Chapter 379
Chapter 379
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: EP. 79: A Man's Growth is Remarkable (3)
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...He suddenly realized it.
'Ah, this is just plain stupid.'
He was doing something utterly idiotic right now.
Mercenary-style Q&A, of all things...
'No way I'd actually end up doing that dumbass routine I'd only heard about in rumors.'
In truth, this so-called mercenary Q&A was nothing more than a form of entertainment that mercenaries had invented to mimic boxing matches and kill time during long missions. The proper way involved wrapping soft material in cloth around the fists for the bout.
Of course, for mercenaries whose bodies were their livelihood, getting injured just to relieve boredom would be a loss for no one but themselves. It was meant to be as safe as possible. But when hot-blooded mercenaries gathered, fights often escalated, leading to plenty of stupid injuries. As a result, it was a custom that had long faded from the mercenary world.
Even Lee Han had only heard about it as a rumor from an old mercenary in the past. Back then, he'd flatly declared it 'truly idiotic'...
"So I was the idiot, huh. Haah..."
Lee Han let out a self-deprecating mutter and a sigh.
What the hell was he even doing?
"Haha, calling it idiotic? It's a time-honored tradition, you know."
"What kind of tradition is bleeding while trading punches and chit-chat? It's just barbaric."
"It might look that way at first glance, but whether man or woman, when bodies clash, more honest conversations become possible. It's a primal way to draw out the truth from your opponent—what could be more exhilarating? A shame it's fallen out of fashion."
"Sounds like fancy bullshit to me."
...The problem was.
"That I'm the type to fall for it."
"Hoho! We do share a bond, then."
Lee Han had to admit it.
He had quite a few questions for Kaiser, and Kaiser clearly had some for him too.
But two people who'd just met weren't about to bare their souls or share info out of loyalty.
Hence, mercenary-style Q&A.
"Mercenary Q&A Rule 1: The one who lands the most hits in a round gets to ask questions, right?"
"Rule 2: Refuse to answer, and you're on defense-only for one minute in the next round."
"Rule 3: The above two rules must be followed absolutely. ...That's only three rules total. This for real?"
"Fitting for mercenaries, isn't it?"
"It's ridiculous, but..."
[Awooooo!]
"-I like how simple it is."
Whoosh!
The two men launched themselves forward the moment the howling echoed out.
Whoosh!
Lee Han threw the first punch.
A jab—the probing move commonly known for lacking real power.
Bam!
Yet Lee Han's jab unleashed explosive force that no one would believe was just a probe.
Just a simple extension, but it sounded like a shell dropping—would you believe that?
But.
"Not bad weight on those fists for a young pup."
"...Tougher than I expected."
"At 70, you're still in your prime, hoho."
His opponent blocked it effortlessly.
Lee Han tested with a flurry of jabs, slicing through the air with over five strikes in an instant.
Even so.
Whoosh!
"Impressive! Such agility from that build."
"......"
That guard was rock-solid.
No—more accurately, his movements blocking every blow so casually were the real marvel.
'He's reading me like a book.'
Not surprising.
This was a living legend, after all.
Honestly, it would be weirder if he couldn't block strikes like these with ease.
So.
"Let's see..."
Whoosh-!
Underestimating him would just mean getting burned—obviously by Lee Han.
Kaboom!
"...?!"
Lee Han's face shook once.
It happened in a flash.
He'd dodged the jab with smooth weaving, then countered with an uppercut.
Lee Han guarded quickly, but.
'What the hell is this impact...!'
It felt like being hammered full-force at a construction site.
"You blocked that?"
Kaiser, puzzled that his hit was parried, slipped into Lee Han's guard with fluid motion again.
Lee Han countered precisely, but.
Kaboom!
...The same thing happened again.
A U-shaped weave pierced his flurry of punches leisurely, followed by a crushing body blow.
The technique known as a liver shot or liver punch hammered Lee Han hard, and he...
"...Again?"
"Damn it, why do all the old guys I fight have to be stronger than me?"
Lee Han managed to block with one hand—thankfully—but his body nearly floated up and flew back.
He didn't go out of bounds, so no ring-out, but it was close.
More than that.
'My arm's going numb.'
The blocking arm felt paralyzed.
It tingled like hell, reminding him anew that this guy was a monster.
The extra intel gained:
'This guy's a hybrid out-boxer style.'
Smooth, relaxed weaving, and seamless shifts into幻 ducking.
Classic out-boxer so far, but the scary part? Top-tier defense, and punches fired like loaded shells—devastating power.
Perfect as an out-boxer, perfect as an in-fighter too.
'Feels like Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier combined.'
Like merging legendary boxers. Lee Han knew because he'd binged their old footage once.
So.
'This is fun.'
Lee Han was intrigued.
As someone who'd once enjoyed boxing, sure.
But mainly.
'Finally, a sparring partner after so long.'
Someone to quench the thirst solo training couldn't satisfy—it warmed his heart.
'What kind of guy is this?'
Kaiser was baffled.
'He's blocking all this?'
Whoosh!
Kaiser slipped into his guard smoothly again.
To an outsider, it looked like Lee Han was frozen while Kaiser danced around.
But that was because Kaiser's movements were exquisitely precise, without a shred of waste...
Bzzz-.
'This kid hasn't even entered the yet, and he's reacting? What sorcery is this?'
There was an insurmountable 'gap in realm' between this young junior and Kaiser.
So this match should have been Kaiser toying with him, but weirdly...
Kabooooom!!
"?"
"...I've been wondering since earlier—why do you look so shocked every time I block?"
"Hoho, if you can't see through this, you definitely haven't touched the domain yet... Impressive."
"What're you on about?"
Whoosh!
Lee Han blocked the next strike again.
Not easily, but barely—it was still impressive.
'I didn't plan to drag this out.'
He'd called it rounds, but Kaiser figured he'd give him a light beating and end it casually in round 1.
But against his expectations.
[Awooooo!]
...Round 1 had ended at some point.
"Tch, ask away if you wanna know something. Looks like I got crushed in round 1."
"...Hoho."
No sign of fatigue as he stepped back, and Kaiser let out a hollow chuckle.
Then.
"-You, why didn't you use your fighting spirit?"
"?"
Not his original question, but one sparked by round 1.
"Not just fighting spirit, either. I heard from my disciple you use some odd technique called [Indestructible]. But you didn't use that either."
If what his disciple said was true, Lee Han could've just tanked the punches and countered without guarding.
Pushing a slugger style—tank with durability, then land a big counter—might've even tagged Kaiser meaningfully.
Yet he'd stubbornly stuck to out-boxer style.
In other words, fighting while nerfing his own strengths.
And to that doubt.
"You're talking weird..."
Tap tap.
"You said it first, didn't you? Let's do mercenary Q&A. So using anything else would be cheating. It's about fighting with pure skill."
"......"
He was reciting the rules, raising one fist.
Honestly, like a fool.
"Well, it's not in the rules anyway. Least, I never heard of using fighting techniques in the mercenary Q&A I know about. To me, Indestructible is like a fighting technique, so obviously off-limits. Common sense, right?"
"...You held back just for that reason?"
"Obviously."
"...You know I'm a fair bit stronger than you, yeah?"
"I know. So what?"
The junior knight named Lee Han smirked like he was saying don't be ridiculous.
"If I had to concede defeat to every stronger opponent, I'd be dead already. Not one of the guys I've fought was weaker than me—they were all stronger. And yet, I'm the one who survived to the end. So to me, whether you're above me or not doesn't matter. It's trivial."
His plain brown eyes gleamed.
Like a barley field dyed golden in the sunset glow...
Vast, pulsing with dynamic life force.
And that—
"If you get it, quit with the dumb questions and ask what you really want. Now..."
[Awoo!]
"...Time's up. Round 2."
"......"
"What're you waiting for? Get in stance."
"...Sorry. It's been ages since my blood got this pumped."
"?"
"Ahahaha! Damn, I came here with light thoughts, but this is something else."
──It's been a while since I go all out.
Kaiser grinned with exhilaration as he locked eyes on his opponent again.
Yeah, this wasn't some promising kid anymore.
The man before him was simply...!
'A 'rival' I must topple.'
A fierce warrior who might rip out his throat if he let his guard down.