Ch.209The Gentle Monster

“….”

Three seconds after an unbelievable event, the audience falls into a chilling silence.

What on earth just happened?

While most ordinary spectators were still confused about what was going on.

“Seeing that makes my abdomen throb from when I got hit.”

“I was so shocked when I first got hit.”

“He’s gotten even stronger than before. Back then, people didn’t get launched into the air.”

“He must have perfected it.”

The Drake Gym fighters clutched their stomachs as they recalled the past.

It all began with Kim Donghu’s innocent question.

-I need a punch that can break through guards.

-What?

-A punch that completely destroys the opponent’s will to fight, that’s what I want.

-What are you talking about?

-Breaking through the guard and planting your fist into their body, imagine the impact that would have? Both physically and mentally.

It sounded absurd.

If such a thing were possible, why would anyone practice hitting accurately?

‘He’s saying that hitting from any angle would be a critical hit.’

This isn’t some game.

They thought it was impossible to break through a guard and land a clean hit.

BANG!

-No matter how tight the guard is, there’s always a gap… and with enough power, you can break through.

That’s what they would have thought if they hadn’t seen Kim Donghu succeed after just one month.

Watching this, the Drake Gym staff felt their boxing common sense crumbling.

It felt like everything they had ever done was being invalidated.

But then they realized.

Only one person in the world could do this.

“Only… our boss can use this technique.”

The very idea of launching a 91kg man into the air with a punch to the solar plexus.

It was beyond common sense.

And indeed.

Murodov’s eyes, having experienced this firsthand, were trembling wildly.

“8! 9!”

“You can do it, you can do it!”

“…Are you sure? Look me in the eyes.”

The first thing that greeted Murodov as he regained consciousness was the sound of the countdown.

‘He took a deep breath before the start and tightened his core to withstand it.’

He had filled his body with air to create enough of an airbag.

Otherwise, he would have suffered the humiliation of a TKO in just three seconds.

“I’m looking at your eyes.”

“Focus confirmed. The coaching staff will prepare the mouthpiece separately.”

He wondered why his pronunciation was so smooth.

It was because his mouthpiece had fallen out.

Murodov went to his coaching staff, grateful for the extra time.

“…You’re not going to forfeit, right?”

“Of course not, I’d rather die.”

“Okay, got it.”

After this brief conversation and putting his mouthpiece back in,

Murodov bumped his fists together to signal his willingness to continue fighting.

“Box!”

The match resumed.

‘?!’

At that moment, Murodov realized his legs wouldn’t move.

Was walking to his coaching staff the last time his legs had strength?

About 2 minutes and 50 seconds remained.

He never dreamed his legs would give out this early in the first round.

‘It’s not a stamina issue, it’s the pressure. And the damage was much greater than I expected.’

What kept him standing now was the result of years of training.

The optimal stance he could maintain from having boxed this way for so long.

Without it, he would have collapsed.

“You look too fine compared to me.”

“….”

No answer came.

His plan to buy even a little time immediately failed.

With a sigh, he blinked for a moment.

Whoosh!

“!”

The distance closed.

The first thing he saw was a fist filling his vision.

He couldn’t dodge it.

But.

Slip.

His lower body, at its limit, helped Murodov.

Using his collapsing upper body, he avoided the fist aimed at his face.

He grabbed the ring with his arm to keep from falling completely.

‘I’ll counter-punch from here!’

From that position, he extended his fist upward.

Perfect response.

The epitome of turning a weakness into a strength.

But.

Tap.

A punch without proper leg support couldn’t be strong.

Even though his fist barely touched the abdomen,

Kim Donghu’s expression didn’t change at all.

A true hitman.

A flawless being who shows no emotion during the process of executing lethal movements.

“Dev.”

A word that escaped like a death rattle.

And following it.

BANG!

Another fist planted in his solar plexus.

An impact even greater than before spread throughout his body.

‘He throws it like an ordinary jab, without any stance, and it has this much power?’

The form was closer to a straight punch.

But the preparation motion was ridiculously minimal.

Yet its power.

THUD!

Made Murodov flop like a fish out of water.

His back hit the floor followed by his legs,

And instinctively, his body bounced slightly.

The time it took for the second knockdown was 57 seconds.

About 2 minutes and 3 seconds remained in the first round.

“1! 2! 3! 4!”

Once again, the referee’s countdown echoed through the arena.

++++++

<“T-this is… the referee is counting down… again.”>

In his 23-year career as a boxing commentator,

Bong Seohwan forced his mouth to move.

‘How, how do I describe this? Is this even possible?’

When that impossible punch first landed,

He unconsciously jumped up from his chair.

It was a sight he had never seen in his life.

A heavyweight launching another heavyweight with just a punch?

And now the opponent was even bouncing off the floor.

A second knockdown in less than a minute.

How could he explain this?

Moreover, Kim Donghu hadn’t even caught his breath yet.

Well, he’d only thrown two punches, so why would he be out of breath?

It was as if he’d barely used any stamina.

Meanwhile, how was Murodov doing?

Heave, heave.

His entire body trembled and heaved as he tried to get up.

Unstable breathing and gloves shaking like an earthquake were captured on screen.

It was a sight that could only be described as desperate.

<“Dominating… he’s dominating!”>

<“Completely, completely different worlds. Kim Donghu is currently just… in a different dimension.”>

Extraordinary.

Was he this good?

Was he this strong?

Why the fully-doped Russian fighter, Alexei, couldn’t win.

Why he ended in the second round despite doping enough to get permanently banned.

Finally, everyone understood.

<“A different dimension, you say?”>

At the caster’s words, Bong Seohwan nodded.

<“It’s at a level we dare not evaluate. It completely defies the common sense of boxing… a style only Kim Donghu can execute.”>

You can’t apply ordinary standards to this.

You can’t compare it to anything existing.

It was just completely different.

Just as comparing a bicycle to a motorcycle would be ridiculous.

“8! 9!”

Rustle, rustle.

Before the countdown was fully called,

Murodov could be seen rising again.

Despite having absolutely no chance of winning, he refused to give up.

Until defeat is confirmed, one isn’t defeated.

It was mental strength built on years of effort that allowed him to stand.

“Huff… wheeze….”

And at the opposite end of that mental strength,

Was an inexplicable force.

“Buadam… demos, dev.”

Words unconsciously escaped again.

‘Somehow, a clean hit… I need a clean hit….’

He couldn’t go down without landing at least one proper attack.

He must land it.

He must.

With that determination, Murodov leaned against the post.

Moving any further was impossible.

He could go down at any moment.

Yet his opponent kindly obliged.

“How gentle.”

An attitude that maintained respect for the opponent until the end.

Without that, he wouldn’t have seemed human.

Feeling a trace of humanity,

Murodov once again saw the fist filling his vision.

Here it comes.

The signature combo he had seen at the Olympics was coming.

THUMP!

First, his liver shuddered.

Crack.

He felt his ribs breaking beneath.

But because he was prepared, he could respond.

Tap.

BANG!

The moment he threw a powerless counter,

A fist planted into his temple.

The world spun.

Heaven and earth became indistinguishable, but

Still, he didn’t fall.

THUD!

With even greater force than before,

He planted his fist into Kim Donghu’s chin.

And at the same moment that fist connected,

CRASH!

CRACK!

Once more, that fist came flying.

A fist that turned people into paper.

From bottom to top,

It planted into his abdomen again.

The reason it wasn’t aimed at his chin was probably consideration to allow him to continue his career.

‘…A gentle monster.’

With that thought, Murodov’s eyes closed.

1 minute and 33 seconds into the first round.

That was how long Murodov had endured.

++++++

Right after the 2018 Asian Games Boxing Heavyweight Gold Medal Final.

[The match we just saw will go down in boxing history]

-What is this? Is this guy playing Tekken? LMFAO

-From now on, Korean characters should include boxing, not just Taekwondo ㅇㅇ

ㄴMake boxing even stronger

ㄴI’ve never seen a person get launched and bounce like that

ㄴIs this from an anime?

ㄴSteve’s combo actually works

[Murodov’s muttering has been translated LMFAO lol ]

-Dev is a monster

-First one was “monster”

-Second one was “that’s not human, it’s a monster” lol

ㄴHe’s definitely not human

ㄴThe average boxer has really improved too much

[Boxing gym owners should bow to Kim Donghu lol ]

-The infrastructure was already good but popularity wasn’t high

-From today, Korean boxing popularity will explode

ㄴThe problem is no one can teach that

ㄴ??? :: Can I learn to launch people too?

ㄴAs if LMFAO lol

ㄴ??? :: Can I make people bounce off the floor?

ㄴI’ll refund your moneylol

ㄴThought he was using Get’em crazylol

ㄴThought he was wearing Golden Gloves

Just before the interview began,

The community was flooded with posts.

[VIPs spotted in real-time in the audience]

(Photo)

-Professional heavyweights are completely shocked

(Photo)

-The famous trio from Louis Vuitton are literally kneeling

ㄴWho’s the white guy next to them?

ㄴYeah, he looks like he’s about to cry lol

ㄴThought it was a quartet

ㄴ(Author)Yeah, who is that? Just looks like a hardcore fan

[Breaking: Articles pouring out]

-Even before the interview, praise articles are flooding in

-Professionals are expected to send love calls

-WBC is already drooling over him

ㄴFelt it during the Olympics too, but he’s just another level

ㄴToo overwhelming, honestly the others can’t even compete

[Urgent!!! Everyone quiet!!!!]

-Donghu is about to give an interview

-Don’t miss it while typing, here’s the link

(Link)

ㄴThx

ㄴThx

ㄴThx

ㄴThx

ㄴThx

ㄴThx

ㄴThx

ㄴDude, good sense

ㄴYou’re clueless

And so the interview began.

Various questions poured in,

And different reporters tried to appeal to him, but

Before starting the formal interview, Kim Donghu

“With today’s match, I am retiring from boxing.”

Dropped the biggest bombshell first.