Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1515

Kang Jin-ho’s eyebrows twitched.

“You know me?”

It was a question of whether he knew who he was.

The answer came from Lee Hyun-soo, not Jeong Myeong-cheol.

“Surely, he knows the chairman of the company he’s trying to screw over?”

“…Is that so?”

“Even if he didn’t know, he would have heard about it from the commercials. The chairman is a celebrity now.”

Kang Jin-ho narrowed his brow.

It wasn’t that he was annoyed that his identity had been revealed. If he was worried about that, he wouldn’t have come here without a mask.

What annoyed Kang Jin-ho was the realization that this could happen again. Now, there would be people who recognized him wherever he went.

‘Should I start wearing a mask?’ Kang Jin-ho sighed deeply. He unexpectedly became depressed.

“Is this the guy?”

“Yes. Jeong Myeong-cheol, the president of Taekwang P&D.”

Lee Hyun-soo added briefly.

“Even though he’s a president, he’s just a nobody in the Taekwang Group.”

“Is he in his right mind?”

“I did some research, and it seems the group doesn’t know anything about this. It’s confirmed that he was the one who gave the orders.”

“Hmm.”

Kang Jin-ho’s gaze turned to Jeong Myeong-cheol.

He was wearing what looked like an expensive suit, but with his dark, lifeless complexion and disheveled hair, he looked haggard. It was absurd how someone like this could have dared to mess with MK.

“What do you want to do with him?”

“Huh?”

“Should we kill him?”

Kang Jin-ho looked at him with a dumbfounded expression. Lee Hyun-soo winked one eye.

Understanding Lee Hyun-soo’s intention, Kang Jin-ho chuckled and played along.

“Just kill him?”

“If it were up to the chairman’s taste, you wouldn’t kill him so easily…”

Lee Hyun-soo turned to Jeong Myeong-cheol.

“He doesn’t seem like a very interesting guy, though?”

Jeong Myeong-cheol’s face turned pale.

Although his tone was playful, Jeong Myeong-cheol couldn’t take it as a joke.

What couldn’t these people do, who had kidnapped him in broad daylight in Gangnam [a wealthy district in Seoul]?

Moreover, now that his face was out there, killing him would be much cleaner than letting him live, something even Jeong Myeong-cheol had to agree with.

“Y-you guys, do you think you can get away with this?”

“Huh?”

Lee Hyun-soo turned to Jeong Myeong-cheol, looking amused.

“Get away with it?”

“Y-yes! Get away with it! If you kill me or keep me here, the police will find you! Do you think someone whose face is on TV can get away with this?”

“You’re worrying about things you don’t need to. You’re so kind.”

Lee Hyun-soo chuckled.

Then, he reached out and grabbed Jeong Myeong-cheol’s hair.

“Do you think we’re joking right now?”

Crack, crack.

Jeong Myeong-cheol screamed in pain as if his hair was being ripped out by the roots.

“You should keep your mouth shut if you can. We’ve committed so many sins that adding one more murder won’t change the temperature of hell for us.”

This wasn’t a joke. It was just a fact.

“Especially me, I have so many reasons to kill you. I have a visceral hatred for guys like you. Guys who are always trying to torment others, who harass others for fun, not for any real purpose.”

Lee Hyun-soo grabbed Jeong Myeong-cheol’s hair and yanked his head back.

“Wasn’t the reason you messed with us just because you didn’t like us and wanted to harass us?”

“I, I didn’t do anything…”

“Myeong-cheol, Myeong-cheol. Let’s not waste our energy. You know you did it, and I know you did it. You didn’t think we’d believe that the team leader or whatever did it all, did you?”

Lee Hyun-soo bared his teeth.

“You just thought we wouldn’t be able to do anything even if we knew, right?”

“I, I…”

“Do you know when I really got pissed off?”

“…I don’t know.”

“When I met you in that office building basement, I had some people watching your movements. But I took care of the office building myself. It was a hassle. I thought, if this guy was human, he wouldn’t come to meet his girlfriend after doing something like this.”

Lee Hyun-soo said with a truly surprised expression.

“But you actually came? Do you know how surprised I was when I got the call that you were coming my way? At first, I was dumbfounded, but then I got so angry.”

To Jeong Myeong-cheol, the collapse of Cafe Ruogo and his subordinate taking the blame were not even worth a passing thought.

So, he was thinking of doing other things in the meantime.

“There are guys like you.”

Lee Hyun-soo tapped Jeong Myeong-cheol’s cheek.

“Guys who think they’re living a different life, guys who think life is a game, guys who think they’ll never get hurt no matter what they do because it’s not real.”

Lee Hyun-soo sneered.

“Usually, those guys either get weeded out or get their heads knocked back to reality, but when a guy like you is born into a chaebol [a family-owned conglomerate] family or a powerful family, they become monsters.

If you had lived like that for another five years, you would have become a real psycho. Oh, of course, I don’t mean you’re not a psycho now. You know?”

Lee Hyun-soo gave a friendly smile.

But his hand was still pulling on Jeong Myeong-cheol’s hair.

“Don’t worry. I’ll make a man out of you. There are many ways to do it. First, there’s the method of turning you into a corpse. Whether you’re evil or good, you become the same corpse when you die. Wouldn’t that be considered rehabilitation?”

“Th-that…”

“Shut your mouth. I feel disgusted just hearing your voice.”

Jeong Myeong-cheol quickly closed his mouth.

He was scared.

He was so scared.

Jeong Myeong-cheol had met many people.

Among them were violent gangsters and powerful figures who controlled the country.

But none of them had given him the same feeling as these people.

They were different.

It wasn’t just their words or actions that were different. The atmosphere they exuded was something different from ordinary people. If Jeong Myeong-cheol had known that these people were behind Cafe Ruogo, he would never have done such a reckless thing.

“In the end, it’s all other people who got hurt because of what you did. Our cafes got damaged, our store owners got hurt, and because of you, those who caused trouble at other people’s cafes got caught, fined, and imprisoned, and even your subordinate got caught.”

Lee Hyun-soo let go of Jeong Myeong-cheol’s hair and grabbed his chin.

“But what harm did you suffer, you bastard?”

“That’s why the law is so messed up. Even if you know who did it, there’s often nothing you can do about it legally. Is it the fault of the judges? What can they do if there’s no evidence? You have to endure it even if it’s frustrating.”

Lee Hyun-soo chuckled.

“I’m sure you’ve gotten away with things like this more than once.

But what a pity?”

Lee Hyun-soo squeezed Jeong Myeong-cheol’s chin tightly.

“I’m someone who doesn’t care about the law or anything. I have to pay back a hundred times the damage I receive, even if it’s just a scratch.”

Kang Jin-ho, who had been listening quietly, flinched slightly.

“Does it seem petty? Oh, right. It is petty. But what can I do? I’m just petty by nature.”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Lee Hyun-soo with a strange expression.

Is this guy trying to mess with me?

He was talking to Jeong Myeong-cheol, but it felt like the direction of his words was towards him.

“Anyway.”

Lee Hyun-soo kicked Jeong Myeong-cheol.

Bang!

“Cough!”

The chair fell backward, and Jeong Myeong-cheol convulsed. The impact on his diaphragm made it hard for him to breathe.

“You’re screwed now. You’re going to get back everything you’ve done.”

Lee Hyun-soo turned his body away.

Kang Jin-ho smiled wryly as he looked at Lee Hyun-soo.

“Are you done?”

“Done? No, we’re just getting started. Will the chairman do it himself?”

“Hmm.”

Kang Jin-ho scratched his cheek.

“It’s a bit…”

This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. Every time, Kang Jin-ho had dealt with the opponent himself.

Whether he killed them or turned them into idiots, Kang Jin-ho’s principle was to show no mercy to those who had crossed him.

But this time, Kang Jin-ho was a little hesitant to step in himself.

Was he getting soft?

No. It wasn’t that…

‘It’s a bit ambiguous…’

It was true that the guy had committed a crime, but this was more like the recklessness of a mindless chaebol. It wasn’t that he had threatened Kang Jin-ho or anyone around him.

He deserved to be beaten to death, but there wasn’t a clear way to punish him if he wasn’t.

“Do whatever you want.”

“I knew you’d say that.”

Lee Hyun-soo chuckled.

“It would be beneath the chairman’s dignity to deal with such a small fry. I’ll take care of the chicken. The chairman should focus on catching dragons.”

“…What are you going to do?”

“I wonder.”

Lee Hyun-soo glanced at Jeong Myeong-cheol.

‘Damn it, if you’re going to commit a crime, do it properly.’

If he had killed a few people in the back alleys, or caused significant national losses, anything would have been fine as long as there was a good enough reason to bury him.

Then, they could just beat him to death and bury him.

But this crazy guy had committed all sorts of atrocities without crossing the final line. He had been careful to stay within the boundaries that his wealth and power could protect him.

‘These guys are the real bastards.’

Lee Hyun-soo slightly curled up the corners of his mouth.

“It’s not right to beat him to death, but if we just let him go, he’ll do the same thing again.”

“That’s right.”

“Then, it’s better this way. Let’s make a man out of him while he pays for his sins.”

“Huh?”

“Wouldn’t it be great if that guy became a normal person and left here? His company is good, his family is good, we’re good, and he’s good.”

Kang Jin-ho tilted his head.

“Can a guy like that be reformed? It doesn’t usually work, does it?”

“That’s because the chairman just cuts off their heads when there’s no other answer. Have you ever tried to rehabilitate someone in the first place?”

“I have.”

“Who?”

“You.”

Lee Hyun-soo was speechless and just opened and closed his mouth.

Uh, that’s…

It seemed like it was true, but it also seemed like it wasn’t…

“Ahem.”

Lee Hyun-soo cleared his throat loudly.

“Anyway, don’t worry. I’ll make him a model citizen.”

“So, how?”

“How?”

Lee Hyun-soo grinned.

“Isn’t there only one way to do it? Let’s just try it. Let’s see if he becomes a person first, or if he dies first.”

Suddenly, Kang Jin-ho, remembering something, widened his eyes.

“Director Lee, don’t tell me?”

“Yes?”

“Did you call the store owners?”

“Wow, how did you know without me telling you? They’re on their way here now.”

Lee Hyun-soo chuckled and kicked Jeong Myeong-cheol.

“Wow, I wonder what will happen if we throw this guy among the store owners. It’ll be like a savanna documentary. Hehehe.”

Kang Jin-ho shuddered.

Kang Jin-ho was realizing anew that there was someone worse than him in the world.