CH 352

“Gee whiz, talk about being utterly frightening…”

Bang Jin-Hun slowly shook his head while staring at Kang Jin-Ho's back.

Kang Jin-Ho was one thing, but the group of men that chased after him was also... Not exactly 'normal' either.

'And this is why information is so important.'

Bang Jin-Hun was getting a fresh reminder of something important today. And that was how crucial information was to a man running an organization.

If only those idiots had performed an in-depth investigation on Kang Jin-Ho, a gruesome event like this one could have been avoided. They wouldn't have dared to kill Kang Jin-Ho with such a low number of people and would've never followed him into a deserted mountainside.

A herd of sheep wouldn't follow a wolf to an out-of-the-way spot in the hope of hunting the predator now, would it? However, Bang Jin-Hun got to witness that metaphor come to life tonight. And he was trying his hardest not to laugh out loud at this situation.

The end result of that metaphor was playing out before Bang Jin-Hun's eyes. Thanks to it, he was getting a valuable lesson on the importance of collecting sufficient information on his opponents.

'Although you ain't gonna get much out of investigating Mister Jin-Ho...'

Bang Jin-Hun was involved personally in Kang Jin-Ho, so he had a pretty good idea of who this returner was. However, it'd be a different story for everyone else on the outside.

First of all, Kang Jin-Ho hadn't accomplished anything of note. If a martial artist had achieved some renown, most of their past achievements would be public knowledge. And it'd be fairly easy to estimate that martial artist's strength or personality.

However, Kang Jin-Ho seemingly appeared out of nowhere like a meteor and turned the world on its head. So, even if his opponents wanted to investigate him, there wasn't a whole lot to uncover.

Of course, there was another reason. And that would be...

'Well, you gotta be alive and kicking first before you can start an investigation or whatever, no?'

Only two results awaited those daring to go against Kang Jin-Ho. Either Kang Jin-Ho killed them, or they submitted and joined hands with him.

Luckily, Bang Jin-Hun was in the latter camp.

Bang Jin-Hun's survival was down to two factors. One, he didn't get in Kang Jin-Ho's face, but it was the other way around. Two, Bang Jin-Hun had correctly judged Kang Jin-Ho as 'incredibly dangerous' from the beginning. And he had Cheon Tae-Hun to thank for that.

If Bang Tae-Hun underestimated Kang Jin-Ho and tried to eliminate the latter... Well, Bang Jin-Hun wouldn't be standing here. He'd be a permanent resident in the netherworld, and the Martial Assembly would still be at Lee Jung-Geol's beck and call.

“And that's why you gotta be smart with choosing which ship to jump into, kids…” Bang Jin-Hun tutted while observing the unfolding carnage.

The gruesome final moments of the fools who had chosen the wrong ship and even tried to burn down the correct one made out of gold were etched vividly into Bang Jin-Hun's retina.

***

Crack!

Nomura Ryoji couldn't help but think he was hearing lots of weird noises tonight.

He inwardly asked himself how many people in the world would confess to being familiar with the sounds of breaking necks. He was even learning about what kind of sound would be produced when a human hand stabbed right through a person's torso.

'Even though I don't want to learn any of that!'

Nomura Ryoji saw a dark-red something held within Kang Jin-Ho's hand as it emerged from the other side of a human torso and squeezed his eyes shut.

Kang Jin-Ho remained expressionless as he discarded the human organ in his hand. Then he rapidly yanked his arm out of Nomura Ryoji's subordinate.

“Kuh-huk...!”

A quick look at tinyurl.com/2p9emv8w will leave you more fulfilled.

The underling slowly collapsed to the ground, blood gushing out of his mouth. The poor bastard didn't even have the time to say his last words. His body spasmed and convulsed briefly before slowly losing its heat.

Ryoji began comparing this spectacle to a scene from a movie. In that process, he realized that the seemingly-unrealistic depictions in those movies were actually pretty accurate, after all.

He often found it humorous whenever the group of enemies hovered around the main protagonist while not doing anything much, even as their comrades fell. Now that he found himself in that situation, though...

Ryoji finally understood why they were paralyzed to their spots.

They had been scared. Terrified.

The total number of warriors surrounding Kang Jin-Ho was fifteen. In the beginning, though, twenty had come here. In other words, five had fallen already.

The fifteen survivors knew. They knew that attacking Kang Jin-Ho at the same time would be far more advantageous to them.

Kang Jin-Ho broke a person's neck like he was pulling out a cigarette from a pack. So, rather than challenging him one at a time, the rational thing would be for the fifteen warriors to pounce on him simultaneously.

The problem with that scenario was that the world didn't always operate on rational thinking.

If all fifteen attacked together, they might get to kill Kang Jin-Ho. However, how many of them would die in the process?

Considering Kang Jin-Ho's martial prowess, over half of them would die even if lady luck was on their side to limit the casualties as much as possible.

In that case, the question now would be whether or not they were courageous enough to risk that 50% chance of death.

Remain undecided and hesitating, and someone might, just might, kill Kang Jin-Ho. However, if they attacked together, there was a 50% chance of certain death.

What would be the 'choice' people go with in this case?

'Yes, I know already!'

Ryoji obviously knew that the gamble with the 50% chance of death was better than everyone getting wiped out, one at a time. However, the unlikely odds of the tide turning in his favor were placing enormous pressure on him.

Imagine a six-shot revolver with only three rounds loaded. Could a person place that gun on their temple and pull the trigger? Even if the odds of survival were 50%?

'I... I don't think I can do that.'

Ryoji didn't have the courage to do that. No, that was no courage but stupid recklessness. A gamble with one's life on the line was easier said than done!

It should be the same story with his underlings, Ryoji thought. And that was why they couldn't make any moves despite their comrades dying one by one in front of their eyes.

These once-brave warriors of Nihon were now re-enacting the movie scene where the extras were limited in movement to maximize the drama. And it was Ryoji's great misfortune that he couldn't laugh at this funny and absurd situation.

“Ah... Ah...!”

One of Ryoji's underlings began trembling pitifully as Kang Jin-Ho leisurely closed in.

Ryoji bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. To think that Nihon's proud warrior would be trembling pitifully in front of a damn Chosenjin! Such humiliation was unprecedented in history!

However, he couldn't criticize his underling, even in his head. Even if that underling had forgotten about the warrior's pride instilled into him throughout his entire life and pitifully shivered like a wet dog... Ryoji couldn't rebuke anyone because his legs were also faintly trembling from fear.

Suddenly, Kang Jin-Ho turned his head. His eyes met with Ryoji's, causing the latter to flinch and shudder.

Kang Jin-Ho disregarded the underling before him and leisurely made his way over to Nomura Ryoji instead. And his figure resembled a grim reaper shuffling closer in Ryoji's eyes.

Kang Jin-Ho's expressionless figure bathed in the cold, eerie moonlight immediately transformed Nomura Ryoji's impression of his current situation. It initially felt like he was stuck in an action movie aimed at adults, but now...!

What was worse was that Ryoji was the star of this movie! What was the genre of this movie, then? A thriller? A horror? Judging from all the corpses of Ryoji's subordinates lying on the ground, the genre should be considered a 'slasher' movie!

“...H-hold on!” Ryoji blurted out without even meaning to. He used to believe talking was useless while fighting his enemies, yet his body betrayed his beliefs and acted on its own.

Kang Jin-Ho stopped walking. “Oh? You know how to speak Korean?”

“...I do,” Ryoji replied, cold sweat trickling down his forehead.

'God dammit!'

Ryoji was assigned to this expedition because of his ability to speak Korean. He should blame his bad luck on that, no? Ironically, though, being able to converse in Korean was helping to extend Ryoji's lifespan right now.

Kang Jin-Ho was displaying mild interest in Ryoji, after all! At the very least, Ryoji would get to keep his life as long as he could stimulate the interest of this merciless and cruel devil!

Having realized this crucial fact, Nomura Ryoji desperately tried to say something.

'But... What am I supposed to say here?'

His lips didn't want to part. No matter how badly he racked his brain, nothing clever entered his mind.

What could he say in this situation, anyway? Ryoji and his men chased Kang Jin-Ho to this place with the sole aim of killing him. And Kang Jin-Ho retaliated by killing five of Ryoji's men.

So, what could they possibly say to each other? Good evening, sir. If you are not busy, may I treat you to a cup of tea?

A helpless chuckle tried to break out of Ryoji's mouth.

'Dammit!'

Ryoji clenched his teeth. They were already beyond the point of talking things out. Which meant he only had one thing to say.

“If, if I promise to…”

Kang Jin-Ho's brow arched slightly upward as he listened.

“If I promise to leave quietly, will you let us go?” Nomura Ryoji finally muttered those words. Although, he had to throw his pride away in the process.

Actually, what he wanted to say was, 'If we risk our lives and attack you at the same time, even you will not be left unscathed. So, it will be beneficial for you to let us go when we are willing to swallow our loss and withdraw.'

However, Ryoji's Korean wasn't good enough to properly express his inner sentiment. He could only pray that Kang Jin-Ho was wise enough to figure it out by himself.

“Kuk...!” A low cackle barely escaped from Kang Jin-Ho's mouth. It sounded like he was trying to hold his laughter but failed.

He cocked an eyebrow in curiosity and stared at Ryoji for a while. “I'm guessing you can understand Korean pretty well?”

“...Yes, I do.”

A grin floated up on Kang Jin-Ho's face again as if he got it. And the meaning behind that grin was crystal clear to Ryoji.

“I heard that the Japanese would die rather than be discourteous. But that doesn't seem to apply to you. For a man begging for his life, don't you think your posture is too stiff and arrogant?”

“...!”

Kang Jin-Ho's gaze shifted toward the ground before his feet. “Now, beg properly.”

Ryoji's face began burning up.

“Kneel on the ground. Grovel with your face buried in the dirt. And beg. Cry and beg until I find this whole thing absurd and stupid and can't be bothered to raise my hand anymore. See, when you're pleading for your life, you're supposed to be courteous about it. You need to assume the proper position first. Who knows? I might get swayed if you beg me earnestly.”

This was humiliation. Utter humiliation!

Ryoji's heart began tightening from a wave of incredible anger. This sense of humiliation, and the subsequent anger, made his hands tremble. He'd rather bite his tongue and kill himself than submit to this humiliation!

“You... You dare insult me!”

“Kekekeke...!” Kang Jin-Ho chortled uncontrollably. “Even though you're begging for your life, you still want to go home with your pride intact? Wow, that's great. But what are we supposed to do now? I have no plans to humor your wishes, you see?”

The laughter swiftly disappeared from Kang Jin-Ho's face as he began growling like a predator.

“Throw away everything you have and beg like a dog. Resolve yourself to discard everything except your life in order to leave. And beg like the pathetic little bastard that you are. Then, I might think about it.”

Ryoji's face reddened even more. Before he could say something, he heard the sounds of blades being yanked out of their sheaths.

Shu-ru-rung!

Those subtle yet chilling metallic noises quickly sobered Ryoji's mind up. His subordinates began growling.

“Looks like this damn Chosenjin knows how to run his mouth, eh?”

“Sir, are you going to keep listening to this punk?”

Ryoji slowly nodded. A warrior who lost his pride was no longer a warrior. And Ryoji would rather die than lose his qualification as a warrior!

Just as Ryoji finished centering himself, a devil suddenly whispered in his ear. “I wonder, what will you think about as you die?”

“...!”

That devil licked his lips with his crimson tongue and declared to his audience, “Here's my promise. You will all regret not begging like dogs soon. And you won't be able to get over that regret even after you die.”