Chapter 92
Chapter 92
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: EP.24 – No Excuses in My Life (2)
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...
When was it?
- Don't you ever get tired of that guy's wuxia novels?
It was during a shift when a superior I'd known for nearly ten years asked me that.
Reading wuxia novels every day on duty—didn't I ever get sick of it?
- After nearly ten years, you'd think it'd get old.
- Sometimes it does. But every time I read them, I find something new.
- Man, why do you like wuxia so much?
- Hmm... Because they're full of romance?
- Romance my ass.
- Even you, sir, you've been playing Duel or whatever for over ten years—don't you get tired?
- Shut up! Duel is the foundation that stirs a man's soul, the foundation!
- Ah, yes, sir...
Birds of a feather flock together, huh.
Looking back now, both he and that superior were a couple of weirdos.
Still, he thought that guy was better than his direct boss.
For one thing, while he enjoyed everything from wuxia to webtoons and romances, that old man was obsessed with first-generation card games to the point of nausea.
According to him, he only acknowledged the roots and second-gen stuff...
Anyway, as his superior said, he did prefer wuxia over other genres.
The reason?
- Because it's so exhilarating.
Exhilarating.
They say people envy what they lack, and he loved those bizarrely bold xia heroes.
No fretting or hesitation. They charge straight ahead and do what they want.
They live in the moment rather than worrying about tomorrow, powering through every second with full force out of fear of wasting a day on mediocrity rather than death itself.
So that they have no regrets, no matter when life ends.
How exhilarating and dazzling is that?
...I couldn't do that.
Always intimidated, lacking confidence, just getting pushed around this way and that.
How reed-like a life is that?
That's why he envied the lives of wuxia xia heroes who lived for chivalry rather than chaebols or powerhouses.
Their lives had no petty excuses.
- So, you like the protagonists?
- No, I just envy all those who pursue xia in wuxia novels.
Yes, it wasn't the protagonists he liked.
He yearned for the xia heroes' lives, and they embodied the ideal he'd always envisioned deep in his heart.
So he often muttered to himself.
- If there's a next life, I'll live following my heart without cowardly excuses.
- Why not try it now?
- Then, can I set the captain's head on fire?
- ...Uh, he's already bald—why bother?
- Heh, good point.
If there's a next life, I won't live like this.
Whatever.
"Hmm, would assaulting a superior count as exhilarating?"
In the end of his life, hadn't he somewhat achieved the ideal he wanted?
He—no, Lee Han, who had now reached the same age as his past self—pressed forward, lost in thought.
Was he truly living as his past self had declared, following his heart?
"...Who cares."
But Lee Han soon dismissed it as pointless fretting.
Worrying itself wasn't xia-like.
He just needed to remember one thing.
'I'll act on what I believe is right, and I don't need anyone's judgment for it.'
In the end, there's no right answer.
No one but God knows what ripples any action will cause.
So it's all just self-satisfaction.
And the responsibility is mine alone.
Thud.
Lee Han finally stopped.
Not because he intended to halt his advance.
A wall like a fortress rampart blocked his path, and the main gate looked sturdier than the wall itself, leaving him pondering his options.
Two choices.
Scale the wall or shout.
But neither appealed.
This was provoking a great noble house. Why not go big?
So he.
Thud, thud.
"Huh?"
"What the—?"
"Halt right there and state your identity! This is the Tristan estate!"
The guards at the iron gate issued a sharp warning, radiating hostility.
As expected of a prestigious house.
Even the guards were elites, their presence overwhelming, intent on attacking at any moment.
Yet.
"S-Stop, I said!"
Lee Han didn't stop, barreling straight ahead.
Like a truck with failed brakes.
His pace quickened, and when he broke into a sprint.
"F-Fire! He's an intruder!!"
Dong-dong!!
With the midnight alarm bell ringing for the intruder, the guards nocked their arrows.
No hesitation in their aim.
Impressive.
If they were under him, he'd gladly grant them commendation leave.
Unfortunately, he had nothing to offer now, and at this moment, he was merely.
Tang! Taaang!
"The arrows—!"
"W-What the hell?!"
An assailant piercing through them.
The arrows that struck him true all bounced off.
Not deflected by armor.
The intense pressure from his full-speed charge repelled them.
He ran as if tearing the wind, and thus.
Whoosh!!
He leaped.
"—!"
Like a high jumper soaring through the air, he crossed five meters in an instant, fist extended toward the obstructing iron gate.
No fancy Hundred-Step Divine Fist—just a full-power straight punch.
And that fist.
Krunch!!
...Unleashed force that shattered the metal door.
Boom!!
"......"
"...A-Am I dreaming?"
The guards froze mid-attack, mouths agape in stupidity.
No way...
Why would a punch destroy that?
"...Phew, the hinges must be rusted. You should maintain it better."
"......"
"What?"
"Ha......"
Lee Han casually shook out his wrist and offered advice, while the guard let out a hollow laugh.
Frontal breakthrough.
Lee Han's third option delivered a whirlwind of shock in every way.
The Marquis Tristan estate was vast.
Not just big—it was jaw-droppingly huge, with five orchards around it and even spacious pastures for horses.
With over two thousand servants, it was less a mansion and more a village.
Even more shocking: this was a drop in the bucket compared to the Tristan family's immense influence and wealth.
They ran five top-tier gem mines and trading companies, after all.
Operating a mansion like this was no extravagance for them.
And with such power, the Tristan estate rivaled a fortress.
A fortress disguised as a mansion.
Dozens of elite guards patrolled in shifts around the clock.
Archers lined the high walls, bows at the ready.
Every entrance was sealed with iron gates commissioned from the mystical dwarves.
Even if one beat the guards, breaching the main gate was impossible by common sense.
...But now, that common sense had crumbled.
Whoooosh...
The unbreakable gate ripped clean off in an absurd scene.
What were they witnessing?
Soldiers gathered, torches illuminating the area, sharing the situation.
"W-What is this?!"
"Did a giant monster attack?!"
"Watch for ballistae! There might be one nearby!"
Staying firmly rational, they prepared countermeasures.
A ballista or giant beast must have torn the gate.
Nothing else could.
It was logical, and they never imagined a single man did this.
But soon.
"...No, this isn't it."
"??"
They learned who perpetrated this madness.
...An unknown mutter.
But the intruder seemed dissatisfied.
Regretting his assault on the marquisate now?
If so, welcome.
Mercy if he surrendered...
"If you're picking a fight, do it right."
"......"
Apparently not.
The guard met his eyes.
His gaze was piercingly clear.
Twitch!
A chill ran down the guard's spine; he felt an urge to flee.
And sure enough.
Krunch!
"Get out of the way if you don't want to die."
"......"
The guards saw it.
The man's superhuman strength lifting that massive iron gate with one hand!
One guard recalled it took over ten men to install it yesterday—his face drained pale.
Doubts of dreaming spread, but sadly, this was reality.
"Huuuuh!"
Inhale, exhale.
Drawing breath, the man—Lee Han—slowly spun, gripping the gate.
Whoosh!!
Common sense said his shoulder or arm would dislocate handling such mass, but Lee Han set that aside for now.
He managed.
Whoooosh...! Whoooosh—!
To whirl the gate like a cannonball, turning the area into chaos.
"Aaaah!"
"R-Run!!!"
"Urgh—!"
2,550kg.
A 2.5-ton metal slab spinning was threatening and destructive in itself.
Even slow rotation generated terrifying wind and pressure, shredding everything; guards forgot duty and fled.
Lee Han toying with the gate was scary enough, but no one wanted to end up minced by it.
Panic reigned; soon, no one was within 30 meters of Lee Han.
Crunch!
With ample runway secured, Lee Han gritted his teeth and prepared.
Crackle, craaaack!
Bursting sounds from his arms, shoulders, waist, legs.
Pre-elixir, this pressure would've crushed him.
"Grrrrr!!"
But he endured.
His vastly stronger grip, power, and deeper insights granted the strength to hurl this mass.
Just one chance.
No second try.
A single insane feat.
Once was enough. With power gathered, distance calculated, timing perfect.
"Raaagh!!"
A shout—battle cry or endurance?—and he hurled the gate like a shot.
Fwoooooom—!
It traced a slow arc.
Spinning such mass had limits.
But it was thrown.
2.5 tons flying to crash.
That meant.
BOOM!!
...A disaster capable of leveling a building and the ground beneath.
Rumble-rumble!
The "cannonball" called the iron gate struck the marquis's residence dead-on, shaking the earth.
"...Yes, that's how you pick a proper fight."
Smashing just the front gate pettily? What good was that?
Blood poured from his eyes, nose, mouth—seven orifices bleeding—but Lee Han smugly wiped dust from his nose, satisfied.
A fine result; trivial(?) injuries were negligible.