The office building stood tall in the middle of Seoul's business district, glass walls reflecting the grey sky like it was trying to hide something.
Police tape wrapped around the lower lobby entrance, but inside, it was already controlled—officers moving in and out, cameras clicking, voices low but tense.
Something had happened here.
And everyone knew it wasn't small.
Mi Na stepped in first, scanning the area immediately.
"Everyone stay sharp," she said, already slipping into her role. "We start with staff interviews. No assumptions."
Do Hwan followed behind her, hands in his pockets, unusually quiet.
Annie entered last.
She didn't rush.
Didn't react to the noise.
Her eyes moved slowly across the space—floor, corners, reception desk, elevator bank.
Just observing.
Then she said, almost casually, "Separate them."
Mi Na glanced at her. "We already are."
Annie didn't answer.
She just walked forward.
The staff were gathered near a waiting area on the third floor.
Nervous.
Confused.
Some were whispering to each other, others staring at the floor like they were trying not to be next.
Mi Na stepped forward first.
"I need everyone to calm down," she said firmly. "We'll take this one by one. Just answer honestly."
A few nodded.
Do Hwan leaned against a desk nearby, watching faces instead of answers.
Annie didn't sit with them.
She stood slightly apart.
Listening.
Mi Na started with the receptionist.
"When did you last see the victim?"
The woman hesitated. "Yesterday… late afternoon. I think."
"Think?" Mi Na pressed.
"She had meetings all day. She left her office around six."
Mi Na wrote it down.
Do Hwan tilted his head slightly. "Anyone else with her after that?"
The receptionist shook her head quickly. "No. I mean… I don't think so."
Annie's eyes narrowed slightly at that.
They moved through staff one by one.
Answers were similar at first.
Routine.
Normal.
Too normal.
That was the problem.
Mi Na noticed it too. "Everyone's saying the same thing."
Do Hwan muttered, "Either they're trained… or they're lying."
Annie finally spoke.
"Not trained."
She stepped closer.
"They're careful."
That made Mi Na pause.
They moved further down the list.
An office assistant spoke nervously.
"I was still here when she left. She wasn't alone earlier in the day though."
Mi Na looked up. "Who was with her?"
The assistant hesitated.
"…Executives. And sometimes the CEO."
Silence dropped slightly.
Do Hwan straightened.
Annie didn't react immediately.
But her gaze shifted—just slightly sharper.
More questions followed.
But the answers started breaking apart.
Different times.
Missing details.
Contradictions slipping through carefully held stories.
Mi Na exhaled slowly. "Something's not matching."
Do Hwan nodded. "Yeah. They're hiding something."
Annie crouched slightly near a desk, looking at security access logs on a monitor an officer had pulled up.
After a moment, she said, "Access was altered."
Mi Na frowned. "What?"
Annie pointed once.
"This floor shouldn't be this easy to enter at night."
Silence.
One officer approached with a report.
"Ma'am… there's something else."
He handed it over.
Mi Na read it first.
Her expression tightened.
"This case… was flagged before."
Do Hwan frowned. "Flagged?"
"It was closed internally," Mi Na added slowly. "No suspect identified. No follow-up."
That made the air feel heavier.
Annie took the file from her hand.
Flipped through it once.
Then again.
Quiet.
Too quiet.
"I've seen this structure before," Annie said finally.
Mi Na looked at her. "Structure?"
Annie didn't explain immediately.
She just closed the file.
"This wasn't random."
Her eyes moved slightly toward the upper floors.
"Someone here controlled what people were allowed to see."
Do Hwan frowned. "So the killer is inside the company?"
Annie didn't confirm it.
But she didn't deny it either.
Mi Na stepped forward. "Then we go higher. We talk to management."
Annie had already started walking.
"Already there."
They took the elevator in silence.
Numbers rising slowly.
No one spoke.
Do Hwan broke it first. "You ever notice elevators make everything feel worse?"
No one answered.
Mi Na was thinking too hard.
Annie stared at the door reflection, unreadable.
When the doors opened, the atmosphere changed immediately.
Cleaner.
Colder.
More controlled.
A receptionist at the top floor stood quickly. "Do you have an appointment—"
Mi Na showed her badge.
"We need to see the CEO."
The receptionist hesitated.
Then picked up the phone.
A long pause.
Then she nodded.
"Right this way."
They were led down a long corridor.
Quiet.
Too quiet for a place like this.
Security watched them closely as they passed.
Finally, they stopped in front of a large office door.
CEO OFFICE.
The receptionist stepped aside.
Mi Na took a breath.
Do Hwan shifted slightly.
Even the officers behind them waited.
Annie stepped forward.
Looked at the door.
A long pause.
Then she said softly,
"Now it makes sense."
She pushed the door open.