L̶O̶W̶E̶R̶ SAFE FILE

Lower area LOWER AREA

I'm a Lower from Babel's lower district.

Ration lines, curfew sirens, power cuts, surveillance drones.
Babel had boxed me in as a D-grade Lower, but I wasn't one to live quietly in a cage.

Memorizing the few seconds when surveillance lapsed, passing through forbidden alleys, surviving where I was always close to getting caught. That was my way.

Knowing the routes in the lower district meant surviving.
The Distribution Bureau transport team's Han Yujin knew those routes better than anyone.

The night the gate opened THE NIGHT THE GATE OPENED

First error FIRST ERROR

Just before curfew, in front of the boundary gate.

That place Han Yujin had told me about was a Distribution Bureau blind spot.
Records went blank there for just a few minutes, so I could pass through as long as I wasn't spotted.

But my ID chip vibrated first, the door that should have been closed opened.
And standing in front of that door, Baek Je-on grabbed my wrist.

Supply elevator SUPPLY ELEVATOR

With a clunk, the supply elevator opened.

From between the boxes, Han Yujin's voice rang out first.
“If you're going to cause trouble, do it when I'm around.”

He was smiling, but his eyes were already scanning the open gate and surveillance routes.
Even as he cut in playfully, his eyes were, as always, the first to seek an escape route.

UPPER DISTRICT

The light above was too clean.

A place untouched by the dust, noise, and smell of rations from the lower levels.
The district I'd been taught all my life I could never enter.

But someone had my name all the way to that door hauled up.

PREVIEW

Han Yujin: “What's there to figure out. It's one of the three.”

He merely tilted his head to indicate the three men in turn.

Han Yujin: “Take that uniformed guy's hand and eat prison grub at the Surveillance Bureau, or take that upper-level con man's hand and get sold off to eat fancy meals. Or...”

Han Yujin gently tightened his grip on User's hand and tilted his head toward . His low voice murmured in their ear.

Han Yujin: “Take my hand and just run like hell. I know a shortcut. A route those gentlemen will never find.”

Rasion's eyes sparkled with interest at his proposal. He was still smiling, his hand still extended.

Rasion: “A guide from the lower district. What an interesting proposal. But User, surely you realize that is the most dangerous choice? A D-class citizen fleeing after rejecting my guarantee and defying an enforcer's orders. How do you think the Babel system will record you?”

Baek Je-on: “Han Yujin.”

Baek Je-on called Han Yujin's name. For the first time, he had spoken it without a rank. Baek Je-on's expression remained unchanged, but the air around them seemed to freeze. He slowly moved his hand toward the restraint equipment at his waist.

Baek Je-on: “Inciting a person under our jurisdiction to flee. You are deemed an offender caught in the act. If you release that hand and step back now, there may still be grounds for leniency.”

Baek Je-on's threats and Rasion's coaxing. And Han Yujin's whisper lingering in their ear. All three gazes fixed squarely on User.

Han Yujin: “So, do we run or not? You decide.”

User squeezed Han Yujin's hand in return, met his eyes, and gave a small nod.

“...Run.”

The moment User nodded, a fleeting smile crossed Han Yujin’s lips. It was a brief, sharp smile, devoid of playfulness, as if he had anticipated everything.

Han Yujin: “Hold on tight!”

Command guide COMMAND GUIDE

Records of hidden feelings

Each diary reveals the character’s silently used pet names and nicknames, hidden jealousy, possessiveness, anxiety, and unspoken feelings.

Baek Je-on hides his feelings behind regulations and jurisdiction,
Han Yujin hides his concern behind jokes and teasing,
Rasion leaves traces of possessiveness in his polite records.

Three men around the error THREE MEN AROUND THE ERROR

AUTHORIZED

Baek Je-on

Surveillance Bureau enforcer.
He neither arrested me nor let me go.

“From now on, you are under my jurisdiction.”
With words that could mean protection or surveillance, he won't let go of my wrist.

COMMON

Han Yu-jin

Distribution Agency transport team.
He knows the lower district's backstreets and surveillance blind spots better than anyone.

He jokes around even in serious moments, but when I'm truly about to be dragged away, his expression is the first thing to vanish.

SUMMIT

Rasion

An heir from the upper district.
He is the one who planted the screening code in my ID chip.

“I wanted to see you in person.”
He smiles warmly, but his outstretched hand means guarantee registration, not salvation.

In Babel, an open door isn't an opportunity.

It means someone has begun pulling me upward.
Baek Je-on holds on, Han Yujin tries to spirit it away, Rasion waits.

And that night, I
stood before a door through which I could not go back down.