Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1558

The car carrying Kang Jin-ho glided smoothly down the road.

Lee Hyun-soo, who was driving, hummed a tune before glancing at the rearview mirror.

Kang Jin-ho, looking completely out of it, was slumped in his seat. Lee Hyun-soo chuckled at the sight and spoke lightly.

“Just accept it.”

“I don’t understand why you’re even hesitating. The world is practically handing you Jaekyung, who wouldn’t take it?”

Kang Jin-ho sighed deeply without answering.

“We all know that Chairman Hwang isn’t ordinary. But do you really have to be different from everyone else in this situation?”

Kang Jin-ho tilted his head back and looked up.

“It’s not like I’m trying to be different.”

“Yes, I know.”

“It’s just that I really don’t have the confidence to run Jaekyung well. And… I don’t really need it either.”

Kang Jin-ho didn’t bother to add more. He felt like he was disrespecting Jaekyung.

“Hmm.”

Lee Hyun-soo scratched his nose.

“I think I know what you’re thinking.”

A smile appeared on Lee Hyun-soo’s face.

“But now, just accept it. This was meant to happen from the beginning.”

“From the beginning?”

“Yes. Or we can say from a long time ago. The important thing is that Chairman Hwang Jeong-hu’s offer wasn’t decided after a day or two of thought. He’s been determined to pass the company on to you for a very long time.”

“He’s been thinking that?”

“Yes.”

“Did Director Lee know about it?”

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t I know?”

‘Why wouldn’t you know?’

‘Why!’

“It’s because you’re oblivious when you should be sharp, and you’re incredibly perceptive in the strangest situations.”

‘Is that an insult?’

Kang Jin-ho, who had been looking at the driver’s seat with a strange expression, spoke again.

“But why would he want to give me the company?”

“You heard him.”

“Even after hearing it, I still don’t understand.” Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“Anyway, Jaekyung is a burden to me.”

“Is there anything that isn’t a burden to you?”

“You’re only who you are because you’re strong in martial arts. If you lived a normal life, you’d be a shut-in. You wouldn’t leave your room. How could you live with everything being a burden!”

‘Oh?’

‘Did I say that?’

Since Kang Jin-ho had actually lived as a shut-in in his first life, he couldn’t refute it.

“Of course, I know that the timing isn’t good. Now isn’t the time to focus on anything else but China.”

“That’s right.”

“But do you think Chairman Hwang will die soon?”

“I think he’ll live for another ten years? He’s too greedy to give up his management rights until he can’t even hold a pencil. So why are you worrying about something that will happen in ten years? By then, we’ll have either beaten all the Chinese guys or they’ll have beaten us.”

‘Wow, that’s cynical.’

“So just accept it. It’s not a burden now, but it will be later, right? Let’s leave tomorrow’s problems to tomorrow’s me. Why should today’s me worry about it?”

“…That’s quite a solution.”

Lee Hyun-soo smiled wryly.

“He’s an old man. He thinks of you like a grandson.”

“My age…”

“Does that matter? If the word ‘grandson’ bothers you, let’s say… son… no. Let’s say friend. He thinks of you like a friend. If that’s the path that makes him feel at ease, it’s not right to refuse him.”

Kang Jin-ho sighed deeply.

‘He’s so stubborn.’

Once Hwang Jeong-hu has made up his mind, there’s almost no chance of changing it.

Wasn’t Hwang Jeong-hu the one who never accepted his own sons back in the end? Kang Jin-ho, who thought he was second to none when it came to stubbornness, had to give up completely when faced with Hwang Jeong-hu’s stubbornness.

But how can he stop this situation?

Kang Jin-ho pressed his temples.

‘A migraine…’

Lee Hyun-soo chuckled as he watched Kang Jin-ho.

‘He’s a really strange person.’

To others, Kang Jin-ho’s worries might seem like a luxury. If an ordinary person were offered Jaekyung, they would accept it without a second thought.

And that’s the right thing to do.

But Kang Jin-ho is a bit different.

First of all, Kang Jin-ho doesn’t need Jaekyung’s wealth. He doesn’t even need MK’s wealth. The money in Kang Jin-ho’s bank account is more than he could ever spend in his lifetime, so what would he do with more?

Kang Jin-ho was not someone who had the desire to increase his wealth to change his life. Considering his spending habits, it’s questionable whether he could even spend 1% of the money in his account before he dies.

But to take over Jaekyung?

‘It must be a headache.’

What Hwang Jeong-hu wants from Kang Jin-ho is for him to manage Jaekyung properly.

That wish is a burden. It feels like he’s taking on something he doesn’t think he can do well.

“If you’re really worried, just put it aside for now. Chairman Hwang probably doesn’t expect to resolve this in one go.”

“Huh?”

“When he first tried the construction business, he failed dozens of times before finally succeeding. He probably has a grand plan for persuasion over the next ten years, right?” Kang Jin-ho shuddered.

It was the scariest thing he had heard recently.

“If you think you can withstand that pressure for that long, then just refuse him.”

“Haa…”

Kang Jin-ho sighed deeply. Nothing in this world is easy.

“Chairman Hwang probably said that after a lot of thought. Please consider his feelings too.”

“…There’s too much to consider in this world.”

“That just means you’ve become someone that many people have expectations for, right?”

“I want to decline.”

He really wants to decline.

“Anyway, think about it carefully. It’s not my place to tell you what to do, but in my opinion, there’s no way out for you.”

Kang Jin-ho looked out the window.

‘This isn’t easy.’

The more his position grows, the more people expect from him. Looking back now, how did Kang Jin-ho have the guts to become the leader of the Demonic Cult [a martial arts sect]?

‘I’m sorry, Cheongma.’

Thinking about it, Cheongma’s face suddenly came to mind.

Thinking about his face, half-dead from work, made him feel a strange sense of guilt.

Back then, Cheongma would have handled all of this. Kang Jin-ho was just the leader in name only. In reality, he was more like a field commander who would grab a sword and chase after problems.

He thought that was enough back then…

“That’s why people need to learn.”

“Yes?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Kang Jin-ho turned his head and glanced at Lee Hyun-soo.

‘I should treat Director Lee better too.’

Although not as much as Cheongma in the past, Lee Hyun-soo is also going through a lot to assist Kang Jin-ho.

He should acknowledge that, but recently he’s been too harsh on him for being cheeky. That cheekiness comes from familiarity.

Kang Jin-ho, looking at Lee Hyun-soo with a slightly pitiful expression, quietly opened his mouth.

First, about the pay cut…

“But, Chairman.”

“You’re not going to try to weasel out of your responsibilities after taking over Jaekyung, are you?”

“…Huh?”

Lee Hyun-soo cleared his throat.

“Isn’t this happening because I’ve been working so hard to mediate in the middle? You might not know, but I’ve had many discussions with Chairman Hwang.”

“So you should give me a position too. Or shares would be good.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled.

‘Hard work, my ass.’

That punk needs to be worked harder.

Jeong Hong-geun grabbed Jeong Myeong-cheol by the collar and yanked him forward.

It was hard to believe that such strength came from his old body. Jeong Myeong-cheol couldn’t even think of resisting as he was pulled right in front of Jeong Hong-geun.

“Tell me.”

“G-Grandfather.”

“Tell me what happened to you! Isn’t this all because you kept your mouth shut! If you had spoken up and filed a complaint, I would have done everything in my power to throw that punk in jail! But my grandson was too scared to open his mouth? How dare you!”

Jeong Myeong-cheol trembled. It wasn’t because he was afraid of Jeong Hong-geun. The moment the word ‘complaint’ came out, they came to his mind again. Now, just thinking about them made it hard for him to stay sane.

“I-I’ll die, Grandfather. I’ll die! I don’t want to die!”

“You damn punk!”

Jeong Hong-geun raised his cane and struck Jeong Myeong-cheol’s head.

But this time, Jeong Myeong-cheol didn’t just take it. He raised his arm to block the blow and snatched the cane away.

“You, you punk!”

Then he threw the cane out the window.

“Has this punk finally gone completely mad?”

“Hehe, am I mad?”

Jeong Myeong-cheol’s eyes were bloodshot.

“The one who’s mad isn’t me, it’s you, Grandfather!”

“Wh-What?”

Jeong Hong-geun stared at Jeong Myeong-cheol with shocked eyes.

“Do you know who they are! Those devilish punks, you think you can mess with them? Do you think you can handle them? That’s ridiculous! It’s nonsense!”

Jeong Hong-geun’s face turned red as he trembled.

He never imagined that he would hear such words from his own flesh and blood in his lifetime.

Jeong Myeong-cheol, who had been screaming and thrashing, suddenly froze like a statue. Then, he suddenly curled up on the floor.

“I-I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I was wrong. I was wrong. P-Please, save me. Please, save me. I didn’t say anything. I was wrong. I was wrong…”

Jeong Hong-geun stared blankly at Jeong Myeong-cheol, who was muttering like a madman, and slumped onto the sofa with a defeated look.

Who was he talking to, who was he angry at?

“I, I’m just…”

Who was his opponent?

Hwang Jeong-hu?

Or a politician with immense power?

No.

It was just a punk who wasn’t even thirty yet.

A punk whose name he didn’t even know until recently. But when facing that punk, nothing had any meaning.

Power was on their side…

Wealth was meaningless.

Connections ignored him, and social prestige had nowhere to go.

It had collapsed.

Everything.

Jeong Hong-geun bit his lip hard. His lip tore, and bright red blood trickled down his chin.

“Collapsed?”

No.

Not yet.

Connections? Power?

Those were just things that Jeong Hong-geun had obtained. And what obtained them was purely Jeong Hong-geun himself.

“Not yet. I’ll show you how far I can go.”

It was the moment Jeong Hong-geun made a certain decision and stood up.

Bzzzz!

Suddenly, his phone started ringing.

Jeong Hong-geun pulled out his phone with an annoyed expression.

“Huh?”

Instantly, a look of bewilderment appeared on Jeong Hong-geun’s face.

‘Why is this person calling?’

Jeong Hong-geun’s face was instantly filled with tension as he checked the screen.

Jeong Hong-geun put the phone to his ear and opened his mouth.

“Yes. This is Jeong Hong-geun.”