Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 520

“Did you just call that insignificant?”

“And if I did?”

The atmosphere rapidly cooled.

Elena, who was bringing the drinks, sensed the shift and quickly approached, offering a few awkward words, but the once-chilled air showed no sign of warming.

Knight Wiggins’ face flushed with anger.

“You speak carelessly.”

“I’m just being honest.”

“Honesty can sometimes be harmful.”

“Perhaps.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded calmly. However, his tone remained unchanged.

“But that doesn’t mean I want to speak empty words.”

“I have no intention of discussing you or your organization, Mr. Kang Jin-ho. I don’t need you to verify the trustworthiness of our informants.”

“Whatever.”

Kang Jin-ho waved his hand dismissively, as if annoyed.

“I’m not interested in how things work on your end. Let’s get straight to the point. I don’t have the authority to release them. If you want to make a request, take it to the General Assembly.”

“Mr. Kang Jin-ho.”

As Elena tried to interject, Knight Wiggins gently grabbed her shoulder. He then straightened his posture and bowed his head.

Kang Jin-ho looked at Knight Wiggins with a curious expression.

“If our sudden visit has upset you, I apologize. I know it was impolite, but we couldn’t afford to waste time. If your own comrades were detained, you would have acted the same way.”

“Hmm.”

Kang Jin-ho’s face showed a slight discomfort.

When you poke someone in the side, it’s easy to deal with someone who reacts by shouting. You can just crush them with force. But it was awkward to deal with someone who apologized when poked in the side.

Besides…

‘Comrades.’

It was a word he hadn’t heard in quite a while.

They say Westerners pursue rationality, but it was quite strange to hear such an old-fashioned word coming from their mouths.

“Going through the General Assembly as you suggest isn’t difficult. However, we know that if things proceed that way, we will have to go through you again. Please understand our desire to rescue our comrades from their suffering as quickly as possible.”

Kang Jin-ho quietly stared at Knight Wiggins.

The old knight did not avoid Kang Jin-ho’s gaze. The moment he saw the light in those eyes, Kang Jin-ho couldn’t help but feel a subtle emotion.

‘I used to see those eyes quite often.’

There were those among the righteous fools who rushed to kill him who had eyes like that. It was the kind of eyes that only those who single-mindedly pursue their path could have.

‘I didn’t dislike them.’

Though their paths differed and he had to kill them, he didn’t dislike those guys.

“What did you say you wanted?”

“The release of the Chevaliers [French knights].”

“I see.”

Kang Jin-ho reached out and brought the drink on the table to his lips. After gulping down the Americano, Kang Jin-ho placed the drink back on the table and stared at Knight Wiggins.

“Be precise.”

“Yes.”

“What reason do I have to accept that request?”

Knight Wiggins bit his lip slightly. This was the crux of the matter.

“First, I apologize for attempting to harm you without properly assessing the situation.”

This was an issue that couldn’t be overlooked.

No matter what was said, this part had to be addressed. It was better to apologize clearly than to gloss over it.

However, Kang Jin-ho was not easy to deal with either.

“If you had assessed the situation a little better, you could have finished it decisively.”

Knight Wiggins cleared his throat.

“I cannot deny that there is some regret about that.”

Elena gripped Knight Wiggins’ arm tightly. In her eyes, Knight Wiggins was walking a very dangerous tightrope. However, Knight Wiggins calmly removed Elena’s arm.

“However, now that the situation has turned out this way, I intend to take full responsibility for it. The reason we cannot make a proposal first is that we do not know what your interests are.”

Knight Wiggins swallowed hard and continued.

“We may not be able to fulfill everything, but we are willing to accept any conditions you desire within our capabilities. Please release the Chevaliers. We will pay the price for it.”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Knight Wiggins with an amused expression.

‘Damn it, I can’t figure out what he’s thinking.’

Kang Jin-ho’s reaction was far from typical.

Knight Wiggins had negotiated with countless people in his position. Through conversation, he could usually grasp what the other party wanted and how they were reacting. However, Kang Jin-ho’s reaction did not match anyone he had ever known.

That was making Knight Wiggins impatient.

“You’re telling me to propose the conditions?”

“That’s essentially it.”

“That’s a convenient method.”

“Please don’t think we lack sincerity. We chose this method to accommodate you as much as possible. If the parts we propose do not suit your taste, we would need to go through the process of readjusting. That would also be a waste of time.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled and said,

“It seems like a good idea for me to set the conditions. But to do that, I need to know what you can do for me first.”

“We will do anything possible.”

Knight Wiggins said in a firm tone.

“Money, honor, personal assistance. Anything is fine. We can do anything you want. The Round Table has more power than you might think. Whatever you choose, you will never find it lacking.”

“So, they’re useless.”

“…Excuse me?”

“Your informants, I mean. None of what you mentioned is useful to me.”

Knight Wiggins closed his mouth.

“It’s a sad thing to have to work with informants who can’t even figure out what the other party wants. And it’s also sad to say that you completely trust such informants.”

Knight Wiggins’ face was filled with humiliation.

Where had he ever received such treatment?

“Are you saying you don’t want anything?”

“Within that.”

Knight Wiggins sighed softly.

It was not easy to deal with him. His way of speaking, which basically belittled the other party, was irritating. Yet, he did not easily reveal his true intentions.

He wasn’t someone who used clever rhetoric; he was just someone who wasn’t very good with words. If he had the upper hand, it wouldn’t be difficult to deal with someone like this, but since the initiative was on the other side, it wasn’t easy at all.

“Then…”

Just as Knight Wiggins was about to say something, Kang Jin-ho interrupted him.

“Do you happen to smoke?”

Click.

Knight Wiggins put a cigarette in his mouth and lit it. The sensation of the smoke entering his lungs was awakening his nerves.

‘It’s been a while.’

It felt like the tension was easing a bit after smoking a cigarette he had quit for a while.

Perhaps that was why the stiff atmosphere felt a little brighter.

‘Was it intentional?’

If it was intentional, he would have to revise his assessment of Kang Jin-ho once again. He was more experienced than he had thought. If it wasn’t?

‘It’s the same either way.’

If he could achieve this effect by moving according to his heart without thinking, that was even more frightening. It meant he was instinctively reading the atmosphere.

“There’s one thing I want to ask.”

“Anything.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled at Knight Wiggins’ answer.

“Are you really representing this thing called the Round Table?”

Knight Wiggins was taken aback by the sudden question.

“W-Why do you ask that?”

“Because it doesn’t seem like it.”

“Why do you think so?”

“Anxiety.”

Kang Jin-ho said calmly.

“And doubt. If the Round Table is an organization, it wouldn’t handle things this way. An organization should deal with another organization. Even if the process is a little delayed, if the Round Table wanted to save them, they would have contacted the General Assembly, not me. They wouldn’t have suddenly come to me and offered conditions. Right?”

Knight Wiggins couldn’t say anything.

“Then it’s obvious. You are affiliated with the Round Table, but you don’t represent it. What you’re doing now has nothing to do with the will of the Round Table. It’s a plan, isn’t it? If you can somehow negotiate, you can use that negotiation to gain the Round Table’s understanding. Am I wrong?”

It was moving into the realm of the incomprehensible.

He had figured that out from just a short conversation?

Knight Wiggins had to admit that he had fallen into a stereotype.

The Kang Jin-ho he had first seen, and the Kang Jin-ho he had been informed about, was nothing short of a beast.

The problem was that people couldn’t connect a beast with an intellectual image.

Humans have tendencies. Who would have expected that a human who was like a ticking time bomb would also have intelligence?

“…You’re mostly right.”

There was no point in denying it.

“But please don’t think I was deceiving you. I was just…”

“It doesn’t matter.”

Kang Jin-ho waved his hand dismissively, as if it were nothing, and slowly exhaled smoke.

“As long as I can get what I want, that’s enough. I’m not the type to care much about processes or procedures.”

“Then do you want something?”

“I didn’t. But I just got one. There’s one thing I want. If I can get that, I’ll release those Chevaliers or whatever they are right now.”

Knight Wiggins’ eyes lit up.

If that were the case, he could find meaning in his journey here.

“What do you want? I will do anything I can.”

“You shouldn’t say such things so easily.”

Kang Jin-ho curled up the corners of his mouth.

The moment he saw that smile, Knight Wiggins felt his heart drop. It was like the expression of a beast looking at its prey cornered in a dead end.

“You told me to say what I want, right?”

“…Yes.”

“Then I’ll say it. And let’s see. Let’s see if you can keep your word.”

Kang Jin-ho took another deep drag of his cigarette, slowly exhaled the smoke, and said,

“What I want is you, Knight Wiggins. Let’s make a trade. If you stay in the General Assembly, I will release all the Chevaliers. How about that? Isn’t it reasonable?”

Knight Wiggins’ eyes shook violently.

Seeing his bewildered reaction, Kang Jin-ho burst into laughter.