I arrived at the headquarters wearing plain clothes because I had no reason to impress anyone. I was there to observe the company before officially taking over as its incoming chief executive. At the lobby, a woman glanced at me once and decided I was a custodian. When I corrected her, she changed her mind and called me an intern. Then she told me the executive elevator was not for people like me.

A quiet employee named Boram warned me not to argue and pointed toward the service lift. I asked how anyone reached the floors above fifty-eight. She lowered her voice and said some employees climbed four flights every day because executives had decided they were not worthy of sharing an elevator with them.

That angered me more than the insult. I walked toward the executive elevator anyway.

The doors opened.

And what I saw inside made me stop breathing.