Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 490

“I’m home.”

As he opened the door and entered the house, Kang Eun-young, dressed in hot pants, rushed out to greet him.

“Oppa! You’re back?”

Without giving him a chance to reply, Kang Jin-ho gently patted her back before pushing her away slightly.

“Did anything happen?”

“What could happen? I was just at home.”

“Right.”

Kang Jin-ho looked her up and down before taking off his shoes and asking,

“But you seem to be home every day lately?”

“The festival period is over, so I’m a bit free for a while. Soon, I’ll have to prepare for the next album, so I’ll be busy again. It’s like a last supper, you know?”

“Is that so?”

Kang Jin-ho entered the living room and sat on the sofa.

“Where’s Mom?”

“She went out on a date.”

“A date?”

“Yeah. She said she was going for a drive with Dad.”

“…Oh, really?”

Kang Eun-young chuckled at Kang Jin-ho’s slightly bewildered expression.

“Why are you so surprised by that? You and I are all grown up now, so they should enjoy their honeymoon again.”

“I guess so.”

“Now that you and I are earning good money, what do they have to worry about? It’s like they’re reclaiming their lost youth, you know?”

Kang Jin-ho sighed softly as he watched Kang Eun-young chatter away.

“Are you okay?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“I mean, being a celebrity is supposed to be incredibly stressful.”

“Stress?”

Kang Eun-young tilted her head.

After a moment of thought, she chuckled.

“Of course, I get stressed, but complaining about it is just being spoiled, isn’t it? I went through so much when I was a trainee to become a celebrity. Now that my dream has finally come true, how dare I complain?”

“Hmm…”

“When things get really busy, there are times when I feel like I can’t take it anymore… but isn’t that the same for everyone with a job?”

“I guess so.”

“It’s not going to be easy when you’re getting paid. Even if it’s hard, you have to think it’s normal. If it’s not hard, is it even work?”

Kang Jin-ho nodded quietly.

Perhaps because she had suffered so much since her trainee days, she seemed very mature.

“So, there’s nothing really wrong?”

“Nope.”

Kang Eun-young held out one hand, making a V sign.

“Except for the fact that my belly fat keeps trying to come out.”

“Stop eating snacks…”

“You might as well tell me to die!”

There was no answer.

Kang Jin-ho hesitated as if he wanted to say something, but then shook his head.

“Okay. I’m going to go shower.”

“It looked like you wanted to ask something?”

“It’s nothing.”

“Don’t worry, just ask, Oppa. If you’re curious about your cute and adorable sister’s love life, I can tell you anything. You’re curious, aren’t you? You’re probably worried that your sister might be dating some weirdo and can’t sleep at night, right?”

“…Who would even take you?”

“Heeol…”

Kang Jin-ho sincerely offered his condolences to his future brother-in-law, whoever he might be.

He needed to know that this girl, who puts on a pure image on TV, walks around at home scratching her belly, with snack crumbs all over her mouth.

“What about acting?”

“I got a role in a drama in the second half of the year. It’s a supporting role again. Sigh, when will I ever get a lead role?”

“You…”

“Yes, yes! I know, I know! I know that someone who used to dance and sing shouldn’t try to take the place of people who have been studying and working hard to become actors. That’s why I’m still taking acting lessons and monitoring myself, waiting to climb up step by step, Your Majesty Oppa. At least allow me to complain like a child at home.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled and got up from his seat. Then, he headed towards his room.

“Don’t lose your initial passion.”

“Okay, Oppa. But are you really not curious about my love life? It’s a big reveal day today!”

Keep it to yourself, keep it to yourself.

After showering and entering his room, Kang Jin-ho immediately lay down on the bed.

Jo Gyu-min’s words kept replaying in his mind.

‘What I want to do…’

He thought it was a pipe dream. How many people actually live doing what they truly want? Most people don’t think about what they want to do. They just live each day, finding small happiness in their daily lives, isn’t that how people are?

If he had been told to set a grand goal, he would have come up with one by now. But the words, ‘what Kang Jin-ho really wants to do,’ not a grand goal, stuck in his heart.

‘What do I really want to do?’

Kang Jin-ho slowly looked back at his life.

The first life, where he lost his family and had to live as a disabled person.

The second life, where he had to do everything he could just to survive.

And now, this life.

Each life is different. There is nothing that connects those three lives.

No wonder it’s so hard.

Wanting to live an ordinary life was no different from saying he no longer wanted to live fiercely.

His life had always been a resistance.

The first life was a battle against loneliness and his struggling body. In the end, Kang Jin-ho couldn’t overcome it.

The second life was a battle against a fate that seemed to force death upon him. And…

‘I lost.’

Kang Jin-ho’s expression became subtle.

Looking back, his life had always been a series of failures. And a series of defeats.

Even the second life, where he thought he had established a position, was just him desperately trying to become stronger, only to be betrayed and killed.

Could such a life be called a success?

Of course, dividing life into success and failure is a very crude idea, but no one would want to live such a life.

Compared to that, his current life is much better. However…

‘What Director Jo said is also right.’ He’s being swept away.

He was just being swept away by his surroundings. Kang Jin-ho had not set a firm goal for what kind of life he wanted to live.

It was the same even when he compared himself to the people around him.

Of course, he wasn’t thinking of helping them in particular. Such a superior perspective was not in Kang Jin-ho’s nature. But objectively, Park Yu-min, whom he had helped, was moving straight towards his goal.

He said he didn’t want to live a life solely for the sake of winning anymore, but he was pouring all his energy into practice, except when he was sleeping.

And Joo Young-gi was also busy as a bee.

His sister was the same.

Perhaps Kang Jin-ho was no less busy than them. But the difference between them and Kang Jin-ho was the existence of a direction.

They had a clear destination they wanted to reach with their current efforts. But Kang Jin-ho was just reacting to each moment, without any thought of going anywhere with his current efforts.

‘Maybe that’s why.’

He had been telling others to have passion, but he realized that he might be the one wasting his passion in vain.

But it was still difficult. Finding what he wanted to do, that is.

Because the life Kang Jin-ho had lived so far was about enduring.

As he let out a low sigh,

A familiar ringtone came from his phone.

“Huh?”

Kang Jin-ho reached out and picked up the phone.

Who would call him at this hour?

Kang Jin-ho chuckled as he checked the screen.

“Hello?”

As soon as he answered the phone, a sharp voice burst out from the other end.

“[What are you doing!]”

He could bet…

In Korea, the only person who could say ‘What are you doing’ in such a loud, abrupt way was this person.

“I was lying down to sleep.”

“[What time is it that you’re already lying down?]”

“It’s late enough to sleep here.”

“[There’s only a one-hour time difference? Do you think you’re on the other side of the world?]”

“…Oh, is that so?”

It was a strange thing.

Normally, hearing such a sharp, nagging voice would make one feel bad. Looking back, no one had treated Kang Jin-ho like this since his second life.

Yet, he didn’t feel bad.

Instead, he kept feeling like laughing.

Whether it was because Kang Jin-ho had decided that this person was just like that, or because he knew there was no malice behind that sharp voice, Kang Jin-ho couldn’t say for sure.

What was certain was that he was finding some comfort in this grumpy voice.

“How are you holding up?”

“[Here?]”

“Yeah.”

“[The worst!]”

“[It’s terrible! It’s clear that there’s no place on Earth more terrible than this! It’s hot, humid, bugs are flying around! The hygiene is terrible! The filming locations are so far away that it takes forever to get there, and those guys with their shaved heads keep touching me with their sweaty bodies… Ugh!]”

He had asked the wrong question.

He thought he had to somehow fix this situation, but Choi Yeon-ha didn’t give him a chance.

“[If I ever say I’m going to film overseas again, I’m not human. I can’t even eat the food… No, I don’t know why people here keep putting weird spices in their food. Every time I eat, my stomach turns, so I’m telling Eun-sol to go to a fast food place and buy me a hamburger! And even… even the hamburger doesn’t taste good! What kind of place is this!]”

Kang Jin-ho offered his condolences to Han Eun-sol in his heart.

If she was complaining this much to him over the phone, Han Eun-sol must be half-dead by now.

“That sounds tough.”

“[Is that all?]”

“Huh?”

“[I called because I’m having a hard time, and that’s all the comfort you can give me? I know you’re from the Joseon era, and I haven’t seen your family tree, but judging by your actions, I know you’re from a noble family, but still, can’t you be a little more passionate, huh? More affectionate! Huh?]”

He felt like his mind was flying away.

Kang Jin-ho forced himself to regain his fading consciousness and let out a hollow laugh.

“I don’t know what to do for you.”

“[Ah, it’s my fault for expecting anything.]”

It was strange that he didn’t feel bad even though he felt like he was being insulted.

“Are you having a really hard time?”

“[Yes.]”

“You’re going through a lot.”

“[I’m really going through a lot, you know? It would be nice if your voice was a little more affectionate?]”

“I-I’ll try my best.”

“[Hmm, I’ll believe that lie.]”

Kang Jin-ho quietly closed his mouth.

Come to think of it, wasn’t this person he was talking to on the phone the person Kang Jin-ho should be learning from the most right now?

She was someone who had flown to a faraway land to pursue her dreams and endure hardship for what she wanted to do.

“Hey, Choi Yeon-ha.”

“[Yes.]”

“I have a question…”

“[Ask away.]”

Kang Jin-ho slightly moistened his lips.

How could he ask a question that would properly convey his feelings?

Since he wasn’t good with words, it was difficult to find the right question.

In the end, Kang Jin-ho chose the direct approach.

“Why do you go so far?”

“[Huh?]”

Choi Yeon-ha’s bewildered question came back.