Chapter 1
Prologue
‘This is Time Rose.’
These words reached the ears of a young male police officer who answered the phone at midnight at the police station.
The young police officer said,
‘Time Rose? Is that your name?’
‘Yes.’
A woman named Time Rose was speaking on the phone.
It was probably from her home.
At that moment, Time Rose had turned off all the lights in the room,
leaving only a single indirect light casting a white spotlight in the darkness.
She gripped the receiver tightly, her face contorted in anguish.
Her face was as beautiful as that of an actress.
The young male police officer did not respond immediately to Time Rose’s words,
and a heavy silence fell between them.
The woman did not break the silence and waited for the young male police officer’s next words.
The young male police officer, who knew the woman named Time Rose who lived in this area well,
was speechless when the woman identified herself as Time Rose.
Time Rose wouldn’t call the police station!
Time Rose is a criminal!
That’s what the young male police officer thought.
To be precise, Time Rose wasn’t a criminal,
but the prime suspect in multiple crimes,
and was now a target of the police.
The young male police officer finally managed to say,
‘Um, are you the female president of KK Corporation, Time Rose?’
who is suffering from amnesia?’
Then, ’Oh, you know her?’ Time Rose said, followed by,
’Yes, I am Time Rose, the amnesiac.’
’Time Rose! The one who has committed numerous crimes and is said to be on the verge of arrest?
The Time Rose you’re talking about?”
The young male police officer, confused, spoke loudly and quickly.
’That’s correct. I have now admitted to the crimes I committed,
and I have resolved to atone for them.’
’Atonement!? Then why did you, Time Rose,
call the police yourself? What business could you possibly have?’
The man replied, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
Time Rose sighed deeply, paused for a moment, and then said in a beautiful voice,
“I received a death threat.”
“What!?”
The man was even more confused by the new term “death threat,” and his mind was in disarray.
‘The perpetrator said they’re going to kill me.’
Time Rose said this matter-of-factly,
then took on the role of the victim and called the police to request an investigation into the incident,
which was the purpose of her call.
1
All the windows in the room were closed, and heavy black curtains were drawn.
There were two or three dimly lit lamps, casting a faint glow.
In the centre of the room was a large desk, where a half-drunk cup of coffee, a notebook,
and cosmetics were scattered haphazardly.
Everything in the room was left in disarray,
reflecting the busyness of the female CEO who owned the room.
This was the CEO’s office of KK Corporation.
Yes, it was the office of KK Corporation, the company run by Time Rose, who had called the police station in the middle of the night yesterday to request an investigation into the murder threat.
Now, the female CEO was staring at her reflection in the mirror in the corner of the room.
Currently, the female CEO is staring at her reflection in the mirror in the corner of the room, glaring at her own face.
In the mirror, she sees the beautiful face of Time Rose, with her hair dyed a shade close to gold, and
her stunningly proportioned body.
Of course, Time Rose, the female CEO, is wearing clothes.
Her outfit is a business suit in a soft, sensual colour, paired with a miniskirt.
The female CEO continues to stare at her reflection,
wondering what she is thinking.
After a long time,
suddenly, an AI voice comes from the speakers mounted on the ceiling.
‘Ms. President, a customer is here.’
The female CEO is startled by the AI’s sudden statement,
but quickly remembers that she called the police last night,
and asks the AI, ‘Is it the detective?’
‘That’s correct. The detective who came was talkative, polite, and quite a handsome man,’ the AI replied.
‘Alright, please let him in,’
the female CEO said, and the AI unlocked the door and opened it automatically.
Next, the AI turned on the lights in the ceiling, illuminating the dimly lit room.
The once-dark room was now brightly lit, everything exposed to the light of day.
The bookshelves in the room were filled with countless literary collections, poetry books, art books, and photo albums,
along with antique desks, chairs, lighting fixtures, and sofas, all arranged haphazardly,
It seemed as though the room had not been cleaned in a while, with dust accumulating in various places, and
PCs, documents, and writing utensils left scattered about.
And now, beyond the door of this room, which had taken on a unique atmosphere, stood a man.
He was tall and slender, with a plain yet handsome face and cold eyes.
His blonde hair and brown eyes contrasted with his ordinary attire—a grey suit and black leather shoes—
creating an odd harmony that made him stand out.
The woman, upon seeing the man standing before the open door, immediately recognised him as a detective.
In her opinion, all detectives had faces worn out by dealing with people.
Indeed, this man had a tired expression.
The tired-looking detective
quickly entered the room, glanced around the messy office without hesitation, and said,
’Nice to meet you. I’m Detective Oregano from the West District.
I’m here because you received a death threat.’
The woman replied, ’Oh, you just said “nice to meet you,” but
is this our first time meeting?’ with a surprised expression.
‘Yes, this is our first meeting,’ the detective replied, slightly taken aback by her question.
Time Rose slowly stood up,
walked to the mirror behind her, and looked at her reflection again,
’Hmm. I feel like we’ve met before,
but maybe I’m just imagining things,’ she said, then walked over to the detective’s side,
‘Time Rose. Nice to meet you,’ she smiled.
A sweet yet bitter scent of perfume wafted from her.
Detective Oregano looked at the woman again and was immediately aroused by her beauty.
‘Nice to meet you,’ he said, his heart racing with anticipation of the sweet moment ahead, and
said.
♪
’So, you’ve forgotten everything except your name, date of birth, and address,
right?’
Detective Oregano asked the female CEO.
’Yes, I seem to have forgotten everything. However, I remember everything about the company and my work.
’
‘When did you lose your memory?’
’After my husband passed away. The doctor said it was probably due to the shock of losing him,
and
I lost part of my memory.’
‘I see,’ the detective said, looking at the woman with a detective’s eye.
This woman remembers everything that is inconvenient for her,
that is, the crimes KK Corporation committed in the past,
and she is now determined to atone for those crimes.
However, she has completely forgotten about her family, relatives, and friends,
and even when shown photos, she cannot recall anything.
’Time Rose, why are you honestly admitting that you remember the crimes committed by KK Corporation,
which are inconvenient truths for you?
’
’Most people would take advantage of this memory loss and claim they don’t remember any of those crimes,
’
said Detective Oregano.
The female president shook her head and said, “No.That’s a cowardly and despicable tactic.
I won’t do that. I want to atone for the crimes I’ve committed,’ she said
.
’I already know about you and the details of the case in which this company is being prosecuted
.
I’ve also thoroughly investigated your late husband, the founder of this company
. You are regarded by society as the worst kind of woman in history.
‘In other words,’ the detective said bluntly, but the female CEO cut him off,
’I know. The charges against me are embezzlement, extortion, fraud, and
murder. But I don’t want to talk about that now.’
Indeed, this woman, Time Rose, had repeatedly committed violent and vicious acts for the sake of her work or her personal convenience,
making her one of the darkest elements of society.
Therefore, many people harbored grudges against her.
However, the female CEO had no intention of yielding to those who threatened her.
Perhaps that was why Time Rose gave others a cold impression.
‘To target someone like you, who is a suspect in multiple cases, the culprit must be a fool,’
the detective said, but he couldn’t help but be drawn to the unexpected honesty of the woman with her alluring appearance, even without realising it himself.
However, for a woman with amnesia to receive a murder threat was unexpected!
However, a murder threat was sent to the woman with amnesia!
The female CEO said, ‘I’ll talk about the murder threat. This is an incident.’
Detective Oregano nodded quietly, sat down on a nearby chair to listen to the story,
and heard about the incident.
★
There was a piece of paper there. It had no lines like a notebook, just plain paper
,
and it was cream-coloured. Written in pencil were the following words:
I will kill you.
To demonstrate our power, we will start by blowing up the nearby building.
The handwriting was unlike anything he had ever seen before.
The words were so ugly they defied description.
Those were the words of a murder threat.
Detective Oregano grimaced and said, ‘It was probably written with the left hand.’
‘First, as a warning, they’ll blow up a nearby building?’
The female president nodded and said,
‘It says “to show our power,”’ looking worriedly at the detective.
’They’re saying they’ll blow up the building to prove that this murder threat isn’t just a bluff?
’
If they do that, this city will be filled with dead and injured people, and chaos will ensue.
’
’We must stop the building from being blown up at all costs,” the female CEO said.
The detective looked at the woman again.
White skin, long blonde hair, blue eyes—
the woman in front of him had everything the detective desired. He felt desire for her once more.
Oregano, who was the type to act on his desires immediately, moved beside the woman and naturally wrapped his arm around her shoulder.
The woman noticed the man’s desire and initially looked confused, but
when she saw the detective’s lips moving toward her, she closed her eyes and seemed ready to accept him.
The woman’s eyes closed.
The female CEO closed her eyes.
The detective stared at her erotic expression.
At that moment, the female CEO’s face reflected in the detective’s eyes seemed to be trembling.
The detective found it odd that the female CEO appeared to be trembling,
but she began to tremble even more violently.
Then, the female CEO, who had already opened her eyes, spoke in a trembling voice, as if frightened,
‘No! The detective’s face is shaking!’ she whispered.
‘What!? Am I shaking?’ the detective was confused, wondering if he was shaking as well,
but he couldn’t figure out the cause.
Five seconds passed, then ten seconds, but during that time,
the detective and the female CEO, still unaware of what was happening,
confirmed the fact that they were both shaking violently with their own eyes.
When the woman said, ‘It’s still shaking! It’s still shaking!’ the detective also said,
“You too. Female CEO, you’re shaking too.Shaking violently, violently!’ he shouted.
The two of them grimaced in pain, clinging to a nearby pillar to suppress their shaking,
trying to protect themselves.
Then a loud voice came from outside the building, shouting, ’Fire! Fire!’
’Fire? What’s happening?” Detective Oregano said,
and suddenly the room began to heat up rapidly.
Detective Oregano noticed the change and said,
‘What’s happening? The temperature inside the room is rising! It’s like we’re in a fire!’
The female CEO also shouted hysterically,
‘What’s happening?’
The two of them writhed in agony, crying out, ‘It’s hot, it’s hot!’
As the intense heat, as hot as fire, violently engulfed the two, another loud sound, like a thud,
this time a massive explosion,
echoed outside the building.
The explosion was so loud and powerful that it felt as though their eardrums might burst.
The shockwave from the explosion violently threw the detective and the female CEO,
their bodies flying through the air at high speed and crashing into the walls of the room.
The two, who had been struck hard, fell to the floor, and due to the chaos and intense physical pain,
their consciousness began to fade.
As their consciousness faded, the detective and the female CEO thought,
’The shaking like an earthquake, the heat like flames, and the explosion—
this must be what was written in the murder threat letter addressed to the female CEO,
“We will blow up the nearby building,”’
they thought.
Then, a violent wind caused by the explosion erupted outside,
shattering every single windowpane in the surrounding area into pieces.
Shards of glass flew violently into the female CEO’s room,
piercing the faces, heads, and bodies of the two with excruciating pain.
The detective and the female CEO, overwhelmed by the situation, let out screams that couldn’t form words,
and were swept into the chaos.
The two could hear loud screams and cries coming from outside the building.
The voices were saying,
‘It’s been blown up! The buildings in this area have been blown up!’
‘The scene is utterly devastating!’
‘How many people are dead? How many are injured?’
Outside, as predicted in the murder threat, the 60-storey high-rise building where the female CEO’s company, KK Corporation, was located
,
had been completely obliterated by the explosion,
and the ground was littered with debris from the collapsed building.
Countless bodies and injured people filled the area, so densely packed that there was barely any space left.
How could one possibly describe the sheer horror of this scene, where bodies were everywhere as far as the eye could see?
The two neighbouring buildings adjacent to the exploded building have also sustained significant damage, with the structures severely damaged
and
now engulfed in large flames.
The two high-rise buildings are burning fiercely, spewing thick smoke into the sky.
If the fire is not extinguished, the entire area will be reduced to a charred wasteland, a sight too horrific to behold.
The bomb threat mentioned in the murder warning letter has indeed been carried out.
