Life is Easier If You're Handsome novel Chapter 174

A Gun Versus No Gun

When a person with a gun faces someone without one,

most people assume the person holding the gun will win.

But that assumption is wrong.

The 21-foot rule.

According to this principle, a distance of approximately 6.4 meters is the minimum "safe" range needed to reliably fire a gun without unexpected interference.

Within that range, the outcome is unpredictable.

In short, holding a gun doesn’t guarantee victory.

And if the person with the gun isn’t a trained professional, like a police officer, but a mere criminal?

And if the distance between the two is a mere three meters?

The result is anyone’s guess.

"Shit!"

Three seconds before the fight broke out,

Ji Hyuntae—caught off guard—watched the Hero charge toward him without hesitation.

Anyone else would have been scared and tried to run.

But not this man.

Without a second's hesitation, he was closing in fast. frёewebnoѵēl.com

Because of that, Ji Hyuntae’s aim wavered.

He tried to fire at the last second—

Bang!

Too late.

Crack.

The Hero’s knuckle landed squarely on Ji Hyuntae’s forearm, forcing the gun barrel skyward.

The follow-up strikes flowed seamlessly.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The sound of bones fracturing under knuckles.

Even soft strikes produced loud echoes, showcasing the protective gear’s function.

But—

"Is this even protective gear?"

Ji Hyuntae—no, Ju Seonghwan—was in agony.

He bitterly regretted saying earlier that the gear could handle stronger hits.

"Is he even human?"

The punches from this Olympic gold medalist surpassed the realm of ordinary humans.

It was like being slammed repeatedly by a sledgehammer.

Even with the protective gear absorbing 60% of the impact,

it was easy to understand why most opponents got KO’d within a minute.

How could anyone endure this?

"No, I can’t let the pain distract me. I have to match the choreography perfectly."

Back in Traitor: Seeds of Corruption, he and Donghu had been on the same side.

Now, acting as enemies was overwhelming.

The tempo was far too fast.

Clang!

The gun scraped against the knuckles.

Close-quarters combat.

Even though the gun was useless at this range,

he couldn’t let it go.

All it would take was one well-aimed shot.

Just one, and everything would turn around.

"Who the hell sent you, huh?!"

He was desperate.

He needed to stall for time, just long enough to fire.

"Why are you doing this all of a sudden?!"

"Do I need a reason to kill criminals?"

Because you did wrong.

And now you’re being punished.

As the Hero answered, his gaze burned with madness.

Ji Hyuntae—someone who had killed many—knew exactly what that meant.

"You psycho... You’re just like us."

Those eyes didn’t belong to someone seeking justice.

He didn’t care about lofty ideals or righteous punishment.

He just needed an excuse.

An excuse to beat someone to death.

"I’m not dying to a bastard like this!"

Fueled by sheer determination,

his desperation seemed to pay off.

Finally, the gun was aimed directly at the Hero.

Bang!

The gun fired without hesitation,

and simultaneously—

Crunch!

The Hero’s knuckles smashed into Ji Hyuntae’s face.

"Cut!"

And with that, the shoot was over.

"Holy shit... that was terrifying."

Ju Seonghwan stared at the knuckles in front of him, resisting the urge to collapse from sheer relief.

If this weren’t a movie, if that punch had really connected—

"Donghu, thank you for sparing me."

He didn’t even want to imagine the alternative.

*****

After Successfully Wrapping Up the One-Take Shoot

We ended up filming the one-take sequence multiple times.

From trying different camera angles to adjusting the placement of props and reworking the choreography,

it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say we spent the entire day shooting nothing but one-take scenes.

And just like that, the time flew by. It was already 3 a.m.

"Great work, everyone!"

Finally, the day’s shooting schedule was complete.

"You didn’t overdo it, did you? Are you really okay?"

"Yes, I’m totally fine."

"As expected... I guess being a gold medalist comes with incredible stamina."

Director Lee Seong-deok kept checking on me even after filming had ended.

He seemed concerned because of how many takes we’d done for the one-take scenes.

But honestly, I felt completely fine.

Maybe it was because I’d been in far more demanding matches in the past.

For now, it was still manageable.

"I’m dying here, Donghu. Let’s grab some drinks."

In contrast to me, Ju Seonghwan looked utterly drained.

With a soft pat,

he threw an arm around my shoulder, miming the act of drinking soju.

"Days like this call for a drink, don’t they? Come on, let’s celebrate! Just enough to get a nice buzz, you know what I mean?"

"Seonghwan, you can barely walk. Why are you talking about drinking?"

"That’s exactly why I need a drink. Right now, it’d be like medicinal wine, medicinal!"

"But your wife’s here to pick you up."