Chapter 444: Elucidating (4)

The word 'elimination' left Wiggins' lips far too casually.

Purvis frowned slightly. “Sir, if Pawn Elena's report is to be believed, eliminating Kang Jin-Ho will not be that simple.”

“Hmm...” Wiggins let out a hushed, drawn-out groan.

Purvis was right. Elena might not be the type of 'talent' the organization wanted since the odds of her doing something idiotic were uncomfortably high, but that still didn't mean the intel she had gathered shouldn't be trusted, either.

Wiggins might not acknowledge Elena's judgment, but her knack for discernment deserved praise. Even Wiggins could see that much. If it hadn't been for that side of Elena, Wiggings would've recalled her from Korea right away after learning about her deployment.

The events currently taking place in East Asia were far too important to leave it to an overly emotional agent, after all!

“Indeed, it won't be simple. Even if the report was from an immature child, the fact that she felt it necessary to compare Kang Jin-Ho to our Master... We simply have no choice but to acknowledge Kang Jin-Ho,” said Wiggins, his voice cold and still. “But... That is precisely why we need to be decisive about eliminating Kang Jin-Ho.”

“What about Elena's recommendation of talking to other countries first?”

“A pipe dream,” Wiggins muttered while pressing down on his mask in annoyance. “We wouldn't be planning this insane act if something like that was possible, Purvis. The Japanese might be more willing to listen to what we have to say, but China's Three Kings are not individuals we can do something about. They are true 'Kings' of humanity, after all. Actually, we should be grateful that there are three kings. If only one king existed, then... Then our world would've been swallowed up by him. And two kings would've bathed our world in blood through their fierce war for supremacy!”

Purvis slowly nodded. As warriors, he and Wiggins had plenty of reasons to be proud of their abilities and achievements. But China's Three Kings were beyond the scope of their pride and jealousy. Those three were far closer to natural calamities than human beings at this point!

“Kang Jin-Ho himself might be strong, but Korea overall is not. There isn't much he can achieve while leading South Korea, which is mired in that state of affairs and in its unfavorable geographical location. Truth be told, I wouldn't even have paid Kang Jin-Ho any attention... If only it weren't for his presence agitating the region,” Wiggins groaned loudly. “Purvis, we're not trying to persuade a lion here. No, our job is to chase away an annoying bee buzzing away in front of a sleeping lion. If that bee doesn't want to listen to reason, then we must resort to spraying insecticides, wouldn't you agree?”

“But, sir. According to Elena's report, Kang Jin-Ho isn't a bee but more like an eagle.”

“That won't change anything,” Wiggins firmly put his foot down. “We must eliminate Kang Jin-Ho even if we must sacrifice ourselves. No one wants to see three lions and a pack of wolves running rampant in bloodlust, after all!”

“...Sir, will other knights agree with your assessment?”

“Listen, Purvis,” Wiggins muttered in a slightly deflated voice. “It may not look that way to you, but I do care about my child. I do want to respect my daughter's opinions if it can be helped.”

“Sir, I know that already.”

“However, the world's affairs matter more than my daughter's feelings. Why do you think the Round Table exists? Our sacred duty is to stabilize the world full of heretics and evil villains. That is the sole reason we exist, Purvis. As such... Knights will choose the best option available.”

“I understand, sir,” said Purvis. However, he still couldn't get rid of this heavy pressure squeezing tightly at the corner of his heart.

'Kang Jin-Ho, is it...?'

Purvis had faith in Elena's judgment. She wouldn't have evaluated Kang Jin-Ho so highly without a good reason.

Elena didn't say Kang Jin-Ho was 'more dangerous than she thought'. No, her warnings were far graver than that. Her words indicated that Kang Jin-Ho should never be provoked no matter what, and that Kang Jin-Ho wasn't the detonator but a nuke hidden inside the munitions storage. Those warnings were a good indicator of the fear Kang Jin-Ho roused in Elena's heart.

According to her report, Kang Jin-Ho hadn't acted violently toward her, and they didn't even get into a confrontation. Even so, Elena held such fear toward him, which could mean Kang Jin-Ho was a true monster that transcended her imagination.

'And it's not wise to antagonize such an individual...'

Purvis' considerable life experience taught him that certain individuals were best left alone unless he wanted to invite terrible disasters. These individuals usually kept a low profile and didn't respond much to external stimuli, but... But, once provoked, they would instantly turn into crazed monsters as if they had been possessed by demons!

If Kang Jin-Ho belonged to that category, then... The Round Table might be hedging its bets on a very bad hand.

Purvis shook his head.

'I might be overthinking this.'

If Kang Jin-Ho hadn't been a Korean and his area of activity wasn't South Korea, Purvis would've been right about his concerns. However, Kang Jin-Ho was definitely a Korean. And he was the 'ruler' of South Korea's martial world.

South Korea's martial world was too weak to be of any concern. Even if Kang Jin-Ho was monstrously powerful, leading a group of such weak martial artists to oppose the Round Table would still be a tall order for him.

Unless he suddenly acquired useful combatants in a relatively short period, that was...!

'...That's why it should be okay.'

A lone hero trying to do everything by himself was bound to run into an impossible wall, after all.

Purvis briefly shook his head before addressing Wiggins. “Sir, will you be leaving right away?”

“Mm... I did issue a notice of summons to the others, so... By this evening, I should be able to discuss this matter with others via video link, at least. We should get confirmation soon enough.”

“I see. I'll prepare accordingly, then.”

“Thank you. I'll leave it to you, Purvis.”

Purvis left the office, giving Wiggins a chance to remove his annoying mask and massage his cramped face.

'Damn it. This bloody migraine doesn't want to go away...!'

Wiggins dumped several aspirin tablets into his mouth and angrily chewed them down. After swallowing them all, Wiggins leaned back in his chair and groaned deeply. He definitely was not trying to dismiss Elena's warnings. On the contrary, he took it very seriously.

'I must strongly insist on this course of action tonight...!'

The size of the assault force must be at least double the recommended number. Wiggins didn't want anything to go wrong, after all. And he was fully prepared to take on all the mockery and criticism this matter would no doubt generate.

“Damn it... I must say, any sane human would never choose to do this job...”

The individual named Kang Jin-Ho had to die because his strength had become a source of agitation to his surroundings. And Wiggins pitied him for that as a fellow human being. However, Kang Jin-Ho's fate was unavoidable. Wiggins and the Round Table had to look beyond individuals and think about the good of the world. And the organization would not hesitate to sacrifice a few for the greater good.

Wiggins' gaze drifted toward the map of East Asia spread out on his desk before he closed his weary eyes.

***

“What should I do, man?” Gong Yeong-Gil worriedly muttered.

Yi Myeong-Hwan clamped his mouth shut. If this had been any other day, he'd have found the right words to retort with, but not today. He couldn't think of anything clever to say.

Words were organized first in one's brain before being released to the world at large, weren't they? Yi Myeong-Hwan's mind was a mess right now, and he couldn't think straight. Organizing anything in his jumbled brain was an exercise in futility.

Gong Yeong-Gil continued muttering to his friend. “You think it'll really be dangerous? Enough to kill us?”

Yi Myeong-Hwan thought he could answer that one, at least. He glanced at Gong Yeong-Gil. “I'm not sure myself.”

“Huh...”

“But I'm pretty sure Mister Kang Jin-Ho isn't the type to lie to our faces. Honestly, I... Why would he lie about stuff like that and put the fear of God in us? There's no point, right? I mean, it'd be like a waste of time to him, right?”

“I guess?” Gong Yeong-Gil groaned while making a complicated expression.

He wasn't the only one doing that in this place, though. All the other martial artists affiliated with the Martial Assembly in this auditorium were also groaning and sighing like him.

It had been some time since Kang Jin-Ho had left after giving these people until the next day to think about it. However, none of the martial artists left the auditorium yet. Several did try by staggering back to their feet but soon gave up and parked their butts back on their chairs.

'Well, that's not so surprising, considering...'

This question was not something they could casually answer. To become stronger, they had to bet their lives? Anyone could say they were willing, but that was the case of 'Talk is cheap.' Obviously, no one would be brave enough to unhesitantly choose this path.

Besides, risking one's life to become stronger? Such a thing was nothing more than tough-guy rhetoric. But Kang Jin-Ho wanted to make that happen for real?

“...Maybe he was just trying to scare us?” Gong Yeong-Gil asked cautiously. He sounded hopeful just then.

Yi Myeong-Hwan's expression crumpled. “What the hell...? Weren't you listening? Or are you deaf? I’m telling you, that dude has no goddamn reason to scare us! Gimme a f*cking break. We're already intimidated by him, so what's the point of scaring us even more? You and I would've pissed our f*cking pants if he sneezed in our direction!”

“No, I mean... He could've been trying to psyche us up, right? Like, we better resolve ourselves or something like that...”

“You think we are in a shonen manga, you moron?”

“...”

“Didn't you see with your own eyes? That dude doesn't think much about killing people. We might think ending someone's life is difficult, but not him! Did you already forget that Kang Jin-Ho turned hundreds of people into bloody chunks of meat in one sitting?! So, you think a guy like that finds life as precious as we do?”

“...I guess not.”

“And what the f*ck were you saying about scaring us and whatnot? He could just kill us with a finger flick if he wanted to.”

Gong Yeong-Gil's expression became much gloomier while nodding slowly.

Yi Myeong-Hwan tutted loudly. “Don't try to figure out Mister Jin-Ho's intentions, okay? Just take his words at face value. He made it as simple as possible for us, after all. Half will die, but the other half will make it... With the odds of fifty percent, we'll either die or get stronger.”

After saying that, Yi Myeong-Hwan shuddered from the renewed realization of how absurd and horrifying that statement was. The odds of dying were fifty percent? That was like loading three bullets into a revolver's chamber and playing Russian roulette.

Would anyone gamble with their life on the line when the odds of death were fifty percent? Of course, there should be someone crazy enough to do it. The world was filled with lunatics, after all.

However, Yi Myeong-Hwan was sure about being a sane-minded, well-adjusted human being. He had no thoughts of proving how manly he was with a gamble that only insane bastards would attempt.

“...You know what? F*ck this. I'm not doing it.” Yi Myeong-Hwan shook his head.

Gong Yeong-Gil instantly grew worried at his friend's decision. “What are you talking about? I thought you wanted to learn from Mister Kang Jin-Ho no matter what?”

“Sure. But I gotta think about my life first, man. Bloody hell... What's the point of it all if I die while training?”

“I thought you wanted to become strong? What changed, dude?”

“I don't want to die. That's it,” said Yi Myeong-Hwan while throwing his head back. “If someone else said that crap, I would've gone for it without even thinking twice. But it's Kang Jin-Ho we're talking about here. If he said half will die, then half will really die. So... How the f*ck am I supposed to gamble on that?”

Yi Myeong-Hwan's grumbles eventually attracted the attention of his peers nearby.

“I mean... Even if your life is sh*t, it's still better than death, right? I'm not such a weakling that I must risk my neck to become stronger, so why should I gamble with my life? I'm not gonna do this. Nope. Count me out.”

His peers began nodding in agreement here and there. Many of them had instinctively realized that Kang Jin-Ho wasn't messing with them. And that reminded them of how precious their lives were.

“R-really? You really are backing out?” Gong Yeong-Gil asked cautiously.

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

“Yeah, that's what I'm telling you, goddamn it!” Yi Myeong-Hwan shot up to his feet and yelled in anger. “Besides, are we living in the bloody Stone Age or something?! No! This is the 21st century, right?! Let's get something straight, okay! We have supersonic planes flying all over the world and sh*t, so you think gambling with your life to become a bit better at punching other people makes any sort of bloody sense in this era?! Forget it, man. I'm gonna stay weak and enjoy a simpler life. Okay?”

Yi Myeong-Hwan angrily stormed out of the auditorium as soon as his rant came to an end. His exit only worsened the auditorium's atmosphere, however. It was now even more depressing than before.

“...Hey man, where are you going?” Someone in the crowd asked while stopping his friend from leaving.

The friend grunted. “I'm going home.”

“Huh? Why?”

“What do you mean, why? You heard Mister Kang Jin-Ho, right? We only have to come back here at the same time tomorrow. If I stay here any longer, my head's gonna split into pieces from this sh*tty-ass atmosphere. I might as well go home and think about it there.”

“...Yeah, you're right.”

The martial artists got up one by one and filed out of the auditorium. Gong Yeong-Gil watched them leave as panic began taking over his mind.

'H-huh? This is bad, isn't it?'

Gong Yeong-Gil, and other martial artists like him who weren't confident enough to deal with this situation, could only fidget and loiter in the auditorium, unable to leave.

And so... These martial artists went away to wherever they wanted to go to and did their own things so that they could organize their thoughts without anyone else bothering them.

The man responsible for creating this situation, Kang Jin-Ho, was currently watching the crowd of martial artists disperse from the window of the Assembly Master's office. An unreadable smirk appeared on his face as he observed the martial artists leaving the Assembly grounds to go home or somewhere quieter.

Kang Jin-Ho addressed Bang Jin-Hun without taking his eyes away from the window. “Excuse me, Assembly Master Bang?”

“Yes? What is it this time?”

“The instant coffee I brewed doesn't taste as good as yours, so... Do you mind if you brew it for me?”

“...Imma dump the damn machine outta the bloody window one of these days,” Bang Jin-Hun grumbled unhappily while heading to the nearby kitchenette to get more coffee.

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled slightly while listening to Bang Jin-Hun's complaints. However, his eyes locked on the martial artists on the ground below were definitely not smiling.

Those with weak minds didn't deserve to become stronger, anyway. Tonight would prove to be the longest night in those people's lives. As Kang Jin-Ho imagined the turmoil in the hearts of those martial artists, the corners of his lips curled up into a creepy smirk.

“Gee whiz. What a perverted personality that is...” Bang Jin-Hun grumbled again.

“...

Cough.

" Kang Jin-Ho fake-coughed to clear his throat after realizing that he had no excuses to offer. He tore himself away from the windows and accepted the new cup of coffee before leisurely sipping on it.

The sun was setting over the distant horizon.