Rooftop Sword Master

Episode 2

Se-young’s Residence.

A man and woman exchanged a friendly handshake in front of the five-story building.

“You can transfer money for rent on the 2nd of each month. If you encounter any inconveniences or problems, please feel free to contact our brokerage office.”

“Oh no! Hold on a second!” The elderly lady who had just finalized her monthly rent contract with the real estate agent flapped her hand. “The deal is sealed and I’ve moved in already, so I should pay a visit to the landlord!”

The real estate agent, who had not once dropped his smile, suddenly shifted demeanour.

“That won’t be necessary. Our office acts as an intermediary on behalf of the landlord, so when it comes to housing-related matters, please contact us, and only us.”

With such a drastic shift in both manner of speech and facial expression, even the most unobservant individual could detect the changed atmosphere.

The woman grumbled in an embarrassed tone, “Ah, but, still… I just moved in, and I should at least drop by the owner’s house and…”

“Please refrain from doing so. The owner of this villa does not like human interaction.” ”

“…Huh?”

Embarrassment and disbelief were written all over the woman’s dull face.

“Let’s just say, that was a warning, not a request.”

“Eh?”

The real estate agent pointed to the top of the villa.

“The owner of this building lives on the top floor, in the room on the rooftop..”

“The room on the rooftop? The landlord?”

The woman glanced at the roof, however, only the railing was visible.

“Access to the rooftop is strictly prohibited under any circumstances.”

“What?”

“You are not allowed to enter that area. Anyways, the 5th-floor staircase that leads up to the roof is barred by an auxiliary metal gate, so you couldn’t go up there even if you wanted to.”

The woman appeared to be taken aback by this peculiar situation.

“Ah, Well, then…”

“Would this inconvenience you? If so, it’s okay to cancel the contract right now…”

“No, no, not at all!”

The woman waved her hands around in a panicked gesture.

I worked tirelessly for two months to move here! So much so, that the soles of my feet are all worn down. 

Since the building’s rent was far cheaper than in the rest of the neighbourhood, the woman was afraid to let go of such a good deal.

“So, what about the TV cable or the Internet? Won’t installers and maintenance engineers need access to the rooftop?”

“Don’t worry about it. We have a terminal box on the 5th floor, so none of that poses an issue.”

“… I see.”

The woman, who made no further comment, closed her mouth with a rather shaky expression. Though she wanted to press the issue, she couldn’t find the right words to articulate her concerns and decided to drop it instead.

“Well, I suppose there’s nothing left for us to discuss?”

As if a switch had been flipped, the real estate agent suddenly had a bright smile on his face again.

“Ah, yes…”

“Then, I sincerely hope that you will be greeted with only good fortune from now on. I’ll be here if you need me”

“Yes, thank you.”

 

 

 

*****

 

 

*Ding!*

The phone’s alarm sounded and the screen lit up.

 

– Action Real Estate

Tenant Balance: $34,304.45

Se-young, whose eyes had been glued to a computer monitor, glanced at his cell phone screen.

*Bzzt.*

A different alarm sounded on the phone, causing it to vibrate across the floor’s surface. Se-young’s expression immediately soured at the sound of the new alarm, even though he hadn’t even looked in the phone’s direction to check the message.

– Arriving in 10 minutes.

A short, concise text. Though the text was innocuous, Se-young, after seeing its contents, immediately turned off his monitor, snuffing out the only source of light in the pitch-black room.

*Bang, bang, bang!*

The loud, hasty knocks on the door curdled Se-young’s expression even further.

“Open the door!”

It was the bright and cheerful voice of a young woman. However, Se-young looked as if he would have preferred the Grim Reaper as a visitor instead.

“Oops! I accidentally wrote 10 minutes instead of 1 minute?”

“……”

What bullshit.

That crafty bitch.

Despite the raucous shouting coming from outside his room, Se-young remained seated with an indifferent expression.

“Oooohh~~ My little Se-young! Don’t you want to say ‘Hi’ to this senior of yours? If not, I guess I’ll just have to call the hospital~~”

Finally, Se-young shakily rose to his feet, coaxed out of his seat by the incessant stream of noise. The room’s skylight was uncovered, but it had little effect on the dark room, where trash bags, furniture, and even the boundary between rooms were completely indistinguishable. Even though the clock was ticking, Se-young walked casually, with no urgency in his stride.

“Hey, your senior is waiting.”

At that moment, Se-young went and cracked the front door open, allowing a sliver of light inside. He narrowed his eyes, frowning at the bright sunlight. Meanwhile, the scent of fresh shampoo flitted past Se-young as the young woman ran into his room.

“Argh, it’s so cold. Why the hell are you living in the rooftop room of this building.”

Before his vision could adjust, the young woman slammed his door shut.

*Bang!*

“Hey! Tak Se-Young! Keep the lights on and live a little! You’re going to go blind if you continue like this! ”

Se-young longed for the darkness he was so familiar with, but the woman switched on his ceiling light, filling the room with an unpleasant glow. The murky view of the house was illuminated by bright lights, revealing a space that even the most lenient of judges would hesitate to call a “living room.”

The reason why it was difficult to determine the room’s purpose was because almost every inch – from the floors to the walls to the windows – was covered by boxes and trash.

The numerous bags lying around made it impossible to estimate the size of the room and the columns of boxes were stacked so high that they touched the ceiling, eliminating any fear of collapse. In order to see from the sink to the refrigerator, one had to stick their head between stacks of boxes.

It was a miracle that there was even space to walk within the room.

Though the visitor had a slender figure, she had to navigate through the path with her arms wound tightly to her body.

“Hey, let’s try to live a little like a person. Like. A. Person. OK? What’s with this mess?”

Despite her admonishment, the woman was able to navigate quickly through Se-young’s room, shoving things out of the way with the tips of her feet as if she was familiar with this scene.

“What are you doing? Your Noona has a blind date today, so let’s get through this quickly.”

Se-young glanced at the woman and let out a small sigh.

*****

“How’s the arm feeling?”

“Hurts a little.”

“How about your legs?”

“Hurts a little.”

“How about your back?”

“Hurts a little.”

“How about your eyes? The headache?”

“Hurts a little.”

The woman asked her questions in a dry voice, and Se-young answered with an equally robotic tone, like he had been possessed by an answering machine. Se-young glanced at the blood pressure monitor, which showed 115/80, then at the woman’s chart, where it was recorded as 175/110.

The woman packed up her belongings and exited the room just five minutes after entering.

“You know, you have to stop doing this, right? It’s been 2 years already. Dr. Nana and I both agree that we can’t let this go on. There’s also an upcoming review from the government….”

Se-young glanced at the woman and typed on his phone without saying anything. The woman checked her new text and immediately burst out in response.

“Hey! I’m not in it for the money! You’ve really stepped over the line!”

The woman, who had treated him with a light and sunny disposition throughout the year now glared at Se-young, who had his head bowed and eyes downcast.

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“Let’s stop this. Shouldn’t you go outside, regardless of whether you have school or not? Try meeting some people.”

“……”

TL/PR note:

It’s standard practice for a new tenant to visit the landlord or the building owner when they move in with a small gift as an introduction.

Also, rooftop rooms are generally added on as demands for living spaces grew, and are not well-insulated, making it cold in winter and sweltering in summer. Therefore, despite usually having great views, they’re rather cheap.