Kimi looked at the young woman, who seemed to be around their age.
"So... who are you?"
He tilted his head.
"Another practical teacher?"
Izhan burst into laughter.
"No."
She pointed towards the corridor where Krishna and Rozman had disappeared.
"I'm with PPDKB."
She grinned.
"Just tailing them."
The young trio bought their respective snacks and drinks: two energy drinks, one iced tea, and three packets of Cheetos.
Izhan looked at them.
"By the way, guys... can I spare your time?"
Azman raised an eyebrow.
"For what?"
Kimi nudged him and whispered.
"She's from PPDKB. Probably here to solve Ruhinie's relief problem."
Azman looked back at Izhan.
"Oh."
He nodded.
"External help. Cool."
They sat at the Pondok Ilmiah with their snacks.
Izhan opened her notebook.
"Tell me about Teacher Ruhinie. How often does she ask both of you to cover her relief classes?"
Azman answered without hesitation.
"Almost every week."
He sighed.
"She would message me at night asking me to take her relief classes. Sometimes, it was already decided before I even agreed."
Kimi nodded.
"Same with me. I'm not an exception."
He laughed bitterly.
"They even started calling me 'Raja Relief.'"
Izhan listened quietly.
She understood their frustration. Even she had been assigned various tasks beyond the investigation.
Azman then showed her several pictures sent by Ruhinie.
"Look at these."
Izhan examined them carefully.
A steering wheel.
An invitation.
A hall.
"GeOS meeting?"
Kimi nodded.
"Yeah. Election season is coming."
Izhan looked at the photos again.
"Can you send these to me?"
Azman agreed.
They exchanged numbers through WhatsApp.
Something about them bothered her.
Without making any assumptions, she forwarded the images to Rozman.
Izhan: Sir, I received these from one of the practical teachers. Can you have a look?
A few moments later, Rozman's phone vibrated.
He opened the attachments and studied them carefully.
Azman and Kimi checked the time.
"We should get back. Our classes are starting soon."
They stood up and collected their snacks.
"Thank you, Izhan," Azman said.
Kimi smiled.
"Good luck... hopefully you can lessen our burden."
Izhan nodded.
Watching them leave, she realised something.
This was more than just an investigation.
It was also about supporting the people who had been quietly carrying the weight.
A small act of peer support.
At 5 Delta, Megat approached the students.
"Can I ask something? What was Teacher Ruhinie's last lesson like?"
One student raised his hand.
"She just asked us to complete the module."
Syarah took one of the modules from the student's desk.
She flipped through the pages.
Her eyes widened.
"These weren't marked."
Megat watched the students quietly completing their work.
He leaned closer to Syarah and lowered his voice.
"Somehow... this reminds me of the 2018 case."
Syarah looked at him.
"The one where a teacher left students unattended at a school in Kota Belud?"
Megat nodded.
"Different circumstances, but the pattern feels familiar."
His eyes moved back to the classroom.
"When the adults are absent, the students are the ones who carry the consequences."
Meanwhile, Rozman and Krishna interviewed Nazurah, the teacher who had been assigned to relieve 5 Etha.
Fortunately, this class was different.
"Their work was always completed," Nazurah explained.
Krishna looked through the records.
"As a Physics teacher, you were also assigned to cover Teacher Ruhinie's classes?"
Nazurah nodded.
"Yes, sir."
"What about their submissions?"
Nazurah answered calmly.
"I only followed the syllabus and made sure they continued with their work."
She paused.
"But honestly..."
She looked at the classroom.
"Poor students. They are preparing for SPM, yet their teacher was frequently away."
Rozman noticed Krishna's expression.
Before he could respond, Rozman's phone vibrated.
He checked the message.
A new finding from Izhan.
"Sir."
He showed the information to Krishna.
Krishna nodded.
"Thank you, Teacher Nazurah. You've been a great help."
He turned to Rozman.
"Let's return to Teacher Megat's office."
The senior administrators and the PPDKB investigation team gathered in Megat's office.
Krishna switched on the smart TV.
Rozman connected his tablet and mirrored the screen.
With a quiet sense of confidence, he presented the team's findings.
Izhan stepped forward.
"I retrieved additional materials from the practical teachers."
The screen changed.
The chat records between Ruhinie and Azman appeared, followed by the photos that had been sent.
The room became silent.
Rozman continued.
"These records support the complaint regarding the frequency of her leave applications and the impact on relief arrangements."
Krishna studied the screen carefully.
"Now, we verify whether these activities matched the approved leave facilities."
Megat stared at the photos on the screen.
"So... these were her 'urusan peribadi'?"
The room fell silent.
Krishna slowly stood up.
He had spent years reading circulars and regulations. Being a DEO had taught him one important skill—not just enforcing rules but protecting the integrity of the process.
"Before we make any conclusion, we need to separate two matters."
He looked at the documents.
"First, whether the leave applied for was appropriate."
He turned to the screen.
"Second, whether the activity itself complied with the regulations governing civil servants."
Krishna opened the relevant circular.
"Government officers must always be careful when participating in activities that may be connected to political organisations. However,"
He paused.
"Evidence must determine the conclusion. Assumption cannot replace verification."
Rozman nodded.
"That's why we investigate."
Rozman placed a hand on Megat's shoulder.
"Mr Principal, I believe it would be best to review and retract the approval of her CTR and CRK applications where the requirements were not fulfilled."
Megat nodded.
"Student performance has always been our priority as educators."
Krishna looked at the documents one last time.
"Governments may change. Administrations may change."
He paused.
"But our responsibility as civil servants remains the same."
The room fell silent.
"To serve the people entrusted to us."
Krishna noticed Megat's hesitation.
"Mr Principal, don't carry unnecessary guilt over this."
Megat looked at him.
"As a head of department, your responsibility is to make decisions that protect your staff and students."
Krishna continued.
"I had to make a similar decision with Iskandar last Christmas when PPDKB was short-staffed."
He smiled slightly.
"He understood. There was no resentment."
Syarah nodded.
"That's what we hoped for, sir."
She looked at the documents.
"We wished Teacher Ruhinie could have handled it the same way."
The SMK Putra top management thanked the PPDKB team for their consultation.
As everyone prepared to leave, Izhan looked at Megat with a sad expression.
She pouted.
"Aww... why was our meeting so short?"
Megat and Syarah laughed.
"You are still as manja as ever with your teachers."
Megat smiled.
"Thank you for your help, Izhan."
He looked genuinely grateful.
"Without your quirky ideas, I might have carried unnecessary guilt as a principal."
Syarah nodded.
"You helped prevent another case from happening."
Krishna glanced at Syarah.
Those words lingered.
Another case.
Another memory.
Rozman noticed his expression.
Carefully, he placed an arm around Krishna's shoulder.
"Sir... things haven't been stable since you returned from Terengganu."
Krishna smiled faintly and leaned into the gesture.
"Maybe I need some rest."
The team walked back to the vehicle.
But the memory of the vault remained.
The following day, Rozman's phone vibrated.
A WhatsApp message from Megat.
Megat: Our teacher Ruhinie has been advised to stop applying for unnecessary CTRs.
The three dots appeared.
Megat: She will be under Syarah's observation.
A small smile appeared on Rozman's face.
Their strict PK1.
Back at Krishna's office, the DEO stood before the vault.
He unlocked it.
Inside were years of unresolved cases, documents, and reports.
He retrieved the latest complaint report and printed it as supporting evidence.
As he picked up the paper, something caught his attention.
A small piece of potato chip lay on the floor.
Krishna stared at it.
"I didn't eat a chip before I left."
Before he could think further, his WhatsApp Desktop notification appeared.
Pans: You're doing great, Kris! 🥰
Krishna looked at the message.
A small smile formed.
He replied with only one thing.
Kris: 🥔
Somewhere inside PPDKB...
A case was resolved.
A lesson was learned.
But the mysteries of the office continued to evolve.
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