Ch.151Time-Transcending Boxer

“You said all the judges were already bribed, so what’s the problem?”

“Even so, if we overdo it, it’ll be obvious.”

“That’s why we paid the fucking money! To make sure there’s no problem!”

Bang!

Russian heavyweight boxer Alexei Volkov kicked the cabinet violently.

“Russia needs gold, the gold in heavyweight boxing, the crown jewel! Isn’t that what we’ve been working for all this time?!”

“Yes, that’s right. But that’s only when we stay within certain limits. You know that better than anyone.”

“So just a little bit! I’m saying we just need to cross the line a little bit!”

Alexei turned his gaze toward Kim Donghu’s match footage, which was still playing on repeat.

Despite watching it countless times for analysis, he felt nothing but terror each time.

“He’s a monster! Why, WHY! How can an Asian be this insane?!”

The coaches don’t understand.

These has-beens can never feel what active fighters experience.

That’s why no one could comprehend Alexei’s fear.

“There’s a reason they call him the Hitman—he only makes movements designed to take people down!”

In the Round of 16 and quarterfinals.

In these two matches, Kim Donghu threw only four punches.

Like a hitman eliminating targets, precisely two shots each.

He knocked his opponents out by striking their chin and temple.

“Do you think it’s possible to knock out a heavyweight with just two punches?”

Alexei knew how absurd and preposterous this was.

Olympic heavyweight boxers are elites on a completely different level from street thugs.

They’re trained to get up even after being knocked down.

They even possess the resilience to recover quickly from any impact.

But.

“They just got hit twice and collapsed, why? Because you can’t train your brain.”

His devastatingly efficient movements turned all their efforts to dust.

“No matter how he strikes, he always lands two shots from completely opposite angles.”

“Right, that’s what he does. If he hits the chin from the left, he hits the temple from the right… If the temple from the left, then the chin from the right…”

Precisely left and right.

Using this to shake the brain and send opponents into a peaceful sleep before they even realize they’re knocked out.

“And those eyes… those eyes make people shrink back.”

“His eyes?”

“Yes, I don’t know what made him like that, but he looks like he could actually kill someone.”

That’s a sensation only active fighters can feel.

A world only understood by those who have honed themselves for the Olympics.

‘What the hell are you?’

Those fierce eyes that seem to pierce through people.

Those eyes burning intensely as if filled with blazing fire.

He could feel it even through the screen.

‘Why do you have the eyes of a father who lost his family?’

Alexei had seen such eyes only once before.

On a cold winter day.

A bear they encountered during a group trip.

Behind the bear were its cubs, already dead.

The look in that bear’s eyes was remarkably similar to Kim Donghu’s.

“Forget it, just prepare plenty of drugs before I face him. Use the best technology, something that won’t be detected.”

Alexei, seemingly too exhausted to speak further,

made an irritated gesture with his hand, signaling everyone to leave.

“You don’t understand. None of you do.”

The only way to beat him wasn’t through consistent training and analysis.

Only through cheating that explosively increased power in the short term.

‘Russia must have the gold.’

With that determination, Alexei slowly closed his eyes.

Now was the time to suppress his impatience and calm his mind.

+++++

Now, whenever Kim Donghu’s boxing matches ended, an American podcast would naturally begin.

The host and guests had completely revamped everything from the channel name to overall production to officially launch the podcast.

“Hello everyone! Welcome to World Box Kim, the world’s greatest boxing podcast!”

ㄴBut I get the name change, why “Kim” though?

ㄴFrom what I know, it’s from Kim Donghu’s surname?

ㄴReally? Are they openly fanboying now?

“Whoa, whoa, fanboying? It’s not like that. We just owe our success to him, so we’re showing proper respect.”

Host John Reno adjusted the screen with a friendly smile.

“We have a really special guest today. Our regular friends are here too, but we have a special guest! Drake from Drake’s Gym!”

“Hello everyone, I’m Drake from Drake’s Gym. Thanks for having me today.”

“No need to thank us, we’re the grateful ones. We get to hear the closest stories about the Young Boss.”

“Haha, our Young Boss is really hot right now.”

Drake seemed delighted just thinking about the Young Boss, Kim Donghu.

He rubbed his hands together, contemplating what story to tell first.

“I have so, so, so many stories, but most of them are just praising our Young Boss, haha. Should I start with the match stories?”

“Oh! Match stories, love it. Where do you want to start? Round of 16? Or quarterfinals?”

“Why bother? Let’s talk about the recent one, the semifinals.”

“Wow, you’ve already finished analyzing it? It’s only been an hour since the match ended.”

Drake glanced at the calendar as he listened to the host.

August 14th.

In just two more days, Kim Donghu’s final match would be waiting.

At minimum, a silver medal.

It was truly an unbelievable achievement.

“The Uzbek boxer was definitely a strong gold medal contender. I think that assessment wasn’t wrong, just…”

“Just?”

“It was before Kim Donghu debuted in heavyweight boxing.”

Poo-poo-poo-poo-poo!

The host immediately triggered a reaction sound effect to Drake’s confident statement.

After the pleasing sound effect passed through the podcast, host John Reno shrugged his shoulders.

“Is that statement okay? Can you really say that?”

“Why not? Just look at the other semifinal between Russia and Kazakhstan. It’s completely different, right?”

Drake was speaking the truth.

Though both were semifinals, the level was worlds apart.

“Sure, the Uzbek boxer is good, he managed to score a knockdown in just 1 minute and 14 seconds. But what? It still ended in a KO.”

In contrast, the match between Russia and Kazakhstan went the full three rounds of three minutes each.

The victory was only decided at the end by judges’ decision in Russia’s favor.

“There was even controversy about the decision, you know.”

“That’s true, there were rumors that the decision was slightly favorable to Russia.”

“Right, in a way, Kim Donghu’s boxing style is like Mexican boxing. Since he has many away matches, he knows he’ll be at a disadvantage in decisions, so he aims for KOs.”

“But he’s so stable for someone with that style! It’s unbelievable!”

“Exactly, his KO ratio is incredible compared to how balanced he is. He’s not aggressive, but when his attacks land, it’s deadly.”

The ultimate contradiction.

Drake’s one-sided praise.

Normally, the chat would be going crazy by now, but:

ㄴKim Donghu is a demon, I have to agree

ㄴAfter watching the semifinal, I’m certain he is the scourge of the heavyweight division

ㄴKim is truly a monster, probably the strongest.

After three matches, they could no longer deny Kim Donghu.

“You know how pro boxers came to watch Kim Donghu’s matches and reacted?”

“Yeah, yeah, I saw that. They were all grabbing their heads?”

“That’s because there’s never been a heavyweight like him. He’s stable yet destructive. What kind of style is that?”

“The Kim style! Our Young Boss is the Hitman!”

Everyone was about to laugh at Drake’s finger gun gesture, but

perhaps because of what Kim Donghu had shown so far, the atmosphere shifted to one of attentive listening.

“Tell us more, about his style or anecdotes.”

“Haha, I’ll tell you as much as I can before my flight time.”

“Flight? Are you going back again?”

“Of course, I just came back briefly because of gym business. Originally, I planned to keep watching the Young Boss.”

Despite America failing to secure a spot in the heavyweight division,

World Box Kim’s viewership reached 50,000 that day because of Kim Donghu.

In a way, it might have been inevitable.

People are most excited about underdog stories.

And when that underdog is a game-changer strong enough to shatter the established order,

it would be strange not to be excited.

As everyone focused on the emergence of this irregular,

time flew by quickly to August 16th.

“You prepared the drugs, right?”

“Yes, all prepared. We’ll inject them right before the match, at that moment… you know?”

“I know, it’s not my first time. I’m used to it now.”

The day of the heavyweight final had arrived.

+++++

Huff.

Huff.

Huff.

Power overflows.

‘I feel like I could kill someone right now.’

One minute before the match starts.

Alexei closed his eyes to hide the power coursing through him.

‘Yes, with this feeling, I absolutely won’t lose.’

The difference between someone who uses drugs and someone who doesn’t is like comparing a motorcycle to a bicycle.

To put it extremely, it was like a race between a car and a human.

And in reality.

‘Now I can finally look you in the eyes.’

That monstrous Kim Donghu was no longer frightening.

“Box!”

Swoosh!

Kim Donghu’s fist shot out the moment the match began.

Most boxers would have been knocked out by this punch, but.

‘I can see it clearly! And it looks slow!’

Bam!

The current Alexei could easily handle that punch.

He deflected the straight jab and followed with a counter hook.

Bam!

His fist struck Kim Donghu’s forearm with a speed that far exceeded normal concepts.

Even though it was blocked, the sound alone revealed its power.

‘I’ll win, I’ll definitely win! No, I can’t help but win!’

Riding the momentum, Alexei continued his attack.

Not just attacking simply.

Step.

Pretending to misstep, he stomped on Kim Donghu’s foot and.

‘Try to withstand this!’

Bam!

He drove his fist straight at Kim Donghu’s face.

But despite having his foot stepped on, the strike didn’t land.

An extremely low head movement.

And flowing seamlessly after that.

Thud!

Kim Donghu’s counter liver shot sank deep.

Normally, this would be enough to make someone collapse, unable to regain their senses.

However.

Creak.

The drug-enhanced mind, strength, and endurance allowed him to withstand Kim Donghu’s punch.

‘The pain is somewhat numbed, so it’s fine!’

He could win. He could break him easily.

“Uaaaah!”

Alexei let out a loud battle cry and pressed Kim Donghu again.

The drug-enhanced stamina eliminated even the need to pace himself.

Pressure.

Pressure.

Pressure.

A one-sided offensive never seen before.

Even when he stepped on feet or attempted headbutts, the referee made no intervention.

A completely unfair situation.

Nevertheless, there were two beings who didn’t give up:

One was obviously.

‘I can do this, I must, I absolutely must. Find the opening and strike the chin.’

Kim Donghu.

And the other was.

-[Unfairness detected]

-[Unacceptable unfairness detected]

-[Detected unfairness that should never be committed]

-[Doping athlete, bribed referee, biased judging]

-[All requirements deemed unacceptable]

-[Downloading application ‘Boxer Beyond Time’]

Sims, who couldn’t tolerate this situation.

The skills of Salvador Sanchez, always mentioned among the greatest talents in history,

now descended upon Kim Donghu.