Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1976

Thanks to Lee Myung-hwan and Gong Young-gil’s diligent efforts, the members quickly gathered in large numbers.

The central training hall of the main headquarters was naturally the most crowded, and those who couldn’t fit there gathered separately in the auditorium with broadcasting facilities or the second training hall.

“Why are they suddenly gathering people?”

“…Are you asking because you don’t know? With the situation like this, the Clan Lord hasn’t said a word until now.”

“Honestly, it’s not like there’s anything to say.”

“Why wouldn’t there be?”

“Is this something the Clan Lord can do anything about?”

One of the members clicked his tongue and said,

“You know the Clan Lord is amazing, and I know it too. But this isn’t something that can be handled by the martial world. If you just turn on the TV, news about it is bursting out everywhere. What can the Clan Lord do about it?”

“A normal person wouldn’t be able to do anything. But it’s the Clan Lord, not just anyone. He must have some kind of plan.”

“Eh, still…”

“Has there ever been anything the Clan Lord has done that made sense? Everyone always reacts like this. It’s only after it’s done that it seems like it was possible.”

“That’s true, but…”

“He must have a plan, definitely.”

The gathered members were filled with anticipation that Kang Jin-ho would come up with a solution.

It was inevitable.

Because it was none other than Kang Jin-ho who had overcome the crises that the Clan had faced, crises that seemed impossible to resolve.

However, some among them occasionally looked at the central platform with dissatisfied eyes. Until now, no matter what happened, the Clan had never forcefully suppressed its members like this or restricted their freedom without explanation.

This situation was clearly different from Kang Jin-ho’s previous actions. So, it was natural for dissatisfaction to arise.

“Quiet. Be quiet.”

“He’s coming out soon. Be quiet.”

Even so, there were still no members within the Clan who denied Kang Jin-ho’s authority. The things he had done for the Clan and the martial artists were too great to express dissatisfaction with minor disagreements.

The gathered people quickly quieted down.

It was quite remarkable that such a large number of people could regain silence on their own without anyone specifically controlling them.

“He’s coming out.”

“He’s here!”

The members who saw Kang Jin-ho walking out of the main building’s entrance straightened their backs and assumed a posture.

Kang Jin-ho or the other directors had never forced the members to take such a posture, but at some point, everyone naturally began to do so.

Step, step.

Kang Jin-ho, who had ascended the platform, looked at the gathered people.

Perhaps because he had prevented the members from going outside the Clan, it felt like there were an unusually large number of people gathered today.

«Ahem.»

Kang Jin-ho cleared his throat softly.

“I don’t know where to even begin.”

That was his honest feeling.

Somehow, it felt new.

He had met Lee Hyun-joo and accidentally visited the Clan. To be honest, his first impression of the Clan was the worst. He never imagined that he would become the Clan Lord and that so many people would follow him.

‘It’s strange.’

There was a time when he had stood before even more desperate gazes.

There was a time when he received gazes closer to faith and awe than respect and reverence. From people who were incomparably stronger than these people.

But…

At that time, Kang Jin-ho did not feel this from them.

That gaze.

That gaze of believing and trusting him without any doubt, the feeling that he had to repay it.

“In the meantime…”

Kang Jin-ho let out a small sigh, as if he was at a loss for words.

However, even while watching Kang Jin-ho’s appearance, no one broke their posture.

“Thank you all for following me so well.”

“I think about it sometimes. Why am I in this position?”

Kang Jin-ho slightly raised his head and looked at the sky.

He hadn’t intended to say these words.

Originally, he had planned to say something more refined. Just enough to appease them.

But looking at the many eyes that were watching him, such a half-hearted statement wouldn’t come out of his mouth.

“I’m still afraid of leading someone. I’m afraid of being responsible for someone.”

Words that no one would have imagined coming from Kang Jin-ho’s mouth.

To the members of the Clan, Kang Jin-ho was a man made of steel.

He never wavered, never hesitated, and never backed down no matter what enemy came. They were the ones who had witnessed the myth that Kang Jin-ho had created right before their eyes.

People worship and believe in someone as a god based on legends from the distant past. How could they not believe in and follow someone who repeatedly did things that seemed impossible for a human to do right before their eyes?

But now, the iron man standing before them was speaking like a human.

Only then did the members of the Clan realize a new fact.

That Kang Jin-ho’s physique, which always seemed so large, was surprisingly a bit small.

“Even so…”

Kang Jin-ho took a low breath.

“Even so, the reason I’ve been able to stay in this position until now is because no one has ever doubted me.”

If even one person had shown him doubt and anxiety, Kang Jin-ho would not have been able to come this far.

Some of them were once his enemies.

Yet, since they started walking the same path, everyone had blindly trusted Kang Jin-ho.

That’s why he couldn’t waver.

Because they were pushing him forward.

“Thank you all.”

No one could open their mouths.

It was partly because no one had expected these words to come from Kang Jin-ho’s mouth, but… somehow, they felt it. That they shouldn’t open their mouths now and interrupt Kang Jin-ho’s words.

“I think I’ve come this far, overcoming many things. But… this time, it can’t be the same as before.”

Kang Jin-ho said, looking at everyone.

Those gathered in the training hall, and those watching this scene on screens in other places, held their breaths and waited for Kang Jin-ho’s next words.

“In the past, it was enough to fight and win against the enemy. No matter how difficult it was, if we just won, we could regain peace. So, we fought without looking back, and we fought by throwing everything away. But…”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“Not this time, not this time. Even if we win, there will be a longer and more difficult battle left. And this battle is not one that can be fought with fists, like always.”

His voice was filled with sincerity.

Everyone understood that these words, which were difficult to even call a speech, were not just words made up to get through the situation.

“Maybe for a while… no, maybe for the rest of our lives, we might have to fight another battle. Cold gazes and prejudice, childish words of the enemy, subtle alienation.”

Kang Jin-ho took a short breath. Somehow, he wanted a cigarette.

“That battle is not something I can fight for you. It’s a battle that everyone here has to bear. A battle without victory or defeat, just a boring, long, and arduous one.”

Kang Jin-ho stopped speaking and looked at the sky.

The blue sky.

Just a blue sky.

He realized it anew.

Here, there was the starless black night sky that he had longed for.

In the past, in the Central Plains [a region in China often used in martial arts stories], there was a night sky full of stars that he now longed for.

But both there and here…

Only this blue sky was the same.

This was what he wanted to say to them, and at the same time, it was his answer to the Black King’s proposal.

“I worried about what to do. What I should do to end this chaos.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“No. Actually, there was no need to worry.

This isn’t my fight.”

“This is your fight. Changing the world’s perception and breaking the rigid framework of the world is not a fight that someone can do for you. It’s not me who has to fight, but all of you.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled.

That smile was very gentle and looked relieved.

“It was something that could have been done the same way. Just as you believed in me, I just had to believe in you. I just had to believe that you could do it, that you could create a better situation than now.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled.

‘My vessel is small.’

Those around him consistently trusted and believed in him.

But conversely, did Kang Jin-ho really trust and believe in them?

The reason why more and more burdens piled up on him was ultimately because he was a human who couldn’t fully trust others and couldn’t let go of what he held in his hands.

“I believe that you will find a better path on your own without me having to control and suppress you, without me shouting that this is right. I… I believe that.”

Kang Jin-ho closed his eyes for a moment.

When he slowly opened them again, his eyes were filled with a certainty that had not been there before.

“I think what I have to do is not to create the next world, but to lay the foundation for you to start on an equal footing. That would be the way to repay the debt I owe. So…”

Kang Jin-ho took everyone there into his eyes.

“Trust me and wait a little longer. I will definitely… I will make sure you can have a voice.”

That was all he had to say.

He tried to say something more, but he couldn’t think of anything else.

All that remained was one word.

Kang Jin-ho, who had been silently looking at everyone, took a step forward. Then, he slowly lowered his head.

“Thank you.”

Lee Myung-hwan, who was looking at Kang Jin-ho from the front, bit his lip.

‘It’s a mess.’

That was neither a speech nor anything else. There was no clear conclusion. It was just a longer way of saying to wait a little longer, and it was just a roundabout way of saying that he wouldn’t take responsibility for what came after.

But…

He couldn’t say anything.

He realized it anew.

How much he had relied on those small shoulders, that not-so-large back.

A child who only follows his father’s back can never grow up. Eventually, everyone has to leave that back and face the wind head-on.

Now was that time.

Kang Jin-ho was pushing their shoulders.

He was telling them not to hide behind him anymore, but to go out on their own and face the world.

In a way, it was too obvious.

But it was something that Kang Jin-ho wouldn’t have said.

That’s why Lee Myung-hwan felt uneasy for no reason.

‘Clan Lord, are you saying you won’t lead us anymore? Or…’

‘Are you becoming unable to lead us anymore?’

Lee Myung-hwan couldn’t bring himself to ask that question out loud.

He just bit his lip even harder to hold back the rising emotions.

Kang Jin-ho slowly descended from the platform.

Until Kang Jin-ho’s figure disappeared behind the platform and completely vanished inside the main building…

None of the members gathered there could open their mouths.

It was only when the people gathered behind him began to leave one by one that Lee Myung-hwan also moved his heavy steps.

It was strange.

It was a step he had taken countless times.

But today, even taking one step was not easy. It was like the step of someone walking for the first time.

He was afraid to take the step he had taken.

But Lee Myung-hwan clenched his fist and took a step.

He had to walk.

Now, with his own strength.

Lee Myung-hwan’s steps, which had taken their first step, became more and more determined.

Kang Jin-ho, who was standing by the window of the Clan Lord’s office, silently watched Lee Myung-hwan taking his steps.

For a long time.

For a very long time.