Five arms stuck out, each wrist donning a digital watch that was in sync with the other four to the millisecond. Dressed in black with their signature mask on their faces and a cap over their head and gloves, they glanced at each other, confidence written all over their faces.

 

“Time check, 2355. All to split to respective places. We will be moving out at 0000. Communication line 0801. Missions to complete by 0100. Meet at HQ at 0130. Everyone clear?”

 

“Roger.” Came five voices as the group split up in two pairs and a single.

 

“Team 1 in place.”

 

“Team 2 in place.”

 

“Team 3 in place.”

 

Silence ensued.Seconds ticked by before the order came through.

 

“2359. All teams get ready to move out on command.”

 

“Roger and out.”

 

---

 

“Team 1, guards are about to change shift in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. In now.”

 

A soft rustle as two figures crept out from the shadows, heading towards the back gate. Gently leaping off the ground, the two figures climbed over the gate, slipping into the shadows once more.

 

“Team 1 in. Heading towards back stairs.”

 

“To the right of the stairs, there are cameras. You have one minute to pick the lock and get in after I disable them.”

 

Standing around the corner of the staircase, the duo pressed their bodies against the wall, their senses on high alert.

 

“Team 1 safe to enter.”

 

Quickly and without trace, Seungri gently picked the lock with Seohyun keeping a lookout before sliding in.

 

“Up the stairs, to the top floor. I’ll get Hwang to meet you both on the fifth level.”

 

“Copy that.”

 

The duo crept up the stairs keeping close to the walls. It was not long before they were panting with Seungri huffing with each step.

 

“How many levels are there left?”

 

“Five.”

 

“Oh my god, why does this building has so many levels?”

 

“It’s only fifteen levels so quit whining. Hwang must be searching the lower floors already, so hurry up.”

 

Without waiting for a reply, Seohyun ran up the stairs, leaving the groaning man to stagger behind her.

 

---

 

“Hwang, you are clear to enter.”

 

Nimbly jumping over the fence, Tiffany landed crouching, eyes darting for possible enemies. Once sure that the site is clear, she sprinted towards the cargo lift when the door opened. Surprised she hid behind the nearest cargo, keeping a lookout of the flashlight that seemed to be shining down the rows of cargo. A sweep of light on her right, she shuffled closer to the crates, slipping into the tiny gap between the stacks. Another sweep on her left, she crouched lower, her legs ready to bolt and her hands ready to lash. She waited. It took minutes before she was certain that the footsteps are gone and another minute to make sure that the coast was clear. She crept out of her hiding place when her earpiece starts to crackle.

 

“Seung and Seo are starting their search. Hwang, you have four minutes before the guards patrol the floor.”

 

Eyes darted around, spotting three cameras placed by the door to the stairs.

 

“Im, three cameras by the stairs.”

 

“Working on it.” It took a few moments, but the answer was no less satisfactory. “Ten seconds.”

 

Without hesitation, the Hwang entered the stairwell, waiting for few moments before creeping up the stairs and into the second floor.

 

“Hwang, fifth door on the right. Their administrative documents.”

 

She tried the door handle. “Locked.”

 

“One moment. Thirty minutes, the door will auto-lock.”

 

“Got it.”

 

---

 

“Seung, Seo, fifteen minutes. Enter.”

 

“Look out for hidden compartments. Heard that the CEO is a huge fan of mystery and crime fiction.” For the first time since the start of the mission, a new voice interrupted.

 

“An avid fan.” Seo stood in front of a bookshelf, her eyes narrowed at the sight of the complete set of Agatha Christie, John Grisham and Michael Connelly.

 

“I wouldn’t be surprised if you guys triggered a switch that opened a stack of cash hidden in a secret compartment in a wall behind a painting of some sort.”

 

“Guess what, Ji, you are definitely right.” Seungri stared at the painting which was gradually sliding open to reveal a safe box in the wall. “It’s a secret compartment in the wall all right, whether it has money in it remains a mystery.”

 

“I’ll unveil it.” Seohyun stepped forward, her eyes shining at the new reveal.

“Seo, use the basic method. His safe is fitted with an alarm.”

 

“Got it.” She carefully dug into her pouch, digging out a brush and some white talcum powder. Gently brushing away the powder to reveal a set of nu,berserk with powder, she braved herself.

 

“Kwon, Im, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, three tries.”

 

Frantic typing was heard on the other end as their computer whiz attempted to come up with possible codes.

 

“Seo, it might be 23478, the birthday of his first daughter.”

 

Seohyun keyed the numbers only to be greeted with a red line. “Negative.”

 

“What about 87324?”

 

The hacker stealthily keyed the numbers. The safe remained locked. “Negative. One try left.”

 

“I’m running a system for possible combinations, but none of the numbers relate to him. No phone numbers, no address, not even the the birthday of his dog.” The team could hear the frustration in their computer whiz.

 

“Then let’s break it in and scoot off before the guards come.”

 

“No, Seo. Give Im few more minutes. Look around the room, check for other clues while waiting.”

 

“Copy.”

 

---

 

“TOP Sir, we have got an updated report.” Files were distributed as the team stopped their work to listen. “The warehouse is a part of the land acquired by Park Industries in their land acquiring war with Coco Land and Windburg. The owner of the warehouse had repeatedly refused Park’s offer for the past six months despite Park willing to pay up to twice the amount, but recently, the owner had agreed to sell his warehouse even when the offer is half the original price offered. And with that warehouse under Park, Park now owned forty percent of the land while Coco Land and Windburg each owned a third.”

 

“But that still can’t prove anything.”

 

A smirk appeared on Donghae face. “No. It can’t prove anything until you see this.” Donghae produced a faded, yellowish picture from his files. It showed two young boys in their teens with an arm slung around each other.

 

“There’s nothing special about this either.”

 

“But when these two are placed side by side?”

 

Donghae took out another picture, clipping it next to the faded one. The picture showed two balding men seemingly in their mid fifties sitting next to each other.

 

“Aren’t they the CEO of Coco Land and Windburg?” A nod confirmed their suspicion. “But this could only say that they knew each other from days back and they were simply meeting up.”

 

Donghae made an annoyed groan. “Suho, if you are able to use your eyes, you should have noticed that nobody brings files to a friendly meeting.”

 

“They could have been discussing possible partnerships.”

 

“But not with this map in front of them.” Donghae pointed at the map in the foreground. “And before you asked anymore stupid questions, this is the map of the land acquired, the blue line representing Park Industries, the yellow is Coco Land and the red one represents Windburg, which,” he stared pointedly at Suho, “I trust that you have memorised.”

 

A small sheepish smile appeared on Suho’s face that made the irritated male groaned. Suho ducked his head in embarrassment. “Seriously, who wants to take this dummy away from me?”

 

“That still doesn’t mean anything, Hae. It could simply mean that the two were exchanging information. It’s common now for two companies to work together and split the profits.”

 

“Except that my focus is not on them now.”

 

“There’s a possibility that the people who broke into the warehouse are hired by Park, and they might have gotten hold of some information that forced the warehouse owner to surrender, which meant that we should talk with the owner again and Park.

 

“Finally someone who speaks the same language as me.”  Donghae glanced around the silent room. “What was I expecting anyways.” He mumbled as TOP stood up.

 

“Yuri, I want you to talk to the owner again. Make sure you find out to the minor details. Taeyang, look for Park. Donghae, pay a visit to Coco Land and Windburg, see if you can get any information from them.”

 

“Yes, Sir.”

 

---

 

Tiffany stepped into the room and was immediately welcomed by a shocking sight of layers of dust and intricately spun cobwebs around the room. Carefully, she stepped in, coughing with each breath. Eyes made a quick scan. She could guess how daunting her mission would be with rows of files shelved to the ceiling, boxes stacked as high as she was and stray papers strewn around the place. Regrets formed in her as she resented not having to change mission with Seungri and Seo, or even pulling Jiyoung to team up with her. Sighing, she decided on the nearest box, flipping through its contents while fending off the smoke of dusks and curious spiders.

 

She was only half way through the first pile when she could feel the restlessness and strain on her back. She groaned, taking in the sight of the mountains around her when she caught sight of a stack of papers stuck  between the wall and the bookshelf. Going with her instinct, she leant forward, her hand slotted through the tiny gap and wriggled them, hoping them as much as to touch them.

 

After much intimate encounters with the spiders living in the cramped space, her fingers caught hold of the file and she pulled it out with caution, taking good care of the stray papers. Gently, she wiped the dust off with her gloves, groaning as the specks of white stuck to her clothes. Flipping through, her eyes bore through the rather useless data of the company’s annual growth when a piece of information caught her eye. Reading through it, a smirk started to form. This might be all they needed to finish their mission.

 

Pressing on her earpiece, she spoke into the line. “Seo, try 24387”

 

---

 

Seohyun pressed the number with everyone on the line listening in. The last try, it could determine whether they continue their mission peacefully or risk having gunfire chasing after them. The last beep of the number, they waited with bated breath. The mechanics in the safe started turning, the knob twisted and with a soft pop, the safe door bounced open.

 

“It’s opened.”

 

Two pair of eyes peeked into the safe as Seungri released his breath.

 

“Ji, you must be psychic to foresee the future. The safe indeed has stacks of money,” Fingers reached out to take one, flipping through it. “all in USD and there must be at least twenty stacks of it.”

 

“Check if there are other things in it.”

 

Hands started to swiftly pull them out and an unusual brown envelope stood out in the back.

 

“An envelope. Sealed, ” Fingers flipped it around. “With a stamp.”

 

“Must be highly confidential. Forget that. Check for other documents.”

 

“No, scratch that. Somebody is going to the top floor. Seung, Seo, get out now.”

 

“Copy.”

 

Two pairs of hands hurriedly shove the stacks of money into the safe and with a bang, they shut the door, twisting the knob haphazardly when a loud shrill rang out. Seungri and Seohyun froze. The alarm by the door started flashing red and through their earpiece, they could hear Jiyong cursing and Yoona frantic typing.

 

“Seung, Seo, get out now. The guards are coming up.”

 

Hurriedly, they dashed to the door, only to be bump face to face with a young dashing man.

 

“Who are you both?”

 

-TBC-

 

 

 

A/N: It's should be quite obvious now who I'm pairing each of them with, so nope, no comments on who the pairings are, coz I won't be changing my mind. Also, no comment replies for now. I will be starting them soon once the story gets underway. I do try to reply to comments but if you give me a one sentence comment or less, don't expect a reply, coz I will have no idea what to reply. Till next time...