Free Web NovelChapter 16: Chapter 16: Deified
As Chloe Sinclair sprinted for the finish line, the observation deck erupted in thunderous cheers.
Wilder Rhodes had plenty of lackeys in the crowd, but there were also many true parkour masters.
Their eyes were filled with fervent joy, and some were even moved to tears.
"Who the hell is this girl? I want her entire file in three minutes!"
"With skills like that, she’d be hailed as a god in the parkour community."
"A wall loop! I can’t believe I saw a wall loop with my own eyes in my lifetime! That was absolutely incredible!"
Those who didn’t know parkour couldn’t grasp the significance of a wall loop, but they weren’t blind.
Chloe Sinclair’s final move was absolutely insane!
Chloe Sinclair had somehow managed to defy Science, to ignore the laws of gravity, all in a split second.
It may have only lasted a second, but Chloe Sinclair had successfully run a full circle on the wall.
A mountain bike might be able to pull off a 360-degree loop with enough momentum, but what did it mean for a person to do it on their own two feet?
On the observation deck, every parkour enthusiast was celebrating the race. Only one person’s face was dark.
"Impossible!"
While everyone was celebrating, Wilder Rhodes suddenly stormed up to Chloe Sinclair like a madman. "Were you on drugs?" he demanded. "Otherwise, how could a woman like you possibly beat me! Impossible! You definitely cheated!"
The first to object was, of course, Summer Beckett. Dragging his injured leg, he shielded Chloe Sinclair, his whole body bristling like a porcupine. His eyes were fierce. "Wilder Rhodes, what are you doing? You’re the one who looks like he’s on drugs!"
Wilder Rhodes’s mind was consumed by the five million. He dropped all pretense, looking like a furious lion.
"You definitely cheated! I demand a test!"
Chloe Sinclair looked up, her gaze meeting his, and a small smile touched her lips. "What’s the matter, Mr. Rhodes? Can’t stand to lose, or... are you broke?"
Her words hit a nerve. Wilder Rhodes raised his hand to strike her. Though Summer Beckett was tall, his reflexes weren’t as fast as Chloe’s. He still instinctively moved to shield her.
But Chloe Sinclair was even faster. Just as Wilder Rhodes’s hand came down, she shoved Summer Beckett aside. The chop of his hand sliced through the air.
Chloe Sinclair’s eyes narrowed. With a flick of her wrist, she neatly caught Wilder Rhodes’s descending hand.
"CRACK!"
The surrounding crowd gasped.
Wilder Rhodes’s wrist was bent back at an unnatural angle, his face contorting in pain.
"You wanted to know how I won, right? Well, I’ll tell you now."
Chloe Sinclair tapped her temple. "Sometimes, brute force isn’t enough. You need to use your brain."
"You bitch! Do you have any idea who I am?"
Wilder Rhodes was seething, but it was all bluster. He was no match for Chloe Sinclair.
"I don’t care who you are. But you owe me five million, and I expect to be paid today."
Five million was the deal. Not one dollar less.
Wilder Rhodes’s face flushed.
’Where was he going to get that kind of money?’
"Hah! If you’ve got the guts, let’s go another round!"
Before Chloe could say a word, Summer Beckett, who had been pushed aside, interjected. "Another round, my ass! You just want another chance to pull some dirty trick, don’t you? I’m telling you, you’re finished. A bet’s a bet. You lost, so you pay the five million. If you won’t pay up, I’ll go to your father. Let’s see how he’s going to save face then!"
At this, Wilder Rhodes truly started to panic.
Chloe Sinclair, watching from the side, saw it all clearly. ’So it was Wilder Rhodes who made Summer Beckett fall.’
"Let’s go. If we’re any later, we’ll miss the bus."
Chloe didn’t want to stay any longer. With the air of a cool big shot, she walked on ahead.
Summer Beckett hurried after her, but not before yelling at Wilder Rhodes to pay up.
Leaving the abandoned steel plant, their luck was decent. They caught a bus right away.
Chloe Sinclair went ahead and paid the fare with four coins. Summer Beckett followed, limping like a frightened quail.
He looked just like a loyal lackey.
Chloe Sinclair glanced at Summer Beckett’s leg and hesitated. "You should get that checked out when you get back."
Summer Beckett nodded eagerly, his eyes shining.
"Chloe, can you tell me how you did that wall loop?"
The wall loop was known as one of the most difficult moves in all of parkour.
Almost no one in the world could pull it off. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
Experiments had shown that to successfully complete a wall loop, one’s instantaneous speed had to exceed 30.86 km/h, and the instantaneous force from a single-leg jump had to be at least 468 kilograms.
Only three people in the entire world had ever successfully completed the move!
And now, right here in their own country of Zenthia, someone had done it too!
Chloe Sinclair hesitated for a moment. "Are you sure you want to hear it?"
Summer Beckett nodded frantically. "Yes!"
"It’s actually quite simple. First, you have to consider your orientation at the apex and the speed required to not fall. During the run, your centrifugal force must be greater than or equal to gravity. That’s how you keep from falling off."
"As for calculating the initial velocity at the bottom, you can just build a model, calculate the change in velocity, and you’ll get your answer."
Summer Beckett was speechless.
He finally understood why Chloe had asked if he was sure he wanted to hear the explanation. fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm
GULP—
He swallowed hard, then spouted some earnest nonsense. "I don’t understand a word of it, but it sounds incredible."
He even followed it up with a supportive round of applause.
When it was time for her to leave, Summer Beckett saw Chloe Sinclair to a taxi, repeatedly instructing the driver to get her home safely.
The driver readily agreed.
"Summer Beckett, wait."
Her clear, pleasant voice drifted from the car. Summer Beckett immediately leaned down, a smile on his face. "Chloe, what is it?"
Chloe Sinclair watched him for a long moment before finally speaking. "You have to remember, no matter what happens, your family will always have your back."
"You’re also my only friend. I want you to be safe."
After she finished, Chloe Sinclair said something to the driver that Summer Beckett couldn’t quite hear.
Suddenly, he let out a laugh. The laughter continued, even as he covered his face and began to weep.
He and Wilder Rhodes had never gotten along, not since they were kids. It was because their families always liked to compare their own children to others.
And back then, he had always been that "other kid" everyone was compared to.
He was only four when he first met Wilder Rhodes, who was a year older. Wilder had just moved to Kennet from the countryside, and it was Summer who had shown him around and helped him get settled.
He thought he’d gained a brother, but the outcome was far from what he’d expected.
In elementary school, when Wilder Rhodes got bad grades, he claimed Summer had cheated.
In middle school, when Wilder Rhodes started dating, he claimed Summer had been a bad influence.
He disliked Wilder Rhodes, but he always held onto the memory of their past friendship. He was even willing to lose money to him in their usual bets. But he never imagined that Wilder Rhodes had secretly hated him all this time.
A four-meter drop, and he’d just reached out and pushed him.
’Maybe Chloe Sinclair is right,’ he thought. ’Family will always be your strongest support.’
So, Summer Beckett took out his phone and made a call.
The call was answered instantly, followed by a gruff voice. "Son! What can your old man do for you? Runnin’ low on cash again? Hold on, your old man’s about to wire you some money."
Summer Beckett was silent for a few seconds. "Dad... can you come pick me up? It’s late, and I can’t get a cab home."
