Chapter 810: Consoled (5)

Riiip!

The blanket in Kang Jin-Ho's grip ripped apart. That strange sensation forced Kang Jin-Ho's eyes to fly open.

‘...That was a dream?’

It seemed he had been dreaming until now. No, to be more precise, he had been subconsciously recalling his memory. From back when he wasn't Kang Jin-Ho, but Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor.

Back when he was the devil staining the world with blood-soaked conquests!

Kang Jin-Ho reflexively covered his face after coming face-to-face with these vivid memories once more.

‘Why now...?’

He believed these memories didn’t matter to him anymore. So why was he dreaming about them now? Had he not already drawn a clear line separating him from his past?

“Fuu-woo...”

Kang Jin-Ho quietly sighed. He couldn’t move. Was it because he had such a vivid dream? His body still seemed to be in the grips of the sensation of the dream.

The sensation of demonic qi filling his body to the point of flooding outside! The sensation of tyrannical spirit that even Kang Jin-Ho feared... shaking up his body to the core!

Such sensations were a constant companion back when he was still called Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor. However, to the current Kang Jin-Ho, they were like powerful gut punches.

Back then, he thought he could do anything. He used to be filled with this sensation of fulfillment, as if he could grab Mount Tai with one hand and split the ocean with a single sword strike.

He was filled with incredible power that might even destroy the heavens if that was what he wanted.

After remembering all this, Kang Jin-Ho suddenly realized what he lost was truly enormous. And he was also reminded of how far off he was from regaining his previous peak.

‘This frail little...’

Kang Jin-Ho flinched just as he thought that.

‘Huh? Frail?’

Kang Jin-Ho looked down at his torso.

“...Huh?”

A flabbergasted gasp leaked out of his mouth.

‘...What’s going on here?’

Kang Jin-Ho grew stupefied at what he could see from his body. Then, he slowly raised his head and scanned his surroundings.

‘What is the meaning of this?’

The world was changing around him. And no, he wasn't being figurative here. The surroundings really were closing in on him differently. Should he say that a blurry filter before a camera lens had been removed? The world seemed so much clearer and more alive.

‘No, hold on.’

The world hadn't actually changed. The truth was that the world in Kang Jin-Ho's view had been blurry until yesterday. But that had returned to 'normal' now.

He wasn't sure what had happened here, but one thing was for certain: the fog in his head was completely gone.

Kang Jin-Ho accepted his current situation and deeply pondered how it had come to be. Eventually, he arrived at the most likely answer.

‘So, it was my heart demon.’

Before Buddha could achieve enlightenment below the Bodhi tree's shade, he had to contend with the visitation from an evil entity. Any individual shooting for the Moon always had to deal with their heart demon. It was inevitable, really.

Unfortunately, the heart demon was one crafty, insidious entity, making it rather difficult to positively identify it. As such, one could say any and all types of mental hindrance that stopped the person from advancing forward was a 'heart demon'.

Although it was not possible to define it, there was one commonality. Everyone suffering from the heart demon would always experience regressing from their previous peak state. Without constantly using martial arts, even a top expert might not realize they were being haunted by their heart demon.

That was Kang Jin-Ho's situation. Until this morning, he had no idea that the heart demon had ensnared him.

‘When I think about it... It was strange, wasn’t it?’

Kang Jin-Ho was never the type to hesitate and procrastinate over his decisions. He certainly would take his time considering his options, but once he was done analyzing the problem from various angles, he'd unhesitantly make his choice and commit himself to it. That was how Kang Jin-Ho operated until now.

So, it was strange for someone like him to act this wishy-washy and not make the decision.

Kang Jin-Ho let out a soft but deep sigh. Not because he was rueful, though. No, he was deeply relieved instead.

One’s heart demon was a terrifying foe. Kang Jin-Ho had witnessed countless experts charging straight to the top helplessly fall victim to their heart demons and end up as cripples.

Humans tended to mistakenly believe anyone could become better as long as they put in the requisite effort. However, that wasn't always true. There was a clear limit to how much one could improve no matter how hard they worked on themselves.

For instance, no one could sprint a hundred meters in less than eight seconds just because they had been training like crazy.

The truth was... Effort was one of the necessary elements in reaching one's limits. Once they got there, humans would instinctively feel they needed something different, something special, to break through their limits. In martial arts, this limit is called the 'wall.'

He was genuinely pleased about overcoming his heart demon, after all. If the same thing had happened in the past, back when he was still the demon cult's undisputed leader, a grand banquet lasting three days and nights would've taken place, and everyone would've had a jolly good time.

Jo Mi-Hye tilted her head. “Did something good happen, oppa?”

“Yeah.”

“What kind, though? Oppa, are you seeing someone?”

“...”

Even before Kang Jin-Ho could respond, other kids nearby began shooting Jo Mi-Hye down immediately.

“What are you on about? Jin-Ho hyung's already seeing someone, you know?!"

“If Yeon-Ha unnie was here, you think your hair would still be in one piece?”

Jo Mi-Hye gallantly fought back against this unfair treatment. “What the heck?! You morons, don’t you know Yeon-Ha unnie is in China right now! That’s why I’m trying to find out if Jin-Ho oppa’s been two-timing her! Why did you have to ruin my plan!”

Women could be so scary.

Kang Jin-Ho spent the last five years of his life working hard to cement his position in this orphanage. But Choi Yeon-Ha only had to come here a couple of times to flip all the girls into her loyal agents!

He was freshly reminded of how scary Choi Yeon-Ha could be!

Kang Jin-Ho coughed to clear his throat, then asked Jo Mi-Hye a question. “What will we be doing today?”

“Eh?” Jo Mi-Hye blinked her eyes and stared back at Kang Jin-Ho. This question had taken her back since Kang Jin-Ho had never asked something like this before. “Nothing, really? Today is Sunday, after all. We don't have school today, and all the cleaning was finished yesterday, so... Since there's nothing to do, we'll just relax and laze around.”

After saying that, Jo Mi-Hye suddenly turned her head and sharply glared in Han Jin-Seong’s direction.

“Not you, though! Oppa, you gotta study, okay?”

Han Jin-Seong’s head pitifully faltered. That was the sad fate of a high school senior, though.

“Okay, so... You guys don’t have anything to do. Is that it?” Kang Jin-Ho slowly rubbed his chin.

The 'usual' Kang Jin-Ho would've backed away at this point and spent the rest of the day in some corner while doing nothing worth remembering. However, he was not his usual self today.

Indeed, wasn't today a day worthy of a celebration?

Kang Jin-Ho coolly addressed the orphans in the living room. “I’ll pay for everything.”

“...Eh?”

“Bring me your itinerary for today. I will... pay for everything!”

“F-for today?”

“Mhm!” Kang Jin-Ho powerfully nodded, then addressed everyone again. “We’ll have breakfast here, obviously. After that, we’ll have fun outside and not return until after dinner. So, schedule the day and let me know.”

“O-oppa, how many... are you planning to take with you?”

“Everyone."

“Eh???”

“I said, everyone.”

“...!” Jo Mi-Hye's eyes began trembling powerfully just then. Kang Jin-Ho wanted to take every orphan to where now? “Oppa, w-where will you take us?”

“That’s for you to decide.”

“Heol...?!"

Jo Mi-Hye was obviously flabbergasted, but it was too late for her to stop Kang Jin-Ho.

The orphans of Seongsim had no plan for the rest of the day, so the prospect of having fun outside with the legendary moron... No, the legendary protector called Kang Jin-Ho was too enticing to ignore.

The rapidly heating-up atmosphere easily suppressed Jo Mi-Hye. She nervously gulped her saliva and tried to say something. “B-but, I... Oppa, I was thinking of taking it easy today...?”

That was when children suddenly shot up to their feet, powerfully restrained Jo Mi-Hye, and covered her mouth before dragging her outside the living room.

Han Jin-Seong silently walked over to take over Jo Mi-Hye's spot, then bowed ninety degrees to Kang Jin-Ho. “We will prepare an itinerary in less than one hour, Chairman Kang! Sir!”

“Mhm!” Kang Jin-Ho firmly nodded.

‘Let’s also take today off.’

Although Kang Jin-Ho’s mental problem had been sorted out, telling Jo Gyu-Min he’d like to return to work would only fall on deaf ears. In that case, it might not be such a bad idea to go all-out today.

When the children submitted their itinerary, crafted with incredible care and attention, to Kang Jin-Ho not too long after his announcement, he didn't waste any time and snapped a photo of it before transmitting it to a familiar person who usually dealt with this sort of thing.

For a moment there, Kang Jin-Ho thought he could hear the despairing scream of the man receiving the photo all the way out here in the orphanage.