Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1854

Thud.

Thud.

Deep underground.

The sound of footsteps echoed through the deep, dark passage like the whimpers of a ghost.

In the hallway, where darkness had settled thickly, Wiggins walked, relying on a small light.

‘How far down does this go?’

How many years had he been a part of the Round Table?

Yet, despite living within the Round Table for so long, he had never once imagined that such a deep space existed underground.

The narrow, circular staircase descended endlessly.

Like an abyss.

Although emotions like ‘fear’ or ‘anxiety’ had almost disappeared from Wiggins, as he descended this long, deep circular staircase, forgotten feelings began to creep into his heart.

“It’s like a myth.”

The heroes of myths must have descended into such places to face the monsters at the end of the abyss.

Then.

What kind of monster is Wiggins trying to catch now?

Wiggins chuckled softly.

‘What a joke.’

A hero trying to catch a monster.

Absolutely not.

He is the monster.

Without a doubt, Wiggins is the one who best suits this gloomy place. He was once a man who dreamed of being a hero, but now he is a monster, not a hero.

So, does he regret it?

‘Absolutely not.’

From the start, being a hero was not his role.

He didn’t know it in the past, but he knows now. A person who calculates in front of an enemy can never be a hero. Only those who can rush forward without hesitation, even when facing an uncertain outcome, are qualified to be heroes.

And Wiggins was not that kind of person.

This is not a matter of effort, but a matter of nature.

‘If I can’t be a hero, I’ll have to become a monster.’

The worst thing is not failing to become a hero and becoming a monster.

It’s failing to become either a hero or a monster, and instead becoming a supporting character who stands by their side.

Wiggins himself knows. The path he has walked so far was not a path to becoming a main character.

There are people in the world that he cannot control, and most lives are swept away by their decisions.

But not anymore.

Whatever the role, Wiggins will now be the one who decides his own life.

That’s why he’s going down this path now.

Thud. Thud.

As if entering a deep abyss, the end of the stairs finally came into view for Wiggins, who was descending further and further down.

Thud.

The sensation under his feet was different.

Wiggins took a deep breath and looked around the deep pit that could be called an abyss.

A chilling feeling ran down his spine.

‘It wouldn’t be different.’

In the past, this place was probably a place of glory.

Only those who had overcome all competition, even surpassing the heroes of the past, and had earned the right to challenge, would have walked down into this deep place.

Perhaps each step was filled with praise and joy.

Wiggins raised his head and looked up at the empty space.

The high stairs, which now only showed darkness, would have been filled with light in the past. But anything that loses its purpose will eventually end up like this.

A test for the enemies of the Round Table and those abandoned by the Round Table.

“Doesn’t it seem like a picture?”

His eyes caught sight of a huge door on one side of the wall.

Once, the word to describe this door would have been grandeur. But now, the emotion he felt from this door was intimidation.

The dungeon couldn’t possibly have emotions, but no matter how he looked at it, this dungeon didn’t seem to welcome him.

Wiggins curled up the corners of his mouth.

‘How about it?’

He is the villain of the Round Table.

If this dungeon exists to create Elder Knights and protect the Round Table, then the greatest enemy of this place is none other than Wiggins.

Then.

Will this dungeon defeat him to protect the Round Table?

Or will it deeply realize its own abandoned and betrayed state, and complete Wiggins as the most powerful enemy of the Round Table?

Thud. Thud.

Wiggins approached the door and gently reached out, placing both hands on the huge iron door.

Then, after taking a deep breath, he slowly began to infuse mana into the door.

Woo-oong!

The old, rusty iron door slowly vibrated.

The vibration sounded like a cry to Wiggins’s ears.

“Choose, you damned trial.”

Wiggins laughed like Kang Jin-ho.

“Will you stop the monster, or will you become a monster with me? Either way, there’s no path left for either of us to become heroes.”

Woo-oong!

The iron door slowly began to open.

Darkness.

All that could be seen through the open iron door was darkness. A thick darkness, so dense that it seemed like it would stick to your hand if you touched it, dominated the space.

Wiggins silently stared at the darkness before taking a heavy first step.

‘I will return.’

Definitely to this place.

The deep, thick darkness completely swallowed Wiggins.

Koo-oong!

Deep silence settled in the place where the iron door had firmly closed, as if no one had ever been there from the beginning.

Tap.

The end of the cigarette burned red.

Kang Jin-ho, staring blankly at the end of the cigarette, raised his head and looked up at the sky.

A low sigh escaped from Kang Jin-ho’s lips as he stared at the dark sky.

‘Lonely.’

Kang Jin-ho chuckled lightly with the cigarette in his mouth.

It’s a funny thing.

Kang Jin-ho, who never even considered the thought of loneliness in the midst of that terrible solitude in the past, is now feeling loneliness in this modern era.

‘Would Cheongma [a legendary horse] laugh if he saw this?’

Or would he also sympathize with Kang Jin-ho’s feelings?

“Hoo~”

Kang Jin-ho exhaled a long puff of smoke and quietly closed his eyes.

It seemed that those who were not here now occupied a larger part of him than he had thought.

In the past, he didn’t want much.

He thought that as long as his family was by his side, everything would be okay. But at some point, friends filled his side, and at some point, colleagues began to fill it as well.

‘A greedy person.’

He doesn’t want to let go of any of them.

He doesn’t want to lose any of them.

His world was growing bigger and the people he had to protect were also growing bigger.

“What are you thinking about so deeply?”

Kang Jin-ho turned his head at the voice behind him.

Lee Hyun-soo was approaching him again, as perceptive as ever.

“Honestly.”

“Yes?”

“There’s something I want to ask.”

“Ask me anything. I’m an expert at giving answers.”

“…Did you install a CCTV in my office?”

“Or did you install one on the rooftop?”

“Tsk tsk.”

Lee Hyun-soo clicked his tongue as if he was pathetic.

“That’s why you’re not ready yet, Lord. What good is being good at fighting? You don’t understand modern civilization at all.”

“…Huh?”

“We don’t do that kind of thing these days. Why would you need a CCTV when we have satellite surveillance and GPS?”

“…Did you really do it?”

“I’m just kidding. Seriously.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

He knew it was a joke, but when it came from that guy’s mouth, it didn’t sound like a joke. No, he might actually be monitoring him.

“Anyway, you need to get used to it. There are probably a few satellites watching you right now, Lord.”

“Didn’t we agree not to do that?”

“Do you believe that?”

Lee Hyun-soo chuckled.

“Do you really think the Chinese government, controlled by the Hongwang Group, wouldn’t monitor you, Lord? Hongwang wouldn’t, but what about that guy, Chaikechang?”

“What about the US? They agreed to cooperate and not do that, so they’d just leave a dangerous person like you alone? No way. If it were me, I’d mobilize at least ten satellites.”

“The number of satellites that are publicly known and the actual number of satellites can’t be the same. These days, even private companies are launching a couple of satellites a day.”

Kang Jin-ho slightly turned his head and looked at the sky.

The dark night sky, which had been conveying various emotions just a moment ago, now only looked like a surveillance camera. Or rather, it actually was.

“A world without romance.”

“That’s just how people live.”

Lee Hyun-soo shook his head and stood next to Kang Jin-ho. Then, he took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth.

“So, what were you thinking about so deeply?”

“Irony.”

“Yes? Irony?”

Kang Jin-ho nodded and opened his mouth.

“The first thing I did when I came back to the modern era.”

“Yes.”

“Was to distinguish between the people I had to protect and the people I didn’t have to protect.”

“And to figure out how much stronger I had to become to protect those people.”

“Hmm.”

Lee Hyun-soo made a low sound, and Kang Jin-ho chuckled and continued.

“As time went on, the number of people I had to protect grew, and I had to become even stronger. Sometimes, it was honestly overwhelming.”

“I understand.”

Even to Lee Hyun-soo, Kang Jin-ho had walked a thorny path.

The achievements, status, and power he had now were something that anyone would envy, but if they had to walk the same path as Kang Jin-ho to achieve the same results, there would be almost no one who would choose that path.

“But as I went all the way to the end.”

“Yes.”

“The people I was protecting were now struggling to protect me.”

Lee Hyun-soo chuckled.

“That’s nothing special.”

“You too.”

He knew.

The reason why Lee Hyun-soo could follow him whenever Kang Jin-ho felt depressed and went to the rooftop was because Lee Hyun-soo was always at the headquarters at those times.

Lee Hyun-soo was also completely giving up his own life and struggling to do what he could.

Everyone was.

“I’m not the only thing that makes me up.”

“…What does that mean?”

“Could I be me without you?”

“I wouldn’t be me without Bator either. At least, not the same me as I am now.”

“Did you suddenly start studying philosophy? Why are you like this?”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Lee Hyun-soo with a sulky expression, and Lee Hyun-soo flinched and turned his head.

“Well, so what?”

“But if you think about it, it’s the same for you.”

“Yes?”

“Could you be you without Hyun-joo?”

“I couldn’t be. At least, not the same as I am now.”

“That’s… right.”

“Then what about Hyun-joo?”

Only then did Lee Hyun-soo realize what Kang Jin-ho wanted to say.

“It’s spreading.”

“Yes. To the whole world. What I have to protect doesn’t necessarily stay only around me. To protect what’s around me, I have to protect other things too.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“Someone smart might be able to find the right line. But I’m not that smart, so I don’t know. So.”

Kang Jin-ho curled up the corners of his mouth.

“If I have to protect, I have to protect everything. Because that’s the way to protect myself.”

“That’s crazy?”

“Maybe it is.”

Kang Jin-ho shrugged his shoulders.

“Of course, that doesn’t mean I can do everything. I’m not a god or a Buddha.”

“But at least…”

Kang Jin-ho curled up the corners of his mouth again.

“I know why I have to fight.”

Lee Hyun-soo sighed deeply at Kang Jin-ho’s smile.

“Sometimes… no, always, I feel this.”

“Hmm?”

“You’re too slow, Lord.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled at those words.

“Maybe I am.”

Kang Jin-ho turned his head and looked up at the sky.

‘I’ve found the reason.’

Then all that’s left is to move.

To do that.

“I hope they don’t make me wait too long.”

“They won’t. They’re impatient people.”

Kang Jin-ho closed his eyes.

The moment his surroundings.

No, the moment he is completely filled.

His feet will move towards the world.

Without hesitation.