In-beom pushed the door open. He stepped into the cramped storage room where dust motes danced in the dim light.
Geon-woo and Woo-jin were busy tugging a heavy metal trolley. They both froze at the sound of the latch clicking.
In-beom stood in the doorway with a wide smirk. He slowly pulled off his hat and tossed it onto a stack of tires.
Geon-woo dropped his end of the trolley. His jaw tightened as he reached for his zipper and pulled off his jacket.
Woo-jin wiped sweat from his forehead. He looked at his friend with a confused expression.
"Why are you taking your jacket off?" Woo-jin asked.
Geon-woo didn't take his eyes off the intruder. He tossed his jacket onto a crate and raised his hands into a loose guard.
"Don't let him grab you," Geon-woo warned.
Woo-jin shifted his stance. The man in the doorway was a giant with shoulders that nearly blocked out the hallway light.
"Who is he?" Woo-jin asked.
"The guy from the cafe," Geon-woo replied.
Woo-jin spit on the concrete floor and narrowed his eyes. He realized who they were dealing with.
"Fucker," Woo-jin muttered.
In-beom didn't wait for a formal invitation. He charged forward like a bull with his heavy boots booming against the floorboards.
CRASH!
He collided with the metal trolley and sent it flying into the wall. The metal frame bent while the drywall behind it shattered into white powder.
Woo-jin moved first. He danced back on his heels and snapped out a lightning-fast jab that landed on In-beom's nose.
CRACK!
In-beom's head didn't even snap back. He ignored the blood leaking from his nostrils and swung a massive fist at Woo-jin's ribs.
Woo-jin spun out of the way. The wind from the punch whistled past his ear like a passing truck.
Geon-woo stepped inside the giant's guard. He drove a powerful left hook into In-beom's liver and followed with a straight right to the solar plexus.
THUD!
In-beom grunted and stumbled back a step. He grabbed a wooden pallet and ripped it from the stack with one hand.
He swung the wood like a club. Both boxers dived in opposite directions as the pallet smashed into a shelving unit.
The timber snapped into jagged shards. Rusted cans of paint exploded across the floor in a spray of red and grey.
"He's too strong!" Woo-jin yelled.
In-beom roared and lunged for Geon-woo's throat. Geon-woo ducked and hammered a right cross into In-beom's granite chin.
The impact vibrated up Geon-woo's arm. In-beom simply shook his head and caught Geon-woo by the shoulder.
He slammed Geon-woo into a brick pillar. The bricks cracked under the force of the impact.
Geon-woo gasped as the air left his lungs. His vision blurred for a second.
Woo-jin saw his opening and sprinted across the room. He delivered a flurry of four rapid-fire hooks to the side of In-beom's neck.
SMACK!
In-beom turned his head slowly. He looked at Woo-jin with predatory eyes and swung a heavy backhand.
The blow caught Woo-jin in the chest. It sent him skidding across the slippery, paint-covered floor.
Geon-woo recovered and stood up. He signaled to Woo-jin with a sharp nod.
Woo-jin bounced back up. He used his superior speed to circle In-beom and pepper the giant with constant jabs.
The punches blinded In-beom. The giant tried to grab the air but Woo-jin stayed an inch out of reach.
In-beom grew frustrated and left his chin exposed. He focused entirely on the agile fighter.
Geon-woo stepped in and planted his feet. He threw his entire body weight into a massive right hand that connected with In-beom's jaw.
BOOM!
In-beom's knees buckled. He tried to steady himself by grabbing a shelf and pulled the entire unit down on top of himself.
The boxers didn't give him a chance to breathe. They crowded him and rained down a synchronized barrage of punches.
Woo-jin hit high while Geon-woo stayed low. Every strike landed with the wet sound of breaking skin.
A final hook from both sides caught In-beom's jaw at the same time. His head snapped back and his teeth clicked together.
WHAM!
The giant finally collapsed. His massive body hit the floor with a force that made the light fixtures rattle.
Geon-woo leaned against the wall and exhaled a long breath of steam. His right hand was swollen and his knuckles were split open.
Woo-jin stood over the fallen man. He looked at the trail of destruction that stretched across the room.
"What does he eat?" Woo-jin asked.
Geon-woo shook his head and picked up his jacket. He turned toward the door.
In-beom snapped his eyes open. He let out a guttural scream and lunged forward.
He wrapped his massive arms around Woo-jin's waist. The giant drove his shoulder into the smaller man and tackled him.
They slammed into a stack of metal shelving. The structure groaned and buckled under the weight.
CRASH!
Woo-jin slumped to the floor. Heavy boxes of rusted nails and bolts rained down on him like hail.
"That ox is still conscious?!" Woo-jin groaned.
In-beom didn't answer. He reached for a long-handled shovel leaning against the wall.
He spun around and swung the shovel in a wide arc. Geon-woo ducked just in time to feel the wind whistle over his hair.
WHAM!
The shovel blade sliced deep into a wooden support beam. Splinters flew through the air like shrapnel.
In-beom ripped the tool free with a jagged twist. The structural wood snapped with a loud pop.
Geon-woo backed away toward the center of the room. He kept his hands up and his eyes locked on the steel edge.
"Get up, Woo-jin!" Geon-woo shouted.
The shovel hit the concrete floor and sparked. It left a deep gouge in the cement.
In-beom was no longer fighting like a man. He moved with a blind and murderous rage.
Woo-jin rolled away from the falling debris. He felt his heartbeat slow down as his training took over.
In-beom roared and swung the shovel horizontally. He aimed to take both their heads off at once.
The two boxers moved in perfect unison. Geon-woo stepped left and Woo-jin stepped right to split the giant's focus.
In-beom hesitated for a fraction of a second. That moment was all the opening they needed to close the gap.
Woo-jin darted in from the side. He delivered three lightning-fast hooks to In-beom's ribs.
THUD!
In-beom tried to backhand him with the handle. Geon-woo intercepted the move and stepped deep into the giant's space.
He drove his right hand into In-beom's solar plexus. Red mist sprayed from In-beom's mouth.
The shovel slipped from his fingers. It hit the floor with a heavy metallic ring.
CLANG!
In-beom reached out to grab Geon-woo's throat. He refused to acknowledge the damage to his body.
Woo-jin jumped and landed a flying knee against the side of In-beom's head. The blow tilted the giant's head and exposed his neck.
Geon-woo followed up with a devastating uppercut. The punch lifted In-beom's heels off the ground.
CRACK!
In-beom stumbled backward into a brick wall. His eyes rolled into the back of his head.
The two friends didn't stop. They delivered a final synchronized cross to the center of his face.
In-beom's nose flattened. His entire face seemed to cave inward from the double impact.
He finally went limp. He slid down the wall like a sack of wet sand.
BOOM!
The floor shook one last time as his massive frame settled. He lay still in the dust and broken glass.
Geon-woo stood over him with his chest heaving. Blood dripped from his torn knuckles onto the concrete.
"What a monster," Woo-jin said.