Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1292

“Huff! Huff! Huff! Huff!” Ishikawa Gento ran as if his heart would burst. ‘Those devilish bastards.’ Even while running, his eyes kept darting back. He knew this would slow him down, but he couldn’t help but look back. It felt like a crimson hand would reach out from behind at any moment and pierce his back. “Huff! Huff!” His legs were numb. He could feel the heavy thud of his feet hitting the ground, but he couldn’t feel the weight on his legs. He was just amazed that he was still running. How did it come to this? It started well. No, it wasn’t good, but desperate. ‘Those damn Koreans!’ After the allied forces, led by Shin’ichikai [a fictional organization], were defeated in the war against Korea, the Koreans trampled into the Japanese martial world as if it were their own, demanding submission. Of course, they couldn’t stand it. Even if the same thing had happened in another country, there would have been a huge backlash, but this was Korea. However, no one openly protested. It was a fact that they had lost the war, and those who came from Korea to dominate Japan were too cruel and strong. Those who openly resisted paid the price with a gruesome death. But humans bounce back when pressed down. A few people who shared the same goal formed an anti-Korean resistance group. They secretly recruited trustworthy people, and just when they thought they had enough members to achieve their first success… Those bastards attacked. Devils who weren’t even human. They stormed into the secret meeting place and cut down people like pieces of meat. It was as if they didn’t need to capture anyone, only to kill. The shouts and laughter they made while killing people were etched into Gento’s ears and wouldn’t go away. “Huff! Huff! Huff! Huff!” Where did the information leak from? Betrayal? Or… No, it doesn’t matter. That’s not important. What’s important is to survive here… Thud! At that moment, Gento was slammed to the ground. “Ugh!” A terrible pain shot through his leg. He looked down and saw a long steel rod piercing his right thigh. “Ugh…” Gento instinctively grabbed the steel rod stuck in his leg. But before he could even pull it out, someone approached him. “Ha, this bastard. He’s damn fast.” “Hey, what if he gets tetanus from the steel rod?” “Just cut off his leg. And we’re going to kill him anyway, right?” “They said to bring him in.” “Bring him in, my ass. Just kill him. But that guy has been so bossy lately, hasn’t he?” “He’s the Deputy. Shut your mouth if you don’t want to get hit.” “Who’s going to hit who?” The two men chuckled and spoke in Korean. Gento stared at them with a look of disgust. A person was bleeding from a steel rod in his leg right in front of them, and they were laughing and joking. They were not human at all. “What do we do with him? Drag him along?” “It’s a pain… should we just kill him?” That’s when it happened. “Get out of the way, you bastards.” Someone slowly walked in from behind. The two men who noticed him stepped aside. The one who walked in between them was… It was hard to explain. He definitely felt different. He looked no different from the previous two, but the aura he exuded felt like it was on a different level. He must be the one in charge. The man casually walked up to Gento and squatted down. “Hey.” “Do you speak Korean?” The man slightly turned his head. “Do you guys speak Japanese?” “Don’t ask for the impossible.” “…I’m sorry.” Then, Gento opened his mouth. “You will never… achieve your goal.” “Oh?” The man smirked. “You speak Korean. Is it because of that Korean wave or whatever?” “Bullshit.” Gento bared his teeth. “I just learned it in advance because I thought that one day we would rule you.” “That’s good. At least you get to use what you learned, right?” The man shrugged. “It would have been better if you had used it in a good way.” “You…” Gento’s eyes were bloodshot. “How can you call yourselves human after doing this?” “What did we do?” “Do you know how many people you’ve killed?” “Ah, I know. Of course, I know. But it’s okay. Compared to the number of Koreans… no, should I say Joseon people [historical term for Koreans]? Anyway, compared to the number of people you killed on the Korean peninsula, it’s not even a drop in the bucket.” The man reached out and grabbed Gento by the collar. “So don’t whine. Did we take people and use them as human shields, or did we drag them off as sex slaves? We have no reason to hear that from you just because we killed a few bastards who resisted.” Gento bared his bloodied teeth. “What are you talking about from the past! And those are all fabricated lies!” “Fabricated?” The man chuckled. “Ah, well, fine. Let’s just say that.” Thud! The man slammed Gento to the ground. Then, he kicked him hard in the lower abdomen. “Cough!” Gento clutched his lower abdomen and rolled on the ground. “It’s better that way. We’re the bad guys, and you’re just suffering because you’re weak. Now that I think about it, it seems like it would be less unfair for you if there was a reason, so this is better.” The man violently kicked Gento in the chest. His chest caved in for a moment. “Hey, isn’t that too much?” “He’s going to die.” The men who had arrived earlier tried to stop him. “So?” But when the man turned around with cold eyes, they shut their mouths. “If that’s what you want, then that’s what you’ll get. Drag that bastard away. Keep a close watch so he doesn’t hurt himself. We’ll torture him and make him spill everything, including who’s behind him.” “…Okay.” The two men grabbed Gento and started dragging him away. They didn’t forget to glance back at the man. ‘He’s brutal.’ ‘Why is he like that? He wasn’t like this before.’ ‘How would I know?’ There was nothing strange about following the order. Even if it was just a formality, the man was their superior. But the process of carrying out the order was different from before. There was a moment of frustration, but strangely, they accepted it. Watching them walk away, the man, Lee Myung-hwan, looked down at his hands. Black demonic energy flowed out of his hands like smoke. “Hmm.” Lee Myung-hwan tilted his head slightly. He felt an overwhelming power within him. ‘Strange.’ The sensation of sweeping away the enemies a moment ago remained in his body. It was an excessive sense of fulfillment that he had never felt before. ‘How strong have I become?’ There was no one to compare himself to, so he couldn’t gauge his own strength. What was certain was that his colleagues, who had felt similar to him before, now seemed weak. ‘I’m getting stronger.’ At an alarming rate. Lee Myung-hwan smiled without realizing it. “That’s the sight of a villain smiling.” Lee Myung-hwan turned his head. Jang Min walked out of the darkness leisurely. Lee Myung-hwan bowed respectfully. “You didn’t have to come.” “You may trust yourself.” “Yes?” “But I don’t.” “Don’t get cocky, you brat. Just because you’ve gained some pathetic power doesn’t mean you should be arrogant.” Lee Myung-hwan slowly nodded. Jang Min was right. The power he had gained was still pathetic. With this power, he couldn’t guarantee that he could overwhelm the board members, let alone Chun Tae-hoon. However… ‘If I keep getting stronger at this rate, it’s a different story.’ When he was training under Kang Jin-ho, he felt like he was getting stronger at an unbelievable rate, but since he started training under Jang Min, that rate had doubled. Maybe… Thud! At that moment, Jang Min’s fist struck Lee Myung-hwan’s face directly. Lee Myung-hwan flew into the air, spitting blood, and then landed on the ground. Thud! Lee Myung-hwan, who had landed on the ground, instinctively grabbed his nose. After seeing the bright red blood, Lee Myung-hwan quickly stood up and took a rigid stance. “You useless bastard…” Jang Min’s eyes were filled with murderous intent. Lee Myung-hwan, realizing his mistake, quickly lowered his head. “I’m sorry.” “Remember this. And engrave it in your soul.” “Yes.” “You exist solely for the Demonic Lord. Don’t even try to harbor the slightest doubt in that dog-like brain of yours.” “I will keep that in mind.” For a moment, he thought that Jang Min might be better than Kang Jin-ho in terms of education. Even if that were true, Jang Min would not accept it. Jang Min’s world was filled only with Kang Jin-ho. Lee Myung-hwan had seen many madmen in the martial world, but he had never seen anyone like Jang Min. He was mad in a different way from those he had seen so far. His world was filled only with the Demonic Cult, and that Demonic Cult existed solely for Kang Jin-ho. He was a person who recognized that he lived for Kang Jin-ho not with reason, but with instinct. A fanatic. No, even that word was not enough. “Do you doubt me?” “Absolutely not.” “You foolish fool.” Jang Min glared at Lee Myung-hwan with sharp eyes. “It is not my power that made you strong, but the Demonic Lord’s authority. I have only shown you how to use that power. The one who paved the way is separate, but are you saying that you should thank me, who only put up a signpost, instead of him? Even a beast wouldn’t be as foolish as you.” Lee Myung-hwan nodded vigorously. “It seems like the work is mostly done. Let’s go back.” “Um… Elder.” Jang Min turned to Lee Myung-hwan without a word. Lee Myung-hwan flinched and lowered his head at the look in his eyes. Jang Min was different from Kang Jin-ho. Kang Jin-ho gained natural obedience with his power and ability. But Jang Min actively suppressed his opponents with his power and ability. Jang Min’s charisma, which had led the huge Demonic Cult until now, was not something that Lee Myung-hwan could handle. Or, to put it the other way around, it meant that Kang Jin-ho had been treating them very gently. Lee Myung-hwan carefully opened his mouth. “May I ask you one question?” The answer came immediately. “The Demonic Lord said that blocking the channels of communication would rot the cult. In the cult, anyone can ask any question. That is the Demonic Lord’s will.” “Then, I will ask you one question, even if it is rude.” Lee Myung-hwan swallowed hard and opened his mouth. It was something he had been too curious about, but had not dared to ask until now. “If the Sect Leader is so great, why am I getting stronger while training under you, Elder?” “Huh?” Jang Min looked at Lee Myung-hwan as if he was dumbfounded. “You foolish fool. You don’t know that?” “…Yes.” “It’s very simple. It’s because the Demonic Lord is too great.” Lee Myung-hwan’s face contorted without him realizing it. ‘There’s no answer.’ This person is truly hopeless.