Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1070

Lee Hyun-soo quietly observed Kim Myung-chan.

‘This old man is no joke.’

His muscles involuntarily tensed.

Kim Myung-chan wasn’t overtly threatening; he was simply stating his points calmly. Yet, it was enough to make even the formidable Lee Hyun-soo feel a sense of unease.

‘It’s similar to when I met Chairman Hwang before.’

While the raw, palpable energy wasn’t the same, there was a similar feeling of overwhelming power that made him feel subdued.

‘Seok Dong-soo was nothing.’

He had previously thought Seok Dong-soo wielded significant political influence, but after meeting Kim Myung-chan, it was clear that Seok Dong-soo was merely a novice. Of course, everything was relative.

“We have no intention of doing that,” Lee Hyun-soo stated firmly.

“This intervention was unavoidable.”

“Was it Lee Hyun-soo, you said?” Kim Myung-chan asked.

“Yes, Prime Minister.”

“Do you know what the most common lie a politician tells is?”

“…I’m not sure.”

Kim Myung-chan smiled faintly and said, “‘We had no choice.'”

Lee Hyun-soo was speechless.

“There is nothing in this world that is truly unavoidable.

There are always other options.

It’s just that they might be more troublesome and require more time.”

“…Yes.”

“Saying ‘we had no choice’ simply means you didn’t want to put in the effort.”

It was an undeniable truth.

If they had diligently tried to resolve Seok Dong-soo’s issue, they would have eventually succeeded. Lee Hyun-soo already knew what would happen if Kang Jin-ho got involved. They had simply chosen the easiest and most efficient method.

“Many of the events that shook the world began with the words ‘we had no choice.’ The country was in chaos, so they had no choice but to stage a coup and seize power. The army couldn’t advance, so they had no choice but to retreat from Wihwa Island [a historical event where a general turned back his army].”

“Ah…”

Kim Myung-chan shrugged.

“Yes, that might be the case. The problem is whether that ‘no choice’ ends there. Even if you seize power through a coup, you could still become a hero if you resolve things democratically. And even if you retreat from Wihwa Island, you could become a loyal subject if you protected Goryeo [an ancient Korean kingdom]. But the problem is that ‘no choice’ usually doesn’t end there.”

Kim Myung-chan’s eyes sharply scanned Lee Hyun-soo.

“How about the General Assembly? Has your ‘no choice’ ended here?”

Lee Hyun-soo swallowed hard.

‘It feels like being sliced with a razor blade.’ Now he understood why people said there were monsters in the political world.

Every word Kim Myung-chan spoke was like a precise cut, leaving no room for rebuttal.

Lee Hyun-soo sighed and opened his mouth.

“Prime Minister, to be honest, it’s difficult to answer that question. The matter regarding Minister Seok Dong-soo was not the result of deep deliberation.”

“Does that mean?” Kim Myung-chan quietly looked at Lee Hyun-soo and spoke.

“The system of the General Assembly is not rational, but rather a system that can change rapidly depending on the Chairman’s intentions, is that what you mean?”

“Ah, that’s…”

Lee Hyun-soo shut his mouth.

‘Ah, you idiot.’

If he could, he would punch himself in the face. He had never felt so unilaterally cornered in a conversation before, but Kim Myung-chan was literally toying with him.

It hadn’t even been five minutes since the conversation started, and he felt like he was being stripped bare.

“It’s not exactly what I meant.”

“In other words…” Kim Myung-chan looked at Lee Hyun-soo with calm eyes.

“No matter what is discussed here, if it doesn’t please the Chairman when you return to the Assembly, everything can be overturned, is that what you mean?”

Lee Hyun-soo’s muscles tightened even more.

“You don’t have to look so worried. It’s more common than you think. If you knew how much of a dictatorship the heads of major domestic corporations have, you wouldn’t be so embarrassed. It’s a real den of vipers there.”

He was manipulating him with incredible skill.

If he hadn’t been so tense, he might have chuckled at those words. Lee Hyun-soo wiped the sweat from his forehead. He shouldn’t show this side of himself, but it was better than letting sweat run down his face.

“So, about that…”

“Yes.”

“Could I meet with the Chairman of the General Assembly separately?”

“…With the Chairman?”

“Yes.”

Lee Hyun-soo’s mind raced.

“Ah, if meeting in person is difficult, a phone call would be fine.”

“A phone call?”

“Yes. I’d like to get a clear answer from the Chairman of the General Assembly, if possible. If the General Assembly is so heavily influenced by the Chairman, then there’s no point in doing anything without hearing his answer directly.”

Lee Hyun-soo nodded lightly.

He understood what the Prime Minister wanted.

“Then, would you mind if I excused myself for a moment? I need to contact the Chairman…”

“Go ahead.”

Lee Hyun-soo bowed his head and got up from his seat, leaving the room.

Kim Myung-chan picked up his cold coffee and gave a bitter smile.

‘Oh, they didn’t even offer me a cup of tea.’ He had pretended to be relaxed, but it seemed he was just as tense.

Well, he couldn’t help but be tense.

The person he was dealing with wasn’t the one sitting in front of him. It was the Korean Martial Arts General Assembly, a terrifying monster.

Depending on how he spoke and acted here, the future of the Republic of Korea could be shaken. There might not be any major problems right now, but if this small seed were to sprout, no one knew what shape it would take decades later.

Knock knock.

“Come in.”

Lee Hyun-soo burst through the door and entered.

“The Chairman says he’s available for a call now. If you need to meet, we can schedule a separate appointment, but if not, then now…”

“I don’t think we need to schedule an appointment. The important thing isn’t meeting face-to-face.”

“Yes. Then I’ll connect you right away.”

“Yes.”

Lee Hyun-soo turned and started making the call.

‘Is it Kang Jin-ho?’

Kim Myung-chan swallowed hard.

The name Kang Jin-ho resonated with him more than he had expected. It wasn’t just about Seok Dong-soo’s case. The problem had already occurred before Seok Dong-soo’s incident.

‘I never thought they would contact me separately.’

He had been keeping a close eye on Kang Jin-ho, but until recently, he hadn’t felt a significant threat compared to Lee Joong-geol. Prime Minister Kim Myung-chan changed his mind after receiving a call from the UK.

‘A friendly relationship…’

For no particular reason, the Prime Minister’s residence had received a call expressing a desire to strengthen friendly relations between the two countries. Although relations with the UK weren’t particularly bad, they had been indifferent to each other, making this an unusual occurrence.

That was until the UK directly mentioned the name ‘Kang Jin-ho’.

‘Who would have imagined he was such a big shot?’

It felt like just yesterday they were laughing at other countries being swayed by the Murim world [a fictional world of martial arts], but now something dark was growing inside his own country. And now, Kim Myung-chan had to face the reality of that darkness.

“It’s connected.”

Lee Hyun-soo switched the phone to speakerphone and placed it on the table.

Kim Myung-chan, after briefly exchanging glances with Lee Hyun-soo, cleared his throat and spoke.

“Hello, this is Kim Myung-chan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea.”

Kim Myung-chan usually didn’t like to emphasize his position. However, the fact that he mentioned his title first was probably due to an instinctive feeling that he shouldn’t be pushed around by the other party.

[This is Kang Jin-ho.]

“Yes.”

But the other party responded simply.

At that moment, Kim Myung-chan realized that he had been pushed back. He had emphasized his title, while the other party had simply stated his name. It was clear who was more conscious of whom.

But the conversation was just beginning.

“I apologize for contacting you in this manner.”

[It’s alright. I don’t intend to keep a busy person for long, so I’d like to get straight to the point.]

Kim Myung-chan licked his lips.

Perhaps it was because of his style, but unlike with Lee Hyun-soo, the words didn’t come out easily. Maybe it was because he felt a great burden from the very existence of Kang Jin-ho.

“I’m calling about the matter concerning Minister Seok Dong-soo.”

[Yes.]

He felt like he shouldn’t be led by the other party. If the other party was going to be direct, then he would be direct as well.

“I apologize for the trouble caused by the matter of Minister Seok Dong-soo. However, I cannot help but be concerned. Minister Seok Dong-soo is a minister of this country. Although he made a wrong choice, suppressing him with force rather than the law is something I cannot accept as a citizen of the Republic of Korea and as the Prime Minister of this country.”

[Continue.]

“I will consider this time as unavoidable. However, this should not happen again. I would like to hear the Chairman’s response to this.”

The answer didn’t come immediately.

But that was probably for the best.

It gave him time to think about whether there was anything wrong with the words he had blurted out.

[It seems there’s been a misunderstanding…]

“A misunderstanding?”

[It’s not just you who doesn’t want to get involved. We also don’t want to get involved with the political world. If this matter is resolved, we will never have anything to do with the political world again. The things you’re worried about won’t happen.]

“Are you sure?”

[There’s nothing certain in this world. It’s just that we don’t have any intention of doing so yet.]

“Hmm…”

[I promise that if you don’t provoke us first, we won’t try to do anything.]

‘If you don’t provoke us first’…

Where should he draw the line?

There were many things he wanted to ask, but pushing further here would be reckless. Now that he had gotten those words out of him, he had to back down. If he went too deep, the snake in the grass might raise its head.

He hadn’t achieved complete separation, but it was meaningful just to have bought some time.

“I will trust the Chairman’s words.”

[To maintain a smooth relationship, we will help as much as possible. But there will be things you need to do as well.]

“What do you mean?”

[Please discuss the details with Chief Lee, who is there. From now on, everything Chief Lee says is the same as what I would say.]

“…Understood.”

[Then.]

Lee Hyun-soo picked up the phone. Even though he knew he shouldn’t, Kim Myung-chan let out a deep sigh.

‘It’s a relief that he’s someone I can talk to.’

Contrary to his image, he was more gentle than he had expected. Of course, he couldn’t know for sure from just a short phone call.

“What are the things we need to do?”

Lee Hyun-soo opened his briefcase and placed a report on the table.

Then, he lightly pushed the report towards Kim Myung-chan.

“This is a list of pro-China figures that we have identified.”

“The Chairman wants them dealt with.”

Kim Myung-chan squeezed his eyes shut.

‘These devilish bastards.’

They were using the excuse of not interfering to push out those they didn’t want. The problem was that Kim Myung-chan had no choice but to accept their proposal.

“We can’t push them all out.”

“We know. We will take care of those who can’t be pushed out.”

“…Listen, Mr. Lee Hyun-soo.”

“You don’t have to worry. It definitely won’t be through illegal means.”

Kim Myung-chan let out a low sigh as he watched Lee Hyun-soo, who had regained his composure and was smiling faintly.

‘Am I doing the right thing?’

It was too late to turn back.

Kim Myung-chan closed his eyes and took the report.