Descent of the Demon Master

nd of face no human could possibly make.
He shielded his face with both hands and curled up into a shivering ball as the howlings of a frightened animal exploded from his mouth.

***

Bang!

Kang Jin-Ho yanked the twisted metal door off the factory ’s exit and emerged outside.
The first thing he did was light up a cigarette.

Click…

The cigarette ’s tip burned in the night air, faintly illuminating Kang Jin-Ho ’s face.

“Fuu-woo…”

He sucked in a deep drag of the cigarette smoke before letting go, and then he looked up at the night sky.

’Feels strange… ’

At the start of this situation, his reasoning had almost completely abandoned him.
His rage had reached the extremes, and all he wanted to do was to destroy everything in this world.
However, his racing heart calmed down while his thoughts became colder as time went on.

Someone once said that at the height of one ’s anger, one ’s mind would become as crystal-clear as a pristine lake.
It seemed that was true.
If that weren’t it, then maybe he was simply relieved to discover the absolute worst he had feared didn ’t come to pass.

Kang Jin-Ho couldn ’t accurately figure out which one of the two was responsible for his state of mind.
However, one thing was for certain: the Yeongnam Group had done something they should have never done, and it was time for them to pay the price.

“Come out.” Kang Jin-Ho ’s quiet voice echoed, forcing the person hiding behind a tree in the corner to quickly reveal herself.

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She stuttered fearfully.
“I-I wasn ’t trying to hide from you.”

“Come over here.”

’

Lee Hyeon-Ju rapidly made her way toward him without saying anything else.

Kang Jin-Ho stared straight at her.
“How did you know I ’d be here?”

“T-that is…”

“Were you tailing me?”

“N-no! Definitely not!” Lee Hyeon-Ju desperately waved her hands in denial.
“I did not tail you.
C-Chief Jo! He gave me a call!”

“…You mean, Chief Jo Gyu-Min?”

“Yes, him! Chief Jo told me the coordinates of this place!”

Kang Jin-Ho cocked an eyebrow and stared, prompting Lee Hyeon-Ju to explain urgently, “H-he said I must come here! He said there ’s some kind of an event that we must take care of! I ’m telling you the truth!”

Kang Jin-Ho silently stared into her eyes before slowly nodding away.
He agreed that a ’cleaner ’ would be necessary to deal with the aftermath.

If someone stumbled upon the gruesome sight inside the factory during the day, that could lead to a series of concerning events.
And Lee Hyeon-Ju ’s people might be more suitable to mop such a mess up than Jaegyeong.

’However, that means… ’

Kang Jin-Ho ’s expression hardened slightly.
Choosing this route meant he would have to coordinate with the Martial Assembly, the group Lee Hyeon-Ju was affiliated with.
Since he had never entertained the idea of working together with that group before, the prospect of doing so now was leaving a sour taste in his mouth.

’…Does he want me to use them? ’

Then again, Jo Gyu-Min would have thought about that, too.
Even so, he still sent Lee Hyeon-Ju here.
That could only mean he had determined that the best way to deal with this situation was to join hands with the Martial Assembly.

When Kang Jin-Ho continued to stare at her without saying anything, Lee Hyeon-Ju involuntarily gripped her thigh hard.
She was scared.

The more she talked to Kang Jin-Ho, the more monstrous he seemed in her eyes.
At this point, her first encounter with Kang Jin-Ho seemed like it had ended on a good note.
Hadn’t he turned the Fallen into a wretched state reminiscent of an insect before killing him? And hadn’t he just turned the Yeongnam Group ’s infamous ’cleaning crew ’ into blotches of blood?

In that case, Lee Hyeon-Ju should be grateful for walking away with her life intact, even after being at odds with a man like him.

However, she still would love dearly not to stand face-to-face with Kang Jin-Ho in this fashion.
Honestly, she was worried about getting a heart attack if she had to stare at Kang Jin-Ho ’s face any longer!

“W-we can definitely take care of this mess, Mister Kang Jin-Ho.” Lee Hyeon-Ju decided to break the uncomfortable silence.

“Take care of it, you say?” Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head a little.

“Yes.
We ’re experts at these sorts of things, you see? We can mop everything up before the civilians learn about what happened here.
We know someone within the upper echelons of the Korean police force, so we can also prevent unnecessary rumors from spreading.”

’

Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded again.
He couldn ’t see a reason to refuse if the other party offered to help without expecting anything in return.
It wasn ’t as if he were joining hands with the Martial Assembly, anyway.
“…In that case, I ’ll leave it to you.”

“Y-yes! Don ’t you worry!” Lee Hyeon-Ju cried out involuntarily, then hurriedly covered her mouth in shock.

Kang Jin-Ho stared weirdly at Lee Hyeon-Ju before saying, “Can you ascertain that the ones inside the factory really belong to the Yeongnam Group?”

“I ’m sorry? Oh, uh…
I haven ’t been inside to check, so…”

“I left someone inside.”

“H-he ’s still alive?!”

“What do you think?” Kang Jin-Ho coldly smiled.

Lee Hyeon-Ju shuddered as goosebumps broke out on her skin.

’Yup, I ’ve gone mad! ’

She cursed herself for feeling even a second of goodwill toward this madman.
Kang Jin-Ho was definitely crazy, albeit in a different meaning than all the other crazies she had run into so far!

“Yes, he ’s alive.
For now,” said Kang Jin-Ho.

“…For now?”

“Yes.
So, go and make sure.
And if that man really is a part of the Yeongnam Group, bring me all the information you have on them.”

Lee Hyeon-Ju didn ’t bother asking what Kang Jin-Ho was willing to pay for such information.
It was plainly obvious to her, after all.
If the payment for the Yeongnam Group ’s destruction were some information on them, then well…
Nothing would be a better compensation than that.

“…What do you want us to do with that survivor?” Lee Hyeon-Ju cautiously asked.

Kang Jin-Ho ’s reply sounded unconcerned.
“Let him go.”

“Let him go? Really?”

“That ’s right.
We ’ll see each other soon enough, anyway.” Kang Jin-Ho shrugged his shoulders, then turned around to leisurely walk toward the nearby highway.

Lee Hyeon-Ju watched him walk away as intense confusion washed over her.

’Am I…
doing the right thing here? ’

Although she had finally created the chance to join hands with Kang Jin-Ho, Lee Hyeon-Ju couldn ’t help but hesitate about this.
Maybe… It felt like she had just shaken hands with a terrifying devil.

And that possibility sent a wave of chill through her heart.