"Where is he?" Axel asked the mont the elevator doors opened, his voice steady but carrying the weight of restrained impatience.
He did not slow down.
His long strides cut through the quiet hallway as if the distance between him and his office were an inconvenience rather than a physical space.
Dylan, who had been waiting near the elevator, imdiately followed. Keeping up with Axel when he was in this mood was never easy.
"He is still sleeping in his office," Dylan replied quickly. "I will wake him now."
Without waiting for further instruction, Dylan turned and hurried away.
Axel watched him disappear for half a second before releasing a quiet sigh. He entered his office and closed the door behind him, the familiar space offering no comfort this ti. The room was silent, orderly, and calm—everything he was not.
Another wait.
Axel loosened his tie slightly as he walked toward the sofa. His movents were controlled, but the tension beneath them was obvious.
Sitting down did little to ease the restless energy building inside him. His fingers tapped lightly against the leather, a subtle habit that only appeared when his patience was wearing dangerously thin.
Even a single minute felt unbearable.
His gaze drifted to his phone. Calling Collins directly crossed his mind more than once. Axel was not known for patience, and today was testing whatever small amount he possessed.
Just as he reached for the device—
A soft knock interrupted the silence.
"Boss, Collins is here..."
Dylan’s voice ca from outside, cautious yet slightly relieved.
Axel straightened. "Co in."
The door opened, and Collins stepped inside.
For a brief mont, Axel simply stared at him.
Collins looked like a man who had been violently rejected by the sleep god for several consecutive nights. His hair was ssy in a way that could not be blad on style, his eyes were ringed with dark circles, and his clothes looked as though they had endured a long, emotionally draining journey.
This exhausted figure was, technically, the company’s IT Director.
The contrast was almost comical.
Axel studied him carefully, his sharp gaze missing nothing. Despite the disheveled appearance, there was sothing familiar in Collins’ expression, that faint spark of satisfaction barely hidden beneath the fatigue.
"Did you get enough sleep?" Axel asked, gesturing for him to sit.
Collins dropped onto the sofa with a heavy sigh. "Not bad," he answered, his voice dry.
Axel raised an eyebrow.
Collins grinned weakly. "But I’m really starving right now, Boss. I need to eat plenty of grilled at."
Dylan, who sat on the other sofa, nearly choked trying to suppress a laugh.
Axel blinked once before nodding in agreent. "You will get it once you give your report."
Collins groaned softly. "You are the boss..."
Axel’s lips twitched slightly, but the tension in his eyes remained. "Report."
"Ah... yes. The important part."
Collins straightened, suddenly rembering why he had been dragged from his well-earned collapse. He pulled out his iPad and began scrolling through its contents, his tired fingers moving with practiced speed.
The room grew quiet.
Axel’s relaxed posture vanished, replaced by sharp focus. Every small movent from Collins now carried significance. Several years of unanswered questions rested inside that device.
Collins’ expression slowly shifted as he scanned the screen. The exhaustion faded, replaced by unmistakable excitent. His eyes brightened, his posture sharpened, and a proud smile gradually appeared.
Then he stopped.
"There it is," he murmured.
Without hesitation, Collins stood and handed the iPad to Axel. "Boss, you should see it yourself."
Axel accepted the device, his gaze instantly locking onto the screen.
The silence that followed was heavy.
Dylan watched nervously.
Collins watched with quiet pride.
Axel’s eyes moved steadily, absorbing every detail. His expression did not change much, but the subtle tightening of his jaw spoke volus.
After a mont, Collins leaned back slightly, crossing his arms. "That," he said calmly, "was not easy to trace."
Collins continued with his energetic tone, "The CCTV footage had long been erased, and there wasn’t much I could figure out. But when you ntioned that man’s involvent, I began investigating his side of the story, and suddenly... things started to beco clearer."
Axel finally lifted his gaze. His eyes were dark, sharp, and dangerously alive.
"So he is involved," Axel uttered coldly, the words slipping out like ice.
The quiet fury in his voice instantly changed the atmosphere of the room. The air itself seed to tighten.
Collins, despite looking like a man who desperately needed sleep and several plates of grilled at, straightened with visible satisfaction.
"Definitely," he replied without hesitation. "He was the real mastermind behind all those ssy things that happened in the past. That man is really the literal embodint of evil, and he’s very good at it at the sa ti. A true two-faced man. Honestly, Boss, he is the real villain in this story."
Dylan frowned, his brows knitting together as confusion took over his face. He had been sitting there, trying very hard to look professional, but the conversation had officially outrun his understanding.
"Who?" Dylan finally asked, unable to contain himself. "Who is he?"
Neither of them answered.
Axel’s attention had already returned to the iPad, his grip tightening slightly as he scanned through the report again. Collins leaned forward, pointing at specific sections, calmly explaining details that sounded disturbingly precise.
They spoke as if Dylan did not exist in the room.
Dylan sighs. His irritation grew.
On the sofa, Axel’s calm expression slowly crumbled. The more Collins explained, the darker his face beca. The controlled businessman faded, replaced by sothing far more dangerous. His jaw hardened. His eyes burned with the rising of imasurable anger.
It was the look of a man who was imagining violence. Very detailed violence. His fingers curled around the edges of the iPad, knuckles slowly paling.
Dylan, on the other hand, leaned closer to Collins, lowering his voice. "Man," he whispered urgently, "can you tell who that man is before I die from curiosity?"
Collins glanced at him. Then smiled. It was not a comforting smile. It was the smile of soone who enjoyed dramatic reveals far too much.
Leaning slightly toward Dylan, Collins whispered a single na.
Dylan froze.
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