Ivan Park was about to hit Daniel again in frustration when a familiar voice sounded behind him, making him stop.
"Hey. What are you doing?"
The voice wasn't loud, but everyone heard it.
Ivan froze for a moment. Daniel, hearing that voice, couldn't help but raise his head. Sechan, who had also closed his eyes, slowly opened them.
And when he turned around, Ivan saw Seo Joon among all the members of God Dog, who easily made way for him. Even Hope Park stood up and stopped what he was doing, which surprised Cheon Taeho and Sigyeon Ryu.
Sigyeon Ryu bit into his lollipop, looked at Seo Joon with his eyes still closed, and thought, "Has a bigwig from God Dog arrived?"
Seo Joon walked calmly, his hands in his pockets, his posture relaxed. His hoodie still covered his face… but his body exuded a heavy aura, like a predator entering a flock of chickens.
"B-Boss…" he said, trying to compose himself. After all, the feeling of Seo Joon's oppressive presence had become stronger than before, causing both fear and admiration for Seo Joon to grow in his heart. "I wanted to teach these annoying guys a lesson."
Seo Joon tilted his head, observing the scene with interest. Daniel and Sechan were tied up, bruised, looking at him with genuine curiosity. What he didn't know was that even these guys were truly frightened by his imposing presence.
Seo Joon's eyes narrowed slightly.
"And Haru Seong?" he asked.
Ivan quickly replied.
"He hasn't arrived yet, boss." But she should be here soon…
The sound of footsteps at the entrance interrupted him.
A light rhythm cut his words short.
"What a coincidence," Seo Joon thought. He naturally saw that Haru wasn't there, so he assumed she hadn't arrived yet.
Daniel, Sechan, and Hope Park—they all turned their heads at the same time.
Seo Joon looked up.
And then, Haru Seong appeared in the doorway.
She was wearing the boys' school uniform, with a backpack slung over one shoulder. The most striking thing about her was her long, reddish hair, along with her exquisitely refined facial features. Her breathing was ragged, clearly indicating that she had run.
Upon arriving, her eyes widened at what she saw before her.
First, she saw Daniel. Then Sechan. Both of them tied up, their faces swollen like pigs', with dried blood at the corners of their lips.
Haru's heart leaped.
"Daniel. Sechan…" Haru whispered, clearly confused and worried.
She took a step forward automatically, as if her body wanted to move forward even though her mind was already warning her of the danger.
Because when she looked up, she saw the immense crowd gathered. These guys apparently saw that she was the person they'd come for and quickly formed a circle, cutting off any escape route.
At the same time, everyone thought, "HOLY SHIT, SHE'S GORGEOUS!"
Seo Joon was completely speechless, not knowing what the hell to say. Haru Seong was truly beautiful, really gorgeous.
"Damn, so confusing!"
Seo Joon really couldn't identify Haru's gender. After all, that long hair that cascaded down her face and those completely feminine facial features definitely indicated that she was a woman.
But on the other hand, that male school uniform and her physical build were clearly not very feminine.
At that moment, a thought crossed his mind: "Wait, Haru Seong, could it be...?"
¿!¡?
Seo Joon's eyes widened in surprise, and he quickly dismissed the thought. Although he was someone who respected other people's tastes and sexuality, this was still strange, wasn't it?
"It seems there's only one way to find out!" Seo Joon thought, eyeing Haru Seong's flat chest.
Haru had no idea that an extremely wicked plan was beginning to take shape in Seo Joon's mind. Although he was somewhat intimidated by the number of people gathered, he looked back at his friends.
And took another firm step forward.
Ivan frowned.
"Hey, kid? Anyway, it's best if..."
Seo Joon raised a hand, immediately silencing him.
He calmly took a few steps toward Haru. Haru watched him cautiously. His body was on guard, his legs tense, his fingers slightly curled, his breathing shallow as he tried to control himself.
"They're your friends, right?" Seo Joon said, his voice devoid of emotion.
Haru gritted his teeth and glared at him.
"Let them go."
Seo Joon analyzed Haru's posture. How he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. His hands trembled slightly, but were ready to move.
At first glance, this kid really knew a trick or two, which intrigued him.
Interesting.
"Okay," Seo Joon finally replied.
Everyone, even Ivan, blinked in surprise.
"O-Okay?" Haru repeated incredulously.
Seo Joon nodded slightly, though Haru couldn't see his face. From his words, she could tell he wasn't lying.
"But..." Seo Joon interrupted Haru's thoughts, raising a finger and saying, "There's only one condition."
Haru was about to say something, but Seo Joon didn't let her. He took a step toward her, his shadow covering his entire body.
At that moment, a feeling of oppression washed over Haru. After all, Seo Joon was practically a damned giant.
On the other hand, seeing Haru's height, Seo Joon deduced that she was approximately a little over 1.65 meters tall, which was about average for Korean women. This led Seo Joon to assume Haru's gender.
"You know, in his previous life, this was truly an unsolved mystery, so he was really curious." He stopped thinking about those things and said,
"Hit me just once," he said. "If you can even graze me, even just a little... I'll let you go."
A heavy silence fell over the place.
Haru swallowed hard.
Daniel, tied up, shook his head violently.
"H-Haru, don't do it!"
Although he didn't know how strong Seo Joon was, Daniel was sure that he was undoubtedly stronger than the fat man and the other monster. It was impossible for Haru to accomplish anything. He was about to say more when...
Hope Park silenced him with a slap that made him shut up.
Haru looked at Seo Joon, but he couldn't see his face, so he couldn't tell if he was lying or not. He took a deep breath and said, "Fine, but you have to keep your promise."
Seo Joon nodded.
"Perfect."
Then he pointed to his face, looking down at Haru.
"Come on." Show me what you can do.
Seo Joon watched as Haru raised his arms… and assumed a familiar stance.
Of all the martial arts, the most common and the one most people prefer is undoubtedly boxing. This is due to its ease of execution and, well, it's the most famous.
Haru threw a straight punch at Seo Joon's face, but at that moment, Seo Joon extended his hand and placed a finger on Haru's forehead.
This caused Haru's pupils to constrict. In martial arts, many factors influence a fight, and one of them is certainly height.
Height offers advantages in reach and leverage (longer strikes, higher defense), although there are also disadvantages such as a lower center of gravity and reduced mobility.
Taller people typically control distance, while shorter people dominate close-quarters combat and have greater stability, but ultimately, skill, strategy, and distance control are more important than height.
However, these weaknesses based on height don't apply to Seo Joon. With an exceptionally talented physique for physical combat, these rules don't apply. In Lookism, there are several characters like Seo Joon where these rules don't apply.
But obviously, Haru, at least at this stage, doesn't. Seo Joon withdrew his finger and said, "Continue."
This made Haru feel utterly powerless and humiliated.
He gritted his teeth and continued attacking, aiming directly for Seo Joon's body. After all, hitting his face was clearly impossible. Besides, even if he managed to land a punch that rises as the distance increases, it wouldn't be enough. The longer the attack, the less power it would lose, and even if it connected, it would do little good.
So Haru focused on striking Seo Joon's torso. Seeing this, Seo Joon nodded inwardly.
But employing exquisite footwork, Seo Joon dodged with ease, almost effortlessly.
Swooosh!
Haru's hook aimed for the liver whistled, but Seo Joon easily dodged by shifting his body slightly backward.
In Haru's mind, he wondered how to touch Seo Joon. As for defeating him?
It had never crossed his mind. Just look at Haru and Seo Joon; the difference in weight was truly abysmal.
Even if he landed a hit, what would happen next?
Haru knew that even if his punches connected, they could do little against this monster in front of him. Someone with a body like that definitely wasn't weak.
He gritted his teeth, and his speed increased dramatically. Each punch he threw whistled. The air felt like razor-sharp blades. But it was all useless.
As time passed, Haru's stamina dwindled, and she still couldn't attack. Her milk-white skin was pale, and fine beads of sweat trickled down her cheeks.
At that moment, Haru felt as if an immense wave were dragging her into the depths of the sea. Her hands felt heavier and heavier with each passing moment.
"Should I give up?" Haru thought.
When that thought crossed her mind, Haru shook her head. "Impossible!!"
"Daniel and Sechan are waiting for me to save him!"
An immense determination surged through Haru's body, and her pupils glowed intensely. At that moment, something clicked in her mind. She watched Seo Joon's footwork, which, for some reason, Haru couldn't quite see clearly.
He felt everything around him slow down, and the movements that had previously seemed difficult to see became clear. In fact, he felt incredibly that he seemed to be able to replicate them.
Seo Joon naturally perceived the change in Haru Seong's aura. Initially, he had been disappointed as the fight progressed.
After all, while Haru Seong knew a few things about boxing, his movements were vastly inferior to Scott Kwon's or anyone else he had seen.
That's why, to test if Haru could copy at this stage, Seo Joon simply dodged using typical boxing footwork, hoping that Haru could copy him.
After all, Seo Joon didn't want to hit Haru; he was truly afraid of killing him. If it had been someone else, Seo Joon would have simply attacked brutally without employing any martial arts techniques. After all, when strength is overwhelming, using martial arts is more of a burden than an advantage. Just look at Yujiro Hanma; it's rare for him to use martial arts.
Anyway, he was about to stop the fight when Haru's aura changed, interrupting his actions.
At that moment, to everyone's surprise, Haru's speed, which had begun to decrease, suddenly increased. At the same time, his clumsy and erratic movements became exquisite.
Footwork isn't just there for no reason; it's a huge advantage and of utmost importance in any martial art, except, of course, for grappling arts like Jiu-Jitsu, wrestling, judo, etc.
Seo Joon knew this well, and even more so now. Although he wasn't a super expert like some other monsters in lookism, he knew the basics. Footwork gives you mobility, balance, power, defense, and area control, allowing you to move in and out of your opponent's striking range, dodge attacks, and generate power from your legs for stronger strikes.
Not having it developed is a huge disadvantage because it leaves you static, unbalanced, vulnerable to blows, unable to generate power, and limits your control of space, making you an easy target and less effective offensively, just like a "punching bag."
Haru took another step and then…
SWISH!
He vanished from the front line in an explosive lateral movement.
Ivan's eyes widened in disbelief; not only was he surprised, but the others were too. After all, that movement was the same as the one Seo Joon had made.
"But what…?"
Haru appeared in a blind spot, looking to enter Seo Joon's guard with a perfectly executed side hook… but Seo Joon was no longer there.
Tap.
A slight deflection with his elbow and two short steps back. Haru felt as if the force of his own arm was absorbed and redirected into nothingness.
"You're good, let's see how far you can go," Seo Joon said.
Seo Joon upped the ante… took a step forward and vanished.
Tap!
Haru felt an invisible weight fall on him. At that moment, he could barely see Seo Joon disappear, and the pressure was different than before. But even so, he moved forward and appeared right where Seo Joon had shifted, inside his guard.
SWISH!
Haru threw a jab. Perfect angle. Perfect speed.
Perfect power.
Seo Joon tilted his head just a few millimeters, and the punch missed.
"Good, you hardly lost any power," he murmured.
Haru heard that… and adrenaline exploded in his chest.
SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!
Three more blows, precise, each one seemingly vanishing, visible only to a few experts.
Tap!
Tap!
Tap!
Seo Joon dodged everything, walking forward unhurriedly, passing each of Haru's blows.
"I can't reach him..."
"Why can't I reach you?"
"Why!?"
Haru's pupils glowed. Wherever Seo Joon moved, he followed, always throwing blow after blow, trying to touch or graze him, but it was impossible.
Not to mention that Haru began to feel his body weakening. While Haru could mimic Seo Joon's movements, from his legs and hips to his torso,
Haru's body wasn't adapted for this. Each time he did it, it was a strain on his body; he was pushing his body to the limit. If it weren't for the adrenaline, Haru would feel his muscles go numb. Just like after a day at the gym following a long, sedentary life.
"I've seen enough," Seo Joon, who confirmed that Haru's talent was identical to Johan's, said. His speed suddenly increased, making Haru unable to keep up.
He extended his large hand, ready to touch Haru and claim victory. At this, Daniel and Sechan's pupils narrowed.
"Damn it, are you really going to hit a woman?!" Daniel roared.
...
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