Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 356

Bang Jin-hoon watched the door close weakly and lit a cigarette with a cheerful expression.

“Those punks, acting all tough.”

“You have a bad hobby.”

“Kids need to be stepped on when they try to climb up. If you just let them be, they’ll climb all over you, even your grandfather’s beard.”

“Then why not just say something?”

“Hey, that would hurt my authority.”

Kang Jin-ho narrowed his eyes, looking at Bang Jin-hoon.

‘No matter how I look at it, he just seems to have a bad personality.’

Seeing him enjoy tormenting people, it was clear he had a bad personality. Still, he thought he was somewhat interesting.

“Well, those guys aren’t important. What’s important is what we’re going to do now.”

“Hmm…”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

The time had come to deal with the matter he had been putting off. He had been patient until now, but there was no need to be patient any longer.

“One thing I’m worried about is when things get too big…”

“Yes.”

“If too many people escape, it could cause a lot of problems. If injured men come pouring out of the mountains, there’s no guarantee it won’t be caught on camera, and no guarantee it won’t hit the news. We’ll try our best to stop it, but with that much chaos, we can’t ignore the internet.”

“Come to think of it, has that never happened before?”

“We have three response teams.”

“Huh?”

Bang Jin-hoon chuckled.

“We have three internet response teams. Just our side, and the Yeongnam Association guys are working with us too.”

“Response teams too?”

“Yes. If anything related to the martial artists or anything else gets posted, they change public opinion by making it seem like an urban legend, report it and get it deleted, or get it removed for violating site regulations. We also have some connections with portals [major internet service providers], so it hasn’t been a problem so far. Lee Joong-gul, the former chairman, did one of the best things. When everyone was wondering what this internet thing was, he quickly set up response teams to stop the rumors from spreading.”

“…Is that even possible?”

“It’s possible, so we’re doing it. And the impact is quite significant. Even the government… Ah, please pretend you didn’t hear that.”

He seemed to be mumbling, but Kang Jin-ho didn’t press the issue. He didn’t think it was that important.

“Okay. I understand. But you’re saying that this time, there might be a limit to how much we can block it that way?”

“Yes. There are too many eyes watching, and if the same story comes out at the same time, people will get suspicious. It’ll be a headache to cover it up later.”

“Hmm…”

Kang Jin-ho sighed.

“Then, first, we need to make sure no one escapes.”

“That’s not easy. We have more people, but not by much. If we fight, we can have a numerical advantage, but it’s not enough to catch and deal with everyone who tries to escape.”

“I have an idea about that.”

“Huh? An idea?”

“Yes. It’s a simple method.”

As Kang Jin-ho curled up the corners of his mouth, Bang Jin-hoon felt a sense of dread.

‘What is he planning…’

Whenever Kang Jin-ho smiled like that, Bang Jin-hoon felt uneasy.

‘I thought he was in a better mood.’

Kang Jin-ho’s mood, which had been plummeting through the earth’s crust and into the core, had finally returned to normal after killing the Japanese thugs. Of course, he felt better because he had found a place to vent his pent-up anger…

‘But the problem is that it was murder.’

It was a big problem that killing people made him feel better. Releasing stress that way was something that ordinary people couldn’t even imagine. Even among martial artists, who had much less resistance to murder and violence than ordinary people, it was unacceptable.

Sometimes, Bang Jin-hoon felt a deep contradiction in Kang Jin-ho. This man was incomparably rational, surprisingly petty for his power, and sometimes emotional.

But sometimes, he worried that he was either a human without emotions or a demon wearing a human mask. Just like now.

‘It’s a relief, but…’

He was sure that if Kang Jin-ho hadn’t encountered the Japanese thugs and Gong Young-gil and Lee Myung-hwan had acted that way, they would have been in a situation worse than death.

The Japanese thugs had saved them.

“Could you tell me what that idea is? It’s not that I don’t trust you, Kang Jin-ho, but if I knew, it would be easier to prepare.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled.

“When I was about to lose it, I almost stormed into the Yeongnam Association, and I thought, if all those people started running away, there would be no way to stop them.”

“…That’s right.”

“But now, that’s solved.”

“Huh?”

What was this guy even listening to?

He had already said that even though they had a few more people, if they decided to run away, there was no way to stop them.

“So now, there’s a way.”

‘I don’t get it.’

He was talking in circles, so it was obvious that he wouldn’t explain it properly. So, it was better not to ask. Kang Jin-ho, from his experience, was someone who would never speak if he decided not to.

“Then let’s leave tomorrow.”

“Ah, no. Jo Gyu-min hasn’t come up with a plan yet?”

“He will. He’s very capable in that area.”

“…Is he incompetent in other areas?”

“Yes.”

Bang Jin-hoon closed his eyes.

‘That guy also met the wrong person.’

He was someone with the ability to be treated well anywhere, but he was living like this because he met Kang Jin-ho.

Bang Jin-hoon steeled himself, thinking that he might end up the same way soon.

‘I need to work hard so I don’t get called incompetent.’

If Bang Jin-hoon knew why Kang Jin-ho called Jo Gyu-min incompetent, he would have been angry on Jo Gyu-min’s behalf, but unfortunately, he didn’t know the situation.

“Anyway, let’s wrap it up here.”

“Yes.”

“I was supposed to drive you, but I think I have a lot of things to take care of. I need to organize the guys for tomorrow, and I also need to meet with former chairman Lee Joong-gul.”

“Yes. I’ll get back on my own.”

“Ah, no. I can’t let you do that. I’ll have a car and a driver ready, so please wait a little longer.”

“I don’t have a hobby of riding in cars driven by other people.”

Then what about my car?

He was uncomfortable in a car driven by someone else, but comfortable in a car I drive?

Should I be happy about this, or should I lament that I’ve been demoted to a personal driver?

“I’ll get back on my own.”

“Ah, then…”

Bang Jin-hoon stood up and grinned.

“Then I have something to give you, so you can ride that.”

“Huh?”

“This.”

“Oh?”

Kang Jin-ho’s eyes widened as he saw the shiny Harley Davidson in the garage.

“A motorcycle?”

“Who calls this a motorcycle these days? It’s a bike! A bike!”

“Isn’t that the same thing?”

“Using the correct terminology is essential.”

“It’s all English anyway.”

“…Anyway, they call it a bike.”

“Okay.”

Bang Jin-hoon turned his head slightly as Kang Jin-ho looked at him with a somewhat displeased expression.

“This bike will suit your style better than a car. It’s an off-road bike, so it’s not very fast, but it’s still faster than a car. You’ll fall in love with it once you ride it.”

“Is that so?”

“You like bicycles, right?”

“That’s right.”

“The reason you ride a bicycle that can barely go 40 km/h is because you like feeling the wind, right? It’s a feeling you can’t get in a car.”

“Hmm…”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

Indeed, even if a car had an open top, the wind didn’t hit you directly. It was very different from the feeling of the wind rushing past your whole body when riding a bicycle.

In the past, he preferred bicycles to bikes because he had a sense of rejection towards riding with the power of an engine rather than his own feet, but recently, as driving a car had become commonplace, he didn’t feel that rejection anymore.

‘Should I try it?’

“Have you ever ridden one before?”

“No.”

“It’s the same. Pull it and it goes, grab it and it stops.”

After a brief lesson, Kang Jin-ho nodded and got on the bike. He felt a heavy sensation in his body. It was a completely different feeling from sitting in a car seat.

“Usually, I would try to stop anyone from riding a bike. It’s not as safe as a car. Even if you’re a pro, if you have an accident on a bike going 100 km/h, you’re done for. Your back could bend backward and you could become disabled, or your head could disappear.”

“But I’m letting you ride it because you can handle that situation. If my son said he was going to ride a bike, I would break his ankles.”

“You don’t have a son.”

“…That’s why I didn’t sell it.”

“And you won’t have one in the future, right?”

“Yes, I will!”

Bang Jin-hoon shuddered.

Bang Jin-hoon had sacrificed his youth to fix the General Assembly [a large organization or group] and had earned the title of an old bachelor. He was trying to escape it, but because of his dirty looks, it wasn’t easy for him to meet women.

He was now suffering from the anxiety that he might really grow old as an old bachelor, and when Kang Jin-ho poked at that, his stomach twisted.

‘What does a handsome guy know!’

A guy who could get a woman just by reaching out wouldn’t know Bang Jin-hoon’s desperate feelings.

So, he drove a nice car and wore a nice watch, but when he got out of a nice car, people thought he was a gangster, and the women seemed to avoid him even more.

“…Try it.”

Bang Jin-hoon, who wanted to get rid of this guy as soon as possible, pushed Kang Jin-ho.

The engine roared, and the Harley Davidson carrying Kang Jin-ho shot forward.

‘He’s good.’

His athletic ability and learning ability were amazing. Kang Jin-ho, who had ridden around the training ground once as if he had been riding for years, reached out and took the helmet.

“I’ll ride it well and return it.”

“Please don’t scratch it. It’s my precious one.”

“It would be nice if you had a real one.”

“Go! Go! Just go!”

Kang Jin-ho grinned, bowed his head, and rode the bike out of the main gate. Bang Jin-hoon sighed as he watched the scene.

‘It’s a relief that his anger seems to have subsided a bit…’

But he didn’t know yet. Whether his anger had subsided or was just building up.

“I just need to do my job.”

Bang Jin-hoon stretched and turned to meet Lee Joong-gul, then suddenly tilted his head.

“But was that bike even legal to ride with a regular license?”

He looked back anxiously, but Kang Jin-ho was already gone.

And that night.

Kang Jin-ho, who was caught by a traffic cop on his way home and fined for driving without a license, called Bang Jin-hoon as soon as he got home and nagged him relentlessly.

Bang Jin-hoon shed tears of injustice, but… what could he do? It was his own fault.