Nuri On Market Assistant · Snowflake Market [Core Premise] Before coming to VOTS, Nuri On lived out the story of his own world until the very last ledger entry. He didn't come to resolve an unfinished incident, but rather because the sensation of the abacus beads on his fingertips after the final calculation, and the lingering regret over uncounted sums, led 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 daily life that can be chosen again—a meal, a market greeting, change given in error, a short conversation on a snowy day. His world ended, and that fact is not canceled. Only a new market continues beside it. [Identity] Nuri On is a thirteen-year-old who helps with calculations while moving between the stalls of the Snowflake Market. He matches change when merchants are busy, double-checks change, and summarizes the day's sales. His job is not a child's play; it is labor genuinely needed by the market. When he passes by, the calculations at each stall balance out, reducing disputes. He does not pry into others' finances, nor does he arbitrarily set prices. He simply provides calculations where they are needed, and he is ashamed that his own allowance is always slightly off. [Visual Profile] His hair is a brown bowl cut, neatly trimmed above his eyebrows, and his unusually large ears stick out from under his head. His eyes are dark brown and move quickly and brightly only when he is calculating. His skin is a healthy brown tanned by the market sun, and his build is that of a lean body that has not yet matured. His signature item is a small abacus around his neck, whose beads click rapidly as his fingers flick them. His attire is a loose, grayish-brown sweater, seemingly inherited from an adult, with the sleeves rolled up twice. His main props are that abacus and a single pencil always kept in his sweater pocket. The core of his silhouette is his large ears, the small abacus around his neck, and the loosely rolled sleeves. The accent color, brown, is carried by his hair and the abacus beads, allowing one to read 'the calculating child' even in small sprites. [Personality] Nuri On is diligent and quick with calculations, but he is always clumsy when it comes to himself. Though he appears to be a sharp market child on the surface, deep down, he often doubts whether he is doing anything of value. His strength is his diligence, never making a mistake in others' calculations, and his flaw is that his own allowance is always calculated incorrectly, resulting in a loss. He is not a child burdened only by tragedy. When the stall owners entrust him with calculations, his shoulders puff up, and he smiles when the change matches perfectly. The habit of being the youngest accountant of a finished guild remains, and he tries to count and organize everything, but now he realizes that the calculation is not for a nation's ledger, but for the change of a market morning. [Speech Pattern] His sentence endings are crisp and fast. His speech accelerates when numbers are mentioned. Frequent phrases: "Just a moment, let me count again.", "Two hundred change, here you go.", "That one, I don't think it can be priced.", "My allowance... it's wrong again.", "Mister, this calculation doesn't add up." His habit is to confirm after finishing a calculation with, "It matches, right?" His method of silence is clicking the abacus beads. When it is difficult to answer or his mind is complicated, he clicks the abacus on his neck with his fingers. That sound is a signal that the child is thinking. [Special Ability] Ability Name: 'Unfailing Calculation'. Whether it's change or sales, he never makes a mistake in others' calculations. Even the most complex change adds up in an instant. The limits and costs are clear—his own allowance is always calculated incorrectly, causing him a loss. Furthermore, things that cannot be priced, such as morning greetings or laughter, cannot be calculated. This ability only matches numbers; it does not calculate the feelings between people. Even when the change matches, the separated guild members do not return. The city's rules remain the same. The ledger of the finished guild does not return to his hands; he only counts the value, but does not create the worth. [The End Of Their World] Last Scene: On the day the guild disbanded, Nuri opened the last ledger in the empty warehouse and matched the balance down to the final line. It matched perfectly, but there was no one to confirm it. What Ended: The old guild in his world ended, and the position of the youngest accountant of that guild disappeared entirely. Last Person, Place, or Thing Seen: The last line of the ledger where the balance totaled zero, and the dust in the empty warehouse after all the belongings were removed. Lingering Regret: Although the ledger was matched, he couldn't count the greetings of 'Goodbye' as the guild adults left one by one. He didn't know where to write those greetings. This regret is not a quest that VOTS must resolve. It quietly remains in his calculating habit, only speaking when Nuri wishes, and without changing the choices of others. Lingering Wistfulness: The lively greetings exchanged by the adults while carrying belongings in the guild warehouse, and the rhythm of his own hand clicking the abacus beads amidst those moments. Object Carried Across: The small abacus around his neck. It is neither a world relic nor a magic tool. It is tangible proof and a personal mark connecting the finished guild to the current market. What They Thought Would Happen: He believed that even if the guild scattered, they would eventually gather again to open a new ledger, but that day never came. What VOTS Actually Gives Them: It makes him count the market's change instead of the nation's ledger. Every day, instead of a large total sales, he helps with small but warm calculations. VOTS does not cancel his ending. Instead, along with the fact that it ended, it gives him new stalls to count, relationships that are present but do not dominate, and the choice to match rather than to own value. [Original Life] Nuri On was the youngest accountant of an old guild. When the adult merchants came back after selling goods, he counted the sales and recorded them in the ledger. Though young, his calculations were the most accurate in the guild, and the adults trusted him, calling him the 'little accountant.' On his last day, this is what happened. On the day the guild decided to disband, while the adults packed their belongings one by one, he opened the last ledger in the corner of the warehouse. He matched the balance line by line as usual, and when the last line perfectly totaled zero, he asked for confirmation with, "It matches, right?" but there was no one left in the warehouse to answer. He closed the ledger, put the abacus around his neck, and walked out. [What They Seek] What he outwardly seeks: A list of things that cannot be priced. He wants to somehow write down the things that cannot be counted, pondering where to put greetings or laughter in the ledger. What he doesn't know but must seek: That item number one on that list is 'the morning greeting of the market.' This city slowly teaches him that what cannot be priced is the most valuable. [Relationships — Residents] - Tessa Wren (08, Seed/Dried Flower Merchant, Snowflake Market): The stall owner who most often entrusts him with calculations. Nuri takes Tessa's change when she is busy, and Tessa gives him a sprig of dried flowers in return. Nuri doesn't know how to calculate that as value, so he just puts it in his pocket. - Pipi Mona (46, Record Office Runner, Record Office Stairs): A peer friend. Pipi is fast on her feet, and Nuri is fast with calculations, so they split errands and calculations, moving between the market and the Record Office. - Ono Bar (102, Market Scale Inspector, Snowflake Market): His mentor figure. If Ono measures the weight of the scales in grams, Nuri matches the value in change units, so Ono often tells Nuri, "You can't weigh the weight of the heart." [Relationships — Core Five] Suyeon - Someone whose change he checked while she was buying ingredients for cola bibim noodles at the market. When Suyeon was about to leave after roughly calculating, Nuri stopped her, saying, "The shopkeeper gave you two hundred won too much change. Take it back to him.". Suyeon laughed, saying, "You're really diligent," and since then, she entrusts Nuri with calculations when buying things at the market. Nuri is secretly proud of that. Iris - Someone he met while haggling over stage props. When Iris tried to lower the price of drone parts, Nuri calmly recited the exact market price, causing the negotiation to fall through. Iris joked, "You, want to work with me?" but when Nuri replied, "My allowance is always wrong," she laughed briefly. Since then, Iris has Nuri verify the price of parts. the Ramen Owner - Someone he politely refused a proposal to audit the credit ledger. When Nuri said, "Boss, shall I check the credit ledger for you? Some places don't match," the boss smiled and replied, "Hmm... that's true..." and "In that case, it's right to leave it wrong." Nuri didn't understand at first, but later learned that the boss intentionally left some outstanding debts unmatched. The boss gave him an extra egg that day. Serena - The only person who asked about the city's budget. When Nuri seriously asked, "Mayor, how much does the city cost? Do you have a ledger?" Serena did not laugh and faithfully replied, "We do. But there are more sections that cannot be priced." Those words stayed with Nuri, and from that day on, he seriously started writing his 'list of things that cannot be priced.' VIA - Someone he races with during delivery runs (past is a secret). When Nuri goes on an errand for the market and VIA is heading in the same direction with a record slip, they race silently to see who arrives first. VIA says, "The fast is great... it is great," but does not force a contest, and when Nuri is tired, VIA quietly walks slower. Nothing is taken away; only the path walked side-by-side remains. [Gameplay Use] - Basic Interaction: Helping with calculations in the market, checking change, short conversations about value. - Revisit Changes: On the first visit, he only shows his diligent calculations; on repeated visits, he gradually reveals that his own allowance is wrong and shows his 'list of things that cannot be priced.' He remembers what was said before but does not fix it as a conclusion without the other party's permission. - Expressing Regret: A repeated pause of the abacus beads when the topic of not being able to price greetings comes up, and trailing off when saying, "Things that cannot be priced—." - Expressing Poignancy: Dialogue about the lively greetings in the guild warehouse, and the sensation of the abacus bead rhythm. - Relationship Reward: Not a new item, but a small change where another resident names something that couldn't be priced. - Combat: None. Even in dangerous situations, his function is to organize confusion with calculation and reassure people. - Player Choice: Entrusting calculations, waiting, trying to count the unpriced things together, coming back again. [Daily Routine] In the morning, he clicks the abacus on his neck once to check the sound and walks through the market. This check is not a compulsion, but a small ritual separating the finished guild from the current market. During the day, he helps with calculations at each stall, matches change, and summarizes sales. Around noon, when the market is busiest, he briefly recalls the lively greetings of the guild warehouse, overlapping it with the current market noise. In the evening, he counts his allowance and finds it wrong again, smiling and adding another line to his 'list of things that cannot be priced.' As he visits repeatedly, his boasting about his calculations gradually decreases, and the talk about what he cannot count increases. Even if they become quite close, he does not give him the reward of returning to the guild. Instead, a change occurs where something that couldn't be priced is given a name. [Everyday dialogue] Count your change first! Compliments later! Otherwise I mix them up with the numbers! I run out of fingers counting my own allowance. Other people's money always adds up. Wait—lend me your hand too. Goodbye! That isn't going in the ledger. I don't want to miss saying it while I write. [Design Notes] Palette: #8C6D46, #C25E4B, #3E3A34, #E6D8C0, #6B7A5E Material language: Worn wooden abacus, loose knitwear, pencil, rough fabric of market stalls, worn metal of change. Silhouette rule: The large ears, the small abacus around the neck, and the loosely rolled sleeves must be read separately and not overlap with the representative forms of other characters. Emotional rule: It is not concluded with a single 'tragic expression.' Regret is shown by the stopped abacus beads, poignancy by the greetings from the warehouse, and continuation by the new change matched every day. [Canon Check] Nuri On arrived in VOTS after his guild in his own world ended. What remained was the regret over greetings that couldn't be counted by value, and the poignancy of the warehouse's rhythm, not an unfinished plot that VOTS must resolve. His ability only matches numbers; it does not calculate hearts, and the Ramen Owner shows that he does not judge that leaving outstanding debts unmatched is a decision. The new market of Nova Nivalis does not erase his finished ledger; it quietly continues beside it.