Leveling Up By Surviving Alone - L.U.B.S.A Chapter 53

“See? I have fingers that can pierce through rock. Hehe.”

In terms of pure strength, he might even surpass a B-rank hunter.

It was an emotional moment for Ji Yeonwoo, who had been an F-rank just a month ago.

—

– The Watcher asks what he’ll do about his fear of heights.

“Huh? I don’t have that.”

—

– The Watcher asks aren’t all humans supposed to have fear of heights.

“Well, I guess not?”

In fact, Ji Yeonwoo doesn’t have a fear of heights.

After all, he once jumped from 11 meters up, the height at which humans feel the most fear.

“It was back in middle school.”

There was a pile of sand at the school from construction work. Perhaps because of the rain, the sand had become spongy and soft.

The problem was that it was in the perfect spot to cushion a fall.

At the time, the fun-loving kids at school started jumping from the first floor, and when that wasn’t exciting enough, they moved up to the second floor.

Ji Yeonwoo was the kind of cheerful student who handled the humor at school.

That’s probably why he could go along with the requests of those so-called “fun” kids.

—

– The Watcher asks what kind of requests they made.

“Hehe. They’d ask me to buy them bread and snacks sometimes.”

—

– ……

Ji Yeonwoo was fast on his feet and, despite not having had much tutoring as a child, was good with numbers. That’s why he could buy bread faster and more accurately than anyone else.

“I miss those days. Sharing bread and chatting with everyone.”

—

– ……

Ji Yeonwoo was particularly close to a kid named Kim Sangsu. Sangsu was the leader of his group, a good-looking and strong kid.

Ji Yeonwoo wanted to be friends with him, and Sangsu often asked him for favors, building a bond.

—

– The Watcher asks if those favors were just asking him to buy bread.

“Mostly, but the kid seemed to have a hard time at home. He often asked to borrow money. Ugh, I wonder how he’s doing now.”

—

– ……

Ji Yeonwoo’s expression darkened with guilt.

The story about his fear of heights was also a memory of Sangsu.

“Sangsu asked me to join him. He said, ‘Let’s jump from the second floor!’”

Ji Yeonwoo proudly recounted this.

—

– The Watcher says humanity has agreed to call that kind of thing school bullying.

“Huh? But I wanted to jump even before he suggested it.”

—

– The Watcher remains silent.

Ji Yeonwoo recalls that time.

—

– “Hehe. Hey, what’s so scary about this? You cowards. Look, Yeonwoo! Our Yeonwoo! Why don’t you jump from the second floor?”

– “Huh? Should I?”

– “Hehehe! Yeah! You can totally do it!”

—

Seeing Sangsu’s cheerful face made Ji Yeonwoo feel good too.

How did Sangsu know what he wanted to do and set it up so perfectly?

Normally, Ji Yeonwoo wouldn’t do something if it was handed to him on a platter, but Sangsu’s encouragement made him want to seize the opportunity.

—

– This is my chance… to make a deep impression on my friends!

—

So he pushed himself a little too hard.

—

– “The second floor? I can do the third floor. No, I can even jump from the rooftop!”

– “…Huh? Hehe, go ahead then.”

—

And he’ll never forget Sangsu’s shocked expression when he actually went up.

—

– “Hey! You’ll die! It’s a joke, come down! Hey, you crazy bastard! What if something happens? Hey! No. I’m sorry, come down! I was wrong! I’m sorry!”

– “Huh?”

—

Maybe it was the excitement of wanting to show off, or maybe it was because the rooftop of a three-story building felt so high. He couldn’t hear Sangsu and his friends clearly. They seemed worried, but there was wet sand below to cushion his fall, so what was the problem?

He was confident he could land perfectly.

Still, he should reassure them.

—

– “It’s fine! I won’t die!”

—

But after he said that, chaos broke out.

He didn’t understand why everyone was panicking when he said he wouldn’t die.

Later, he found out that even the school principal had come out, not knowing what to do.

—

– The Watcher says the people below probably heard it as “I’m going to die.”

“Ah, maybe? I thought I said it loudly.”

—

– ……

Eventually, his friends rushed into the school building.

If they did that, they wouldn’t see his cool moment.

Ji Yeonwoo panicked.

—

– “No!”

—

As soon as he saw that, he jumped.

“Nooooooo!”

“Aaaaaah!”

A scream-like cheer!

Ji Yeonwoo landed safely,

but his legs were broken.

—

– ……

“It was higher than I thought. Hehe. Anyway, I don’t think I have a fear of heights!”

—

– …The Watcher asks what happened to Sangsu after that.

“He transferred schools while I was in the hospital.”

—

– ……

“I still feel bad. Even though he cursed and nagged a lot, he had a good side. I feel terrible that he got blamed for bullying me… Just when I thought we were getting closer.”

—

– ……

“He wouldn’t answer my calls… Oh! But I did get an envelope.”

Inside was more money than Ji Yeonwoo had ever lent him.

Sangsu must have felt terrible for not being able to repay the money he had borrowed.

Later, Ji Yeonwoo heard that Sangsu had left after giving large sums of money to other friends he had borrowed from.

“That wasn’t his intention, but it felt like I was cashing in on a savings account. Saving is good! That’s when I started saving. His intention might have been different, but Sangsu taught me the value of money. I’m grateful to him.”

—

– The Watcher starts to say, “That’s an agreement…” but stops.

“Huh? Anyway, I wonder how he’s doing now… I never got to say sorry or goodbye.”

Ji Yeonwoo’s expression became wistful as he sank into thought.

He genuinely missed and worried about Sangsu.

—

– The Watcher asks if he knows about Stockholm Syndrome.

“Huh? Is that like Sherlock Holmes? I don’t read classic literature… Hehe.”

—

– The Watcher remains silent.

At any rate, it’s clear that Ji Yeonwoo has a strong heart and can jump from the third floor as long as there’s a safety net.

But…

—

– The Watcher points out that there’s no safety net.

– He worries that if Ji Yeonwoo slips while climbing high, he’ll fall and die.

“Hmm, that’s true…”

Ji Yeonwoo’s gaze turns to Kim Kkokko.

Kim Kkokko smiles, spreads her wings like a prepared instructor, and flies up.

Dust rises around her as Kim Kkokko soars into the sky!

Peep peep…!

And as the chicks watch Kim Kkokko’s dazzling and magnificent display, a cute sense of ambition begins to sprout in their little hearts.

At any rate, after showing off her flying skills, Kim Kkokko gracefully returns to her spot.

—

– The Watcher cautiously suggests that if Kim Kkokko can fly, maybe she should go up instead.

“I thought about that, but Kim Kkokko can only fly for about a minute.”

Besides, carrying Ji Yeonwoo while flying would be a whole other issue.

And even if there’s something up there, it’s not something that can be dealt with in a minute.

She can fly, but flying while doing something else is too much.

“She’s a chicken, after all.”

Kkokkok!

Kim Kkokko protests, saying it’s not because she’s a chicken but because she hasn’t regained enough strength yet, but Ji Yeonwoo can’t read her emotions that deeply.

At any rate, even if she can’t fly for long, she can keep an eye on Ji Yeonwoo and quickly fly up to catch him if he falls.

“I trust Kim Kkokko. So it’s fine!”

With Ji Yeonwoo saying that, what could the Watcher possibly say?

—

– The Watcher says it seems like he’s the one who worries about Ji Yeonwoo the most here. He asks Ji Yeonwoo to value himself a little more.

“Ah… really. Can you hear my affection for you increasing?”

—

– The Watcher asks what he’s talking about.

“I guess you can’t hear my heart. I’m so grateful.”

When you think about it, the Watcher is a stranger. Yet this stranger cares more about Ji Yeonwoo than Ji Yeonwoo does himself. Ji Yeonwoo is deeply moved and says with conviction,

“It’s fine. I won’t die.”

—

– ……

With that, Ji Yeonwoo utters what would undoubtedly rank in the top five of men’s last words and prepares to start climbing the cliff.

But the Watcher has no choice but to stop him.

—

– The Watcher says if he really has to go, he should wait a bit. He’ll look into rock climbing and come back.

“…Huh?”

Ji Yeonwoo pauses. Can rock climbing knowledge be acquired that easily?

‘Ah, is he recalling memories?’

The Watcher, being knowledgeable, might be able to recall useful rock-climbing tips.

The Watcher logs back in after 30 minutes.

—

– He says he can only transmit memories after eating twice.

“Eh, but you helped me make a good millstone, so isn’t that enough? It can’t be helped!”

During the 30 minutes without the Watcher, Ji Yeonwoo finished his preparations.

With his backpack full of supplies, Ji Yeonwoo approaches the cliff.

The cliff where the seeds fell is dry, with no water veins nearby, but it’s not too crumbly either—just the right kind of cliff.

Before climbing, Ji Yeonwoo turns his head.

The five chicks and Kim Kkokko are watching him.

“Kim Kkokko. Do you trust me?”

Kkok!

Her reassuring cluck makes him feel confident.

“I’ll be back!”

With that, Ji Yeonwoo presses his fingers into the cliff wall.

It doesn’t give easily, but that means it’s stable.

Squish squish.

With his fingers embedded, Ji Yeonwoo begins his climb.

The sun shines brightly on his figure.