Descent Of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 184

“I’m home.”

“Huh?”

Baek Hyeon-jeong’s eyes narrowed as she saw Kang Jin-ho enter the house.

“Why are your clothes like that?”

Kang Jin-ho felt a pang of realization. He had been rolling around so much that his clothes were a mess, but he had been so preoccupied that he hadn’t even thought about changing before coming home.

“I took a bit of a tumble.”

“Are you okay?”

“Yes.”

Baek Hyeon-jeong started to get angry.

“My precious son is out there rolling around, and look at the state of you! Are you really okay?”

“Yes. I’m fine.”

“I knew it, I just knew it! Other people are desperate to feed their kids only the best and make sure they have it easy, but I don’t know why you insist on making him do hard things! You’re living comfortably after getting out of military service!”

‘It doesn’t seem to have anything to do with military service, Mother.’

He wanted to defend his father, but he knew that if he opened his mouth, he would be the one getting torn apart. Kang Jin-ho hoped his father wouldn’t fall into the pit of nagging as he headed to the bathroom.

“What about dinner?”

“I’ll wash up first.”

“Okay, go ahead. Hurry up and come out.”

Kang Jin-ho grabbed some clothes to change into and went into the bathroom. He turned on the shower and put his head under the cold water.

The cold water made his head feel a little clearer.

‘Who was it?’

The most likely possibilities were two groups.

Chinese martial artists, or Korean martial artists.

In the case of the Chinese martial artists, the fact that he had no direct grudges against them bothered him. Even if someone related to that guy, Wu Yuan, came for revenge, he doubted they could enter Korea and cause such an incident without attracting the attention of the Korean martial artists.

And in the case of the Korean martial artists, the fact that he hadn’t yet built up enough animosity with them to warrant a life-or-death situation bothered him.

Kang Jin-ho quietly tried to recall the face of the person who had targeted him. It was a face he had never seen before.

“It doesn’t matter who it is.”

The one principle he had upheld since his time in the Demonic Cult [a fictional martial arts sect].

He would always repay a grudge.

No matter who it was.

Settling debts was a principle he had to uphold in his life. A grudge for someone trying to take his life was something that could never be forgiven.

Crack.

Kang Jin-ho clenched his fist tightly.

A strange excitement was welling up inside him.

‘Am I enjoying this?’

Kang Jin-ho smiled bitterly.

When he calmly observed his emotional state, he realized that he was feeling more joy at having felt a sense of crisis after so long, rather than anger or resentment at being attacked.

Among the naturally born martial artists of the Demonic Cult, he was a cold person, but when compared to ordinary people, he was just another martial arts fanatic.

The fact that he was enjoying this kind of situation was something that only a half-crazed person could feel.

‘This is difficult.’

The biggest obstacle to living a normal life was not anything else, but Kang Jin-ho himself.

Even though he was no longer consumed by demonic arts, Kang Jin-ho was yearning for something other than his current life from the depths of his being. Whether this was a side effect of the demonic arts or if he was just that kind of person from the start, Kang Jin-ho couldn’t say.

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

Kang Jin-ho didn’t think of himself as a great person, but if there was one thing he could be proud of, it was that he wasn’t the type to worry alone about problems he couldn’t solve.

‘I’ll wait for the investigation for now.’

He didn’t think there was a high chance of them being caught, but after an incident like this, there was a high probability that some kind of trace would be left behind.

It would be good if Jo Gyu-min handled it well, but…

‘It won’t be easy.’

There was a conflict between the expectation that they might be able to find a trace and the realistic understanding that if they were so easy to track, they wouldn’t have been able to hide their identities so well until now.

‘It doesn’t matter anyway.’

His target is me, after all.

If he just continues to live as he is now, they will reveal themselves sooner or later.

So, Kang Jin-ho just had to wait.

Kang Jin-ho chuckled softly.

It was an interesting world.

It was a place where he felt an overwhelming sense of peace, but it was also a place where someone dared to try and assassinate him.

In the past, in the Central Plains [a common setting in wuxia novels, often referring to the heartland of China], all the masters of the righteous and demonic sects had to come together to try and kill him. So, no one dared to even think about assassinating him.

“This is fun.”

Kang Jin-ho finished his shower and came out. He changed his clothes and was heading to the living room when he stopped in his tracks.

“…Mother?”

“Yes, Jin-ho. Dinner is ready. Come and eat.”

“Where are Father and Eun-young?”

“They haven’t come home from work yet. They’ll be late, so they’ll eat when they get back.”

So, all of this food was prepared just for Kang Jin-ho?

It looked like a full-course meal for a formal meeting.

“There was another one.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Ah, it’s nothing.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head and headed to the table.

There was another one.

The person who tried to assassinate Kang Jin-ho.

“Manager?”

Kang Jin-ho tilted his head.

“Father told me to do it?”

“Really?”

Kang Jin-ho turned his head to look at Kang Ji-hwan. Seeing Kang Ji-hwan making coffee, a sense of bewilderment washed over him.

“Why a manager all of a sudden?”

“Well…”

Park Yu-min began to explain the situation in place of Joo Young-gi. After hearing the whole story, Kang Jin-ho’s face subtly hardened.

“Hmm…”

When they were together, nothing like this happened, but the fact that it happened as soon as he left meant that Kang Eun-young was in great danger when she was alone.

This kind of thing even happened when Kang Ji-hwan was present. Moreover, the people gathered here were so enthusiastic about Kang Eun-young that they would drop everything just because she was working. Yet, even they couldn’t prevent this from happening.

‘This is more serious than I thought.’

He had heard that stalkers and obsessive fans were a problem for celebrities, but he hadn’t taken it seriously. However, after hearing about what happened today, his thoughts changed.

It seemed like Kang Eun-young needed someone to protect her more.

Kang Jin-ho quietly looked at Joo Young-gi.

“What?”

Joo Young-gi answered in a nonchalant manner as his gaze fell on him.

“…Isn’t there an image problem?”

When Kang Jin-ho said something that no one else dared to say, Park Yu-min nodded without even realizing it.

“I-image? What are you talking about?”

Joo Young-gi tilted his head, not understanding what he meant, so Kang Jin-ho sighed.

“I’m saying that you dress too much like a gangster, so people might not like it. There are already so many rumors that the entertainment industry is connected to that kind of thing, and if you keep dressing like this, people will say that Eun-young is being sponsored by a gangster.”

“…Really?”

Joo Young-gi awkwardly scratched his head.

From his perspective, there was nothing he could do about it. The fact was that he was born into that world, so what could he do?

“Are you willing to do it?”

“I’m unemployed right now, so I’ll do anything if you give me a job.”

“Okay.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

He could hire a private security guard or ask the company to assign more managers, but he wouldn’t feel as safe as having someone he knew by her side.

And from what Kang Jin-ho had seen so far, Joo Young-gi was a trustworthy person. He was a friend, and he didn’t lie.

Moreover, Joo Young-gi was surprisingly not interested in women at all. In the past, when Eun-young had come to visit Kang Jin-ho several times, he would always frown and say, ‘Why are you always nagging at that little kid?’

‘When you think about it, there’s no one better than him.’ Kang Jin-ho made a decision.

“If you dress neatly and clean up your hair, people will talk less.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Okay. Then just dress a little more neatly.”

“But Jin-ho…”

“What?”

“What do you mean by dressing neatly? I think I’m dressed very neatly right now.”

“No.”

“No! Young-gi!”

Kang Jin-ho and Park Yu-min both reacted negatively at the same time.

“This won’t do. Let’s go shopping. I’ll set a date, so get ready. I’ll pick out clothes for you.”

Joo Young-gi tilted his head and said in a very disdainful tone.

“You?”

Kang Jin-ho slowly lowered his head with a stiff face.

The t-shirt his mother bought, the jeans his mother bought, and the shoes his father passed down came into his view.

“Or him?”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Park Yu-min.

Park Yu-min was dressed head to toe in clothes that were only durable, good quality, and cheap, focusing on value for money.

“Heh… Well, well, you have to live a long time to see everything. Are you guys criticizing my fashion right now?”

The three fashion disasters began to ponder.

“Shopping?”

“…That’s right.”

“Hmph, the day my brother asks me for a favor has finally come. What’s going on? Is the sun going to rise in the west tomorrow?”

Kang Eun-young, who had taken the lead for the first time in five years, began to giggle.

Kang Jin-ho flinched and backed away, seeing the look in Kang Eun-young’s eyes, like an eagle with prey in its mouth.

“Since my brother is so kindly asking me for a favor, I can’t refuse, can I? Right? How long have we been together?”

“That sounds very businesslike.”

“Well, there’s no way you could pick out clothes. Your fashion sense is too destructive. It’s enough to destroy everyone’s eyes.”

Kang Jin-ho couldn’t really argue.

Both in the Central Plains and here… Kang Jin-ho didn’t have the concept of choosing his own clothes.

His entire concept of fashion was to grab a top, grab a bottom, and then pick out shoes to wear.

“But it’s not your clothes, it’s Young-gi’s clothes?”

“Yeah.”

“Is Young-gi going to be my road manager?”

“Road manager?”

“The one who takes care of my schedule and buys me food.”

“…Let’s call him a bodyguard.” Although ‘supervisor’ might be more appropriate.

“Hmm, then I guess we should buy some clothes for my brother while we’re at it.”

“Huh?”

“Mom! Mom!”

Not long after Kang Eun-young ran out of the room, Baek Hyeon-jeong, with a determined look on her face, rushed in.

“You’re going to the department store?”

“…No, Mother. It’s not like that…”

“It’s my lifelong wish to dress you up and pick out clothes for you at least once! You’re so handsome that you’d shine even if you were naked, so why do you have a fit whenever I suggest going to buy clothes!”

“That’s great. Don’t say anything and come with us. And your friend… no! Since it’s come to this, bring Yu-min too. I’ve been so frustrated watching Yu-min wear those clothes.”

Cold sweat began to trickle down Kang Jin-ho’s forehead.

“T-that’s not why we’re going…”

“What a surprise! Jin-ho is coming to the department store!”

“Mom! Then can I buy some clothes too?”

“No.”

“Why!”

“If you pick out clothes, it’ll take away time from looking at your brother’s clothes.”

“Tsk, I guess I have no choice.”

Kang Eun-young quickly accepted and smiled brightly.

“Then let’s go quickly while we’re at it. Call your friends and tell them to come out tomorrow. Let’s go when it opens.”

“…What about the store?”

“Your father will take care of it!”