Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 148

Noh Soo-bong slowly turned his head. His body was no longer stiff as before.

As he turned his head, a black shadow was sitting on the chair.

It was as if he were the owner of this room.

However, Noh Soo-bong did not find the scene strange. Rather, the figure of the shadow leaning back in the large chair with his legs crossed seemed more natural and plausible than any other appearance he had seen so far.

Every human is a ruler.

Some rule over the things they own, and some rule over the lives they own.

And the shadow before his eyes was his ruler at this moment.

The only two options left for Noh Soo-bong were:

To die resisting, or to die submitting.

Different processes, but they would lead to the same result.

Noh Soo-bong slowly opened his mouth.

“…It’s the final day.”

The shadow nodded.

“Then, can I ask you one thing?”

“Of course.”

The shadow’s voice was low and eerie.

“Who are you?”

Heh.

A low laugh was heard.

The laugh, mixed with mockery and ridicule, sent shivers down Noh Soo-bong’s spine as it pierced his ears.

“You know, don’t you?”

Noh Soo-bong stared blankly at the shadow before opening his mouth.

“…Kang Jin-ho.”

The shadow was silent.

But it wasn’t that there was no answer.

The darkness that had been enveloping the shadow’s body slowly began to recede.

As the darkness disappeared, a human form appeared within.

Noh Soo-bong, confirming the being smiling at him, slowly opened his mouth.

“Kang Jin-ho.”

Kang Jin-ho slowly nodded his head.

“It’s nice to see you again, Sergeant Noh Soo-bong.”

Noh Soo-bong was overcome with a strange sense of incongruity.

Kang Jin-ho.

The Kang Jin-ho he had seen for a year.

His expressionless face was no different, but the Kang Jin-ho he saw now did not seem like the being he knew. It was as if someone else wearing Kang Jin-ho’s shell was here with him.

Kang Jin-ho slightly curled up the corners of his lips.

A smile.

It was something too bizarre to be called a smile.

If you feel a chill when you see someone smiling, can that smile be called a smile?

“Are you done with what you wanted to say?”

Noh Soo-bong shook his head.

His face was quite calm. It was hard to believe that he was the same person who had been trembling with fear until now.

“There’s something I really want to ask.”

“Speak.”

Noh Soo-bong kept his mouth shut, but Kang Jin-ho did not urge him.

The night was still long. Until tomorrow morning, Noh Soo-bong could not escape his grasp.

“…Where did it all go wrong?”

Noh Soo-bong began to speak as if in a daze.

“From tormenting Young-gi? Or from joining the military? Or even from my childhood? Was it my personality? Or did I learn something wrong? Where should I have turned back to not end up here?”

Noh Soo-bong’s eyes were regaining focus.

“Meeting you? Of course, meeting you was a mistake. But if it wasn’t for you, would I have been able to live comfortably in the future?”

Noh Soo-bong began to chuckle.

“Hey, Kang Jin-ho.”

“Everyone wants to live as the main character at least once, right?”

Kang Jin-ho did not answer.

“If you commit a crime, you get punished. If you torment others, you pay the price. I grew up hearing such obvious things, but you know that’s not true. The people who commit crimes live more lavishly in this world. So, I just committed crimes too. I didn’t even feel any remorse. So, am I wrong? Then how many wrong people are there in the world?”

Resentment began to fill Noh Soo-bong’s voice.

“Answer me. Answer me, you bastard! No matter how much I think about it, I don’t know! The only thing I did wrong was meeting you. If I hadn’t met you, I would still be living comfortably like before! But you want me to accept that meeting you was wrong? Why!”

Noh Soo-bong shouted and screamed as if spitting blood. His hair, which had fallen out haphazardly, and his gaunt face, which was nothing like his appearance a week ago, exuded madness, which was terrifying in itself.

“What’s wrong with humans living as they want! You guys just can’t do it! You want to, but you can’t, so you just endure it! I just did what I wanted to do. But is it wrong because I didn’t endure it? Is that what a hypocrite like you is saying?”

Noh Soo-bong sneered.

“Be honest. You’re the same. You’re just afraid. You want to grab a woman walking down the street, knock her down, and assault her. But you can’t because you’re afraid of the consequences that will follow! You coward!”

His eyes were gleaming.

His lips were torn and bleeding.

Noh Soo-bong’s appearance was gradually losing its human form.

“Tell me. What did I do wrong? Because I didn’t endure when you guys did? Then you’re just jealous. Humans are things that devour each other! Isn’t that right? Am I wrong?”

Kang Jin-ho listened silently to Noh Soo-bong’s words before slowly rising from his seat.

Twitch.

As Kang Jin-ho’s body moved, Noh Soo-bong began to convulse.

It was strange.

In terms of appearance alone, Kang Jin-ho when he was covered in something black should have been several times more terrifying. At least now, Kang Jin-ho had a human form.

However, Noh Soo-bong felt the fear constricting his chest growing more and more. The ordinary appearance of Kang Jin-ho was tightening around him more and more.

Why was that?

Kang Jin-ho approached Noh Soo-bong slowly with an expressionless face. Then, he looked directly into Noh Soo-bong’s eyes.

Same. It was the same.

The gaze of the devil, dyed red and looking at him, had given him a terror that he could not even open his mouth to speak of.

Then what about Kang Jin-ho’s eyes now?

What was this chilling fear given by those deep black eyes that were staring at him as if looking at an inanimate object?

Kang Jin-ho slowly opened his mouth.

“I don’t understand.”

“Kim Hak-cheol too, and you too. I don’t understand why you’re spouting words that people haven’t even said as if they’re obvious.”

Kang Jin-ho’s voice was completely different from his usual one. An eerie sound flowing from the abyss was carried in it.

“Oh, is that not true?”

Kang Jin-ho gave a subtle smile without answering.

“When did I ever say that you guys did something wrong?”

Noh Soo-bong’s mind began to get jumbled.

Come to think of it, Kang Jin-ho had never said such a thing before.

“There’s nothing wrong with what you said.”

Kang Jin-ho began to sneer.

“The world is a jungle. No matter how much you try to block it with laws and morals, you can’t stop the strong from eating, crushing, and manipulating the weak.”

Noh Soo-bong stared blankly at Kang Jin-ho.

“You said you do it because you can, because you have the power?”

Kang Jin-ho’s hand slowly reached for Noh Soo-bong’s neck.

Noh Soo-bong did not resist and just watched the scene.

Even though his body was not stiff as before, Noh Soo-bong could not even think of stopping Kang Jin-ho’s hand.

The one before his eyes was a devil who could tear him apart and kill him at any moment.

How could he possibly resist such a being?

“It’s a strange thing to say.”

Kang Jin-ho bared his teeth.

Whenever he had bared his teeth and smiled before, it was always filled with ridicule.

But not now.

It felt like a huge wolf was baring its teeth right in front of his face and growling lowly.

A chilling fear coming from untamed wildness.

It felt as if Kang Jin-ho would open his mouth and bite his neck off at any moment.

“But why can’t you understand?”

Noh Soo-bong slowly opened his mouth.

“…What are you talking about?”

“Don’t you know?”

Kang Jin-ho began to chuckle.

“The only reason you’re suffering at my hands is this.”

Kang Jin-ho declared slowly but with absolute certainty.

“Because you are weak.”

Noh Soo-bong’s shoulders slumped.

“There’s no other reason. There’s no other cause. Remorse? You don’t need that either.”

“What were you thinking when you were trampling on others? Did you ask anything of them? No, you didn’t.”

Noh Soo-bong’s body began to tremble.

“Yeah. That’s just how it is. I just want to gnaw at your existence. I want to give you pain little by little, and destroy you little by little. I have the power to do that, and I have the will to do that. As you said, others can’t stop me. But why do I…”

Kang Jin-ho smiled broadly.

As if he couldn’t bear how fun it was.

“Do you need to find a reason?”

Noh Soo-bong’s eyes began to lose focus.

He couldn’t avoid it.

He couldn’t stop it.

Just as he couldn’t stop the sun from setting, he couldn’t exclude the darkness from his life. If so, there was no way to stop Kang Jin-ho.

The guy in front of him was not Kang Jin-ho.

It wasn’t something ambiguous like that.

It was a monster that had been twisted and twisted to the point of no return.

There was no way to escape this monster.

If there was a way, there would only be one.

“Listen carefully, Noh Soo-bong.”

Kang Jin-ho whispered lowly into Noh Soo-bong’s ear.

“I don’t want anything from you.”

Rather…

It would have been more comforting to hear that he wanted to kill him or take everything from him.

He didn’t want anything.

Nothing.

Those words took away the last bit of reason that Noh Soo-bong was holding onto.

“Hehehehe.”

Noh Soo-bong’s mouth slowly opened. Saliva dripped from the corners of his mouth, soaking the bed. Kang Jin-ho bared his teeth as he looked at Noh Soo-bong.

“No. Not yet.”

His hand grabbed Noh Soo-bong’s head.

Woong.

True energy began to awaken Noh Soo-bong’s head. Noh Soo-bong, who had regained his senses for a moment, stared blankly at Kang Jin-ho.

But that was only for a moment.

It started

Slowly

“Ugh… Ugh…”

Noh Soo-bong’s face contorted as if it were not of this world.

This devil did not allow him to go mad.

Kang Jin-ho stroked Noh Soo-bong’s cheek.

“Not yet. There’s still today left. There’s plenty of time. So… let’s play a little more.”

“Hehe… Hehehe.”

Noh Soo-bong’s low whimpers spread throughout the room.

Kang Jin-ho looked down at Noh Soo-bong before grabbing his neck and pulling him right in front of his face.

“Now… Noh Soo-bong.”

Kang Jin-ho gave a bright smile.

“Do you like the hand I’ve extended to you?”

Noh Soo-bong could not understand what Kang Jin-ho was saying.

However, Kang Jin-ho continued to speak as if he did not want Noh Soo-bong to understand.

“Don’t worry. There are many people in the world. Among them, there will be many who will have to take the hand I’ve extended to you. So, you won’t be lonely.”

The low laughter of the demon began to fill Noh Soo-bong’s room.

“Then…”

Kang Jin-ho smiled more cruelly than ever.

“Let’s begin.”

Noh Soo-bong’s eyes were filled with utter despair.

Cornered (5)

“…Damn it.”

Noh Young-deok’s face was not good as he looked at his own mansion. Although he had relieved his stress last night, seeing his house reminded him of his son’s appearance again.

Noh Young-deok, who had parked his car nervously, got out and slammed the door shut.

Sizzle.

Noh Young-deok, who did not go straight up to the house but lit a cigarette, looked at the house with a somewhat empty gaze. Even though he was his son, seeing him return in that state made his heart ache.

“What would be the best thing to do?”

He was worried about whether it was right to turn the military upside down right now, or whether he should wait for a better timing.

The fact that his son, whom he had sent to the military, had come home with a mental illness could be a good political weapon, depending on how it was used. The military service of a high-ranking official’s son

In a South Korea where avoidance is rampant, if a sitting congressman’s son were to suffer harm after enlisting in the military, it might be a divine move to gain public sympathy and trust.

‘This isn’t something to do quietly.’ If he was going to do it, it was better to go big.

This time, the media wouldn’t be able to criticize him. If so, he could use this opportunity to advocate for a major reform of the military and gather attention.

“The old fogies will foam at the mouth, though.”

Just thinking about the military generals who would be throwing tantrums already gave him a headache, but if he could properly discuss it with the party, he might be able to suppress the backlash.

Noh Young-deok, having made up his mind, stubbed out his cigarette and went inside. It seemed better to observe Noh Soo-bong’s condition a little more before making a decision.

However, as Noh Young-deok entered the foyer, he couldn’t help but hear unexpected news.

“What?”

The secretary’s face was miserably stiff.

“Wh-what are you talking about?”

“Last night…”

“Get out of my way!”

Noh Young-deok pushed past the secretary and headed towards Noh Soo-bong’s room. Opening the door, he saw Noh Soo-bong looking completely out of it.

“Soo-bong?”

Even though he must have heard his voice, Noh Soo-bong didn’t react at all.

“Hey, hey, you!”

Noh Young-deok grabbed Noh Soo-bong’s face.

Dilated pupils.

An open mouth.

And drool dripping from the corners of his mouth.

It seemed like Noh Soo-bong had completely lost consciousness.

“Soo-bong! You! Can’t you hear me! Soo-bong!”

He slapped his cheeks and waved his hand in front of his eyes, but Noh Soo-bong didn’t react at all, as if his soul had left his body.

Noh Young-deok turned his head and yelled.

“I told you to keep a close watch!”

“…No one entered the room.”

“But my son ended up like this?”

Noh Young-deok grabbed everything he could and threw it, shouting.

“Get a doctor! Right now! Right this instant, you bastards!”

* * *

The car was driving down the road with a low engine sound.

Cho Gyu-min glanced at the rearview mirror. Kang Jin-ho, sitting in the back seat, had his eyes closed and was leaning against the seat. He wasn’t asleep. He had never seen Kang Jin-ho sleep in a car.

He often closed his eyes when he had a lot on his mind.

Cho Gyu-min slowly opened his mouth.

“I’ve arranged a meeting with the chairman.”

Kang Jin-ho slowly opened his eyes.

Kang Jin-ho opened his mouth.

“Just tell him that it’ll be fine until the next external treatment.”

“…Are you sure about that?”

“Don’t you trust me?”

“I misspoke.”

Cho Gyu-min shut his mouth like a clam.

‘He’s changed.’

The old Kang Jin-ho would never have said such a thing. He would have tried to explain it kindly. Although he was taciturn, Kang Jin-ho was someone who wouldn’t refuse if someone started a conversation with him.

Cho Gyu-min, who had been watching him for a long time, could tell that there had been a change in Kang Jin-ho’s state of mind recently. Very gradually, Kang Jin-ho was slowly revealing the power he possessed.

His actions were also changing little by little to match it.

‘Then, what about the end?’

Cho Gyu-min’s back tingled with goosebumps.

He had already seen Kang Jin-ho reveal his power before. In the past, the shock Cho Gyu-min had received from that sight was extreme.

‘Is he going back to that form?’

He couldn’t be sure.

But Cho Gyu-min knew. The current Kang Jin-ho, who seemed polite at first glance, had a hint of unnaturalness about him.

The current Kang Jin-ho was like a beast that had locked itself in a cage. A beast that had imprisoned itself not to protect itself, but to protect the beings outside the cage.

And now, that lock was slowly starting to open.

A shiver and a subtle fear ran down his spine.

Cho Gyu-min couldn’t figure out what his feelings were right now.

‘Where did he go yesterday?’

He didn’t ask.

He was a secretary. His job was to assist Kang Jin-ho, not to monitor him.

But he could guess.

When he walked towards the car.

He had seen the lingering bloodlust on his face.

He didn’t know what had happened, but if Kang Jin-ho had shown such a face…

Cho Gyu-min shook his head.

Don’t think about it.

It was a bad habit to judge the person he had to serve. He just had to accept his superior as he was, even if it wasn’t easy.

* * *

Buzz.

What saved him was the short ring of his cell phone.

“Hmm?”

Cho Gyu-min picked up his phone, checked the message, and smiled lightly.

“Mr. Kang Jin-ho.”

“Yes.”

“It seems like you’ll have to postpone your return a bit.”

“Yes?”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Cho Gyu-min with a puzzled expression.

Cho Gyu-min smiled at the rearview mirror.

“Mr. Joo Young-gi has woken up.”

Screech.

The car stopped.

The door opened, and Kang Jin-ho stepped out of the car. Unlike his usual self, his expression was slightly flushed.

Kang Jin-ho closed the car door and headed towards the elevator at a fast pace. Looking at the elevator with an anxious face, Kang Jin-ho turned and ran up the stairs.

Tap tap tap tap!

Kang Jin-ho’s footsteps echoed on the rarely used stairs. Kang Jin-ho, who had run up to the 15th floor in one go, threw open the door to the hospital room where Joo Young-gi was staying.

“Yo, you’re here?”

Joo Young-gi leaned against the bed and raised his hand.

Kang Jin-ho looked at Joo Young-gi without saying a word.

His face was pale, but he was clearly looking at him with his eyes open. It wasn’t the Joo Young-gi he had seen sleeping until now.

“Come a little closer. It’s still blurry.”

“Okay.”

Kang Jin-ho approached Joo Young-gi.

Joo Young-gi quietly lifted his head, looked at Kang Jin-ho, and smiled lightly.

What should he say?

Kang Jin-ho just looked at Joo Young-gi without saying anything.

“Hey, Jin-ho.”

“Yeah.”

Joo Young-gi opened his mouth with a slightly playful expression.

“I have a favor to ask…”

“Yeah?”

Joo Young-gi grinned.

“Ha, I feel like I’m alive.”

“You shouldn’t be out here…”

“I feel like I’m about to die, what am I supposed to do?”

“Hmm…”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Joo Young-gi in the wheelchair.

There was the issue of whether it was okay to bring someone who had just woken up outside like this, but since he had already finished one round of tests…

‘It’s not okay.’

Kang Jin-ho sighed.

Whether he had tests or not, it was wrong to let someone who had been unconscious for almost a month get some fresh air like this.

“Let’s go back in quickly.”

“Okay, okay, so hurry up and give it to me.”

“…”

Kang Jin-ho made a subtle expression, then took out a cigarette from his pocket and handed it to Joo Young-gi.

“Ah…”

Joo Young-gi looked at the cigarette with an expression like no other in the world, then quickly put it in his mouth.

Click.

After lighting it, Joo Young-gi slowly inhaled the cigarette and stared at the sky with sunken eyes.

“It’s blue.”

“Yeah.”

“The sky is blue.”

Joo Young-gi’s eyes looked a little wistful.

Kang Jin-ho quietly looked at Joo Young-gi and then opened his mouth.

“How’s your body?”

“I have no strength at all.”

“Of course. You’ve been lying in bed for a month, your muscles must have all atrophied.”

“My body is in this state, I don’t know how much I have to eat to get back to normal.”

Joo Young-gi chuckled, took a drag of his cigarette, and then grabbed his head.

“Ha, look how dizzy I am.”

“Why don’t you quit while you have the chance?”

“That’s easy for you to say, you bastard.”

Joo Young-gi chuckled and then quietly looked at Kang Jin-ho.

“Jin-ho.”

“What?”

“Thank you.”

Kang Jin-ho didn’t answer.

What was he thanking him for?

The things related to Kim Hak-cheol and Noh Soo-bong hadn’t been told to Joo Young-gi yet. So what was he thanking him for?

“You’re the one who brought me to this hospital, right?”

“…Yeah.”

“I had a feeling. No matter where I look in the world, you’re the only one who would treat me like this.”

Joo Young-gi smiled quietly.

“I’ll definitely repay this favor later.”

“You don’t have to repay it.”

“I said I’m going to repay it? Don’t you know Joo Young-gi, the man?”

“I don’t need it…”

Kang Jin-ho’s voice grew a little louder.

“Don’t ever do something like that again.”

Joo Young-gi didn’t answer. He just took a deep drag of his cigarette and looked at the distant sky.

His seemingly languid appearance was painfully etched into Kang Jin-ho’s mind.

After a long time of being lost in thought without saying anything, Joo Young-gi slowly opened his mouth.

“At the very end…”

“Yeah?”

“Do you know what I was thinking?”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“I don’t know.”

Joo Young-gi stubbed out the cigarette in his hand in the ashtray.

Joo Young-gi, who was dusting off his hands and joking around, opened his mouth with a slightly strained expression.

“While my consciousness was fading… at the moment I felt, ‘Ah, so this is how I die.'”

Joo Young-gi’s voice trembled.

“I thought, ‘If only one person, just one person, had known how hard it was for me, I wouldn’t have gone this far.'”

Kang Jin-ho couldn’t say anything.

It was he himself who hadn’t reached out his hand.

He should have reached out his hand before Joo Young-gi made such an extreme choice. Just like the head nun had said.

“But do you know what I thought when I woke up this time?”

Kang Jin-ho’s eyes were filled with question.

“…There was someone.”

Joo Young-gi’s tearful voice quietly echoed into the world.

“There was someone. Someone who would have grabbed my hand if I had reached out… there was someone.”

Kang Jin-ho clenched his fist.

“…I should have reached out first. I was stupid.”

Joo Young-gi let out a low laugh as if he was embarrassed.

“I won’t do anything unnecessary anymore, so don’t worry.”

Kang Jin-ho looked at the distant sky without answering.

He hadn’t reached out his hand. But Joo Young-gi was saying that there was someone who would have grabbed his hand.

Where did Joo Young-gi feel that?

He hadn’t done anything.

‘It’s difficult.’

Being someone who could reach out his hand first felt more difficult than anything he had experienced so far.

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

Kang Jin-ho closed his eyes.

Not yet…

I don’t know yet, head nun.

The cold winter air, which was full of chill, felt a little warm today.