Descent of the Demon Master

“Sir! We’ve arranged our transport!”

“Sir! We’ve finished picking the personnel!”

Even as reports poured in from all directions, Lee Hyeon-Su remained calm as his hawk-like eyes pored through various documents on his computer screen.

“Sir! We've secured the cooperation of the relevant authorities! However, they still warned us that restricting the movements of vessels in the area would not be easy. They said they will do their best, but the enforcement will still be tricky…”

Lee Hyeon-Su shook his head. “That can't be helped, then. Move on!”

“Yessir!”

Lee Hyeon-Su continued to quickly peruse the report on the screen.

‘Well, the era sure has changed, hasn’t it?’

Whenever he issued an order, the reports on the progress quickly showed up on his computer screen. Being here really drove home how much they had changed the Assembly's systems and set up a functioning chain of command.

Lee Hyeon-Su wasn’t trying to get himself a nice-sounding position within the organization. As the Assembly grew in scale and more and more people were added to existing and brand-new departments, an executive department that managed the entire operation became a necessity.

...And this new department was demonstrating its effectiveness right now.

“Sir! The advance party’s convoy is estimated to arrive in two hours!”

“Sir! We can hire and dispatch ships in two hours!”

“Good!” Lee Hyeon-Su firmly nodded.

He still didn't like the current situation. His honest feelings on the matter? He'd love to stash Kang Jin-Ho away in the deepest, safest location available if he could!

Although Lee Hyeon-Su was reasonably confident that Kang Jin-Ho wouldn't die, there was always that one in a million chance. Kang Jin-Ho's demise would lead to not only the destruction of the Martial Assembly but also the Korean martial society, too!

Right now, it was as if the gigantic pillar called Kang Jin-Ho was supporting the weight of the Korean martial society. Yes, some people might call Lee Hyeon-Su out for being overly dramatic. However…!

‘You’d be dead wrong.’

Just one look at the attendees of a high-level Assembly meeting, and it'd become amply clear why Lee Hyeon-Su thought this way.

Vator, Wiggins, Bang Jin-Hun, Chang Min, and Lee Hyeon-Su wouldn’t normally have a reason to get involved in each other’s lives. Maybe Lee Hyeon-Su and Wiggins could have come in contact with each other even if Kang Jin-Ho hadn’t facilitated it. However, what about the rest? Unlikely.

Without the common factor called Kang Jin-Ho bringing them under one banner, these people would've never become the core of the Martial Assembly, never mind sharing a conference room together.

If Kang Jin-Ho was no longer in the picture, Vator and Wiggins would obviously leave the Assembly. Chang Min couldn't go back to China, so he'd try to keep the demon cult going in South Korea on his own.

But that would lead to the eruption of dissatisfaction within the Martial Assembly, which had been suppressed to a large degree by Kang Jin-Ho's charisma. If that happened, it'd not be a surprise to see a full-frontal battle against the demon cult break out.

In summary…

‘It will be Armageddon, that’s what!’

Lee Hyeon-Su was definitely not being overly dramatic here. This hypothetical situation was, in his opinion, the best-case scenario. A real Hell-on-Earth might unfold if these people got too emotional and ended up quarreling with each other!

‘Gee, whiz… I don’t want to even imagine that.’

Worse still, the Crimson King’s faction would gleefully invade South Korea without Kang Jin-Ho around to deter them.

So, it would be destruction, no matter what!

It might have been possible to find a solution, of sorts, if the current situation was similar to the past when the Korean martial society basically groveled at the feet of their Chinese and Japanese counterparts. However, with the relationships at their absolute worst point in the history of martial arts, there was no room for negotiations and compromises.

After considering all these factors, it should become exceedingly clear that Kang Jin-Ho must never fall into life-threatening danger. So, Lee Hyeon-Su wasn’t joking about locking Kang Jin-Ho away in the Assembly Master’s office, never to be allowed outside!

‘Even though that’s how I feel… Not much I can do about this situation.’

Vator’s earlier assertion was dead on the money. Kang Jin-Ho wasn’t just the most-important individual for the Martial Assembly. No, he was also this organization’s most-important combat force. Only fools would not want to utilize such a valuable attack option.

In the end… What Lee Hyeon-Su had to do was obvious.

‘...And it’s to support him.’

In summary, nothing had changed. Lee Hyeon-Su’s job was to support Kang Jin-Ho to the best of his abilities. It was just that this situation was different from the previous events.

Rather than setting up a suitable stage for Kang Jin-Ho to go wild, Lee Hyeon-Su must work his butt off to secure a safe retreat for his boss.

Lee Hyeon-Su glanced at one of his subordinates. “Are we still tracking the enemy ship?”

“Yes, sir! They are still in our sights. Currently, it’s mid-voyage, and its coordinates are…”

“Don’t tell me, show me on screen instead!”

“Yes, sir!”

Lee Hyeon-Su glared sharply at the map appearing on the computer screen and pondered his options.

‘Well, now… How should we go about this?’

Stopping the Japanese ship from approaching the coast would be a cakewalk. Whether it was the Coast Guard or the relevant government authority, they were all in the Martial Assembly’s pockets, after all!

However, that would not solve anything. As proven by Kang Jin-Ho’s Chinese escapade recently, martial artists didn’t really need their ship to moor at a port first to disembark and enter a country. No, they could anchor the ship at a suitable distance and swim the rest of the way.

The truly-scary thing about this method was that there was no fixed route for all those Japanese warriors to infiltrate South Korea. While that ship leisurely traveled along the Korean coastline, a hundred Japanese warriors could swim ashore to Busan, another hundred to Pohang, and even Uljin. And that would make responding to them dozens of times more challenging.[1]

‘That's why we must deal with them before their ship gets too close…'

The prior experience informed Lee Hyeon-Su that his side could mount a surprise attack if the target had reached around ten kilometers to the coastline. However, the Japanese martial artists weren't as weak as the demonic cultivators. At the very least, he should consider double that distance to be safe.

In other words, the Korean side must deal with the enemy before the ship gets to the minimum distance of twenty kilometers from the shore. However, couldn't they simply prevent the enemy ship from entering that twenty-kilometer range?

‘Nope, not gonna work…’

If that happened, what would stop the Japanese from changing the ship's heading? That would only make things more annoying for the next time. Regardless of what, they needed to finish this event today.

“...And we can’t even attack them openly, either,” Lee Hyeon-Su muttered while bitterly smiling.

The Japanese were traveling on a cruise ship. Even if that vessel had not been documented, attacking it was still impossible. After all, martial artists weren't soldiers. Firing guns at civilians would create a storm of international criticism, plus all the frothing-at-the-mouth demand for answers from Japan. So, Lee Hyeon-Su would never dare use this card.

In fact, getting the army involved would only be like a declaration of war. That move could lead to an open warfare between South Korea and Japan. Lee Hyeon-Su and Co. must ensure such a hellish scenario does not happen for real.

This issue wasn’t about who won and lost. Martial artists were supposed to be a hidden force. As such, they must try their best to avoid harming those in the surface world. Besides, Lee Hyeon-Su didn’t have the right or qualifications to unilaterally decide the fate of so many people, anyway.

In that case, what he and his team were preparing to do should be the best way to handle this situation.

Lee Hyeon-Su glanced at his subordinates. “Are all the preparations complete?”

“Yes, sir. Everything’s done.”

“What about the last thing, then?”

“Sir! It should be arriving any second now!”

That was when Lee Hyeon-Su’s hearing caught the ear-shredding noise gradually ramping up outside the office windows. The corners of his lips suspiciously curled up as he listened.

Since they had no choice but to do this…

“...Might as well do it in style, no?”

***

“Urgh… Kkuh…”

“Hmph…” Nakata Yuji grunted in dissatisfaction, his gaze glued to the phone in his hand. This mobile device was not his, of course. It belonged to Nobuo. Nakata Yuji shook his head. “Why couldn’t you hand it over quietly for both our sakes? Wouldn’t it have been so much easier, then?”

While saying that, Nakata Yuji dismissively flicked Nobuo's severed finger away. That finger fell with a squishy plop in front of its original owner.

Nobuo glared murderously at this spectacle.

“How scary,” Nakata Yuji muttered disinterestedly. Then, he walked up to the kneeling Nobuo in unfaltering steps, a cheery smirk etched on his face. “Do you know what’s really scary, though?”

“…”

“Even I’m scared of what I’ll do to you, fella.”

That smirk on Nakata Yuji’s face bloomed into a full-on radiant smile.

“I usually never lose my temper. Do you know why? My reason is pretty simple, actually. All things in this world can be divided into either gains or losses. However, rage can rarely produce any useful gains, you see? An angry man is too blinded to see the world properly. And that inevitably leads to losses. I… I hate losing.”

Nakata Yuji spoke in a gentle tone. Of course, no one in this room would be foolish enough to think he was being a gentleman right now. It’d be more correct to say his so-called gentle voice sent chills down their spines. And that also applied to his ‘warm’ smile!

“Even then, I still lose my temper sometimes. That's what all humans are like, though. Am I right? Humans know what's right and wrong, yet we still can't always stick to the correct path. I'm also human, so sometimes, I get the urge to do whatever the hell I feel like, gains and losses be damned. Unfortunately for you and me… Now is one such moment.”

As he listened, Nobuo smirked weakly. No one would’ve blamed him for failing to keep his composure in front of the enraged Nakata Yuji. Yet Nobuo could crack a smile in this situation.

Then again, he no longer had nothing to be afraid of, anyway. His body was already a broken mess. Vicious beatings and torture ensured that. However, that wasn’t the important part here.

No, what was important was the knowledge. Nobuo knew that his situation would never change regardless of what he did.

Nakata Yuji would obviously not spare Nobuo's life even if the latter begged and pleaded for leniency. In that case, why should Nobuo cower in fear? When he'd still meet a grisly end anyway?

Nakata Yuji narrowed his eyes and peered closely at Nobuo’s face. “Let me ask you something.”

“…”

“Why did you do this?”

Nakata Yuji's voice was hushed. So hushed was his voice that it was hard to tell if he was merely thinking out loud or genuinely demanding Nobuo to spit out the truth.

“I just can't comprehend why you would do this no matter how much I think about it, you see? I don't see what you'd gain by doing this stupid thing. How would warning the Koreans benefit you? Could they have promised you a cushy little position in their organization? Or was it a tidy sum of money?”

“…”

Nakata Yuji slowly shook his head. “No, of course not. You are not valuable enough for that. And the Koreans didn’t know about our plan to invade, anyway. To plan against something they have no idea about, they offered something juicy to a nobody? Nope, that makes no bloody sense. Don’t you agree?”

Nobuo maintained his silence and glared at Nakata Yuji.

“Right, right… That doesn't make sense at all. Definitely not. Even if something that nonsensical was true, your actions still defy logic. That's because our enemies wouldn't have a way to single you out and avoid killing you during the battle. If this ship goes down for some reason, you will definitely die. So… Why would anyone risk that and still contact the enemy?”

A dismayed chuckle leaked out of Nakata Yuji’s lips next.

“I don't get it. I really don't. It seems I'm not smart enough to figure the truth out. Never once in my life did I see myself as an idiot, but you made me consider that possibility. Maybe I am an idiot, after all? However, that doesn't seem like the answer either. Which means the idiot is actually you…”

Nakata Yuji reached out and grabbed Nobuo’s hair.

“So, tell me, fella.”

Nobuo’s hair was pulled out, causing blood droplets to seep out on his skull.

“Tell me the truth. It’s not hard, now is it? I’m not gagging you or anything like that, after all! So, tell me why you did this thing. Why did you do this stupid and illogical thing? When you stand to gain nothing?

“You could’ve lived out the rest of your life in comfort by simply following my orders and getting some nice achievements under your belt. So… Why? Is it because of that flimsy and idiotic patriotism? Mm?”

“Kek…” Nobuo’s body began trembling. “Kek… Kekeke…”

However, he wasn't shaking out of fear. No, Nobuo was cackling.

This unstoppable cackle leaked out of Nobuo's bruised and bleeding lips. It was as if he had been desperately trying to suppress this cackle only to fail miserably in the end.

Nakata Yuji narrowed his eyes. To think this man would cackle in this situation! And Nobuo wasn’t bluffing, either. He really was cackling.

“You want to know why?” Nobuo's cackle subsided and morphed into a crooked smirk. His cracked lips split open, and more fresh blood trickled down his chin. “I would also like to know why myself. Listen here, you dipshit. I also don't know why, so how can I explain it to anyone?! Ptooi!”

Nobuo suddenly spat, but Nakata Yuji didn't bother to dodge. The spit, mixed with phlegm and blood, lazily dripped down Nakata Yuji's cheek.

“Do whatever the f*ck you feel like, b*tch. I have nothing to tell you, anyway!”

“Hmm…”

Nakata Yuji strengthened his grip on Nobuo’s head.

1. Busan and Pohang are the names of South Korean port cities, while Uljin is the name of a South Korean county on the east coast. ☜