Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1683

It was a peculiar standoff.

Choi Yeon-ha, with her arms crossed, and Kang Jin-ho, wearing an awkward expression, faced each other from a distance of about two meters.

Kang Jin-ho couldn’t bring himself to approach, and Choi Yeon-ha’s gaze didn’t permit him to come closer.

Kang Jin-ho subtly glanced at Choi Yeon-ha and cautiously took a step forward.

He was trying to close the distance…

“Freeze.”

Kang Jin-ho’s extended foot quietly returned to its original position.

“Come here.”

“Yes.”

At Choi Yeon-ha’s gesture, Kang Jin-ho obediently walked towards her.

“Closer.”

“Yes.”

When they were close enough to touch, Choi Yeon-ha reached out both hands towards Kang Jin-ho’s face.

Kang Jin-ho looked at her hands with a slightly embarrassed expression.

‘There are a lot of people watching…

Of course, everyone who knows us knows, so there’s no need to hide it, but still, public displays of affection are a bit embarrassing…

Swoop.

‘Huh?’

Choi Yeon-ha’s hands grabbed the collar area of Kang Jin-ho’s training suit. It wasn’t exactly a grab by the collar…

Ziiiiiip.

Choi Yeon-ha pulled down Kang Jin-ho’s tracksuit zipper.

“Huh?”

“Stay still before I dunk you.”

At her chilling voice, Kang Jin-ho, who was about to stop her, froze.

Uh…

Honestly, it’s a bit scary.

Choi Yeon-ha, having completely unzipped his jacket, grabbed the hem of Kang Jin-ho’s inner t-shirt and yanked it up.

“This…”

Then she gritted her teeth.

“Turn around.”

“No, why…”

“Turn.”

“Yes.”

Sensing the murderous intent in her voice, Kang Jin-ho shut his mouth and turned around. He didn’t know what she was doing, but it seemed best to do as she said for his own well-being.

As Kang Jin-ho turned, Choi Yeon-ha yanked his shirt up.

And then…

Whack!

Kang Jin-ho twisted his body like a squid on a grill from the intense impact he felt on his back.

“Aaaah!”

The unexpected blow to his still-healing wounds forced even the mighty Kang Jin-ho to scream.

“Hey! Is your body a rag doll? Huh? What did you do and where did you go to come back like Frankenstein again! I can’t live with you, seriously! You idiot!”

‘That doctor hasn’t removed the stitches yet.’

Kang Jin-ho, sweating profusely, turned his gaze.

Choi Yeon-ha, looking like a vengeful ghost, was glaring at Kang Jin-ho with eyes that seemed ready to kill.

“Ah, no, that’s…”

“What?”

“…It wasn’t as bad as it looked.”

“If this isn’t bad, are the ones who are worse all in the autopsy room?”

“I knew it. Huh? You should have just died! Die, you idiot!”

Choi Yeon-ha grabbed Kang Jin-ho’s neck and started hitting his back repeatedly.

“Ah! Ahh! Back! Ah! Blood! Blood!”

Kang Jin-ho twisted his body to avoid Choi Yeon-ha’s hands.

The sight of Kang Jin-ho, who hadn’t backed down even against Changwang’s minor demonic arts, cowering and running away was truly a rare spectacle.

Lee Hyun-soo, who was watching the scene from afar, smiled wryly.

‘I really want to show that to Changwang.’

He was too curious about what that guy would say.

Whack!

Whack!

But the sound of her slapping his back was too loud to simply dismiss it as an expression of affection. Lee Hyun-soo, slightly creeped out, quietly hid behind the window.

It was best not to be seen by Choi Yeon-ha right now.

“Oh! Are you raising centipedes? And not just one or two!”

“Ah, no, that’s…”

“I can’t live with you! You idiot!”

Kang Jin-ho was dragged away by Choi Yeon-ha, who had grabbed his ear.

The members passing by looked at the scene with bewildered faces, but the moment they made eye contact with Kang Jin-ho, they all lowered their eyes and turned their heads.

‘Hey, hey, don’t look. Lightning will strike.’

‘I didn’t see anything.’

‘What’s the point of being good at fighting if you end up like that?’

Kang Jin-ho, who had spent his entire life honing his fighting skills, was teaching the members of the Assembly that power was just power, and it was useless against someone it didn’t work on.

“If you’re going to sneak back into Korea! I’ll let it slide for me, but you should at least call home and tell them you’re back safe! What are you doing here without contacting home! You look like a thug!”

“Ah! Ear! Ear, ear!”

“Is Jin-ho going through a rebellious phase like a teenager? Not contacting home and walking around with stitches on his body?”

Choi Yeon-ha was spitting fire.

At her fierce aura, those who were coming up to the training ground were terrified and lowered themselves again, returning the way they came.

‘You bad guys.’

How could not a single person come to help? The Assembly Leader was in such distress, yet not one person stepped forward to help!

“Sit here.”

“…Yes.”

When Choi Yeon-ha pointed to a bench behind the building, Kang Jin-ho obediently sat on the bench and placed his hands together on his lap.

Choi Yeon-ha, who had been staring at Kang Jin-ho, glared at him.

“People need to improve!”

“I told you to call first when you come back like that! What are you, an evergreen tree? Your consistency is legendary!”

‘Choi Yeon-ha’s banter has improved a lot.’

‘Has she been on variety shows lately?’

“It’s good when people don’t change! But when you get older, you need to change a little! If people don’t change, they’ll be kids forever!”

“Ah…”

Her words were very harsh, but every single one was true. Kang Jin-ho, newly impressed by Choi Yeon-ha’s insight, nodded repeatedly.

“Are you listening?”

“…Yes.”

Choi Yeon-ha crossed her arms and glared at Kang Jin-ho. Kang Jin-ho flinched, and Choi Yeon-ha sighed deeply.

“I shouldn’t even bother talking.”

Because he had done wrong, Kang Jin-ho couldn’t say a single word in protest and could only be a mute with a mouthful of honey [meaning he was speechless and unable to argue].

‘Why did I do that again?’

After being scolded every time, Kang Jin-ho had decided that this time, before leaving for China, he would contact his family and Choi Yeon-ha first when he returned.

But making a decision was one thing, and actually forgetting about it as soon as he returned to Korea was another.

It was strange.

Kang Jin-ho couldn’t be stupid, so why did he keep forgetting the same thing and bring the same pain upon himself?

“Are you really going to keep doing this?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Ha, seriously.”

Choi Yeon-ha sighed deeply.

Then she glared at Kang Jin-ho with a fierce look.

Kang Jin-ho flinched and lowered his head.

“If you’re not going to call when you come back, at least come back with your body intact! You look like a corpse that’s about to rise and call me ‘bro’!”

“…It’s much better now.”

“What?”

“Ah, nothing.”

Kang Jin-ho quickly shut his mouth.

No, it was better that she saw it now. If she had seen Kang Jin-ho’s body before his wounds had healed, after he had contacted her, he might have lost consciousness and fainted by now.

Even seeing his almost healed wounds, her face had turned so pale.

‘I did push my body a bit hard.’

But it couldn’t be helped. Kang Jin-ho wasn’t like he used to be, losing his mind and rampaging during battles. So he tried to avoid attacks as much as possible and was reluctant to get hurt.

But Changwang was not someone he could deal with that way.

Changwang’s strength exceeded Kang Jin-ho’s expectations. He thought he wouldn’t be much different from Hongwang, but Changwang was at least one level stronger than Hongwang.

It was hard to understand why he had been hiding his power until now.

‘It means that it’s not just a matter of defeating Hongwang.’

So…

“Hey.”

Ah…

Kang Jin-ho was startled and looked at Choi Yeon-ha. Choi Yeon-ha was looking at him with a sulky face.

“Were you spacing out again?”

“Is this good or bad concentration? I’m speechless, seriously.”

Choi Yeon-ha shook her head.

“Whatever.”

“Yes.”

“Still, thank you for coming back.”

Choi Yeon-ha looked at Kang Jin-ho with slightly teary eyes. Embarrassed by her gaze, Kang Jin-ho couldn’t say anything and fidgeted with his fingers.

‘That doesn’t sound strange.’

This time, he really could have not come back.

Everyone had returned without major injuries, so they didn’t feel it much, but if things had gone wrong just once, Kang Jin-ho and the Assembly’s executives would all be buried in the ground or not even have a body left.

Thinking about it made him feel new emotions.

“I said I’d come back.”

Choi Yeon-ha nodded.

“Yes. Kang Jin-ho keeps his word. It’s just that he keeps it in a strange way.”

He couldn’t tell if it was a compliment or an insult.

“Instead, please call me next time you come back. And think about how I feel when I have to hear the news from someone else.”

“I will next time.”

“Yeah, right.”

Choi Yeon-ha frowned.

In fact, she knew why Kang Jin-ho hadn’t contacted her.

It wouldn’t have been easy to call and laugh, saying he was alive after returning with injuries. He would have wanted to recover for at least one more day to show her a healthy appearance. That way, they could meet again with a smile.

Though he didn’t seem to know it himself.

‘He’s really hopeless.’

Kang Jin-ho was hopeless, but she was just as hopeless for liking him while knowing that.

“Are you busy?”

“Uh, that’s…”

“No. It’s okay if you’re busy. That guy hiding behind the window will take care of the work.”

Kang Jin-ho subtly raised his head and looked at the window.

He couldn’t see his face, but judging by the small cough he heard, he was listening to their conversation.

“Let’s go. I’m hungry.”

“Yes.”

Kang Jin-ho jumped up from his seat.

Normally, he would have said that he had work to do, but even with Kang Jin-ho’s courage, he couldn’t bring himself to say that in this situation.

Besides…

‘It’s not wrong.’

Lee Hyun-soo could handle the remaining work. And Kang Jin-ho needed a rest.

“I’ll treat you to something nice. What do you want to eat?”

“What do you want to eat, Jin-ho?”

“…Kimchi stew?”

Choi Yeon-ha looked at Kang Jin-ho with a strange look. Then Kang Jin-ho covered his mouth with his fist and coughed softly.

“I’ve been abroad, so…”

“Ah, a fancy kimchi stew?”

“…You can have something else.”

“No. Whatever.”

Choi Yeon-ha shrugged.

“I like that too. Let’s go.”

As Kang Jin-ho started walking, Choi Yeon-ha crossed her arms. Then she quietly grabbed his forearm.

“…Jin-ho.”

“Yes?”

“Never mind. Let’s go.”

Choi Yeon-ha closed her mouth without saying anything.

But Kang Jin-ho knew what Choi Yeon-ha was about to say.

‘She probably wanted to tell me to stop doing dangerous things.’

In the past, Kang Jin-ho would have felt the parallel lines drawn between her and himself. But now… now he was feeling something a little different.

‘Someday…’

The day would come when he wouldn’t have to think about the moment he might not return.

And…

To achieve that day, Kang Jin-ho would fight.

Lee Hyun-soo smiled as he watched Kang Jin-ho get into the car.

‘Even warriors need rest.’

And someone like Kang Jin-ho, who doesn’t know how to rest, needs to be forced to rest.

Lee Hyun-soo thought it was a good thing that Choi Yeon-ha was by Kang Jin-ho’s side. If Choi Yeon-ha hadn’t been there, Kang Jin-ho wouldn’t have been able to leave the Assembly and rest for several more days.

“It’s good to rest when you can, Assembly Leader.”

Because the time when he won’t be able to rest was coming soon.

Lee Hyun-soo smiled and turned around.

His eyes were shining coldly, even more coldly. Now it was his time.

“Well then, shall we begin?”

Lee Hyun-soo walked towards the conference room where Chaikechang was being held captive(?).