Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 608

Director Jo Nam-pyeong was a coffee enthusiast. He didn’t just drink coffee frequently; he loved the beverage itself. He would meticulously select beans and blends, even going so far as to brew his own coffee. From the days when coffee was called ‘Western bitter water’ and those who drank it were considered eccentric, he had enjoyed coffee. What he particularly loved about coffee was its aroma. While he enjoyed the process of the bitter coffee touching his tongue and going down his throat, it couldn’t compare to the deep fragrance of coffee. The coffee in front of him right now was exactly that kind of coffee. A coffee with a great aroma. However, Jo Nam-pyeong wasn’t enjoying it at all. Rather, the strong coffee aroma was irritating his nerves. Why was that? Perhaps it wasn’t because of the aroma. This coffee was brewed by him personally. There were countless coffee shops in the world, but none of them could match his taste as well as this coffee. So, the coffee wasn’t the problem. If there was something wrong, it was Jo Nam-pyeong himself. To be precise, what was wrong was Jo Nam-pyeong’s mood. When a person is in a bad mood, everything feels unpleasant. Even if it’s the aroma of coffee that he usually loves. And the cause of his bad mood was now sipping coffee in front of him. Lee Hyun-soo. At this moment, Jo Nam-pyeong thought that life was quite strange. Could he have ever imagined that he would sit across from Lee Hyun-soo and drink coffee together? When Lee Hyun-soo was active as Kim Seok-il’s brain, Jo Nam-pyeong tried his best to eliminate Lee Hyun-soo. Lee Hyun-soo was the one who perfectly filled in the gaps in Kim Seok-il’s abilities. If he hadn’t been there, the General Assembly wouldn’t have been pushed back by the Yeongnam Association. And yet, Lee Hyun-soo was now sitting in front of him. That’s why life is interesting. Jo Nam-pyeong felt the urge to reach out and grab Lee Hyun-soo’s neck. He could easily snap that thin neck right now if he wanted to. But… ‘That’s life, isn’t it?’ If he killed Lee Hyun-soo now, all their plans would be shattered. Even if he made it look like an accident or a mistake, he couldn’t guarantee what would happen afterward. Kang Jin-ho wasn’t a very rational person. Knowing that, Lee Hyun-soo was calmly drinking coffee in front of him. “What did you say?” Jo Nam-pyeong asked, suppressing his anger. “Hmm, was it difficult to understand? I don’t think so?” He wanted to crush that mocking face. Jo Nam-pyeong took a deep breath and continued. “I have no intention of playing games with you. If you don’t have any business, please leave.” “Business… You’re not really saying that because you don’t know, are you? If you didn’t hear my business, I’ll say it again. Join our side.” “I told you to get lost.” Lee Hyun-soo smiled smoothly. “You’d better think carefully before you speak.” “You little…” Just as Jo Nam-pyeong was about to jump up from his seat, Lee Hyun-soo opened his mouth. “You can chase out Lee Hyun-soo who tells you to betray the elders’ alliance and join our side. But…” Lee Hyun-soo stared at Jo Nam-pyeong with a meaningful look. “You won’t be able to chase out Lee Hyun-soo who tells you to abandon Lee Jung-geol’s rebellion and join our side.” Jo Nam-pyeong couldn’t say anything. What the hell was this guy babbling about? “What did you say? Rebellion?” “Yes.” “Hah… What nonsense. I have no intention of indulging in your games any further. I’ve tolerated enough. Right now, from this very spot…” “Everyone will die.” Jo Nam-pyeong shut his mouth. “Just because you ignore it doesn’t mean the fact that I know will disappear. The moment I leave this room without any gain, I will kill everyone involved in this matter based on the information I have secured. Not a single person will be left alive.” “You son of a bitch!” Jo Nam-pyeong jumped up from his seat. Then, a silent standoff began. Jo Nam-pyeong stared at Lee Hyun-soo for a long time before tightly closing his eyes. He shouldn’t have gotten angry. He should have just pretended that he didn’t know anything until the end. At this moment, everything became unnatural. A mistake, a mistake. But it wasn’t a mistake. There was no way that Lee Hyun-soo would say such things just to test him. If he remained ignorant, Lee Hyun-soo would have definitely kept his word. That was his way when he reigned as the devil of the Yeongnam Association. “It’s been a while since I’ve been cursed at. Come to think of it, Kang Jin-ho is a really nice guy. He doesn’t curse.” Whether that’s a good way to judge a person is questionable. Jo Nam-pyeong’s mind was desperately racing. How much did he know? Everything? That couldn’t be. Then, how much? He desperately pondered how much he had to give up. If he could survive even by cutting off his limbs, there was a possibility. “Sit down.” Lee Hyun-soo said quietly. “You…” “I said sit down.” At Lee Hyun-soo’s firm voice, Jo Nam-pyeong sat down as if collapsing. His face was filled with disbelief and fear. ‘Since when?’ Since when did he know? Since when! “It’s a strange thing, isn’t it?” Lee Hyun-soo smiled lightly. “In the past, you guys wanted to kill me so badly, didn’t you? You’ve suffered at my hands more than once. So why didn’t you guard against me? If you were planning something, the person you should have been most wary of wouldn’t be Kang Jin-ho, but me. Did you really think that just because I’m living like Kang Jin-ho’s pet dog, I’ve lost all my old teeth?” Lee Hyun-soo shook his head. “It’s a bit awkward and embarrassing to be treated like this after getting older. But it doesn’t matter. Thanks to that, things have progressed a bit more easily.” “Hoo…” Jo Nam-pyeong took a deep breath. It was about to begin. The tedious battle of wits. If necessary, even at the cost of his life… “There’s no need to roll your eyes. I know everything. What you guys are preparing, who is involved, and… there’s no need to know such things. We just need to cut off Lee Jung-geol’s head.” “You…” Jo Nam-pyeong’s body trembled. This was a game he couldn’t win. Lee Hyun-soo was right. They wouldn’t be interested in limbs from the start. They just needed to take down Lee Jung-geol. If they lost Lee Jung-geol, they would become disorganized again without a central figure. “Then!” Jo Nam-pyeong slammed the table. “Then, that’s what we should do! Why are you telling me this! Why! Before cutting off the Chairman’s head, are you going to take my head as an appetizer? Fine, take it. Should I lend you a knife, you son of a bitch?” “Whoa, whoa, calm down.” Lee Hyun-soo smiled gently. It was a friendly-looking smile, but to Jo Nam-pyeong, it looked like the smile of a cold-blooded devil. The devil of the Yeongnam Association was just lying dormant. Nothing had changed. “What do you think is the reason I’ve been waiting until now? I just want to wipe them all out at once. And for that, I need a collaborator. Now, this is the main point. Listen carefully.” Lee Hyun-soo slightly shifted the atmosphere. “If Director Jo cooperates with us, we will only kill those who resist. If not, everyone will have to die.” “…What?” Jo Nam-pyeong’s face twisted grotesquely. Was he calling this a negotiation? How could this be a negotiation? This! “You devilish bastard.” “A devil? Me? No. I’m being rational, Director Jo.” Click. Lee Hyun-soo put a cigarette in his mouth and lit it. ‘I can’t quit this no matter what.’ He couldn’t quit smoking because of moments like this. The expression on a human’s face when they are cornered and have to choose between having their neck or arm cut off was a spectacle that could only be seen at times like this. “You guys started it first. It’s not like I instigated it. Since ancient times, if you’re caught plotting a rebellion, your entire clan’s heads are cut off. But it’s not like I’m going to touch your families. Originally, the heads of those involved should all be cut off, but I’m increasing the number of people who will survive. You shouldn’t be saying such things. You should be grateful.” Jo Nam-pyeong laughed. They say that when something is too absurd, you end up laughing, and that was exactly the case now. “You’d better not talk carelessly. At this point, I might not think about the consequences anymore. Snapping your neck in this place is nothing.” “Yes, it’s nothing. So, I’ve left behind a document containing the list of those involved in this matter. I’ve also added plenty of people I don’t particularly like. I think you’ll be very satisfied when you see it?” “You dog-like bastard, you… you!” If it were possible to kill someone with a glare, Lee Hyun-soo’s body would have been torn to shreds by now. But unfortunately, people don’t die just from glares. “I don’t like wasting time.” Lee Hyun-soo tapped the ash from his cigarette into the ashtray and continued with a cold face. “Decide. Either cooperate with us, or everyone dies.” “…How many will you save?” “Anyone who doesn’t resist will be saved.” “Even the Chairman?” “Are you joking?” Lee Hyun-soo said as if he was dumbfounded. “You should bring up someone who makes sense.” “Director Jo, I’m not someone with a lot of time either. Someone like you should have already finished calculating. Let’s not waste each other’s time. It’s already a settled matter anyway. No matter which side you choose, Lee Jung-geol will not survive. Then, you should choose the method that will save at least one more person.” Director Jo didn’t answer. He already knew. That he had no choice. “If only, if only I had a little more time!” So, all that was left was to vent his frustration. “No, Director Jo.” But Lee Hyun-soo didn’t even accept that frustration. “From the moment you decided to oppose Kang Jin-ho, your chances of winning didn’t exist from the start. You were just building a sandcastle that looked plausible.” “What do you know!” “I know everything.” “Shut up, you! You don’t know. You don’t know how we led this General Assembly. It’s a fruit created solely from blood and sweat in those days when we had nothing. And you, who didn’t contribute to the creation of the General Assembly, are going to take that fruit for yourselves? And you don’t even feel a little bit sorry!” Lee Hyun-soo sighed and said. “Director Jo.” “You seem to be mistaken, but that’s not it. The world is a jungle. The strong eat the weak.” Lee Hyun-soo drove the point home. “The reason you lost what you had, Director Jo, is simply because you were weak.” It was a very cruel declaration.