The Algorithm Of Deceit

Chapter Two

The shrill beeping of the alarm clock sliced through the silence of the room. Kang Ji-hyun groaned, rolling over in bed and squinting at the glowing numbers—6:30 AM. She had already snoozed twice, which meant she had exactly thirty minutes to shower, dress, and sprint out the door if she wanted to make it to work on time.

With a heavy sigh, she tossed her blanket aside and dragged herself out of bed, her feet meeting the cold wooden floor. She had stayed up too late debugging a stubborn script, and now she was paying for it. But being a data engineer meant there was no such thing as "off the clock."

The scent of freshly brewed coffee filled her small apartment as she rushed through her morning routine. Black slacks, a pale blue blouse, a quick swipe of lip tint, and her hair pulled into a loose ponytail—it was the best she could do in under fifteen minutes.

She grabbed her laptop bag and her cup of coffee before slipping into her sneakers. Just as she was about to step out the door, her phone vibrated in her pocket.

Unknown Caller.

Ji-hyun frowned. It was too early for spam calls. She hesitated for a second before swiping to answer.

"Hello?"

Silence.

Her brows knitted together. "Hello? Who is this?"

Nothing. Just the faint sound of static, like someone was on the line but refusing to speak.

A strange unease crept up her spine. "Yah, if this is a prank, it's not funny."

Still, no response. Then—click. The call ended abruptly.

Ji-hyun scowled at the screen. Weird. She shook off the lingering discomfort and stuffed her phone back into her pocket. She was already running late.

The subway was packed, as usual. Ji-hyun squeezed herself between a businessman scrolling through his tablet and a university student bobbing his head to music blasting through his headphones. She exhaled, her grip tightening around the metal pole as the train lurched forward.

Her thoughts drifted to work—another long day of optimizing databases, fixing broken queries, and trying not to lose her mind when someone sent her an email asking if they could "just use Excel instead."

Her phone vibrated again.

She pulled it out of her pocket, her stomach tightening at the sight of the Unknown Caller once more.

Ji-hyun hesitated. Could it be...?

No. That was ridiculous. But the thought had already taken root. With a deep breath, she answered.

"Yah, Kang Soo-ah, if this is your idea of a joke, I'm going to—"

Click.

The call cut off again before she could finish.

Ji-hyun's pulse spiked.

She stared at her phone, her fingers tightening around the device. Her twin sister's name had left her lips before she could stop it.

Kang Soo-ah.

They hadn't spoken in three years. Not since their last fight. Not since Soo-ah had made her choice. Ji-hyun swallowed hard, her throat suddenly dry.

This couldn't be a coincidence, right?

A part of her wanted to believe that maybe—just maybe—Soo-ah was reaching out after all this time. But why like this? Why through anonymous, silent calls? She tapped her screen, scrolling through her contacts until she found Soo-ah's number. Pressing call, she lifted the phone to her ear, listening intently.