The call came in early.
"A fire broke out at a shopping mall."
Kang Min picked up immediately.
"Casualties?"
"Two confirmed dead. Seven injured."
"Cause is still unknown."
That was enough.
"Let's move."
Sirens cut through the morning air as CID arrived at the scene.
The mall stood damaged.
Blackened walls.
Shattered glass.
Smoke still lingering faintly.
Fire trucks were parked outside.
Officers moved around, securing the area.
Ara stepped forward, scanning the structure.
"…this spread fast."
Bong Soo looked uneasy.
"Way too fast."
Kang Min walked closer to the entrance, observing quietly.
"What do we have?" he asked."
A fire officer approached.
"The fire started on the ground floor," he said.
"But we're still investigating the exact cause."
Ara nodded.
"No confirmation yet?"
The officer shook his head.
"Not yet."
"It could be electrical. Could be something else."
Nothing definite.
They stepped inside carefully.
The interior was worse.
Burned sections.
Collapsed structures.
The smell of smoke still heavy in the air.
Ara crouched slightly, examining the floor.
"No clear origin point yet," she said.
Bong Soo looked around.
"So we don't even know how it started?"
"Not yet," Kang Min replied.
A short silence.
"Victims?" Ara asked.
The officer checked his notes.
"One is a store employee."
"The other…"
"…the mall owner's mother."
The team exchanged brief looks.
That added weight.
Back outside—
"The owner?" Kang Min asked.
"He's available for questioning," an officer replied.
Kang Min nodded.
"Bring him in."
CID – INTERVIEW ROOM
The mall owner sat across from Kang Min and Ara.
He looked shaken.
Still trying to process everything.
"I don't understand how this happened," he said.
Kang Min's tone was calm.
"We're still investigating."
Ara leaned slightly forward.
"Your mother—was she working at the mall?"
"No… she just visits sometimes."
"She was there this morning?"
He nodded slowly.
"Yes."
A pause.
"I didn't know she was inside…"
His voice trailed off.
Silence filled the room briefly.
Kang Min continued,
"Have there been any recent issues? Electrical problems, complaints, anything unusual?"
The man shook his head.
"No."
"Any renovations? Repairs?" Ara asked.
"No, everything was normal."
Another pause.
"Insurance?" Kang Min asked.
The man looked up.
"Yes… the mall is insured."
Ara noted it quietly.
"Any recent changes to it?" she asked.
"No."
Everything sounded routine.
Nothing stood out.
"Alright," Kang Min said.
"Thank you for your time."
The man nodded weakly.
CID – MAIN OFFICE
Back at the station—
Su Young sat at her desk, already working.
"I pulled the available footage," she said.
"From inside?" Bong Soo asked.
Su Young shook her head.
"Only outside."
She turned the screen toward them.
Camera views from around the mall.
Entrances.
Parking area.
Street angles.
"Play it," Ara said.
Su Young did.
They watched.
People walking in.
Cars arriving.
Normal activity.
Nothing unusual.
"Fast forward," Kang Min said.
She skipped ahead.
The moment before the fire—
Still normal.
Then—
Smoke.
People running out.
Panic.
But nothing before that.
Bong Soo frowned.
"…there's nothing here."
Ara nodded slightly.
"No one carrying anything unusual."
"No forced entry, no visible trigger," Su Young added.
Kang Min watched the screen a moment longer.
Then spoke calmly—
"For now, we treat it as an accident."
"But we don't assume."
The team nodded.