The Water Truck and Ttorang-i
"Awooo! Woof, woof! Bark, bark, bark!"
It was the loudest and most frantic barking Do-jin had heard from Ttorang-i since they first met.
Sensing an ominous premonition, Do-jin rushed toward the office.
"Whew, where is it... Ah, found it!"
Panting, he scanned the office, grabbed a pair of binoculars and a walkie-talkie from the corner, and headed straight for the rooftop.
Slam!
Pushing open the creaky door—which was rarely used—with brute force, Do-jin quickly looked in the direction of the rising smoke.
"Is that it? The direction seems about right."
The smoke had spread too much to be absolutely certain, but it definitely looked like the vicinity of Sun-ja Hal-meoni's house.
Just then, the volume of smoke began to increase exponentially.
Instead of dying down, the smoke was only growing thicker. Watching the scene unfold, Do-jin felt his stomach twist with anxiety.
Unable to hold back any longer, Do-jin raised the walkie-talkie he had brought.
"Team Leader, has the fire been reported? There's way too much smoke."
Even after his transmission, there was no immediate reply.
Growing anxious, Do-jin stepped closer to the railing and looked down.
The security team was moving busily, preparing for something as they had mentioned earlier.
Just as Do-jin began to regret bothering people who were already so busy, static crackled, and a voice came through the walkie-talkie.
"Yes, they've reported it a total of three times, starting from ten minutes ago."
"Ah..."
A sigh of relief escaped Do-jin's lips at Eun-seob's reply.
Since they had reported it ten minutes ago and even made follow-up calls, he assumed the fire trucks would arrive any minute.
However, that hope was instantly shattered by the next transmission.
"However, they say the fire department has no personnel to dispatch right now."
"What? What do you mean by..."
They say people lose their words when they are utterly dumbfounded.
That was exactly how Do-jin felt right now.
Why on earth were there no firefighters available?
"A major fire broke out at an apartment complex in Munsan-eup. On top of that, a forest fire has spread to nearby Mount Wolrong, so all the fire trucks in the Paju City area have been dispatched to those two locations."
"Damn it."
For a moment, the world seemed to spin before Do-jin's eyes.
Munsan-eup was a fairly densely populated area in Paju.
If a major fire broke out in an apartment complex there, it was only natural that all available resources would be concentrated on it.
And Mount Wolrong?
That was a designated cultural heritage site in Gyeonggi Province.
If a forest fire broke out in one of the few managed tourist attractions in Paju, the outcome was obvious.
They must be pouring every single ounce of manpower into those two places.
He understood why the fire department had no personnel to spare.
But of course, he couldn't just sit back and do nothing.
We can't rely on the fire department. Even if they could divert some personnel, it would be too late by the time they got here.
Do-jin grit his teeth in frustration, racking his brain, but every alternative that came to mind was completely unrealistic.
The best option would be to grab the fire extinguishers from the Three Meals House and head over with the security team, but...
It makes no sense to put them in danger just to help a neighboring village when this isn't even our property.
Strictly speaking, Do-jin and the security team did not have an employer-employee relationship.
If he had to describe it, they were more like tenants and a landlord.
Director Wang was the one who employed them; Do-jin merely provided the space they used.
Therefore, he couldn't ask them to put their lives on the line.
"Woof, woof!"
As if sensing Do-jin's burning anxiety,
Ttorang-i's hoarse barking echoed from below.
"Ah, this is driving me crazy. We don't have time to waste like this... Huh?"
As Do-jin turned his head, searching desperately for a solution, a familiar vehicle caught his eye.
It was the vehicle he had rented to fill the water slides installed all over the schoolyard.
A water truck capable of carrying up to eight tons of water.
"That will work."
Even if it wasn't a proper fire engine, at this very moment, it could be just as useful.
Moreover, since he had filled it with water just a few days ago, there was plenty of water available.
Having made up his mind, Do-jin raised the walkie-talkie.
He needed someone to drive the truck while he operated the water sprayer.
"I can at least ask them to drive."
"Oppa..."
Just as Do-jin was about to climb into the water truck, a familiar voice called out.
Turning around, he saw Do-hee looking at him with a face full of worry.
Ah... what an idiot I am.
He had been so focused on the safety of the villagers—especially Sun-ja Hal-meoni—that he had completely neglected the people who worried about him.
Looking at his girlfriend, she was practically begging him not to go with her entire body, even if she couldn't bring herself to say the words.
Seung-wan and the other security team members looked just as concerned.
"Whew."
Taking a short, deep breath to compose himself, Do-jin walked over to Do-hee.
"Don't worry too much. I won't do anything reckless."
"...Do you promise?"
Despite Do-jin's reassurance, the worry did not fade from Do-hee's face.
It was a stark contrast to her usual self, as she always trusted whatever her boyfriend said.
Realizing that her hesitation stemmed from anxiety rather than a lack of trust, Do-jin took Do-hee's hand and spoke gently.
"I mean it, so don't worry. If the fire isn't out by the time we spray all the water in the truck, I'll turn right back around without looking back."
"...Promise?"
"Yes."
Giving Do-hee's hand a firm squeeze, Do-jin glanced at Seung-wan and the rest of the security team before climbing into the water truck.
"...We're heading out."
"Please, Team Leader."
Do-jin bowed his head slightly to Eun-seob, who was sitting in the driver's seat.
He was expressing his gratitude to Eun-seob, who had volunteered to drive when anyone capable of driving would have sufficed.
However, a moment later, Do-jin realized exactly why Eun-seob had insisted on driving.
"Hold on tight."
"Pardon?"
Do-jin tilted his head, wondering why Eun-seob was warning him when he was already wearing his seatbelt, but he was instantly shocked by the truck's sudden movement.
The truck didn't slow down at all, even as it sped down the narrow village roads.
In fact, far from slowing down, it was picking up speed.
"U-Um, Team Leader. I think we're going a bit too fa—Whoa!"
Do-jin, who had been trying to speak as calmly as possible while gripping the grab handle with one hand, couldn't finish his sentence.
For a split second, he felt the truck lift off the ground.
Because they had accelerated through a turn where they should have slowed down, the wheels on one side had momentarily lifted into the air.
Yet, even after that, Eun-seob's driving did not become any tamer.
No matter how narrow the road, regardless of speed bumps, and even when villagers blocked the paved road, he simply swerved onto the unpaved shoulder to keep going.
"..."
From a certain point, Do-jin stopped speaking altogether.
He instinctively realized that nothing he said would stop Eun-seob.
If he couldn't stop him, he might as well not distract him.
The driving was already precarious enough; a single word from him might cause an accident.
Perhaps thanks to that silence,
Eun-seob, fully focused on the road, arrived at the scene of the fire in no time.
"Oh, no."
Seeing the scene of the fire, Do-jin let out an involuntary gasp.
He had desperately hoped otherwise, but it was indeed Sun-ja Hal-meoni's house that was engulfed in flames.
Woof, woof.
He could almost hear Ttorang-i's frantic barking from earlier echoing in his ears.
"Team Leader, I'll open the water valve. If it looks too dangerous, pull the truck back immediately."
"...Understood."
Eun-seob nodded reluctantly at Do-jin's words.
He looked as if he wanted to say something, but Do-jin had no time to worry about that now.
He quickly operated the water truck's control panel and pulled out the hose.
Fortunately, the water truck Do-jin had rented was equipped with a high-pressure discharge hose.
It was incomparably shorter than a real fire engine's hose, but he was incredibly grateful for even this much right now.
At least he could concentrate the water directly on the source of the fire rather than just spraying it blindly.
"Get back!"
Dragging the hose, Do-jin shouted toward the front.
A few villagers were gathered in front of the burning house.
"Huh? Mr. B-Baek? What is all this?"
"There's no time to explain! Everyone, stand back!"
Although only Sun-ja Hal-meoni's house was on fire for now, there was no telling when the flames might spread.
Seeing the hose in Do-jin's hands and hearing his urgent tone, the villagers finally understood and began to back away.
They knew it was dangerous, but they had gathered out of worry for Sun-ja Hal-meoni, who was still inside.
Once he saw the villagers retreating to safety, Do-jin stepped through the open gate.
Thank goodness. The fire hasn't spread too far yet.
The thick smoke had made it hard to gauge the situation from afar.
But up close, he could see that the flames were still confined to the interior.
Seeing that the exterior walls and the ceiling were still intact, it seemed the fire hadn't started very long ago.
The hose is barely long enough.
The hose was supposed to be ten meters long, but it reached its limit just a short distance past the gate.
Though it was a bit short, Do-jin made do and began spraying the water.
Unfortunately, it wasn't equipped with an ultra-high-pressure nozzle, but the standard nozzle was enough to project the water deep into the house.
Ssssshh!
The smoke billowing from the house began to grow even thicker.
Sensing that this meant the fire was being suppressed, Do-jin carefully adjusted the direction of the hose.
However, despite spraying a considerable amount of water, the fire did not die down easily.
The water truck Do-jin had rented was a relatively small eight-ton model, meaning they would run out of water soon at this rate.
Just as anxiety began to creep back into Do-jin's mind, the flames fortunately began to dwindle.
It seemed the water he sprayed had successfully hit the source of the fire.
Ssssssssshh!
At some point, the flames vanished completely.
In their place, a massive cloud of toxic gas billowed out.
If Sun-ja Hal-meoni was inside, she would suffocate from the relentless smoke even if the fire didn't get her.
Click.
Shutting off the hose, which was now barely trickling, Do-jin began to peer inside.
But no matter how hard he looked from the outside where the smoke hadn't reached, he couldn't see anything clearly.
"Damn it. I can't just blindly rush in when I don't even know where she is."
Although the house wasn't very large, Do-jin held back.
The toxic smoke pouring out now was just as lethal as the flames had been.
"Surprisingly, the leading cause of death in fires is suffocation, not burns. You must never wander around blindly just because the flames are out."
It was a warning that the instructors during the mandatory fire safety training back when he worked at the factory had always emphasized.
"Do I have to wait until the smoke clears?"
It was frustrating, but that was the most rational course of action for now.
He was worried about the grandmother, but searching a place with zero visibility would put his own life in grave danger.
Just then, Do-jin's phone rang.
On the screen, the caller ID read:
[My Love ♥]
Recognizing the name on the screen, Do-jin answered immediately.
Do-hee's worried face before he left the Three Meals House flashed through his mind.
Since it had been a while since he left and he hadn't contacted her, she must have been worried sick.
"Hey, Do-hee. I'm fine. You were worried, right? I'm sorry. I just finished putting out the fire..."
Do-jin tried to explain the situation to his girlfriend, who must have been anxious due to his lack of communication, but he couldn't finish.
Do-hee cut him off urgently from the other end of the line.
"Oppa! Ttorang-i is gone!"
"What?"
"She kept whining for a long time after you left, and then suddenly she was nowhere to be found. The security team didn't see her either. The last person who saw her said she was heading toward the back hill, but after that, she vanished completely!"
"..."
At Do-hee's words, Do-jin instinctively turned his head in the direction of the Three Meals House.
Or rather, he focused on the hill that stood between the Three Meals House and the village.
The events of a few days ago naturally replayed in his mind.
The worry that had flashed through his mind when he heard Ttorang-i had headed to the mountain with Samsaek-i:
What if they cross the mountain and go to the village?
At the time, he had been worried about that very possibility.
Ttorang-i had always avoided the villagers, and Samsaek-i was still a kitten with no experience around strangers.
He had feared they might get startled by the villagers and run even further away.
But what about now?
Now that Ttorang-i's relationship with the villagers had improved through her outings with Do-jin, and Samsaek-i wasn't with her?
As Do-jin was running through countless scenarios in his head, a familiar sound reached his ears.
"Bark, bark!"
"...Ttorang-i?"
He had heard Ttorang-i's barking right after arriving in the village as well.
But while that had been an auditory hallucination, this was real.
The sound didn't stop at a single bark; it kept coming.
In fact, it was getting closer and louder.
The moment the sound finally reached the immediate vicinity,
Eun-seob, who had been waiting outside, stepped into the yard.
"Director, Ttorang-i is here."
"..."
The moment Eun-seob finished speaking, Ttorang-i burst into the yard.
She wagged her tail briefly upon seeing Do-jin, but immediately turned toward the inside of the house and began to bark.
"Bark, bark!"
"...Ttorang-i, do you know where Hal-meoni is?"
How she got here and why she came didn't matter right now.
Scolding her could wait; they had to focus on the urgent matter at hand.
...Bark, bark!
As if understanding Do-jin's words, Ttorang-i trotted around the exterior wall of the house.
Naturally following Ttorang-i, Do-jin saw her stop in front of a small window and look up.
"Woof, woof!"
"Is it here? She's in here?"
"Woof!"
At Ttorang-i's repeated signals, Do-jin looked up at the window.
Unlike a regular bedroom window, this small window gave him a clear idea of what room lay beyond the wall.
Rushing back to the yard, Do-jin grabbed a towel hanging on a clothesline and soaked it under the hose.
Trickle, trickle.
Fortunately, there was still a bit of water left. Covering his mouth and nose with the thoroughly soaked towel, Do-jin charged straight into the house.
Thanks to his visit a few days ago, he had a rough idea of the house's layout, so he didn't hesitate for a second.
Right after Do-jin disappeared inside,
Thud, thud, crash!
After a few sounds of impact, Do-jin emerged from the house in an instant.
But he wasn't alone; he was carrying someone on his back.
He had successfully rescued her in less than thirty seconds after entering the house.
"Bark, bark!"
Listening to Ttorang-i's barking, Do-jin spoke to Eun-seob.
"Fortunately, there are no visible injuries, but I think she needs to go to the hospital immediately."
"Let's get her first aid at the Three Meals House clinic first."
Eun-seob calmly assessed the situation in response to Do-jin's words.
In any case, they had to return to the Three Meals House first if they wanted to get to a hospital.
It was difficult to transport a patient in a water truck.
Thus, unlike when it had entered the village, the water truck returned carrying Do-jin, Eun-seob, the victim Sun-ja Hal-meoni, and one Golden Doodle.