Descent of the Demon Master

“Are you guys alright?” Kang Jin-Ho asked the Seongsim kids.

“Hyung!”

“Oppa!”

The Seongsim kids sitting around the bonfire jumped up to their feet when Kang Jin-Ho approached them. They hurriedly rushed up to him, and Kang Jin-Ho gently patted the backs of those clinging to his chest. At the same time, he studied their physical conditions with a pair of hawk-like eyes.

‘Doesn’t look like they are injured badly on the outside…’

Some kids had abrasions and injured ligaments, but none seemed serious enough to require immediate medical treatment. Kang Jin-Ho sighed in relief at that.

“Hyung!” Han Jin-Seong called out to Kang Jin-Ho while walking closer.

“Hey, Jin-Seong. You okay?”

“Ah… Yeah. I'm fine. I'm not hurt.”

There was only one choice Kang Jin-Ho could have made in this situation.

It wouldn't be hard for him to safely extract the Seongsim kids in this crisis. However, that would have led to the inevitable death of other aquarium visitors. Even if Kang Jin-Ho was strong and resourceful, it'd still be impossible to save the Seongsim kids and other people at the same time.

He believed he had made the best choice under the circumstances. However, something still bugged him in the corner of his mind, and there wasn't much he could do to get rid of it.

‘Will I get lucky again next time, too?’

No, it probably wouldn’t be.

Sooner or later, he might have to choose between the lives of his acquaintances and strangers. And when that day comes… What would Kang Jin-Ho choose?

‘This… isn’t about choosing which one.’

If the choice proved tricky, nay, downright impossible… Maybe he shouldn't choose at all?

Since his strength only amounted to this much, Kang Jin-Ho was forced to make a choice. However, if he had possessed strength on a similar level as Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor, rescuing the Seongsim kids and the rest of the visitors would've been a cakewalk for him!

...Which meant there could be only one solution. And that was to get stronger!

That was what Kang Jin-Ho learned from this event.

‘Yes, that’s always been my goal, hasn’t it?’

This goal sounded so Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor-esque that Kang Jin-Ho had been consciously trying to avoid facing up to it.

Events occurring due to Kang Jin-Ho's lack of strength could only be solved through him… getting much stronger! And Kang Jin-Ho had acquired the first crucial key in unlocking his future path toward even greater strength.

‘Yes, it is rather ironic.’

Even though Kang Jin-Ho hadn't devoted himself to cultivating or desperately achieving a lofty goal, he was still getting stronger at a much faster rate than his past self.

Such a rate of improvement made sense in the early days of his return to the modern era. After all, Kang Jin-Ho’s previous attainment was truly sky-high back in ancient Zhongyuan.

However, logic dictated that the improvement should have gradually slowed down the closer Kang Jin-Ho got to his previous peak. And that… didn't happen to him.

With a closer inspection, one might find bumps and unevenness in the imaginary graph denoting his rate of improvement. However, when viewed from afar? The line going a steep uphill should be as straight as an arrow.

“Oppa…!” Jo Mi-Hye whimpered weakly while digging deeply into Kang Jin-Ho's embrace. Her body felt cold to the touch.

Kang Jin-Ho frowned slightly. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought you guys here.”

“N-no, don’t say that, oppa. No one could have predicted something like this would happen today. You were only thinking about us, anyway.”

“Mm…”

It'd be unsurprising if Mi-Hye wanted to blame Kang Jin-Ho for today's ordeal. After all, these kids barely managed to escape with their lives intact. Keeping a cool, calm head must be next to impossible. Yet these kids, they… They were trying to defend him.

‘It’s… warm.’

This girl and other kids were cold to the touch, but the warmth they emitted was reassuringly strong.

The corners of Kang Jin-Ho’s lips subtly curled up.

‘Yes, that’s right…’

Kang Jin-Ho remembered why he was so ‘obsessed’ with taking care of these kids and why he couldn’t abandon the Seongsim Orphanage. It was because of this warmth.

All Kang Jin-Ho could feel during the initial days after his return was unfamiliarity. As if he didn’t belong here. Even though he longed so much to return to the modern era, the emotions he felt were far from fulfillment or relief.

However, that unfamiliarity, that sense of alienation, was wiped away by these kids and their warmth.

Their warmth, which was generous enough to accept everyone, regardless of who they were… Simply knowing he was needed was enough for Kang Jin-Ho to finally find the sense of belonging and stability he failed to find in other places.

‘So, that was why…’

Whenever others asked him why he was so obsessed with that orphanage or went so far for these children's sake, Kang Jin-Ho couldn't give them a clear answer. All he could say was that he just wanted those kids to be a part of his life.

He'd come up with a half-hearted excuse of wanting to change from his past self. But now, Kang Jin-Ho finally understood.

‘I did it because I wanted to protect this place.’

Because this was a place he could return to. A place where he could rest in peace.

Kang Jin-Ho’s generosity hadn’t been one-sided at all. He had already received so much from the Seongsim kids.

Kang Jin-Ho held Jo Mi-Hye even tighter as those thoughts burned deeply in his mind.

“Excuse me, sir?”

That was when several emergency medical technicians approached Kang Jin-Ho.

“Please pardon us, sir. We’re here to confirm if anyone requires immediate medical assistance. Is anyone here injured badly or feel something is not right with their body?”

Kang Jin-Ho glanced around at the Seongsim kids. “Anyone not feeling okay?”

Rather than answering, the Seongsim kids began looking at each other to see if someone else was injured worse than they were. Kang Jin-Ho felt a little frustrated at how selfless these kids could be in times like this.

After sighing a little, Kang Jin-Ho addressed the EMTs. “It doesn’t look like anyone’s hurt badly.”

“Please tell us immediately if something doesn’t quite feel right with your body or your condition is steadily getting worse. You might feel fine right now, but that doesn’t mean you’re actually fine, you see?”

“Understood. I'll keep that in mind,” said Kang Jin-Ho with a brief nod.

“Again, we must stress the importance of receiving a medical examination even if you feel fine physically. It's just that… We have a lot of injured people and not enough ambulances to take everyone to hospitals. We're genuinely embarrassed to ask you this, but… If you have your own vehicles, how about heading to a hospital yourselves and…”

That was when Kang Jin-Ho’s brows quivered ominously. However, his expression softened soon afterward.

That was because Kang Jin-Ho remembered how many people got hurt in this event. Taking them all to a hospital simultaneously was obviously impossible.

“Understood. We’ll do that, then,” said Kang Jin-Ho.

“Thank you, sir. Then, the hospital designated for this incident is…”

Lee Hyeon-Su, who had sneaked closer during the conversation, decided to butt in just then. “Excuse me. You should discuss that with me.”

“Oh, uh… Sure, sir.”

The EMTs followed Lee Hyeon-Su and moved to a spot some distance away. After discussing some things with them, Lee Hyeon-Su returned to Kang Jin-Ho’s side with a cool smirk on his face. “Sir. Our medical facility isn’t too far from here. Since we already have a bus, let us use that.”

“Mm…” Kang Jin-Ho nodded.

‘Right. These kids do need to see a doctor. To make sure they are really fine.'

From what Kang Jin-Ho could see, there didn’t seem to be any grave issues to worry about, but he was no doctor. Possessing high attainment in martial arts didn’t mean you also possessed medical knowledge, after all.

Kang Jin-Ho might have the prior form of 'healing' Hwang Jeong-Hu in the past, but that was more like the case of him removing a disease his senses could pick up. In terms of overall skillset or the depths of knowledge, Kang Jin-Ho would never match doctors who had devoted their lives to studying medicine.

Kang Jin-Ho’s involvement should be limited to extracting the turbid qi in the kids’ minds and not much else.

Lee Hyeon-Su rubbed his chin. “By the way, sir.”

“Mm?”

“From what I heard from the hospital, they are going to perform surgical diagnosis only and not handle any psychological traumas. That sounds like we should prepare counselors for the kids to speak to.”

Kang Jin-Ho agreed with that idea. Extracting turbid qi from the children could resolve most of the issues, but Kang Jin-Ho couldn’t say with certainty that that would do the trick. He wasn’t a doctor, after all.

“Okay, I’ll leave it to you, Lee Hyeon-Su.”

“Understood, sir,” Lee Hyeon-Su bowed slightly.

“By the way, what will you do with Chief Jo?”

“Assembly Master, sir…”

“Mm? Yeah?”

“You see, us humans...?” Lee Hyeon-Su smirked odiously like a villain. “We need a periodic reminder to keep us in line, sir. And a beating works the best as that reminder. Yes, it'd be wonderful if words alone could do the job. However, even if the words fail to get through… We shouldn't just give up on what's important, now should we, sir?”

The educators arguing against the implementation of corporal punishment should froth at their mouths if they heard Lee Hyeon-Su right now.

Of course, Kang Jin-Ho wasn’t going to readily agree with such a barbaric mindset, either!

Kang Jin-Ho tutted softly. “I don’t think that’s gonna be enough to sober Chief Jo up, though?”

“Don’t worry, sir. I’ll make sure he does.”

“Oh. Well, if you say so…” Kang Jin-Ho coolly shrugged, then stopped worrying about Jo Gyu-Min right there and then. They were all adults, after all. Kang Jin-Ho shifted his attention over to the aquarium next. “And then…”

Dirty water was still flowing out of the hole in the aquarium’s wall.

Kang Jin-Ho’s expression hardened. “What’s the story here?”

Lee Hyeon-Su also stared at the building. “It seems the aquarium was constructed shoddily, sir. I suspect the owners constructed the fish tank with acrylic that’s much thinner than what the regulation states.”

Kang Jin-Ho furrowed his brow ever so slightly.

He didn't want to say shoddy construction was a grave crime worthy of death. After all, he had committed countless crimes far worse than constructing a building cheaply during his life. So, he wasn't going to accuse the aquarium owners of being villains responsible for shoddy construction and punish them appropriately.

However, the story changed drastically when that shoddy construction directly affected Kang Jin-Ho. The Seongsim kids could have lost their lives, after all!

This was no natural disaster but a man-made one. Since that was the case… Someone must be held accountable for it. Someone whose actions had led to this event!

Kang Jin-Ho coldly asked, “Who are the owners, and where are they?”

Lee Hyeon-Su smiled wryly. “Sir, this matter isn't something you should get involved in. Those people are about to go through Hell, you see? Our country already suffers from PTSD caused by large-scale incidents like this, after all. The aquarium directors will get knocked around from every possible direction. Going to jail is a given, of course. If they get lucky, they might get released soon, but…”

Lee Hyeon-Su scanned the aquarium building with water still leaking out from the hole and smirked derisively.

“This whole aquarium will become worthless trash. They will never recoup their investment now. The only option would be to get rid of everything and sell the land, but the tainted image of this place will ensure that the land will be worthless. Basically, they will be losing everything.”

“Mm…” Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded.

Lee Hyeon-Su continued to explain. “I'm sure the owners must've attracted many investors for this project. And now, they will have nothing but crippling debt to worry about.”

Kang Jin-Ho furrowed his brow again. “...Punishment through debt isn’t enough.”

“Actually, sir? That's a very cruel punishment.” Lee Hyeon-Su firmly rebutted Kang Jin-Ho. “A person who never cared much about money won't really understand this situation. However, those who bet their everything on making money no matter what will suffer a huge shock when they become penniless, sir. And sitting on a pile of debt will turn their lives into a constant torture session. Without us doing anything, their lives will turn into a Hell on Earth.”

Despite the explanation, Kang Jin-Ho's expression didn't soften one bit. Lee Hyeon-Su could only chuckle wryly at that.

‘Seriously now… Our Assembly Master can be such a heartless man.’

Kang Jin-Ho seemed to be overflowing with mercy and generosity most of the time, but at other times, he came across as a tyrant without a shred of humanity or a beating heart.

Of course, Lee Hyeon-Su wholly agreed with the notion of being utterly heartless toward the trash of humanity responsible for today's catastrophe.

“Well, sir… If you’re still not 100% happy, we can always try a different avenue to punish them.”

Kang Jin-Ho curiously asked, “A different… avenue?”

“Yes, sir. Means of physical violence isn’t the only power you possess now. It’s time you enjoy the demonstration of the influence you wield in this country.”

“...Influence, you say?” Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head slightly.

The Martial Assembly's influence should only mean something in the Korean martial society, no? So, what influence could Kang Jin-Ho possibly have?

“If you wish, we can mobilize the National Assembly members we’re in contact with. And we can pressure the judicial bodies as well.”

“Judicial bodies?”

“Yes. To ensure that the aquarium owners will rot away in jail for a long, long time.”

“Hmm…” Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded while rubbing his chin. “Listen. I’m not asking you to go beyond what’s necessary.”

“Of course, sir.”

“However, people still should pay for what they have done. It’d be nice if they don’t accidentally get a reduction in sentence.”

“I see. I’ll keep that in mind, sir,” said Lee Hyeon-Su. His expression grew somber as he watched Kang Jin-Ho return to the Seongsim kids’ side.

‘Looks like he’s really angry.’

It seemed Kang Jin-Ho was furious about the orphans finding themselves in harm's way. Lee Hyeon-Su sympathized with that sentiment, of course. But it also worried him.

Matters involving Kang Jin-Ho's family were already enough to unsettle him. Having more people he cared about meant the number of exploitable weaknesses would increase.

‘I better strengthen the security around the orphanage.’

Since Kang Jin-Ho's mind was not about to change any time soon, Lee Hyeon-Su's job was to provide as much assistance as humanly possible. After all, the role of an assistant like him was to ensure that their boss could walk forward without worrying about distractions and deviations.

While thinking that he might have to get involved with Kang Jin-Ho’s charity foundation sooner rather than later, Lee Hyeon-Su turned around to leave.

He figured it was about time he untied that idiot Jo Gyu-Min and let him go home.