Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1206

“Any contact?”

Akino Furutani’s eyes narrowed.

“Are you saying that both the first and second units have lost contact?”

“I am very sorry, but…”

“We are unable to reach the mainland either.”

Akino’s face was filled with bewilderment.

“Even the mainland?”

“Yes.”

“Is there something wrong with the communications?”

Ogawa Kohei swallowed hard and lowered his head.

“We have tried connecting with other locations, just in case, but the communications are working fine with them. Even if there was a communication error, the probability of it only affecting those locations is…”

Akino knew it too.

The probability of communication failures occurring at those three locations simultaneously was less than being struck by lightning three times in a row.

The situation was clear.

But he couldn’t understand it at all.

‘It’s understandable that the first and second units were defeated.’

It was possible that the enemy’s strength was greater than expected, and all the deployed troops could have been annihilated. It was a slim chance, but he couldn’t say it wouldn’t happen.

But…

‘How can I explain the loss of contact with the mainland?’

Did the General Assembly simultaneously engage the first and second units on the peninsula and then cross over to Japan to attack Shin’nichikai [a powerful, influential organization]?

“That’s absurd!”

Akino shouted without realizing it.

That couldn’t be possible.

Even if they were prepared in advance, launching a counterattack into Japan was beyond South Korea’s capabilities. Even if they were to wage war against the mighty Three Kings [a reference to a powerful group or individuals], they wouldn’t be able to counterattack the mainland in just one day.

Then why was this happening?

“Director.”

“Hmm.”

Akino swallowed a groan.

‘This isn’t good.’

War isn’t just about the strength of your forces.

What determines the outcome of a war is information, not just military power. You need to know how the enemy is moving.

There’s a saying that if you know the enemy and know yourself, you will not be defeated in a hundred battles. But right now, Akino couldn’t know the enemy, nor could he know himself.

If you don’t know the enemy and you don’t know yourself, there’s nothing left but defeat.

“According to the plan, we should be attempting to land by now…”

Kohei said in a slightly subdued voice.

Akino didn’t even look at Kohei. His mind was too complicated right now.

‘What should I do?’

According to the plan, they should be landing right now. If the landing is delayed, the first and second units that were deployed earlier could become isolated or even be annihilated. If Akino made a misjudgment and those who landed first were harmed, he wouldn’t be able to avoid being held accountable after the war.

But what if…

What if those who went in first were already annihilated?

And what if, by some chance, South Korea had invaded the mainland and attacked Shin’nichikai?

‘That place is a death trap.’

The distant land of Korea looked incredibly ominous.

Akino let out a deep sigh.

The third unit.

The third unit, which he was in charge of, was essentially the main force. But just because it was the main force didn’t mean it had significantly superior strength compared to the units that had been deployed earlier.

It was just larger in number.

The third unit was a collection of the remaining forces after the elite troops had been sent out. Its strength wouldn’t match that of the first unit, which was mainly composed of Shin’nichikai, or even the second unit of the Yamashiro-gumi [likely a Yakuza group].

Of course, having a large number was a strength in itself.

This was a war of occupation.

In a battle against an enemy, one strong person is more efficient than ten weak ones, but in occupying a specific area, ten weak people can do several times more than one expert.

The reason why modern armies, despite being mechanized, never give up on infantry is because only infantry can occupy territory.

However…

‘That’s only when the first and second units are doing their job.’

Akino’s face grew darker.

“Director, you need to make a decision.”

“Hmm.”

Akino bit his lip slightly.

‘Don’t think about myself.’

This wasn’t the time to consider which option was better for his own safety. He had to look at the whole picture and act.

Akino bit his lip tightly.

The sea was dark. The land of the peninsula could be seen in the distance.

“We’re landing.”

“Yes!”

Akino took a deep breath.

Once they landed, there would be no turning back. Either they would occupy that land, or everyone here would die. It was one or the other.

It was different from the past.

In wars from hundreds of years ago, when they could dock their ships, there was the option of retreating back to the mainland by ship. The fact that there were terrifying monsters lurking in the sea was a separate issue, but at least the attempt to escape was possible.

But not now.

Since they couldn’t openly occupy the port, it was impossible to dock the ships.

There might be a way to call the ships that were floating in international waters, but unless the enemy was stupid, they wouldn’t just stand by and watch.

An extreme choice.

Annihilation or victory.

Akino bit his lip tightly and glared at the land of the peninsula. It all depended on his choice…

“Hmm?”

At that moment, Akino’s eyes narrowed slightly.

‘What is it?’

Something was approaching them.

“Kohei!”

“Yes, Director!”

“A ship is approaching from the front. Check it out!”

“Yes? Ah, I understand!”

Kohei answered in a loud voice and ran towards the bow of the ship.

‘Is it a patrol boat?’

Akino narrowed his eyes.

Even if a patrol boat had discovered them, they wouldn’t approach recklessly, would they?

But he couldn’t think of it as anything else.

There were two reasons.

The approaching ship was a small vessel that didn’t seem to be able to carry more than a few people, and it was heading straight towards them without hesitation.

“It appears to be a small vessel. It’s not clear who is on board.”

“Is it a patrol boat?”

“…I can’t confirm it exactly, but it doesn’t seem to be a patrol boat.”

What?

Not a patrol boat?

Akino enhanced his vision.

Indeed, he couldn’t see the speakers or sirens that were common on patrol boats. Then what was the purpose of approaching them?

“Should we sink it?”

“Don’t be stupid.”

Akino was annoyed.

They were about to attempt a landing. He didn’t want to cause any problems, even small ones.

“Stand by.”

“But…”

“It’s better to minimize variables. Stand by! Instead, gather everyone in the cabins on the deck!”

“Not everyone can come up.”

“You idiot! Do I have to tell you every single thing! Where did you sell your improvisation skills!”

“I-I’m sorry.”

Kohei was startled and ran off, and Akino gritted his teeth.

‘Damn it, they should have assigned someone who can actually strategize with me.’

They took all the key people and left only the riffraff, so nothing was working properly. If Akino had joined the first unit, these idiots might have gotten lost in the middle of the ocean.

Akino, shaking off the stray thoughts in his head, looked at the approaching ship. The ship, which had almost reached them, was clearly visible in his eyes.

‘Hmm?’

The deck was empty.

He thought it was a small vessel, but he expected at least a few people to be on board, but the deck was literally empty. There were only a few people visible.

‘What the hell are those things?’

As the ship got closer, the situation became clearer.

There were a few people sitting on the deck. The most noticeable was a huge man sitting cross-legged at the bow of the ship.

‘Am I seeing things?’

It felt like he couldn’t grasp the perspective.

The moment he saw the man, the small ship seemed to have become a miniature. That’s how huge the man’s body was.

“Huge… wait. Huge?”

Akino’s face twisted.

There was only one person in Korea with that kind of physique.

‘Batoru?’

He recognized him.

But he didn’t understand.

He recognized that the person sitting on the ship was Batoru, but he couldn’t understand why Batoru was on a ship coming here.

How did they know the location?

And how were they here?

‘Batoru is here, which means?’

Akino’s gaze wavered erratically.

He stared intently at the people on the ship.

He would be there.

He had to be!

“Ah…”

His gaze fixed on one spot.

Behind Batoru, a man was sitting on the deck.

A slightly indifferent, relaxed posture.

His hair and the smoke from his cigarette fluttered in the wind.

“Kang…”

He knew.

It was that man.

As the ship approached completely, it became clear. How strong the people on that ship were. Just by looking at them, their strength was clearly conveyed to his skin.

But that man was distinctly different from the others.

The surrounding air was different.

“Kang Jin-ho…”

A groan-like voice escaped from Akino’s lips.

At that moment.

Kang Jin-ho raised his head and looked at Akino. Even though there was still a distance, their eyes met precisely.

Shivers.

Akino trembled as goosebumps rose on his skin.

The moment he felt the gaze, even though it was from a distance, his whole body went cold as if he had fallen into an ice pit.

There was no doubt.

That was Kang Jin-ho.

But why was Kang Jin-ho coming here?

“We’re ready, Director!”

At Kohei’s voice, Akino bit his lip tightly.

Should he sink them?

It was quite unsightly to go back on his word, but it wasn’t a bad option.

But Akino quickly dismissed the thought.

They were not beings that could be dealt with by simply destroying their ship. If the ship was destroyed, they would reach here by running on the water.

“Get into battle formation.”

“Yes?”

“Damn it, don’t make me say it twice, get into battle formation, you idiot!”

“Yes! Yes!”

Kohei ran off in a panic.

“Damn it.”

Akino, cursing, gripped the spear in his hand.

‘Those crazy bastards.’

What the hell were they thinking?

And what the hell were the first and second units doing to give those guys the time to come here?

Were they really annihilated?

In just one day?

There was no time to organize his thoughts.

The ship, which had approached in no time, slowly pushed into the side of their huge vessel. Then, the people on the deck jumped onto their ship.

Thud, thud.

The people who had boarded the bow of the ship quietly looked at Akino.

Akino swallowed hard.

Each one of them was extraordinary.

As he faced them, he felt crushed by their pressure.

But…

Step, step.

Compared to the chilling feeling he got from the man who was slowly walking out from the back, this kind of pressure was nothing.

The man who slowly walked out.

Kang Jin-ho opened his mouth towards Akino.

“Are you the representative?”

His parched mouth had no saliva left to swallow.

The sea breeze blew sharply past Akino’s body.