No matter how skilled they were, there was no way that martial artists alone could pull off something like this. There had to be people to act as intermediaries.

“Isn’t it something that can be handed over to the police?”

“That’s a bit difficult. To hand it over to the police, we have to hand over the evidence as well, and then we have to let them know that our people were involved with drugs. Then the police will have no choice but to make arrests.”

Kang Jin-ho narrowed his brows.

“It’s not good to just leave them alone either. They’re people who have tasted the meat [a metaphor for having experienced the benefits of illegal activity]. If they were good people in the first place, they wouldn’t have jumped into drug trafficking. If we clean up all our people, they’ll become the heads and try to distribute drugs themselves.”

It was a headache.

Two of the Assembly’s principles were clashing with each other.

One was ‘The Assembly’s problems are resolved within the Assembly.’

And the other was ‘Civilians are not to be touched.’

If they were to punish Go Min-sung and others within the Assembly, they couldn’t hand over their personal information to the police. But if that were to happen, the police would lose the justification to arrest the civilians involved in this matter.

To have them punished, they would have to hand over Go Min-sung’s crimes to the police. Then, of course, the police would try to punish Go Min-sung and the others.

One side had to be given up.

“Can’t we just say that what we did was their doing?”

“It’s difficult. It’s not easy to fabricate evidence…”

Kang Jin-ho sighed.

Since they’re people who have already made money from drugs once, if they’re left alone, they’ll get caught again for dealing drugs. South Korea isn’t that easy of a place.

But in the meantime, there will definitely be victims.

He couldn’t ignore that.

A low silence filled the conference room.

It was Wiggins who broke the silence.

“It’s not that difficult of a problem to think about.”

Everyone’s gaze turned to Wiggins.

“Don’t we already have a solution?”

“Huh?”

Kang Jin-ho tilted his head. Already have one?

“Lord.”

“What is the scope of the Assembly?”

“Well?”

“It’s simple. The scope of the Assembly is up to the martial artists who receive the Assembly’s orders.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded. It was a simple and clear standard.

“Then let me ask you. Are those who receive the Assembly’s orders but are not martial artists part of the Assembly, or not?”

“They wouldn’t be.”

“That’s right. Then isn’t it simple? We can use those who are not martial artists among those who the Assembly can mobilize. Aren’t there many violent organizations in South Korea that are directly or indirectly related to the Assembly?”

Lee Hyun-soo nodded.

Before the incorporation, they were the ones who managed all the business locations on behalf of the Assembly. The Assembly was the de facto ruler of the South Korean underworld.

“We can just tell the right guys to take care of it. There’s a good saying in the East, ‘fight poison with poison,’ isn’t there?”

“Isn’t that just covering your eyes and acting like you don’t see?”

Wiggins winked.

“That’s how this world works. And use this opportunity to push the organizations that are negative about drugs. Giving them power will make it easier to crack down than the police.”

Lee Hyun-soo looked at Wiggins with a dumbfounded expression.

“Why?”

“No, I was just thinking that if you were born in the old days, you would have been a great traitor.”

“That’s what I learned at the Round Table. Deception, conspiracy, and schemes.”

Wiggins burst into a hearty laugh as if he had no shame.

“I wish there were more opportunities to use what I’ve learned.”

Lee Hyun-soo thought that he should avoid going against Wiggins as much as possible.