Descent of the Demon Master-Chapter 1246. Coming to Visit (1)

‘Dividing my mind into two, is it...?’

Wiggins couldn’t help but chuckle softly at that. The Asian figures of speech had this inexplicable power to fluster him at times. Like now.

Physically speaking, precisely determining what ‘mind’ was would be impossible. No one could define how large a person’s mind was or what shape it was, so how could anyone possibly divide it into two?

Understanding something nebulous as just that, nebulous, and utilizing it as-was would always be impossible for Wiggins. However, this war against the Japanese had helped him latch onto a lead, so to speak, in his pursuit of greater strength.

‘My methods have been wrong all this time.’

Imagine a task of drawing a circle with one hand and a triangle with the other. Some people would undoubtedly do that well from the get-go, while some others would never perform two different motions simultaneously.

In that case, what should those people do so that they could move their hands independently of each other?

The answer was pretty straightforward.

One should repeatedly draw a circle with their right hand until they could do it subconsciously. Once that task had become as natural as breathing, one should focus their attention on drawing a triangle with their left hand next.

Gradually, the gap between the two motions would decrease until it reached a state close to zero. What came next was... a simultaneous movement.

To Wiggins, this was far, far easier to understand than some philosophical nonsense like dividing one’s mind into two or creating another ego. And figuring it out like this meant reaching a desired conclusion was fairly easy.

“Fuu-woo...”

From his right hand, licks of aura billowed. Wiggins stared at his hand and the pure-white aura gushing out from the sword in his grip.

‘I must learn to do this subconsciously.’

It must happen naturally, like how a person riding a bicycle was no longer conscious of pedaling away to move forward. His aura must naturally coat his sword simply by holding it like this. And once this process had become completely stable...!

“Huph!”

Flames burst forth from Wiggins’ left hand. Although vigorous, something about these flames didn’t seem stable. They billowed before petering almost out of existence... only to billow again.

Wiggins furrowed his brow ever so slightly.

‘A little more!’

Rumble!

The dancing flames gradually grew smaller, then stabilized and burned vigorously away. That was when an expression of pure delight Wiggins rarely made bloomed on his face.

‘I did it!’

Right now, he was using magic and sword aura simultaneously. Being able to do this in the middle of a battle was a different matter, of course. However, it was still a massive achievement to enter a realm he previously couldn’t even touch.

“Fuu-woo...!”

Wiggins retracted his aura and magic. After sheathing his sword, he leisurely headed to a table at the far end of the training area while wiping the sweat off his forehead.

He unscrewed the lid of a water bottle resting on the table and gulped the water down in one shot. A relieved sigh escaped from his mouth once he quenched his thirst.

“Finally... Something to show for all my effort, then.”

A smile he couldn’t hide filled his face.

He latched on to the clue Kang Jin-Ho had provided and pushed himself endlessly until finally reaching this point. Although the path ahead was still long and arduous, he now knew sticking to this path would get him to his destination eventually.

There were no adequate words in the human vocabulary to describe the delight he felt right now.

His martial path, the one that had been blocked off for well over a decade, had finally opened up. He could aim for a higher realm of strength now. Surpassing the Master of the Round Table, who felt like an unscalable wall once upon a time, was now well within the realm of possibilities.

Maybe this was an opportunity to not only surpass the Master but even get much closer than ever before to the realm his lord currently occupied.

Wiggins rubbed his mouth to stop his lips from curling up.

‘I must have lost my mind.’

He had only opened up a path now, yet he was thinking about Kang Jin-Ho already? Wasn’t this the same as a baby who couldn’t even walk properly yet dreaming of flying tomorrow?

Wiggins exited the training area while shaking his head. He figured he should start dealing with all the work he had been putting off for a while now. After all, didn’t he shamelessly dump most of his work post-war on Lee Hyeon-Su’s shoulders since he was too busy with his training?

“Are you done with training today, dad?”

“Mm?”

Elena, who had been waiting for her father outside the training area, spotted Wiggins and smiled at him.

Naturally, Wiggins smiled back. “What brings you here?”

“Why? Can’t a daughter pop in and say hi to her own dad?”

“Of course not,” Wiggins replied with an even brighter smile.

This situation alone made it difficult for him to deny that joining the Martial Assembly could very well be the single best decision he had made in his entire life.

First of all, his blocked martial path was open once more. Secondly, he gained an even greater power to influence the world than before.

Best of all, his strained relationship with his daughter had been on the path of healing for a while now.

One decision netted Wiggins three massive benefits. Actually, no—he gained one more, didn’t he? One that could be the greatest gain of them all? And that would be... He could now strive toward his dreams.

Rather than being used as another cog in the stagnating machine called the Round Table until he disappeared from the memories, he could now do what he wanted as a member of the Martial Assembly. With that kind of gain, how could he not say that this was the best decision in his life?

“I’m kidding, dad,” said Elena.

“...Kidding?”

“The Master of the Round Table has contacted us.”

“Why didn’t you say that sooner?”

“Didn’t you order us to not interrupt you when you’re training? People were anxiously fidgeting around waiting for you, so I thought I should step in. But I saw your training and... Well, I also thought interrupting you in the middle of that would be a bad idea.”

“Even so, making the Master wait is against the etiquette, Elena.”

Elena smirked. “My dad is more important than some etiquette, you see?”

Wiggins couldn’t help but smile brightly at that. In the past, he would’ve gently admonished her, saying that was not right. How about now, though?

He was genuinely pleased to hear her say that.

“I’ll contact the Master later, then.”

Elena nodded. “Okay. However, there are a few other issues to deal with, dad.”

“Mm?” Wiggins cocked an eyebrow before nodding in understanding. “It seems you’ve decided today is the day, then. In that case, let’s not dawdle around here. How about we go somewhere else more suitable?”

“Good idea.”

“Shall we get going, then? Good timing, since I’m hankering for a cup of strong coffee as well.”

Elena tilted her head. “Wait, coffee? Not tea?”

“We’re in the country of coffee, after all. It’s about time I grow to appreciate coffee more.”

Wiggins grinned like a good-natured uncle.

***

The coffee’s aroma gently tickled his nose.

As a man hailing from Great Britain, often referred to as the nation of beer lov... No, tea lovers, Wiggins used to prefer tea over coffee. But getting his hands on good quality black tea in Korea turned out to be a bit of hassle. Besides, it wasn’t as if he had never drank coffee, anyway. While carrying out various missions for the Round Table, he often had to make do with coffee, after all!

The good news was that the Korean coffee was rather excellent.

‘Actually, considering the number of cafes compared to population and the size of the country, I should say Koreans are completely obsessed with coffee!’

It’d be strange for the coffee to taste bad when the competition was this fierce. And the coffee sold by the Assembly’s cafe was so good that even Wiggins enjoyed it.

“Hmm...”

Wiggins savored the rich aroma of the coffee while humming softly, prompting Elena to cover her mouth and giggle.

“What’s the matter?” Wiggins asked curiously.

“It’s so strange to see you enjoying coffee, dad. That’s why.”

“Well, people change, Elena.”

Like how Elena had changed enough to call Wiggins ‘dad’!

“Okay, so... What would you like to talk about?”

“I think you need to pay more attention to the Chevaliers’ daily necessities. Didn’t you say something about hiring dedicated chefs for them not too long ago?”

“...Did I?”

Elena groaned deeply. “I know things are rather hectic for you, dad. Even so, you should pay more attention. This is so odd, though. When you were still a Knight of the Round Table, you never forgot what you said. And always tortured us unnecessarily with your fastidiousness, but after joining the Assembly, you... Well...”

Wiggins smirked. “Do you think I’ve misplaced a few screws in my head?”

“Not to that extent, no.”

“Humans do shape their environments, but environments can also shape humans, Elena. The Martial Assembly doesn’t demand strictness from its members like the Round Table, after all.”

“Well, that is true.”

“Maybe my personality has changed subtly after trying to match the Assembly’s pace,” said Wiggins casually.

Elena playfully smirked. “Are you sure it’s not dementia?”

“...”

At that unprovoked and sudden verbal jab, Wiggins clutched at his chest in shock.

His daughter always had an outgoing and outspoken side to her, yet lately? She seemed to have formed this strange fusion with Korean culture and became even more direct with her verbal assaults!

“I’m kidding, dad! Don’t make a face like that. Besides, mages can’t get dementia, anyway.”

“No, not true. It’s not without precedents, Elena.”

“...Really?”

Wiggins grinned brightly. “So, hiring dedicated chefs, you say?”

“Yes. Although the Chevaliers have gotten more or less acclimatized to Korea and they celebrate whenever sausage stir-fry and miyeok-guk are on the breakfast menu, but...”[1]

Wiggins tilted his head a little. “Sausage what now?”

“...Don’t worry, it’s just a dish,” Elena shook her head. “In any case. Even if they are used to the food here, it’s impossible to change the taste buds they were born with, right? It’s not like they can return to France anytime soon. That was why I was thinking of hiring chefs specializing in French cuisine through the Assembly.”

“Huh. To think martial artists would whine about food. That is rather amusing, isn’t it?”

“You’re only thinking that way because you’re a Brit, dad. Have you ever thought about going back to Britain just to eat British food? Like fish and chips?”

“...It seems we must quickly negotiate the budget with the accounting, then hire competent chefs.”

“That sounds like a plan,” Elena grinned.

Wiggins asked, “Anything else?”

“Several operatives from the Round Table’s intelligence department wish to join the Assembly.”

“Is that so...?”

“Yes. The requests didn’t come through the official channels, though. Some operatives contacted me directly.”

“Hmm...” Wiggins scratched his cheek. “That’s a bit of a delicate topic, isn’t it?”

“Why would it be? You already know all the secrets they know, anyway. That means the Round Table shouldn’t have a problem with a few of its operatives joining the Assembly.”

“Sure, in principle at least. With our chronic shortage of intelligence operatives, gaining several in one go should be something to celebrate about. However...” Wiggins slowly shook his head. “We need to consider the Master’s position here. Our alliance has only just begun, after all. Imagine what people will say if we steal their valuable manpower so soon.”

“But, with the Master’s current powers, can’t he suppress any opposition and dissatisfaction?”

“Sure, that’s possible. However, I fear that, out of everyone in the Round Table, the person least pleased about this will be the Master.”

“Mm...?”

Wiggins chuckled wryly. “The issue here isn’t about stealing a few operatives, Elena. Right now, the Round Table cannot win against the Martial Assembly in terms of combat power.”

“Yes, that is so.”

“However, the Round Table still holds a clear upper hand in information gathering. For the sake of maintaining the Round Table’s worth in my lord’s eyes, the Master would not want to lose his operatives in this manner.”

Elena frowned. “It’s rather complicated, isn’t it?”

“That’s politics, Elena,” said Wiggins with a gentle smile. He found chatting about this topic with his daughter rather strange but quite entertaining.

Elena curiously asked, “Okay, so... Accepting the operatives will help us, but we can’t carelessly do that due to our relationship with the Master. Is that right?”

“Technically speaking, not the Master, no. But with the Round Table. The Master and the Round Table can be seen as the one and the same, but not always. Even if the Master grants his permission, I... We must approach this topic as carefully as possible.”

“I understand,” said Elena with a simple nod. But then, her expression changed to one of pure confidence. “However, I’m pretty sure you can’t say no to this next one.”

“Mm?” Wiggins cocked an eyebrow in puzzlement.

Since Elena sounded confident, what they were about to discuss must be something quite amusing.

“Very well, let’s hear it.”

“Through the back channel, several British mages conveyed their intentions to join the Assembly.”

Wiggins’ brows rose slightly higher. “Mages? Really?”

“Yes. Really.”

Wiggins’ brows rapidly came down, and his eyes narrowed to slits.

Now this was a different issue altogether.

1. Miyeok-guk, also known as seaweed soup, is non-spicy Korean soup made with miyeok (laver). ☜