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“Mister Jin-Ho, you... You look rather refreshed for some reason?”

Kang Jin-Ho casually shrugged. “I was getting some warm-up exercise just now.”

“Uhm, is that blood on your clothes?”

“It\'s not mine. Don\'t worry about it.”

Lee Hyeon-Su decided he should just shut up now.

\'Of course that can\'t be your blood, Mister Jin-Ho! Even so, since there\'s blood, it means someone was bleeding, right? In that case, you shouldn\'t casually brush it aside, you know!?\'

There were so, so many things Lee Hyeon-Su wanted to say now. Actually, he always had lots of things he wanted to get off his chest.

However, if he said out loud what\'s in his heart but still couldn\'t change the situation at all... What good would that be, other than creating empty echoes in the air?

“...Did you beat them up badly?”

Kang Jin-Ho didn\'t seem perturbed as he dismissively waved his hand. “No. They are still in one piece. By evening, they should have recovered perfectly.”

“That\'s good to hear, sir. It will be a problem if people we need to deploy are gravely injured.”

The light in Kang Jin-Ho\'s eyes flickered just then. Deploy, was it?

Didn\'t that mean the time to mobilize the new combat force was around the corner?

“I see. What about the preparations?”

Lee Hyeon-Su slowly nodded. “Everything is ready. Those who are taking part... They are all in their places.”

Kang Jin-Ho studied Lee Hyeon-Su with unreadable eyes.

\'I knew it. They are similar.\'

Azure Demon back in ancient Zhongyuan also operated this way. He\'d continue giving off hints of getting things ready, and then... When the time came, he\'d suddenly get the ball rolling. Things would be put in motion even before Kang Jin-Ho had a chance to catch up!

Back then, he wasn\'t really dissatisfied by that. However, the same story didn\'t apply now. He had zero desire to be kept in the dark.

Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes. “Explain properly.”

“Here it is,” Lee Hyeon-Su immediately pulled out a ledger from one of his desk drawers. It seemed he was also not interested in keeping Kang Jin-Ho in the dark and simply telling him what to do, either.

“What is this?”

“It\'s a list of names, Mister Jin-Ho.”

“A list, is it?”

“If I\'m being technical... Well, it\'s a kill list.”

Kang Jin-Ho smirked a little at the chilling connotation behind that name. “I see. You did something amusing, then.”

“I\'ll take that as a compliment,” Lee Hyeon-Su smiled back to respond to Kang Jin-Ho\'s smirk.

“When did you compile this?” Kang Jin-Ho asked while picking up the ledger.

“Of course, from the very beginning,” said Lee Hyeon-Su as if he was stating the obvious. “I do not trust people, Mister Jin-Ho. Let me clarify that. I do trust people, but I will never believe that humans will be kind and behave themselves. Those who believe their toys have been taken from them? They will not accept that. They will be sharpening their knives for a chance to take everything back.”

“Oh? So, you\'ve been monitoring them all this time? Until they made a move?”

“No,” Lee Hyeon-Su wagged his finger. “There\'s no point in constantly monitoring them. Doing so means I need to keep an eye out for all the malcontents, even those who might not cause a problem after all. I\'m not a fan of an... obese organization, Mister Jin-Ho. I believe in cutting out excess fat whenever necessary to keep the remainder as fresh and invigorating as possible. The only solution for rotten flesh... is to gouge it out.”

“I see. So, you\'ve prepared a bait."

“Yes, just a small thing. The only way to get those heavy-arsed old folks moving is to nudge them in the sides, after all.”

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled hollowly. “You still haven\'t fixed that bad habit of yours, then?”

Lee Hyeon-Su smirked. “Well, if you want, I can always transform into a righteous and kind young man. It is the duty of the underlings to suit their superior\'s tastes, after all. However... Do you honestly want that, Mister Jin-Ho?”

“Of course not,” Kang Jin-Ho firmly shook his head.

As long as he had confirmation about one\'s loyalty, he\'d prefer villains as his allies.

Righteous allies would only make things more tiresome than necessary. However, allies who would stop at nothing to achieve their goals could smooth out the path ahead. As long as they were appropriately reined in, of course.

...Just like now.

Kang Jin-Ho didn\'t bother to peruse the ledger and tossed it back to Lee Hyeon-Su.

Lee Hyeon-Su caught it and looked back quizzically. “Aren\'t you going to take a look?”

“No. I don\'t think I\'ll learn anything by looking at that list. I only know one name, after all.”

“Well, I wonder about that,” Lee Hyeon-Su smirked. “I think this list might contain a familiar name to you, you see...?”

“A familiar name, you say?”

“Mm... Wait. I guess it\'ll be more fun this way,” Lee Hyeon-Su chuckled, then approached Kang Jin-Ho with a cigarette in hand. “Would you like a smoke?”

“I won\'t decline,” said Kang Jin-Ho, then mouthed the offered cigarette. Lee Hyeon-Su took out a lighter and lit the cigarette up.

Kang Jin-Ho leisurely exhaled the gray smoke before asking another question. “How far are you thinking of taking this?”

Lee Hyeon-Su sat on Kang Jin-Ho\'s opposite side, then replied, “If it was up to me, I\'d have gouged every single rotten piece out, but... Some of them jumped in with the lot without knowing what they were getting themselves into. Although I\'m in favor of capital punishment... Well, the South Korean martial society is rife with factionalism and such, you see? If we indiscriminately kill everyone, their underlings will not sit idly by. Blood ties can be a frightening thing, Mister Jin-Ho.”

Kang Jin-Ho leaned back against his couch. “Okay. So?”

“Let us deal with those who need to be dealt with.”

"And where will you draw the line?"

“Mm…” Lee Hyeon-Su contemplatively stared at Kang Jin-Ho. “I did set some criteria of my own accord, but they might not meet your standards. You can check them, and if you\'re not happy, I will change them accordingly.”

Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded. “Things like criteria ultimately do not matter.”

“I\'m sorry?”

“Who must die, no matter what?”

Lee Hyeon-Su narrowed his eyes. He was trying to figure out what Kang Jin-Ho meant by that question. Eventually, he provided the answer. “It\'s Lee Jung-Geol, Mister Jin-Ho.”

“I see,” Kang Jin-Ho muttered with an unreadable smile on his face. Lee Jung-Geol, was it...? “That is indeed a familiar name. How lamentable, then.”

“Is that really how you feel?” Lee Hyeon-Su leaned in closer.

“What are you implying, Lee Hyeon-Su?”

“No, don\'t mind me,” said Lee Hyeon-Su while shaking his head. However, a wry grin was still etched on his face. \'This guy can be so black-hearted at times...\'

It was obvious why Kang Jin-Ho had left Lee Jung-Geol alone until now, yet he still acted this way, all two-faced and the like! No wonder Lee Hyeon-Su found this situation highly amusing.

Kang Jin-Ho glanced leisurely at Lee Hyeon-Su. “So, how is it looking on our end?”

“In my opinion, we can pull this off with the cooperation of those in Assembly Master Bang’s faction, the amiable factions belonging to the Yeongnam Branch, plus the assistance from Knight Wiggins and Sir Vator.”

Kang Jin-Ho frowned slightly. “Is there a need to be this flashy?”

“Yes. We\'re trying to show off, you see?”

“Show off?”

“Yes. First of all, we need to demonstrate your power once more to those who have failed to adequately understand their situation and haven\'t committed to our side yet. We need to show them your power is no longer just an individual\'s but now includes a faction, too.”

“I see. And what\'s the second thing?”

“It\'s to demonstrate to outside forces. To show them there is no more opening in the Martial Assembly for them to exploit.”

“How complicated...” Kang Jin-Ho scratched his head. Although he tried, this kind of thing was just not his cup of tea. He never cared about adding context or justifications to his fights, to begin with.

Only one reason was good enough for Kang Jin-Ho to fight. And that was because enemies stood in his way. That was it.

Everything else didn\'t matter as long as allies were clearly differentiated from his enemies. Stuff like the enemies\' identities, why they were even fighting for... Such things were secondary. He simply didn\'t care.

Who cared about reasons or justifications when they were about to kill each other, anyway?

“So, when will it start?”

Lee Hyeon-Su rubbed his chin. “I was wondering about that as well, and... Well, this is the case of sooner the better. I honestly can\'t tell you that our preparation is perfect. However, instead of waiting until our preparation is perfect, I figured it\'d be better to hit the other group when they least expect it.”

“And when would that be?”

“Tonight, actually.”

Kang Jin-Ho clamped his mouth shut. He only said \'this evening\' to the younger-generation martial artists earlier to get them pumped up, but his words had eerily become a reality. “Why so soon?”

“Since we\'re in a rush, the other side must be in the same boat, Mister Jin-Ho. Even so, the conditions are quite ideal. On top of that... I believe our side will hold the advantage in a disorganized battle.”

Kang Jin-Ho turned his head and looked outside the window. The sun was still high up in the middle of the sky. However, it shouldn\'t take too long for the sunset to come and bathe the land in the darkness of the night.

In a different sense... It had been a long time since this darkness of the night had descended on the world.

Kang Jin-Ho\'s tongue snaked out to lick his lips. Lee Hyeon-Su reflexively shuddered at this sight. Those who hadn\'t witnessed it with their own eyes would never understand. They wouldn\'t know how creepy and scary Kang Jin-Ho\'s expression could get in moments like this!

\'It\'s so weird, isn\'t it?\'

Out of every person Lee Hyeon-Su encountered in his life, he could definitely point to Kang Jin-Ho as the craziest of the lot. Not even the Fallen was as insane as Kang Jin-Ho... At least, that was the impression Lee Hyeon-Su got.

Well, at the very least, the Fallen was clearly insane, which made him less of a monster compared to Kang Jin-Ho, who casually moved between living an ordinary life and walking an inhuman path.

Without a doubt, Kang Jin-Ho thirsted for blood. Even then, he was making preparations to help orphans on the surface world. Neither side was an act. And he wasn\'t doing either of it with malicious intentions.

And that sent creepy chills down Lee Hyeon-Su\'s spine.

“Mister Jin-Ho?”

Kang Jin-Ho glanced back at Lee Hyeon-Su.

“This event will probably act as a fuse.”

“A fuse?”

“Yes. Once we deal with this situation, everything requiring our attention in South Korea will be over. And there will be nothing else left to do. Historically, whenever internal stability has been achieved, organizations usually start looking outward to expand. I\'m sure our neighboring nations are aware of this.”

“Hmm...”

“Once we complete our reorganization, outside forces wishing to destroy us will make their moves. And in a far more vicious and forceful way, too. Nothing can stop this flow of events, Mister Jin-Ho.”

Kang Jin-Ho wordlessly nodded.

Lee Hyeon-Su continued to speak. “I\'m glad that you understand the...”

“You know, smart people tend to utter something idiotic every once in a while.”

“...I beg your pardon?”

Kang Jin-Ho leisurely mouthed a cigarette and puffed away before clarifying himself. “If you still have the mental leeway to worry about the future, don\'t bother. Instead, you\'d do well to focus on dealing with the current set of issues first. Looking too far ahead at the bigger picture will make you miss the small details.”

“I see. I\'ll definitely remember that,” said Lee Hyeon-Su.

Kang Jin-Ho leisurely got up. “Then... I\'m popping outside for some fresh air. Since we have some time left and all.”

“Of course.”

“Oh, and...”

“Yes?” Lee Hyeon-Su tilted his head.

Kang Jin-Ho sheepishly scratched his cheek. “You need to keep your eyes peeled.”

“...I don\'t follow?”

“I had no idea things would move this fast while inciting them, you see? I figured they would become even more useful in a few days after they got to vent their steam a bit. My bad. I didn\'t expect the event to go down tonight.”

Lee Hyeon-Su\'s expression froze. Of course he knew who Kang Jin-Ho was referring to when he said \'they\'. Without a doubt, they had to be the demonic cultivators he utterly crushed not too long ago!

\'I need to keep my eyes open?\'

Kang Jin-Ho wasn\'t the type to hand out warnings like that. He didn\'t even say such a thing before fighting Vator, either! So, for him to say that now...

“I had no idea we\'d get to unleash a pack of crazed hounds, you see? They will be... very unruly, so try to stay on top of them, okay? If I\'m around, things should be okay, but in places where I\'m not... You might get a lesson on why allies can sometimes be more scary than enemies.”

“...Please make sure they don\'t stray, Mister Jin-Ho.”

“I can try,” Kang Jin-Ho smiled brightly, then exited the office.

Clack...

As the sound of the door closing quietly echoed in the office, Lee Hyeon-Su hurriedly wiped the cold sweat off his forehead.

“Why doesn\'t anyone realize the truth?”

Lee Hyeon-Su sighed deeply. Wasn\'t this obvious if he thought about it? That those idiots were dancing in the palm of Kang Jin-Ho\'s hands?

Even Lee Hyeon-Su hadn\'t escaped from Kang Jin-Ho\'s palm, so where did those folks find enough balls to try fighting him like this?

Maybe they had an ace up their sleeve. Something they could count on. Something not even Lee Hyeon-Su could imagine. Unfortunately, they had no idea. The Kang Jin-Ho they thought they knew had never revealed all of his hands.

There could be only one fate in store for those who failed to adequately gauge the depths of their enemies... And that was certain death!

Lee Hyeon-Su stared outside the office window. Soon, the peaceful daytime would pass, replaced by the darkness of the night. And then...

“...I guess I\'ll get to smell lots of blood, then.”

Lee Hyeon-Su saw the sun creeping toward the Western horizon, and then closed his eyes.