Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1014

Jo Seul-gi’s heart sank.

Choi Yeon-ha, who had emerged from the bathroom, was glaring at her, her face contorted with anger.

‘Choi, Choi Yeon-ha.’

Even facing a grim reaper wouldn’t make her heart plummet like this. At least, not in this industry.

A grim reaper was nothing compared to Choi Yeon-ha.

A top actress.

A title that barely scratched the surface of who she was.

Even before Jo Seul-gi had dreamed of becoming an actress, Choi Yeon-ha was already at the top, and even after she had become an actress, Choi Yeon-ha remained at the summit. And even now, at this very moment, Choi Yeon-ha was the undisputed queen.

In so many ways.

Her achievements and reputation as an actress were unparalleled, but her notoriously terrible personality was in a league of its own. How many actresses had been crushed after crossing Choi Yeon-ha?

And now, she had run into Choi Yeon-ha, the human-shaped bomb of the acting world, in this way.

Seeing Jo Seul-gi at a complete loss, Choi Yeon-ha narrowed her eyes.

“Hey.”

“Yes? Yes, sunbaenim [Sunbae is a Korean term for a senior or someone with more experience]!”

“Not putting it out?”

“I, I’ll put it out right now.”

Jo Seul-gi hurriedly stubbed out the cigarette on the floor.

“Wow, you’re overflowing with manners. Hey.”

“Yes!”

“Don’t you have any brains? If you stub it out on the floor, who’s going to clean it up? Are you going to clean it all up before you leave?”

“Ah, no.”

Jo Seul-gi trembled like a fresh recruit.

“Who are you?”

“…Yes?”

“Looking at you here, you must be an actress. What’s your name?”

“Ah, I…”

Jo Seul-gi was momentarily flustered.

‘She doesn’t know me?’

She glanced at Choi Yeon-ha, but she genuinely seemed not to recognize her.

‘How can she not know me?’

There was a reason why Jo Seul-gi was so dumbfounded. In the public eye, Jo Seul-gi was often called the next Choi Yeon-ha. Other rookie actresses wouldn’t even catch Choi Yeon-ha’s attention, but she should at least know Jo Seul-gi.

“Got no mouth?”

“Ah… Ah, sunbaenim. I’m Jo Seul-gi.”

“Jo Seul-gi?”

“Yes.”

“The name is Jo… no, never mind.”

She knew what she was about to say. She could tell without hearing it.

“Hey.”

“Yes? Ah… Yes, sunbaenim!”

“I don’t care if you smoke cigarettes or weed, but if you have anything other than udon noodles in your brain, you should smoke at your house. Or in your car.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Stinking up the place with cigarette smoke, it makes me think. No, it pisses me off.”

“Yes?”

“If I catch you smoking in the bathroom again, I’ll rip all your hair out, so don’t get caught. Got it?”

“…Yes.”

“Looking like a frog.”

Choi Yeon-ha walked out of the bathroom with heavy steps.

Jo Seul-gi trembled.

“A, a frog?”

She turned her head to look in the mirror.

She couldn’t understand how this face could be called a frog.

“What is that crazy bitch talking about!”

Irritation washed over her. She had to run into Choi Yeon-ha in the bathroom when she was already having a bad day.

Come to think of it, the reason why the staff who were interviewing her kept looking at their watches and seemed anxious was probably because the next interview was with Choi Yeon-ha.

“That old hag!”

Jo Seul-gi shoved her hand into her bag with an annoyed gesture. Then, she put a new cigarette in her mouth and lit it.

“Hoo.”

As the cigarette smoke filled her lungs, she felt a little better.

“Ugh, so annoying! Why did she come back to Korea instead of staying in China!”

“I know, right.”

“I mean… Huh?”

Jo Seul-gi turned her head, her eyes slightly trembling.

Choi Yeon-ha was standing at the entrance of the bathroom with her arms crossed.

“Sorry for being old.”

“Ah, no…”

“That doesn’t matter…”

Choi Yeon-ha’s eyes began to burn.

“I said if I catch you smoking in the bathroom again, I’ll rip all your hair out, right?”

“S, sunbaenim?”

“I’m in a really bad mood, and you got caught. Come here, you bitch!”

“Hiiik?”

When people came running at Jo Seul-gi’s scream, they saw a cigarette on the floor and Jo Seul-gi sitting down and crying.

Those who saw Choi Yeon-ha standing with her chin up in front of her could easily guess what had happened.

And rumors began to spread in the broadcasting world that Choi Yeon-ha had dragged a rising junior into the bathroom, smoked a cigarette, and crushed her.

***

“Jin-ho, right?”

Kang Jin-ho’s eyes narrowed.

It was Han Se-yeon.

She had changed a bit, but the Han Se-yeon he knew was still clearly there.

“Han Se-yeon?”

“Wow! It’s so amazing. I’m seeing you here. It’s funny.”

Han Se-yeon covered her mouth and approached Kang Jin-ho.

Even the great Kang Jin-ho couldn’t help but be flustered at this moment. Why was Han Se-yeon suddenly appearing here?

“How many years has it been? It feels like it’s been about two years since I saw you?”

“Yeah.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

He had seen her when he was on leave from the military, and he hadn’t seen her again since, so it must have been around that time.

“Why did you come to England? Are you here for sightseeing?”

“No.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head slightly.

“I have some business.”

“Ah, I see. Why are you here if you have business?”

“I’m about to go back, so I’m buying gifts.”

“Gifts?”

Han Se-yeon smiled lightly.

“Kang Jin-ho, you’re still the same.”

It seemed like there was some misunderstanding, but he didn’t feel the need to clear it up.

“Why are you here?”

“Ah, didn’t Park Yu-min tell you? I came to England for study abroad.”

“Study abroad?”

“Yeah. After… after that, I came right away.”

It was the first time he had heard about it.

Well, Kang Jin-ho hadn’t asked about Han Se-yeon, so it was natural that he wouldn’t know. Park Yu-min wasn’t the type to blab about things he wasn’t asked about.

“I didn’t know.”

“Yeah.”

A slightly awkward silence settled between them.

Kang Jin-ho narrowed his brow slightly.

‘What should I say?’

He couldn’t think of anything to say.

When he used to meet Han Se-yeon, he didn’t need to think about these things.

Back then, they had common interests and a lot to talk about. But now, they had nothing in common.

The gap between them felt as wide as the time they had been apart.

“Then when are you going back?”

Han Se-yeon broke the ice.

“Tonight or tomorrow.”

“I see.”

Han Se-yeon nodded awkwardly.

“I’m going back to Korea this week too.”

“Really?”

“I was going to contact you when I got back to Korea, but it’s funny how things work out. I never thought I’d run into you in a place like this.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

It was definitely unexpected for him too.

‘It feels a little strange.’

The name Han Se-yeon was quite significant in his life. There was a time when his relationship with her felt closer than his relationship with Park Yu-min.

When he hadn’t fully adapted to this world, Han Se-yeon was one of the bridges that connected him to this world. In the end, his immaturity destroyed their relationship.

Maybe if Kang Jin-ho had been as adapted to this world as he was now, their relationship might have been a little different.

Of course, it wasn’t like he was regretting it.

“Are you choosing a gift?”

“Yeah.”

“Should I help you?”

“Huh?”

“You’re not good at choosing these things.”

Kang Jin-ho flinched.

It was an undeniable fact.

“You’ll waste a lot of time, and you might end up choosing something weird.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded unconsciously.

It could be a good thing that other people’s assessment of him was consistent. But if that assessment was consistently negative, it was a different story.

He definitely needed help with this kind of thing.

However.

“No. It’s okay.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head slightly.

“Huh?”

“I’ll choose it myself.”

Han Se-yeon’s brow furrowed slightly.

“I’m saying that because you’re not good at it.”

Kang Jin-ho sighed quietly at her slightly withdrawn attitude.

“It’s because it’s right for me to choose it.”

“Ah!”

Han Se-yeon stepped back slightly.

Han Se-yeon, who had been subtly hesitant, opened her mouth as if she understood something.

“Is it a gift for your girlfriend?”

“Yeah.”

Han Se-yeon’s eyes widened slightly as Kang Jin-ho nodded.

It was understandable.

It was definitely a problem for another woman to choose a gift for his girlfriend. Even if Han Se-yeon was the one receiving the gift, she might feel bad.

Especially considering Han Se-yeon and Kang Jin-ho’s past relationship.

That much was understandable.

The part that was not understandable was somewhere else.

“You have a girlfriend?”

This didn’t make sense.

The Kang Jin-ho that Han Se-yeon knew was worse than a three-year-old when it came to dating.

Of course, he was good-looking, so women would flock to him, but Kang Jin-ho wasn’t the type to accept those women as girlfriends.

But a girlfriend?

“Yeah.”

“Ah…”

Han Se-yeon took a step back without realizing it.

“That…”

Just as Han Se-yeon was about to say something, she heard someone calling her.

“Se-yeon, what are you doing! We have to go soon.”

“Ah…”

Han Se-yeon, who had turned her head to check on her group, looked at Kang Jin-ho with an awkward face.

“I have to go now.”

“I’ll contact you when I get back to Korea.”

“Okay.”

“Then see you later.”

“Bye.”

Han Se-yeon waved her hand and left the store. Kang Jin-ho, who had been staring at the store door, turned his head and frowned at the gifts.

‘So, here…’

That’s when it happened.

Tap tap tap.

Just as he heard hurried footsteps, Han Se-yeon rushed back into the store.

Kang Jin-ho looked at Han Se-yeon with a puzzled expression.

“Number.”

“Huh?”

“Give me your number.”

“Your number changed. You got a new one after you were discharged, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Here, take it.”

Han Se-yeon held out her phone. Kang Jin-ho silently entered his number into her phone.

“Give me your phone.”

When Kang Jin-ho unlocked his phone and handed it over, Han Se-yeon entered her number, pressed the save button, and handed it back to Kang Jin-ho.

“Save it.”

“Okay.”

Before he could even react, Han Se-yeon waved her hand.

“I’ll call you when I get to Korea, so contact me if you have time. Got it?”

“Okay.”

“See you later!”

Han Se-yeon waved her hand and left the store.

Watching her go, Kang Jin-ho scratched his cheek.

‘She’s still so scatterbrained.’

She seemed to be just as scatterbrained as before.

But what should he say…

Just as Kang Jin-ho shrugged his shoulders and was about to turn around, he heard a creepy laugh behind him.

“Hehehehehe.”

Flustered.

Kang Jin-ho turned his head with a slightly nervous look.

“I saw everything.”

Lee Hyun-soo was standing there with a meaningful look on his face.

“How did you get here?”

“Hehe, I heard that the Lord was going to buy gifts, and I thought you might be in trouble, so I followed you right away. You have to acknowledge this loyalty.”

“And thanks to that, I saw something good. Wow, getting a girl’s number in this faraway country! Lord, I’m impressed!”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Lee Hyun-soo, who was clapping as if he was moved, with a sullen expression.

“But!”

Lee Hyun-soo shook his finger.

“I wonder what will happen if the Lady finds out about this. Hehehe.”

Kang Jin-ho sighed deeply. He had been caught by a troublesome guy.