* * *

Na Kang-in grabbed the laundry line on the ground. A steel pipe was tied to the end of the line.

[If you throw it, I’ll adjust the detailed movements.]

“Huh? You’re not going to use my hand to throw it?”

[Throwing a steel pipe using your whole body is similar to a spear-throwing action. It’s beyond the range I can control.]

“So you can cook with my hands, but you can’t do something like that?”

[Correct. You have to do it yourself. I can only correct the finer movements.]

“What’s the effect of your corrections?”

[It increases the accuracy.]

“Well, that’s enough.”

After making sure the line was securely tied, he threw the steel pipe toward the opposite building’s rooftop railing.

The steel pipe, with the laundry line attached, flew and hooked between the iron railings.

Na Kang-in immediately pulled the line. The steel pipe caught on the railing. The line was taut.

He pulled the line tightly and securely tied it to the iron railing on his side. The virtual line and the actual line almost matched.

Yoon Ah-reum, realizing what Na Kang-in was planning, was filled with fear.

“Are you going to escape alone, leaving me here?”

“If I was going to do that, I wouldn’t have come up here.”

“But I don’t know how to tightrope walk….”

“You’re not the one walking.”

“What? Then what?”

The rooftop entrance burst open as roaring flames shot out.

Yoon Ah-reum screamed.

“Aaaah!”

Na Kang-in lifted her in his arms. Holding her in a princess carry, he stepped onto the laundry line.

Even though the line was tightly pulled, it sagged a bit with both of their weights.

She screamed again.

“Aaaah!”

People on the ground were alarmed as they looked up.

“What? What?”

“Are they really trying to cross over like that?”

“Put something on the ground! They’re definitely going to fall!”

The flames were quickly consuming the rooftop. The smoke billowing out with the fire was also a problem.

Na Kang-in, holding her, walked step by step on the line. The line swayed a bit. Yoon Ah-reum’s screams grew louder.

“Aaaah!”

The AI, Zinji, assisted Na Kang-In with his arm and leg movements, helping him keep his balance as he walked on the rope.

Na Kang-In whispered, “Is this pace enough?”

[Agent, you are currently walking at the most stable speed to reach the opposite rooftop. If you proceed like this, you will arrive safely…]

Flames shot up from below the building.

The AI’s voice quickened.

[An unexpected situation has occurred! The rope will break sooner than anticipated!]

“How long do we have?”

[The rope will break one second before you reach the opposite rooftop!]

Several semi-transparent options titled “Emergency Solutions” appeared before his eyes. There was no time to read and choose.

Multiple warning signs flashed on his AR lens simultaneously. The AI’s urgent voice echoed.

[The rope is breaking! Brace yourself!]

Na Kang-In threw Yoon Ah-reum towards the opposite rooftop.

“Ahhh!”

Yoon Ah-reum tumbled as she landed on the rooftop.

Flames had already engulfed the rope from below. The rope melted and snapped instantly in the fire.

Na Kang-In fell from the height of the fifth-floor rooftop.

People on the ground screamed as they watched.

“Ahhh!”

“No!”

Some couldn’t bear to watch and turned away.

As he fell, Na Kang-In reached out with his right hand and grabbed the rope. The rope twisted around his arm.

With the rope in his right hand, he ran along the building’s exterior wall. The rope tightened around his arm.

His body swung in a semicircle, like riding a swing, and ascended. To onlookers, it seemed like he was running along the building wall with one hand holding the rope.

The rope stretched horizontally. Na Kang-In jumped over the railing and landed on the rooftop.

People on the ground cheered.

“Wow!”

“He’s alive! That guy is alive!”

The whole incident happened so fast that Yoon Ah-reum was still rolling on the ground.

Na Kang-In unwound the rope from his arm and asked, “You’re not dead, right?”

Yoon Ah-reum jumped to her feet, “Ah! Are you alive? How? You were flying through the air! Are you a superhero?”

“I used the rope to climb up.”

She didn’t see him run along the wall, but she understood he used the rope.

“Amazing!”

Na Kang-In glanced at the burning building across and murmured, “Zinji, your calculations are often wrong. You said I could trust you because you’re part of the Strategic Special Forces?”

[I didn’t expect flammable materials to be used on the exterior of large city concrete buildings. This is unimaginable in 2082.]

“They shouldn’t use such materials in 2022 either, but there are many buildings like that.”

[Explain why.]

“It’s cheaper. Someone sacrificed safety for profit.”

***

Fire trucks arrived and started to extinguish the fire. However, spraying water didn’t immediately put out the flames. The opposite rooftop was quickly engulfed in fire.

Yoon Ah-reum commented, “Wow, if I were still there, I’d be dead.”

“How can you say that so calmly?”

“Because I’m alive now. I screamed because I thought I’d die then. You can hear my voice is a bit strained from all the screaming, right?”

“How would I know what your voice used to sound like?”

“Wow, I know your voice. You know me too, that’s why you’re speaking informally, right?”

“Hmm…”

In the emergency, he responded informally to her calling him ‘oppa’ (older brother), hoping it would calm her down.

“I just know you as a customer from our PC Bang.”

She declared, “I’ll visit the PC Bang often. Every day!”

The AI reported.

[ The rescued civilian is a university freshman.]

“Hey.”

“Yes!”

“You’re a college freshman, right?”

“How did you know?”

“Yeah, how did I know?”

[She asked about freshman discounts at the PC Bang.]

Yoon Ah-reum asked, “Are you interested in me by any chance…?”

“Would I be? You asked our staff about freshman discounts.”

She laughed brightly, “Hehe, you really know me.”

“Anyway, when will you study if you’re going to visit our café every day?”

“I studied a lot in high school. And is studying everything in life? There’s a path to becoming a pro gamer too. I’ll practice hard and become a famous pro gamer.”

“Are you in the top 1% of your game?”

“No.”

“Are you a beauty?”

“No.”

“Then what do you think you’ll become?”

She quickly changed her words, “Then I’ll become a game streamer.”

“Have you created content before?”

She boasted, “Of course! I also do game streaming!”

Na Kang-In, having spent the past few days in a PC Bang, knew what game streaming was.

He asked, “How many subscribers do you have?”

“Around ten on average during live streams.”

“Study.”

“Okay.”

Na Kang-In opened the rooftop access door first.

“Go down first.”

Yoon Ah-reum went down the stairs.

Na Kang-In followed her down, keeping an eye on her in case anything happened.

The AI reported.

[ The rescued civilian is not psychologically stable.]

“I know. She’s putting on a brave face to hide her fear.”

[The civilian knows who you are.]

“What can I do? She recognized me even with a mask on. Asking her to keep it a secret would be weirder.”

He asked Yoon Ah-reum, “So why were you on that building’s rooftop anyway?”

“I live in a studio apartment in that building. I went up to the rooftop for some fresh air.”

The fire wasn’t under control by the time they left the building. Several more fire trucks arrived.

The people who had been watching the fire from nearby had moved far from the scene.

Thanks to that, Na Kang-in was able to leave without running into anyone.

Yoon Ah-reum also didn’t want to stay in a place where she almost died. She followed him out of there.

Na Kang-in asked Yoon Ah-reum when they were far from the fire scene.

“Do you have somewhere to go?”

“My room burned down, so maybe a jjimjilbang (Korean bath house)?”

“Sounds good.”

Na Kang-in returned to the PC bang.

The owner’s niece, Cha Eun-seo, quickly approached and asked.

“Oppa, you’re back…. Huh? I smell smoke. Did you eat charcoal-grilled meat? No, it’s just smoke. Did you go to watch the fire?”

“Yes.”

“You went to buy sauce and saw that on your way back. But why are you empty-handed? Where’s the sauce?”

It wasn’t a situation where he could have brought it back.

“I bought it, but I left it at the fire scene.”

“Wow. The fire must have been so exciting that you left it behind. Someone probably took it by now.”

“Deduct it from my paycheck.”

“Forget it. It’s not a big deal.”

“It’s not your money, is it?”

“My uncle’s money is my money.”

Na Kang-in handed back the PC bang’s card and sat in a corner.

“Zijin-ah, can you look up any news about the fire? It would be best if it just says a passerby rescued a victim.”

The AI, Zijin, controlled his hand to gather information.

[I found a video from the scene.]

“There’s a video?”

A video of the fire played on the monitor.

The part where he climbed the wall was only filmed from another side of the building, so he wasn’t visible then.

But the part where he crossed between buildings with Yoon Ah-reum in his arms was clearly captured by a camera.

Flames from below had reached the clothesline he used to cross. Immediately, Na Kang-in threw Yoon Ah-reum to the opposite rooftop, and the line snapped.

Screams from people were heard, followed by cheers. The video ended after Na Kang-in grabbed the line with one hand and ran up the wall to the rooftop.

Na Kang-in commanded.

“Zijin-ah, delete all these videos from the internet.”

[I don’t have those hacking skills.]

“Why not?”

[I’m a combat support AI.]

“Then what hacking can you do?”

[I can hack for identity manipulation.]

“But that’s useless since I already have an identity.”

[I have military-grade hacking defense skills. Currently, there are no hacker attacks to demonstrate.]

Na Kang-in pointed at the video on the monitor with his finger.

“So, you can’t delete this?”

[Correct.]

“Great.”

He looked at his clothes. The flames hadn’t touched him directly, but they did smell a bit smoky.

“I need to wash…. Ah, jjimjilbang.”

Na Kang-in had been sleeping at the Zijin for the past few days. He could wash his hair there and shower by locking the bathroom door at night, but it wasn’t comfortable.

“I’ve earned some spending money, so I’ll splurge on a jjimjilbang to clean up.”

[The closest one is Palace Jjimjilbang. They have a variety of snacks.]

“Palace. I like the name. But snacks?”

AI Zijin shared Na Kang-in’s taste and smell.

[Recent surveys say the shaved ice at Palace Jjimjilbang is very well-reviewed. People say it’s really delicious.]

“That’s what you really wanted?”

* * *