WELCOME TO NIS.

:// ACCESSING BACKGROUND FILES …

born in the year 1995 in chiang mai, thailand, jane grew up surrounded by her family. she had always enjoyed spending her time outside, running around with her childhood friends, spending all of her change on snacks and trying to catch frogs in the nearby waters. and while she loved her home country thailand with all of her heart, the plans she had for herself lead her to korea.

it had all started with a fascination with those crime tv shows her mother always watched. in them, little jane never thought that the main characters - the detectives - were the cool ones; she always focused more on the pathologists that were present in each and every one of these shows. after all, without them the detectives wouldn’t even know if it was a murder or an accident.

however, people kept telling her how a cute girl like her shouldn’t be interested in pathology, that it couldn’t be good for someone to be fascinated by dead people. jane never understood how others couldn’t see that it was just something that needs to be done. after all, life was just a natural process and in the end everyone would rest in peace and the only thing that remains of us would be our carcass. the dead can’t speak anymore - but what they leave behind tells a story.

weirdly enough, jane felt disappointed when her mother had told her that she would need a medical degree to, well… examine dead people. they were dead people after all, it wasn’t like she would have any risks to hurt them or have the pressure to save someone. but certainly, that didn’t stop her. but why did she leave? at that point it was about rebellion, a new start and a perfect performance. most of her friends would study abroad and it was most likely just a ‘why not’ thing after looking into where she could get the degree she needed.

after a bit more than five years, jane had finally gotten what she needed - and more. while she had never thought she would actually get into the national intelligence service, specially the one of south korea, she somehow got in. naturally it wasn’t just somehow, it was due to her noticeable motivation and exceeding degree.

being a new rookie in the nis, jane hopes that she can learn a lot more through her training and she is excited to be a part of the organization, also hoping that one day soon she will achieve her dream of being a forensic pathologist.

:// ACCESSING PSYCHOLOGICAL EVALUATION …

jane is a very ambitious girl, as well as she is enthusiastic about most things. but even though she had a good life up until now, she definitely doesn’t have an optimistic view about everything - she will often doubt herself and others, specially because everyday she is reminded of how quick a person’s life can end. this made her develop a certain ‘immunity’ towards the topic of death and it is definitely not the most charming aspect about her. jane enjoys the company of others and definitely works in a more productive way if she finds herself in a team - she often will think out loud and guide the conversation. due to her rather ‘normal’ upbringing, jane doesn’t seem to suffer from anything more than a peculiar liking for the macabre, which might seem a little bit off-putting to others. other than that, she comes off as a very polite young girl who knows exactly what she wants.

:// ACCESSING BACKGROUND FILES …

people usually associate being the youngest sibling as being the spoiled child of the family, the one who’s always pampered by the parents while the older ones are left aside once the adults have a new distraction. they say the parents don’t commit the same mistakes when raising their second child, mistakes that they have made while raising the first one. they say jealousy comes from the older child, who does their best to have the adults’ attention back to them.

but all of those affirmations were wrong when it came to jung minjae.

they also say being the youngest sibling means being bullied by older siblings, and on that — people were actually correct.

being the youngest of two brothers had never been beneficial for minjae, once he was always prived from doing anything that his older brother was allowed to do: hang out with friends, bring friends over, go on school trips with his classmates, etc. he had to go from home straight to school and vice versa unless his mother asked him to pass by some grocery store on his way from class.

and he wouldn’t go against that, he knew how harsh his mother could be if he disrespected her. but of course that didn’t apply to his brother.

his father also didn’t do anything, he also knew his wife better than anyone and she had him completely wrapped around her finger. she could do and say anything, mr. jung would only nod and glare at minjae with eyes that always said ‘do as she says’. but he could trust his father if he did anything that his mother didn’t approve if she wasn’t there to scold him.

mr. jung would keep minjae’s secrets, he was comprehensive when he caught minjae doing anything wrong, disobeying her orders. he would actually let minjae spend time with his friends when his wife wasn’t around, he would give minjae money to go and play games at the arcade, he wasn’t as strict as mrs. jung.

but as long as she was around, minjae wasn’t allowed to do anything. but his brother…

he could get home late, get drunk with his friends and even bring girls with him on weekends, and minjae never understood why he had so much more freedom. he was so jealous of his brother, he hated him. and the feeling was mutual.

“you’re so pathetic, minjae. you let mom treat you like a baby, you’re missing out so much stuff. idiot.” he’d say while laughing, with minjae’s cheeks burning red out of anger as he heard his brother’s friends laughing along.

but who would have guessed a divorce would solve all of minjae’s problems.

mrs. jung was caught cheating her husband and after the intense process of separation, minjae chose to stay with his father — for his mother’s shock and his brother’s joy. from that moment, the younger son of the jung family could finally see what freedom tasted like… he could finally be a teenager, he could finally enjoy the silly and simple things a young boy’s life could bring and he couldn’t be more satisfied.

he could go against his mother’s desire for him to become a doctor like his father, to study mathematics. a weird choice you might think, but he has always been really good at the subject in school, and somehow found joy in it.

five years after graduating high school, minjae graduated from university with straight as — and he’s proud to say he was the one who wrote the speech for the graduating ceremony.

he was hired at nis right after his graduation, thanks to his father’s connections and his desire to become an analytic methodologist. he’s happy with his job, happy with the people he works with and happy with the lack of contact he has with his mother and brother. he likes to keep it that way: the more distant he is from them, the happier he feels.

:// ACCESSING PSYCHOLOGICAL EVALUATION …

minjae is a hardworking man, he’s always very focused on his work and does his best to leave everything in a perfect state before he has to leave the hq — even if that means staying in later than usual, just for the sake of not leaving extra work for the next day. he’s usually reserved, if you don’t ask he won’t tell, but he still does his best to be friendly and it’s not difficult to get a smile or two from him. he loves his job, he loves working with numbers and he’s very good at it, you can call him a nerd and he won’t even be offended by it. sometimes you might even find him doing random calculations just for the “fun” of it. other than that, you can also describe him as a very gentle and caring person, he’s a good listener and will always be there for you if you need a shoulder to cry on or just someone to comfort you in a hard time — he might even try to give you advice if you want, but it’s not really certain that what he’s gonna tell you is the right thing you should do. he’s a good friend if you need one.

:// ACCESSING BACKGROUND FILES …

rumour has it they were happy back in the day.

her father owned a successful business which meant a large home, an array of expensive gifts, not to mention a pristine reputation. they were apparently a family envied by many for being seemingly perfect; hardworking husband, pretty wife, prettier daughter.

but then they crash and burn in spectacular fashion, a glittering empire crumbling in a matter of weeks; a fall said to be inevitable for a multitude of reasons.

from here the details become murky, truth lost among the gossip and rumours. people preferring to offer their own side of the story rather than seeking out the exact details on what went on behind the scenes.

bankruptcy. rival business. gambling addiction. shady connections. plain greed.

their standard of living takes a dive—and so does she, dragged face first into a world absolutely nobody wants to be a part of.

/

sometimes home is a cramped one bedroom apartment on the outskirts of seoul. sometimes home is the living room floor of an acquaintance. sometimes home is the backseat of the family’s car. never pleasant, never comfortable. never hers. somehow they manage: father, mother, and her. a miserable trio scampering from one dilapidated house to another, desperately clinging onto any hope that they’ll make it through another day. which they do, barely. she doesn’t question it. grows accustomed to finding bills hidden beneath old newspapers and waking to the landlord’s demand for rent at 1 am. believes it’s normal to live on three day old rice and whatever else her mother can prepare from a near empty fridge. doesn’t blink an eye when her father announces they have to move somewhere else for the second time that month.

too young to understand the reasons why they’re subjected to this hellish experience. not young enough to realise that she deserves better, they deserve better.

/

poor girl. dirty girl. sad girl. it’s the norm to address yura by anything but her name. not that she minds—or more specifically, not that she has any say in the matter when classmates are adamant on frowning upon her very existence anyway. poking fun at her lowly status and tarnished reputation, like it’s her own damn fault that the world has it out for her at every turn. so she feigns ignorance, redirects her attention to her studies and other activities where her questionable family history isn’t the main topic of conversation. no easy feat when everyone is insistent they know more than she does. bad girl. violent girl. bully girl. she can’t be blamed for snapping when a “joke” crosses the line and hits a nerve. word spreads fast of an incident involving her fist and the jaw of a popular upperclassman, and previous judgemental looks quickly turn into that of disgust, of borderline fear.

as much as yura despises the way her name is dragged through the mud, she begrudgingly admits it isn’t too bad. it’s better, maybe, to be feared than pitied by complete strangers. those who don’t even care.

/

they say she shares a lot of similarities with her father. don’t you see it, they ask. by the way you both smile and laugh, they point out. no way anyone can ignore the fact you’re his daughter, they tell her. but she struggles to see it. only associates him with helplessness and failure, both traits she’s certain they don’t share. perhaps they’d been similar once, at a time when they weren’t burdened by the need to make ends meet. laughter would’ve come freely then, and she might’ve been able to revel in the very details that brought them together as a father and daughter pair. for now they couldn’t be anymore different. him, regularly found in a drunken stupor, mourning his fall from grace with the assistance of cheap soju. her, reading outside a nearby restaurant when the electricity is suddenly cut off at home, trying to avoid following in his footsteps.

her mother tires of their situation and never hesitates to threaten walking out. makes a scene of packing her bags and announcing her imminent departure before quietly returning hours, days later.

normally she refrains from asking why. pretends nothing has changed and goes about her usual routine, except she’s ever curious today. thinks the whole packing and unpacking business is more trouble than it’s worth.

“it’s because i love him.” “that’s sad.” the words roll off her tongue, and a single glance over to her mother is enough for yura to regret opening her mouth in the first place. the answer she receives is only confirmation of that. “yeah.” a long pause. “it really is.”

/

graduation will be it. better life, better pay. money to buy an actual home that’s free of mould, creaky floors, and disgruntled landlords. maybe there’ll be enough to relocate to a high end suburb she’s read so much about and forge a brand-new identity, a sought after fresh beginning. study hard, this will be hers. knows it can be, sees it to be true by the amount of stories she’s heard of people like her. bottom of the rung folks who’ve worked their way up and now lead a life starkly different to what they started with. an escape can be granted if she tries. uses her brain for more than breaking the landlord’s locks (out of necessity, obviously) and wandering the streets with a ragtag group of friends in tow.

alas, normalcy doesn’t bode well for her.

she dreads the daily grind of day-to-day life. climbing up the corporate ladder isn’t as appealing as others make it out to be, nor is abiding by what society insists is in order for a young woman like her: marriage, motherhood, filial piety until death. even now, with nothing to her name, the prospect of settling for stability is amazingly out of the question. if it means sacrificing her own enjoyment for the sake of fitting in and catering to what’s expected of her, she’s happy to go without it. teachers tut over her eventual choice, as if she’s making a massive mistake over signing her name to join the police. maybe she is, maybe she isn’t. either way, she doesn’t think it’s anyone’s business but her own over what she chooses to do with the rest of her life. then again, why should it?

/

safe to say, training brings her to her knees. meaning: she really, really likes it here. potential bad habits are all but crushed beneath the heel of superiors eager to see what she’s worth, what she can do; this gangly thing with a smart mouth and chip on her shoulder. if anything, the reason she provides for joining the force (“the uniforms, i’m a fan”) simply gives them the incentive to run her ragged. which they certainly do, in an almost sadistic fashion, except to their surprise, she manages to flourish—and then some. strict discipline is all she needs and it does well to shape her into a deadly weapon. talents are already there: dogged determination and reckless sort of fearlessness. they just need to polish each and every one of it up until she emerges gleaming, shining; much like the framed college degree on her wall.

an uncanny knack to remain cool under pressure becomes the draw card for many. throw her into the most difficult of situations and she’ll pull through. slightly battered, a little bruised. but most importantly: alive. it’s commonly assumed that she simply thrives in chaotic environments such as these. the type who isn’t distracted by irrelevant details and can be solely focused on the task at hand. capable of adhering to instructions while simultaneously preparing a plan b for when things don’t quite click.

kinda stubborn, kinda risky. all round lethal.

she supposes she only has her tumultuous home life to thank for getting this far.

/

he’s impressed.

“i think you should apply though.”

“is this your way of getting rid of me, sunbaenim? i’m hurt.”

it used to be perceived as an ominous sign whenever the superintendent bursts out laughing, though she’s long come to see it as a reassurance of sorts. that, she hasn’t completely fucked up in his presence and her body won’t be thrown into the han river at dusk for ruining his usual foul mood.

a very, very good sign indeed.

”you know what i mean. you’d do well elsewhere, with them.”

“guess i’ll think about it.”

“is that a yes?”

“it’s honestly a ‘i have to compare salaries first and get back to you’ kinda yes.”

“yura.”

she grins, decides to cut back on the jokes before he dumps her in the river for real. “i’m kidding, i’ll do it. want to see if their coffee is as good as ours, too.”

god knows what the coffee tastes like at nis. they could be drinking the elixir of life and she’d still be reluctant to relocate, uncertain of what they could possibly offer her when she has everything she needs over here. a steady career, wide social circle, glowing reputation.

can’t say the hesitation is enough to deter her from completing an application out of plain curiosity, though.

/

after much deliberation, the application is sent through without dwelling on what might occur if she’s accepted. doesn’t hold much of a hope she’ll make the cut when there are bound to be others who would be better suited for the role. candidates who are more experienced and fulfil the criteria nis have set out, whereas she may fall short somewhere along the lines.

she prepares for rejection. reality, however, has another thing coming.

training puts her through her paces once again, but she digs deep and holds on in the exact same way she’s been taught to do, learned to do over the years. rides with the punches until she adheres to their lofty expectations, leaving nothing to be desired—besides keeping her smartass comments to herself.

experience is taken into consideration when they ultimately usher her to the role of marksman, and it’d be a lie to say she isn’t somewhat perplexed by their decision. it’s not what she initially had in mind, especially with the position she’s just left behind, but she bites her tongue and accepts the offer anyway.

we need someone like you here though, they explain. someone focused, someone calm, someone with a damn good aim.

can you do this for us?

she can, and she does.

:// ACCESSING PSYCHOLOGICAL EVALUATION …

they deem her bright, diligent, ruthless; a woman in possession of a sharp mind but sharper tongue. such ferocity is hidden beneath a calm and collected demeanour, only resorting to violence in situations where negotiation is no longer on the cards. rumour has it her anger is especially volatile, bloody even, though no one’s been fortunate enough to bear witness to such a scene to be able to confirm.

despite her line of work, yura manages to maintain a happy go lucky approach in regards to delegated tasks and interactions with colleagues. first to crack a joke, first to suggest heading out for a round of drinks, first to distance herself from serious and stressful situations. it’d be far from beneficial to be constantly preoccupied with either past or present missions, and she never fails to emphasise the importance of being able to ‘switch off’ once the job is complete.

many frequently mistaken her laid back nature to be that of pure laziness instead, what with her tendencies to move around at a leisurely pace and taking things in her stride. could be seen as not caring enough, or half heartedly doing whatever necessary before quickly shifting her focus elsewhere—which couldn’t be further from the truth. she’s always watching, always listening, and always willing to defend when the time calls for it.

rest assured that the success of the agency is a main priority, and yura has every intention of ensuring the safety of those involved won’t be jeopardised.