CH 479

“Wuup... Blergh!” Mathieu couldn't watch anymore and started throwing up.

He had to admit it. Saito was a brave man. Heroic, even. Not only was he courageous, but he was decisive in his actions, too. Saito fully embodied the spirit of martial artists and proved that he wasn't all talk.

However, that didn't make him shine brighter this time.

'You... should've just bitten your tongue and killed yourself.'

Vincent squeezed his eyes shut. Saito Genryu did not back down right till the end. In any other situation, Vincent would've been impressed, nay, awed by the Japanese warrior's tenacity and will. However, all he could feel right now was something worse than pity, an emotion far closer to contempt at this... utterly meaningless death.

Regardless of what Saito tried, the only result waiting for him was certain death. In that case, why was he obstinately sticking to this insane resistance?

Saito Genryu might be courageous, but Kang Jin-Ho was vicious. Cruel. Like a little kid pulling out a dragonfly's wings one at a time, Kang Jin-Ho was gleefully toying with Saito Genryu.

Vincent felt not one speck of kinship with Saito, but even he couldn't help but pity the Japanese. That was how cruel and wretched Saito's execution was. Saito held onto his katana even in his last moment on Earth, which was praiseworthy, but...

It seemed Kang Jin-Ho didn't think that way.

Riiiip...!

Saito Genyu's right arm, ripped out of his shoulder socket, tumbled on the ground like a piece of meat. Kang Jin-Ho casually trampled on the severed right hand still holding onto the katana.

Kang Jin-Ho wordlessly stared at the shredded Saito Genryu's corpse for a while before slowly, oh-so-agonizingly slowly, turning his attention toward Vincent.

“Euh...!” A pained gasp leaked out of Vincent's mouth even before he noticed it.

The light of madness burned fiercely in Kang Jin-Ho's eyes. Vincent wasn't sure how he managed to glean some semblance of Kang Jin-Ho's current emotions from those eyes burning in ghostly crimson light, but... Well, he realized it somehow. Kang Jin-Ho was half out of his mind right now!

A berserker, totally drunk on blood and slaughter, was standing there glaring at Vincent and his men!

“C-captain...!” Mathieu's half-dead voice rocked Vincent's mind.

'Right. Now isn't the time to shiver like a coward.' Vincent grimaced.

If they were fated to die, Vincent would've ordered his men to attack by now. That would've increased the odds of victory by... at least one percent. However, Vincent chose to wait despite knowing that the Chevaliers weren't enough to deal with Kang Jin-Ho's strength.

At this rate, the only thing waiting for them would be certain death. As a man who understood this fact better than anyone here, Vincent bravely took a step forward. He wanted to attract Kang Jin-Ho's attention toward him before it could lock on to his subordinates.

...To ensure that Kang Jin-Ho wouldn't target the Chevaliers for extermination!

Cold sweat trickled down Vincent's forehead. “Mathieu, get the field agent to translate what I'm about to say.”

Vincent tried his best to sound calm, but his voice still trembled so much that he wondered if it really had come out of his own mouth. He sucked in two large gulps of air.

He had no choice but to bet on this one thing. And that was... betting on Kang Jin-Ho being a human just like everyone else! Humans could be reasoned with, after all!

“I wish to speak to you!”

The interpreter did his best to translate what Vincent was saying, even though his own voice was shaky and cracking apart. The interpreter's voice sounded so precarious that Vincent momentarily wondered if Kang Jin-Ho could even understand him.

“Calm down, man. Your job is to translate what I say, that is all. Don't be nervous,” said Vincent.

“...U-understood, sir.”

Vincent did his best, under the circumstances, to calm the field agent acting as the interpreter, then sighed deeply. He needed to think. He thought, then thought about it some more.

What could be the best thing to say in this situation? What should he say to pacify and lull the monster that had tasted human blood into sleep?

“This... This has been an unfortunate accident,” Vincent muttered cautiously. He didn't have the mental leeway to wonder if his words were being translated properly. As if a floodgate in his mind had opened, Vincent said everything he could think of. “We will compensate you to the best of our abilities. And we sincerely apologize for insulting and underestimating you. If you want, I will act as a middleman to resolve the misunderstanding France has with you by directly calling my higher-ups. That is why I implore you to forgive us and look the other way this one time. W-what I'm saying is... Goddamn it!”

Vincent faltered slightly, then began wondering if the interpreter translated his swearing, too. He had no choice but to believe that the field agent wouldn't be that stupid, then raised his voice loudly enough for it to echo in the surroundings.

“I know that we've committed a grave sin toward you! And we should pay for our crime! I know all that! If you're not satisfied with my verbal apology alone, then... I will gladly give up my life.”

The interpreter's eyes opened wide. “C-captain...!”

“Translate it, now.”

“B-but, sir...!”

“Do your job, man! That is an order!”

The field agent grimaced deeply while muttering something in Korean. Meanwhile, Vincent squeezed his eyes shut.

Kang Jin-Ho was a murderer. Not just any murderer, but a serial killer, to boot! A type of killer who derived pleasure while killing dozens of people and didn't feel one speck of guilt or mental anguish! And Vincent vividly remembered exactly when Kang Jin-Ho was having the most 'fun' during this slaughterfest.

That was when he was toying with Saito Genryu. Kang Jin-Ho genuinely enjoyed doing that. That signified one possibility.

If Vincent's aim was to bring the other party into an agreement, he must offer something they wanted. And all he could offer at this point in time that Kang Jin-Ho might be tempted with... was himself.

“I am strong!” Vincent loudly roared while thrusting his right hand toward the empty air. The air rippled unstably before a longsword suddenly slid out of seemingly nowhere. Vincent grabbed the hilt and pointed the blade at Kang Jin-Ho. “I swear to you, I shall give you the enjoyment exceeding that of the Japanese. In return, I implore you to let my men go. If you spare their lives, I give you my word that they will return to France without causing any further incident. That is why…”

Kang Jin-Ho began tilting his head. He raised his hand as a gesture to stop the field agent, then smirked derisively before saying something.

Vincent furrowed his brow. “What... did he say?”

“Captain, he... He asked if he looks like someone who enjoys murdering others.”

“...?!”

Was Kang Jin-Ho trying to say he didn't enjoy it?

'Dammit!'

Vincent's heart was burning down from anxiety. What was he supposed to say here? He certainly couldn't say, “Yes, that is what it looked like to me,” now could he?

What was he supposed to say to ensure the lives of his men? Escaping from here without suffering some losses was impossible. That meant Vincent could do only one thing. Since time immemorial, the only way to survive against an impossible 'evil' was to... sacrifice something to it.

Whether that sacrifice was a virgin or just regular humans, Vincent needed to offer something that could satiate Kang Jin-Ho's thirst for blood. And that was why Vincent was offering himself.

For some reason, however... Kang Jin-Ho didn't seem interested at all! In that case, what was Vincent supposed to do here?

Kang Jin-Ho casually muttered something again while slowly approaching the Chevaliers.

“D-dammit! Translate what he said, right now!” Vincent cried out to the field agent.

“S-sir! He says he's curious about how the Westerners fight!”

“Tell him that I'll fight him! Me alone! Tell him that he can do whatever he wants with me, but spare the knight order! Hurry up!” Vincent's urgent voice echoed in the surroundings, but...

Kang Jin-Ho slowly shook his head, then asked something while making a sneering face.

The interpreter grimly muttered, “...Captain. He said why should he... spare those who wanted to kill him first.”

“...!” With that, Vincent had nothing more to say.

From the get-go, their relationship consisted entirely of hostility. The Chevaliers were here to kill Kang Jin-Ho, after all. And it was up to Kang Jin-Ho if he wanted to accept or reject the sacrifice.

'It's all over, then?'

Remorse quickly filled up Vincent's heart. This was supposed to be a straightforward mission where they only had to eliminate a lone individual in a minor East Asian nation. A mission so simple that Vincent didn't sense any danger from it.

To think that such a mission would be his last, too...

'The Round Table has made a mistake...'

Elena was right about never provoking Kang Jin-Ho. The remorse filling Vincent's heart didn't come from the unavoidable death about to visit him. No, it was from the knowledge that his subordinates, who believed in him and followed him all the way to the other side of the globe, would have to suffer the same fate as him. And, also...

'The Round Table will not be spared when they further antagonize this man...!'

That was an absolute certainty. Vincent wasn't sure what the ripples caused by the complete annihilation of the Chevaliers would do to the Round Table, but... One thing seemed inevitable. The relationship between Kang Jin-Ho and the Round Table would enter a point of no return. And then, many lives would be lost. At Kang Jin-Ho's hands...!

Vincent teared up from knowing that he was unable to prevent this outcome. All those precious lives would be lost because... Because Vincent made an error in his judgment!

If he could help it, Vincent would've gone down on his knees and wailed in sorrow. However, he somehow managed to suppress his feelings while roaring loudly at his men. “Oh brave Chevaliers!”

No one replied to him.

“Tonight, we will perish in this place! However, do not forget the honor of Chevaliers until the final moment!”

Vincent didn't need to hear their replies, anyway. What he wanted from his subordinates was their unyielding will, after all!

Vincent raised his longsword and stepped forward. Saito might have watched the slaughter of his men until the very last moment before suffering the same fate, but Vincent had no desire to do that. He didn't have it in him to watch his subordinates die before his eyes.

He would lead the charge and be the first one to greet death. That was the fitting punishment for the one who caused this crisis. And perhaps a reward in a way, too.

Just as Vincent finished steeling his resolve and stepped forward, Kang Jin-Ho suddenly turned his head and looked away toward the ocean.

'Is he... ignoring me?'

Vincent's anger flared up only to ebb away immediately. Even if Kang Jin-Ho looked down on Vincent, the Frenchman had no right to get angry. The overwhelmingly strong had the right to do whatever they pleased, after all.

However, Kang Jin-Ho wasn't ignoring Vincent. He was looking into the distance, where a white streak of something was heading straight toward the island's shore at its top speed.

Vincent also turned his head to look.

'What is that?'

The white streak turned out to be a speedboat. It didn't bother to slow down and charged straight at the dry land.

Crack, creaaaaak!

The sounds of the hull crashing and scratching against the sand noisily assaulted everyone's hearing. A figure leaped out from the tumbling boat before expertly landing and rolling on the sandy ground to dampen their fall.

Vincent finally got the opportunity to confirm who it was when the party crasher quickly stood up straight. And the first thing he did was cry out in dismay. “Elena?!”

What was she doing here?

“You idiotic little...!” Vincent cried out in anger.

Elena was the only one capable of accurately reporting everything that happened here to the Round Table. That was her job, so what the hell was she doing here?! Did she have some kind of death wish?

Kang Jin-Ho was obviously not the type to spare his enemies just because they happened to be women. Elena could've just waited by the harbor and confirmed who returned from the island. In that case, why did she have to come here? Why?!

Vincent cried out to her. “If you wanted to kill yourself, just bite your...”

“Will you just shut up for a second?!” Elena yelled at Vincent to shut him up, then quickly stepped between Kang Jin-Ho and the Frenchman.

Vincent frowned. “Elena, you...!”

“Stop talking, please!”

“...”

Elena shot a sharp glare at Vincent. “This is not a negotiation between human beings. That's why you need to keep your mouths shut. Try not to stimulate the monster!”

Vincent clamped his mouth shut. Although he wasn't sure how Elena found out, she obviously knew everything that happened here.

Elena sucked in a couple of quick breaths, then stared straight at Kang Jin-Ho. “Mister Jin-Ho.”

Kang Jin-Ho stared back at her without any expression on his face.

'Hmm. Should I kill her, too?'

Sure, they knew who each other was, but that was about it, really. Kang Jin-Ho didn't have a reason to hold himself back and spare this woman's life. The fact that she chose to step in front of a man wielding blood-soaked weapons suggested Elena was prepared to risk her neck.

Just before Kang Jin-Ho decided to cut her head off, though, he heard something that piqued his interest for the first time in a while.

“Please tell us what we need to do if we wish to be spared,” said Elena.

“...?”

“I'm well aware that the conditions we can put forward aren't enough to quell your rage. That is why... Please, I beg you!” Elena suddenly went down to her knees and cried out. “Please tell us what needs to be done to calm your anger! As long as it's within our power, we'll do everything we can!”

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Vincent clenched his fists tightly. Because of his error in judgment, a woman young enough to be his daughter had to kneel and beg before that monster.

“I beg of you, sir!” Vincent also knelt down and bowed his head.

“C-captain!” The Chevaliers cried out ins surprise.

In any other circumstances, Vincent would've never done this even if it cost his life. However, this was an extraordinary situation. He had to do this not just for the survival of his men but to 'protect.'

To protect his subordinates, the Round Table, and... even East Asia's peace!

Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes and stared at the two kneeling figures before leisurely speaking up. “Are you done?”