Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 129

“I wanted to settle the orphanage issue before leaving.”

“You mean Sungshim Orphanage?”

“Yes.”

He added, feeling his explanation was a bit lacking.

“I handled things assuming the director was alive, but now that she’s passed away, there are issues with ownership… It seems like there will be many problems.”

“That’s certainly true.”

“I thought it would be good to discuss these issues in advance, so I apologize for coming so early in the morning. I’m sorry.”

“Oh, no, not at all. There’s no need to apologize.”

Jo Gyu-min waved his hands, startled.

“It’s part of my job.” Kang Jin-ho nodded silently.

“Then… what are you planning to do?”

Kang Jin-ho took another sip of his coffee and answered leisurely.

“I don’t have any specific plans.”

“Excuse me?”

What was he talking about?

He came because of this issue, yet he has no plans?

“I don’t intend to interfere in matters I don’t know well. It’s best to leave it to the experts.”

“Ah…”

That was right.

In reality, those in charge of practical matters often knew exactly how to handle things but had to take a long detour to follow instructions.

“You have the card, right?”

“Yes.”

“Use it for whatever amount you need. I’ll leave it to you.”

“Um, Kang Jin-ho.”

“Yes?”

Jo Gyu-min spoke, looking a bit troubled.

“Do you know how much you can withdraw from an ATM in a day?”

“…Is there a limit on that too?”

“You’ve never tried to withdraw, have you?”

Considering Kang Jin-ho’s lifestyle, he probably wouldn’t have a reason to withdraw even 1 million won [approximately $750 USD] in cash. So, it was understandable that he wouldn’t know.

Jo Gyu-min, with a wry smile, explained.

“Until now, it was just light support, so we could handle it by swiping the card, but if it becomes an ownership issue, I need to be able to transfer funds. To do that, I need to manage the account. Is that okay with you?”

“Go ahead.”

“It’s not something you should answer so easily. There’s a large sum of money that the chairman deposited in your account. You’re entrusting that to someone else.”

“It’s fine.”

“Do you trust me?”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Jo Gyu-min for a moment before answering.

“I do trust you, but I trust myself more.”

“What do you mean?”

Kang Jin-ho smiled subtly.

“If you know me even a little, you wouldn’t use my money for personal gain, I believe.”

“Hahaha…”

Jo Gyu-min burst into laughter, but the laughter faded as it went on.

‘This is definitely strange…’

The Kang Jin-ho he knew wasn’t someone who would say such things. The usual Kang Jin-ho would have said something like, ‘I trust you,’ while also showing indifference to money.

There were many strange things, but it wasn’t something to question. He could only think that maybe there had been a change of heart.

“Then, I understand.”

“Yes. Then.”

“Wait a moment.”

“Yes?”

“You need to give me the OTP [One-Time Password device] and certificate.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t you know about internet banking? Internet banking?”

Jo Gyu-min sighed and got up from his seat.

It seemed he would have to take this primitive man to the bank.

* * *

Kang Jin-ho drove the car.

He went to the bank to apply for internet banking at the counter, but there was a minor issue where the counter employee, after checking his customer information, was shocked and summoned the branch manager, leading him to be dragged into the VIP room. However, somehow, it was resolved.

“This is a headache.”

He was terrible at this kind of thing.

He used to be quite good with the conveniences of civilization, but perhaps because he had lived in the Murim world [a martial arts world often depicted in Korean fantasy novels] for too long, now when he saw something new, it was too difficult to understand.

“Well, considering my age…”

When he thought about it, he wasn’t that different in age from Hwang Jung-hoo. So, it wasn’t strange.

Kang Jin-ho was calmly thinking something that would make Hwang Jung-hoo, a self-proclaimed early adopter, shudder.

Kang Jin-ho, who had lightly stepped on the brake, fell deep into thought. Since his remaining time was limited, he felt he needed to move a bit more tightly.

But the one who was really tight was not him.

“Ughhhhh!”

Lee Dong-shik, who had slammed on the brakes with all his might, cursed at the car in front of him.

“Ughhh! Don’t brake, you crazy bastard!”

The car in front of him was very unfamiliar.

That low chassis and pure white body were so pleasing to look at, but if that beautiful car was driving in front of him, it was a different story.

“Why! Why is something like that out at this time!”

Although there wasn’t a specific time for cars to be on the road, it was an unavoidable situation.

His beloved car was a decent mid-sized sedan, but the car in front of him was making his beloved sedan look like a donkey cart.

“I need to change lanes…”

The lanes were packed with cars on both sides, making it difficult to change lanes. He had kept a distance of more than 20 meters from the car in front, but not a single car among those honking would cut in between them.

“…The rear is really something else.”

It was a sight that would make any man’s blood boil. The unfortunate thing was that not only was his blood boiling, but his heart was also burning. Even a slight flicker of the brake lights on that car made him feel like he was standing on the edge of a cliff, with only 1mm to spare.

If he were to accidentally, really accidentally, make even a light contact with that car, he would spend the rest of his life as a slave, not a human.

“How can anyone drive with this fear…”

Moreover, the way the person driving was driving was very strange.

They would step on the brakes for no reason, and they would try to squeeze through narrow spaces without hesitation.

“…I need to keep more distance.”

He increased the distance from 20 meters to 30 meters, but no car cut in between them. Lee Dong-shik, with tears in his eyes, drove even slower.

Those behind him kept honking, not knowing his speed, but he would rather be cursed at than get close to the rear of that Aventador [a high-end sports car].

‘What’s with all the noise?’

Was the road always this noisy?

Lee Ji-hyuk thought he kept hearing honking from behind. If the car right behind him was honking, he would think he had done something wrong, but since the honking was coming from further back, it didn’t seem to be related to him.

“Still, something feels off…”

It was too far to come to Jae-kyung in Geumdong. If it were the old Kang Jin-ho, he would have insisted on Geumdong no matter how far it was, but he had a change of heart and decided not to give up the things he could enjoy.

“It was a mistake.”

Kang Jin-ho thought as he drove.

It wasn’t about giving up what he could enjoy, but that being comfortable was the best!

Looking at the congested road, he felt a surge of annoyance. If he had taken Geumdong, he would have already arrived, but at this rate, it seemed like he would have to go for another 30 minutes.

This car was supposed to be fast.

And wasn’t this car a sports car? Yet, because he was in a car, he was slower than when he was on a bicycle.

“Ugh.”

Kang Jin-ho sighed and looked at the congested road.

“How is the head nun?”

Park Yu-min was outside the hospital room.

“She’s sleeping now.”

“Really?”

“She’d probably wake up if I told her you were here.”

“It’s okay.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“There’s no need to wake her up while she’s sleeping. I just need to see her face.”

“Okay.”

Park Yu-min noticed that Kang Jin-ho’s voice had changed slightly. It wasn’t the subdued voice he had since he came out on leave.

‘He’s back.’

“I’m going in.”

“Okay.”

Kang Jin-ho opened the door and went inside.

Only the low sound of breathing and the electrocardiogram could be heard in the room. He carefully walked towards the bed, trying not to make any noise.

Kang Jin-ho quietly looked at the face of the unconscious head nun. Unlike her gaunt face, her expression was peaceful.

‘I am not omnipotent.’

And even if one becomes close to omnipotence,

one cannot do everything.

“That’s why people keep moving forward.”

Because the present is not perfect, they strive to become better.

Kang Jin-ho had forgotten that basic fact.

He thought that if he had known a little earlier, he might not have lost the head nun, but it was a regret that was already a bit too late.

“I will not regret it in the future.” Kang Jin-ho finished speaking quietly and bowed his head in that spot.

After saying his final goodbye, Kang Jin-ho couldn’t leave for a while, gazing at the head nun’s face before walking out.

When he opened the door and came out, Park Yu-min was waiting for him.

“Did you say goodbye?”

“Yeah.”

“…When are you going back?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Okay, then.”

If he waited a little longer, he might be able to be there for her passing, but Kang Jin-ho thought that it was meaningless now.

He had already heard everything he needed to hear from the head nun.

He had also said everything he needed to say.

Then it was over. The person who needed to be there for her passing and make sure her last moments weren’t lonely was not him.

“I’m sorry I can’t be here with you.”

“You’re talking nonsense.”

Park Yu-min joked.

“Go quickly. You’re on leave, you need to rest too.”

“Okay. Let’s meet next time I’m out.”

Kang Jin-ho turned around without any regrets. He felt a bit heavy as he left the hospital, but he didn’t look back until the end.

* * *

“Private, Kang Jin-ho!”

“You’re back?”

“Yes, I am.”

“You came back really early? It’s not even sunset yet, why are you already back?”

“That’s how it is.”

Sung Tae-ho laughed and answered instead of Jeon Hyuk-soo.

“Hey, that’s what guys who are desperate for leave do. Jin-ho has a lot of leave saved up, what’s the problem?”

“That’s true. He went for 5 days, so he still has 25 days left, right? And that’s just from rewards? If you include his regular leave as a private, it’s a lot.”

“That’s right.”

When he returned to the unit, time passed quickly as usual. He did the maintenance he hadn’t been able to do and adjusted to the unit, and two days flew by.

[Kang Jin-ho, come to the administration office. Kang Jin-ho.]

Kang Jin-ho got up when he heard the announcement over the speaker after roll call.

He already knew what the call was about. All that was left was confirmation.

He went to the administration office and answered the phone, and Park Yu-min’s calm voice came through.

“…A little while ago.”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. Then.”

“Okay, take care of everything.”

That was all.

Both Park Yu-min and Kang Jin-ho already knew. There was no need to comfort each other. They had already done enough comforting. They weren’t the kind of people who needed awkward, perfunctory comfort.

Kang Jin-ho went outside and put a cigarette in his mouth.

Click.

The end of the cigarette burned.

Kang Jin-ho took a deep drag and slowly exhaled the smoke.

If her god was watching over her, would she be in heaven by now?

Then, would she be happy there?

“I hope Jin-ho becomes someone who can accept even the weaknesses of others.”

Kang Jin-ho quietly closed his eyes and answered her words.

“I will.”

So, that’s enough now.

Goodbye.