Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1787

Crack.

“Hoo…”

The morning sun cast its rays at his feet. Kang Jin-ho squatted in a quiet alley, slowly puffing on a cigarette.

‘That’s odd.’

To dream of the old days.

He scratched his messy hair with one hand.

He sometimes had dreams of the past when he was in bad shape due to a major injury, but it was rare to have such dreams when he was perfectly fine like now.

Kang Jin-ho slowly inhaled the cigarette and stared blankly at the sky.

‘How strange.’

In the past, dreaming of his second life was not pleasant.

For him, his second life was closer to a trauma he wanted to escape.

But now, even when he dreamed of that time, he didn’t feel particularly heavy. Even without making up excuses like ‘I’ve escaped,’ it was clear that his past life had become a little lighter for him.

“Hmm.”

Kang Jin-ho finished his cigarette to the filter and then took out a new one.

‘The Azure Demon…’

Crack.

Looking at the burning end of the cigarette, Kang Jin-ho quietly lowered his eyes.

“It’s not worth trying to reconnect with a past relationship.”

The cigarette smoke slowly spread into the sky.

“Son?”

Baek Hyun-jung’s face lit up when she saw Kang Jin-ho, who had just finished showering.

“Are you going out?”

“…I just took a shower.”

Baek Hyun-jung quickly maintained her usual indifferent expression. Seeing the change in her expression, cold sweat broke out on Kang Jin-ho’s forehead.

“Since you’ve showered, you should go out.”

“I have nowhere to go…”

“Son.”

“Yes?”

Baek Hyun-jung smiled with a friendly face.

“Your mom watched some internet videos yesterday…”

“…You watch those too?”

“I’m a bit faster than you, son.”

Kang Jin-ho closed his mouth at the undeniable truth. It was true that he was very ignorant about electronics and the modern internet.

“Anyway, watching those, I learned about something called… what was it? Hi… Hiki? Ah, right. Hikikomori!”

“…You mean a shut-in?”

“Yes. They say it’s a social problem.”

Kang Jin-ho’s eyes twitched.

“It’s true that I’m a bit lacking in social skills, but I’m not that bad…”

“No, the video said that being complacent like that is the most dangerous.”

Baek Hyun-jung approached Kang Jin-ho and held his hand tightly.

“My son must have had a hard time. If you have any worries or feel uncomfortable, tell your mom. Mom will always be by your side…”

“…I’ll go out.”

“Really?”

Baek Hyun-jung smiled brightly.

“Good thinking, my son.”

He couldn’t win against his mom.

Moms are….

* * *

Park Yu-min’s cheek twitched momentarily.

“So, you came here?”

“To someone else’s practice room? Without saying anything?”

Park Yu-min looked at his ‘friend’ with an exceptionally gentle smile.

‘I understand him less and less as time goes on.’

No. Kang Jin-ho was always his proud friend.

But now, the problem was that the ‘goofy friend’ category was about to be added next to the ‘proud friend’ category.

“Where’s Young-gi?”

“I already went to see him.”

“He told me to get lost and not interfere with his business.”

“…Even if you just sat at a window table, it would help his business, not hinder it.”

“I was doing that, but he told me to get lost because it was annoying.”

Young-gi.

You chose pride over money. I’m proud of you, my friend.

“…Then wait a bit. I’ll talk to the coach and come out.”

“You can just give me a chair in the corner of the practice room. I’ll play by myself.”

“I can’t do that. It’s okay. There’s no scrim [practice match] right now anyway, and it’s kind of a rest period.”

Park Yu-min said that and went inside. Soon after, Park Yu-min, wearing a hat and a mask, came out.

“Are you sick?”

“…I need to cover my face. Too many people recognize me.”

“Huh?”

Park Yu-min sighed.

“Since winning the World Championship, too many people recognize me. If I go out without covering my face, I spend all my time signing autographs.”

“…Park Yu-min has become arrogant. If it were the old days, you would have signed autographs and taken pictures with everyone.”

“Have you ever signed autographs for three hours?”

Well.

That’s definitely not something a person should do.

Park Yu-min shook his head.

“I’ll sign autographs as much as I can when I’m done with work. That’s something I should do. Honestly, we’re just game addicts without fans.”

“That’s right.”

It was the same for all professional sports, but without fans to enjoy and watch the games, it was just a game between the players. That’s why those who are called professionals should always be grateful to their fans.

“But I need to be able to do something. Last time, I went to the bank and ended up signing autographs for two hours and ran away.”

Park Yu-min’s soul seemed to leave his body as he recalled that memory.

Indeed.

Park Yu-min had always been afraid of being surrounded by people.

“You’ve been through a lot.”

“…I shouldn’t say it’s been hard.”

Park Yu-min sighed deeply.

“But you’re on TV too.”

“…Jin-ho, let’s skip that.”

Park Yu-min trembled as he remembered the recent commercial he filmed.

Just because he was the one who filmed it didn’t mean he couldn’t tell he was acting poorly. He tried his best, but what could he do if the result was like that?

“I told them I wouldn’t film it…”

“Then why did you film it?”

“They said that if I filmed the commercial, they would donate all the money raised from the campaign and my appearance fee.”

“…Then you have to do it.”

“Yeah, so I did it.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled.

Even though he had become so popular that he had to cover his face with a mask, Park Yu-min was still Park Yu-min.

Kang Jin-ho, with Park Yu-min on his scooter, stepped on the accelerator lightly.

“Where are you going?”

“Anywhere. You need to get some fresh air too. You must be stuffy being in the practice room.”

“Jin-ho, I’m most comfortable in the practice room.”

“…Try being a little stuffy.”

Looking at Park Yu-min, he could understand why Baek Hyun-jung and Kang Eun-young nagged him so much. It wasn’t that he had any particular complaints, but it felt like he couldn’t just leave him alone.

“Do you see Eun-young often?”

Park Yu-min flinched at the mention of Kang Eun-young’s name.

Then, he glanced at Kang Jin-ho.

“…I don’t see her that often. Really.”

“It’s not like you’ve done anything wrong…”

It wasn’t a sin.

But you made it feel like one, you…

Park Yu-min had a lot to say, but he didn’t voice his thoughts. He didn’t want to stir up trouble again when things were just barely starting to heal.

“Eun-young is busy these days too.”

“I couldn’t see her much because I didn’t have time, but now Eun-young is busy, so I can’t see her. Situations are so strange.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled at that.

‘It’s the same with me.’

It was similar to the situation he and Choi Yeon-ha were in.

In the end, it seemed like people lived similar lives.

Or maybe this was what it meant to become an adult. Having more things to do than things you wanted to do.

Brummm.

The car sped down the road.

“Wow, it’s the sea.”

Park Yu-min, holding a takeout coffee in one hand, smiled brightly in the sea breeze.

He had already taken off his mask, and his smile was clearly visible to Kang Jin-ho.

“You’re acting like you’ve never seen the sea before.”

“I don’t get to see it often.”

Park Yu-min shrugged.

“I know I should come out sometimes to change my mood, but it’s hard to do. But now that I’m out, it definitely feels like something I needed. Thanks, Jin-ho.”

“…Why are you thanking me?”

“Still.”

Park Yu-min smiled.

Seeing that face, Kang Jin-ho smiled without realizing it. Strangely, he felt comfortable when he was with Park Yu-min.

“How are you doing these days?”

“About what?”

“Work. It feels weird to call it work.”

“Hmm.”

Park Yu-min nodded as if he understood what he was asking.

“It’s… well, I don’t want to say this…”

“Huh?”

“Things aren’t going well.”

Kang Jin-ho turned his head to look at Park Yu-min. It wasn’t the answer he expected. If it were the Park Yu-min he knew, he would have brushed it off and told him not to worry.

“Why?”

“Well, it’s a bit complicated…”

“Is it because you don’t get along with your teammates?”

“No, it’s not that. The environment and everything is great. Since winning the World Championship, the support has been amazing, and people like us more. It’s more than enough.”

Park Yu-min frowned slightly as if he was pondering something, then opened his mouth.

“The problem must be with me.”

“…You?”

“Yeah.”

Park Yu-min took a sip of his Americano.

Park Yu-min, who seemed to feel the bitterness in his mouth, frowned and looked at Kang Jin-ho.

“Jin-ho, you saw it… I really worked hard.”

“You overdid it.”

It was really difficult for someone who had reached the top to start from the bottom in a completely different field.

“I really just wanted to be the best again. So I really tried my best to the limit…”

“And you achieved it.”

“Yeah. I was lucky though.”

Park Yu-min scratched the back of his head as if he was embarrassed to take credit.

“At first, it was great. It felt like my efforts were rewarded, and it felt like I showed my fans that I hadn’t rusted yet. Above all, the sense of accomplishment was amazing.”

“Hmm.”

“But after about a month, I started thinking, ‘So, what now?’”

“Well, that can happen. That’s what athletes are like. They give everything to achieve one goal, and once they achieve it, they set a new goal.”

“That’s right.”

“So, if you win the World Championship again, what’s next? Should you aim for the World Championship again, or should you set a different goal?”

Kang Jin-ho quietly looked at Park Yu-min.

“I just started thinking like that.”

“What kind of thoughts?”

“I always had a goal because there was something I wanted to do. Or should I say, something I wanted to achieve?”

“But at some point, it felt like I was setting goals to find a reason to work hard.”

“Of course, Jin-ho, it’s hard for you to understand. But I’m not the kind of person who is full of grit and fighting spirit. So, it’s a bit difficult to create a goal that pushes me harder and work towards it.”

“I understand.”

“Huh?”

“I understand.”

He wouldn’t have understood it before… but now he felt like he could understand.

“I’m in the same boat right now.”

“You?”

“Why? Is it weird?”

Park Yu-min looked at Kang Jin-ho with wide eyes. After staring at him for a while, Park Yu-min shook his head.

“No. It’s not weird at all.”

“Then that’s good.”

Park Yu-min, who had been looking at the sea silently for a while, quietly opened his mouth.

“Jin-ho.”

“Yeah?”

“I thought that when I became an adult, I would be a more decisive person. I would worry less, hesitate less, and have a clear sense of my life.”

“…Yeah.”

“But even as I get older, it doesn’t seem like much is changing.”

“That’s because you’re not an adult yet.”

“Really? Then have you become an adult?”

“I’m not yet either.”

“What’s that?”

Park Yu-min laughed.

“Then you and I are still kids.”

“That’s right.”

A smile bloomed on Kang Jin-ho’s face.

He didn’t know why, but he felt a little relieved.

Maybe people are…

Searching for the meaning of life throughout their lives.