FES (TRACE)

The FES conference room smelled of cold coffee and heavy tension. The investigation into the businessman's murder had been ongoing for three days, but instead of answers, the operatives were finding nothing but dead ends.

The situation had become so critical that Galina Nikolaevna had summoned absolutely everyone. Kruglov frowned gloomily by the window. Maysky, Lisitsyn, Kotov, Danilov, Granin, Berezin, and Vlasova, exhausted after hours of stakes-outs, sat around the table. The technical and laboratory departments were also frozen in place: Tikhonov was incessantly clicking his pen, Kholodov was wiping his glasses, and Lomov was clutching an inhaler in his pocket. Amelina and Belaya were flipping through ballistic reports, while Subbotin and Semenchuk whispered quietly in the corner. Even the medical block—Antonova, Selivanov, and Professor Romashin—had left their offices. But the collective mind was stalling. Rogozina scanned the exhausted team with her gaze.

"Colleagues, we've checked the billing, accounts, ballistics, and biological traces. But we're spinning our wheels. We've developed tunnel vision. We need an absolutely fresh perspective, one not constrained by the framework of instructions." Kruglov looked surprised:

"Galya, do you want to bring in someone from the ministry?"

"No, Nikolai Petrovich. An hour ago, I contacted the university rector and asked him to send us their best student. We need an intern. Someone with a clean analytical mind who can look at the patterns without templates." Tikhonov snorted.

"An intern? How is a student supposed to help us?"

"They'll bring us coffee, Vanya," Maysky chuckled.

"Stop the skepticism," Rogozina cut him off. "The person should arrive any minute now..."

At that moment, a distinct, polite knock sounded at the door in the silence of the conference room. All twenty people turned their heads simultaneously. The door slowly opened, and there, on the threshold, appeared that very "fresh perspective."