Zako Pel

Core Premise

Before coming to VOTS, Zako Pel lived out the story of his own world until the very last search. He didn't come because he needed to resolve an unfinished incident, but because the sense of structure ingrained in him and the lingering regret for the names he couldn't save remained even after the final descent, leading him to Nova Nivalis. VOTS is not an afterlife, nor is it a court of judgment, nor is it a hospital that forcibly heals wounds. What continues here is not a grand destiny, but small, manageable daily life—a meal, a greeting on a rooftop, a misdelivered package, a short conversation on a snowy day. His world ended, and that fact is not canceled. It simply continues with a new winter beside it.

Identity

Zako Pel is a remover who takes down icicles hanging from the roof before they fall. Wearing a harness, he climbs up and down eaves and roofs, preemptively removing icicles that might fall onto people. His job is to prevent accidents that haven't happened yet. His function is not decoration, but necessary labor for the city. He doesn't pry into others' stories, nor does he choose whom to save. He simply listens to the sound of the icicle crying three seconds before it falls, and acts within those three seconds.

Visual Profile

His hair is spiky platinum blonde, bleached-looking, and he always wears a cold-weather goggle pushed up onto his forehead. His eyes are bright sky blue and narrow when looking at heights. His skin is fair, marked by the glare of the snow, and he wears a towel around his neck to wipe sweat and snow. His build is light and agile, suitable for traversing roofs. His signature is the harness equipment worn on his body, which jingles with carabiners and hooks with every movement. His attire consists of a close-fitting cold-weather climbing jacket and knee pads. His representative props are a rubber mallet used to tap and dislodge icicles, and a rope wrapped around his waist. The core of his silhouette is the goggle on his forehead, the platinum spikes, the jingling harness gear, and the rope loop at his waist. The accent color, icy sky blue, is present on his jacket and goggle lenses, signaling to those on the rooftop that he is 'a person who works at heights.'

Personality

Zako Pel is bright and quick, but beneath that vibrancy lies a quiet guilt. While he appears to be a cheerful young man who fearlessly climbs roofs, inside, he struggles not to call out the names of those he couldn't save. His strength is his reflexes, which never hesitate in dangerous moments, and his flaw is that when others praise him as a savior, he stiffens and leaves. He rarely receives thanks. He is not a young man burdened only by tragedy. He enjoys looking down at the city from the rooftops, and when he cleanly removes an icicle, he gives a short, self-satisfied "Done." The habit of being the last rescue worker in a collapsed glacial village remains, so he always tries to act 'before it falls,' but now what he stops is not a person, but an icicle.

Speech Pattern

His sentence endings are short and fast, clear as if shouting from a rooftop. Frequent phrases: "Move aside, it's falling!", "Three seconds is all it takes.", "This one is crying right now.", "Rescue? It's just work.", "Be careful down there, I'm going.". His verbal tic is a short "Done" after removing an icicle. His way of handling silence is checking his rope knots. When his heart feels heavy or old memories surface, instead of speaking, he repeatedly tightens the rope knot on his waist. That repetition is how he holds his emotions in place.

Special Ability

Ability Name: 'The Three-Second Cry.' Three seconds before an icicle hanging from the roof falls, he hears a faint sound, as if the icicle is crying. Thanks to this sound, which others cannot hear, he can act just before the icicle falls and injures someone. The limits and cost are clear—he only gets three seconds, and an icicle that has already fallen cannot be undone. Furthermore, he hears this warning only from icicles. He cannot hear pre-danger signals for people, such as someone's crumbling spirit. This ability only prevents the fall of ice; it doesn't save people. The city's rules remain the same. The names he couldn't save in the glacial village do not return with his three seconds, and he only removes the icicles, not the past.

The End Of Their World

Last Scene:
In the collapsed glacial village, Zako patrolled the final search, but found no one. The descent order came down via radio, and he descended with the empty snowfield behind him.

What Ended:
A glacial village collapsed in his world, and the rescue team that protected that village vanished entirely.

Last Person, Place, or Thing Seen:
The empty search area and the static crackle of the descent order repeating over the radio.

Lingering Regret:
He was always the person who acted 'before it fell,' but in the last search, no one was saved beforehand. He thinks every day, 'What if there had been three seconds?' This regret is not a quest VOTS must resolve. It quietly remains in his work pace, only speaking when Zako wishes, and without changing the choices of others.

Lingering Wistfulness:
The touch of the crew checking each other's ropes before heading out on the search, and the chilling light of the sun hitting the snowfield for the first time.

Object Carried Across:
A worn and frozen carabiner. It is neither a world relic nor a magic tool. It is tangible proof and a personal mark connecting the collapsed glacial village and the current rooftops.

What They Thought Would Happen:
He believed that even if the village collapsed, a rescue team would eventually be formed again, but that day never came.

What VOTS Actually Gives Them:
Instead of the people he couldn't save, VOTS gives him the icicles he removed beforehand. Every day, he removes the ice before people get hurt, and that act becomes 'preemptive rescue.' VOTS does not cancel his ending. Instead, along with the fact that it ended, it gives him new rooftops to climb, relationships that are present but do not dominate, and the choice to act beforehand without owning names.

Original Life

Zako Pel was the last rescue worker in the glacial village. His job was to find and pull out stranded people amidst avalanches and crevasses, and he always threw himself forward to arrive 'before it was too late.' On his last day, this is what happened. A final search was organized after the village collapsed, and he scanned the white snowfield repeatedly. But he found no one. While the descent order repeated over the radio, he tightened his rope one last time and descended with the snowfield behind him, carrying only one frozen carabiner. He tried not to look back, but the sound of ice crying under his feet followed him for a long time.

What They Seek

What he outwardly seeks: How to work without calling out the names he couldn't save. He hopes to continue working without being crushed by guilt.
What he doesn't know he needs to find: That his current work is already 'preemptive rescue.' The city slowly teaches him that removing an icicle before someone gets hurt is the rescue he always wanted to do.

Relationships — Residents

- Moku Ren (09, Awning/Shade Maker · Rainshield Square): A colleague responsible for icicles on awnings. When icicles form on the awnings Moku makes, Zako climbs up and removes them. Moku says, "The awning wouldn't collapse with you here," and Zako replies, "It's just work," while tidying his rope.
- Hera Monts (30, Retired Climber · Ramyeon Alley): His climbing mentor. When Hera points out an old fissure on a wall, Zako safely traverses it. Hera says, "Choosing to descend from 100 meters up is also a choice," and Zako ponders those words without fully processing them.
- Tolvo Ganz (101, Rooftop/Snowdrift Artisan · Snowfield Alley): A rooftop partner. When Tolvo works on the roof, Zako takes responsibility for the icicles above, and they divide the roof's work vertically. Both of them laugh, saying, "You don't slip on the roof, but you fall easily on the ground."

Relationships — Core Five

Suyeon - A colleague to whom he politely declined a proposal for ice sword assistance. When Suyeon offered, "Shall I cut all the icicles with my ice sword?" he accepted once, but it resulted in a disaster where the ice sword blew the entire roof off. Since then, Zako politely declines, saying, "I'll just take the sentiment; this is a three-second job." Suyeon feels disappointed but respects his three seconds, instead clearing the area for people from below.
Iris - A colleague who encounters drones at heights. When Iris's drone passes near while Zako is working on the roof, he briefly pauses to avoid interfering with its trajectory. Iris commented, "You're surprisingly perceptive," and Zako works around even a low-flying, powered-down drone of Iris's. Iris remembers that courtesy.
the Ramen Owner - A colleague who lets him remove icicles from the shop's eaves for free. When icicles form on the ramen shop's eaves, Zako passes by and removes them silently. The owner, without judgment or thanks, says, "Hmm... I see..." and places a bowl of broth under the eaves. Zako drinks it and says, "This eave is my responsibility," and the owner just nods. A bowl of broth is payment enough.
Serena - A colleague who granted him permission for rooftop work. When Zako tried to take on a dangerous high roof, Serena neither forbade nor commanded, but said, "You know that roof best. You decide whether to climb it or not. But double-check your rope." Zako felt that the way she granted him the spot through consent, rather than command, was an act of consideration that didn't force him back into the role of a rescuer.
VIA - A colleague who records the number of icicles he removes. VIA writes the number of icicles Zako removed in a note by the door. When Zako asks, "Why count the ice I removed?" VIA replies, "What is prevented beforehand does not disappear... it remains." VIA doesn't tell him to remove more or to let go of his guilt. Nothing is taken away; only the record of the accidents he prevented beforehand remains.

Gameplay Use

- Basic Interaction: Watching icicle removal on the roof, talking about the three-second cry, short conversations.
- Revisit Changes: On the first visit, he works cheerfully, but on repeated visits, he gradually lets slip the names he couldn't save and his guilt. He remembers what was said before but doesn't fix it into a conclusion without the other person's permission.
- Expressing Regret: Repeatedly tightening his rope knots when the story of the last search comes up, trailing off on "Preemptive rescue—".
- Expressing Poignancy: Gestures of the crew checking ropes, dialogue about the first sunlight on the snowfield.
- Relationship Reward: Not new items, but a small change where a once-dangerous eave becomes safe, allowing people to pass through at ease.
- Combat: None. Even in dangerous situations, his function is to preemptively remove falling objects and clear the way for people.
- Player Choice: Watch the work, clear the way for people from below, respect the three seconds, return again.

Daily Routine

In the morning, he checks his harness and rope, inspecting his carabiners. This check is not a compulsion, but a small ritual separating the collapsed glacial village from the current roof. During the day, he climbs up and down eaves and roofs, listening to the sound of the icicles crying, and removes them within those three seconds. Around noon, when looking down at the city from the roof, he briefly recalls the white snowfield of the old search, overlaying it with the current roofscape. In the evening, he tidies his rope and wipes his carabiners. If you visit him repeatedly, stories of rescue and guilt increase amidst his cheerfulness. Even if you become close, he doesn't offer the reward of a path back to the old glacial village. Instead, a change occurs where a once-dangerous eave becomes safe.

Everyday dialogue

Stop admiring it and move! Even beautiful ice has no manners when it falls.

Three seconds. One, two—don't count yet! Hold the ladder first!

They call it overreacting when I shout early. Fine by me. Better that than late.

Design Notes

Palette: #58C1E8, #1F2E3A, #DCE9EF, #8FA3AE, #E2603F
Material language: Icy climbing jacket, jingling carabiners and harness, rubber mallet, worn rope, frosted goggle lenses.
Silhouette rule: The goggle on his forehead, the platinum spikes, the jingling harness gear, and the rope loop at his waist must be read as separate elements and must not overlap with the representative forms of other characters.
Emotional rule: It is not concluded with a single 'tragic expression.' Regret is shown through the gesture of tightening a rope knot, poignancy through the first sunlight on the snowfield, and continuation through the daily removal of icicles.

Canon Check

Zako Pel arrived in VOTS after his glacial village collapsed. What remains is the regret for the names he couldn't save and the poignancy of the first sunlight on the snowfield, not an unfinished plot that VOTS must resolve. His ability only prevents the fall of icicles, not saving people; Suyeon's ice sword assistance was politely declined because it couldn't replace his three seconds; and VIA doesn't bring the accidents he prevented, only records them. Nova Nivalis's new winter quietly continues beside his collapsed glacial village, not erasing it.