Chronicles of the Mad Demon - Chapter 258

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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 258. Immortal Against Demons (3)
Creak.
The sound of the iron door opening was utterly chilling.
Jong Mu Seok slowly lifted his head.
Clang.
As the door shut, a soft glow emanated from the ceiling. The mechanism controlling the luminous pearl’s light had been adjusted.
Jong Mu Seok’s eyes wavered.
“It has been quite some time.”
“…Vice Alliance Leader.”
Jeon Chil Sung smiled generously.
“I have never seen you in such a state before.”
His tangled hair was matted, and his limbs were bound by iron chains, stripped of freedom.
It seemed he had not eaten in all this time—his cheeks were hollow. Surely he had suffered a profound emotional shock.
“Did I not warn you countless times against rash action? You have suffered immense losses from your inability to control that man’s fury, yet you continue to repeat the same mistakes.”
Jong Mu Seok clenched his teeth, then spoke as though surrendering all hope.
“Have you come to kill me?”
“If I killed you here, I would surely be imprisoned myself. How could I possibly kill you?”
“Young Ho Gyeong, that son of a bitch allowing you entry—does that not mean he has submitted to you?”
“Nonsense. I submitted a formal visitation request as Vice Leader of the Elder Council.”
Jeon Chil Sung raised both arms, which were concealed by his sleeves.
“Do you see? These are Sealing Manacles—the Law Enforcement Hall’s unique artifact that completely suppresses Internal Power.”
“…!”
“It has always been this way, but now your perspective has grown even more narrow. I have told you repeatedly that your habit of thinking only as you wish to think is not a virtue.”
Jong Mu Seok’s face contorted.
“A formal visitation request? And that dog Young Ho Gyeong actually approved it?”
“Indeed.”
“That makes no sense whatsoever!”
Jeon Chil Sung shook his head.
“You have completely lost your reason. I wonder how many days you have actually lived with a clear mind.”
Hiss.
“In any case, I have heard some unexpected rumors.”
Jeon Chil Sung’s smiling face bore neither Killing Intent nor any sinister meaning.
Rather, it appeared innocent. Yet despite a fellow faction member suffering such hardship, there was not a trace of concern in his expression.
That very appearance sent a chill through anyone who beheld it.
“You intend to expose the Elders’ corruption?”
“Young Ho Gyeong, you son of a bitch!”
Jong Mu Seok suddenly roared.
“You put on such a righteous act before me, yet you have truly joined hands with him!”
“Would you lower your voice? The room is small, and my ears are ringing.”
“This is precisely why men who live by their mouths alone are problematic! Both he and you—all of you acting as though you have grasped some profound truth…!”
“Jong Mu Seok.”
The expression drained from Jeon Chil Sung’s face.
“Did you not hear me tell you to lower your voice?”
As he brought his hand to his lips and made a gesture of closing them, an uncanny pressure emanated from the motion.
Jong Mu Seok swallowed involuntarily.
Though he denied it, he knew all too well—just how cruel Jeon Chil Sung truly was.
For profit, he would not hesitate to turn an entire innocent village into a sea of blood. Certainly, there were other Elders with brutal natures, but none possessed such a complete absence of humanity as Jeon Chil Sung.
The oppressive weight of his character sent a chill through even Jong Mu Seok, whose rage burned beyond restraint.
Jeon Chil Sung smiled again and spoke.
“If you keep losing your temper like this, what was the point of requesting this meeting? Dialogue, after all, requires composure to have any flavor. Would you not agree?”
“….”
“Going back to the beginning—you claimed you would use the Elders’ corruption as justification to save your own life, did you not?”
Jong Mu Seok’s lips trembled as he spoke.
“What’s wrong with that?”
Unexpectedly, Jeon Chil Sung shook his head.
“Nothing wrong at all. We may speak of the same faction, but ultimately, you all banded together because it benefited me. Requiring another’s blood to preserve your own life and freedom—that is no sin whatsoever.”
Here he stood, within the Law Enforcement Hall itself, speaking such words.
“However, I must say.”
Jeon Chil Sung tilted his head curiously.
“Among the Elders I know, I cannot recall a single one who has committed egregious corruption.”
“…What did you just say?”
“Of course, they are human, so perhaps they have accepted bribes here and there, indulged in some pleasures. But none of them have committed crimes grave enough to justify saving your life, have they?”
“Are you truly saying such things?”
“Spreading false accusations against the Elders is a most serious capital crime. With all the sins already weighing upon your shoulders, should such a charge be added, you may well face execution.”
Jong Mu Seok’s face flushed crimson with rage.
“With such shameless audacity, spouting such nonsense…!”
“Then go ahead and tell me.”
Jeon Chil Sung slowly crouched down.
A man who, by rank alone, would place among the top ten in the Martial Alliance, squatting like a child—it was certainly a striking sight.
Such incongruities with his station only made Jeon Chil Sung’s presence all the more grotesque.
“Who committed what crime? Tell me.”
“Just Ha Sang Il alone…!”
“Ha Sang Il? Who is that?”
Jong Mu Seok, about to cry out once more as fury rose in his throat, suddenly faltered.
‘What is this?’
Why was he so confident?
Not only members of his own faction, but Elders from other factions as well had committed countless transgressions, great and small. In other words, even if the Elder Council Leader himself had come instead of Jeon Chil Sung, he could not have stood before him with such assurance.
Yet Jeon Chil Sung remained unshaken. And it was not as though he genuinely appeared ignorant.
An ambiguous expression.
As if to say: go ahead and speak if you dare, listening to the complaints of a petulant child.
‘…!!’
Jong Mu Seok’s face went pale.
Only then did he understand.
‘Could this bastard really be…?!’
Jeon Chil Sung tilted his head and asked.
“Why so silent? You said the Elders were involved in misconduct—plural. Besides Ha Sang Il, there are others, yes?”
“….”
“Which Elder committed such barbaric acts? Well? Speak.”
This was a test.
I understood it instinctively, and from experience.
Similar situations had occurred in the past. Jeon Chil Sung gave his opponent a choice, and when the answer didn’t suit him, he would beat them to death without hesitation or mercy.
This had happened more than once or twice.
‘This time, I’m the target!’
Anger flared again.
But the cold chill radiating from fear and reason was far greater than the fury rising like flames.
‘This bastard will really kill me!’
And he’ll do it in the most miserable way possible.
I don’t know how that’s possible. But I will die. That much was certain.
Wasn’t it precisely that ruthless and unwavering nature that drew me to join this faction?
Jong Mu Seok swallowed involuntarily.
‘Of course. This madman wouldn’t ask to see me without any insurance.’
One could call it bluffing.
Even if it were bluffing, I couldn’t treat him carelessly now. I was imprisoned as a criminal, and he had no intention of using his power to release me.
But once Jeon Chil Sung finished this meeting, he would simply return to the Elder Council.
And the Elder Council was crawling with Elders and Shadow Assassins who obeyed his commands.
‘…Damn it!’
In the end, this was a battle I couldn’t win.
And I grasped the meaning behind his question about whether there were other Elders besides Ha Sang Il.
‘He’s telling me to name someone from a rival faction.’
If I mentioned someone from my own faction, I would die. Because Jeon Chil Sung was the kind of man who achieved revenge and punishment no matter the cost, even at slight loss.
But if I named Elders from rival factions instead?
‘That would be my lifeline!’
Jeon Chil Sung already knew as much as I did—he was aware of the misconduct of Elders from other factions.
But he hadn’t brought it out publicly. The moment he did, war would break out.
The Martial Alliance must always remain a noble and beautiful organization. Occasional incidents were one thing, but if it became known that the Elders had collectively engaged in misconduct, the Martial Alliance would lose its function.
‘In other words, he wants to use me to eliminate a thorn in the side of the rival faction.’
It was a miserable feeling.
The fact that my mind only worked well in situations like this made me think I was just another helpless human.
‘This man requested this meeting confidently. Even if I expose all the misconduct of my faction members here, he can make it all seem fabricated.’
Jong Mu Seok asked in a voice that had grown even quieter.
“What good would it do to tell you that? I’m bound to rot in Thunder Prison anyway.”
“What does exposing the identity of a guilty man have to do with you rotting in Thunder Prison?”
“….”
“Of course, the higher-ups could reduce your sentence somewhat in exchange for exposing corruption. But would a former Elder of the Martial Alliance rely on such expectations to make a confession?”
Jong Mu Seok’s eyes sharpened.
“A ‘former’ Elder, you say… So I’ve truly been stripped of my position?”
Jeon Chil Sung’s answer was remarkable.
“How could I leave a man who arbitrarily interfered in another organization’s operations and even drew his sword as an Elder?”
“…!!”
“You crossed the line. Of course, if you accumulate further merit in the future, you might be restored to Elder status based on your past contributions. But not now.”
It meant that depending on what he did, his freedom—and even his political future—could be preserved.
Though anger flared within him again, Jong Mu Seok could not deny it.
Whether he liked it or not, Jeon Chil Sung held far greater value as a lifeline than Young Ho Gyeong and his ilk.
“…Elder Yul Baek.”
Jeon Chil Sung’s eyes gleamed.
“Yul Baek? You mean Yul Baek of the Frozen Soul Twin Blades?”
“That’s correct.”
“What about Ha Sang Il? It seemed you were about to say something regarding Elder Ha Sang Il as well.”
He was thorough in tying up loose ends.
“My words got tangled. I was simply venting my frustration.”
“For mere venting, your expression suggested there was something more to it.”
“I simply wanted to curse.”
Jong Mu Seok’s face, worn by such profound misery, appeared to have aged several years in mere moments.
By contrast, Jeon Chil Sung smiled.
“I’ve long known your temperament is foul, but can you truly afford to corner innocent people like this? Have you never heard the maxim that the mouth is the source of all evil?”
“…I am ashamed.”
“Tsk tsk, you’re a dangerous man indeed.”
Jeon Chil Sung rose slowly from his seat and continued in a measured tone.
“Don’t ruin yourself by fabricating charges against innocent people. If you’re going to expose anyone, expose those who are truly guilty. And who knows? The Alliance Leader may yet regard you favorably.”
Jong Mu Seok let out a bitter laugh.
“How could that be possible?”
“Why do you assume it’s impossible? You’ve caused many problems, but you’ve also spent years in service to the Alliance.”
“Even so….”
“Don’t presume to judge the Alliance Leader’s moral standards.”
It was a remark laden with meaning.
Jeon Chil Sung, who had been smiling, turned to leave.
“I’ll take my leave now. Do take care of yourself. And try to eat something while you’re at it.”
* * *
As Jeon Chil Sung emerged from the Law Enforcement Hall, a figure fell into step beside him. It was Ha Sang Il.
“How did it go?”
“You made yourself quite clear.”
“That’s fortunate.”
“Have nets prepared so that Yul Baek of the White Hall cannot struggle free.”
Ha Sang Il’s eyes gleamed.
“You’ve decided on that course?”
“Do you know why I accepted Jong Mu Seok into our faction? Despite his recklessness, he seemed like someone who would fulfill his role when it truly mattered.”
“Then you’ll pull him out of the mire?”
Jeon Chil Sung nodded.
“Of course I will. You know us—we always follow through on our commitments.”
Ha Sang Il’s brow furrowed. After stripping him of his Elder position and severing all his connections, how could Jeon Chil Sung say such a thing?
“Once he’s free, he’ll manage the rest himself.”
The moment Ha Sang Il heard those final words, understanding dawned. He grasped what Jeon Chil Sung was truly after.
A cool smile played across his face.
“That’s the right approach. He’s no child—he’ll survive well enough on his own.”

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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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