Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1965

“Lalala, lalala.”
A cheerful humming sound echoed softly off the concrete walls.

“Lala, lalala.”

A man took out a retort pouch from a thermal bag, tore it open, and poured it onto a plate. The rice, which looked like a cross between porridge and fried rice, was scooped onto a paper plate.

He sprinkled some sauce on top, sat on a small chair, picked up a spoon, and began to eat the unidentified food.

“……How can you eat that?”

“Why? It’s quite tasty.”

“……That is?”

The Black King chuckled.

“Don’t talk like you’re full. There were times when we couldn’t even get food like this. This is rice, you know.”

“……Shamans are rich, so I’ve never eaten anything like that.”

“You bourgeois scum.”

Baek Yeon-hong shook his head.

The Black King was someone who could have any food in the world delivered to him instantly. Seeing him eat tasteless combat rations so nonchalantly was something he could never get used to.

Well, he could understand it for a meal or two, as an experience.

But since they had entered this damned base, all they had been able to eat was that damned combat ration.

“How can you eat the same thing for so many meals without getting tired of it?”

“It can’t be helped. I didn’t expect that the only food available would be combat rations. I at least thought there would be a refrigerator.”

The Black King shrugged.

“If the Blood King were alive, he could have ordered food delivery.”

“……It’s a good thing he’s dead.”

The thought of the Blood King, who wouldn’t bow to anyone in terms of pride, walking into the bunker with food bags dangling from both hands made him cringe.

The problem was that if he was ordered to do it, he would have done it.

The Black King’s orders were absolute.

“Other guys can go. If the Black King orders it, everyone would be willing to go.”

“No. Who knows what’s out there? Only someone like the Blood King could go out and come back without being seen.”

Baek Yeon-hong was about to say something, but the Black King shook his head.

“It’s not that I doubt your abilities. But I don’t want to create even the slightest chance of a problem. We’re almost there now.”

Baek Yeon-hong looked at the Black King with a renewed gaze.

He was such an unpredictable person.

When he talked about a new world for warriors, he seemed like a mad visionary, full of passion. When he suppressed them, he seemed like the worst dictator in history.

But then, at times like this, he looked like a timid old man.

No, maybe that was what made the Black King so special.

It wasn’t easy to have both the audacity to pursue a near-impossible dream with everything on the line and the meticulousness to not tolerate even the smallest mistake.

“Want to eat some?”

“……I’ll pass.”

In fact, meals didn’t really mean much to them. They lived on energy rather than nutrients, so fasting for a month or so wouldn’t have a big impact on them.

“You don’t have to eat, do you?”

“That’s right. But you know…”

The Black King smiled.

“If I don’t eat or sleep, I feel like I’ll forget that I’m actually a human being.”

“If I forget the joy of living as a human, I’ll really become a monster.”

“……Joy? You find that in eating that?”

“It’s not so bad once you get used to it.”

Baek Yeon-hong shook his head.

The Black King, who was chewing on the fried rice, narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at Baek Yeon-hong’s empty shoulder.

“I’m sorry about that.”

“Don’t be so sentimental.”

Baek Yeon-hong chuckled.

“It’s okay. I have sins to atone for, so I have to accept it.”

“I thought I went a bit too far.”

“Don’t say things you don’t mean. You did it as an example to prevent anyone from acting alone before the big event, didn’t you?”

“That’s true.”

Baek Yeon-hong sighed.

“I should blame myself for moving so foolishly, even though I knew it. What else can I do?”

“Then why did you do it?”

“Well, to be fair.”

Baek Yeon-hong laughed.

“I lived for over a hundred years in my previous life, and over a hundred years in this life. If my brain was still working properly, that would be more strange, wouldn’t it?”

“None of the guys here are in their right minds. Mentally, they’ve either entered the realm of plants or have already gone into the realm of madness.”

“Well, that’s not wrong.”

“I know it in my head, but sometimes it’s hard to resist the urge.

I’m sick in that way, and the others have their own sicknesses.”

The Black King sighed.

Humans should die.

It might sound like something that those who only get to live one life would curse, but humans are valuable because they only live one life.

Living another life isn’t as enjoyable as one might think.

“Well, I was a bit upset, but… I’m okay now.”

“You’re a cleaner type than I thought.”

“No. From what I see, you don’t seem like you’re going to die peacefully either, so do I really need to take revenge?”

“……Thank you.”

Baek Yeon-hong chuckled.

It was hard to believe that this ordinary-looking man was shaking the entire world.

‘It was like a dream.’

Changing the world.

It was something they had never even dared to imagine.

They had power that was second to none, and they once ruled the Central Plains, but they had never once thought of going against the laws that governed the world.

Until this man appeared before them.

Not everyone agreed with his ideas. Some resisted, and some openly turned against him.

The Black King persuaded each of them, and if necessary, eliminated them, and came this far.

Finally, here.

The Black King was strong.

But if he was just strong, not everyone would have followed him. Before discussing strength as a warrior, his size as a person was different.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“How did you think of finding us and persuading us in the first place? Did you think there would be so many people who would agree with that crazy idea?”

“Of course.”

“……How? I don’t understand.”

The Black King chuckled at Baek Yeon-hong’s words.

“Warriors are beings who bet everything on strength.”

“But this has nothing to do with strength. The world changing won’t make me stronger.”

“But those who have reached the top can’t just be obsessed with strength.”

“……Huh?”

The Black King’s eyes darkened.

“Those who resist.”

“Those who can’t accept being complacent with the current situation, those who can’t stand something pressing down on them, those rebels who are itching to fight something huge.”

“Haha……”

“Those are the ones who reach the top. Whether it’s the righteous path, the evil path, or the demonic path.”

“Those who have already reached the highest point with force once can’t be satisfied with the same goal. I just created a bigger enemy for you to fight.”

It was an absurd answer.

But it was also true that everything had gone according to his words.

“How is it? Am I right?”

“You’re wrong about one thing.”

“What?”

“The Demon Lord. He doesn’t seem like he’s going to agree with you.”

“Hmm.”

The Black King rested his chin on his hand.

“I just can’t figure that guy out. It was the same in the past.”

“Weren’t you the one who knew him best?”

“I know him best. That’s why I don’t understand him more. He’s a resister and a nostalgic person at the same time, a fighter and someone who endlessly seeks stability.”

It was contradictory.

One thing was certain: there was chaos within Kang Jin-ho. He longed for stability when he was on the battlefield, and he longed for the battlefield when he could pursue stability.

“He’s a fickle guy.”

The Black King shrugged.

“Well, anyway, he’s not completely out of my expectations. I told you, he’s a variable. He’s the only variable I can’t control.”

“But if you can’t control him until the end, you have to be prepared to ruin things.”

“……What do you mean by that?”

The Black King’s eyes sharpened slightly, and Baek Yeon-hong swallowed hard.

“Everyone knows that the Black King treats him differently from others.”

“So everyone is secretly worried. What if he…”

“Ah, that’s what you’re talking about.”

The Black King waved his hand.

“You don’t have to worry about that. You’ve misunderstood.”

“Misunderstood?”

“You’re worried that if he appears before me as an enemy, I might show him mercy, right?”

“……I won’t deny it.”

“That’s impossible.”

The Black King laughed.

“Mercy is a concept that can only exist when I have leeway, or when the other party is also considerate of my situation. But it’s impossible to have leeway when facing that Demon Lord…”

The Black King paused.

Then he looked at the ceiling for a moment. As if he was thinking about Kang Jin-ho.

“That guy isn’t someone who is considerate of his enemies. If he considers someone an enemy, he’ll relentlessly try to take their life by any means. Or he’ll make them more miserable than death.”

“We can be friends until we face each other. The moment we face each other, we’ll be desperate to sink our teeth into each other’s necks more fiercely than any other relationship in the world.”

The Black King wore a twisted smile.

“That’s the kind of relationship we have.”

“……Can I give you my thoughts?”

“Go ahead.”

“Honestly, you guys are crazy.”

“Hahahaha! That’s right! Hahahahahaha!”

A sigh escaped from Baek Yeon-hong’s lips.

Their relationship was twisted.

There was nothing logical about it, and it was impossible to even guess what emotions it was based on.

One thing was certain.

This was not in the realm of understanding.

Perhaps it would be impossible for anyone other than those two to understand their relationship, even if they spent their entire lives trying.

“So… how do you think that Demon Lord will come out?”

“Well, I really don’t know.”

The Black King leaned back in his chair and looked at the ceiling.

“If it was the Demon Lord of the past, I would know what he would do, but the one I have to face is not the Demon Lord, but Kang Jin-ho.”

“Is there a difference?”

“There is.”

The Black King shrugged.

“I wish there wasn’t, but there’s no way there isn’t. There has to be a difference.”

“Then can I ask you one last question?”

“……It feels like it’s going to be a difficult question to answer.”

“Then, how does the Black King want him to come out?”

The smile disappeared from the Black King’s face, which had been smiling.

“I…”

The Black King lightly rubbed his chin.

“That’s an interesting question. How do I want him to be… Well, what I want…”

Baek Yeon-hong shook his head as he watched the Black King sink into deep thought.

It was a funny thing.

They were standing on the edge of a cliff.

And the whole world was on edge.

But the one who held all of this in his hands was not interested in the trends of the world’s major powers, nor the response of the Chinese government, which was on high alert.

Nor was he interested in the fact that the deadline he had set was approaching day by day.

Perhaps even the outcome of this event was not his concern.

‘Extremely great things are determined by extremely personal things.’

Perhaps that was the truth.

‘It’s not long now.’

Whether it was a transformation or destruction.

The time to decide the fate of this world was approaching.