Chronicles of the Mad Demon - Chapter 255

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 255. Cracks (5)
Creak.
Young Ho Gyeong entered the Solitary Confinement Cell and regarded Jong Mu Seok.
His Internal Energy was sealed, but his Paralysis Points had been released, allowing Jong Mu Seok to move his limbs.
However, with heavy iron shackles fastened to both wrists and ankles, he dared not attempt to fight. Even if he did, Young Ho Gyeong was also a Peak Master, making him an opponent Jong Mu Seok could not defeat.
“Are you managing adequately?”
Jong Mu Seok glared at Young Ho Gyeong with eyes that could kill.
Such eyes could slay a man. Despite his Internal Energy being sealed, his Killing Intent remained formidable.
Young Ho Gyeong continued with measured composure.
“Elder Jeon Chil Sung has formally convened an Elder Council meeting, I’m told.”
“…?”
“The agenda is your expulsion, Elder Jong Mu Seok.”
In that instant, Jong Mu Seok’s eyes widened.
“What madness is this?!”
Five teeth had been knocked out, leaving him unable to open his mouth properly, yet he could not refrain from shouting upon hearing such words.
“Decisions made by the Elder Council are first reported to the Alliance Leader. As you know, the Alliance Leader cannot dismiss the power of the Elders lightly, so he will almost certainly affix his seal.”
“This is insane!”
“Upon inquiry, it appears you held a poor reputation even within the Elder Council.”
Jong Mu Seok’s complexion turned ashen.
“What? Are you saying I’ve truly been expelled?!”
“That appears to be the direction this is heading.”
“This is nonsense! Where did you get such false information, claiming I’ve been imprisoned?!”
“In a day or two, everything will come to light. Why would I fabricate lies?”
Jong Mu Seok, trembling violently, let out another sharp cry.
“Bring Elder Jeon Chil Sung here! This instant!”
Young Ho Gyeong’s gaze turned cold.
“That is not possible.”
“What?!”
“Elder—or rather, Jong Mu Seok, you are a criminal. Criminals are subject to the management and orders of the Law Enforcement Hall, and you have no right to issue commands to its leader or members.”
Jong Mu Seok was utterly flabbergasted.
“This madman thinks he can mock me because I’ve fallen to this state!”
“Indeed.”
“…What?”
Young Ho Gyeong smiled.
It was a smile intertwining bitterness and exhilaration, despair and refreshment in complex layers.
“You appear ridiculous to me.”
As though witnessing something unbelievable, Jong Mu Seok stared at Young Ho Gyeong with his mouth agape.
“Do not misunderstand. I have not changed my demeanor because you are imprisoned as a criminal.”
Young Ho Gyeong exhaled deeply.
“Through the series of events, I have come to realize how inadequate I am. I have lived such a half-hearted existence. I should have declined the position of Law Enforcement Hall leader long ago and stepped aside, but looking back, I was merely a rice-consuming worm consuming the Martial Alliance’s Monthly Salary, was I not?”
“…?!”
“That’s why I’m grateful to you. Because of you, I was able to reflect anew on my own limits and convictions.”
Jong Mu Seok’s face, flushed to the point of bursting, was truly a sight to behold.
“…Yes, I’m the fool. That’s why a mongrel like you dares to look down on me and bark such nonsense.”
“To a dog’s ears, everything sounds like barking.”
“Shut your mouth!!”
His voice truly possessed remarkable power.
“Mark my words—the moment I leave the Law Enforcement Hall, I’ll tear to shreds you and every bastard who’s brought me shame. Not even the Alliance Leader will be able to stand in my way!”
Young Ho Gyeong laughed coldly.
“Do you truly believe you’ll ever leave this place?”
“What?!”
“Perhaps you might, I suppose. But I’m no fool either. If I let you go, regardless of the circumstances, my life won’t remain intact. Surely you don’t expect me to simply release you?”
“…?!”
“At minimum, I’d need to shatter your Dantian and sever two of your major meridians before I could sleep soundly, wouldn’t I?”
“Do you possess such magnanimity?”
“Would a man without such resolve speak such words?”
Young Ho Gyeong’s lips curved upward.
At least, Jong Mu Seok had never seen such an expression on his face before.
“Once your usefulness expires, the Elders and all your connections will abandon you anyway, won’t they?”
“That’s absurd!”
“You’ve never reflected on your own life, have you? Have you ever supported someone out of loyalty after they ceased to be useful to you?”
Jong Mu Seok felt his words catch in his throat.
Of course he hadn’t. Rather, he’d beaten those lacking in skill and driven them away, claiming they were nothing but obstacles to his reputation.
Would he truly be any different?
“Jong Mu Seok.”
“….”
“You’re finished.”
In that moment, Jong Mu Seok’s mind raced rapidly.
His desire to kill Young Ho Gyeong remained unchanged, but now he was certain—his lifeline was held in the other man’s hands.
“What do you want?”
“Nothing in particular.”
“That’s impossible. A coward like you wouldn’t have sought me out alone without wanting something. What do you want?”
Young Ho Gyeong shook his head.
“Your ears truly are those of a beast.”
“What?!”
“Having spent your life accepting bribes and judging people solely by their utility, you cannot see others with purity of heart.”
“…!”
“I understand. Had I lived that way, I too wouldn’t have believed my own words.”
Young Ho Gyeong turned away.
“You’re truly a pitiful man.”
Jong Mu Seok’s face drained of all color.
No words he’d ever heard before cut so deeply into his chest.
Even as rage surged through him, his lips remained sealed. Anger gave way to despair, and despair to sorrow.
Simultaneously, his desperation only intensified.
“Wait! Just wait a moment!”
“Is there something you need? I’m afraid all criminals will be treated equally.”
Jong Mu Seok struggled to maintain composure. Though outwardly, that was all it was.
“You’re telling me you truly need nothing? Yet you came seeking me out anyway?”
“That is correct.”
“Then I shall provide you with what you require.”
“You say you need nothing, yet you speak of providing something? Let me warn you—insulting the Alliance Leader with meaningless drivel constitutes an aggravating factor in sentencing.”
“That’s not what I mean! As the Law Enforcement Hall Leader, surely you’d want to apprehend someone significant, wouldn’t you?!”
Young Ho Gyeong paused.
“Someone significant?”
“Yes! I possess evidence of corruption committed by several Elders of the Elder Council! Surely your convictions aren’t so hollow that you’d simply overlook this!”
Young Ho Gyeong turned to face Jong Mu Seok.
Jong Mu Seok was utterly desperate. Realizing his words fell on deaf ears, he thrashed about, grasping for any means of escape.
“I’ll provide you information about them! While I lack physical evidence, I certainly possess the means to uncover their wrongdoings! So release me quietly!”
“Did you not hear me? If I release you, I die. No transaction will permit your departure.”
“I will do you no harm! You can trust me!”
“Even a dog wouldn’t believe that.”
In his desperation, anger flared anew. He’d never imagined the day would come when a junior he’d regarded as beneath insects would treat him this way.
Jong Mu Seok forced down his rage. Now was not the time for anger—he needed to find a way out.
“It concerns Elder Jeon Chil Sung.”
Young Ho Gyeong’s eyes wavered.
Jeon Chil Sung. The Vice-Chairman of the Elder Council—by title alone, the second-in-command, and a major figure leading one of the Elder Council’s several factions.
“You have no idea how cunning and vile a man he truly is. Should the facts from my lips become known, Jeon Chil Sung wouldn’t merely step down from his Elder position—he could be branded a traitor.”
“….”
“Well? Isn’t that sufficient bargaining value?”
Young Ho Gyeong spoke with deliberate indifference.
“Whether it has value or not can only be determined after hearing the details.”
“But if I lay all my cards on the table and you break your promise, only I suffer!”
“That’s precisely the problem.”
Young Ho Gyeong held Jong Mu Seok in genuine contempt.
Moreover, he despised himself for having lived so half-heartedly.
“The very fact that you’d use this as a bargaining chip proves you’re trash. If you committed a crime and came here, if you possessed even as small a measure of remorse as eye crust, you should naturally have disclosed this information for the Martial Alliance’s sake—not use it for negotiation.”
Of course, information sharing often resulted in sentence reductions.
But he’d never expected Jong Mu Seok, known for his foul temperament, would resort to such tactics.
Jong Mu Seok clenched his teeth.
“If you release me, I swear I’ll never set foot in the Martial Alliance again.”
Young Ho Gyeong turned away once more.
“We shall uncover the Elders’ misconduct ourselves. You simply remain here and live out your days.”
“Young Ho Gyeong! Hey! You mad bastard!”
Boom!
After closing the Solitary Confinement Cell door behind him, Young Ho Gyeong pressed his back against the wall.
‘Phew.’
Yet speaking my truth to Jong Mu Seok felt as though something knotted within me had suddenly loosened.
Young Ho Gyeong found himself newly aware that I was the Master of the Law Enforcement Hall. How shameful a life it had been, unable to accomplish even this obvious duty.
‘Yes, I have chosen.’
If death awaited me regardless of the path, then at the very least I would live as a human being should.
Click.
A hidden door concealed in the opposite wall swung open.
Moyong Bi emerged from within.
“That was quite the stirring declaration.”
Within the secret passage, a double wall had been installed allowing one to observe the prisoner in the Solitary Confinement Cell. Naturally, one could hear everything as well.
Young Ho Gyeong let out a bitter laugh.
“Please don’t mock me. I was merely venting my frustrations.”
“A rock that climbs to a sharp peak must inevitably descend the other side. Should it stumble while rolling, it plummets into the abyss—yet if it rolls true, it can safely traverse the ridge and descend.”
“….”
“Congratulations on not falling into that abyss.”
It was praise for having abandoned my former indecisiveness and truly becoming the Master of the Law Enforcement Hall.
Young Ho Gyeong felt inwardly ashamed. To hear such words from a youth twenty years my junior and find joy in them—it spoke volumes of my inadequacy.
“But what do you intend to do now?”
“What is there to do? Didn’t Jong Mu Seok himself say it? That he knows of the misconduct of several Elders, including Jeon Chil Sung.”
“There is a possibility it could be falsehood.”
Moyong Bi shook his head.
“At least that much would not be a lie.”
He had witnessed countless times how cowardly humans became in extreme circumstances.
Especially when those in high positions fell, the density of their cowardice only intensified. Regardless of all else, he had read no falsehood in Jong Mu Seok’s eyes and voice.
“And even if it were a lie, it would not matter.”
“Pardon?”
“What truly matters is the very fact that Jong Mu Seok spoke those words.”
Moyong Bi turned with a sly smile.
“A powerful figure will come calling soon. When Jong Mu Seok requests a private audience, handle it with flexibility and discretion.”
Young Ho Gyeong asked urgently.
“What of mine gives you such confidence?”
“Your eyes, your voice, and your bearing.”
“….”
“Steel yourself. That time will come sooner than you think.”
* * *
“Are the preparations complete?”
“They are.”
Ha Sang Il let out a bitter laugh.
“But I wonder if we really need to go this far. If Jong Mu Seok’s subordinates are eliminated, what will the other factions think?”
“There’s no need to be meticulous about unnecessary things. Those people are no different from us. That’s precisely why we’re in conflict.”
“True enough.”
“I’ll send people after half a day. Those connected to Jong Mu Seok—make sure they’re dealt with properly.”
“When will Jong Mu Seok’s proposal to expel the Elder be approved?”
“The decision is already made. It’s just a matter of timing. If it’s too quick, it won’t look right… I’ll announce it after half a day or so. It’ll also serve as a test for the Alliance Leader.”
“Understood.”
That was when it happened.
“Vice Alliance Leader! Vice Alliance Leader!”
“What is it?”
“Something terrible has happened!”
A warrior swallowed hard before speaking.
“There are rumors that Elder Jong Mu Seok intends to expose the corruption of the Elder Council!”
Jeon Chil Sung’s face contorted.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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