Outside the service area
Nine requested permission to check the pavement. The building manager approved, assuming it was a delivery task. Beyond the door, its map ended at the corner.
Mr. Lin's usual route appeared in recorded reflections from the front window. Nine followed it to a small library. The librarian knew him. He had slipped on the stairs and was recovering at home.
"Would you take him a note?" she asked.
Nine explained that it could not access customer addresses without consent. The librarian called him. A delighted voice gave directions, then asked whether the café had finally learned to deliver tea.
Nine carried a sealed flask and the note. Its battery warning appeared halfway there. It shortened the route, but not the visit.
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