Descent of the Demon Master-Chapter 1378. Arriving (3)

Wiggins anxiously scanned the battlefield.

Now there’s something you don’t see every day!

He had been to many conflict zones around the globe as a member of the Round Table. Some of them were lands governed by intense religious zeal rather than the rule of law, while another saw its government in a state of utter disarray, which resulted in chaos and lawlessness.

Despite his experiences, though, Wiggins could swear that he had not seen a spectacle quite like this.

We all have forgotten, haven’t we? That North Korea is a nation possessing a powerful military!

North Korea’s poor evaluation could be blamed—mostly—on its neighbors boasting a nonsensical level of military might. But the truth about North Korea’s military was that it should still rank within the top thirty in the world.

And such a strong military’s destructive might was being unleashed on a single target under the cover of darkness!

Soon, this location will be under attack, too!

Wiggins looked up at the magical signal flare brightly illuminating the skies above.

This was a terribly dumb thing to do in the middle of an enemy nation where common sense was desperately in short supply. However, what choice did he have? He couldn’t contact Lee Hyeon-Su all the while the artillery fire was raining down like mad in the distance. With the situation like this, there was no guarantee of Kang Jin-Ho reaching the escape coordinates.

Now that things had come to this, Wiggins knew he had no choice but to risk it all.

He silently chewed on his lips.

Although he had magic spells on standby, not spotting the incoming shells on time would still mean he’d get obliterated in an instant. He simply did not have the defensive capabilities of Vator or Kang Jin-Ho to withstand the power of modern weapons.

Casting the Shield spell on time might prevent him from dying instantly, but he’d still be relying on luck more than anything else.

Wiggins nervously swallowed his saliva, then anxiously scanned the scene in front of him.

Please, hurry!

Some opined that worrying about Kang Jin-Ho was probably the most meaningless waste of time in this world, but now didn’t seem like the good time to be so blasé about it.

If the Martial Assembly was also involved in this battle, then yes, Wiggins wouldn’t be all that worried. But Kang Jin-Ho was alone out there. Even he wouldn’t last long in that kind of environment.

Also, this can’t be everything the North Korean military has prepared for my lord!

Two favorable factors helped Kang Jin-Ho with surviving the bombardment until now. One, there was a limit to how many howitzers could be aimed at a person’s movement range, which logic stated should be relatively tiny. The second factor was the time of day; it was currently the middle of the night.

Kang Jin-Ho was moving at an incredible speed, so even the most experienced veteran operators would find it difficult to locate him and unleash the artillery. If all the shells destroying the wilderness had fallen on top of Kang Jin-Ho at the same time...!

Wiggins could guarantee that Kang Jin-Ho would have left for the netherworld a long time ago!

That was why Wiggins knew he must join up with Kang Jin-Ho and get out of this place as soon as possible. Before things spiraled further out of control!

...! Over there!

Wiggins’ head snapped in a direction. His eyes could see a distant object approaching his location at a scarcely believable speed. At first, it looked like a small dot, but soon, the dot grew larger and larger until it became more recognizable.

“...! My lord! Over here!”

Wiggins reflexively cried out after confirming that the dot was indeed Kang Jin-Ho. The latter was carrying not just Lee Hyeon-Su, but another unknown individual.

“My lord! Look up!”

A bright white light exploded from Wiggins’ hands. Strange runes appeared mid-air, before opaque layers instantly materialized in the empty space above the sprinting Kang Jin-Ho.

A blink of an eye later, shells rained down on the magic layers.

KA-BOOM! KAA-BOOOOOOOM!!!

“Wuu-wuukh?!”

Wiggins staggered precariously from the impact.

The destructive power of the modern high explosives easily shattered the magical barriers Wiggins had put up. This was the first time it happened since that encounter against the Crimson King.

My lord?! Where are you?

Wiggins animatedly scanned the land ahead of him. All he could see was thick black smoke and not much else.

However, from within that black smoke...!

“...! Yes!”

Wiggins tightly clenched his fists.

The black smoke from explosions blew away as the ‘true’ darkness that didn’t seem to belong in reality revealed itself. The demonic qi was pitch-black, like that of a bottomless well sucking the souls out of everyone daring to look inside.

With such demonic qi enveloping him, Kang Jin-Ho continued to sprint toward Wiggins’ location, his speed still incredibly fast.

Wiggins hurriedly gathered his hands before his chest. His glowing fingertips quickly drew more runes in the air.

“Hurry!”

Kang Jin-Ho and Wiggins locked eyes just then.

KA-BOOM!

KAA-BOOOOOOOM!!!

Wiggins felt his teeth clatter and his family jewels tighten from all the shockwaves generated by the relentless bombardment.

What on earth is going on here?!

He couldn’t help but ask that elemental question.

Anyone with common sense could tell that North Korea was a dangerous place. Even then, this situation made little to no sense. Why would North Korea deploy a military force of this scale to eliminate Kang Jin-Ho? And how?

Did China order North Korea to do it? If that wasn’t it, then what?

Wiggins just couldn’t understand it. Not with his common sense, anyway!

SLAAASH!

Kang Jin-Ho’s sword swung at the speed of light. Shells falling faster than eyes could see instantly split apart mid-air before exploding loudly. Kang Jin-Ho broke through the rain of debris and closed the distance.

“My lord!”

Wiggins urgently cast another Shield, this time around Kang Jin-Ho.

Bang!

Kang Jin-Ho kicked the ground to leap forward before landing right next to Wiggins.

“M-my lord?! Are you alright?!”

Kang Jin-Ho wordlessly nodded.

However, Wiggins felt like a fool for asking that question after looking at Kang Jin-Ho’s blood-stained face.

He gritted his teeth and roused his magical power again.

“My lord, we’ll return to South Korea right away...”

Kang Jin-Ho slightly shook his head. “No, wait.”

“My lord? But why?”

Kang Jin-Ho didn’t answer, instead choosing to release Lee Hyeon-Su’s shoulder. Lee Hyeon-Su stumbled ungainly before going down on all fours.

“Urgh...!”

Lee Hyeon-Su desperately shook his head to regain some of his bearing. Wiggins could see blood caking Lee Hyeon-Su’s mouth and jaw.

“Those... sons of b*tches!”

Lee Hyeon-Su gritted his teeth to the point of almost breaking them while forcing his head up. He was obviously gravely injured, but Wiggins didn’t have the leeway to mind that right now.

“My lord! We will be sitting ducks if they resume the bombardment! We need to escape while they...”

“No, it’ll be fine,” said Kang Jin-Ho with a nonchalant head shake.

Wiggins frowned in confusion. Before he could ask for clarification, though, Kang Jin-Ho spoke first.

“They are not idiots, so they should already know that it’s over.”

“I’m sorry?”

“They must’ve heard everything about us already, after all.”

Wiggins clamped his mouth shut. Heard everything about them? What did that mean?

Did the North Koreans know about Wiggins’ ability to cast teleportation spells? If true, how did they find out?

Before his thoughts could deepen, though, he heard someone’s approaching footsteps.

In this space where the shelling had destroyed everything, eerie silence ruled. Not even common insects could be heard chirruping away. But this space was soon taken over by the distinctive noises of army boots hitting the ground.

Kang Jin-Ho’s icy glare shifted in the direction of that noise.

Soon, a man kitted out in the typical North Korean army uniform revealed himself in the darkness. His expression seemed flat, but his facial features were memorably cold. Uncaring. Maybe even cruel. There was a massive cross-shaped scar on his face, too.

One would be hard-pressed to find another individual fitting the image of a soldier better than this man.

The man was alone. He stopped approaching at a distance of around a dozen meters or so, then slowly pushed his hand into his pocket. Everyone’s attention zeroed in on the soldier’s hand rummaging through the pocket.

When the hand left the pocket, though, it was holding a packet of cigarettes. The soldier tossed it toward Kang Jin-Ho.

Grab!

Kang Jin-Ho caught the incoming packet, then smirked. He then took out his own cigarette packet and tossed it over to the soldier.

The soldier accepted the packet as if this was a customary greeting before mouthing a cigarette.

“Oii, South Joseon bastard. Ya made of steel or somethin’? Why is it so freakin’ ‘ard to kill ya?”

“...”

“Enjoy the smoke.”

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled, then took out a cigarette. However, he stopped himself before mouthing it.

“...?”

He narrowed his eyes while studying the cigarette. The filter was dyed in a distinct brown color.

Kang Jin-Ho asked quietly. “Looks like you smoke American cigarettes.”

“We don’t discriminate against the Yanks,” said the soldier while casually waving his hand.

Kang Jin-Ho stared at the cigarette for a little while, then lit it up by snapping his fingers. The sensation of the cigarette smoke filling his lungs released the tension in his muscles.

I’m more exhausted than I thought.

This battle proved to be a tough one, even for Kang Jin-Ho. Even a single mistake could have cost him his life.

“Fuu-woo...” Kang Jin-Ho lazily exhaled the lungful of smoke, then glanced at the soldier. “So? What do you want to say?”

“Not much,” the soldier smirked. “Just wanted to look at ya mug from up close, is all.”

“...”

The soldier casually shrugged. “Also, I wanted to imitate movies from South Joseon, see? I ain’t got the balls to get too close to ya, though.”

The soldier stared openly at Kang Jin-Ho before smirking again.

“I ‘ear ya did somethin’ nasty to Rhee Gi-Kwang fella. So, it’s good manners and all to thank ya for it, yeah?”

Kang Jin-Ho smirked right back. “Is that right? Don’t you think the order of things should be the other way around?”

“Don’t take us lightly, ya ‘ear?” The soldier bared his fangs in a ferocious smirk. “If we really wanted to, we coulda ‘ave sent ya to King Yama’s embrace already.”

The corners of Kang Jin-Ho’s lips curled up. “It’s not too late for you to try.”

“Forget it, fella.” The soldier dismissively waved his hand. “I’ve already earned my keep with this, see? So, bugger off to ya little ‘ome, now.”

The soldier spat the cigarette on the ground, then stubbed it with his boot before turning around to leave.

However, Kang Jin-Ho called out to him. “Your name.”

“...?” The soldier stopped walking and glanced back.

“Tell me your name. Without it, it’ll be harder for me to find you later.”

The soldier cocked his head while staring at Kang Jin-Ho. “I ain’t into gettin’ it on with other fellas, ya ‘ear?”

“Yeah, me too. Still, your name.”

The soldier smirked fiercely again. “Sure, why not? It’s Park Sang-Chul, okay? Let’s meet again if that’s what Lady Fate wills it. I’ll also remember the name of Kang Jin-Ho.”

The soldier leisurely but quickly disappeared from the view. Kang Jin-Ho kept looking at the back of the soldier until the latter was gone from his sight for good, then tossed the burnt cigarette on the ground.

“My lord, it’s time,” said Wiggins.

“Mm!”

Kang Jin-Ho briefly nodded.

His whole body felt as heavy as a wet sponge right now. Too much information cluttered his mind right now, and he couldn’t organize them properly just yet. Only one thought ruled his head, though, and that was to lie down somewhere comfy and shut his eyes for a good few hours.

Now that I think about it, when was the last time I slept?

That must’ve been several days ago, at least.

Kang Jin-Ho had to admit that he had been pushed to the limit this time, but in a way that even he had not imagined before.

“Let’s go home.”

“I’ll activate the spell right away.”

Wiggins quickly engraved glowing runes in the air again. Soon, bright light enveloped Kang Jin-Ho’s group, before they all instantly vanished from the spot.

Park Sang-Chul observing that scene from a military tent some distance away whistled softly. “Wow. Now you don’t see that every day.”

His subordinate standing next to him frowned slightly. “Colonel, is it fine to let them go?”

“Yeah, sure. We already did our best, no? Besides, you wanna catch that monster with your bare hands? Forget nine lives, even ten won’t be enough, fella.”

“However, the brass...”

“It’ll be fine as long as ya shut ya trap.”

“Yessir!”

Park Sang-Chul’s eyes flickered strangely.

So, that’s Kang Jin-Ho, eh...?

What a terrifying monster that was. Now he finally understood why the Chinese bastards had been so hell-bent on killing that South Korean man. Park Sang-Chul wouldn’t even last one minute under that kind of bombardment, yet Kang Jin-Ho had no problem escaping from it all.

“No need to shed our own blood to make South Joseon bastards ‘appy and whatnot, yeah?”

Dealing with Kang Jin-Ho’s fury was the job of the South Korean bastards, after all!

I don’t think they can deal with that guy’s fury, though!

Park Sang-Chul smirked deeply before turning around to leave.

“Men! We’re withdrawing!”

“Yes, sir!”

Park Sang-Chul’s troops rapidly withdrew from the location, leaving behind only the scorched trees and a scarred, barren landscape.