Chapter 5

Episode 5

The iron plated blade now firmly planted within the ground upside down was taller than Se-young who stood at 158 cm. The sword was about as wide as the palm of an adult hand, and the hilt was excessively long as if it were meant for two people to wield it together.

When Se-young first saw the sword, he thought the half of the blade that was embedded in the roof would have penetrated all the way into the floor below. However, upon further examination, he wondered if it was just stuck upside down to support its upright position.

This sword is massive. 

If the width narrowed down according to how far from the handle it was, it would be possible to guess the length of the blade, but the width seems constant so I can’t tell. 

Se-young knew what this type of sword was called.

A two-handed sword. Isn’t that a Zweihander?

Weapons like this were commonly seen in games and movies. A double-sided sword, modeled after ones used by Westerners, whose wielding style relied upon superior strength and stamina. A giant sword that looked so long, heavy, and hard to swing, even titans would have trouble holding it.

“……”

Se-young took exactly two steps back, and carefully maintained that same distance as he circled around the sword a few times. The sword hadn’t felt threatening or dangerous. Se-young simply thought that taking a step closer would be thoughtlessly risky, and taking three steps, while not uncommon when dealing with people, was unnecessary for the seemingly inanimate sword.

So, two steps it was.

It is said that the number 2, due to its position between 1 and 3, represents wisdom, stability, and prudence.

Just be careful, then I won’t have anything to worry about.

Se-young stared at the sword with a deeply furrowed brow. After staying up all night, his eyes were painfully puffy and bloodshot as if they had been exposed to smoke. The typically drowsy warmth of morning sunlight dyed the crown of his head, but sleep was the last thing on his mind.

Who did this?

Where did this come from?

What is its purpose?

How the hell did it break through the cement floor!?

There were endless questions to be asked, and not a single answer to be found. Se-young re-examined the surrounding area in the bright morning light, once again sticking his head over the roof’s railing to glance at the ground. Under the bright sun, it was clear that the neighboring buildings likely had nothing to do with the incident. The structures to the villa’s left and right were too different in height to jump safely. One was as tall as Se-young’s villa, while the other was a three-story commercial building. In front of the building was a two-lane road with a car speeding through, and the back of the building was a construction zone with a hole that was nearly 4.5 meters deep.

Don’t get curious. Don’t ask questions. 

However, Se-young’s urge to see and touch the mysterious sword was already eating at his heart. He hadn’t even realized that he had been staring at it for several hours already. Even more shocking, was the fact that he remained outside in bright daylight, ignoring the passing of dawn and the early morning entirely.

If Bora, the doctor responsible for Se-young’s regular checkups after the accident had seen this, her eyes would have popped out of her head. Ever since he was discharged from the hospital two years ago, Se-young had never taken a single step outside the front door.

Even when an evacuation was ordered due to a fire in the next building.

Even when a robbery escalated into a hostage situation in the house below.

Even when gangsters were accidentally signed on as tenants, terrorizing the entire building.

During the fire, when Se-young did not listen, two firefighter’s broke down the door with an axe and entered his house, only to see that he had blocked the entrance and exit routes with luggage boxes. They ended up cutting off the spread of the fire with water hoses, all while watching over Se-young, who was still in the building.

After the robbery, a court order and subpoena were not issued, so a detective in charge of the case simply volunteered to leave a letter detailing the events outside of the rooftop room.

When the gangsters who went around beating on each tenant’s door started knocking on the iron gate leading to the rooftop room while loudly screaming profanities, all the gangsters were arrested that very day with a few clicks of the mouse and a single phone call.

They were all charged with the mass distribution of illegal pornographic materials. The police, who were dispatched after receiving an anonymous call, found terabytes upon terabytes of pornographic videos concealed within the school uniforms in their quarters. The story of the largest pornography stash found in Korea was broadcast all over the news that day.

Though the 10 homes in the building switched tenants as frequently as 3-4 times in quick succession, the only thing anyone knew about the landlord was that he lived in the rooftop room. No one saw even a hint of his shadow, let alone his face.

Even Se-young could barely recognize himself sometimes.

Now, faced with the mystery of the sword, his sense of curiosity overrode the indifference and apathy which had defined his previous two years of existence. However, Se-young reached his limit with the passing of noontime.

The back of his neck was swollen, his limbs tingled, and his entire body was weighed down by fatigue.

From Se-young’s perspective, some unknown figure had just appeared and shoved the sword into his life, creating the legend of Excalibur on his rooftop.

Feeling as if he was about to die of exhaustion, Se-young stumbled back into his house and collapsed onto the bed. Even in his sleep-deprived haze, he remembered to lock all the doors, before finally falling into a deep slumber.