The encrypted file arrived without warning.
No subject. No sender.
But he knew it was from Deniz.
A single message and one attachment.
TARGET ACCESS REPORT
Estate employee list with vulnerability index. One match with potential access and minimal surveillance. Use wisely.
He opened the file.
There were faces ten of them. Guards, kitchen staff, junior clerks, cleaning crew. Each had a summary beneath their photo: debts, drinking problems, quiet scandals, side hustles.
Most were useless.
He scrolled fast, then slower, stopping at the last entry.
And there she was.
Name:Yuna
Age: Appears 23–25
Primary Job: Housekeeping staff work in evening ( interior access)
Secondary Job: Waitress at small café in Nanshui work on morning time
Employment Duration: 3 years
Behavioral Report: talkative. Respectful. Focused. Innocent. Never complains.
Beloved by her café owner. Trusted by the mansions upper staff. Staff describe her as "kind," "disciplined," and "too good for this job."
Security Note (FLAGGED):
No national ID found. No academic history. No official record of immigration, birth, or family registration. No fingerprints in any known database.
Background scan returns zero origin prior to employment date.
Message from Deniz:
You can't bribe her. But fear might work. She's the only one who doesn't legally exist. Think carefully before using her. She won't break easy.
He stared at the image.
He scrolled back up.
No ID. No origin.
Loved by people. Trusted by staff.
Yet the system said she didn't exist.
He leaned back, unease rising in his chest.
A girl like this either she's running from something
or she's hiding something bigger
He stood.
"If anyone can be pushed," he muttered to himself, "it's the one who lives like a ghost."
The late afternoon light filtered into the café like warm honey.
Soft indie music played through an old speaker, mixing with the hiss of coffee machines and the clink of plates. Yuna sat perched on the edge of the front shelf, legs crossed beneath her apron, laughing softly with the chef and two waiters as they shared a story that had no real point just warmth.
"Then she spilled the entire tray on the director's shoes!" one of the waiters laughed.
Yuna covered her mouth, laughing along.
The chef looked at her, flipping a dumpling on the grill.
"You work two jobs, donate half your salary, and still have time to laugh? Tell me, girl… don't you have dreams like other girls ?"
Yuna wiped her hands with a towel, smiling faintly.
"I do," she said. "Someday, I'll open my own café. Tiny place. Just coffee, toast, and books no one reads anymore."
Everyone laughed again except chief.
Just then, a waiter appeared at the door.
"Yuna someone's outside asking for you."
She blinked.
"Who?"
"Didn't say. Not a regular. Looks... serious."
She stepped out into the fading golden light — and saw him.
A man, unfamiliar. Dark coat, pressed collar. Too calm to be casual.
He didn't smile. Just nodded to the chair across from him.
"Sit down, girl
The man studied her face like it held answers he didn't know how to phrase.
"You work two jobs. No ID. No past. People think you're just some kind, overworked girl.
" He leaned closer. But I've seen the reports pointed on file
Yuna stared at him in confusion and fear
"I'm exactly what I look like."
"No," he muttered. "You're not. And the truth is even you don't know what you are."
She didn't blink. Didn't breathe for a moment. But her silence said more than denial ever could.
"What you want"
He opened the file again and pointed to the final page.
"The painting. Ashen Bloom. It's inside Meihua Manor north wing. Your master is hiding it. All I need is for you to give me access."
At that, something changed in her expression.
The stillness cracked.
"What did you just say?" she asked.
"I want you to retrieve the painting."
"That painting…" she said slowly, "...isn't yours."
He stiffened.
"It was stolen."
"It's not yours to steal back."
"Your boss is a thief."
"My master Chairman Jang Huilin. He gave me a job when I had none. You want to call that theft? Go ahead. But don't confuse it with what you're doing."
He narrowed his eyes.
"You really don't know, do you?"
"Don't know what?"
. That Ashen Bloom was never part of your master's collection until morning."
Yuna hesitated.
She hadn't seen Ashen Bloom in the house.
Not once.
But Meihua Manor was large — its secrets even larger.
"You're lying," she whispered, but not convincingly.
"No," he said coldly. "I'm offering a deal. Help me return the painting to the world. Or keep pretending your 'master' isn't running a private vault full of stolen relics."
Yuna stepped back. Her hands were clenched.
"I'm not a thief. And I won't betray someone who saved my life."
He tilted his head.
"Then think very carefully about what's coming. You're either in the way or useful. Choose wisely."
She looked at him with the eyes that are full of sadness or regret