“ | I'll show you the hand that made you so wary. |
” |
— Jichang Kwak, Episode 438
|
Jichang Kwak (곽지창 Gwag Ji Chang) was a member of the 1st Generation. During his peak, he held the title of "King of Seoul" until he was usurped by the eldest son of Gapryong Kim. He was then banished to the Chungcheong Province where he overthrew the current king of Chungcheong and took over.
He had a major influence over the area, overlooking several non-illegal businesses including a beekeeping and brewing business, until he was once again defeated by James Lee, who was on a crusade to defeat and mutilate several of the Kings. However, James Lee returned from Chungcheong without maiming Jichang due to his pity for him. Ultimately, Jichang was in complete despair after two one-sided losses and would largely step down as the King of Chungcheong.
Jichang would take up the job of a police officer under the guidance of Bakgu Noh. Despite retiring as the King, he still exerts a lot of influence on the Chungcheong area as his two brothers would take up the job of running his crew. As was tradition with the First Generation Kings, Jichang had a signature move which he trained extensively in: the chops of his hands. The "Hand Blade" technique was mainly used with his right hand while the left one tends to be used for defense.
Appearance
Jichang has black spiky hair that's typically swept to the side. He has a rather long face with pronounced cheekbones and monochrome-colored eyes typically covered with a pair of glasses with round frames. He is shown wearing quite formal clothing, even during his high school days, he always wore a tan suit top and bottom chinos, a brown tie with a yellow circle pattern, and brown chairman dress shoes. Due to his job as a cop, the Chungcheong police uniform has become his main clothing set.
A notable feature he carries is the scars that run down the side of his left hand resulting from the battle against Kim Gitae, who took Kwak Jichang’s position as king of Seoul afterward. Despite his defeat by James Lee, he did not suffer any mutilation unlike most of the other Kings.
Personality
Right from the start, it was clear that Jichang was a smart man. After hearing that Daniel Park was looking at Jinyoung Park, he analyzed the situation and concluded that he could potentially be on Charles Choi's side coming to clean evidence. He quickly came up with a plan to quietly use his former crew to get rid of him and get rid of the body all without lifting a finger thus protecting his image as a cop. It's also good to note that he does not share the same fighting bloodthirst most other Kings have, he would much rather stand back and only fight when necessary.
When it eventually came to light that Daniel Park was only looking for Jinyoung Park before Charles Choi and actively opposed him, Jichang's demeanor changed, becoming a respectable and understanding man who showed devotion to the case against Charles Choi. He holds utmost respect for Bakgu Noh, and while he doesn't show it, he cares deeply about his brothers. While he is strict, it's done to eventually shape them into becoming better kings than he was.
Synopsis
Jichang Kwak was the King of Seoul during the 1st Generation, and was likely to have been financially successful, as he presumably owned high-rise property and was willing to compensate Jaegyeon Na for his damaged car.
During the Cheonliang Arc, Jichang , along with the other Kings, appeared in Cheonliang after receiving a "signal" from Seongji Yuk[1]. Upon realising that Seongji had been maimed by Shinmyung Cheon, Jichang became incensed and decided to fight the Ghostly Brothers. Although it appeared that he was struggling against them at first, he revealed that he was actually observing them due to their notoriety, but found that they had failed to meet his expectations. Deeming that there was "no need to even come up with a strategy", Jichang easily defeated the Ghostly Brothers[2].
Jichang and the other Kings then shifted their attention to James Lee, blaming him for his role in defeating Seongji which led to his brutal fate. As the exhausted and injured James fled, Jichang demonstrated his cerebral prowess by steering him towards Jaegyeon. However, James still managed to escape. Before his departure, Jichang asked James what he and his ally, Charles Choi, were planning, to which James only gave an ominous reply, telling the Kings that he would visit them again soon[3].
Later on, Jichang was ousted from the city by Gitae Kim and exiled to Chungcheong-do, where he began to work as a police officer in an official capacity. With his brothers and Bakgu Noh, Jichang quietly lived for years in the countryside. Jichang was "indebted" to Bakgu Noh, and aligned himself with Jinyeong Park, committing himself to helping Bakgu in his pursuit for justice[4].
At some point, Jichang was visited and defeated in battle by James Lee, who expressed disappointment in the state of the former King of Seoul. Feeling sorry for him, James spared Jichang from having a body part taken away, as was the fate of the other defeated Kings[5].
When Daniel Park came to Chungcheong during the Holidays 2 Arc, Jichang was alerted when Daniel came to the police station and asked for information about Jinyeong Park. Believing Daniel to be working for Charles Choi, Jichang immediately ordered for Daniel to be dealt with quietly by his subordinates, including his brothers. However, Jichang was eventually confronted by Daniel, who saw through his plan and realised that the unassuming police officer was the King of Chungcheong[6].
Initially underestimating Daniel, Jichang said that he wouldn't "even raise a hand against" Daniel. He was soon proven wrong when Daniel landed multiple hits on him, and the two began to fight. Having the upper hand at first, Jichang was overpowered temporarily by Daniel who had entered his "self-loathing mode". As Daniel had brought up James Lee's name, Jichang decided to use his signature hand blades against Daniel, overwhelming Daniel and nearly defeating him, if not for the interference of his allies[5].
With Daniel copying James Lee's abilities to attack him, Jichang chose to demonstrate his superior strength and speed, and dealt serious blows onto Daniel to the point where he was pushed into his Ultra Instinct state. Knowing that there was no longer room for leeway, Jichang went for an extremely strong strike on the charging Daniel. However, before either of their hits could connect, Bakgu Noh stepped in to end the fight, having recognised Daniel as a relative of Jinyeong Park[7].
After the skirmish, Jichang apologises to Daniel about having sent his men to attack Daniel and his friends. Jichang reveals that he has been laying low in Chungcheong for years to help out Bakgu, whom he refers to respectfully as "Mr Noh". Before Daniel's departure for Jinyeong's location, Daniel asks for his help in Seoul, recognising Jichang's strength. Both Bakgu and Jichang are impressed by this gesture, although Jichang rejects the offer and promises that once he has settled his matters in Chungcheong, he will lend Daniel his strength.
Soon after Daniel leaves, Jichang discusses with Bakgu their plans to take down Charles Choi, having sent Daniel away to avoid involving him in the conflict. Jichang and Bakgu sends evidence of Charles' involvement in the infamous Gapryong Kim murder case to a media outlet later that day, hoping that this would finally bring justice.
That night, however, Charles appears in Chungcheong, revealing that the media outlet in question was actually controlled by him. Having located Bakgu, one of the final obstacles in his way, Charles intends to kill Bakgu, but this attempt on his life is stopped by Jichang's appearance. Aware that both of them would be unable to defeat the legendary fighter, Jichang sends Bakgu away to spread the evidence of Charles' guilt himself, while keeping Charles' attention on him[4].
Rejecting offers to become his bodyguard, Jichang and Charles engage in a full-on fight, with Charles recognising the danger that he is in, not only due to Jichang's exceptional strength and speed, but his battle strategies. With Jichang seemingly defeated, Charles approaches Jichang to kill him. Unexpectedly, Jichang draws his revolver on Charles.
Unfortunately, Charles is able to disarm him and gains control of the gun, landing a fatal shot on Jichang's abdomen. When Bakgu returns back to the cabin, Jichang attempts to warn Bakgu of Charles' hidden presence to no avail, leading to Charles shooting and killing Bakgu as well.
After the incident, Charles Choi manipulated the scene and media to hide the truth, framing Bakgu for attempting to steal Jichang's gun and both being killed in the scuffle. Although his brothers were unwilling to believe the story portrayed by the media, the truth of the matter was only revealed to them by Daniel, who had correctly deduced that Charles Choi was behind the double murder.
Jichang's funeral was held in Chungcheong and had a large amount of mourners, many of whom were members of the First Generation, including the Kings. Finding that the circumstances of the case to be suspicious, some of the Kings have begun investigating the issue, while Jichang's brothers, Jibeom and Jihan Kwak have joined forces with Daniel Park to seek revenge on Charles Choi[8].
Fighting Prowess
Like the other 1st Generation Kings, Jichang Kwak specially trained a signature move, that being his hand chops which he calls "The Hand Blade". A single Hand Blade has the power to break a safe, the blow itself having a similar Attack Potency to Taesoo Ma, making him one of the strongest members of the 1st Generation in terms of Attack Power and Speed.
In terms of intelligence, Jichang was presented as possessing such an aptitude for strategy that he was able to successfully get a hit against Charles Choi. And was even acknowledged by Gitae Kim during their duel.
In the past, Jichang was praised by James Lee to be a extremely intelligent fighter.
Relationships
Charles Choi
Jichang desired the fall of Charles and actively assisted the Pre-Generation Bakgu Noh in carrying out a plan to get revenge on Charles. When Charles discovered their location, Jichang held him off, eventually being able to manipulate the situation so that he would be able to get a shot off on Charles with his gun, a strategy that ultimately failed.
Bakgu Noh
After Jichang's retirement, he became committed to helping Bakgu get his revenge on Charles Choi, even going so far as to attempt to hold Charles off so Bakgu could secure the evidence that served as Charles' weak point. In the end, this attempt failed as Bakgu was lured back to the scene and killed by Charles Choi, Jichang himself dying soon after.
After the pair's deaths, Charles framed Bakgu for being responsible for the incident, the official story being that Bakgu attacked Jichang, who struggled to take the gun from Bakgu, before the gun went off, ending in both being killed.
Trivia
- According to Charles Choi, one of the things that sets Jichang apart from the other Kings is his superior strength and speed, the second being that he is a tactician.
- Jichang used to be the King of Seoul, but he was usurped and exiled to Chungcheong-do by Jake Kim's half-brother. Regarding this fact, James Lee mentions that Jichang was crushed by that man.
- When Jichang was exiled to Chungcheong-do, he defeated and drove out the original King of Chungcheong. The existence of this King is only known from a brief mention by James Lee in chapter 438 when he says "The original King of Chungcheong did nothing wrong."
Gallery
Holidays 2
Funeral
Workers (1st Affiliate)
Cheonliang (Arc)
References
- ↑ Webtoon, Episode 493 (Cheonliang Arc)
- ↑ Webtoon, Episode 494 (Cheonliang Arc)
- ↑ Webtoon, Episode 495 (Cheonliang Arc)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Webtoon, Episode 440 (Holidays 2 Arc)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Webtoon, Episode 438 (Holidays 2 Arc)
- ↑ Webtoon, Episode 436 (Holidays 2 Arc)
- ↑ Webtoon, Episode 439 (Holidays 2 Arc)
- ↑ Webtoon, Episode 441 (Holidays 2 Arc)