Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1349

Kang Jin-ho crumpled the empty cigarette pack in his hand. He fumbled in his pockets, but there were no more cigarettes left.

‘Should I have grabbed another pack?’

Kang Jin-ho usually carried an extra pack of cigarettes just in case, but now even that was gone. It seemed he was in for a forced period of quitting.

Just then, Lee Hyun-soo pulled a new pack of cigarettes from his pocket and tossed it to Kang Jin-ho.

Thwack.

Kang Jin-ho, catching the pack, looked at Lee Hyun-soo with a subtle gaze.

“It’s basic courtesy.”

Lee Hyun-soo spread out several packs of cigarettes he had in his pockets.

Was this good sense or a lack of it?

Kang Jin-ho chuckled and opened the pack.

Click.

The acrid smoke stung his throat.

Kang Jin-ho inhaled the smoke deeply into his lungs, waited a moment, and then slowly exhaled.

‘Relaxing.’

It felt like he was finally getting a moment to rest after being constantly on the move since they broke into the safe house.

“How are you holding up?”

“I can manage.”

Lee Hyun-soo answered calmly, but his complexion was not something he could hide. His pale face and dark circles under his eyes spoke volumes about his current state.

Of course.

Being chased was like that. Even if they had the upper hand, the feeling of being pursued rapidly drained one’s stamina. It wouldn’t be easy for Lee Hyun-soo to endure with his physical strength.

‘This brings back memories.’

He remembered the past, when he was branded an enemy of the righteous martial world and had to make a desperate escape.

The enemies swarming from all sides.

Just when he thought he had escaped, they would block his path, and just when he thought he had shaken them off, he would be surrounded again.

For over ten days, he had run and run without even a sip of water. Eventually, he started hearing things and seeing illusions.

The cracking of his parched throat, his heart about to burst, and the fear that a blade might come flying at his back at any moment.

Just thinking about it made the muscles in his whole body tense up.

‘This feels a bit nasty.’

He was still being chased now, but it didn’t feel the same as back then.

Because there was an escape route.

There was a clear difference between being chased with a place to run to and being chased without one.

Kang Jin-ho took a deep drag of his cigarette.

“Lee Hyun-soo.”

“Yes, Guild Leader.”

“If Lee Jong-wook came out like that, then the enemy is?”

“…Still one of two possibilities.” Lee Hyun-soo sighed softly.

“If Lee Jong-wook is truly providing us with an escape route, then we can consider him an ally. But if not…”

“It’s Kim Myung-chan.”

“Yes.”

Lee Hyun-soo awkwardly scratched the back of his head.

“But even that isn’t certain. Perhaps Kim Myung-chan’s actions aren’t of his own volition either.”

“…What do you mean?”

“He’s a politician, and he’s bound by the organization, isn’t he? If orders come from higher up, he has no choice but to follow them.”

Higher up….

Kang Jin-ho nodded silently. This was too big to discuss out loud. There was only one person above the Prime Minister of South Korea.

“Guild Leader.”

Lee Hyun-soo cautiously called out to Kang Jin-ho.

“What?”

“May I ask you something?”

“Why the formality?”

“Right, it’s out of place.”

Lee Hyun-soo laughed awkwardly.

But this question was one he couldn’t ask casually. The weight of the words was too heavy.

“If it’s true that the Prime Minister betrayed us…”

Lee Hyun-soo trailed off slightly, but Kang Jin-ho’s expression didn’t change.

He just stared into the distance with heavy eyes.

“What are you planning to do?”

Tap.

The end of the cigarette burned down. Lee Hyun-soo didn’t rush him, waiting for Kang Jin-ho to gather his thoughts. Whatever Kang Jin-ho said, Lee Hyun-soo would accept his decision.

“There’s nothing to think about.”

Kang Jin-ho’s deliberation didn’t take long. Or perhaps he hadn’t even deliberated at all.

“I’m not going to dwell on betrayal or anything like that.”

In Kang Jin-ho’s mind, Kim Myung-chan, himself, the government, and the Guild hadn’t built up enough of a relationship to consider it a betrayal. They had never promised to go all the way together, nor had they made a contract not to be hostile, even temporarily.

They were merely together for a while because their paths happened to align.

To talk about loyalty in such a situation was naive.

“However…”

Kang Jin-ho’s eyes flashed coldly.

“The fact remains that they targeted me. So, they’ll have to pay the price.”

Lee Hyun-soo nodded.

It was a simple statement, but it contained everything. Kang Jin-ho’s price was always so straightforward.

“Are you planning to turn everyone into enemies?”

“Anyone involved.”

“…I understand.”

If the Prime Minister was involved, then the Prime Minister too. And if there was someone higher up….

Lee Hyun-soo bit his lip slightly.

Honestly, he didn’t want to think that far. If it went beyond the Prime Minister, then what they would be facing was the ‘nation’ itself.

Lee Hyun-soo felt the things he had been suppressing slowly raising their heads.

“Is there a problem?”

“No, it’s just…”

Lee Hyun-soo sighed.

“With the situation in Korea and China… I have a feeling that the things we were worried about are starting to happen.”

“The situation we were worried about?”

“Yes. It’s…”

Lee Hyun-soo swallowed hard and opened his mouth.

“I always thought something like this would happen eventually. We’ve just been barely maintaining the balance all this time.”

“That’s right.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

Even without a detailed explanation, it wasn’t hard to understand what Lee Hyun-soo was talking about.

The coexistence of the nation and the martial world.

It was an incredibly difficult task.

Kang Jin-ho was one of the people who understood that this coexistence itself was very uncomfortable.

“The only reason the nations haven’t tried to eliminate the martial world is because it’s useful.”

Lee Hyun-soo licked his lips.

“Whether they use us for waste disposal, as cleaners of the back alleys, or to handle the dirty work they can’t do themselves, the martial world has maintained a close cooperation with the nations.”

“Like us?”

“Exactly. In fact, we’re a bit late to the party.”

Lee Hyun-soo fully understood the situation. But he couldn’t shake off one doubt.

“The problem is, what will they do when they no longer need us? Places like Europe and Japan are fine. Their political circles are practically controlled by the martial world. But China and us…”

Kang Jin-ho slowly nodded.

They had already seen it, hadn’t they?

The Chinese government was showing signs of trying to exclude the martial world. Their attempt to win over Kang Jin-ho was part of that movement.

“Useful items are used. But those items can be disposed of for two reasons. One is when they become useless. I think that’s impossible. After all, the nation has to maintain appearances. But…”

Lee Hyun-soo bit his lip.

“When a better item comes along, the inconvenient one is always replaced. Even if the performance isn’t completely superior.”

Because it’s convenient.

Kang Jin-ho focused on the words ‘better item.’

“You’re saying there are people who can replace us?”

“There will be. To be precise…”

Lee Hyun-soo gave a bitter smile.

“They’ve probably been cultivating them. They’re probably still cultivating them now. Martial arts aren’t something only we possess.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

It was something he should have considered.

In the past, when he ruled the Central Plains, the imperial palace also cultivated palace guards. Although their skills didn’t match those of true martial artists because they didn’t have a fully established system of training from a very young age like the martial world.

‘They did reach a certain level.’

There was no reason why they couldn’t do now what they did back then. No, it would be much easier now.

“China and Korea are cultivating martial artists?”

“I don’t know about Korea. Judging by how ignorant the government has been about the martial world until recently, they probably haven’t been able to start cultivating them. But China is certain.”

It made sense.

‘The militarization of martial artists, is it?’

That didn’t just mean that the nation had martial artists as a military force.

The martial world and the outside world.

The boundary between the two worlds, which had been strictly divided, was collapsing. The military was the power of the nation, and the nation was a symbol of the outside world. When the two most important cores were mixed together, it was impossible to maintain the boundary between the two worlds.

The fragile boundary that Kang Jin-ho had thought would collapse someday was already breaking down.

“What do you think?”

“About what?”

“…About the situation I just described.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled.

“I don’t really have any thoughts on it.”

“Huh?”

Kang Jin-ho took a long drag of his cigarette.

“Does it change anything if I worry about it?”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled at Lee Hyun-soo’s blank expression.

“That’s something someone else will worry about, not me.”

“No, if it’s not you, Guild Leader, then who…”

“Don’t get the wrong idea.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled.

“I’m not a superhuman, nor am I a prophet who can see the future. I’m just someone who’s struggling to live in the present.”

“Worrying about what will happen in a few decades? That’s fine. But what’s happening right now is more important to me. Such worries are enough to think about later when I have more time, if I even remember to.”

Lee Hyun-soo laughed as if he was dumbfounded.

What a carefree thing to say.

But it also felt very much like Kang Jin-ho.

‘And he’s not wrong.’

With a fire burning under his feet, it was a carefree thing to talk about the boundaries of the world and all that nonsense.

Lee Hyun-soo answered with a stiff face.

“I guess solving this current problem is the priority.”

“You know it.”

It was a jab at why he had been talking about useless things. Just as Lee Hyun-soo was about to say something with an awkward expression, Kang Jin-ho brought his index finger to his lips.

A signal to be quiet.

Lee Hyun-soo held his breath and turned his head in the direction Kang Jin-ho was looking.

Rustle.

A sound of something approaching could be heard.

It was a sound that ordinary people wouldn’t hear, but it was small yet clear to Lee Hyun-soo’s ears, which had become more sensitive after learning martial arts. It probably sounded like an elephant walking to Kang Jin-ho’s ears.

‘Is it…’

Lee Hyun-soo exhaled softly.

An enemy?

Or….

After waiting a bit, the figure of a dark person walking towards them came into view. Lee Hyun-soo clenched his fist and glared at the approaching figure.

Rustle, rustle.

It was only when the sound of stepping on fallen leaves became quite loud that the dark shadow fully revealed itself.

“…Huh?”

Lee Hyun-soo’s eyes widened.

“Jang Pil-jae?”

“Shhh.”

Jang Pil-jae gestured to cover his mouth with both hands.

“Is Jang Pil-jae the only informant in China?”

“There are many informants in China. But there are few who can be trusted in this situation.”

Jang Pil-jae looked around nervously and then gestured.

“Please follow me for now. I will take you to a safe place.”