Sanghee stretched his neck as he watched Olly Wang. "You're the leader of Hostel A, right? Olly Wang?"
Olly grinned wildly. "Yeah. I didn't think you old guys would know about me."
He suddenly jumped and spun in the air, his leg whipping toward Sanghee's head from an unexpected angle.
Sanghee ducked and rushed in close, trying to grab Olly. But Olly's other leg shot up in another kick before his first foot even touched the ground, forcing Sanghee back.
"Too slow!" Olly laughed as he landed.
He threw a straight punch, then another. Each one aimed at Sanghee's chest with heavy force.
Sanghee dodged the first, but the second clipped his shoulder.
"Strong," Sanghee said, rolling his shoulder. "But that won't save you, kid."
"Save me?" Olly's grin widened. "I'm not the one who needs saving here!"
Sanghee feinted left, then dove right, reaching for Olly's legs to take him down. His hands wrapped around Olly's thigh and he drove his shoulder into Olly's hip.
But Olly's stance was rock solid. He widened his stance and drove his fist down into Sanghee's back.
Thud!
Sanghee grunted but held on, pulling at Olly's leg. Olly responded by driving his knee up into Sanghee's face. Once. Twice.
Blood poured from Sanghee's nose, but he didn't let go. "You hit hard, I'll give you that, brat!"
"Hard? That's nothing!" Olly drove his knee up a third time, smashing it into Sanghee's forehead. "I can go way harder!"
Sanghee's vision blurred, but he used the moment to finally sweep Olly's leg. Both crashed to the ground.
Sanghee tried to pin Olly down, but Olly's body moved fluidly. He redirected Sanghee's weight and slipped out, rolling back to his feet.
"Nice try, old man!" Olly called out.
Sanghee got up just as fast. "Old man? Just because my wife and daughter left me, you think I'm old?! I'm going to make you regret that."
"Make me regret it? That sounds fun!" Olly rushed in again, mixing everything together. A spinning kick flowed into a straight punch, which transitioned into a grab attempt. "Let's see how crazy this can get!"
Sanghee defended. He caught Olly's wrist during the grab and pulled him into a bear hug, wrapping his arms around Olly's body.
"Got you!"
Sanghee lifted Olly off his feet and tried to throw him headfirst into the concrete.
But mid-throw, Olly's body twisted impossibly. He wrapped his legs around Sanghee's waist and reversed the move, his arm wrapping around Sanghee's neck and squeezing.
"How's that feel?" Olly whispered near his ear, his voice cold now.
Sanghee's eyes went wide as Olly's arm cut off his air. "Damn it!"
He drove forward with all his strength, slamming Olly's back into a concrete pillar. The impact should have made Olly let go, but his arm didn't budge.
Olly felt no pain.
"That all you got?" Olly asked, his voice steady despite his back being crushed.
Sanghee slammed him again. And again. Olly's back was being destroyed against the pillar, but his face showed nothing. His arm just kept squeezing Sanghee's neck.
"Come on! Hit me harder!" Olly laughed. "I don't feel anything!"
Sanghee's face turned red. He couldn't breathe. Black spots appeared in his vision. He grabbed Olly's arm with both hands and tried to pry it away.
It wasn't enough.
His movements got slower. Weaker. Olly's cold eyes just stared at him, watching him fade.
"Going to sleep already? Boring."
In desperation, Sanghee hooked his leg behind Olly's and threw his weight backward, slamming both of them into the ground with Olly underneath.
The impact finally broke the choke. Both gasped for air.
Sanghee rolled away, coughing and clutching his throat. Olly pushed himself up slowly, his back covered in bruises and scrapes from the pillar.
But he smiled through it. "Now we're having fun!"
Sanghee laughed between coughs. "You really don't feel pain, do you?"
"Pain?" Olly tilted his head. "I don't fucking feel it!" He charged forward with a flying knee.
Sanghee barely got his arms up to block, but the force sent him sliding backward.
Before Sanghee could recover, Olly was already there. He threw punches and kicks from odd angles, creating chaos that was almost impossible to predict.
"Can't keep up?" Olly taunted between strikes. "Too bad!"
Sanghee blocked what he could, but many got through. A punch to the ribs. A kick to the thigh. An elbow to the jaw.
Sanghee changed tactics. Instead of fighting back, he waited for an opening. When Olly threw a high kick, Sanghee ducked under and grabbed both of Olly's legs.
This time, it worked. Olly hit the ground hard with Sanghee on top.
"Finally!" Sanghee mounted him and started punching Olly's face. Once. Twice. Three times.
But Olly laughed even as blood filled his mouth. "Is that supposed to hurt?"
He didn't defend his face. Instead, he used the moment to buck his hips and trap one of Sanghee's arms, trying to reverse their positions.
Sanghee felt the shift and stopped punching, focusing on maintaining control. They struggled on the ground, Sanghee using technique while Olly used raw power.
Sanghee managed to transition to Olly's side and grabbed his arm, twisting it back and putting pressure on the shoulder.
Most people would have given up. Olly just grinned at him. "Go ahead. Break it."
Sanghee twisted harder. Olly's shoulder made a sickening pop as it dislocated.
"There it is!" Olly laughed. "That's more like it!"
"You're insane!" Sanghee said, genuinely unnerved now.
"Yeah, I know!" Olly used his free arm to punch Sanghee in the face repeatedly. "Isn't it great?"
Even with a dislocated shoulder, his punches were powerful.
Sanghee had to let go. Olly rolled away and stood up, his left arm hanging limply.
"Your arm is destroyed!" Sanghee said, standing too. "Just stay down!"
Olly looked at his dangling arm and shrugged with his good shoulder. "Still got one more. That's all I need!"
He charged again, fighting with one arm. "Let's make this interesting!" He threw a devastating right punch, putting all his power into it.
Sanghee tried to catch it and throw him, but Olly pulled back at the last second, making Sanghee miss, then drove his knee into Sanghee's face.
Crack!
Sanghee's nose broke. Blood exploded. He stumbled backward, dazed.
"Come on! Don't die on me yet!" Olly kept coming. One arm, badly injured, but completely unstoppable. He threw a spinning back kick that caught Sanghee in the stomach and sent him crashing into a metal container.
Sanghee slumped against it, barely able to see straight. "Damn! Have the kids of this generation already surpassed us?"
Olly walked toward him slowly. His left arm dangled uselessly, his body was covered in injuries, blood running down his face, but he was smiling.
"This is fun!" Olly said. "I didn't expect to have such a good time just after I was released!"
---
Manager Kim stood over both of them. "Kids these days... Are they all like this?" Manager Kim asked without turning back. Behind him, Warren had already recovered.
"We are Hostel. We do anything to protect our family."
With that, Warren rushed at Manager Kim.
Manager Kim turned to face Warren.
Warren threw a quick jab at Manager Kim's chest. Manager Kim's hand swept down and knocked it away. Warren immediately threw an uppercut, but Manager Kim leaned back. The punch missed his chin by inches.
Warren didn't stop. He kept attacking—jab, cross, hook. Manager Kim's arms moved smoothly, blocking every punch with minimal movements.
Warren tried to close the distance. He feinted left, then drove his elbow toward Manager Kim's ribs. Manager Kim's arm came down and stopped the elbow. Warren's knee shot up immediately after, aimed at Manager Kim's stomach.
Manager Kim twisted his body, and the knee hit nothing but air. Before Warren could attack again, Manager Kim's palm pushed toward his chest. Warren barely blocked it with both arms, but the force still pushed him back.
"You have grown stronger," Manager Kim said calmly. "But that won't be enough, Warren."
Warren gritted his teeth and attacked again. "Be quiet, old man." He threw a straight punch at Manager Kim's face, but it was a feint. His real move was a low kick at Manager Kim's knee. Manager Kim lifted his leg, letting the kick pass underneath, then stepped forward.
Warren tried to grab Manager Kim's arm to lock it, but Manager Kim's other hand broke the grip before it could form. Warren spun away and tried a spinning backhand. Manager Kim ducked under it easily, and his counter punch stopped just inches from Warren's exposed ribs.
"What are you doing here, Major General?" Manager Kim said, stepping back.