I Thought I Was Bullying a Nobody, But He's a Martial Arts Genius - Chapter 65

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

Fighting Prodigy Bullied Without Knowing 065
A Yeon pulled up the fight record.
“Blow to the back of the head.”
The screen moved to the next clip.
“Illegal knee strike against a downed opponent.”
Again.
“Additional strike after the referee’s intervention.”
Tae Soo closed his mouth.
A Yeon’s finger stopped.
“And his last four fights—all knockouts.”
Baek Seojun watched the screen.
A fighter sprawled on the mat.
A stretcher.
Medical personnel.
The next video was much the same.
A Yeon spoke.
“All his opponents retired after.”
Do Yun crossed his arms.
“That’s why they call him the Undertaker.”
Baek Seojun looked at the photo again.
Choi Min Gyo was smiling.
Do Yun said quietly.
“Don’t mistake it. He didn’t get disqualified because he didn’t know the rules.”
Tae Soo looked at Do Yun.
“You mean he did it on purpose?”
“He gets off on breaking opponents more than winning.”
Do Yun tapped the photo with his finger.
“He calculates exactly when to cross the line, watches where the referee is, and when faced with a choice—take a point deduction or maim his opponent so they can’t recover—he picks the latter.”
Jin Hyuk spoke briefly.
“He’s got a tactical mind.”
“He does.”
Do Yun’s eyes darkened.
“Which makes him all the more dangerous.”
A Yeon opened the next document.
<Featherweight Championship Tournament Final—Qualification Match>
Baek Seojun’s gaze fixed on it.
Do Yun spoke.
“Lee Sung Jun gave up the belt and moved up a weight class.”
“The featherweight champion position is vacant now.”
A Yeon continued.
“Whoever wins this fight goes straight to the championship tournament final.”
Tae Soo whistled.
“So if you win, you’re right back to challenging for the belt?”
Baek Seojun pressed the edge of the document with his finger.
Do Yun looked at him.
“Your opponent is the Undertaker. High risk, and for a comeback fight—brutally demanding.”
He asked.
“You in?”
Baek Seojun didn’t deliberate long.
He set the photo down.
“I’ll take it.”
Do Yun’s mouth curved upward.
“Quick decision.”
“It’s a path to the championship fight.”
Baek Seojun gripped his gloves.
“There’s enough reason.”
* * *
At the same moment.
A gymnasium in the Seoul Outskirts.
A heavy bag swayed.
Thud.
Thud.
Choi Min Gyo was pounding the heavy bag with his fists.
The tattoo on his scalp glistened with sweat.
The middle-aged gym owner approached from behind.
“He accepted.”
Choi Min Gyo’s fists stopped.
“Baek Seojun?”
“That’s right.”
The gym owner held up his phone.
“The terms are finalized.”
“Winner advances directly to the Championship Tournament.”
Choi Min Gyo turned slowly.
The corners of his mouth lifted.
“That’s good.”
The gym owner narrowed his eyes.
“Don’t underestimate your opponent.”
“I know.”
Choi Min Gyo wiped the blood from the back of his hand with a towel.
His tone remained composed.
“He’s the one who went five rounds with the champion.”
He positioned himself in front of the heavy bag again.
This time he threw a light jab.
Tap.
Precise.
Next, a straight.
Bang!
The heavy bag swung back hard.
The gym owner’s gaze shifted.
Choi Min Gyo smiled.
“I’ve been bored putting on shows against mediocre fighters.”
He rolled his wrists once.
“Now I’ll finally get proper compensation.”
The gym owner asked quietly.
“Will you hold back this time too?”
Choi Min Gyo’s smile deepened.
“Why should I?”
He took his stance.
The savage movements from moments before vanished.
His feet were placed with precision.
His chin tucked.
His shoulders rolled slightly.
Textbook form.
And then.
Thud!
Crack!
Thud!
Three strikes.
The heavy bag lost its center and swung away.
Choi Min Gyo caught it with his hand.
“Now that the belt is on the line,”
his eyes went cold and sharp.
“it’s time to get serious.”
* * *
Team Jugjak Gymnasium.
Bang!
The heavy bag buckled hard.
The chain rattled roughly.
Clang!
Do Yun approached Seojun’s side.
His gaze swept not over the Heavy Bag but across Baek Seojun’s frame.
Shoulders broadened.
Back thickened.
Thighs grown visibly more muscular than before.
“From here on, you’ll need to be serious about weight cuts.”
Baek Seojun lowered his Gloves.
“Weight?”
“That’s right.”
Do Yun tapped the side of Baek Seojun’s ribs with the back of his hand.
“With a bigger frame, it won’t drop as easily as it used to.”
Current build: athletic.
Just over seventy kilograms.
There was still considerable distance to the featherweight limit.
Do Yun spoke.
“Before, you were so lean there was nothing to cut.”
“Now it’s different.”
He tilted his chin toward the Cage.
“Looking at your frame alone, you could go up against Lightweight guys and hold your own.”
Baek Seojun looked down at his own arms.
Muscle hardened visibly when he tensed his forearms.
“But.”
Do Yun raised the Pads.
“You’ve got to earn that extra size.”
Baek Seojun took his stance.
Thwack!
Bang!
The Pads drove back hard into Do Yun’s shoulder.
Do Yun reset his feet.
“Again.”
Baek Seojun’s right foot pressed into the Mat.
His hips rotated.
Bang!!
This time Do Yun’s arm snapped back sharply.
Tae Soo, watching from the side, clicked his tongue.
“Wow.”
He adjusted his Headgear.
“Completely different from before.”
Moments later, Sparring.
Baek Seojun paired up with Tae Soo.
A Clinch locked in.
Tae Soo drove an Underhook deep and put his weight behind it.
“Huh?”
Baek Seojun pushed his hips forward.
Slight shift.
Tae Soo’s body twisted sideways.
“Hold on.”
Baek Seojun pushed again.
Thud!
Tae Soo’s back slammed into the Steel Cage.
“What the—”
Tae Soo’s eyes went wide.
“When did you get this strong?”
Jin Hyuk spoke briefly from outside the Cage.
“Looks like he went up a weight class.”
Baek Seojun broke away immediately.
Back to Strikes.
Jab.
Straight.
Low Kick.
Thwack!
Bang!
Crack!
The heavy bag crumpled as though it might burst.
The sparring partner’s guard gave way under the force of a single punch, sliding backward.
His body had grown larger.
His speed remained unchanged.
Only his power had become heavier.
* * *
Night. Seojun’s House.
Chicken breast lay on the dinner table.
Vegetables.
A small sweet potato.
Almost no seasoning.
No sauce.
His mother checked the kitchen scale.

She transferred the chicken breast to a plate.
Then added the vegetables on top.
She weighed it again.
Baek Seojun sat in his chair.
Not long after beginning his training, his cheeks had already started to hollow slightly.
His mother glanced at his face once.
She said nothing.
She only slid a glass of water toward him.
“Water stops here.”
Baek Seojun nodded.
“Yes.”
His mother set down the plate.
“No salt added.”
“That’s fine.”
Baek Seojun cut the chicken breast with his fork.
One bite.
It was dry.
He chewed for a long time before swallowing.
His throat felt tight.
He took a small sip of water.
His mother asked, “Is it very hard?”
Baek Seojun shook his head.
“It’s manageable.”
He reached for the chicken breast again.
The gymnasium carried the smell of blood.
At home, a warm broth had been replaced by unseasoned chicken breast.
Still, Baek Seojun left nothing on his plate.
One piece.
Then another.
The plate emptied bit by bit.
In his mind, only one thing remained.
Choi Min Gyo.
And after that.
The Champion Belt.
Baek Seojun chewed the dry chicken breast to the last fiber and swallowed.
He picked up his fork again.
* * *
The day before the fight.
Media day and official weigh-in venue.
The waiting room was quiet.
Baek Seojun sat on a bench.
Shirtless.
The muscles of his shoulders and back were carved in sharp definition.

His body after the weight cut looked thinner than usual.
But it was different from before.
It wasn’t gaunt.
Muscle compressed tight, every fiber dense.
The body of a fighter stripped down to essentials.
Baek Seojun raised his hands.
He clenched his fists.
Tight.
Then opened them again.
His fingertips trembled slightly.
Once more.
Clenching.
Opening.
Do Yun watched from beside him.
“Nervous?”
Baek Seojun exhaled sharply.
“A little.”
Do Yun let out a soft laugh.
“That’s normal.”
A Yeon was checking the order on her tablet.
“Your comeback fight after six months.”
She spoke without looking up.
“If you weren’t nervous, that’d be the strange part.”
Baek Seojun nodded.
Since his first defeat.
The first stage he’d stand on again.
The memory flickered—the moment he’d fallen to the champion.
The temple.
Blackness.
The mat.
Baek Seojun moved his jaw once.
Do Yun saw it and spoke.
“Don’t waste your mind on that.”
“Right.”
“Tomorrow you’re not fighting Lee Sung Jun.”
Baek Seojun’s eyes sharpened.
“It’s Choi Min Gyo.”
Do Yun’s voice dropped low.
“Only see the man in front of you right now.”
Baek Seojun clenched his fists again.
This time, no tremor.
Knock, knock.
The waiting room door opened.
A staff member poked his head in.
“Baek Seojun, you’re up.”
A Yeon rose to her feet.
“It’s your turn.”
Baek Seojun also stood.
He draped the towel over the chair.
The staff member spoke again.
“Just head straight up to the ring.”
Baek Seojun stood at the doorway.
Sound from outside filtered through, muted and distant.
The announcer’s voice.
Camera shutters.
The murmur of the crowd.
Baek Seojun didn’t close his eyes.
He drew in a deep breath.
Once.
Then he stepped through the door.
He walked down the corridor.
The lights grew brighter.
The announcer’s voice grew louder.
[Next fighter!]
Baek Seojun’s feet touched the entrance to the stage.
[The challenger returns after six months!]
Baek Seojun stepped out.
In that instant.
The venue erupted.
“Waaaaahhhhh!”
The roar hammered against the walls.
Baek Seojun’s stride faltered for just a moment.
It was far larger than he’d expected.
“Baek Seojun!”
“Baek Seojun!”
“He’s back!”
People in the front rows of the audience stood up.
Phones shot up all at once.
Camera flashes erupted.
Click!
Click!
Click!
Baek Seojun’s face filled the massive screen.
The comment section blazed with activity.
-Wow, Baek Seojun’s comeback ㄷㄷ
-What happened to his body, he got absolutely shredded?
-This is the guy who went five rounds with the champion
-The challenger Lee Sung Jun pressed so hard has returned
-This crowd is the loudest tonight?
-He’s a real star now
Baek Seojun lifted his head.
He had lost.
And yet the crowd was calling his name.
No—they called it louder *because* he had lost.
That fight where he never backed down until he fell.
The way he’d pressed the champion all the way through five rounds.
The crowd remembered it all.
Baek Seojun stepped up to the scale.
An official gestured.
“Come on up, please.”
Baek Seojun climbed onto the scale.
The numbers shifted.
65.9.
65.8.
It stopped.
The official confirmed the reading.
He raised his hand.
[Baek Seojun!]
After a brief silence, he spoke.
[65.8 kilograms!]
The crowd roared again.
[Weigh-in passed!]
“Waahhhhh!”
Baek Seojun stepped down from the scale.
He raised both arms lightly.
His core tensed.
Shoulders broadened.
Back thickened with muscle.
The lean frame of before was gone entirely.
A fully forged professional fighter.
Camera shutters erupted.
Click! Click! Click!
Baek Seojun moved toward the center of the stage.
His name echoed from the stands.
“Baek Seojun!”
“Baek Seojun!”
Seojun raised one hand in brief acknowledgment.
Then.
The announcer lifted the microphone.
[And!]
The venue’s lights swung toward the opposite entrance.
[Featherweight Ranking Number Three!]
Seojun’s hand dropped.
[The Undertaker!]
The sound from the stands shifted.
Jeers mixed through the applause.
A man walked out from the entrance.
Choi Min Gyo.
His head was completely shaved.
The scalp gleamed beneath the lights.
Black tattoos crawled grotesquely across it.
His jaw was tilted slightly upward.
His expression was slack.
But his eyes were different.
Sticky. Adhesive.
Not the eyes of someone looking at a person.
Eyes calculating where to break something.
Choi Min Gyo didn’t look at the stands.
He didn’t look at the cameras.
From the start, he saw only Seojun as he walked.
Long strides.
Long strides.
The announcer shouted.
[Choi! Min! Gyo!]
Jeers burst from the crowd.
Choi Min Gyo’s mouth curled into a smile.
Seojun didn’t move.
The distance between them narrowed.
Five meters.
Three meters.
One meter.
Event staff hurried in between them.
“Athletes, we’ll proceed with the face-off.”
Choi Min Gyo stopped.
Seojun stopped.
Face to face.
Choi Min Gyo’s eyes swept slowly over Seojun’s body.
Broader shoulders.
A thicker neck.
Thicker arms.
His mouth curved up further.
“You’ve built up quite a bit.”
Seojun didn’t respond.
Choi Min Gyo spoke quietly.
“Might be worth breaking.”
Do Yun’s eyes hardened from behind him.
Seojun simply looked back at Choi Min Gyo.
Not a flicker in his gaze.
Choi Min Gyo didn’t look away either.
One was the returned challenger.
One had climbed to the top by retiring opponents—a man of death.
Between the two of them, camera flashes erupted.
Click!
Choi Min Gyo’s grotesque smile.
Baek Seojun’s eyes, cold and settled.
Both faces captured side by side on the massive screen.

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