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."

Their proposal was that releasing a duet could help boost recognition for both of us.

It was a suggestion with no downsides for me.

"I can sing decently enough."

Thanks to the talents I’d gained from Jaejae, I wasn’t just proficient at piano—I could sing too.

There were no real obstacles in my way.

"Didn’t they say the show starts airing next month?"

After much schedule coordination,

Our Fake Wedding was slated to premiere around April Fool’s Day.

They’d chosen the timing to emphasize the “fake” aspect of the marriage.

I recalled that this was the reason for the April release date.

"True Hero is set to release between October and November."

If everything went according to plan,

it seemed like this year would unfold without any major complications.

Just as I was thinking how smoothly everything was progressing—

Brrrr. Brrrr.

My phone rang.

"Hello?"

I answered the call.

“Donghu! The Shall We Get Married? team suggested a trip to a hot spring in Japan. What do you think? They’re even talking about mixed bathing!”

"What?!"

I was caught off guard.

"Mixed bathing? Like, naked?"

Obviously, that wouldn’t be the case.

They’d probably arrange something wholesome, like mixed bathing in swimsuits.

Still, did the Shall We Get Married? team have the budget for something like that?

It wasn’t just a matter of Korea—renting out a private hot spring in Japan for mixed bathing wasn’t cheap.

Could they really afford to cover it all?

“Apparently, with the ratings skyrocketing, they’ve been given the green light to go big. So, what do you think?”

"I’m fine with it, but isn’t this going to be an issue for the idol side? Don’t they have to worry about managing their image?"

“Uh... that’s true. But apparently, it’s already been approved on their end.”

"What?!"

So Jaerin’s team had already signed off on her doing a mixed bathing scene?

"Oh, in that case, I don’t see any problem."

“Really? You’re okay with it?”

"Yeah."

If Jaerin’s side was fine with it, I had no objections.

Besides, I’d been planning to revisit Japan whenever I had the chance.

"Why am I even doing the 10th anniversary Oz production?"

The project was considered one of the worst 10th-anniversary works.

What did they expect me to gain from it?

"Am I supposed to change the outcome somehow?"

Doing a tokusatsu project at a time when my market value was at its peak...

There was only one way to find out the truth.

I’d have to confront it head-on.

There was no other way.

*****

At the Same Time

"I’ll let it slide that you unilaterally chose your muse. This is a first-time offense, after all. But do you really think that Asian has what it takes to appear in a fashion show?"

At a Louis Vuitton meeting,

Kim Donghu’s appointment as a muse by designer Kim John had put him in a difficult position.