Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 2013

If hell had a river, would it look like this?

The black liquids swirling like a vortex seemed ready to swallow everything in the world.

Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa!

“That…”

Even Bang Jin-hoon and Wiggins could only gape at the horrifying sight.

The sheer power wasn’t the important thing. The fact that a human could create such a spectacle was astonishing enough.

‘What are we going to do?’

Wiggins bit his lip.

The torrent had swept away not only the Phantasmist but also the Master. To be precise, it was as if the Master had jumped into the vortex himself.

He understood.

The Phantasmist was strong. No matter how hard the Master tried, there was no way he could defeat him without getting hurt. But to think he would embrace his opponent and jump into the fire together.

That Master, of all people.

The black, swirling liquids began to diminish, eventually disappearing like a phantom.

Wiggins bit his lip.

Where the torrent had vanished, a ravaged floor was revealed. The floor was roughly gouged out, as if a beast had clawed at a mud pit. The Master and the Phantasmist lay collapsed there.

Yes, both of them.

The Master’s eyes flickered.

‘A draw?’

Or was it?

That was when it happened.

“Ugh…”

The Phantasmist’s body, which had been lying on the floor like a corpse, began to stir.

Thump.

With a trembling hand, the Phantasmist pushed himself off the floor, groaning.

Thud thud.

The blood that had pooled on him rained down onto the floor. His white robe was already stained dark red with his blood.

“Ugh…”

The Phantasmist, trembling like an aspen, barely managed to rise, only to collapse again.

The blood-soaked Phantasmist looked up at the ceiling and laughed in disbelief.

How long had it been since he had suffered such a severe injury?

“Cough!”

At that moment, the Master, who had been lying still, began to cough. Each cough made his body shake.

“Huff…”

At the same time, the Master began to rise.

Crack!

The Master, barely managing to stand, used his rune sword as a cane to support himself. Seeing this, the Phantasmist also struggled to his feet and faced the Master.

The two stared at each other in silence for a moment.

The short silence was broken by the Master’s voice, filled with regret.

“…Did it miss?”

“No… it was accurate. It was just too weak.”

“I thought it would reach.”

His sword had clearly cut through the Phantasmist. But it hadn’t been able to pierce his heart. It had only cut through flesh and bone.

That wasn’t enough to kill the Phantasmist.

The Phantasmist’s appearance was terrible.

The pressure that had engulfed him was beyond what his body could handle. His twisted and crushed arm dangled from the elbow down, with no bone left. One of his legs, which had been supporting him, had its shin broken, with white bone protruding.

His ribs were probably all crushed, and judging by his labored breathing, a broken bone was likely piercing one of his lungs, making it difficult to breathe.

But the Phantasmist had survived.

“It wasn’t to apply pressure… it was to keep me there.”

The Master chuckled.

“Because you completely trusted your defense.”

“I thought the gap was within it.”

The Phantasmist’s defense was absolute. With the Master’s power, there was no way he could break through it.

Whether he breathed fire, unleashed blizzards, or hurled lightning, the result would be the same. In the end, that barrier would have nullified all his attacks.

But the Phantasmist’s weakness was right there.

A martial artist had to break through the barrier. Without breaking it, they couldn’t touch the Phantasmist’s body. But the Master didn’t need to do that. He just had to go inside the barrier.

Absolute confidence in his own martial arts, and a complacent reliance on the laws he had believed in.

The Master had exploited that gap in perception.

The gravity that had bound his feet and the barrier that had covered him were merely means to fix the Phantasmist’s position and the barrier’s position.

For the Phantasmist, having a sword fly at him from within his own barrier was no different from having a sword pierce his belly from the inside.

So, he had no choice but to be defeated.

The Phantasmist’s body trembled slightly.

Looking back, it was an obvious trick. He should have considered this possibility from the moment the Master showed that strange movement.

But was that even possible?

This was a battlefield where life and death hung in the balance. A single mistake could cost you your head. In the midst of that tense battle, to accurately identify the opponent’s weakness and then drive them to the place you wanted in order to exploit that weakness was impossible.

In the end, he could only say one thing.

“…Impressive, truly.”

The Master smiled faintly.

The opponent was a martial artist who had reached a realm he couldn’t. There was no reason to feel bad about being acknowledged by such a person.

If there was one regret, it was that his final blade hadn’t reached its intended target.

“…It’s truly a shame.”

It was truly a difference of a hair’s breadth. If his life had been a little more fulfilling, perhaps his sword might have cut down the Phantasmist.

But…

‘I shouldn’t be regretting this.’

It was the Master himself who had defined himself not as a martial artist but as the leader of the Round Table. He shouldn’t regret the path he had chosen. From the beginning, what he had wanted wasn’t to become the greatest martial artist.

The Phantasmist looked at the Master with respect.

It was a funny thing.

In the martial world, sorcerers were disparaged as heretics and treated with contempt. The Phantasmist had proven time and again in this harsh world of martial artists that physical strength wasn’t everything.

That there were other paths to becoming strong, and that you could reach the end even without walking the path everyone else walked. That was the path the Phantasmist had walked.

But this man had proven that the strength of martial arts wasn’t everything.

A person who was inferior to him in terms of skill. Yet, this person had driven the Phantasmist to the brink of death. He had made up for his lack of skill with perfect strategy and a daring gamble, standing on equal footing with him.

How could he not be amazed? How could he not be in awe? However…

“…Why are you still standing there?”

“The battle is already decided.”

The Master nodded slowly. The battle was already decided. He had lost. He no longer had the strength to do anything to the Phantasmist. The Phantasmist seemed to have suffered more physical damage. But that was just what was visible.

His insides were already shattered. And his mana had been depleted long ago. The excessive mana he had drawn upon was now backflowing, destroying his heart. He was going to die soon anyway. He was just pushing back the approaching death.

‘No. That’s just an excuse.’

Even if his injuries weren’t severe, the moment he had exhausted all his mana, there was no way left for him.

It was a shame. It was a shame, but…

There was no regret.

“I don’t like things that aren’t clean.”

“Wouldn’t it be better if the outcome was certain?”

The Phantasmist closed his eyes.

‘A martial artist.’

Blue eyes and white skin.

He hadn’t thought that this foreign man would have the soul of a martial artist. The way those who looked down on sorcerers had looked at him, he had looked at this man in the same way.

Swish.

A blood-soaked talisman appeared in the Phantasmist’s hand, his resolve firm.

“I’ll say one thing.”

“You are the greatest martial artist I have ever met.”

The Master smiled faintly.

“Perhaps that’s what I wanted to hear most. Thank you.”

The Phantasmist, with his eyes closed, flicked his hand. The talisman in his hand flew fiercely and embedded itself in the Master’s heart.

Thud.

The Master collapsed on the spot. The Phantasmist, not wanting to see the sight, turned away with his eyes closed.

Resolution.

The moment the battle was decided, Wiggins kicked off the floor and flew towards the fallen Master.

“Ugh… Uwaaaaaaa!”

Wiggins screamed and grabbed the fallen Master.

“Master! Master!”

The Master, held in Wiggins’ arms, looked up with unfocused eyes.

“Knight Wiggins…”

“Master.”

Wiggins’ hand gripped the Master’s shoulder tightly.

“An… answer me.”

“Did… did I become a lesson? Was my will… conveyed to those who watched…?”

Wiggins bit his lip tightly and nodded vigorously.

“They will know! They will know, Master! Everyone saw and felt it. They… they saw it clearly!”

“Heh…”

A faint smile appeared on the Master’s lips.

“Then that’s… a relief.”

“Yes… Master. You were magnificent.”

Wiggins bit his lip until it bled.

He didn’t know what he was feeling right now. Perhaps he wasn’t worthy to witness the Master’s last moments.

But emotions were not bound by logic. There was no way to control this grief.

“Then…”

The Master’s eyes stared directly at Wiggins.

“…What about you?”

The Master smiled faintly at Wiggins’ complex and subtle expression.

“That’s enough. You… you were always an excellent student…”

“Master…”

“Do as you feel… just do as you feel. Just…”

The Master’s strength left his body. Wiggins, who had unconsciously tried to pour healing magic on the Master’s body, bit his lip.

No. That would be an insult to the Master.

At that moment, a black shadow fell over them. The Master’s unfocused eyes turned to the person standing before them.

“…Lord.”

“Yes.”

“I… I repaid…”

“Yes.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

“The debt is repaid. You were magnificent.”

“The… Round Table… please… them…”

Kang Jin-ho nodded again.

Only then did the Master’s face relax.

His eyes seemed to chase something in the air… then the light in his eyes faded.

“Ugh…”

Wiggins clutched the Master.

“Get up.”

“…Lord.”

“That’s not how you send off a warrior. The end of someone who achieved what they wanted should be celebrated.”

“…Yes.”

Wiggins picked up the Master and stood up.

Wiggins walked to his camp and carefully laid the Master down in a corner.

“Please wait here for a moment. This is not the place where you will sleep. I will take you soon. To the place where the Master of the Round Table should rest.”

Wiggins stared down at the Master.

His hardened face wore a faint smile. A magnificent smile that he couldn’t even dare to imitate.

Sometimes, a single action conveys more than a thousand words.

His life, the will he displayed, surely touched someone’s heart.

Certainly.

Those watching the large screen trembled simultaneously.

The Knight.

The Knights of the Round Table had just witnessed the end of one who could no longer be called Master with their own eyes.

They saw the Master being carried away by Wiggins. The crude camera, filming from a distance, couldn’t fully capture his expression.

But they could guess what kind of expression the Master wore right now.

He was probably smiling.

Because he had achieved everything he wanted.

‘Master…’

There was a time when they resented him.

The Master was the one who brought the Assembly into the Round Table, making a mess of it. If he had fiercely blocked the Assembly’s intervention, the Round Table might have been different now.

But those who witnessed this battle had to understand.

That it was all meaningless.

There are warriors like that in the world.

They don’t even dare to dream of reaching the Master’s level. But there were monsters in the world who could effortlessly withstand the Master’s power.

Such beings clearly exist in the world, so what would change by turning a blind eye and looking away?

Even if they turned away and pushed them away, it would only be an act of self-isolation.

While they lived by their own rules in this land of Europe, the world changed rapidly. Now, the Master had shown them that fact with his death.

Protecting this place is important. But ignoring the outside world in the name of protecting this place would only push them into a well.

‘…Even if it means being scarred and humiliated, we must fight.’

Even if the end is death.

That’s what a knight should do.

They had been taught that countless times.

A man proves himself by how he dies. Now, the Master had completed his life by practicing his teachings.

Whether they acknowledged him or not, they couldn’t deny that his end was very much like him.

‘Why did he have to go that far?’ Some couldn’t understand.

His life might have been completed by that. It was also true that his death had conveyed much to them.

But it was also true that his death had changed nothing. Then, was there a reason to risk his life? Whether the Black King won or Kang Jin-ho won, there wouldn’t have been much difference in what the Round Table would experience.

Wouldn’t it have been a better choice to somehow survive without getting involved in that fight and lead them?

‘The Round Table was everything to the Master.’

Then, someone spoke.

‘…Perhaps which side won wasn’t important to the Master. No, maybe even his own life wasn’t important. He just…’

A groan-like voice flowed out.

‘…Couldn’t bear the thought that no one from the Round Table would participate in a battle that determined the fate of the world?’

That remark made everyone solemn.

They all knew.

Even if the current Master was Wiggins, even if he was from the Knights of the Round Table, they couldn’t call him the representative of the Round Table.

He was the one who abandoned the Round Table and chose the Assembly.

For the Round Table, which had boasted of protecting the world for over a thousand years, not being able to participate in the final battle where everything was at stake would have been unbearable pain for the Master.

‘Watch carefully.’

Regardless of what feelings they had for him.

‘That man risked his life so that we could stand tall.’

The Knights, biting their lips, nodded heavily.

Their eyes watched the Master’s last moments until the end.

‘You look terrible.’

As the Illusionist staggered in, the Black King chuckled and said.

Normally, the Illusionist would have felt ashamed at those words. He might have even argued that it was a mistake. But the Illusionist now was different.

He raised his head and said in a calm voice.

‘I was lucky to win.’

‘Luck, you say…’

The Black King looked at the Illusionist as if he found it interesting.

‘Was he a worthy opponent?’

‘Enough so.’

‘Hmm.’

The Black King, seeing the Illusionist’s face, which even seemed relieved, nodded as if satisfied.

He had often seen such matches in the past.

Matches where victory and defeat, life and death were decided.

Matches where both the dying and the survivors acknowledged each other and accepted the results.

Frankly speaking, the Black King didn’t sympathize with such matches.

His life didn’t exist for self-satisfaction. He would choose a humiliating victory over a satisfying defeat.

However….

‘Being strong isn’t everything.’

‘It seems that’s what you want to say.’

‘No. Being strong is everything. I have no intention of denying that.’

‘Then?’

‘I just realized that the measure of strength isn’t just about how much martial prowess one possesses.’

‘Good.’

The Black King nodded.

In any case, it was good.

This match must have shaken the world. If Lee Myung-hwan and Gui-pyeon’s match had shown them how desperately warriors lived and fought, then their match would have been more than enough to show how strong warriors could be.

Even at this moment, the world was fluctuating.

With each match, the perception of warriors changed, and the feelings towards warriors changed.

‘How much can I convey?’

This was a desperate form of rhetoric.

Each person’s intention is different. Those who participate in the match will all see different things and feel different things. But the result will ultimately flow as the Black King and Kang Jin-ho intended.

‘I don’t know what will remain in the end, though.’

He could only hope.

‘Next? Who will go out?’

‘Hmm.’

A man slowly rose.

‘I’ll go.’

‘Now?’

‘It doesn’t seem like there will be a chance to go out if it’s not now. Actually, I think I should have gone out first, but…’

‘As you wish.’

‘Yes, then.’

The man bowed his head to the Black King and walked towards the center.

Kang Jin-ho and the others were taken aback as they saw who was walking out.

They had lost one person.

Of course, among them, only Wiggins had special feelings for the Master. But even so, losing someone they had fought alongside was undoubtedly a sad thing.

Before they could even manage that emotion, another fight was beginning.

It was cruel. Just cruel.

Click.

Kang Jin-ho took out a cigarette and sighed.

‘Next…’

Before Kang Jin-ho could finish his sentence, a low voice was heard in his ear.

‘I should go, right?’

‘It seems the other idiots have no intention of fighting.’

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

Then, a red figure that had risen from his shadow tilted its head left and right.

‘Fighting and dying is just a part of everyday life, so why are you all so gloomy about it?’

‘Hey, you! Watch your mouth!’

The Blood Demon let out a thick sneer.

‘As you command, as you command.’

The Blood Demon chuckled and walked forward.

Bang Jin-hoon frowned.

‘That guy is always unpleasant.’

He liked everyone in the Assembly in his own way. Not to mention Kang Jin-ho, he admired Bator and Jang Min for their warrior-like qualities.

He was a bit awkward with Wiggins, but he respected him greatly as someone who possessed what he didn’t.

Even Lee Hyun-soo, whom he had once hated enough to want to strangle, had recently become like a friend.

He was that good at getting along with people, but he just couldn’t see the Blood Demon in a good light. It was the same now.

It was unpleasant that he was clearly standing in front of him, but his presence couldn’t be felt, and he didn’t like his nature of knowing other people’s feelings and deliberately picking at them.

‘Damn bastard.’

‘That’s enough.’

‘…Elder?’

Jang Min looked at the Blood Demon with bitter eyes.

‘It’s his own way of showing consideration. That’s why he’s stepping forward.’

‘…Consideration?’

Bang Jin-hoon, who was about to deny that it was nonsense, closed his mouth. Because there was definitely some truth in that statement.

‘But even if it’s consideration, if you do it like that, you deserve to be cursed, right?’

‘That’s true. But…’

Jang Min sighed.

‘That’s how hedgehogs are. They don’t know how to embrace. They know that if you get close, you’ll get hurt. Whether consciously or unconsciously.’

‘…Yes?’

‘So, they keep their distance and don’t come close. If you try to talk to them, they’ll make you get pricked by their thorns.’

‘No, they don’t have to do that…’

‘You don’t understand.’

Jang Min shook his head.

He didn’t like the Blood Cult. How could he love those who dared to call themselves the Demonic Path but didn’t obey the name of the Demonic Lord? [Demonic Path and Demonic Lord are terms used in some fantasy settings to refer to a specific type of martial arts or spiritual practice and its leader, often associated with dark or forbidden powers.]

If the Blood Demon hadn’t offered the Blood Cult to the Demonic Lord and hadn’t guarded him, he might have torn the Blood Demon apart and killed him himself.

But….

‘I understand that feeling all too well.’

Because he was in the same situation.

No one would understand the feeling of being persecuted by everything in the world. Jang Min had endured, believing in the dreamlike prophecy that the Demonic Lord would return someday, but the Blood Demon didn’t even have that hope.

That’s why he chose to become a dog.

For a warrior to become a dog of the military is more humiliating than one might think. But he endured that humiliation himself to preserve the Blood Cult and save those who followed him.

Even though he knew that they only saw him as a tool.

The disciples of the Demonic Cult relied on him even when Kang Jin-ho wasn’t around. But the Blood Demon had no one to rely on. Who could imagine the feelings of a young warrior who had to protect those who followed him while being persecuted everywhere in the world?

So, he had no choice but to raise his thorns.

‘…Isn’t he just surrendering? He’s a guy who doesn’t have any loyalty.’

‘Loyalty, you say…’

Jang Min laughed softly.

‘In my opinion, he’ll fight desperately.’

‘Yes?’

‘It’s harder than you think for a person to risk their life to protect those they follow. There aren’t many things more important than one’s own life.’

‘That’s true.’

‘But… anyone would pick up a weapon if a robber broke into their house. That’s what it means to have your place of rest taken away.’

‘…What are you talking about?’

Jang Min smiled bitterly.

Perhaps….

The only place in this world where the Blood Demon could rest might be in Kang Jin-ho’s shadow. Aside from Jang Min, the one who was most desperately trying to protect Kang Jin-ho here might be the Blood Demon.

Only those who have wandered endlessly in the scorching sun know the value of the shade that can shield them from it.

‘Words are meaningless. Don’t you know? This place is not only a place to compete but also a place to prove oneself.’

‘Now, that guy will prove himself. Who he is.’

Jang Min’s eyes looked at the Blood Demon’s back.

His back overlapped with Jang Min’s own figure from his younger days.