Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 443

‘Why do I have to do this?’

Lee Myung-hwan sat in the darkened room, staring blankly at the ceiling. The question Kang Jin-ho had thrown at him wouldn’t let him go, tormenting him all night.

‘Before that, why do I even need to become stronger?’

It was vague. Just utterly vague.

Looking at Kang Jin-ho, or rather, even before seeing Kang Jin-ho, he had always wanted to become stronger. Stronger than anyone, stronger than everyone. That was the foundation that sustained him as a martial artist.

But now, he was questioning that very foundation.

Why become stronger?

Why?

It was an anachronistic thought.

Martial artists might not admit it, but they had already lost their dominance to the outside world. In the past, the martial arts world, operating secretly behind the scenes, had moved the world, but with the development of firearms and science, the martial arts world had sunk into the darkness, deeper and deeper.

They might delude themselves into thinking they controlled a hidden world, but when he thought about it coldly, wasn’t the current martial arts world unable to step into the light, pushed into damp and dark places?

In such a world, what was the point of becoming stronger? The world was already ruled by those who held money and information.

Once, in human history, martial arts were a force that moved the world, the authority to control it… but in today’s world, martial arts had yielded their place to firearms and had been reduced to mere spectacles.

In such a world, was it even reasonable to risk one’s life to become stronger?

The conclusion was already clear.

‘It’s a stupid thing to do.’

It was utterly foolish. Instead of going through all that trouble, it would be wiser to go to a convenience store and buy another lottery ticket. Or, he could go out and make some money.

Thinking about this was truly pointless. Why should he worry about something that already had an answer? It was an utterly foolish thing to do.

But…

‘Why am I doing this utterly foolish thing?’

There were countless foolish things in the world, but there weren’t many things as foolish as agonizing over a problem that already had a conclusion.

However, even though Lee Myung-hwan was aware that he was doing something utterly foolish, he couldn’t escape the situation.

More than anything, what tormented him was that he knew there was some lingering attachment, but he couldn’t pinpoint the exact nature of that attachment.

‘I’m really stupid.’

Lee Myung-hwan sighed deeply and put a cigarette in his mouth. He rarely smoked because it was bad for martial artists, but on days like today, when he felt suffocated, he couldn’t help but smoke one.

After lighting the cigarette, Lee Myung-hwan got up from his seat and approached the window.

‘Pathetic souls.’

Outside the window, countless windows were lit up.

When it came to homes, there was a limit to where they could go. Since the General Assembly was located deep in the mountains, the only housing they could find was the densely packed studio apartments closest to the Assembly.

To passersby, it might look like an ordinary studio apartment complex, but this place was a den of iniquity where the most dangerous people in Korea lived.

Now, that den of iniquity was still ablaze with lights at four in the morning. From his relatively high vantage point, Lee Myung-hwan could see the lit windows and people sticking their heads out, smoking cigarettes like he was.

Probably, the dormitories inside the Assembly would look similar.

“They’re all idiots.”

It was somewhat comforting to know that there were so many other fools besides himself, agonizing over a problem with an obvious conclusion.

‘It’s a problem you can’t help but agonize over.’

Lee Myung-hwan chuckled.

It was a foolish thing to do. It was something he shouldn’t do.

But what if someone challenged that foolishness? And what if they succeeded?

Looking at him, a master far beyond his own level, would he be able to think comfortably, ‘That choice was the right one back then’?

‘Absolutely impossible.’

His entire being would probably burn with envy.

And he would curse himself for not having challenged it back then.

What frightened Lee Myung-hwan was the thought of himself in that situation. He didn’t have the courage to risk his life and jump in, but he also couldn’t help but be jealous of those who did… Facing his own cowardly and pathetic self was incredibly difficult.

“Heh heh heh heh.”

Lee Myung-hwan laughed quietly.

“Pathetic. Really.”

Lee Myung-hwan stubbed out his cigarette, closed the window, and lay down on the bed. As he closed his eyes, the image of Kang Jin-ho came to mind.

The way he had single-handedly crushed the Yeongnam Association, the way he had advanced, spraying blood with longswords in both hands, was so cool that it made his body tremble even now.

Normal people would probably curse him, asking how he could call killing people cool. They would say it wasn’t cool but cruel and gruesome.

But in the eyes of Lee Myung-hwan, a martial artist, it was a sight he had dreamed of. When anyone first learned martial arts, they wanted to become like that. They wanted to become a being of a different caliber, crushing countless people like insects with their martial arts.

But as they learned about reality, that dream would gradually be chipped away.

From the highest of the high to just the highest.

Later, to the upper ranks.

And eventually, just like everyone else.

Lee Myung-hwan was still at the level of ‘stronger than others,’ but if he continued to be chipped away like this, he would eventually become ‘just like everyone else.’ To Lee Myung-hwan, who knew that obvious future, Kang Jin-ho’s appearance was not just about strength.

It was a dream.

A dream he had forgotten.

It was like an old man, who had lived his life and was now waiting for death, finding a photo album from his childhood and discovering the dreams he had once had. The faded and worn-out memories, where he couldn’t even remember what he had dreamed of, were now vividly unfolding before his eyes.

How could he calmly accept that?

His heart was pounding.

Even if his mind told him it was a different story, his body was trembling first.

“Damn it.”

Only then could Lee Myung-hwan see the true nature of the lingering attachment that had been tormenting him.

The thought was so absurd and ridiculous that he was ashamed to even say it. A dream that was embarrassing to even imagine in his head.

“I also…”

A muffled voice leaked from his mouth, pressed against the pillow.

“…I also want to be like that.”

Like Kang Jin-ho.

Like that Kang Jin-ho.

Lee Myung-hwan chuckled to himself.

He knew.

That it was just a dream.

A dream was a dream because it couldn’t be achieved. A dream that could be achieved was not a dream but a goal. A dream was not something to chase. It was something to look at from afar and find solace in. Those who chased goals became prophets, but those who chased dreams became dreamers.

He knew.

That he could never become Kang Jin-ho.

Even if he risked his life now, no, even if he risked more than his life, he could not become Kang Jin-ho.

The gap between him and Kang Jin-ho would not narrow but would gradually widen.

Even so…

Even so, he couldn’t just let it go, now that he knew.

“That’s why I’m an idiot.”

Lee Myung-hwan slammed his head into the pillow. After hitting his head for a while with thudding sounds, Lee Myung-hwan laughed hollowly.

“Let’s give up.”

What couldn’t be done, couldn’t be done.

If there was even a slight possibility, he might have tried to challenge it. He might have even risked his life.

But… he knew it too.

This was just an unattainable dream, and realistically, it was something he shouldn’t even try to challenge.

Holding onto it was just a tantrum from the childish part of his inner self, which was trying to avoid facing reality.

“Let’s just sleep.”

Lee Myung-hwan closed his eyes.

He couldn’t fall asleep easily, but he forced himself to try. Given his tendency to sleep for a whole day if he slept without an alarm, he would wake up to find it was night again. Then, even if he wanted to choose, he wouldn’t be able to.

Hoping that such a situation would come, Lee Myung-hwan tightly closed his eyes.

“A dream…”

What a joke.

What a load of crap.

“…Shit.”

Lee Myung-hwan was trudging along. This was a truly shitty situation. Humans had habits. Things that were always followed, like principles. Whether they were intentional or not.

For Lee Myung-hwan, his habit was sleep.

He was someone who slept for a full 24 hours if he didn’t have an alarm. Even on days when he was in great condition, he had never slept less than sixteen hours.

Was it possible to live like that?

That’s why there were alarms. Fortunately, he was a light sleeper, so he never failed to wake up when his alarm went off.

“But… shit.”

But why was he wide awake today, even though he hadn’t slept for more than a few hours?

Habits were scary things.

Once he woke up, he had to go back to sleep. Today, he had decided to spend the whole day sleeping. But as soon as he woke up, he found himself showering, getting dressed, and heading to work.

And he was naturally on his way to work.

“Shit.”

Lee Myung-hwan kept cursing.

He was crazy.

Completely crazy.

He didn’t even have to go to work today, so why was he going?

Was this the sadness of a human being enslaved by civilization?

Sighing deeply, Lee Myung-hwan looked at the cars filling the two-lane road leading up to the Assembly and sighed again.

“Bunch of idiots.”

He thought he was the only idiot, but there were so many other idiots.

But it was okay.

He had already made up his mind.

He would go to work. Because he was curious.

But he would never enter the auditorium. He would just check who his colleagues were, those who were trying to walk the path he didn’t take, and cheer them on. He didn’t have the courage to go, but he would sincerely cheer them on, hoping they would succeed.

But then…

“…Shit.”

Looking at the podium in front of him, Lee Myung-hwan cursed again.

He had come to his senses and found himself inside the auditorium. Inside the auditorium.

That’s right, inside the auditorium!

Oh, you crazy legs, I didn’t mean to come here!

He had to get out of here now.

Right now!

With that thought, Lee Myung-hwan looked around and sighed deeply once more.

“…Shit.”

Ah, this wasn’t my doing.

That guy in the back was the one who cursed.

A bizarre scene was unfolding, with people filling the auditorium, their faces ashen, restlessly getting up and sitting down, all while cursing.

Watching that scene, Lee Myung-hwan covered his face with his hands.

‘You idiots, how can you all be such idiots?’

They must have been going through a similar process as him.

“I don’t know.”

Lee Myung-hwan leaned back in his chair and tilted his head back.

‘Whatever will be, will be.’

He was too tired to even think anymore.

Surely, shit, I won’t die, will I?

At that moment, the door burst open, and Kang Jin-ho entered.

Lee Myung-hwan felt his heart sink.

And at the same time, he felt a strange sense of relief filling him.

‘It’s over now.’

Whether it turned out good or bad, now that he was here, he had to risk his life. An endless mix of regret and relief washed over him. The relief that he didn’t have to worry anymore was the greatest.

He had truly experienced hell overnight.

And at that moment, Kang Jin-ho opened his mouth with a firm voice.

“Everyone here has made their decision, right?”

“…Yes.”

“Ah, but…”

Kang Jin-ho scratched his head.

“There was a mistake…”

A mistake?

What was that guy talking about?

Kang Jin-ho said with an awkward expression.

“After checking, it seems that the Yeongnam Association, or rather, the Yeongnam region, hasn’t been informed yet. It wouldn’t be fair if we didn’t tell them too. So, I’ll postpone this until this time tomorrow. Think about it for one more day and come back. Then.”

Thud!

The door closed, and Lee Myung-hwan stared blankly at the door.

One day?

One more day?

He had to go through this shit for one more day?

Lee Myung-hwan’s mouth opened weakly.

“…You bastard.”

At the same time, the auditorium was filled with a burst of curses. Listening to the unspeakable profanities, Lee Myung-hwan covered his face with his hands.

That guy was a demon.

A demon.