In his early fifties, dressed in a gray suit and rimless glasses, Han Seokhun’s expression was as composed as an actor who had just finished rehearsal. Dozens of searchlights were trained on him, but not so much as a flicker crossed his eyes.
“A warrant at this hour, without prior notice............... How discourteous.”
A prosecution investigator thrust the warrant right under Han Seokhun’s nose.
“Are you CEO Han Seokhun?”
“I am.”
“A search and seizure warrant has been issued for BioSynergy Korea on charges of illegal experimentation, violation of the Anti-Terrorism Act, and money laundering.”
Han Seokhun took the warrant from the investigator’s hand as smoothly as if plucking it away.
Then, very slowly, he began to read it, like a man searching for typos in a contract.
A tedious stalling tactic that made one second feel like a minute.
The investigator’s brow furrowed.
“If you’re done reading, step aside. We’re executing the warrant.”
“One moment.”
Han Seokhun raised a hand to stop him.
“The charges are far too absurd. We are a biotech company that complies with all lawful procedures. This kind of coercive investigation has more than enough potential to constitute a human rights violation.”
“You can argue that in court. Right now, open the door!”
“Of course we should cooperate. But shouldn’t proper procedure be followed?”
Han Seokhun smiled as he continued.
“Please wait until our legal team’s attorney arrives. We will proceed in his presence. If I contact him, he should be here in ten minutes—no, fifteen minutes.”
“We don’t have time to wait for your lawyer! Under Article 122 of the Criminal Procedure Act, in urgent circumstances, execution may proceed without attendance! Push in!”
At the investigator’s shout, the riot police surged forward with their shields raised.
Han Seokhun shook his head as if he had no choice and stepped aside.
“My, for the prosecutors of the Republic of Korea to be this rude.............”
As Han Seokhun obediently opened the way, a faint, fishy smile brushed his lips.
***
At the same time, behind the BioSynergy building.
Agent Park knelt on one knee before the iron grate of a ventilation duct.
From his bag, he took out a pen-shaped portable thermal lance.
“Beginning work.”
Chiiik.
Not a blue flame, but a red dot of intense heat began to sear the joints of the iron bars. There was almost no noise. Only the faint,
acrid smell of burning metal drifted away on the wind.
Exactly forty seconds later, the four corners of the grate had been cleanly melted through.
Agent Park lifted the grate away without a sound and set it aside.
“Entry route secured.”
Team Leader Kim switched on his headlamp. A narrow, dust-covered passage stretched ahead in the beam of light.
Eighty centimeters wide, ninety centimeters high.
The opening felt far narrower and more oppressive in reality than it did as numbers. It was like crawling into the throat of a beast.
“As planned, I’ll take point. Director, you’re second. Agent Lee and Agent Park will cover the rear.”
“Understood.”
Without hesitation, Team Leader Kim pushed his body into the darkness.
Once the soles of his combat boots disappeared from view, Taeho took one deep breath and placed his hands on the cold metal floor.
At the same time, the first-floor lobby was in chaos.
Dozens of investigators stormed into the offices, overturning drawers and flinging open cabinets. But though the noise was tremendous, there were no results.
“Chief! Something’s wrong.”
The field team leader came running over, his face full of frustration.
“There isn’t a single document. Accounting ledgers, research logs, approval papers—not even a speck of dust.”
“What about the computers? Did you secure the hard drives?”
“That’s the problem. Every employee uses a thin client. There’s no storage device in the units at all. They just connect to a central server and display the screen. Even if we tear the terminals apart, they’re nothing but shells.”
A deep crease formed between the investigation chief’s brows.
He turned his gaze and glared at Han Seokhun, who sat on a sofa.
Han Seokhun sat with his legs crossed, savoring an espresso, as if the pandemonium taking place in his own office had nothing to do with him. The investigation chief strode over roughly.
“CEO Han. Did you destroy the evidence?”
“Destroy the evidence?”
Han Seokhun set down his cup and answered leisurely.
“We are a global biotech company. Paper documents are vulnerable in terms of security and harmful to the environment. That’s why, since our founding, we’ve implemented a one-hundred-percent paperless system. All data is encrypted and stored on cloud servers.”
“Then hand over server access right now. The administrator ID and password!”
“I’d like to, but that’s outside my authority.”
Han Seokhun glanced at his watch as he continued.
“For security reasons, the server access key is managed by the legal team. Moreover, we must provide only the data related to the illegal charges listed in the warrant.
We can’t very well hand over all of the company’s core secrets wholesale, can we? That would constitute breach of trust.”
“Are you joking right now? Contact them immediately!”
“I already have. They’re on their way.”
With a faint smile on his lips, he added,
“They said traffic is a bit heavy. They should arrive in about thirty minutes. Until then, why don’t you have a cup of tea while you wait?”
‘Traffic, at this hour before dawn? This bastard.................’
The investigation chief clenched his teeth and turned his back on Han Seokhun. Then, into the small radio attached to his collar, he whispered so softly it was barely audible.
“Eagle. What’s your status?”
Chik. A voice mixed with faint static flowed through his earpiece.
—This is Eagle. Entry route to basement level four secured. We are currently in front of the vertical inspection shaft.
The investigation chief glanced at Han Seokhun’s back and spoke in a low but forceful voice.
“Please hurry. He’s deliberately stalling for time.”
—Roger. We’ll enter at full speed.
The investigation chief turned back to Han Seokhun. He wanted to make that still-leisurely smiling face twist out of shape as soon as possible.
***
The narrow, dark ventilation duct.
Taeho was crawling forward while enduring the pain that felt as if his elbows were being scraped raw.
Team Leader Kim’s combat boots, just ahead of him, suddenly stopped.
Tak.
Team Leader Kim clenched his fist and raised it.
A signal to halt.
Taeho stopped at once. Agent Lee and Agent Park, following behind, also held their breath.
Team Leader Kim slowly turned his head and mouthed the words.
“Sensor.”
He took out a portable scanner and shone it ahead. Red infrared lines, invisible to the naked eye, were blocking the passage in a dense web.
“It’s a laser grid. The gaps are too narrow. It’s impossible for a person to pass through.”
“How long to disarm it?”
“At least ten minutes. I have to bypass the circuit.............”
There was no time.
Just then, a familiar voice rang in Taeho’s ear.
—Taeho. Check the left wall, two meters ahead.
—Based on comparison with structural data, an emergency vertical inspection shaft is concealed at that location. It is a bypass route connected directly to basement level four.
Taeho narrowed his eyes.
“Team Leader. There’s a bypass. The left wall.”
“What? It’s just a wall.”
“No. There’s a space behind the added panel. It’s marked on the blueprint as an emergency vertical passage.”
Team Leader Kim looked doubtful, but he gestured to Agent Park with his eyes.
Agent Park crawled forward and knocked on the wall Taeho had indicated.
Tong, tong.
Unlike the other areas, it gave off a dull, hollow sound.
Agent Park held a small thermal imaging camera to it.
“Director, you’re right. I can see a tiny gap. They covered it with paint, so it wasn’t visible to the eye.”
Agent Park glanced at Taeho with admiration in his eyes, then immediately took out an electric screwdriver.
Whirr.
The screwdriver fitted with a suppressor removed the four screws in an instant. Using a suction device, Agent Park carefully detached the panel.
Shiiik.
There was a sound of air escaping due to the pressure difference in the sealed space.
A square opening about sixty centimeters across and high. Team Leader Kim shone his headlamp inside.
A rusted iron ladder continued downward into the darkness.
“Bingo. Direct to basement level four. Depth, approximately twelve meters.”
“Good. We’re going down. Agent Park, point. I’ll take rear.”
Agent Park slid his body in first and climbed onto the ladder.
Next was Taeho.
If his foot slipped, it was over. Taeho descended carefully, one rung at a time. The smell of rusted iron, mold, and the faint scent of disinfectant rose up together. When they reached the end of the ladder, another inspection hatch came into view.
Agent Park skillfully released the lock and lifted the cover slightly.
Fluorescent light seeped through the gap like a blade.
Agent Park pushed a fiber-optic camera into the gap.
“Corridor clear. No guards.”
“CCTV?”
“One at three o’clock. Rotating type. It’s looking toward nine o’clock now, so if we go down in five seconds, we’ll be in its blind spot.”
At Agent Park’s signal, the hatch opened completely.
The agents landed on the floor without a sound. Taeho jumped down after them.
The corridor of basement level four. They had finally arrived.
Unlike the cramped, stifling air of the ventilation duct, this space was filled with a cool, artificial chill.
The pure white walls and floor called to mind a hospital operating room, but the feeling was far more inhuman.
And at the end of the corridor.
A massive door made of heavy titanium alloy awaited them.
[CORE ROOM—Authorized Personnel Only]
A red warning light blinked faintly.
Taeho heard his heart pounding in his ears.
‘In there......... Prometheus’s main body is inside.’
Team Leader Kim gestured toward the door with his chin.
Agent Lee immediately took a military hacking tool, the Code Breaker, from his bag and connected it to the electronic panel. The moment he plugged in the cable, red code poured down the screen like a waterfall.
“The security level is the highest grade. Multi-layer quantum encryption.”
“How long?”
“I can break it. Two minutes..... No, I’ll finish in one minute thirty seconds.”
Agent Lee’s fingers danced over the keyboard. The decryption percentage on the screen began to climb at a frantic rate.
Team Leader Kim and Agent Park pressed close to either side of the door, taking up entry formation. The click of handgun slides being pulled sounded unusually loud.
Taeho swallowed dryly. They had finally come this far.
Once this door opened, every truth would be revealed, and the nightmare could end.
It was at that very moment.
Rema’s sharp voice burst into Taeho’s ear.
—Stop! Taeho!
Taeho’s eyes trembled. It was not Rema’s usual tone.
‘Why? Is it a trap?’
Just as Taeho parted his lips to whisper, red text began typing rapidly across his smartphone screen.
If you open that door......
Then Agent Lee cried out urgently.
“Code released! One hundred percent!”
Team Leader Kim’s finger went to the trigger. The signal chime of the door opening sounded.
Beep-beep-beep.
“Wait! Don’t open it!”
Taeho reflexively grabbed Team Leader Kim’s shoulder hard. Team Leader Kim lost his balance and turned to Taeho with startled eyes.
“Director? What are you............
But it was too late. The heavy metal door split apart to either side with the sound of compressed air escaping.
Pshuuuk!
Through the gap in the door, along with a cold chill, an invisible, colorless, odorless gas gushed out.
“.....Urk?”
Agent Lee, who had been closest to the door, was the first to collapse, still clutching the terminal. There wasn’t even a scream. Then Agent Park, and even Team Leader Kim, who had been about to question Taeho, went slack-eyed and crumpled helplessly to the floor.
Thud. Boom.
It happened in an instant.
Three elite agents were sprawled on the floor before they could do a thing.
Taeho instinctively held his breath and staggered backward.
But something was strange. He was fine. No dizziness, no signs of paralysis.
Taeho stared blankly at the fallen agents, and at the cold blue light pouring out through the open doorway.