Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 386

“For example, something like this hockey stick isn’t very sturdy.”

Kang Jin-ho tapped the hockey stick, which was leaning diagonally against the floor, a couple of times with his fist, making it bounce.

“Normally, could you break something like this with your fist?”

“No, you couldn’t.”

“But it can be done.”

Crack.

Kang Jin-ho gently pushed the hockey stick with his finger, and it snapped in two without much resistance.

A chilling silence began to dominate the gym.

‘What did I just see?’

Wasn’t that pre-broken? It’s even weirder that there’s a hockey stick on a basketball court in the first place…

“You don’t even need to put much force into something like this.”

Snap, crack, snap.

Watching Kang Jin-ho break the hockey stick into pieces with his fingers, their mouths slowly opened without them realizing it.

Eventually, everyone was just staring blankly, going, “Huh?”

One of the disbelieving kids picked up a piece that Kang Jin-ho had dropped on the floor, examining it from all angles, even biting it, but couldn’t find anything strange.

“H-hyung! Hyung, hyung!”

Han Jin-sung raised his hand.

“What?”

“If we do this, can we do that too?”

“Well, it’s not that hard.”

Kang Jin-ho shrugged.

“But that’s only possible if you have a minimum level of physical strength. Honestly, let me tell you something. If I teach you a few things right now, even in your current state, it wouldn’t be too hard to beat up the kids who have been bullying you.”

“…Really?”

“But how long would that last?” Kang Jin-ho said with a cold look.

“Is the reason you can’t resist those guys because you don’t have the confidence to win a fight, or because even if you win, nothing will change?”

“You might get away with it once. But next time, more guys will come. And then they’ll attack from behind. Then nothing will change. If you want to change the situation, you have to make them not even think about messing with you. Then you can solve it without fighting. So, stop whining and get up.”

“Yes.”

Watching Kang Jin-ho push the kids again, Park Yu-min looked at the scene with a serious expression.

‘This, something’s wrong.’

Of course, Kang Jin-ho wasn’t wrong. For Park Yu-min, it was unimaginable that Kang Jin-ho could be wrong. But this wasn’t so much wrong as it was going in a strange direction.

‘Why are you trying to create killing machines when I asked you to make sure the kids don’t get beaten up, Jin-ho?’

“But what exactly are you doing?”

Park Yu-min, who had been quietly observing the situation, turned his head at Choi Yeon-ha’s question.

“Ah, well, what happened was…”

“Yes.”

Choi Yeon-ha tilted her head after listening to Park Yu-min’s explanation.

“…So, you’re saying that the mindset right now is that if you don’t want to get beaten up, you should just beat them up?”

“You could say that.”

“…What is this?”

Choi Yeon-ha sighed.

She wasn’t disappointed, but rather concerned.

It wasn’t any different from the kind of solution she would expect from Kang Jin-ho’s crew. These people are too straightforward.

To put it nicely, they’re straightforward, but to put it badly…

‘They’re simple!’

It was as she expected.

Kang Jin-ho wouldn’t understand the situation of bullying itself. Or, to be precise, it’s not that he doesn’t understand bullying, but rather that he doesn’t understand why bullying happens.

If it were back when he was in school, that might work. But now, if you try to solve things like that, you might just be treated like a strong idiot.

‘This is annoying…’

Choi Yeon-ha sighed deeply.

‘Well, whatever, that’s for later.’

“So.”

“Yes?”

“It doesn’t seem like I’m needed here, so where are the girls? I don’t think I need to watch the guys use some brute force method.”

“…The kids are at the orphanage right now.”

“Hmm, is that so?”

Choi Yeon-ha got up from her seat and approached Kang Jin-ho.

“Kang Jin-ho.”

“Yes?”

“Give me the keys.”

“Keys?”

“Yes. I’m asking for your car keys. I think it would be better for me to go to the orphanage and see the girls. It doesn’t seem like I’ll be of any help watching this.”

“Ah!”

Kang Jin-ho nodded. Then, Park Yu-min took the keys out of his pocket and handed them to Choi Yeon-ha.

“Then.”

Choi Yeon-ha took the keys and headed out of the gym.

“The atmosphere seems a bit different from before?”

“It’s the same as usual?”

Park Yu-min shook his head, seeing Kang Jin-ho’s reaction.

‘I shouldn’t have said anything.’

‘I’m just speechless.’

Choi Yeon-ha sighed deeply and stepped on the accelerator. She had followed them because she wondered what they were doing, but what was this? It was just making the kids suffer for no reason.

She couldn’t possibly understand the world of men, but it was clear that this was a ridiculously ignorant method. In the first place, this wasn’t a matter of men and women.

“Having power is important.”

In terms of the jungle index, school was incomparable to the entertainment industry. Even among trainees at agencies, they were divided into ranks.

In the entertainment industry, power was fame and popularity. Depending on how that power was used, it was easy to bury a couple of people.

It was common for talented kids to be ostracized from the industry for falling out of favor with a popular star, and eventually, they would use that power to bring down the celebrities who had tormented them.

If someone were to write a book about the behind-the-scenes stories of the entertainment industry that people don’t know, it would be an epic saga that would make the 500 years of the Joseon Dynasty [a Korean kingdom that lasted for five centuries] look like nothing.

Choi Yeon-ha, who had survived in such a place, couldn’t agree with Kang Jin-ho’s way of defining violence as power. Power was very simple.

It was being superior to the opponent. And being able to suppress the opponent.

Simple violence was just a one-dimensional form of power.

“Again, if I don’t step in, they can’t do anything right.”

If she shouted, ‘Show me your abilities,’ it would be polite to respond to that, right?

Choi Yeon-ha aggressively stepped on the accelerator and drove into the orphanage, got out of the car, and confidently walked into the orphanage, her heels clicking.

‘Hmm.’

It was Sunday, so there were a few kids sitting inside.

“Attention.”

“Huh?”

The children turned their heads and stared wide-eyed at Choi Yeon-ha standing at the entrance.

“Choi, Choi Yeon…”

“Enough.”

Choi Yeon-ha simply cut off the children’s words and smiled lightly.

“I have something to say, so can you gather all the girls?”

“Choi Yeon-ha?”

A wave of questions about why Choi Yeon-ha was here swept through them, but gathering the children wasn’t difficult. After sending everyone who was helping out away and gathering all the girls in the big room, Choi Yeon-ha glanced around and clicked her tongue.

“You guys aren’t popular, are you?”

Some of them looked upset.

But most of them just subtly lowered their heads. Since they were all timid, they couldn’t directly object to Choi Yeon-ha.

“Look, look. Look at me.”

Choi Yeon-ha pointed to herself and smiled brightly.

“Do you think I have any difficulties or inconveniences in my life?”

“…No.”

“You’re girls, so you know, right? Being pretty is a weapon for a woman. But right now, you guys are, how should I put it, hmm…”

Choi Yeon-ha shook her head.

“No, no. This won’t do. Even though you’re students, you can’t live like this in the world. You know, right? Even if you put the same uniform on, there are pretty kids and kids who don’t look good in it. And you can’t mess with the kids who have real style, no matter how weird their personality is. You know?”

Some of them nodded as if in agreement.

“We have to start with the small things first.

For a woman, you have to start with becoming pretty. Why? Why? Why do you have to start with becoming pretty?”

Someone raised their hand, and Choi Yeon-ha nodded.

“Go ahead.”

“…Because they say that ugly people are always causing trouble?”

“Correct!”

Choi Yeon-ha smiled brightly.

“Have you ever heard the phrase ‘they’ll find a reason to criticize’?”

“I don’t know.”

“It means that those who are determined to criticize will find a reason to do so no matter what. If you get good grades, what will they say? ‘That ugly girl must have studied hard. Well, she has to be good at something.’ Then, if you have a lot of money, what will they say? ‘Why doesn’t she use that money to fix her face? What’s the point of having money with that face?'”

The children’s eyes were getting bigger and bigger.

This was so harsh that it was like stabbing them with a knife.

They couldn’t believe that the Choi Yeon-ha they had seen on TV was this kind of person.

‘Amazing.’

‘She’s a girl crush.’

But Choi Yeon-ha’s confident appearance… it seemed to shine. Pretty, delicate, and cute girls might be popular with men, but not with women. This kind of appearance was definitely more effective.

“Because we know it. Let’s be honest since it’s just us here. Being pretty is a weapon for a woman. It’s a more powerful weapon than anything else. Do you want to be good at studying or be pretty?”

“I want to be pretty.”

“Yeah, that’s it.”

Choi Yeon-ha shrugged.

“So, let’s start with that. Let’s start with becoming pretty. That alone won’t solve everything, but I’ll take care of the after-service separately, so don’t worry. I’m a person who does what I say.”

“Um, but…”

“Yes?”

There was worry in her voice.

“It’s easy for you because you’re already pretty, but we can’t do that. Our base is…”

“No, no!”

Choi Yeon-ha wiggled her finger.

“No, no. You’re not ugly. And those of you who think you’re ugly don’t have to worry either. That’s why management is so important. You guys aren’t managed at all. If I decide to give you a makeover, you can easily reach a level that will catch the eyes of ordinary people, so don’t worry.”

“…Okay.”

Choi Yeon-ha chuckled and said,

“Don’t you trust me?”

At that moment, the children’s eyes began to shine.

‘She’s so trustworthy.’

‘Her face is the proof.’

If someone else had said this, they would have scoffed. But the person in front of them was Choi Yeon-ha. Who wouldn’t believe it when Choi Yeon-ha herself said it?

“Okay, so everyone will do it, right?”

“Yes.”

When everyone nodded, Choi Yeon-ha took out her phone. Then, she made a call.

“Yes, hello. Yes, it’s me, Manager Park.”

Choi Yeon-ha turned her head a couple of times and continued.

“Seventeen people. The age range is from late elementary school to high school. Prepare them. I’ll be disappointed if some amateurs try to touch them. Huh? Not enough? Why?”

Choi Yeon-ha’s face slightly hardened.

“…Cancel them.”

A flustered voice came from the other end, but Choi Yeon-ha said as if it was nothing.

“Then tell them to call me. Then I’ll cancel it. What’s so important about those event performers that they’re taking up space? Should I call them now?”

Choi Yeon-ha held the phone for a moment, then smiled and hung up.

“Okay, shall we go?”

Having a bad personality can sometimes be useful.