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Seoul, 8:12 AM — Kang Group Headquarters
Lee Hana stood in front of the gleaming glass facade of Kang Group's headquarters, her breath caught somewhere between her lungs and her throat. The building seemed to mock her with its flawless windows and the bold silver logo high above the revolving doors. To everyone passing by, this was the pinnacle of success — a fortress of power where only the ambitious survived.
To Hana, it was a crime scene hidden in plain sight.
She shifted her tote bag to her other shoulder and checked her reflection in the dark glass. Her hair — soft chestnut brown — was neatly tied in a low bun. Her blouse was crisp white, paired with a modest black pencil skirt that hugged her slender frame without drawing too much attention. She had spent half the night ironing this outfit.
She pressed her fingers against her wrist. Calm down. You can't look nervous.
Inside her bag was her brother's old ID card, a tiny battered thing she still carried like a talisman. Her brother, Lee Jae-hyuk — the senior manager everyone spoke so highly of until the day he died in a so-called accident. She clenched her teeth. She'd learned the hard way that accidents rarely happened to people who knew too much.
She forced herself to take a step forward. The motion sensors clicked the door open with a soft hiss.
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8:25 AM — Lobby
The lobby was breathtaking — polished marble floors, towering glass panels, fresh orchids arranged in minimalist white vases. Hana felt like an imposter among the brisk young executives in tailored suits. She headed straight to the reception desk, clutching the orientation papers the HR department had emailed her the night before.
"Good morning," she said politely to the receptionist, a woman with immaculate makeup and a tight bun.
The receptionist barely looked up. "Name?"
"Lee Hana. I'm the new personal assistant for the CEO."
This time, the receptionist did look up. Her eyes flicked from Hana's face to the neat letters on the paper. For the briefest moment, her perfectly shaped eyebrows twitched.
"You'll need this." She handed Hana a slim black security badge with Assistant to CEO engraved below her name.
Hana pinned it to her blazer, ignoring how her palms felt damp.
"Twenty-first floor," the receptionist said curtly. "Executive offices. Ms. Yoo Ji-won will greet you."
Hana bowed slightly. "Thank you."
As she turned toward the elevator bank, she caught a snippet of hushed laughter behind her. She didn't need to turn around to know it was about her.
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8:35 AM — Elevator
The elevator walls were lined with polished brass so clean she could see her own face. The higher she rose, the more her ears popped, but her heart stayed lodged somewhere near her collarbone.
Her phone buzzed in her bag. A message from Soo-bin, her only friend left from her old company.
> Soo-bin: Fighting, Hana!! Call me at lunch, I want all the details! 💪✨
Hana allowed herself the tiniest smile. Then the elevator dinged. The doors opened to a hallway so quiet she felt like she'd stepped into a church.
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8:40 AM — Executive Floor
"Ms. Lee Hana?"
The voice was crisp and familiar — she recognized it immediately from the company's PR videos. Yoo Ji-won was even more intimidating in person. Tall, slender, dressed in an ivory pantsuit that looked like it belonged on the cover of a luxury magazine. Her hair was a perfect black wave resting on her shoulders.
"Yes, Director Yoo. Good morning." Hana bowed.
Ji-won's eyes, sharp and glinting, skimmed over Hana's neat appearance. "Right on time. Follow me."
Ji-won walked ahead without waiting. Hana matched her brisk pace, trying not to trip over her own thoughts.
As they passed rows of glass-walled offices, Hana caught snippets of hushed conversation. She heard her own name once — or thought she did.
Ji-won led her to a large double door at the end of the hall. She paused, hand resting on the polished brass handle.
"You're the CEO's third assistant this year," Ji-won said without turning. "Do your job well, and maybe you'll last longer than the others."
Hana didn't flinch. "I intend to, Director Yoo."
Ji-won's red-painted lips curled into something that might have been a smile — or a warning. She pushed open the door.
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8:42 AM — CEO's Office
If the lobby was grand, the CEO's office was colder than any boardroom she'd ever seen. Floor-to-ceiling windows behind a massive black desk revealed the entire city skyline. On the wall behind the desk, a single piece of abstract art in harsh shades of grey and silver. Not a speck of clutter on the polished surface — only a leather-bound planner, a closed laptop, and a steaming cup of black coffee.
Behind the desk sat Kang Joon-hyuk.
He didn't look up immediately. He was reviewing something on a tablet, one hand tapping the screen, the other holding a pen he occasionally twirled between his fingers.
Hana studied him in the seconds she had: dark hair perfectly swept back, crisp navy suit, features so sharply defined they looked like a sculptor's masterpiece. His presence filled the room long before his eyes met hers.
Ji-won cleared her throat. "CEO Kang, this is Lee Hana. Your new assistant."
Joon-hyuk's eyes lifted. Black as obsidian, unreadable. They swept over Hana once, from her hair to her shoes, then settled back on her face. She forced herself to hold that gaze, fighting the instinct to bow her head like everyone else did.
He said nothing for a heartbeat too long. Then, a nod — almost imperceptible.
"Leave us," he said to Ji-won without looking away from Hana.
Ji-won hesitated only a moment before dipping her head and closing the door behind her.
Silence settled in the room like a living thing.
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