Descent Of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1724

“Welcome.”

“It’s good to see you again, Prime Minister.”

Lee Hyun-soo bowed deeply as he looked at Ko Han-bong. Ko Han-bong greeted Lee Hyun-soo with a good-natured smile, though his expression seemed a bit more strained than before.

“I apologize for making you come all the way here.”

“Not at all. We are always grateful that you take the time for us, even with your busy official duties.”

At that moment, Ko Han-bong’s eyes twitched slightly.

‘What’s this?’

Lee Hyun-soo’s posture seems more deferential than usual today.

Of course, Lee Hyun-soo had been polite when they first met, but it was also true that he had gradually become more assertive as their meetings became more frequent.

However, the current Lee Hyun-soo was maintaining a low profile, just like during their initial meeting. It was a stark contrast to their previous encounters.

“Please, have a seat.”

Ko Han-bong, who had been subtly observing Lee Hyun-soo, gestured to the seat in front of him.

“Yes.”

Lee Hyun-soo sat down in the chair opposite Ko Han-bong.

“Would you like a meal?”

“It’s alright, Prime Minister. I wouldn’t want to take up too much of your valuable time.”

Lee Hyun-soo smiled gently.

“I think a cup of coffee would be nice, though.”

“That’s easily arranged.”

Ko Han-bong pressed the bell to call someone. The person who came in took the order, bowed respectfully, and left.

Once they were alone again, Ko Han-bong gave an awkward smile.

“About the other day…”

“Prime Minister.”

“Yes?”

Lee Hyun-soo bowed deeply towards Ko Han-bong.

“I would like to apologize for my rudeness the other day.”

“…Rudeness, you say?”

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t in a good state of mind, and I made a mistake. I hope you will understand and forgive me.”

It was Ko Han-bong who was rather taken aback by Lee Hyun-soo’s humble apology.

‘Did he eat something bad?’

He didn’t think Lee Hyun-soo was a stubborn person. But he also knew that he wasn’t the type to easily bow his head to others.

“I feel uncomfortable if you do this. It’s not like you did anything wrong.”

“I’m sorry, Prime Minister.”

“Goodness, I told you not to do this.”

Ko Han-bong wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“Alright. If that’s how you feel, I’ll consider that I’ve received your apology.”

“Thank you.”

Only then did Lee Hyun-soo lift his head.

Then, he covered his mouth with his hand and coughed softly. A slightly awkward air hung between them.

“More than that…”

Perhaps because he knew that Lee Hyun-soo would be more troubled if the silence continued, Ko Han-bong quickly spoke up.

“I’ve discussed with the higher-ups about what we talked about before.”

“Ah!”

“Here.”

Ko Han-bong unlocked the briefcase he had brought, took out a bundle of documents inside, and handed it to Lee Hyun-soo.

“This is a list of what we can potentially support on our end.”

Lee Hyun-soo’s eyes lit up as he received the bundle of documents that Ko Han-bong had handed him.

“May I review it now?”

“Ah, just a moment. It’s better to be cautious.”

Ko Han-bong stopped Lee Hyun-soo and looked towards the door. Ko Han-bong waited until the ordered coffee arrived, and then dismissed the employee.

“It’s okay now.”

“Yes.”

Lee Hyun-soo began to flip through the documents to examine them.

“Of course, there are no official signatures on it. And I can’t say that everything is confirmed. Please understand that this is just a list of possibilities.”

After carefully reviewing each page, Lee Hyun-soo quietly closed the documents.

“May I take this with me?”

“Please avoid any leaks.”

Lee Hyun-soo chuckled lightly.

This is a document that can’t even be considered a leak. There is no evidence that it came from the government, and there are no proper signatures or seals.

Even if someone saw it, it would appear to be nothing more than a document where some enthusiast had just written down random ideas.

However, for Lee Hyun-soo and Ko Han-bong, it was undoubtedly a more important document than anything else.

“I didn’t expect it to go this far. Thank you again.”

“It’s not me, but the will of the higher-ups.”

Ko Han-bong coughed softly.

“Actually, as the director knows, this is no ordinary matter.”

“…Yes.”

“But the higher-ups agreed with your assessment about being in the same boat. In the end, now that the situation has reached this point, no matter how much we try to deny it, the outcome is already set.”

Lee Hyun-soo narrowed his eyes.

The current president is known to be a good-natured person, and is perceived as not being very sensitive to political issues.

However, according to Ko Han-bong’s words, he was surprisingly quick to grasp the reality and his decisions were firm.

Of course, that’s only if he can completely trust what Ko Han-bong calls ‘the higher-up’s decision’.

‘It’s not something to believe easily.’

Lee Hyun-soo doesn’t believe that decisions on major and minor affairs of a country are made solely by the president’s will.

Even in the General Assembly, where power is concentrated in the hands of the Assembly Leader, which is incomparable to the power of a country’s president, important decisions are made through meetings between the Assembly Leader and the directors.

Unless the current president has the same level of power as a military dictator, it was impossible for him to make such a decision and provide support alone.

‘No. Even if he had that much power, he couldn’t do it.’

Making a decision that could potentially destroy the country and taking responsibility for it alone is something that anyone would want to avoid. Even if Lee Hyun-soo were in that position, he wouldn’t have been able to make a decision easily.

“We will provide all possible support. That’s our decision.”

Ko Han-bong looked at Lee Hyun-soo with firm eyes.

He has a face that doesn’t show any hesitation now, but how many conversations must have taken place to achieve that expression?

“Thank you, Prime Minister.”

“It’s nothing.”

Ko Han-bong quietly shook his head.

“Actually, it was a difficult situation for us to navigate. The pressure was increasing, and interference was getting worse, not just in the martial arts world. That’s why what you said about the potential collapse of the martial arts world was even more impactful.”

That’s how they operate in the first place.

They infiltrate and seize control of the underworld first. After that, they take control of the commercial rights and use them to pressure the government. Many countries have fallen into their grasp through such a series of processes.

Until now, they haven’t been able to reach Korea due to various international situations, but now things are changing rapidly.

“Of course, it’s not like they are absolute evil. We don’t trust anyone.”

“That’s how it should be.”

Lee Hyun-soo nodded.

In the cold reality of international relations, there is neither good nor evil.

There are only the stronger ones and the closer ones.

Those who talk about goodwill are not qualified to seize power. Those who lead a country must focus solely on the interests of the country.

“Director.”

Ko Han-bong’s voice lowered slightly.

“As you know, this is a huge gamble from the government’s… no, the country’s perspective.

If we cut ties with the General Assembly and lie low, we can at least get through this administration without any major problems.”

“I know.”

“But this is not something we can just ignore. You must consider how much deliberation went into making this decision.”

Lee Hyun-soo nodded heavily.

Because he thought it would be difficult to make a decision, Lee Hyun-soo had pressured Ko Han-bong so much.

“Since we’re going this far, there’s no turning back. Director Lee, you must achieve results. I don’t expect you to win. At the very least, you must inflict damage on them and return with your forces intact.”

Lee Hyun-soo laughed as if he was dumbfounded.

“That seems more difficult than winning…”

“You must do it.”

Ko Han-bong looked at Lee Hyun-soo with a determined face.

Then, Lee Hyun-soo couldn’t joke around anymore and nodded.

“I will definitely do that.”

As the conversation roughly came to an end, Ko Han-bong relaxed his expression and let out a deep sigh.

“Even though we’ve come this far, I still can’t believe it.”

While Lee Hyun-soo was looking for an appropriate response, Ko Han-bong spoke again.

“Anyway, if there is anything you want from the items on that list, please request it quickly. If there are any additional requests, you must also request them as soon as possible.”

“Yes.”

Lee Hyun-soo glanced at the bundle of documents in front of him.

‘It’s not very useful.’

They said they wrote down everything they could do, but most of it is trivial and useless. But it’s not completely meaningless. Because this document outlines the areas and scale of support they are prepared to provide.

In other words, this is a guideline.

This much personnel, amount of money, and government support is possible. So, tell us what you need from that perspective.

It was a reasonable response to Lee Hyun-soo’s sudden demand.

Thinking that the government is not just a government for nothing, and that bureaucrats are not just bureaucrats for nothing, Lee Hyun-soo packed up the documents.

“Then, for today?”

“Ah, just a moment.”

Lee Hyun-soo subtly stopped Ko Han-bong’s words. It seemed like he wanted to wrap things up, but there was still something left to do on his end.

“I’ll just make a quick phone call.”

“Yes?”

Lee Hyun-soo got up from his seat without even waiting for Ko Han-bong’s answer and went to a corner. Then, he started making a phone call.

‘What is he doing?’

Ko Han-bong tilted his head.

It wasn’t something he would normally do in a meeting with him. But rather than feeling bad, he was curious. Because Lee Hyun-soo was the type of person who knew how to distinguish such things.

“Hello. Yes. Where are you? The meeting is almost over.”

Ko Han-bong looked at Lee Hyun-soo with a blank expression.

“Yes? At the entrance? Ah… Okay, I understand.”

Lee Hyun-soo hung up the phone and immediately went out of the room. Then, after a short while, he came back with an awkward expression.

“I’m sorry.”

“No, no. It’s okay. But what on earth…”

Ko Han-bong stopped talking.

Because the question was quickly answered. Behind Lee Hyun-soo, who was coming in with an awkward expression, a familiar person walked in nonchalantly.

“A-Assembly Leader?”

Ko Han-bong jumped up from his seat.

They say that how you greet someone shows the difference in status between you and them.

In his mind, Ko Han-bong thought that the position of Prime Minister of Korea was by no means lower than that of the Assembly Leader of the General Assembly, but the moment Kang Jin-ho came into view,

he reflexively got up from his seat.

“It’s been a while.”

“Ah, yes! It’s been a while, Assembly Leader. This, this way. Uh…”

Ko Han-bong’s hand, which was pointing to a seat in a hurry, stopped.

While he was wondering if he should call an employee to set up a seat, Kang Jin-ho sat down in that seat nonchalantly.

“Please, sit down.”

“Yes? Ah… Yes! Yes!”

Ko Han-bong sat down.

Ko Han-bong, who was now facing Kang Jin-ho, swallowed hard.

Why did Kang Jin-ho suddenly appear here?

Kang Jin-ho stared at Ko Han-bong for a moment before opening his mouth.

“The reason I came to see you like this is because…”