Lookism: Fight Club

Two days had passed since the incident. The grandmother was suffering from aortic stenosis, a condition that, if left untreated, could lead to sudden cardiac arrest and death. Fortunately, Adam Shin called for help in time. The grandmother might not have survived if he had waited even another hour.

These days, Adam Shin has been focused entirely on training. He spent his time at the gym, learning new martial arts, and working to become stronger. At the same time, he was searching for a location to establish his Fight Club.

At first, he had a good idea: to set up the Fight Club at school. However, after considering the potential consequences, he decided against it. Since then, he had been looking for another suitable place but found nothing better than an abandoned warehouse owned by the grandmother's son.

The warehouse was secluded and quiet, not far from the school. It was located in a remote neighborhood corner, making it an ideal spot for his plans. 

Ring...

Ring...

Adam Shin set down the dumbbells, wiping the sweat from his body before picking up the telephone.

"Yes?"

"Hello, is this Adam Shin? We're calling from the hospital."

"Oh, yes. Is there anything you need? My grandma is okay, right?" he asked.

The grandmother was the first person Adam had built a meaningful connection within this world. Around her, he didn't feel the crushing loneliness that usually haunted him. Instead, he felt a sense of peace—likely a lingering desire from the previous owner of this body.

"Yes, your grandmother is fine. She just wants to see you."

After discussing her condition and the medical details for a while, Adam Shin hung up the phone and prepared to leave.

He opened the door, but what greeted him made his eyes narrow.

"Yo."

"You again?" he asked.

Before him stood a young man with light purple hair that covered half his face. He was wearing a school uniform, casually leaning against the second-floor railing while sucking on a lollipop.

This guy had been bothering him lately ever since he witnessed Adam single-handedly defeat an entire gang. On top of that, he happened to be Adam's classmate.

"Come on, that's no way to greet your first friend," the young man teased.

This was Choi Sun-Jae, a peculiar person who enjoyed role-playing as animals or food and, even worse, talking like them. His eccentricity was so extreme that Adam often felt like he was losing his mind whenever they interacted.

Still, Adam didn't mind being around Choi Sun-Jae. This oddball was one of the strongest—if not the strongest—characters from the manhwa Reality Quest. While he didn't belong in the Lookism universe, Adam didn't dwell on it too much. After all, Lookism itself wasn't supposed to exist in the first place, so he decided not to overthink it.

"Ah... who would want to talk to someone who visits their friend dressed as an animal in the middle of a hospital?" Adam Shin grumbled as he walked down the stairs.

"I mean, it's supposed to cheer you up, right?" Choi Sun-Jae chuckled lightly, following close behind.

'Let's ignore him.'

Adam sighed. He ignored Choi Sun-Jae and opened his mission interface. The Normal and Hell Missions had been updated, but he couldn't take on a new one until he completed his current mission.

He had already finished the first objective. The remaining two objectives were planned out, and for the second, he intended to recruit Choi Sun-Jae into his Fight Club. Despite Choi's eccentric personality, he was a strong fighter, and the opportunity was right in front of him. There was no need to overthink it.

Walking down the bustling streets, Adam Shin observed students chatting, laughing, and bonding with one another. A group of kids ran past, giggling as they carried colorful balloons. Breaking the silence, he suddenly spoke.

"Hey..."

"What is it? Are you finally ready to call me your friend?" Choi Sun-Jae teased.

"No. Why are you so insistent on being my friend? It's not like I know you or owe you anything," Adam replied bluntly. 

The former Adam Shin had been lonely despite his good looks. He had no close friends, but not because people didn't want to befriend him. It was his bad personality that kept them away—he was rude, disliked talking, and even treated teachers poorly.

His tragic past played a significant role in shaping him. The previous Adam had lost his parents in a gang conflict. They were caught in the crossfire of two rival gangs and died as a result. Because the perpetrators were minors, they were sent to juvenile detention instead of prison. Adam resented the lenient punishment. In his mind, they deserved the death penalty or life imprisonment.

Unable to accept the outcome, he took matters into his own hands. After the gang members were released, he raided their base, crippling them and leaving them in a state worse than death. This act of revenge landed him in juvenile detention. When he was finally released, he felt purposeless. With no plans for the future, he decided to end his life by jumping off a building. That was when the current Adam Shin took over his body.

Because of his actions against the gangs, his Constitution reached an A-rank, and he earned the title "King of Cheongin High School."

Despite being called the King, he was more of a lone wolf.

"Hmm, isn't friendship about starting something without knowing everything about the other person?" Choi Sun-Jae said, glancing at his lollipop. Then, in a softer voice, he added, "Besides... I feel like I've found something in you."

"Ehh!" Adam gave him a look of disgust, quickly putting some distance between them. "I'm not gay!" 

...

"Oh, you're here?" The grandmother was lying on the hospital bed, watching TV. When she saw Adam enter, followed by another young man, she smiled warmly.

"Come, sit beside me," she said, motioning for them to join her.

The two followed her instructions. Adam took the only chair available while Choi Sun-Jae fetched another chair from a nearby ward and sat beside them.

Adam glanced at Choi, then turned to the grandmother with a smile. "How are you, Grandma? Is everything okay? Nothing strange happening?"

"No, I'm fine. Thanks to you, I get to live another day," she chuckled softly. Then, she picked up a piece of paper from beside her and handed it to Adam. "Here, read this."

Adam took the paper and began reading. As he went through it, his expression grew complicated. After a moment, he looked up at the grandmother and asked, "Are you sure about this, Grandma?"

"I've never been more certain in my life," she said with a slow nod.

The paper was her will. It outlined that all her belongings—from her small stall to her house and the abandoned warehouse, which had originally belonged to her late son—would be passed to Adam.

'What is she even thinking? There's no way I can accept this. Even though I want that place, I'm not shameless enough to take it from an elderly woman.'

Adam didn't know how to react. He hesitated, struggling to process the situation. They weren't blood-related, and they'd only met two days ago. They barely knew anything about each other, and yet the grandmother had done something completely beyond his expectations.

"You see," she began, her voice tinged with emotion, "since I lost my family, I've been all alone in this world. Because of my sons' reputations, no one talks to me except for customers. I've been so lonely... until you appeared. Despite meeting only a few hours ago, I enjoyed our time together. And you're the only one who stepped in to save me when those kids harassed me."

She smiled gently and placed her warm hand over his. "I'm old now. I don't know when God will call me, but I can't leave behind the house and the warehouse my sons worked so hard for. In the end, I thought it would be better to leave them to someone who would take care of them. And I thought of you."

For a moment, no one spoke. The only sounds came from the footsteps and muffled voices outside the hospital room.

Adam thought for a while before finally speaking. "You know it's hard to accept this, right, Grandma?"

The grandmother nodded knowingly. "I figured you'd say that. But I don't have much of a choice, do I? I don't have any relatives left in this world."

She glanced at the young man sitting beside Adam and added, "If you don't want it, why not give it to this young man instead?" 

"No way!" Adam Shin reacted quickly before Choi Sun-Jae could say a word.

"That's harsh, you know..." Choi Sun-Jae grumbled, feigning offense.

Seeing this, the grandmother laughed heartily. In the end, Adam Shin had no choice but to accept. Of course, deep down, there was a part of him that wanted the warehouse to build his Fight Club. Still, he felt a twinge of shame—it wasn't right to just take something simply because he wanted it.

As they continued chatting with the grandmother, even Choi Sun-Jae joined in, adding his usual playful remarks. The atmosphere in the room became lively. For a while, the sound of laughter echoed through the hospital room, brightening the mood.

Even a hospital nurse, who had been watching from the side, couldn't help but smile at the scene. Of course, her gaze lingered a bit too long on the two handsome young men who looked like celebrities. When they noticed her, she quickly turned away, her face flushing red, and hurried off down the hall.

After a while, the two left the room. As they walked down the hallway, one of the nurses, who had been chatting with her colleague, noticed them. Her face flushed as she approached, holding a small card in her hand. She looked shy but seemed determined.

"Um... hello."

Choi Sun-Jae patted Adam Shin on the shoulder and said, "Let me handle this."

The nurse ignored Choi Sun-Jae completely and handed the card directly to Adam Shin. "This is my number, and my name is Yoo-Jin. Please call me. I'm free later—eh!!"

Before Adam could respond, Yoo-Jin turned bright red and bolted down the hallway.

Adam Shin smirked, slipping the card into his pocket. He patted the now-downcast Choi Sun-Jae on the shoulder as he walked past. "Relax, Sun-Jae. Not everyone's born to be this irresistible—it's a burden I wouldn't wish on you."

Choi Sun-Jae stood there in a daze, unsure how to respond.

... 

"Hey, want to join me?" Adam Shin asked, resting against the bridge railing as he watched the sunset. He suddenly turned to Choi Sun-Jae.

"Hmm... aren't we already friends? Or do you mean something else?" Choi Sun-Jae replied with a sly grin.

"No," Adam said, his gaze fixed on the horizon. "I want to start a club."

"A club?" Choi Sun-Jae raised an eyebrow.

"A Fight Club." 

The golden hues of the sunset bathed his face.