Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 2096

Organizing (2)

Kang Jin-ho, back in his hospital room, was met by another visitor.

However, this visitor’s nature was a bit different from those who had come to see him so far.

“Prime Minister?”

“I’ve been waiting for you, Chairman.”

Ko Han-bong, the Prime Minister of South Korea, greeted him with a bright smile. He held up the flower basket on the table slightly, wearing a pleasant smile.

“Since it’s a hospital visit, I should have brought a gift… but honestly, I didn’t know what would be appropriate for you, Chairman, so I prepared something rather ordinary.”

“Thank you.”

As Kang Jin-ho nodded, Ko Han-bong handed the flower basket to Choi Yeon-ha.

“Are you giving this to me?”

“Of course.”

Choi Yeon-ha took the flower basket, and Ko Han-bong shrugged.

“As a politician, the most important thing is, of course, to be good at politics, but what’s most important for surviving as a politician is to know who holds the real power. I look forward to working with you.”

“Thank you, Prime Minister!”

Choi Yeon-ha happily examined the flower basket.

“…Huh?”

Then, she suddenly made a questioning face and began to rummage through the flower basket, pushing her hands deep inside.

And then…

“It’s not here?”

“…Yes?”

“No, it’s really just flowers.”

“That’s strange. There should be a white envelope inside.”

Ko Han-bong, meeting Choi Yeon-ha’s questioning gaze, wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“Well… these days, such things…”

“They say it’s all done secretly.”

Choi Yeon-ha grumbled and tossed the flower basket onto the table. He could hear her muttering, ‘If you’re not going to put in an envelope, why buy flowers that you can’t even eat?’ but Ko Han-bong desperately ignored her words.

“It doesn’t seem like a gift with much sincerity, but I’ll accept it.”

He didn’t know when people’s sincerity became synonymous with crisp cash… but anyway, it was a relief that she let it slide.

“But… are you really in such bad shape that you need a wheelchair?”

“It’s not that bad.”

Kang Jin-ho gave a wry smile.

“It’s not serious enough to cause any major problems, so you don’t have to worry.”

“That’s a relief, Chairman.” Ko Han-bong visibly sighed. It would be foolish to openly trust a politician’s emotional expressions, but at least to Kang Jin-ho, that exaggerated sigh didn’t seem like an act.

“Right now… nothing should happen to you, Chairman.”

Kang Jin-ho, staring intently at Ko Han-bong, subtly turned his head to meet Choi Yeon-ha’s gaze. Choi Yeon-ha quietly nodded.

“Go ahead.”

Kang Jin-ho looked back at Ko Han-bong and opened his mouth.

“Shall we move to another place?”

The conversation they needed to have wasn’t something they could discuss where anyone could hear, so after looking for a suitable place, they ended up in Ko Han-bong’s car.

“This should be fine. Stop here.”

“Yes, Prime Minister.”

The secretary, who was driving, stopped the car in a suitable spot and glanced at Ko Han-bong. Ko Han-bong nodded, and the secretary bowed deeply, opened the car door, and got out.

Whirr.

Ko Han-bong opened the car window and smiled.

“Would you like a smoke?”

“I’m fine.”

Even though he was meeting the Prime Minister of a country, Kang Jin-ho knew how to handle such situations.

However, Ko Han-bong gave a meaningful smile and opened the storage compartment in the armrest.

Kang Jin-ho couldn’t help but chuckle when he saw inside the open compartment. There was a portable ashtray inside.

“Do you smoke?”

“I thought someone like you, Chairman, would be able to tell by the smell.”

“I don’t have a hobby of smelling other people’s scents.”

“I see. I understand.” Ko Han-bong shrugged.

“When you’re the Prime Minister, you have to be careful about even the smallest things, like smoking. Especially in these times with so many no-smoking areas, you often have to abstain from smoking for six or seven hours just for one meeting.”

“…You could just go outside for a moment to smoke.”

“But then there’s the risk of getting photographed, which isn’t good. So, the only place where I can comfortably smoke is in the car.”

Ko Han-bong smiled.

“If you would smoke, Chairman, I might be able to light one up myself.”

At this point, Kang Jin-ho had no reason to refuse.

“Alright.”

Kang Jin-ho took out a cigarette, and Ko Han-bong also took out a cigarette from the compartment and put it in his mouth. Kang Jin-ho flicked his fingers, lighting Ko Han-bong’s cigarette.

“It’s fascinating. Or, should I say it’s not really a surprising sight anymore?”

Kang Jin-ho gave a wry smile, put a cigarette in his mouth, and lit it.

“Hoo.”

Cigarette smoke slowly drifted out of the car window.

For a while, the two men smoked in silence. It was Kang Jin-ho who broke the short silence.

“How is it going?”

“Well, I don’t know where to begin.”

Ko Han-bong exhaled a long stream of smoke.

“First of all… we’ve recaptured the nuclear missile base that the Black King had occupied.”

Kang Jin-ho slowly nodded. That much was a given.

“Those who supported the Black King didn’t disband easily, which caused some trouble, but they weren’t really the problem. The real concern was that someone might press the launch button.”

“That’s right.”

“Those outside were forcibly disbanded by the Chinese government’s military force, and we spent four days checking for any traps or automatic launch systems inside. As a result, we’ve successfully regained control of the launch base.”

Kang Jin-ho slowly nodded.

Lee Hyun-soo and Wiggins had said that there might be people inside the base who were also supporting the Black King, but at this point, that didn’t matter anymore. The Black King no longer existed.

“And then?”

“After that, there hasn’t been much progress.”

“No progress?”

Ko Han-bong shrugged.

“Are you surprised?”

“…A little.”

It had already been fifteen days since he had lost consciousness.

So, he thought that something would have been decided in the meantime. They must have felt an indescribable threat from the existence of the Black King.

Of course, that threat certainly had the effect of reconsidering the perception of the existence of the Unmanned, but it was also true that it instilled fear that a second Black King might appear someday. And yet, there was no progress…

Ko Han-bong took out another cigarette and put it in his mouth.

“If it were a minor incident, a conclusion might have already been reached.”

“But Chairman, this isn’t something that can be decided by one country or a few leaders. It will take ages just to coordinate the positions of each country.”

“Is it that big of a deal?”

Ko Han-bong chuckled.

“From your perspective, Chairman, it might not make sense, but it’s not unusual. Even during the wars that engulfed the entire world, it was impossible to coordinate the positions of countries that were on the same side.”

“And there’s one more reason.”

“Reason?”

Ko Han-bong nodded heavily.

“The enemy doesn’t exist.”

Kang Jin-ho slightly frowned.

“Ah, that’s not what I mean. To be precise…”

Ko Han-bong seemed to ponder for a moment before speaking.

“Whether to antagonize them, cooperate with them, or tame or appease them.”

“The target was ambiguous, until just yesterday.”

Kang Jin-ho slowly inhaled the cigarette in his mouth.

“You have to understand, Chairman.” Ko Han-bong looked at Kang Jin-ho with a serious expression.

“Whether you want it or not, you have now become the one who represents the Unmanned.”

“Even if the Unmanned don’t want it, that’s how it will be. The whole world will unite to support your unwavering dominance.”

“…Why is that?”

“There’s nothing more frightening than a headless beast.”

Ko Han-bong continued with a bitter expression.

“It might be difficult for someone living in Korea to understand, but most countries don’t want the head of a criminal organization to disappear. I’m sorry for using this expression, but I can’t think of a better one.”

“Go on.”

“Yes. Most countries don’t want the head of a criminal organization to disappear. In the past, when major criminals were running organizations in the United States, the US thought that everything would be solved if they just eliminated them. But once they were gone, there was no one to control the criminals, and the petty criminals, who weren’t afraid of the police, formed small groups, and the public order became a mess.”

“This isn’t just a story about the US. Each country has experienced similar things. And the same thing happened worldwide.”

“Terrorism.”

Ko Han-bong nodded.

“Each country has already learned the hard way about the fear of terrorism that someone who can’t be distinguished from friend or foe can carry out in the middle of the city. The shock that those few acts of terrorism brought to the world was not small. And… in this incident, everyone saw what the Unmanned, who are determined to cause trouble, are capable of.”

He seemed to understand.

The sight of a building collapsing at the hands of one person would have been shocking to anyone.

For an ordinary person to carry out such an act of terrorism, they would need a lot of things. But the Unmanned need nothing.

“What’s even more frightening is that the Unmanned exist regardless of race or nationality. What’s even more terrifying is… that we don’t have a way to distinguish between the Unmanned and those who are not.”

Ko Han-bong continued heavily.

“So, there’s only one way.”

“To control the Unmanned, you need the Unmanned.”

“That’s right. It’s ironic, but it’s the most rational conclusion. At this point in time, the only ones who can control the Unmanned are the Unmanned themselves. And you, Chairman, are the only one who can control them with a powerful organization and strength.”

“You’ve even gained perfect justification. Frankly speaking, for those of us who run countries, including myself, there is no other alternative. In other words…”

Ko Han-bong said, driving the point home.

“Whether you want it or not, at least until another ‘alternative’ appears, you will gain absolute power.”

Ko Han-bong finished speaking and shrugged.

However, Kang Jin-ho still had a blank expression as he looked at Ko Han-bong.

“Don’t you like it?”

“It’s not that. It’s just… one thing is missing.”

“One thing?”

“I will gain absolute power.”

The corners of Kang Jin-ho’s mouth slowly twisted upwards.

“As long as I cooperate with you.”

“Chairman, that’s…”

“Let me ask you one thing…”

Kang Jin-ho’s smile deepened.

“What happens if I refuse to cooperate? What will happen then?”

The air in the car grew cold.

Descent of The Demon Master [EN]

Descent of The Demon Master [EN]

Descent of the Demonic Master, 마존현세강림기
Status: Ongoing Author: Native Language: Korean
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[English Translation] In "Descent of the Demon Master," Gang Jinho's life has been a series of tragic twists. In his first life, a devastating accident claimed his family and left him disabled, leading him to end his own life. Reincarnated into a medieval world, he rose to prominence as the feared Red Demonic Master, only to be betrayed by his closest ally. Now, in his third life, Jinho finds himself back in the modern world, determined to live an ordinary existence. However, his past experiences have left him ill-suited for normalcy. As remnants of his former life resurface and new threats emerge, Jinho must confront the question: Can a man shaped by such extraordinary pasts ever truly find peace in a mundane life? Dive into this gripping tale that weaves action, fantasy, and the complexities of reincarnation.

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