Descent Of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 2008

The master observed the man standing before him with a subtle, assessing gaze.

The man wore a wide, white robe.

Aside from the fact that his clothing was in the style of classical Chinese attire, there was nothing particularly remarkable about his appearance.

Except for one thing.

‘Are his eyes blind?’

The man’s pupils were a milky white. It was impossible to tell whether this was due to blindness or a special form of Qi cultivation [Qi is a vital energy in traditional Chinese medicine and martial arts].

In any case, for someone who had reached this level of mastery, a lack of sight wouldn’t hinder their movements.

The man’s empty gaze turned towards the master. The moment their eyes met, the master felt as if his body was being pulled into a deep abyss.

“…A Westerner?”

A deep voice escaped the man’s lips.

“You’re from the Round Table. Usually called a Master.”

The man nodded slightly.

“I’ve heard of it. The Round Table.”

“Then how about revealing your identity?”

“I am a Phantasmist.”

“A Phantasmist…”

It was a name that didn’t ring any bells. The master looked at the Phantasmist with a curious expression before speaking.

“Strange. It’s meaningless to judge a person by their appearance, but you don’t seem like someone who would follow someone like the Black King?”

The Phantasmist’s transparent gaze fixed on the master.

“…I’m merely repaying a debt.”

“A debt? To the Black King?”

“No, Westerner.”

The Phantasmist slowly shook his head from side to side.

“The one I must repay a debt to is the world I’ve lived in. I do not agree with his methods. Peace forced through power is bound to break, and achievements that come with sacrifice will eventually lose their value.”

“If you know that, why are you following the Black King?”

“Life is like that.”

The Phantasmist shook his head.

“I am not that great of a person. I don’t have the ability to create a perfect outcome that can satisfy everyone. Nor do I have the ability to judge what the right path is. All I can do is find a path that can create a slightly better outcome than now.”

“The world the Black King creates might be a step backward from now?”

“Then would you give up?”

The Phantasmist slowly shook his head.

“No one knows the outcome. A mere human cannot know the future. But one thing is certain. He is the only one in this world who has tried to change the world by giving his all.”

The master nodded slightly. There was no denying that statement.

As a master, he knew how significant the Black King’s actions were. He had also led the warriors of Europe.

Even while clearly recognizing that the situation of the warriors was gradually worsening, the master had only tried to maintain the status quo.

Was he complacent?

Absolutely not. If anyone were in the master’s position, they wouldn’t be able to criticize him with such words. He had done his best in the situation he was in.

It wasn’t that he was lacking, but that the Black King was a game-changer.

A game-changer who fundamentally overturned the rules they had been following.

If he hadn’t met Kang Jin-ho, if he had still been the master of the Round Table, trying to protect it, he might have agreed with the Black King’s logic and followed him.

“It’s just that our positions are different.”

“And in the world of warriors, that’s everything.”

The master nodded.

Looking back now, perhaps it would have been better if the master hadn’t become a warrior. The heavens had given him the talent to become a great warrior, but not the disposition to accept the life of a warrior.

This barbaric world where the rightness of each other’s logic is decided by force was one of the incomprehensible areas for him.

But now, he seemed to understand a little.

‘If there’s something you don’t like, you should have changed it with your own power.’

The outside world was the same.

The flow of the outside world, where reason and logic were the main focus, wasn’t like that from the beginning. It was the result of countless people’s blood gradually changing a world dominated by barbarism and power.

If the world didn’t suit you, instead of complaining and denying it, you should have changed it yourself.

Yes.

Like Kang Jin-ho behind him and the Black King behind the Phantasmist.

Perhaps they were the people who understood the essence of the world more clearly than anyone else.

‘It’s a shame.’

The master gave a bitter smile.

If he had stood in this place entirely of his own will, he might have enjoyed this match more. But what had brought him to this place was regret, agony, and a sense of responsibility for his own choices.

“Let’s begin.”

That was enough conversation.

Now the master knew. In the world of warriors, there was nothing more unnecessary than conversation. What was needed was not conversation, but proof.

The Phantasmist’s transparent gaze pierced through the master.

“Be careful.”

The Phantasmist’s hands went into his wide sleeves.

“I don’t intend to hold back.”

“Neither do I.”

The master’s hand reached into the subspace. The master, who had taken out the rune sword from within, took a stance and aimed it at the Phantasmist.

Seeing the two facing each other, Bang Jin-hoon looked back at Wiggins with a slightly uneasy look.

“Director.”

“What is it?”

“…To be honest, I don’t know how strong the master is. Between you and the master, who is stronger?”

“Hmm.”

Wiggins frowned as if it was a difficult question to answer.

“By your standards, I would be stronger. I’m definitely stronger now than I was before.”

“T7.”

Bang Jin-hoon scratched his head as if he had heard something he didn’t want to hear.

To be honest, even Wiggins couldn’t guarantee a victory against the Twelve Divine Blades. Frankly speaking, they had reached the realm of superhuman now, but before that, they couldn’t even win against Baek Yeon-hong even with four of them.

So, could someone weaker than Wiggins win?

“But… that’s just by your standards.”

“Huh?”

“If the master and I were to fight, I don’t know who would win. I think I have a slightly higher chance of winning, but the master would think differently.”

“…What does that mean?”

“It’s simple. If we were to judge by your method of determining superiority by who is faster and stronger, I am faster and stronger. But… in our way, compatibility plays a big role.”

“Why?”

“Because of magic.”

Wiggins narrowed his eyes.

“Eastern martial arts have many systems, but their foundation is to make oneself stronger. So, in the end, everyone becomes similar.”

“That’s right. It all leads to the same end.”

“But magic is not like that. It’s called the same name, magic, but it manifests in completely different ways depending on how it’s researched and developed.”

“What are the advantages of that?”

“Advantages… I don’t know about the advantages. But one thing is certain, because there are so many different types, it’s extremely susceptible to compatibility. You can be defeated extremely easily by someone you’re not compatible with, and you can show a god-like appearance to someone you are compatible with.”

“Hmm.”

Wiggins pointed his chin at the Phantasmist.

“And it seems that the master thinks that person is compatible with him. That’s why he stepped forward.”

“Are you saying that you can tell just by looking?”

“Don’t underestimate the master’s experience and years. If we’re just talking about the eyes that have seen warriors, no one here can match the master.”

Wiggins’ eyes turned towards the master’s back.

‘Master.’

He had grown up watching that back.

To him, the master was a teacher he always wanted to surpass, and at the same time, someone he wanted to follow, like a father.

He was now old enough to leave the master’s embrace, but not all of those feelings had disappeared.

The master didn’t seem to suffer much from living in the General Assembly’s prison. Nevertheless, he risked his life to stand in this place.

Wiggins knew better than anyone why the master stood in this place.

‘It must be his pride.’

Not his own pride.

He stood in this place on behalf of all the knights of the Round Table.

The Round Table, which once represented the warriors under the pretext of coordinating the world. But now, the Round Table had been pushed out of the center of the world.

They groaned under the name of the General Assembly, and they couldn’t dare to approach the Black King’s majesty. The sense of loss that the warriors of the Round Table felt would be more than what those on the outside could imagine.

In the midst of all that, the Round Table was excluded from this match that would determine the fate of the world?

‘That’s beyond despair.’

It was clear that a sense of defeat would consume the Round Table. Physical oppression makes people stronger, but mental emptiness makes people miserable.

That’s why he stood in this place. To show them.

Not Wiggins, who was merely a master in name and acting on the will of the General Assembly, but the master who had lost his title but still represented the Round Table, was still fighting with pride.

Wiggins turned his head, looked at the camera, and then quietly stepped back. It was better that his figure wasn’t seen now. For the master, not for the Round Table.

Whether those who remained in the Round Table regained their pride or not was not that important to him. His heart had already left the Round Table.

But…

He wanted to protect the master’s last will, who had dedicated his whole life to the Round Table, no matter what.

‘I don’t know if I have the right to say this.’

Wiggins’ eyes turned towards the master’s back.

‘Show them, Master.’

Woo-oong.

The master’s sword slowly began to tremble.

The rune sword was a sword that could only be used by those who had mastered both swordsmanship and magic. It was a weapon of a magic swordsman that acted as a sword and amplified magic at the same time.

But there was no such thing as efficiency without a price in the world.

More fuel was needed to produce more output. Those who used the rune sword couldn’t drag out the fight for long.

The master let out a short breath.

The sensation of the sword in his hand.

The feeling of mana swirling around his body.

‘Come to think of it…’

He seemed to know why he had failed. After meeting Kang Jin-ho, no, even long before that.

He couldn’t remember when he had last fought with all his might, risking his life.

So, he had no choice but to fail.

Because he had forgotten his essence as a warrior.

‘I’ve held on for quite a while.’

His body was already old. It was questionable whether it would move as well as he wanted.