Real Man

Chapter 429:

Yoo-hyun knew very well that the other team leaders and managers still had complaints about him.

He wanted to sort out the traffic jam, but he had no strength, time, or energy to do so.

He was exhausted from working out at the gym until late even on weekdays.

Yoo-hyun slumped on his chair and frowned at the desk calendar.

“This will be over by Saturday.”

That Saturday.

Lee Young-nam was sitting on the sofa in Yeontae’s bokdeokbang and answering a phone call.

“Haha. Yes, sir. Of course we have to help each other. Yes. Please come in.”

He hung up the phone with a cheerful laugh and Bae Yong-hwan, who was sitting across from him, asked casually.

“What did the factory manager say?”

“What do you mean? He said he would support our village again. Everyone is crazy about making connections with the crown prince.”

“Haha. Thanks to the crown prince taking care of our village, we’re having a good time.”

The rumor that the crown prince had visited Yeontae and drank with the village head had already spread to the Mokpo factory.

And when the Innovation Strategy Office issued a guideline for supporting Yeontae factory, it became a fact that the crown prince was taking care of Yeontae.

Lee Young-nam nodded his head seriously.

“That’s what educated people should do. Didn’t we throw a feast for the crown prince?”

“We did make him drink a lot.”

“Hmm.”

Lee Young-nam coughed and quickly changed the subject.

“Anyway. This is all thanks to Han Joo-im.”

“Yes. That’s right. I wonder how he’s doing.”

“Me too. He must have run out of makgeolli by now.”

Lee Young-nam was thinking of Yoo-hyun when it happened.

Bang.

The door opened and Bae Yong-seok ran in breathlessly.

“Village head. Huff huff.”

“What’s wrong? Is there a war?”

“He, he’s on TV right now. Han Joo-im.”

“What?”

The eyes of everyone in the bokdeokbang widened.

At that moment.

Yoo-hyun was standing in front of the door of entrance number 2 of Sangam Gymnasium.

“The challenger will enter now.”

Following the signal of the staff, the door opened wide and Yoo-hyun stepped inside.

As soon as he entered the arena, he felt the change in the air.

Buzzing.

The audience filled all around created an overwhelming atmosphere with their presence alone.

The cameras installed everywhere, the octagonal ring placed in the center of the arena, and the announcer’s voice that never stopped confirmed that this was the final stage that was about to begin.

Yoo-hyun lifted his head and slowly looked around.

The atmosphere of the arena was definitely heavy because it was a title match.

Even the gym owner, who had watched several matches of officials, had to swallow his saliva.

“Gym owner, you’re not nervous, are you?”

Yoo-hyun asked as he saw him next to him and he shook his head right away.

“Of course not. You’re the one who should be nervous.”

“It looks fun.”

Yoo-hyun said calmly and the gym owner glared at him.

Soon after, the announcer’s voice echoed through the microphone.

“The challenger for this title match is Lee Jang-woo from Number One Gymnasium, with a height of 166 centimeters and a weight of 68 kilograms, and…”

The screen on the electronic board on the ceiling in the center of the arena flickered.

There were four large electronic boards arranged on four sides and Lee Jang-woo’s profile popped up on them.

Lee Jang-woo, who was standing in front of him, was catching his breath.

Yoo-hyun patted his back to ease his tension and encouraged him.

“Jang-woo, just think about what you’ve done so far.”

“Yes, sir.”

Lee Jang-woo answered firmly and clenched his fists.

A flame of desire for victory burned brightly in his big eyes like a gentle person.

Yoo-hyun faced his will contained in the flame.

-It’s true that I have a personal grudge against Kim Chun-sik.

He said that a friend who had cared for Lee Jang-woo in the past had given up his dream of becoming a fighter because of Kim Chun-sik’s violence.

If this was the only reason why Lee Jang-woo wanted to be a champion, Yoo-hyun would not have helped him so much.

-But I don’t want to fight him because of that. I want to go out into the world as soon as possible and test myself.

Lee Jang-woo talked about his dream, not revenge, and that’s why he decided to help him.

Of course, he also had a big ambition to have a new experience through him.

Yoo-hyun hugged Lee Jang-woo and patted his back.

“This is not the end, but the beginning. Let’s tie the first knot well.”

“Yes. I’ll do my best.”

Lee Jang-woo, who brightened his eyes, entered the ring.

Kim Chun-sik, who entered the ring after him, provoked Lee Jang-woo from the start.

He drew the audience’s attention and cursed at him with a glare.

He even showed no manners by tapping Lee Jang-woo’s cheek with his fist when they met.

“That bastard.”

The gym owner was furious, but Lee Jang-woo did not lose his concentration.

He could tell how serious he was by looking at his eyes.

This was a good start.

A total of five rounds.

Five minutes per round.

The bell rang to signal the beginning of the final match and Yoo-hyun shouted loudly.

“Jang-woo. Keep the pace as you practiced.”

The game proceeded as Yoo-hyun expected.

Lee Jang-woo lowered his posture and drove him to the corner as he practiced.

He endured the punches that poured out endlessly with his body and pushed Kim Chun-sik stubbornly like a rhinoceros.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Then he slowly inflicted damage on his abdomen.

It was inefficient to hit one for every ten he received, but soon it was Kim Chun-sik who was cornered and flustered.

But then it happened.

Thump.

“Ugh.”

A dull sound suddenly rang out and silence fell over the arena.

The gym owner jumped up and shouted.

“Referee. Headbutt. That’s a headbutt. It’s a foul.”

Blood flowed from Lee Jang-woo’s right eye socket, which was swaying from the headbutt.

Kim Chun-sik immediately rushed in and attacked the torn area relentlessly.

Thud.

Lee Jang-woo blocked it firmly with his guard, but it was not enough to stop Kim Chun-sik’s fierce attack.

He didn’t just punch him, he also stabbed his wound with a viciousness.

In the meantime, the referee signaled the game to continue with his hand.

“Hey. That was intentional. Intentional.”

The gym owner shouted and Oh Jung-wook ran in, but it was useless.

Soon the floor was stained with Lee Jang-woo’s blood.

Ding ding ding.

The second round ended in confusion.

“Doctor.”

Yoo-hyun brought the doctor and quickly entered the ring.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Yoo-hyun wiped off the blood that covered Lee Jang-woo’s face with a wet towel.

The doctor opened Lee Jang-woo’s eyes and checked his pupils, then applied a hemostatic agent to his torn eye socket.

“It won’t last long. It will tear as soon as it touches.”

“Isn’t there a way to delay it a little longer?”

The doctor shook his head at the gym owner’s question.

“There’s no way unless you stitch it up. It’s a very weak spot that got torn.”

“Damn it.”

The situation was not good enough for the gym owner to swear.

His right eye was completely closed because it was so swollen.

He had already lost too much blood, and the worst situation was that one side of his vision was blocked.

Especially since his opponent was Kim Chun-sik, who knew how to attack his weaknesses persistently, there was no possibility of victory.

That’s why Lee Jang-woo, who always looked forward bravely, lowered his head and gasped for breath.

His eyes, which used to sparkle brightly, became dull.

Yoo-hyun remembered one thing at that moment.

-Are you feeling wronged? That’s just an excuse for losers. If you didn’t want to feel wronged, you should have won.

-A missed opportunity never comes back. You have to choose whether to give up everything or run with a determination to die.

The words he had learned with his body for the last 20 years filled his head.

Of course, he didn’t think that the life he had lived for success was right, and he didn’t want to repeat it either.

But he didn’t want to deny the effort and mindset he had back then either.

Lee Jang-woo had to endure if he really wanted it.

If he wanted to get closer to his dream faster, he had to do more than endure and win.

Shake shake shake.

Lee Jang-woo’s gloves on his knees trembled.

It seemed like his will, which did not answer the words of the gym owner and Oh Jung-wook, was conveyed from his blood-stained gloves.

Yoo-hyun turned his head and looked at Kim Chun-sik.

He was already raising his hands as if he had won and inducing the audience’s response.

He looked strong on the outside, but his feet were clearly heavy.

The probability was low, but there was definitely a possibility of a reversal.

“Jang-woo, do you want to win?”

“Yes, sir. But.”

There wasn’t much time left for a break.

There was no time to drag on, so Yoo-hyun cut off Lee Jang-woo’s words.

“Then get up right now.”

“Yoo-hyun, let him rest a little bit.”

Oh Jung-wook tried to stop him, but Yoo-hyun’s eyes were still on Lee Jang-woo’s face, which was lowered.

Lee Jang-woo lifted his head.

He looked at him as if asking if he could do it and Yoo-hyun tapped his shoulder.

Tap tap.

“Jang-woo, you can do it. Do you trust me?”

“Yes. Sir.”

Lee Jang-woo answered without confidence as he clenched his fists.

He used to say that he would run again even if he ran out of breath during practice, but now he hesitated.

It was because he was consumed by fear.

Yoo-hyun put both palms on Lee Jang-woo’s face and moved closer to him.

At a distance where he could hear his breathing, Yoo-hyun looked into Lee Jang-woo’s eyes and pleaded sincerely.

“What about your dream? You said you wanted to go higher faster. You said you really wanted to win now. Then try it.”

“…”

Lee Jang-woo bit his lip but couldn’t give a confident answer.

The staff shouted loudly.

“Everyone except the players get out. The third round will begin.”

“I’ll be… back.”

Yoo-hyun pushed Lee Jang-woo who couldn’t come to his senses until the end.

“Did you lie? Was it just a hobby that you dragged me into?”

“No.”

Lee Jang-woo still hesitated and a harsh word came out of Yoo-hyun’s mouth.

“Get a grip. If you want to give up, just give up.”

“No.”

“Then listen to me. It’s your foot. Your left foot. Just look at your left foot and endure. And come back after winning. Did you hear me?”

The referee came over to sort out the situation.

Yoo-hyun slapped Lee Jang-woo’s back with all his strength.

Slap.

He hit him so hard that Lee Jang-woo’s back bent back.

“Ouch.”

The people who saw it opened their mouths and the cameraman blinked in surprise.

Lee Jang-woo looked at Yoo-hyun with a mixture of shock and pain on his face.

Yoo-hyun pointed at Kim Chun-sik and shouted.

“Lee Jang-woo, go and finish that cowardly bastard.”

“Yes. I’ll finish him.”

Only then did Lee Jang-woo’s eyes sparkle again.

Yoo-hyun’s palm was clearly visible on Lee Jang-woo’s back as he went to the center of the ring.

The third round had just begun.

There was no chance of winning by decision if he lasted until the fifth round.

He had to end it in this round somehow.

Thud. Thud. Thud thud thud.

Kim Chun-sik drove Lee Jang-woo to the corner with a light attack.

Lee Jang-woo kept crouching and Kim Chun-sik raised both hands to get the audience’s response.

The criticism that had arisen when he headbutted him had subsided by now.

People forgot about the small incident and responded with cheers to Kim Chun-sik’s flashy performance.

“Woahhhhh.”

Kim Chun-sik came out like that because his lower body strength hadn’t returned yet.

Thud.

Kim Chun-sik’s fist hit the wounded area and blood splattered.

But even as his head swayed, Lee Jang-woo did not lose his focus.

Thump.

A heavy sensation was felt at the end of Lee Jang-woo’s fist.

He felt the sensation at the end of his fist and pushed his opponent back.

Lee Jang-woo ran like a bull with his posture lowered.

Clank.

Kim Chun-sik was grabbed by the waist and hit the ring with his back before he could even panic.

He quickly raised his guard, but his arms became numb every time he was hit by Lee Jang-woo’s fist.

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