The interviews started early.
Nine employees.
One by one.
The room stayed the same.
Only the faces changed.
Kang Min sat across the table.
Ara beside him.
A recorder placed between them.
"State your name and position," Ara said.
The first worker nodded nervously.
"I work at one of the clothing stores on the ground floor."
"Where were you when the fire started?" Kang Min asked.
"In the store… I smelled something, then people started shouting."
"Did you see anything unusual before that?" Ara asked.
The worker shook her head.
"No."
The same process repeated.
Second worker.
"I was arranging items in storage."
"Anything unusual?"
"No… everything was normal."
Third.
"I just heard people running."
Fourth.
"I didn't see anything."
Fifth.
"It happened so fast."
Sixth.
"Nothing out of the ordinary."
Seventh.
"I thought it was an electrical issue."
Eighth.
"I didn't notice anything before the smoke."
Ninth.
Silence followed her answers.
"I was at the cashier," she said.
Kang Min watched her carefully.
"Did you see anything?" he asked.
She hesitated for a moment.
"…no."
"Nothing unusual."
The interviews ended the same way they started.
No clear detail.
No useful lead.
Just confusion.
Back in the main office—
Bong Soo leaned back in his chair.
"…that's all of them?"
Ara nodded.
"Nothing consistent."
Su Young added,
"No overlapping statements either."
Kang Min stood near the board.
"Either no one saw anything…"
"…or no one realized what they saw."
Silence followed.
Because both were possible.
The day stretched on.
Files updated.
Statements recorded.
Still nothing.
As Kang Min stepped out of the room—
"Detective."
He turned.
One of the workers stood a few steps away.
The older woman.
Mid-50s.
She looked around briefly.
"…can I speak with you?"
Kang Min nodded.
They moved to a quieter corner.
"What is it?" he asked.
She hesitated.
Then reached into her bag.
"I wasn't sure if I should say anything earlier," she said.
Kang Min waited.
"I found something."
She handed him a small flash drive.
"I saw it on the floor… a few minutes before the fire started."
Kang Min looked at it.
Then back at her.
"Where exactly?"
"Near the storage area on the ground floor," she replied.
A pause.
"I didn't think it meant anything at the time."
Her voice lowered slightly.
"But after everything…"
She didn't finish the sentence.
Kang Min nodded once.
"You did the right thing."
She exhaled quietly.
Relieved.
"I don't know if it will help," she said.
"We'll check," he replied.
She nodded.
Then left.
Kang Min stood there for a moment.
Looking at the flash drive in his hand.
Small.
Ordinary.
But now—
It was the only thing that didn't belong.