Descent Of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1098

‘It’s about time to make a move…’

Lee Hyunsoo stretched languidly. Then, he reached out and grabbed the coffee cup on his desk.

‘Hmm, should I get a secretary for the General Assembly too?’

Having a secretary to assist is definitely convenient. It prevents time from being ‘stolen’ by trivial tasks, increasing work efficiency.

“Don’t even think about it.”

Lee Hyunsoo chuckled.

Even Kang Jin-ho doesn’t have a secretary. If he were to get one, Jang Min would come to cut off his head, and Bator would probably grab him and throw him out the window.

And maybe Wiggins would…

—You?

It felt like he could hear the voice.

“If you want people to work, you have to create an environment where they can work.”

Lee Hyunsoo grumbled with a dissatisfied expression.

Only after coming here did he realize how much he had been overworked. Compared to that hellish General Assembly, this place is heaven. A heaven created by welfare. A place where music flows from the speakers and the fragrant aroma of coffee fills the room.

Ah, truly…

“Let’s stop it.”

Lee Hyunsoo shook his head.

Such thoughts are meaningless.

People have to live with their feet on the ground. The place he should be is not here, but his office where the chair creaks even with a slight shift, and the keyboard’s engravings have disappeared from overuse.

This place is more like…

Yeah.

‘A vacation spot.’

Vacation spots are originally like that.

A place with warm sunlight and an emerald sea that you don’t have where you live.

A place where it’s nice just to look at, a place full of leisure where you don’t have to do anything.

This small office was Lee Hyunsoo’s vacation spot.

…Sadly.

Of course, the sadness doesn’t end there.

There’s always someone.

Someone who contacts people on vacation to ask about work, someone who doesn’t understand what it means for someone to be on vacation, and who thinks that people should naturally bring work with them even on vacation.

So, someone like that…

Bang.

“Is work going well?”

That person, like a department head, just walked in.

Wiggins, who entered the office, smiled broadly.

“My, my, you look very relaxed.”

Lee Hyunsoo sighed deeply.

“Does it seem like I shouldn’t be relaxed?”

“It’s not that. Having leisure in work is a good thing. It’s just that, well, it’s a pity that it seems like you’re not fully utilizing your abilities.”

What a terrible boss.

He’s definitely from the Round Table, but how long has it been since he came to the General Assembly that he’s already nagging people like this? If he’s going to be like that, he should just naturalize as Kim Wiggins.

“Hmm, Master.”

“Hmm?”

“Well, it’s not that I’m rebelling, but I think we need to be a bit clearer.”

“Oh, what do you want to clarify?”

Lee Hyunsoo took a deep breath and opened his mouth.

“Actually, I didn’t want to say this, but I’m officially dispatched to the Round Table to learn about their work.”

Of course, in reality, he’s more like taking over the work than learning.

But learning isn’t exactly wrong either. By doing the Master’s work, he can see at a glance how the Round Table’s funds flow.

Just being able to see this was a great benefit.

“So?”

“And Master, you belong to the General Assembly. You’re no longer affiliated with the Round Table.”

“That’s right.”

Lee Hyunsoo said confidently.

“So, how I do my work here is no longer your concern. I’ll take care of my work, so you don’t have to worry.”

Lee Hyunsoo smiled broadly.

The logic is perfect.

Wiggins belongs to the General Assembly, and Lee Hyunsoo is temporarily under the management of the Round Table. Therefore, in principle, Wiggins cannot interfere with Lee Hyunsoo’s work.

He’s just a guest of the Round Table now.

Wiggins smiled contentedly and nodded.

If it were the old Wiggins, he would have admitted his mistake and stepped back.

But…

“Does company life end when you’re dispatched?”

“It seems like you’re not thinking about what happens after you return? You seem to have forgotten… you’re going home with me. Is that going home, or not?”

This guy is Korean.

He’s completely Korean.

He’s about to throw away his hamburger and go looking for kimchi.

How can someone become such a complete 꼰대 [kkondae, a condescending older person] in such a short time?

“Company life must be comfortable for you to say such things.”

“…No, it’s not.”

Just then, thankfully, the Master opened the door and came inside.

“Master, you’ve arrived?”

“Why is the atmosphere like this?”

“It’s nothing. Just a friendly conversation…”

Friendly, my foot. It’s freezing cold.

The Master glanced at the two of them and then spoke heavily.

“It seems like they’ve started to move.”

“Hmm.”

“It’s a bit later than I thought.”

Lee Hyunsoo and Wiggins responded to the Master’s words as if it were nothing special.

In fact, it wasn’t really surprising.

‘They can’t stand it.’

Lee Hyunsoo is currently cutting off the Knights’ hands and feet.

Where does the Knights’ power come from?

Of course, it comes from their military force.

Economic power?

Of course, economic power will also have an impact. But economic power within the Round Table is meaningless. It’s not like the Round Table is begging for money everywhere.

According to Lee Hyunsoo’s analysis, the Round Table’s economic power surpasses that of global corporations. The profits from their businesses alone are more than enough to run the Round Table.

So, economic power doesn’t really matter. What creates the Knights’ authority is solely the power they possess and the power of the countries that support them.

The main focus is the military force they have.

Lee Hyunsoo was cutting that off.

“The backlash is more severe than I thought…”

“It’s natural. This is unreasonable.”

“Unreasonable?”

“Yes. Isn’t it like they’re trying to take the power they’ve cultivated and nurtured for free?”

“…Hmm, that’s true.”

The military force that the Knights possess are those who have been trained by the martial arts world of each country. And now, the Master’s permission is needed to operate them?

This was no different from breaking the foundation of the Round Table.

From the General Assembly’s perspective, it was like if Korea, China, and Japan formed an alliance, and the leader demanded that in order to move the martial artists from the General Assembly, they would need his permission.

‘The Chairman would stab the leader in the mouth with a knife.’

Anyone would have to rebel if they were in that situation.

“Is it really necessary to go this far?”

“Of course.”

Lee Hyunsoo smiled broadly.

“You see, the right to command…”

“It doesn’t have to be that.”

“Hmm?”

Lee Hyunsoo continued with a smile.

“It doesn’t have to be military force. It could be money. It could be the houses they live in. Or, it would be good to make them walk 10km from the entrance when they come to the Round Table.”

The Master stared at Lee Hyunsoo with a blank look.

“Do you know where authority comes from?”

“Isn’t it power and influence?”

“No, it’s not.”

Lee Hyunsoo shook his head firmly.

“Authority comes from unreasonableness.”

“…Unreasonableness?”

“Yes. It’s meaningless to slowly take control of them now. If a superior says they’re going to plant a tree in your front yard, no one will really object. Even if they have complaints, they’ll let it go. Why? Because the damage isn’t significant. In other words…”

Lee Hyunsoo curled up the corners of his mouth.

“They get the perception that ‘I gave in.’ Even though they were actually robbed.”

“Hmm.”

“It’s also a way to gradually get concessions like that. It’s not dangerous. I usually prefer this method, but not this time.”

The Master looked at Lee Hyunsoo with a slightly tense expression.

This man is dangerous.

“What we need to demand is planting a tree in their living room. That’s unreasonable.”

“That’s right.”

“When they can’t refuse that unreasonableness, that’s when dominance and authority are created. The authority of a ruler is created when others cannot resist actions that deviate from norms and laws. We need to instill in their minds that no matter what they do, they can’t stop what the Master is doing.”

Lee Hyunsoo shrugged.

“So, anything unreasonable is fine. It’s good to demand they hand over their military force, it’s good to force a Knight I want into another country’s Knight, anything is fine as long as it’s unreasonable.”

“Heh…”

The Master laughed in disbelief.

“I didn’t know you’d go this far.”

“Don’t misunderstand, Master.”

“Hmm?”

“There is no such thing as a gentle dictator. Once power starts to run wild, it’s like a knife hanging over the necks of others. Just because I don’t intend to stab with that knife doesn’t mean the knife isn’t there.”

“You want power, but you want to maintain gentleness towards those who are swayed by that power. That’s just a delusion. Don’t stand in a half-hearted place. There’s no reverse gear in power.”

Considering their respective statuses and positions, Lee Hyunsoo was not in a position to advise the Master. But Lee Hyunsoo was an expert in this area.

He helped Kim Seok-il establish the Yeongnam Association and reorganized the General Assembly to make the entire General Assembly Kang Jin-ho’s private army. That’s why he could say these things.

“I’ll keep that in mind. So, what should we do now?”

“You just need to help them gather their strength.”

“H-help?”

“Yes. You need to subtly help them gather their maximum strength. So that they can gather more power and opinions than they thought and confront the Master.”

“Hmm, it’s true that I was waiting for them to rebel, but do I have to help them?”

“Yes. You have to. When they gather more power than they thought, and when they think that even the Master can’t stop them…”

Lee Hyunsoo drew his thumb across his neck.

“That’s when we break it.”

“The most despairing moment for a person is not when there is no hope. It’s when they realize that the hope that seemed so brilliant was actually nothing. Those who have hope resist power. We need to teach them helplessness and despair.”

The Master let out a hollow laugh.

‘It’s a relief that Wiggins refused him.’

The Master didn’t have the confidence to properly handle this guy. He wondered how the General Assembly was controlling Lee Hyunsoo.

“Then, how do you plan to break them?”

“That’s not my job.”

“Hmm?”

Lee Hyunsoo smiles broadly.

“There are experts for breaking, cutting, and destroying. Medicine to pharmacists, doctors to doctors.”

Lee Hyunsoo shrugged.

“We should leave it to the pros.”

Everyone nodded.

Their role was to set the stage. But cleaning up the stage was not their role.