Descent of the Demon Master-Chapter 1321. On Standby (1)

“Would you like some wine?” Lee Hyeon-Su asked.

“...I already had some on the plane,” Choi Yeon-Ha replied.

“Fufufu~! Even so! Drinking wine during a limousine ride should still be a unique experience. After all, it’s not about drinking wine, but experiencing this novel situation, wouldn’t you say? Besides, you’re a highly sought-after actor, so wouldn’t there be a role that requires you to reenact a scene like this one? I’m sure this experience will come in handy, ma’am.”

Choi Yeon-Ha burst into laughter at Lee Hyeon-Su sleekly making his case.

“Very well. Then, let me have a glass.”

“Of course!”

Lee Hyeon-Su took out a bottle of sparkling wine and a pair of flutes from the limousine’s refrigerator before filling one and handing it over to Choi Yeon-Ha.

“Why, thank you.”

Lee Hyeon-Su raised the spare flute toward Kang Jin-Ho. “How about a glass, sir?”

“...”

Kang Jin-Ho began pondering something quite seriously just then. Even if he didn’t open the doors, the windows were pretty big in this car, so he should still be able to throw a person outside as they sped along the road.

It would’ve been nicer if the road itself was wider, though. As in, eight lanes wide...

Since that would ensure the person thrown outside wouldn’t be able to catch up. Forever!

“Chief Lee.”

“Yes, sir.”

Kang Jin-Ho furrowed his brow. “You know we didn’t come here to play, don’t you?”

“Of course, sir.”

“If you know that, is it okay to let our hair down like this?”

Lee Hyeon-Su smoothly smirked. “We are not letting our hair down, sir. No, we’re sticking to our roles.”

“Huh?”

Lee Hyeon-Su glanced at the head-tilting Kang Jin-Ho’s pocket. “Sir... Mister Kim Cheol-Su is a real person.”

“Huh?”

“Making a fake passport with a false identity isn’t all that difficult, sir. However, it’s even better to take an already existing passport and simply switch the photos.”

Kang Jin-Ho stopped tilting his head and furrowed his brow instead.

“And Mister Kim Cheol-Su fits the profile. He’s got a lot of money but is not mature enough. But his face is not all that well-known,” said Lee Hyeon-Su.

“Someone like that actually exists?”

“Yes, sir. Several of them are in South Korea, as a matter of fact. I’m talking about hidden illegitimate children belonging to the heirs of various large corporations, of course.”

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled hollowly. Lee Hyeon-Su didn’t mind that and continued with his explanation.

“We went through a rigorous selection process with this, sir. Kim Cheol-Su is an illegitimate son of the heir of a certain large corporation’s chairman, and as luck would have it, he’s also twenty-five this year. He spent most of his teen years overseas in exile, only to return to Korea recently. As such, his face is practically unknown, sir. And for the next few days, you are Kim Cheol-Su to the rest of the world.”

“Wait, does that mean...?” Kang Jin-Ho blinked his eyes as a question suddenly popped up in his mind. “What about Lee Yeong-Hui?”

“Oh, that. That’s, uhm, that motherf*cker deliberately...”

Lee Hyeon-Su subtly gritted his teeth.

“Kuh-Hum. In any case. That’s why you must act like this person, sir. The heir to a large corporation couldn’t handle the temper of this young man and had to exile him overseas. In other words, he’s a moron with zero self control. Can you imagine a person like that going to a fancy hotel in an anonymous taxi like a good boy? Eii~, that’s not gonna happen.”

Kang Jin-Ho’s expression grew weird. He had to admit that this line of thinking was logical. However, the logic underpinning the argument was getting on his nerves somewhat. Hadn’t he felt something similar in the past?

...Right. From a politician.

Although the justification was sound, the true intentions were something else. That was what Kang Jin-Ho thought as he listened to Lee Hyeon-Su.

Unsurprisingly, Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes and began glaring at Lee Hyeon-Su.

However, as befitting a man who was trained by Kang Jin-Ho, Lee Hyeon-Su didn’t even bat an eyelid while being subjected to this level of glare.

Yup, I’ve raised a tiger cub, haven’t I?

Kang Jin-Ho couldn’t help but chuckle.

He used to compare Lee Hyeon-Su to Azure Demon rather often in the past, but that comparison seemed meaningless these days. If Azure Demon somehow time-traveled to the current era and observed Lee Hyeon-Su’s conduct, he’d angrily swing his metal fan to crack the latter’s skull!

Even though Azure Demon was the brain of the demon cult’s operation, he was still an excellent example of a demonic cultivator, wasn’t he? So he’d resort to violence over the perceived lack of respect in a heartbeat!

But what amused Kang Jin-Ho so much about this situation was himself. Despite witnessing Lee Hyeon-Su being so... mischievous, Kang Jin-Ho simply found these antics rather funny.

Maybe that was the fault of a strange bond he shared with Lee Hyeon-Su. A bond that was different from the one he shared with Azure Demon.

When Kang Jin-Ho submerged deep into his pool of thought, Lee Hyeon-Su hurriedly unleashed his excuses.

“Sir, humans need something called liberation. Let’s be honest, you are one of the wealthiest individuals in South Korea, but you’ve never been conspicuous about it, haven’t you? Yes, you need to show off your wealth once in a while.”

Kang Jin-Ho’s head cocked to the side. Excuse me, Chief Lee? Have you forgotten about my red foreign supercar that cost an arm and a leg?

“Don’t you agree, ma’am?”

“Hmm...?”

When Choi Yeon-Ha made an unreadable face and silently refused to agree, Lee Hyeon-Su swiftly changed the line of attack.

“This is for the economy and people’s livelihoods, sir! Wealthy people need to spend money like there’s no tomorrow! That’s the ticket to boosting the flagging economy. This is a part of your duty, Assembly Master!”

Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes. “So, am I boosting the Chinese economy, then?”

“...”

“Not only that, but with tax money from Koreans?”

“...”

Kang Jin-Ho groaned deeply. “Yes, I understand what you’re trying to say. Since this is a part of the mission, I won’t say anything else.”

“Thank you, sir!”

“However...” Kang Jin-Ho firmly put his foot down. “All the payments made with the government-issued card? Cancel them. Use my card instead.”

“Heol?! But, sir! We’re in the middle of an official...”

“Do it.”

“Yessir.”

Lee Hyeon-Su pouted unhappily.

It should’ve been no problem to ask the government to pay for this much, though, since Kang Jin-Ho and his group were doing so much for them.

Of course, spending this amount of money wouldn’t make a dent in Kang Jin-Ho’s bank balance. It’d be the same as using a bucket to draw water from a vast ocean.

However, the real issue here was with the feel of the situation. After all, Kang Jin-Ho and Co. were doing what was asked of them, so why should they pay for it, too?

Lee Hyeon-Su was dissatisfied by various things, but couldn’t voice his unhappiness after noticing how firm Kang Jin-Ho’s expression was. All he could do was groan softly under his breath.

Sometimes, Lee Hyeon-Su had a hard time understanding what Kang Jin-Ho was thinking. Of course it was not okay to waste the country’s tax money. However, the Martial Assembly already treated the country’s constitutional laws as a tale from a distant land, anyway. Considering that, spending this little bit of the government’s annual budget should have been par for the course, so why...?

“Sir, how about we promise to spend more frugally from now on and just use the funds...?”

Kang Jin-Ho shook his head. “I don’t feel good doing that, that’s all.”

“Urgh...” Lee Hyeon-Su nodded unwillingly. What could he do when his boss said it didn’t feel good? “Assembly Master, it’s still worth the time to consider...”

“Hold on.” Choi Yeon-Ha suddenly butted in while raising her hand. “From what I can tell, you two are debating about whose money you’re spending here. Am I right?”

Lee Hyeon-Su nodded. “Although we can’t give you the specifics, yes, it’s close.”

“In that case, it’s easy enough to solve, isn’t it?”

“Sorry?” 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Choi Yeon-Ha pulled out her wallet from her bag, then elegantly extracted a credit card before pushing it toward the round-eyed Lee Hyeon-Su.

“Ma’am? What’s this?”

Choi Yeon-Ha smoothly grinned. “Cancel the reservation with the five-star, and book us rooms in a seven-star. Thank you.”

“...!” Lee Hyeon-Su’s eyes subtly quaked. “B-but...”

“And tell the other side to pay for the limousine rides. I’m sure they won’t have anything to complain about if we pay for the accommodation.”

Of course they wouldn’t. No matter how expensive a limousine hire was, it’d still be peanuts compared to staying a few days in a seven-star hotel. The folks in NIS would throw their hands up in the air and cheer like it was the liberation day or something.

“B-but, ma’am, the cost of staying in such a hotel will be enormous...”

Choi Yeon-Ha coolly cocked an eyebrow. “Enormous, you say?”

Lee Hyeon-Su forlornly stared at the limousine’s ceiling.

Ah... That’s right. This woman is also loaded, isn’t she?

Why was he so often surrounded by wealthy people? Lee Hyeon-Su should be considered fairly well-off in terms of bank balance, yet in this company, he was...

“Don’t fight over money, boys. This big sis will take care of it, okay?”

“...”

“...”

Choi Yeon-Ha puffed out her chest proudly. Kang Jin-Ho chuckled softly after finding this exchange rather humorous.

“By the way, do you mind if I ask you something?”

When Choi Yeon-Ha asked that, Lee Hyeon-Su and Kang Jin-Ho simultaneously turned their heads toward her.

“You two have been talking about some strange-sounding stuff for a while now. Did the government ask you to do something for them?”

“...”

Lee Hyeon-Su subtly shifted his probing gaze toward Kang Jin-Ho. He was trying to ascertain how much his boss had told his girlfriend.

Kang Jin-Ho fake-coughed to clear his throat. “Something like that, yes.”

“Hnnng~? The government asked you to do something? Then...” Choi Yeon-Ha muttered, before suddenly tutting away. “It must be something illegal and bad.”

“Kuh-hum!”

“Aaaachoo!”

Kang Jin-Ho fake-coughed again, while Lee Hyeon-Su sneezed loudly before replying to Choi Yeon-Ha with some urgency.

“W-what makes you say that, ma’am?”

“Well, that’s what happens in movies, no? Whenever the government asks you to do something for them, it’s usually something illegal.”

“...”

“Let’s be honest, shall we? When you break it down, even 007 is a serial murderer who goes to other countries and leaves behind a trail of mass destruction.”

Well, she wasn’t technically wrong about the famous secret agent, but was it okay for her to view the world so cynically like this?

“Ma’am, we aren’t gonna...”

“Ohh? Did you come here for philanthropic purposes, then?”

Lee Hyeon-Su clamped his mouth shut like an oyster. Philanthropic purposes? Could he really stick a label like that on their mission?

“Well, uh...?”

That was tricky. Killing someone could never be defined as “philanthropic”. Even though Lee Hyeon-Su knew he had already crossed the line many times, he still could tell apart what was right and wrong.

However, this operation was not for the Assembly’s benefits or to aid the current administration. No, they were doing this for the country.

How much immorality should be accepted to secure the country’s safety and prosperity? Was it moral to sacrifice a few for the greater good of a large, nay, a massive gathering filled with people?

Throughout the lengthy history of mankind, countless philosophers and wise men tried to figure this question out, only to fail. Expecting Lee Hyeon-Su to solve that quandary during this car ride was asking for an impossible miracle.

Kang Jin-Ho replied first. “Yes, it’s true that we’re not here to do good deeds.”

Choi Yeon-Ha glanced at him. “Oh, so you’re like a spy?”

“Not exactly.” Kang Jin-Ho casually shrugged. “But we’re not here as charity workers, that much is certain.”

“Hnnng~?” Choi Yeon-Ha’s eyes sparkled in curiosity. “I didn’t know you had some kinda criteria to define this is bad, and this is good?”

“Of course I do.”

“Ohh~? You do? Then, what are the criteria you used this time?”

“It’s a bit awkward to say this out loud, though...”

“That means you were pulling my leg, then.”

“No, I wasn’t. Well...” Kang Jin-Ho replied with a wry grin. “It’s not a good thing if I can’t tell my mother about it.”

“...”

“...”

Lee Hyeon-Su’s cheeks twitched subtly. Holy cow. Now that’s... a criterion, alright!

To think someone on this planet would have such a well-defined and rather embarrassing criterion! Kang Jin-Ho was correct, though. If you couldn’t tell your mother about what you were doing, it had to be something bad, no?

It felt like Lee Hyeon-Su’s understanding of the world had suddenly improved by at least threefold.

Choi Yeon-Ha giggled. “You’re such a mama’s boy.”

“...”

Well, that part of the quandary also got cleared up rather nicely, didn’t it?

Kang Jin-Ho fake-coughed once more. “In any case... Yes, our mission isn’t something you can talk about in public. That’s why we’d like you to be more mindful as well.”

“Mindful as in?”

“Our assignment will force us to do strange things every now and then. Whenever that happens, please act naturally.”

“Oh... Got it. No need to worry, though. It’s my job, after all. Wait, you think I’m a klutz who can’t read the room and blow your cover? Of course I wouldn’t do that.”

Lee Hyeon-Su subtly tilted his head while observing Choi Yeon-Ha reply so nonchalantly. Why did it feel like something was missing from this conversation?

He quickly figured out what that missing something was and asked Choi Yeon-Ha. “Are you okay with this, ma’am?”

“What do you mean?” Choi Yeon-Ha curiously asked back.

“The Assembly Master told you that we’re here to do something bad, after all.”

“Oh, that?” Choi Yeon-Ha smirked. “That’s not something new, you know? I already knew Mister Jin-Ho is not a saint, anyway.”

“I’m sorry?”

“I mean, he beats up people every chance he gets, his work is obviously illegal, and not only that, he suddenly builds a skyscraper in the middle of Gangnam, then mingles with politicians and the alike, so...”

“...”

“That’s totally what the mafia would do, right? I bet you have dumped a few barrels filled with cement and some other stuff off the coast of Incheon already.”

“Definitely not!”

Lee Hyeon-Su freaked out and hurriedly waved his hands in denial.

“It’s fine. What can I do about things that have already happened? Besides, I’ve already fallen to the depths, anyway. I mean, I’m shameless enough to date a grandpa, aren’t I? So what if that grandpa turns out to be a villain? I don’t see anything here that’s worth raising a fuss over.”

Kang Jin-Ho’s figure progressively sank deeper and deeper into the cushions as he listened to Choi Yeon-Ha. It felt like he was receiving painful blows just now.

This moment proved that even the one-and-only Kang Jin-Ho, who was capable of withstanding several fatal physical attacks, couldn’t endure psychological attacks.

“But what does it matter?” Choi Yeon-Ha smirked deeply while glancing at Kang Jin-Ho. “As long as you treat me right. Am I right? Mister Jin-Ho?”

“Haha... ha...”

“Am I right, Mister Jin-Ho?”

“Of... course.”

Kang Jin-Ho meekly nodded after giving in to the pressure of Choi Yeon-Ha’s sharp gaze.

Lee Hyeon-Su could only shake his head in helplessness.

Yup, they are a match made in heaven, alright.

These two sure made an amazing couple, didn’t they!