Chapter 534. Coming to a Conclusion (4)

A pair of crimson eyes...?

That was all Vator could see. Crimson eyes.

A pair of eyes was pressed very close to Vator's face, and, as if to bathe the entire world in blood, they burned in an eerie crimson hue.

Vator felt coldness seeping into his body. This coldness was as cold as taking a skinny dip in the frozen lake far up north, and it completely took over Vator's senses.

His consciousness was swimming in the empty void where he was neither asleep nor awake. Was he alive? Or already dead? Was it neither of those?

Even if Vator's physique was supernaturally tough, the pain of this level wasn't something he could endure with a sane mind. Just like his destroyed body, his mind also had been destroyed. Kang Jin-Ho didn't stop there and ruthlessly dug into Vator's destroyed mind next.

– Look at me, Vator!

That crystal-clear voice awakened Vator's consciousness.

What a bizarre thing this was, though. Technically speaking, that voice didn't sound all that clear or pleasing to listen to. It sounded like metal scraping another metal. Or a large herd of beasts howling nonstop into the night sky.

It sounded like the unchecked chaos of the crumbling world.

However, this chaotic cacophony of noise... sounded oh-so-clear in Vator's head.

Vator slowly opened his eyes... And then, saw it.

He saw the flames. Flames like souls burning! Crimson, yet azure at the same time! Framed by pure whiteness and pitch-black darkness...!

The soul flame with no one definable color burned brightly before his eyes. It was so sacred and noble, yet also inexplicably ominous and creepy.

Indeed, Vator couldn't define or describe this flame. And his body was slowly getting sucked into this flame. That was when he became cognizant of two things. One, this place wasn't reality. Two, getting sucked into that thing would not end well for him!

He instinctively understood that the eerie flame was not a friendly entity!

– Vator!

“Huh-uuuuuhhh... Huuuwaaaaaah!” Vator screamed and began resisting. However, this space had nothing. Nothing to grab hold of. Nothing to use as a cover. Nothing to put his feet on!

This space was... literally an empty void. Resisting a pulling force tugging at Vator's body in a completely empty space was an exercise in futility. And so, Vator got slowly, oh-so-agonizingly slowly, dragged toward the flame.

'What?! Just what is going on here?!'

Why was Vator in this space, and why was he experiencing this bizarre phenomenon?

'...Kang Jin-Ho!'

Vator could think of one culprit. Kang Jin-Ho!

This place must be a space Kang Jin-Ho had created. However, what did that mean?

Vator's terrified eyes locked on the strange flame. That voice from earlier? That creepy voice was coming from that eerie flame. Which meant that flame could be...!

“Kang, Jin, Hoooooo!”

Vator cried out in desperation. He resisted with all his might, but what could he physically do in this empty void? Things like his tough physique or unyielding mind were completely useless in here.

All he could do was wait for the inevitable slaughter like a bull with its legs tied up and hung upside down.

Vator's trembling eyes stared at the flame as it got closer and closer... But then, the brightly flickering flame suddenly transformed into a formless beast and opened its maw wide!

“U-uwaaaaaah?!”

Vator screamed from this uncontrollable terror welling up from deep within. Unfortunately for him, his body still got sucked into the maw of the flame.

“Kang, Jin-Hooooo!”

As those words rang out in the emptiness, the eerie flame completely swallowed up Vator's figure.

***

Plop!

Kang Jin-Ho released his grip on Vator's throat. That big body crumbled like a sandcastle and collapsed to the ground.

Vator faintly spasmed as if to announce to the rest of the world that he was still alive, somehow. With the exception of Kang Jin-Ho, the other two men had no idea what just happened and didn't dare flinch a muscle while Vator continued to spasm on the ground.

“Mm...” Kang Jin-Ho glanced at Vator for one last time before casually shrugging. He then turned his attention to Lee Hyeon-Su. “Do we need a forklift or something? I don't think a regular ambulance will be large enough.”

When Lee Hyeon-Su heard that tone of voice, a lengthy sigh escaped from his lips. 'So... It's finally over.'

This Kang Jin-Ho was no longer the same devil from a few seconds ago. That devil, capable of making people wet their pants just by standing there, had disappeared into the ether, replaced by Kang Jin-Ho's usual self. As a matter of fact, he even seemed a little dull around the edges, too!

Lee Hyeon-Su finally got his confirmation that this hellish event had ended for real, and his legs immediately lost all strength.

However, he did his utmost best to maintain his balance, then subtly bit his lip. He didn't want to act all serious and stuff and inadvertently plunge this situation back into the nerve-racking atmosphere from earlier.

Yes, he had so, so many things to ask. And so many things to say, too. However, the priority right now should be matching Kang Jin-Ho's pace.

“If a forklift carries around something like that, we'll hear about it in tomorrow morning's news broadcasts,” Lee Hyeon-Su muttered back to Kang Jin-Ho.

“Mm? You think so? But... Wouldn't people think of this guy as a special-effects dummy used in a movie?”

“...I didn't think about that. Yes, that is extremely likely, but…” Lee Hyeon-Su studied Vator's collapsed body and couldn't help but agree with Kang Jin-Ho's assessment. If regular folk saw Vator's figure, they wouldn't see it as a human corpse but something else. Like, a dummy used in a movie.

“Even so, it's gonna be the talk of the town, Mister Jin-Ho,” Lee Hyeon-Su slowly shook his head. “If someone takes a photo and uses it to start a rumor of a weird movie being filmed in secret, you can bet your bottom dollar that the internet will go into a frenzy. It's definitely not something I'd recommend.”

“In that case?” Kang Jin-Ho cocked an eyebrow.

“If we need to move that, I can always call for a box truck. I think he'll fit in one.”

“I see. I'll leave it to you, then.”

“But, Mister Jin-Ho...?” Lee Hyeon-Su cautiously got to the main topic. “Where are you thinking of taking Vator? If you're thinking of burying him somewhere out of the way, wouldn't it be better to call an excavator to this place instead of taking him away?”

Kang Jin-Ho smirked. “If that was my plan, I would've killed him already.”

“In that case... Why did you spare him?”

“Well, I didn't see a reason to kill him, so...”

“If you want advice on choosing between the two options, I recommend that Vator be disposed of. Keeping him alive has no value to us, after all. Our situation is different from the Crimson King's, where he's bound himself to Vator through some kind of a contract. However, Mister Jin-Ho, you are an enemy of this man. You fought him in a duel with everything on the line. Considering Vator's personality…” Lee Hyeon-Su grimly narrowed his eyes. “Once he regains consciousness, I’m pretty sure that Vator will stop at nothing to challenge you again as soon as possible. If he remains a minor nuisance, I guess it won't matter to you in the short term, but leaving a nuisance alone for too long can come back to bite you in the rear.”

While saying all these things, Lee Hyeon-Su smiled wryly at himself. Didn't he think Vator's fate was too pitiful earlier? But he was actually persuading Kang Jin-Ho to finish Vator off now that the horrifying torture had ended?

'Well, I'm not being weird here, right? Dying is better than suffering like that, anyway.'

This was the moment of his previous conviction of, 'Regardless of what happens, survival should be everyone’s priority!' turning on its head. As it turned out, there were lives not worth carrying on in this world!

Kang Jin-Ho shrugged his shoulders again. “In that case, it won't be a problem to let him live.”

“I'm sorry?”

“He is not going to challenge me again, anyway.”

“...?” Lee Hyeon-Su was puzzled but still nodded away. He obviously had no idea what had transpired, but... Since Kang Jin-Ho said so, it must be true. This man wasn't the type to lie for no reason, after all. “Cough. In that case, will you allow him to get medical attention?”

“Medical attention, is it...?” Kang Jin-Ho glanced at Vator's bloodied and battered figure before slowly shaking his head. “I don't think that will be necessary.”

“...Even though he's in that wretched state?”

“Yes. Quite fitting for his physique, even his regeneration is on the level of a beast. Looks like the worst of his wounds are already healing up.”

“Vator isn't a human being, then. In various meanings... Maybe he should've been a part of a superhero movie,” Lee Hyeon-Su grimaced a little while thinking that Kang Jin-Ho was also not a human being for beating up a monster like Vator.

“You,” Kang Jin-Ho turned his head and stared at Zhang Dajing next.

Zhang Dajing flinched grandly. “Y-yes, sir!”

“I'm sure you have several agents spread all around here.”

“N-no, sir! We didn't bring anyone with us. We wouldn't dare prepare a trap for someone of your caliber, so we...”

“No, not that. I'm talking about South Korea.”

“Oh, uh... Yes, we do.”

“Call them here to take this... thing away. It's not like we can leave him here, no? You alone won't be enough to carry him down the mountain, too.”

“Are you... Are you letting us go, sir?”

“Is that how this situation looks to you?” Kang Jin-Ho smirked meaningfully. Then, he didn't bother to answer Zhang Dajing and finished what he wanted to say. “Leave the fool somewhere quiet, and he will regain consciousness in a few days. Then... You will have your answer.”

Zhang Dajing urgently nodded away without saying anything.

Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes while watching that response, then growled quietly. “Your new role is to deliver my message to the Crimson King.”

“...?”

“If he wishes to kill me, he better come here himself. So I can end his needlessly tenacious life with my own hands.”

“...I shall definitely deliver your message, sir.”

Kang Jin-Ho maintained his unreadable gaze while studying Zhang Dajing, then slowly turned around to leave. He leisurely made his way to the distant car, only to stop and scratch the back of his head. He glanced at Lee Hyeon-Su and sheepishly asked, “...Is this car from the Assembly's fleet?”

“...No. It's mine,” said Lee Hyeon-Su.

“Mm, well…” Kang Jin-Ho frowned slightly as if he was sorry about something while checking out the parked car's condition.

Kang Jin-Ho's battle against Vator had been so violent that the car seemed to have cartwheeled several times, judging from its current position. Its undercarriage had switched places with the roof to look up at the heavens above.

Kang Jin-Ho tried to sound diplomatic. “Let's flip the car around first, shall we?”

“...Of course,” Lee Hyeon-Su sourly muttered, his voice audibly tinged in the sweat of his heart.

While not saying anything, Kang Jin-Ho pushed the car a little. That seemingly little force was enough to spin the car around, though. The vehicle made a loud 'Boom!' and landed on its tires.

“Mister Jin-Ho, be gentle! Can't you be more...”

“Kuh-hum. I wonder if it'll start.”

A well-maintained luxury sedan had turned into a scrap heap directly from a local junkyard in the figurative blink of an eye. When Lee Hyeon-Su started wondering if he could repair his car to a roadworthy condition again, the sweat of his heart suddenly began leaking out from his eyes. “Mister Jin-Ho, you... You must act as my witness, okay?”

“Witness? What for?”

“Because I'm gonna file a claim for business expenditure, Mister Jin-Ho! You gotta be my witness for my claim to go through!”

“...”

“Mister Jin-Ho... Why aren't you saying anything? Mister Jin-Ho?!”

Kang Jin-Ho awkwardly smiled to brush aside Lee Hyeon-Su's desperate calling, then mouthed a cigarette.

Lee Hyeon-Su barely held back his tears while climbing into the driver's seat. He turned the ignition on, and the engine miraculously came to life on the first try.

Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded. “There doesn't seem to be any problem here, then.”

“Sure, Mister Jin-Ho. As long as it doesn't blow up while we're on the road, you can definitely say there's no problem here. I mean, who cares about how it looks on the outside? What's inside is what matters in a car, right? Right?”

Very unlike human beings, in other words!

Click...

Kang Jin-Ho lit his cigarette, then leisurely puffed away. His boiling blood seemed to cool down a little as the unhealthy smoke rushed into his lungs.

Lee Hyeon-Su's tone changed after noticing the subtly tired look on Kang Jin-Ho's face. “Are you alright, Mister Jin-Ho?”

“Mm? What do you mean?”

“...I was wondering if you got injured.”

Kang Jin-Ho slowly shook his head. Of course he was not okay. His innards were as badly torn up as Vator's wretched appearance. Winning against someone of Vator's caliber without getting injured was impossible for Kang Jin-Ho's current realm.

Even so, Kang Jin-Ho didn't mind these injuries. What he did mind was this strangely persistent displeasure that didn't want to leave him alone.

Through Vator, Kang Jin-Ho saw his past self. He was reminded of how violent he had been in the past. Even though Kang Jin-Ho tried to comfort himself by believing that his actions were necessary for his survival... Just how many people had to suffer because of his violence?

Saying he couldn't help it back then was not enough of an excuse. He might be able to fool his brain, but not his heart.

Once upon a time, Kang Jin-Ho was also a victim of his fate and the unfairness in the world. Even if a person's viewpoint was supposed to change depending on where they were in life, the excuse of 'You were simply unlucky' would never be good enough to make up for everything that happened to those people.

“As I thought... I can't get used to it, huh.” Kang Jin-Ho chuckled wryly.

“...I'm sorry?” Lee Hyeon-Su looked at him through the car's cracked window.

Kang Jin-Ho didn't respond and simply looked up at the night sky. Was it because they were out in the sticks? The sky with way too many stars was looking right back at him… like how it was back in ancient Zhongyuan.

“Even now, I still can't.”

This was the moment of the brief-yet-also-lengthy battle with Vator reaching its conclusion.