Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1168

“This way!” Wiggins narrowed his eyes, looking at the map. ‘The encirclement is too wide.’ From Gunsan to Taean. It sounds simple, but the coastline alone is 100km long. It’s practically impossible to encircle such a large area with less than ten thousand people. ‘Realistically, that is.’ But it’s not entirely impossible. Basically, they can’t enter residential areas or roads. They can’t avoid people’s eyes in residential areas, and they can’t avoid CCTV cameras on roads. In the end, the only routes they can move through are places where people’s eyes and surveillance cameras can’t reach. Enveloping a 100km area in a hemisphere is almost impossible, but if you exclude civilian areas like this, the range is reduced several times over. This was the advantage that the defending side could gain. It is, in principle, forbidden for the outside world to interfere in the affairs of the unmanned world [a world where individuals with special abilities operate]. But as is the case with most things in the world, that principle is not well observed. The government and the state secretly support their own unmanned world and reap the benefits. Especially this time, it’s a situation that is no different from a national crisis. It’s impossible for the military to mobilize directly, but they can use the basic infrastructure as much as they want. Perhaps the Ministry of Transportation is on high alert right now, staring intently at CCTV, and the police are also increasing patrols. In the meantime, if any suspicious individuals are spotted, the General Assembly [the governing body of the unmanned world] would be contacted immediately. The fact that there hasn’t been any contact yet means that those who have landed are either moving along mountain paths that are out of sight, or… ‘Or they’re hiding somewhere, holding their breath and waiting…’ Either way, it doesn’t matter. Their mission is not simply to maintain the encirclement. They have no intention of engaging in such a tedious war of attrition. The encirclement will gradually narrow around a single point. If only a dozen or so people had landed, they might have been able to escape the encirclement. But it’s impossible for a thousand people to break through this surveillance network. They were taken aback by the unexpected method, but looking back calmly, they only succeeded in landing, and the situation has actually become more favorable for them. If they can find the vanguard like this, they can eliminate them without suffering great losses. Basically, it’s much easier to face a thousand enemies five times than to face five thousand at once. If they can secure a numerical advantage momentarily, they can use the advantage of numbers to launch a coordinated attack. He didn’t know how elite the thousand who had landed were, but Wiggins was confident that he could annihilate them without suffering great losses. If only they could find them. “Any contact?” “Not yet, sir.” “Hmm.” Wiggins checked his watch. In ten minutes, they would begin to narrow the encirclement towards the pre-designated points. The distance to the point was 50 kilometers. It would take ordinary people ten hours, but the unmanned could cover that distance in a maximum of two hours. Two hours, including the time to check and search the surroundings. In other words, it was the same as saying that the battle would begin within two hours from now. Bang Jin-hoon was leading the troops on the left, and Bator was leading his disciples and the troops supported by Bang Jin-hoon in the center. And the one in charge of the right was Wiggins. Wiggins looked back with slightly uneasy eyes. The Chevaliers [elite warriors] were lined up, waiting for his orders. ‘It won’t be easy.’ Looking at it coldly, the troops that Wiggins was in charge of were the most inferior right now. Individually, they might be better than the general unmanned of the General Assembly led by Bang Jin-hoon, but their numbers were clearly insufficient. Moreover, those who had been taught by the Chevaliers were not yet fully proficient in combat. The same was true of the magic unit he had taught. Nevertheless, the reason why they could form an army was that those who had learned Western martial arts were basically superior to those who had learned the General Assembly’s martial arts in terms of defense. They couldn’t take down the enemy in one fell swoop, but they could hold the enemy’s feet without taking much damage. If Bang Jin-hoon or Bator came to support them in that gap, they could be annihilated in one fell swoop. Wiggins’s mind was racing. There was only one thing he was thinking about right now. How much damage could he minimize? The enemy’s main force had not yet arrived. Assuming the enemy’s numbers were between four and six thousand, only about one-fifth of them had landed. If they suffered great losses in catching these guys, it would be difficult to stop those who landed additionally. The purpose of this operation was to capture the enemy as perfectly as possible. ‘What time is it?’ Five minutes left. They would depart in five minutes. “Everyone, reconfirm your mission. It’s meaningless if it’s not perfect.” “Yes, sir!” Vincent nodded heavily. ‘It’s a relief, though.’ Thanks to the Chevaliers joining the General Assembly, Wiggins had a usable sword. No matter how accustomed he had become to the General Assembly, he had lived his whole life at the Round Table [a reference to King Arthur’s knights], hadn’t he? He could move most efficiently when he could wield the familiar sword of the Knights. Wiggins licked his lips slightly. And then it happened. Bzzzz. His phone started ringing. ‘Hmm?’ Wiggins frowned. The phone he was holding now was a phone that was separately provided for missions. They could use a walkie-talkie, but in Korea, where phones work all over the country, there was no need to use such an inconvenient thing. The problem was that only those who needed to discuss the operation knew each other’s numbers on this phone. Wiggins quickly picked up the phone. ‘Lee Hyun-soo?’ Why now? Has there been a change in the operation? Wiggins, who had answered the phone, said quietly. “What’s going on? Is there a change in the operation?” [There’s been a bit of a problem.] “Problem?” [I’ll call you back. You have to answer the call.] “Hmm?” The call was cut off. Wiggins stared at the phone with suspicious eyes. What the hell is this… Then, the phone rang again. ‘Video call?’ Wiggins’s eyes narrowed. It was not a joke, a video call in this situation. It wasn’t just one person who had joined, it was a multi-party video call. Several faces were floating on the screen. They had prepared a way for several people to talk on their smartphones in case of an emergency, but why now in this situation? Wiggins pressed the call connection button without saying a word. “What’s going on?” [First, please turn off the screen. It will expose your current location.] Wiggins turned off the screen with a slightly irritated hand. Now his face would not be visible to those participating in the call. “Explain, now.” [We’ve received a call from China.] “…What?” [They want to connect. I think we should hear them out…] Wiggins closed his eyes slightly and took a deep breath. It was too obvious who the guy who wanted the connection was. ‘What a tenacious bastard.’ He was trying to shake people up even in this situation. The problem was that there was no way to refuse this call. Chai Ke-chang had always tormented them, but he was also the one who brought them reliable information. “Connect it.” [Yes, sir.] A person’s image was added to the split screen. Chai Ke-chang’s upper body came into Wiggins’s view. Chai Ke-chang, who was looking around the screen, chuckled and opened his mouth. [You all look like you’ve done something wrong. Turning off the screen, huh?] “I’d appreciate it if you could speak in English, if possible.” [Hmm, are you weak in Chinese?] “No. It’s just that the pronunciation is a bit annoying.” [Haha! Okay, I’ll do that for you. Is that okay now, Mr. Wiggins?] Wiggins frowned. He didn’t like that relaxed look. [Let’s get straight to the point.] At Lee Hyun-soo’s words, Chai Ke-chang nodded. [Sure. It’s not like we’re in a position to ask each other how we’re doing. I heard that the Japanese bastards went to Korea on Chinese fishing boats this time?] “Why are you asking when you know so well?” [No, no. Don’t come at me like that. I really didn’t know. We’re allies, so there’s no reason for us to do such a thing. I’m a gentleman, you know.] Wiggins chuckled. In his entire life, this was the first time he had ever wanted to spit in the face of someone who was smiling like that. No, if he could, he would want to punch him in the face instead of spitting. [You don’t believe me. How can there be such a lack of trust? Well, if I were in your position, I wouldn’t believe it either.] “I wish you would just say what you want to say. We’re not very free people…” [Okay. As an apology, and to prove my innocence, I’ll give you some information.] “Hmm?” Chai Ke-chang in the screen grinned. [Two fishing boats left China. You already know about the first ones, and the second ones, carrying more people, are now approaching the coast. I heard it’s about two thousand.] Wiggins narrowed his eyes. ‘Already?’ At this rate, they wouldn’t be able to see the effect of sending the vanguard properly? [And that ship is now heading to Gunsan.] “Gunsan?” [The free trade zone, or Saemangeum [a reclaimed area]. Korean is difficult, so I don’t know well. Anyway, it’s that way.] “How can we believe that?” [Hey, don’t underestimate us too much. It’s not that difficult to find out where a fishing boat is heading. It’s not like those Japs bought the boats and left. And the people driving the boats are all Chinese. The information that the Chinese get is our information. Do you think we wouldn’t know that much?] “I think you’re misunderstanding, I’m asking how we can trust the information you’re giving us.” Chai Ke-chang laughed loudly on the screen. [Hahahaha! No, no. Mr. Wiggins, why are you acting like that when you know so well? Whether you believe me or not is your choice. I don’t need to beg you to believe me, do I? Anyway, I gave you the information. And with this much information, I think it’s enough of an apology for the fact that those guys entered through China.] Chai Ke-chang snapped his fingers. [Then I’ll wish you good luck. I’d like to help you a little, but we’re too short on manpower here. I hope there are no dead people when we talk next time. Say hello to Kang Jin-ho for me.] The screen went dark. Wiggins stared at the screen with a blank face. He wasn’t grinding his teeth or yelling, but Wiggins was more furious than ever. [What do we do?] At Lee Hyun-soo’s voice, Wiggins sighed lowly. Anger and excitement were of no help. Hadn’t he already been pointed out by Kang Jin-ho once? [The information is probably…] “It’s probably true.” He wouldn’t try to deceive them with information that Chai Ke-chang could easily verify. Rather, he would give them accurate information and aim for something bigger. The problem was that they didn’t know what the big thing those guys were aiming for right now. [What about the response?] “What do you think?” [We have to go to Gunsan.] “I guess so.” If they continued to narrow the encirclement like this, they would eventually have to leave the guys who were landing alone. However, it was also impossible to readjust the encirclement to Gunsan at this point. The choice was one of two. Annihilate the two thousand who were landing, or chase the thousand who had already entered. “Bator-nim.” [Hmm.] Bator, who had been silent, opened his mouth. [Contact the Coast Guard and check if there are any ships approaching Gunsan. And until the confirmation is complete, narrow the encirclement as quickly as possible. When the confirmation is complete, if there is a ship approaching Gunsan, release the encirclement and gather in Gunsan.] “Is that okay?” [Korea is not a place that will be affected by a thousand rats being released. The scattered rats will be found and killed to the last one. Right now, we have no choice but to chase the bigger swarm of rats.] “Understood. I’ll move out.” Wiggins, who had hung up the phone, quietly looked down at the phone. ‘Chai Ke-chang.’ He didn’t know what that damn bastard was up to, but he would never let it go his way. Wiggins roughly shoved his cell phone into his pocket.