Descent of the Demon Master

“So, the Martial Assembly fell into Bang Jin-Hun's hands...” Kim Seok-Il, the leader of the Yeongnam Group, muttered in a wry voice. “The worst possibility has come true, then.”

"Yes, sir. It has." Lee Hyeon-Su nodded, his frown also filled with worries.

Kim Seok-Il groaned loudly. "Fooling that aging raccoon was easy since he thinks of himself as a wily genius, but that wild boar of a man... He's not as smart but can be much more drastic. Beating him is easier, but the losses will be far greater in the end."

“Yes, sir. I agree.”

“Mm. The Assembly... The Assembly is it...”

In all honesty, this matter wasn't as problematic as these two made it out to be. Regardless of who took the top position in the Martial Assembly, the relationship between that organization and Kim Seok-Il's Yeongnam Group had already reached the point of no return. A war between them was inevitable.

Besides, wasn't Kim Seok-Il actively seeking a confrontation with the Assembly? This was one of the reasons he wanted to eliminate Lee Jung-Geol in the first place. That old man was far too keen on avoiding open warfare, after all.

“In that sense, I did want Bang Jin-Hun to be in charge, but...” Kim Seok-Il slowly leaned his head back with a bitter expression.

Back when Bang Jin-Hun had asked for assistance to eliminate Lee Jung-Geol, Kim Seok-Il had provided it without demanding anything in return. His thoughts at the time had been that the assassination was bound to create problems for Bang Jin-Hun.

Bang Jin-Hun didn't have the smarts to deal with the assassination flawlessly, so eliminating Lee Jung-Geol that way would have definitely birthed a major rift within the Assembly.

Even if Bang Jin-Hun had gotten lucky and taken care of things relatively well, the Martial Assembly would have still entered a state of civil war. And even if that scenario was somehow avoided, the Martial Assembly would have still lost its influence and power regardless.

However, the agents Kim Seok-Il dispatched had been killed, all while Bang Jin-Hun had successfully taken over the Martial Assembly without losing anything.

“...Kang Jin-Ho!” Kim Seok-Il gritted his teeth loudly.

Everything seemed to be unfolding according to plan, but it had all rapidly gone down the drain the moment Kang Jin-Ho's name started announcing itself in Kim Seok-Il's world. Back when Kim Seok-Il heard about the Crimson King's desire to kill Kang Jin-Ho, he had been flabbergasted by the notion of someone as powerful as one of the Three Kings personally making a move to eliminate a mere brat. But now...

“I should've killed him earlier!”

All thanks to Kang Jin-Ho, Kim Seok-Il had to suffer so many losses. Because of that bastard, not only had Kim Seok-Il failed to harm the Martial Assembly, but he also lost several of his valued subordinates. Not to forget, he had even lost the secret weapon called the Fallen in the process, too!

Kim Seok-Il massaged the bridge of his nose. “So, what will happen now? Is the Martial Assembly completely in Bang Jin-Hun's hands or what?”

Lee Hyeon-Su rubbed his chin. “No, sir. I think that will take a little more time.”

“Well, that makes sense.”

“And sir, even with enough time, I believe Bang Jin-Hun will never get to completely take over the Assembly.”

“How come? Is Lee Jung-Geol preparing to counterattack?”

“No, that's not it,” Lee Hyeon-Su decisively shook his head. “The one we should be watching isn't Bang Jin-Hun... but Kang Jin-Ho.”

“...Kang Jin-Ho?” Kim Seok-Il frowned. It seemed that every problem occurring lately involved Kang Jin-Ho in some fashion. “Why do you think so?”

“We have no way of knowing what kind of a deal Bang Jin-Hun and Kang Jin-Ho made, but there's no doubt that Kang Jin-Ho has sway over Bang Jin-Hun.”

“Wait, wait. Look here.” Kim Seok-Il stopped Lee Hyeon-Su there with a deeply annoyed voice. “I get that you've developed the 'Kang Jin-Ho neurosis' recently. However, he's still just a brat. Do you really think someone like Bang Jin-Hun, who went through all sorts of things in his life, will obediently do as told by a brat?”

“...”

"Stop underestimating Bang Jin-Hun just because I do that. You ain't qualified enough for that. Don't forget that Bang Jin-Hun managed to gain enough influence within the Martial Assembly to oppose the sitting Assembly Master. Something like that is utterly impossible without the talent to attract people to his side and martial ability to back him up."

“Sir, I never said Bang Jin-Hun is a moron.”

“...Oh? So what, then?”

“I'm trying to tell you that Kang Jin-Ho is not a brat. He's smart enough to keep even someone like Bang Jin-Hun in line.”

“Mm...!” Kim Seok-Il moaned quietly. He didn't want to admit that, but...

'...Bloody hell!'

To him, South Korea's martial arts society was similar to a massive traditional Korean chessboard. On the other side of this board sat Lee Jung-Geol in direct opposition to Kim Seok-Il, and the two men fought for supremacy using countless chess pieces.

Since he was starting this competition with a few pieces missing, Kim Seok-Il chose to 'accept a few hints' offered from the sidelines. However, someone who should have been a mere chess piece suddenly shoved Lee Jung-Geol aside and occupied the old man's position. The craziness didn't stop there, though, as a huge boulder named Kang Jin-Ho flew in from the outside and crashed into the chessboard, utterly obliterating it in the process!

“What a bloody mess this has turned into!” Kim Seok-Il unhappily rubbed his face. His usually-relaxed expression was nowhere to be seen right now. “So? What do you think will happen?”

“Sir, it will take a little more time. The bad news is that... Lee Jung-Geol is apparently offering his full support to Bang Jin-Hun.”

“Doesn't that old fart have pride or something?!”

Lee Hyeon-Su sighed inwardly while watching Kim Seok-Il yell in irritation.

'Why isn't he trying to take advantage of this situation?'

The old Kim Seok-Il wouldn't have been this shaken up. No matter what variables got in his way, Kim Seok-Il had always been the type to remain level-headed and handle the situation appropriately. Lately, though, such a man was acting a little more anxious and urgent than before.

'I don't get it...' 

Lee Hyeon-Su couldn't understand it. Kim Seok-Il wasn’t really getting too old, and he had no health issues either. In the end, Lee Hyeon-Su resolved to think more about this problem at another time, and he offered up more of his opinion to his boss. "Sir, I believe Kang Jin-Ho's influence was responsible for this arrangement."

"It's Kang Jin-Ho, again?!" Kim Seok-Il spat out as if he was the one suffering from the 'Kang Jin-Ho neurosis’ rather than Lee Hyeon-Su.

"Sir, without that explanation, Lee Jung-Geol's response doesn't make any sense. In my opinion, it's safe to assume that either Lee Jung-Geol or Bang Jin-Hun has completely fallen under Kang Jin-Ho's influence."

“...Urgh.” Kim Seok-Il didn't reply and simply squeezed his eyes shut. He leaned back against his couch to organize his thoughts. Eventually, his eyes shot open. “So, what you are saying is... On the surface, it looks like Lee Jung-Geol has yielded the Assembly Master position to Bang Jin-Hun, but in reality, they are simply teaming up under Kang Jin-Ho's banner? Is that it?”

“Yes, sir.”

"However, doesn't that imply Kang Jin-Ho has managed to swallow up the massive dinosaur called the Korean Martial Assembly in a brief window of time?"

“...Unfortunately, yes.”

Kim Seok-Il chuckled hollowly. “Hah. Hahaha...”

How could he not feel this way? Although he had never expressed it publicly, Kim Seok-Il viewed Lee Jung-Geol as a kindred soul of sorts. Hadn’t he fought against the Assembly Master for his entire adult life? Both on the surface and in the shadows? It was only natural to develop a certain level of respect for his rival.

But then, despite the foundation built up over his lengthy career, Lee Jung-Geol had lost it all in less than a year to some punk that showed up out of nowhere. No wonder Kim Seok-Il felt dismayed and even frustrated by the news.

“Dammit...!” Kim Seok-Il groaned.

Lee Hyeon-Su continued his explanation, seemingly oblivious to his boss's sentiments, "They will need time to organize everything. Even if Lee Jung-Geol is willing to follow Bang Jin-Hun's orders, the folks under Lee Jung-Geol should be less than pleased about it, sir. However, in the end, everyone will fall in line, and when that's done…"

Kim Seok-Il slowly nodded. "...They will hit us next."

“Yes, sir.”

“Bang Jin-Hun is that kind of a man, after all.”

“No, sir. It's because Kang Jin-Ho is that kind of a man.”

Kim Seok-Il frowned deeply. “Listen here, you—”

“Sir, you've never personally met Kang Jin-Ho before, have you?” asked Lee Hyeon-Su.

Kim Seok-Il cocked his eyebrow in puzzlement. “Of course not.”

“But I have, sir…”

Back in the parking lot, Lee Hyeon-Su had seen the traces that Kang Jin-Ho had left behind. He hadn’t actually gotten to meet Kang Jin-Ho, but the impression he had gotten from the latter was...

‘He’s extremely dangerous.'

Despite arriving after the situation had been dealt with, Lee Hyeon-Su could still tell—he could still tell how dangerous, scary, and vicious Kang Jin-Ho really was. Most 'normal' people couldn't have acted that way even if they possessed similar strength.

What made Kang Jin-Ho scary wasn’t his power. No, it had more to do with the unpredictability of what he would target next. Since he crossed the lines of common sense people had drawn with alarming frequency, no one could even dare to predict what he would do next.

“Sir, I'm coming from a place of loyalty and genuine concern. Please do not look down on Kang Jin-Ho.”

“When did I do that?” Kim Seok-Il frowned deeply again.

However, that only made Lee Hyeon-Su scowl in irritation instead. “Sir, that man terrifies me! And two of the most influential people in the Assembly bow their heads to him, too! Not to forget, a big fish like the Crimson King is trying to keep Kang Jin-Ho in check, sir! A big fish who wouldn't normally give a damn about a small pond like South Korea!”

“...!”

“Sir, it's time to accept the truth. Kang Jin-Ho is a bomb thrown into our small pond, sir. Not just any bomb, but a massive nuke that will blow everything away! A bigshot couldn’t get any bigger than he is! Please stop judging Kang Jin-Ho with prejudices like age or relative obscurity, sir! He's a real and existing threat, and one moment of carelessness can lead to us getting blown away!”

Kim Seok-Il's expression grew solemn.

'Hyeon-Su is right. I've been underestimating Kang Jin-Ho, haven't I?'

It wasn't as if Kim Seok-Il had never paid attention to Kang Jin-Ho. However, after listening to Lee Hyeon-Su's impassioned speech, he realized that he had been too lackadaisical with matters concerning Kang Jin-Ho until now.

"Sir, we now have two options before us," said Lee Hyeon-Ju.

“Two, you say...?”

"One, we attack the Assembly first before they can sort out their internal chaos and finish their preparation for war."

“Mm...”

“Two, we also thoroughly prepare and wait for their inevitable attack. Both options have their pros and cons, sir.” Lee Hyeon-Su took a breath to compose himself before continuing with his explanation. However, before he could do that, Kim Seok-Il raised his hand to interrupt him.

Lee Hyeon-Su's eyes narrowed after noticing Kim Seok-Il's current expression. That expression...was something he hadn’t seen in a while.

It was the sharp, focused expression that Kim Seok-Il used to make when he was still in his physical prime.

“Something is strange here, Hyeon-Su. So strange...” Kim Seok-Il tapped on his knee with his fingertip. “Tell me, isn't it strange?”

“Sir?”

“According to your opinion, Kang Jin-Ho is the source of all these events, correct?”

“...Yes, sir.”

“And... Cai Kechang's demand was never about the downfall of the Martial Assembly, was it? No, he just wanted us to kill Kang Jin-Ho.”

“...!” Lee Hyeon-Ju's expression stiffened.

A cruel smile spread on Kim Seok-Il's face. “In that case, why do we need to deal with the Assembly first?”

“T-that is because...”

“As you've said, Kang Jin-Ho is the center of everything. If he has taken over the Martial Assembly, eliminating him will sort out all the problems, no? The Assembly will descend into confusion and internal conflicts once more, and the Chinese will stop pressuring us.”

“You're correct, sir,” Lee Hyeon-Su unwillingly replied as anxiety crept into his heart.

Kim Seok-Il was technically correct. He had accurately pointed out the part that Lee Hyeon-Su hadn't thought of.

...No, that was a lie. Lee Hyeon-Su had thought about that part before. Obviously, he understood that removing Kang Jin-Ho from the picture would calm the choppy waters surrounding all these events. Most importantly, though, successfully eliminating Kang Jin-Ho would undo their paralyzed relationship with the Crimson King's faction and lead to the resumption of the financial support that had been cut off for a while now.

As long as the Yeongnam Group could resume receiving assistance from the Crimson King's faction, they wouldn't have to worry about dealing with the Martial Assembly. However...

'No, it feels wrong.'

Lee Hyeon-Su's instinct was crying out at him. It said that they definitely shouldn’t do this. Even if it was too late not to get involved, they should still try their best not to get involved with Kang Jin-Ho more than they already had. A contradiction was swirling in Lee Hyeon-Su's head.

“Sir, this is—”

“Listen, Lee Hyeon-Su,” Kim Seok-Il said in a low, quiet voice that was still filled with dignity and authority.

Lee Hyeon-Su felt his body go numb and stiff the moment he heard that voice. He cautiously bit his lower lip before responding, “Yes, sir.”

"I'm still the chairperson of this organization, aren't I? Which means, I have the final say. Right?"

'This stinking old fool...!' Lee Hyeon-Ju groaned inwardly.

The words 'still' and 'aren't I' contained the hidden meaning of 'I already know what you want to say here, fella'. Since that was the case, how was Lee Hyeon-Su supposed to oppose his boss now?

“Yes, sir. You're the boss.”

“In that case, I'll make the decision now.” Kim Seok-Il shot up from the couch. “From this moment on, we change our policy. All available resources of the Yeongnam Group will be focused on... getting rid of Kang Jin-Ho!”

“...Sir, there will be conflicts against the Martial Assembly's people in the meantime.”

“Ignore them.”

“But, sir!”

"Tsk, tsk..." Kim Seok-Il glanced disapprovingly at Lee Hyeon-Su. "Trying to kill your opponent while hoping to avoid injuries will only get yourself killed in the end. If the prey is strong and delicious, you better be resolved to lose an arm or two during the hunt, got that?"

“...Sir.”

“Now that we have sorted that out, let’s get the ball rolling,” said Kim Seok-Il before leaving the office.

Lee Hyeon-Su slowly closed his eyes.

'Resolved to lose an arm or two?'

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What if the opponent wasn’t prey, then? What if the prey they rushed to hunt turned out to be a fierce predator waiting to take their heads off?

“Well, we'll all get killed, that's what...”

Lee Hyeon-Su could only groan loudly upon thinking that the order he had just received could herald the start of the Yeongnam Group’s demise.