Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 56

“What is this?” Kang Jin-ho asked.

Jo Gyu-min smiled and replied, “It’s a gift.”

“A gift?”

“Yes. It’s a college entrance gift. You passed with flying colors, so you deserve a gift.”

Jo Gyu-min’s tone was somewhat pleased, as if he had personally sent Kang Jin-ho to college. Come to think of it, that wasn’t entirely wrong. Without Jo Gyu-min, Kang Jin-ho wouldn’t have achieved the grades needed to get into Jae-kyung University.

“This is it?” Kang Jin-ho stared blankly at the so-called gift.

“They receive a lot of these these days,” Jo Gyu-min said.

So, the gift is that thing, right? Not what’s inside it. Kang Jin-ho stared at the gleaming mass before him, then turned his head and asked again, “A car?”

“You got your license, didn’t you? The Chairman specially ordered it for you. How do you like it?”

Receiving a car as a gift? For a college entrance gift? He had heard of such things. Of course, he thought it was a bit excessive, but he couldn’t fault someone for spending their own money. It was a virtue for the poor to save, but if the rich saved, they’d be called stingy. At least, that’s what Kang Jin-ho thought. But…

There’s a limit to everything.

“It looks expensive.”

“It’s not much.”

“I don’t think so…”

The vehicle in front of Kang Jin-ho. The low chassis, painted in pure white, stood out. It felt more like a flying object or a UFO than a car. Especially the grill and the lines of the body gave that impression. What should he say… It had a design that would make anyone turn around and wonder what it was, just by passing by.

“It’s a Lamborghini Aventador. The delivery was likely to be delayed due to backorders, so we paid a premium to take it from a recent order. Fortunately, the car is white. Do you like it?”

“Are there people who drive around in things like this?”

“You’re underestimating the rich. There are quite a few of them in the country.”

“This thing?”

“Yes. More than ten. We considered getting a rare model like the Centenario or Reventón, but even if they were limited editions, he felt uneasy about giving you a used car as a gift, so he decided on this one.”

“Cen… Cen?” What is he talking about?

“You don’t have to worry about it. Anyway, he said this model would be good.”

“The Chairman did?”

“No. It was my idea.” Kang Jin-ho frowned.

“Send it back.”

“Pardon?”

“Please convey my thanks for the thought, but send it back. This is too much. If you want to give me something, ask for a suitable domestic car. And sell this one again.” Jo Gyu-min stared at Kang Jin-ho, dumbfounded. What is he talking about now?

“You want to send this back and get a domestic car instead?”

“Yes.”

Jo Gyu-min was speechless. Of course, it could be a bit of a burden. If Jo Gyu-min were to receive such a car as a gift, he would lose sleep over the burden. But even if Jo Gyu-min didn’t know, Kang Jin-ho’s assets alone would make it not too difficult to drive a car like this, right?

“No, this is a dream car for men. It’s a car I’ve always wanted to drive.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded as if he was glad to hear that.

“It’s a bit much to return a gift, so take this. I’ll give it to you.”

“…Kang Jin-ho, if I drive around in a gift that the Chairman gave you, what would my position be?”

“This is complicated.” Jo Gyu-min sighed.

“Is it because you’re worried about the cost?”

“For Chairman Hwang, a car like this is nothing. It’s like a person with 100 million won [approximately $75,000 USD] in assets giving their nephew 100,000 won [approximately $75 USD] as pocket money. It’s even simpler than that.”

“I guess so.”

“So, you should just accept it…” Kang Jin-ho shook his head. It seemed like there was some miscommunication, but it wasn’t that he didn’t want to drive it because it was expensive.

“It’s not that… I just don’t want to drive this.”

“Pardon?”

“You said there aren’t many of these cars in the country, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then, if I drive this around, everyone who knows me will know where I am, right?”

“Ah…”

“The colors of the cars in the country won’t all be the same, so it’ll stand out even more, right?” Jo Gyu-min frowned. It was an issue he hadn’t considered.

“It’s not that I have a problem with driving an expensive car, but I don’t want to let everyone know where I am in real-time.”

“Ugh…” But there was definitely a possibility of that. Just by seeing the car pass by, they would know that Kang Jin-ho was inside. Many domestic cars or mass-produced foreign cars, you wouldn’t know who was who until you saw the license plate, but this car, with only a few in the country and not often driven, would be easily recognizable.

“And… if I drive around in a car like this, I’ll feel burdened by the attention I get.”

“Ha…” Isn’t that the reason people drive supercars, to enjoy the attention? How many people in Korea drive sports cars because of their performance? What’s the reason for driving a car that can’t even reach its top speed?

“Th-that’s the important thing, though.”

“Why is that important?” Jo Gyu-min shook his head. Where on earth could you find a 20-year-old like this?

“Kang Jin-ho.”

“Yes.”

“You told me before that you wanted to live a normal life, right?”

“Yes.”

“And that’s why you didn’t like the rumors about you and Chairman Hwang at school.” Kang Jin-ho nodded. After Chairman Hwang Jung-hoo visited, the way the kids looked at Kang Jin-ho changed. Kids who weren’t close suddenly acted very friendly, and kids who had never spoken to him suddenly started talking to him.

‘Just like before.’ He had experienced that when he joined the Demonic Cult and became one of the Ten Demons. People judging relationships based on position and ability, not on the person. And coldly cutting off those relationships when they were no longer useful. Kang Jin-ho was sick of that. In the end, he was even betrayed by his most trusted subordinate. If he drove this car, he would receive that kind of attention again. Kang Jin-ho didn’t want that.

“The world is…”

“Living a normal life is the most difficult thing.” Kang Jin-ho looked at Jo Gyu-min.

“What exactly is normal?” Normal. It was something he had always wished for. But Kang Jin-ho couldn’t answer Jo Gyu-min’s question. When he was asked that question, Kang Jin-ho found it difficult to grasp the clear meaning of the word ‘normal’. It was a funny thing. Kang Jin-ho, who had always wanted to live a normal life, didn’t even know the clear meaning of normal.

“Is living like others normal?”

“……”

“No. That’s imitating others, not a normal life.”

“Maybe.” Kang Jin-ho admitted it. Jo Gyu-min was right.

“If you have a lot of money, can you not be normal?”

“Hmm…”

“If you drive a better car than others, can you not be normal? Conversely, if someone is poorer than others, can you say that they are not normal?” Kang Jin-ho shook his head. That wasn’t it.

“Whether someone is normal or not is not determined by their wealth. It’s determined by their life. I don’t know what kind of normal Kang Jin-ho wants, but if you just try to live without standing out from others, you might miss out on the most important happiness because of that normal.”

Kang Jin-ho’s eyes widened slightly. Why did he want to live normally? Jo Gyu-min was saying what Kang Jin-ho couldn’t say. Kang Jin-ho wanted to escape the endless pain and be happy now. That’s why he helped his family and made friends. This was a very small matter. But thanks to it, he felt like he had remembered something important.

“That’s true.” The desire to live normally was still there. But he shouldn’t be too bound by it. He had already realized that he needed power to live normally. Kang Jin-ho stared at Jo Gyu-min for a moment, then lowered his head.

“Why are you doing this?” Jo Gyu-min, surprised, tried to stop Kang Jin-ho.

“I’ve learned something.”

“No, it’s not like I did anything great.” Jo Gyu-min was very awkward, but Kang Jin-ho thought this level of treatment was natural. Perhaps what Jo Gyu-min had just said might have a big impact on Kang Jin-ho’s life. He should always be grateful for the favors he received.

“I’ll accept this.” Kang Jin-ho couldn’t completely erase his slightly displeased expression. Although he acknowledged what he had heard from Jo Gyu-min, driving around in a car like this was a separate issue. However, he was only accepting the car because he didn’t want to put Jo Gyu-min in a difficult position if he didn’t. ‘I need to talk to them separately.’ This time it was unavoidable, but it would be a problem if things continued like this. It wouldn’t be meaningful to talk to Jo Gyu-min, so he would have to call Hwang Jung-hoo.

“That’s a good idea.” Jo Gyu-min grinned.

“So, are you going to drive it now?”

“No.”

“…Pardon?”

“Come to think of it, just because I receive a gift doesn’t mean I have to drive it. Receiving it is enough. Please put it in our garage. I’ll go by bike.”

“Yes?”

“It seems like it’s better to act as I feel, without being obsessed with being normal. You said you wanted to drive it, right? Then, please do.” Kang Jin-ho slightly bowed his head and walked away. Jo Gyu-min stared blankly at his retreating figure.

“Well, he’s not wrong.” Should he say that it’s like Kang Jin-ho? Jo Gyu-min knew this type of person well. The more you talk to them, the more they confuse you. They are a bit far from normal thinking, but that’s why they always find different answers.

“Ugh… I hate these kinds of people so much!” They are people who bring joy when you are just casually involved with them. There is the joy of learning about things you hadn’t thought of, and there were many things you could learn by talking to someone with a different way of thinking. But he was under the command of such a person, and he was also assisting another such person. ‘I’m tired.’ They were good people when you met them as individuals, but they were unstable when you met them for work. Especially when that person was your boss. So far, Kang Jin-ho hadn’t asked Jo Gyu-min for anything in particular, so it was okay, but what would happen when that person started to rise to the top of Jae-kyung?

Jo Gyu-min already had a headache.

“Sigh…” But people can’t just do what they want. And…

“It might be fun, though.” Jo Gyu-min sighed deeply as he watched Kang Jin-ho ride away on his Golden Bicycle.