I Thought I Was Bullying a Nobody, But He's a Martial Arts Genius - Chapter 26

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Fighting Genius Unaware — Episode 026
Center of the Cage.
Seo Jun and Ma Do-hyeon faced each other.
The Referee stepped between them, raising his hand.
“Listen to my commands. When I call break, step back immediately. No strikes to the back of the head, groin, or spine.”
Ma Do-hyeon’s gaze fixed on the corner of Seo Jun’s left eye.
Stitches.
A thin scar barely visible.
His mouth curved into a smile.
“Your eye doing alright?”
Seo Jun didn’t answer.
Ma Do-hyeon laughed.
“Save your breath. You’ll need it soon enough.”
The Referee signaled for a glove touch.
Their Gloves met briefly.
Tap.
Ma Do-hyeon’s eyes held an easy confidence.
A Rookie fresh on the Pro Stage.
A newcomer riding a wave of attention.
An opponent carrying an injury.
That was all he saw.
Seo Jun exhaled low and steady.
‘Win without getting hit.’
Simple. Singular.
That alone remained.
Both fighters retreated to their corners.
The Referee’s hand rose.
The crowd murmured softly.
[This is Seo Jun’s second pro bout! His opponent is Ma Do-hyeon, ranked 10th in the Featherweight division!]
[Ma Do-hyeon is a Southpaw with exceptional Reach, and his Left Hand Straight is devastating.]
[Seo Jun has that eye injury. Even one solid hit puts him at risk today.]
The Referee’s hand dropped.
“Fight!”
Both fighters moved at once.
Seo Jun advanced to the center of the Octagon, his left foot pressing forward to seize the middle ground.
Left foot.
Short step.
Then—
Whip!
Ma Do-hyeon’s front hand flew out.
A Southpaw’s Right Hand Jab.
Seo Jun raised his guard on instinct.
Thud!
The punch landed squarely on his Glove.
The impact wasn’t severe.
But Seo Jun’s vision wavered slightly.
‘Far.’
Much farther than he’d expected.
The distance on video had been deceptive.
A position that looked out of range on screen.
Found him here.
Ma Do-hyeon’s arms were long.
Not merely long in Reach.
Shoulders heavy with weight.
His front hand extending in a smooth, extended arc.
The diagonal trajectory peculiar to a Southpaw.
Nothing like the right-handers he’d faced before.
Ma Do-hyeon’s grin widened.
“Feeling it?”
Seo Jun offered no reply.
He tried to advance toward the center again.
Whip!
Another jab.
This time not at the face, but the chest.
Seo Jun dropped his elbow to block.
Thud!
His body stalled half a beat.
Ma Do-hyeon immediately pivoted left.
He’d caught the outside foot.
The angle opened toward Seo Jun’s left eye.
Whip!
A third jab.
Seo Jun pulled his head back.
The fist grazed past his nose.
Air whistled by.
A gasp rose from the crowd.
“Ohhh!”
[Ma Do-hyeon has excellent distance! He’s using that long Reach to keep Seo Jun pinned on the outside!]
[From Seo Jun’s perspective, he needs to close in. But every step forward brings another jab.]
Seo Jun planted his feet again.
If he went straight in, he’d take a shot.
If he angled right, Ma Do-hyeon’s Left Hand Straight line opened up.
If he angled left, the Southpaw’s front foot blocked the path.
‘The trajectories are different.’
Ma Do-hyeon’s jabs didn’t come straight.
They scraped inward from slightly outside.
Close to the injured spot.
Seo Jun’s chin dropped lower.
Ma Do-hyeon wasn’t in a hurry.
He was jabbing from distance.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
They weren’t heavy punches.
But they cut off Seo Jun’s entry.
One step forward, one jab.
Angle shift, another jab.
Guard up, body shot.
Eyes down, face shot.
Seo Jun still hadn’t created his own distance.
A smile lingered on Ma Do-hyeon’s face.
“What’s wrong. Not coming in?”
Whip!
Another jab.
Seo Jun blocked again.
But his feet stopped.
‘I need to cut him off first.’
He knew that.
The problem was the distance itself was beyond reach.
A span calculated through video analysis.
That single span had become a wall inside the Octagon.
Outside the Cage.
Do Yoon’s eyes narrowed.
“His Reach is longer.”
Tae Soo spoke from beside him.
“Than in the footage?”
“When you’re facing him in person, it’s different. Especially that bastard—his frame is two weight classes above. His arms extend further from the shoulders and back.”
A Yeon’s hands stopped over the laptop.
Do Yoon watched Seo Jun’s footwork.
Half a beat.
Just a half-beat too late.
“Seo Jun panicked more than expected against that abnormally long Reach.”
Tae Soo’s face hardened.
“Then what should he do?”
Do Yoon didn’t answer.
Inside the Cage.
Ma Do-hyeon extended his lead hand again.
Snap!
Seo Jun twisted his head to slip it.
Again, it was a matter of inches.
Ma Do-hyeon smiled slowly.
“Think you can keep dodging?”
Seo Jun exhaled low and controlled.
The wound throbbed quietly.
He hadn’t been hit yet.
But he hadn’t landed anything either.
The Ranker’s distance controlled the center of the Cage.

* * *
Ma Do-hyeon owned the heart of the Octagon.
Seo Jun was being pushed back.
One step.
Then another.
His guard was flush against his face.
His arm angled up, shielding the corner of his left eye.
Snap!
Ma Do-hyeon’s Right Hand Jab flashed in.
Thud!
It landed on Seo Jun’s Glove.
No counter came.
Ma Do-hyeon slipped sideways.
Another Jab.
Thud!
Seo Jun blocked it.
Still no counter.
The crowd stirred restlessly.
“Why isn’t he throwing?”
“Go in there!”
“Did Seo Jun freeze up?”
[Seo Jun is still unable to mount an offense!]
[Ma Do-hyeon’s Reach and Southpaw positioning are sealing him off. Right now, it’s almost pure defense.]
Ma Do-hyeon made no effort to hide his smile.
A Rookie hiding behind his guard.
Curled up like a turtle.
That’s what he looked like.
‘He’s frozen.’
Ma Do-hyeon inched his lead foot closer.
Half a step nearer than before.
Seo Jun still kept his guard raised.
He didn’t seem interested in throwing.
‘It’s the eye.’
Ma Do-hyeon’s gaze locked onto the corner of Seo Jun’s left eye.
The stitched wound.
The skin barely holding together.
Open that, and it’s over.
If blood flows, the corner throws in the towel.
The Referee will see it immediately.
This fight didn’t need to go long.
‘I need to pace myself for the next fight anyway.’
Given the Tournament format, the next bout would come in a month.
With only a brief rest between rounds, he had to conserve his stamina where he could.
No need to rush.
A frightened opponent seals his own escape.
The guard rises higher.
The feet freeze.
The vision narrows.
That’s when you strike.
‘In one blow.’
Ma Do-hyeon’s lead hand moved again.
Snap!
Right Hand Jab.
Straight to the face this time.
Seo Jun’s guard snapped up reflexively.
Thud!
The glove caught the jab.
Ma Do-hyeon saw the response.
Just as I thought.
The guard protecting the wound was quick.
Too rigid.
In that instant, Ma Do-hyeon’s left shoulder rotated.
Weight transferred from the rear foot to the front.
His hip wound tight and compact.
Southpaw Left Hand Straight.
The target wasn’t the jaw.
Not the nose, either.
Seo Jun’s left eye.
The torn wound.
There.
[Dangerous! Ma Do-hyeon’s setting up the left hand!]
Do Yoon’s eyes widened.
“Seo Jun!”
But it was already too late.
Ma Do-hyeon’s left hand extended.
Snap—!
The sound was different from the jab before.
Longer. Heavier.
A fist backed by full body weight.
If it connected, the wound would tear open again.
Blood would flow.
The match would be over.
Tae Soo clenched his teeth.
A Yeon’s hand covered her mouth.
The crowd held its breath.
Seo Jun’s guard was angled slightly upward, still managing the Right Hand Jab.
His left eye corner lay exposed and open.
Ma Do-hyeon’s eyes gleamed.
‘Finished.’
The Left Hand Straight drove ruthlessly toward Seo Jun’s wound.
Distance.
Angle.
Timing.
All of it fell within Ma Do-hyeon’s calculations.
But what he hadn’t calculated—
‘I caught it.’
—was Seo Jun’s.

* * *
Ma Do-hyeon’s left hand shot forward.
Long. Heavy.
One target alone.
Seo Jun’s left eye.
The moment that fist made contact, it was over.
Blood erupted.
The Referee called it.
Do Yoon hurled the towel.
Ma Do-hyeon was certain.
‘It’s finished.’
And yet.
Seo Jun’s right eye moved.
That eye, quiet and open behind the guard.
It was watching Ma Do-hyeon’s shoulder.
Right Hand Jab.
Guard shifts.
Left shoulder rotates.
Weight transfers.
Left Hand Straight.
All of it within his predictions.
Seo Jun hadn’t frozen.
He’d been waiting.
For the moment Ma Do-hyeon penetrated deepest.
The moment when escape would be hardest.
That instant when both the striker’s arm and his own conviction—
—leave him most exposed.
‘Now.’
Seo Jun’s body catapulted backward.
His coiled knees detonated.
His right hand, hidden in the guard, snapped out short and tight.
Ma Do-hyeon’s left hand came forward, closing on the wound.
Inches from contact.
Seo Jun’s head slipped back half a palm’s width.
The fist cleaved empty air.
Simultaneously.
Crack!
Seo Jun’s right hand buried itself in Ma Do-hyeon’s jaw.
Cross Counter.
It wasn’t long.
No wild arc to it.
Short. Precise.
Ma Do-hyeon’s jaw snapped sideways.
His eyes went vacant.
That massive frame froze where it stood.
One beat.
Two beats.
And then.
Thud!
Ma Do-hyeon toppled forward.
Like a machine whose power had been cut.
His hands never caught the mat.
His knees gave way.
His face drove into the canvas.
He didn’t move.
“Stop! Stop!”
The Referee hurled himself forward.
Just as Seo Jun moved in for another strike, the Referee dove between them.
Both arms swung wide.
“Fight’s over!”
The silence lasted barely a heartbeat.
The next instant.
Axis Korea Stadium erupted.
Roooaaaar!
The spectators leapt from their seats.
Flashbulbs erupted like mad.
Do Yoon’s hand slammed against the Cage mesh.
Tae Soo stood frozen, mouth hanging open.
A Yeon couldn’t even look at her laptop screen.
Her eyes were fixed on the Octagon.
[Unbelievable!!]
The commentator’s voice shattered.
[Round 1 KO again! Ma Do-hyeon, ranked tenth in Axis Korea, goes down with a single blow!!]
[Seo Jun! Seo Jun has done it! Everyone was worried about his injury, but he’s just knocked out a Ranker with one shot!]
[Ma Do-hyeon threw his strongest weapon—the Southpaw Left Hand Straight! But in that instant, Seo Jun landed a perfect Cross Counter!]
Inside the Octagon.
Seo Jun breathed out slowly.
His left eye.
The stitched wound was flawless.
No blood had spilled.
The swelling hadn’t grown worse.
It was clean.
He looked down at his fist.
The sensation of the strike still lingered in his knuckles.
A sharp impact.
The moment his opponent’s chin snapped back.
The body crumpling.
It was all still there at his fingertips.

* * *
The broadcast switched to a replay.
Ma Do-hyeon’s Right Hand Jab.
Seo Jun’s guard rises.
In that moment, Ma Do-hyeon’s left shoulder tightens.
The Left Hand Straight extends.
The frame slows.
Seo Jun appears motionless.
Guard up like a turtle’s shell.
But the next frame.
Seo Jun’s feet move first.
His head slips outside.
His right hand is already in motion.
As Ma Do-hyeon’s left hand cuts through empty air.
Seo Jun’s right hand pierces through his chin.
Crack.
Ma Do-hyeon’s eyes in the frame go dark.
[Do you see it now, everyone?]
The analyst’s voice trembled.
[Seo Jun wasn’t standing rigid. He was drawing out Ma Do-hyeon’s left hand.]
[He knew Ma Do-hyeon would target the wound!]
[Exactly. And here’s what’s even more remarkable.]
A stat graphic appeared on screen.
<Ma Do-hyeon Effective Strikes: 0>
<Seo Jun Effective Strikes: 1>
<KO>
The analyst drew in a breath.
[Ladies and gentlemen, Seo Jun did not take a single Effective Strike in this fight!]
The crowd stirred again.
[Our concerns about the wound were unfounded. A perfect No Hit victory!]
[No Hit KO against the tenth-ranked fighter! Seo Jun—just how far will this athlete climb!]
The camera found Seo Jun again.
He stood in the center of the Octagon.
Ma Do-hyeon was still being examined by the medical team.
Seo Jun’s face was unmarked.
The wound hadn’t opened.
Not a drop of blood.
For someone who’d just put down a Ranker, his expression was remarkably composed.
He simply gazed down at the mat with cold, settled eyes.
The crowd roared louder at the sight.
“Seo Jun!”
“Seo Jun!”
“Seo Jun!”
Do Yoon let out a hollow laugh.
“He didn’t even take a single hit and won.”
Tae Soo murmured.
“Is that even human?”
A Yeon couldn’t answer.
Seo Jun slowly raised his head.
The lights.
The roar.
The broadcast cameras.
All of it was fixed on him.
He lifted his gloved fist slowly, deliberately.
Roooooaaaar—!
No Hit.
Round 1 KO.
Ranker defeated.
The name Seo Jun was etched onto the KCR once more.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————