Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1541

“You’ve really made it, Choi Yeon-ha. Getting this kind of treatment in America.”

“I don’t think it’s because *I* succeeded, Noona [older sister or close female friend], is it?”

“Eun-sol.”

“Yes?”

“I’ve told you before, do you know why people who speak their minds often have short lives?”

“……I’ll be careful.”

Choi Yeon-ha clicked her tongue, though the plush seat did make her feel good.

“Jin-ho’s position changes every day.”

“It does.”

“When I first met him, he was just a handsome college student.”

“……Do you like that time better?”

“Of course not.”

Now is better.

But it wasn’t because Kang Jin-ho was more successful now.

She liked the softer Kang Jin-ho now more than the stiff one back then.

‘How hard did I work to remodel that human?’

It was a long period of training.

Thinking about the effort and care she poured into turning that dating-dummy into a person still makes her shudder… What? The old Kang Jin-ho?

No way, that’s not it.

“I like Jin-ho back then, and I like Jin-ho now. But the current Jin-ho has a history that we built together.”

“That’s a very flimsy history.”

“Get out.”

“……We’re in America, Noona.”

“I know.”

“……I was wrong.”

Choi Yeon-ha glared at Han Eun-sol.

“Eun-sol, Eun-sol.”

“Yes, Noona!”

“Have you ever heard this saying?”

“What saying?”

“People don’t appreciate kindness; they take advantage of it.”

Han Eun-sol shut her mouth, feeling guilty.

“Eun-sol, I’m really trying to control my temper and live well while dating Jin-ho, you know?”

“I really agree with that.”

Has Kang Jin-ho changed a lot?

Sure, that’s an undeniable fact.

But no matter how much Kang Jin-ho changes, it’s nothing compared to Choi Yeon-ha’s change. Choi Yeon-ha has become a completely different person.

“But there’s another saying.”

“What saying?”

“A person’s nature doesn’t change.”

“Let’s help each other out. Okay?”

“Yes, Noona. I will definitely be careful.”

Han Eun-sol resolved to keep her teasing to a minimum.

Choi Yeon-ha, who had been glaring at Han Eun-sol, turned her gaze forward.

“You need to help me a lot this time. I’m going to make this American debut a success.”

“For the company?”

“No. For me.”

“I’m already starting to feel inferior to Jin-ho these days. I barely manage to hold my head up by increasing the money I make from my Chinese expansion, but this guy doesn’t wait for anyone. Did you see those people trembling earlier?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m going to run out of breath trying to keep up. It’s like a crow trying to follow a stork and splitting its legs [a Korean proverb about overreaching].”

“Noona, an actress’s legs are a bit…”

“What? Why? Can’t I use a proverb?”

“……No, it’s nothing.”

Choi Yeon-ha snorted.

“Anyway, people need to be on the same level to not feel inferior. I need to become a global actress to even hold my head up.”

“I think…”

“Huh?”

“If you try to match the Chairman’s pace, you’ll end up becoming president later.”

“……Right?”

“Exactly.”

Choi Yeon-ha sighed deeply.

‘Even if someone is successful, they should be moderately successful.’ It was something she couldn’t understand.

Of course, in Choi Yeon-ha’s eyes, Kang Jin-ho was a great person. He was kind, considerate, handsome, and… uh, and…

“Anyway, he has some good points.”

“Yes?”

“No. I was talking to myself.”

Of course, Choi Yeon-ha thought Kang Jin-ho was a great person, but that was probably because of her rose-tinted glasses. If she looked at Kang Jin-ho objectively, there were times when she wondered if he really deserved to be so successful.

“Anyway, I can’t understand it.”

Choi Yeon-ha shook her head.

Sometimes, she was afraid that Kang Jin-ho would go somewhere she couldn’t reach. The reason she once asked Kang Jin-ho if he couldn’t just live a normal life was probably because of this feeling.

“Anyway, just you wait.”

Choi Yeon-ha gritted her teeth.

If a train is running out of control, there are only two ways to go with it.

One is to stop the train somehow.

The other is to release the brakes and run like crazy.

If the former fails, she has to do the latter.

“Being a world star is nothing! I’ll do it.”

“……Noona, that… your attitude is good, but your motive is impure.”

“Why does the motive matter? The result is what matters!”

“No, if that’s the case, you should study English a bit…”

“I’m good at English now?”

Han Eun-sol sighed deeply.

‘Well, yeah.’

Even though she said that, Choi Yeon-ha’s passion was real. Honestly, even Han Eun-sol, who was watching her, wondered where she got the stamina to endure this grueling schedule.

Even Han Eun-sol, who was just keeping her company, was exhausted, so it was definitely not easy for an actress to maintain that level of condition and tension.

‘Anyway, they’re amazing people.’

The person in Korea and the person sitting next to her were both amazing.

“By the way, since we’re here, should we go get a burger?”

“……Sure.”

Let’s eat first and think later.

Eat.

“Chairman.”

Kang Jin-ho frowned as he saw Lee Hyun-soo approaching him.

‘What is he up to now?’ Kang Jin-ho looked uneasy. Lee Hyun-soo had been somewhat sane recently due to his pay cut, but he could cause another accident that would put Kang Jin-ho in trouble at any time. He couldn’t let his guard down.

“I’ve been thinking about something.”

“……I’d prefer it if you didn’t think, if possible?”

“Yes?”

“……Never mind.”

Kang Jin-ho sighed.

‘I’m getting a nervous breakdown.’

The recent emoticon incident had severely damaged Kang Jin-ho’s mental state. He had completely cut off the internet now. It was because he saw people on the community he frequented posting screenshots of his emoticons and giggling.

‘What sin have I committed?’

Sin?

Ah, he had committed many sins. That’s right.

But the price for those sins was too harsh. He would rather have an arm cut off. That’s how he felt.

There was no comfortable place in the world.

When he went to the general meeting, the directors would giggle and hold up their phones, and when he went to MK, Hwang Min-soo and the others would smile awkwardly and slowly avoid him. And when he went home, Kang Eun-young would be running around with her hair down, and his mother would smile warmly and print out the emoticons.

Even his father would send him subtle glances with a slightly flushed face.

‘This is hell.’

Is there any other hell?

Anyway, once bitten, twice shy, Kang Jin-ho would flinch and check his phone whenever someone spoke to him.

“Are you still not calm?”

“……You need to experience it yourself.”

People who haven’t experienced this don’t know, absolutely.

“Thanks to that, sales have skyrocketed, haven’t they?”

“The store owners are asking to put the character made from the emoticon on the front of their stores…”

“I’ll kill them.”

“I’m really going to kill them.”

Lee Hyun-soo smiled wryly.

“Please calm down, Chairman. They’re just trying to earn a little more money to get married and raise their kids. They must be desperate.”

“If this was the beginning, I wouldn’t mind, but I’m already half-ruined, aren’t I?”

“Please allow it.”

Kang Jin-ho covered his face.

Why was the world giving him such trials?

“Anyway, I’ve been thinking about something…”

“Business?”

“No. The general meeting.”

“Huh? The general meeting?”

Ah, that’s what it was.

Kang Jin-ho nodded, relieved.

“What’s the matter?”

“Aren’t the troops coming from America now?”

“Yes.”

“The reason you accepted them was because you thought you could use them as a fighting force if you trained them properly, right?”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

He had no intention of doing good for others.

In exchange for America taking Kang Jin-ho’s know-how, they would provide him with a fighting force that would be helpful in the war. This was the basic concept of the deal.

In other words, Kang Jin-ho was strengthening the American forces while also gaining troops that he could use in the war against the Three Kings.

It wasn’t bad for the US either.

Large-scale battles between martial artists were very rare. National-level battles rarely occurred.

Just participating in that war would provide them with a lot of data. Considering that the US had not hesitated to go to war in the past to test and experience new weapons, this was something worth participating in, even if they had to pay for it.

“In other words, it’s faster to train them directly than to leave it to them, right?”

“That’s right.”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Lee Hyun-soo as if asking why he was asking such an obvious question.

Then Lee Hyun-soo grinned.

“So, I was wondering if you would consider expanding that concept a little?”

“Expand?”

“Yes.”

Lee Hyun-soo cleared his throat and continued.

“There are surplus troops right now. If you’re going to train the Americans anyway, wouldn’t it be better to bring them all together and train them together?”

“Surplus troops? Is there such a thing?”

“First of all, there’s Europe.”

“Europe is under the jurisdiction of the Round Table, isn’t it?”

“Of course. But there will be people among the European martial artists who want to come to Korea to learn. The Round Table is ruled by the Master, but the Master can only control them, not strengthen their power. Right now, they’re just barely managing to keep up with the control.”

“Q [referring to the Master of the Round Table]”

“So, if we accept volunteers to come to Korea, we can achieve two things at once. One is the strengthening of our forces…”

“And the increase of direct control over the Round Table?”

“Yes. Those who come to Korea for training will eventually return as pro-Koreans.”

“That doesn’t sound very good.”

“That’s because of those damn pro-Japanese guys. Pro-Korean is a good thing.”

Kang Jin-ho scratched his head.

‘Come to think of it, it’s not bad.’

There were even people like Chevalier who had left Europe and settled in Korea. They were now a solid part of the general meeting’s power.

“I think we’re already multinational enough.”

“We need to form a coalition to fight against China. We have to consider being multinational. And being multinational isn’t a bad thing.”

That was true.

Kang Jin-ho, who had been thinking for a moment, nodded.

“Well, okay. That shouldn’t be too difficult. But didn’t you say ‘first of all’? Does that mean there are other forces besides Europe that are worth training?”

“They’re right next to us, aren’t they?”

“Right next to us?”

“Yes. Right next to us. Right across the sea.”

Kang Jin-ho frowned.

“Japan?”

“Exactly.”

“You want to train Japan?”

“No, no. Do you think I’m crazy enough to do that? My bad feelings towards Japan haven’t been resolved yet.”

“Then?”

“The most satisfying thing in the world is to return what you received with interest. You said the term ‘pro-Korean’ didn’t sound good earlier, right?”

“That’s right.”

“How about we try to cultivate a pro-Korean group that doesn’t sound good at all from Japan’s perspective?”

Kang Jin-ho stared blankly at Lee Hyun-soo.

What are you trying to do now, you rascal!