Inviting her alone to the Tech Institute was like barking up the wrong tree.


    Hank got the drift of Mirabe''s words almost immediately, and his brow furrowed a bit. He''d specifically called her in because, during theirst interaction, he''d noticed she was the linchpin of the team. Besides, after digging a bit, he found out she was a real jack-of-all-trades.


    Was she ying hard to get on purpose?


    Hank threw a bunch of questions her way, but Mirabe''s responses were always the same: "I don''t know, can''t help you there. If you want answers, you''ll have to ask my professor, Zane. He''s the one in charge."


    In the end, Hank didn''t get a single answer, and it had him boiling inside. He hadn''t expected the student he''d called in to be so sly,cking the straightforwardness he thought college students usually had.


    With no useful info in hand, Hank soon had Mirabe escorted out of theb. He didn''t stick around either, heading straight to the conference room, still wearing a scowl.


    His assistant had just wrapped up signing a partnership deal with Dr. King. Noticing Hank''s sour mood, the assistant greeted him with respect but wisely avoided any probing questions.


    Dr. King and Calvin both nodded a greeting his way.


    "Is everything signed?" Hank asked as he pulled out a chair and sat down.


    The assistant nodded, cing the agreement in front of Hank. Yet, Hank didn''t bother flipping through it. Instead, he nced at Dr. King and Calvin, unable to shake off his irritation. "Your students sure are something else."


    His tone was far fromplimentary, which made Dr. King and Calvin exchange puzzled looks. Mr. Calvin then took the initiative to ask, "What''s up?"


    Hank gave a wry smile and leaned back in his chair, "Oh, nothing. Just impressed by their eloquence."


    Calvin didn''t know what exactly Mirabe did in theb to rile Hank up, but he figured it was probably her brash attitude that got under Hank''s skin.


    With a cating smile, Calvin said, "Mirabe is young, and sometimes her words are a bit too straightforward. If she''s offended you in any way, please let it slide. I''ll have a word with herter."


    Dr. King frowned slightly at this.


    Hank waved it off, saying, "Forget it, it''s no big deal."


    Calvin felt a bit of relief seeing Hank''s expression lighten up after some small talk, and Hank wasn''t looking as grim as before.


    Mirabe really didn''t know when to hold back, treating the Tech Institute staff like schoolteachers and just saying whatever she pleased.


    Having to smooth things over for her, Calvin was mentally exhausted. What good is being a genius if you don''t contribute to the Tech Institute''s projects?


    Meanwhile, Mirabe had taken a quick restroom break and decided not to head back to the lounge. Instead, she wandered outside for some fresh air and made her way to a public bench by the flowerbed.


    Taking a seat, she pulled out her phone and started scrolling through the group chat of herb team.


    Linden and Kason often discussedb issues in the chat, and with time on her hands, Mirabe began offering practical solutions to everyone''s problems.


    She was dressed in a snow-white down jacket that day, the fur cor making her head look even more petite. Her slightly curled hair was tied up in a fluffy bun, making her quite the sight as she sat there.


    Up in Dr. Ray''s office on the third floor, a young man stood by the window, his eyes glued to the striking figure in white below.