NOVEL NEXT chapter 55
“Time, time!”
“No. You can do it. Do not lower your arms!”
“No way. My arms are completely gone, I can’t reach that far….”
“You are not lying.”
Slurp. Drinking the iced americano rising through the transparent straw, Seo-eul quietly watched the hell scene unfolding in front of him.
For over thirty minutes now, Ye Ju-yeol and Yoon Hyuk had been bickering with deadly serious expressions over whether he could do it or not. Especially Ye Ju-yeol, who had now put on a bright red drill-sergeant hat and was brandishing a silver baton as he pressured Yoon Hyuk — and somehow, it suited him so well it was even funnier.
This was how it had begun.
After Yoon Hyuk — and then Sa-heon — completed their basic training without incident, everyone moved to whichever zone they personally wanted to try and settled into individual practice time.
That was when Ye Ju-yeol, who had practically become possessed by Tarzan on the advanced course alone, suddenly drifted over to Yoon Hyuk’s side and began offering guidance.
Well… calling it guidance was generous; it was basically coaching.
And he had to coach, because… Yoon Hyuk was unbelievably stiff.
He had been like that since the lesson began.
While Sa-heon and Seo-eul were briefly lost in old memories, Yoon Hyuk kept stretching out his arms and falling, stretching out his legs and falling again, pioneering the fallen-angel route of continuous plummeting. Thanks to that, he had mastered back-first landing technique to an expert level. He already looked like he had accepted that he simply had no talent for climbing.
A textbook trainee: singing A+, dancing F. Average grade C. What could he do? He had been born with no physical sense. Dancing was his job, so he was willing to practice it tens or hundreds of times — but this was another field entirely.
Since his arms refused to move the way he wanted, Yoon Hyuk shrugged and insisted it wasn’t his fault. After that he lost all enthusiasm for climbing. The mission said to “share your hobbies,” not “become obsessed,” so it wasn’t exactly against the rules.
But there was no way Ye Ju-yeol would tolerate that.
Forever yearning to have “my own cli-friend (climbing friend),” Ye Ju-yeol, the moment he finished his own climb, buzzed toward Yoon Hyk like a hornet uncle. And then he began passionately coaching (guiding) him. For Yoon Hyuk, it was a disaster.
“Just give up.”
“Why. Come on, try a little more. I’m looking for Hyuk-ss who’ll go to the center with me….”
“Be honest. You only want someone to drive for you. You’re scared you’ll take the highway and end up in Busan again like last time.”
“…….”
Having personally experienced Ye Ju-yeol’s monstrous driving skills, he hit the bull’s-eye. Ye Ju-yeol flinched and fell silent. I should have left him on the roadside then. With that regret in his mind as he climbed down to the mat, Ye Ju-yeol rushed at him again as if he had never whimpered. It was just their usual bickering.
Ddan-dan dan-da-da!
A notification chimed from Yoon Hyuk’s phone.
There was only one possible mission at this hour. He hurriedly tapped the push message, and the familiar screen appeared.
>> EVENT <<
You, the one who continues the legacy of the fallen angel!
Do you need an iced americano for everyone?
You can, if you exchange your best friend!
As he read through the event description, the corners of Yoon Hyuk’s lips curled wickedly. Perfect timing — he was thirsty anyway, and this was the ideal opportunity to get rid of that annoying climbing-addict. He tapped the screen.
Would you like to exchange Ye Ju-yeol for [4 iced americanos]?
Reward: 5 coins
⚠ Warning: Your best friend might [ ]...
“What? You’re trying to exchange me, aren’t you…?!”
Realizing the situation too late, Ye Ju-yeol lunged with a doomed expression — but he was already too slow. Without a moment’s hesitation, Yoon Hyuk hit [YES] and declared as if performing an exorcism:
“Coaches like you should disappear along with coffee.”
“Nooo!”
With Ye Ju-yeol’s scream, the empty bracket in the warning message spun like a slot machine. Seo-eul, who had just landed after topping, let out a dry laugh while watching. They really play well together, he murmured. The slot stopped.
And when he saw the result floating on the screen, he blinked in disbelief.
Who?
Yoon Hyuk.
⚠ Warning: Your best friend might [become a tiger trainer]...
At the same time, a notification arrived on Ye Ju-yeol’s phone.
⚠ ALERT ⚠
You have been exchanged by your best friend.
Become a [tiger trainer and make your best friend top-out (2Lv)] immediately!
Remaining time: 11:33:53
“What is this…?”
The smug smile vanished. Yoon Hyuk staggered back. Wait, I exchanged him — why am I the one getting trained? Furious and betrayed, he looked to the production crew. They only returned gentle smiles, as if to say it couldn’t be helped — the result was random. Then one of the writers handed something to Ye Ju-yeol.
A bright red drill-sergeant hat and a baton.
And that was how poor, unwilling Yoon Hyuk — forced to top-out instead of choosing mustard or tears — found himself drafted into the bouldering boot camp.
“Trainee Yoon Hyuk, number 66. Is that your best?”
“Hey, seriously, let’s not call me by that number.”
It was his number from the hellish survival audition. The moment he heard it, he reacted instantly, as if some nightmare were slithering up his spine. Seeing his flinch, Ye Ju-yeol-the-tiger-trainer nodded respectfully.
“Hm. Fair. That was my mistake.”
“Ha… fine. I’ll try again.”
Just as he regrouped and began stretching on the mat, Sa-heon came down after grabbing the top hold. Seo-eul had assumed he’d do well since he enjoyed working out, but the speed of his movements was on a different level.
According to Ye Ju-yeol: he was basically beating the route with his physical stats alone. Long arms and legs gave him a natural advantage in grabbing holds. On top of that, he was strong enough to skip proper footwork routes and just haul himself up with his arms.
Watching that, Ye Ju-yeol clapped loudly, declaring that Sa-heon had been sculpted for climbing. Seo-eul, having listened quietly, spoke up:
“Oh, then you and Sa-heon can be climbing frie—”
He was about to say cli-friend when he saw Ye Ju-yeol’s expression collapse like the entire wall’s holds had crumbled. Too early, he thought, and closed his mouth. Sa-heon approached and naturally sat beside Seo-eul.
“What color did you reach?”
“The blue holds over there. I couldn’t see anything past the middle, so I came down.”
“Want me to spot you from below?”
“Mm… no, it’s fine. I’m done for today.”
He refused, not wanting to push himself.
Then, from between bickering tiger-trainer and trainee, a shout erupted.
Startled, Seo-eul turned his head — and there was Yoon Hyuk, gripping the top hold of the 2Lv red route with both hands. After swearing he could never do it, he had actually done it. Other people nearby, wearing the same expression of amazed admiration, began clapping.
Everyone looked like they had just witnessed a victorious human moment. Laughing together, Seo-eul looked around. Even among strangers, if someone topped-out, people clapped and congratulated them. Maybe because it was his first time doing a hobby surrounded by so many others, everything felt new.
If you think about it, it was funny.
Stepping on toy-like plastic stones sticking out of a wall, tapping the top block — what was so special?
There was no productivity to it at all, and yet they supported each other and clapped. Ridiculous, in a way — but also, maybe this was what kept people going. Even if nothing meaningful came out of it, even if you fell and slammed onto the mat, you could just dust yourself off and try again.
Lost in that thought, Seo-eul looked up as Yoon Hyuk, having landed with perfectly mastered breakfall technique, ran over with an excited face.
“Hyung, did you see that?”
“Hyuk-ah. You were really amaz—”
“Then let’s please get out of here now!”
Since the mission was done, he begged to be rescued from this hellish place. Seo-eul checked the time. Almost 1 PM. Want to go eat? he asked, and even the jungle-raised Ye Ju-yeol brightened.
They changed shoes and headed toward the parking lot.
Then—
“Huh?” Confused, patting himself everywhere, Yoon Hyuk said, alarmed:
“What the? My car key is gone…?”
And as if waiting for that exact cue, Seo-eul’s phone rang.
>> EVENT <<
Today’s noon high: 26.8°C
You, who have instantly become a pedestrian
Do you need your car key?
You can, if you exchange your best friend!
These insane producers had now begun stealing car keys.