Chapter 97: Why Are You Obsessed with My Mask?
Chapter 97: Why Are You Obsessed with My Mask?
The Extreme Evil Smiling Demon returned to see me the following day.
"I didn't expect you to return."
"How could I stay away when you hold my life in your hands?"
I responded in my own way to the Smiling Demon’s mockery regarding my statement yesterday—that I would let him live.
"Please wait a moment. I have something I need to process quickly."
"Don't mind me. Take your time."
I could have paused my work, but I intentionally made him wait to maintain the upper hand.
Walking over to the window, the Smiling Demon asked, "I don't see that flower from yesterday."
"Investigator Seo likely took it out for some water," I replied while stamping a document.
I reviewed the next document and stamped it. Then another. And another.
The Smiling Demon, who had been staring out the window, seemed to grow bored of waiting and perched himself on the edge of my desk. He looked down at me as I worked, his posture suggesting: Since you made me wait, you’ll have to tolerate a little disrespect, won't you?
"Why do you make work so difficult? Just kill them all."
I smiled as I answered him. "It is you who lives too easily, Lord Smiling Demon."
The Smiling Demon burst into a hearty laugh. I couldn't let myself be fooled by this informal demeanor. Those who let their guard down around the Smiling Demon end up dead; only those who remain tense before the Extreme Evil survive.
"There, all finished."
When I looked up after stamping the final document, the Smiling Demon spoke unexpectedly.
"If you really become the successor, will you truly let me live?"
Of course, I couldn't be fooled by this either. Did he really come here to beg for his life?
No. He was enjoying this entire process. The Smiling Demon’s true intent was to interact like this until he could witness the moment I crumbled. He was the type of person who wouldn't be satisfied until he could cackle and mock me in my defeat.
I pulled out a dagger and carved a long line across the table.
"I will let you live. On one condition..."
I drew a vertical line slightly to the right of the center.
"You must make it to this point to survive."
An interested glint appeared in the Smiling Demon's eyes. "What is this?"
"It represents the level of affection I have for you."
"Oho! Such a thing exists?"
"You must cross the halfway mark to live. Even if someone is a friend, if there is no genuine affection for them, they are no different from a stranger, are they? A friend in name only is as good as dead."
"Survival is quite difficult, it seems."
"You will have to find a way to cross it."
"Where am I currently?"
I drew a vertical line just past the starting point.
"Only there?"
"You're lucky it's even there."
The Smiling Demon looked down at the line, then back at me, then down at the line again.
He had no choice but to be drawn into this relationship.
Not only was I treating him with such audacity, but he would also sense a flavor of justice and chivalry from me—things that could never be found within the Main Cult. To him, that was a spice more stimulating than anything else.
"What do you think of the Cult Leader, Second Young Master?"
He was asking because he likely suspected I was acting this way because I trusted in my father, or perhaps because I had received a secret order from him.
"I don't think about my father. I just try to feel whatever I feel in the moment. My father isn't someone I can understand by using my head. Trying to do so only makes things harder for me."
The Smiling Demon laughed, as if he could relate.
"If you've said everything you wanted to say, please see yourself out. It's time for my meal."
"You must eat, then. Let us go."
I left the office with the Smiling Demon. As we exited the building, he followed close behind me.
"Where are you eating?"
"I'm thinking of heading out to the Ma Clan Village today."
"I shall accompany you."
I asked him, feigning surprise. "Will that be alright?"
Since he never removed his mask, I had never heard of him sharing a meal with anyone.
"It is fine. I will simply sit with you while you eat, Second Young Master."
"I wasn't talking about you, Lord Smiling Demon. I meant the Ma Clan Village. Will it be alright?"
Only then did the Smiling Demon realize I was joking—telling him not to cause a riot or a massacre—and he laughed loudly.
While Seo Dae-ryong watched us worriedly from across the way, clutching a flowerpot to his chest, we crossed the training ground and headed outside.
* * *
Just before we entered the Ma Clan Village, the Smiling Demon spoke.
"Did you know? I have never actually been inside the Ma Clan Village. Whenever I had business outside, I simply passed through. This is the first time I have ever walked through it."
"Isn't that a fortunate thing for the residents?"
He laughed at my joke. "Is it truly alright for me to walk these streets?"
"If you're worried about people panicking and fleeing in terror, you needn't be."
"Why is that?"
"You'll see when we get there."
With that, we entered the Ma Clan Village. As we walked down the street, everyone passed us by without much thought. A few people who recognized me bowed their heads in greeting, but no one was horrified by the man standing beside me.
"Why is no one afraid of me?"
"Because no one thinks you are the Extreme Evil Smiling Demon."
"They should recognize me by this mask, shouldn't they?"
"Look over there."
I pointed to a street vendor across the road. The stall was selling all sorts of items related to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
"There's even a mask like yours, Lord Smiling Demon."
"!"
The Smiling Demon was genuinely startled.
Indeed, there were masks like the ones the Faceless Guests wore hanging there. There were white masks, of course, and even some that were colored or had drawings on them.
"These people...!"
As the Smiling Demon raised his hand as if to blow everything away, I tugged on his sleeve.
"I think that hand is needed over there."
Just then, a child walking past with his father, wearing a Faceless Guest mask, saw the Smiling Demon in the same mask and began waving his hand enthusiastically.
"It doesn't cost anything, so please wave back."
When I lightly shook his sleeve, the Smiling Demon waved back as if he couldn't help it.
The child passed us by, perhaps never knowing that he was the only person the Smiling Demon had ever waved to.
"There's no need to be so shocked. Things like that are possible too."
The vendor next to the mask stall was selling wooden dolls. There were dolls modeled after the Eight Demon Lords, and even dolls modeled after the Heavenly Demon.
The Smiling Demon was truly stunned when he saw the Heavenly Demon doll.
"Is this really allowed?"
"If they don't sell these things in a village near the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, where would they sell them? They can't exactly sell them in front of the Murim Alliance, can they?"
"Actually, they could sell them in front of the Murim Alliance, but they shouldn't be able to sell them here."
"It's because my father's magnanimity is vast. He gave permission for them to be made and sold as much as they like. Since that day, products related to my father and the Demon Lords have been pouring out. You'd think they'd be too uncomfortable to make them, but the power of profit is a great thing."
"This is truly ridiculous."
Only then did the Smiling Demon laugh heartily. Passing pedestrians glanced at him, but no one suspected him of being the Extreme Evil Smiling Demon as they went about their way.
"To you or me, it feels like we are the protagonists when we come out here, but this is a world where those people are the protagonists. If they recognize us, they feel fear and bow their heads, but what matters to them isn't us—it's their own lives. They have to earn money to eat every day, they have to meet people, and they have to raise their children. That is what the Ma Clan Village is."
"Interesting. How do you know this so well, Second Young Master?"
"Since I was young, I used to sneak out of the Cult and wander around the Ma Clan Village. This village was my world."
I gave him that excuse. He wouldn't believe me if I said I had traveled the world, but the Ma Clan Village was plausible.
The Smiling Demon's gaze turned back toward the vendors selling masks and Heavenly Demon Soul dolls.
Without hesitation, he released his unique demonic energy, the Laughing Evil Heart. The vendors suddenly looked distressed, grimacing and clutching their chests as if their insides were tightening.
"Soon, that man will put on the mask he was selling and stab the person next to him to death. If they die, it will be because of you, Second Young Master. You are the one who brought me here."
"Don't be absurd. You are the one who followed me when I said I was going to eat. And you are the one doing the killing. Furthermore, there is one thing you must know."
"What is it?"
"Committing murder in front of the Huangquan Pavilion Master is a capital offense. Go ahead and try to trade their lives for yours."
I began walking ahead and added, "You can mess with the dolls of my father over there, but you don't mess with the livelihoods of people trying to make a living."
I felt the Smiling Demon withdraw his Laughing Evil Heart behind me. He had only done it to see my reaction; he hadn't intended to kill from the start.
He was finding it fun to play with me right now. He likely expected that the more he yielded now, the more thrilling the pleasure would be when the moment finally came to kill me.
The place I arrived at was the Pungryu Tavern.
"Well, this is my regular spot."
"It's quite shabby. Why here of all places?"
"It's a bit cliché since I come here every day, but I like the owner. He's the only person who knows you are the real Smiling Demon."
The owner, Jo Chun-bae, came out and greeted me warmly as always.
"Welcome, Pavilion Master."
His gaze shifted to the Smiling Demon.
In an instant, Jo Chun-bae flinched, a look of terror crossing his face.
"This man truly does know who I am."
"Because he came with me. He knows the real one has arrived."
I smiled and said to Jo Chun-bae, "He is exactly who you think he is. Fortunately, only I will be eating, so you don't have to worry too much."
"Yes!"
Even so, the pressure the Smiling Demon exerted seemed even greater than my father's. In the rumors, the Smiling Demon was a villain who killed people for no reason at all.
"Of all the guests I've brought here, he seems to be the most afraid of you, Lord Smiling Demon. Even more than my father."
"The Cult Leader has been here as well?"
"Yes."
"That is unexpected."
"There is a first time for everyone."
"It seems everyone shares their firsts with you, Second Young Master."
I gave a faint smile, and he habitually followed suit.
This time, I asked him, "Have you ever eaten in a tavern like this?"
"I did when I was young."
"With whom?"
He didn't answer.
But I knew who it was. It was said that before he became the disciple of the Smiling Demon, he had once eaten in a marketplace with his father. It was a single memory that remained like a painting in his mind.
I suddenly imagined that scene. A young child entering a tavern while holding his father's hand.
The Smiling Demon claimed he had been born and bred in slaughter since childhood, but was that really true? Was the heart of that child entering the tavern truly filled with murderous intent?
Meanwhile, the food arrived.
Jo Chun-bae was so careful he seemed to be watching his own breathing, as if he feared a single mistake would mean his death.
As he successfully placed the dishes and retreated, his eyes seemed to say: Thanks to you, I have achieved greatness as a tavern owner today.
I replied with my eyes: That remains to be seen, owner. Who knows what other gatherings might take place here.
I picked up my chopsticks and asked the Smiling Demon out of courtesy, "Would you like to join me?"
"There is no hole for a mouth in this mask. Is there a way for me to eat?"
"How about lifting the mask slightly from the bottom?"
"That would look undignified, wouldn't it?"
"Then there's no other way."
"I am not hungry, so don't mind me and eat."
"Alright, then I shall go ahead."
I truly did eat alone. The Smiling Demon simply watched. Anyone else would have called it madness, but I was accomplishing the difficult task of eating a meal alone in front of the Extreme Evil Smiling Demon.
"Isn't it tiring to keep that mask on all the time?"
"It must be more tiring for you than for me, Second Young Master."
"For me?"
"Since you don't have a mask, you have to make so many different expressions every day, don't you?"
"Ah, I suppose that's true."
Starting with that, I told him various stories.
I told him about the times the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, the One Flower Sword Venerable, and the Demon Buddha had come here. I talked about the weather, and I mentioned how well white masks would sell if they were sold in front of the Murim Alliance. He listened to my stories in silence.
When I finished my meal and set down my chopsticks, the Smiling Demon spoke unexpectedly.
"Second Young Master, I have a favor to ask."
"Please, go ahead."
"Speak to the Cult Leader and have him lift my restriction."
I feigned a startled expression. However, the moment the word 'favor' came out, I had expected this request. Originally, this was a favor he had asked of my brother, but now that our fates had shifted, he was asking it of me.
"That is not an easy task."
"That is why I am asking you. For some reason, I feel like you might be able to lift it."
"If I lift the restriction, what will you do for me in return?"
"Just say the word. What do you want? Do you want my full support?"
That was what my brother had wanted. But I was looking at a much larger picture.
"No."
"You don't want my support?"
"I don't want forced support. It would only break the unity of those who already support me."
"Then what do you want?"
Staring into the eyes behind the mask, I said, "Take off your mask, even if it's only when we are alone together."
"!"
The atmosphere froze instantly.
"Why on earth are you so obsessed with my mask?"
"I'm not obsessed with the mask."
"Then what?"
"If we are to be friends, I want us to be real friends."
"!"
After a moment of silence, the Smiling Demon asked coldly, "Can you handle me without the mask?"
Staring into his eyes, which gleamed with primal malice through the hollow holes, I calmly asked back.
"Can you handle me without that mask?"