?Chapter 349:


    Lance blinked, confused, and asked, “Mr. Tucker, I don’t understand. What do you mean?”


    Hutton looked at him as if he were a fool. “Mr. Evans, you were standing right here when I spoke with my mentor. And you’re telling me you still don’t get it?”


    Though Hutton understood that River’s true identity was meant to stay under wraps, Elliana’s public scolding made it clear that she wasn’t hiding anything from these people today. That gave Hutton the confidence to speak so directly to Lance. But Lance’s brain was still spinning. Even with all the cluesid out in front of him, he lookedpletely lost and kept asking pointless questions.


    Hutton could only shake his head, convinced there was no saving Lance. Noticing that Elliana had walked farther down the hall, he hurried after her. It had been ages since hest saw his mentor. Now that she was here, he didn’t want to waste a second. If they could share a meal, that would be the perfect chance to catch up.


    Lance stood frozen, watching Hutton eagerly rush after Elliana, still struggling to make sense of everything. He couldn’t tell whether they were crazy or if he was missing something huge.


    “You idiot!” Emmanuel finally reacted, shoving Lance hard in the shoulder. “Elliana is River! Go after her now!”


    “Huh?” Lance froze in ce, staring nkly at Emmanuel like he hadn’t heard him correctly.


    The words had reached Lance’s ears, and they had even echoed in his mind, but they made no sense at all. Elliana was River? That couldn’t be real. He had always mocked her, calling her dull and unpleasant to look at. How could the woman he thought of as a clueless nuisance turn out to be the person who mentored someone like Hutton? How could the one he found irritating actually be the person he admired most?


    While Lance stood frozen in disbelief, Emmanuel let out a tired sigh. He gave up on waiting for Lance to process things and decided to go after Hutton and Elliana himself.


    Elliana, knowing full well they woulde chasing, had slowed her steps on purpose. She hadn’t yet exited the private corridor of the AI R&D Department.


    Hutton reached Elliana first, and not long after, Emmanuel caught up as well.


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    “Elliana, I want to apologize on Lance’s behalf. Could I ask you to stay and help me with the issue we’re facing?” Emmanuel said, his expression marked by a courteous smile.


    Because Emmanuel had always treated her with respect, Elliana saw no reason to turn him down and came to a stop.


    Just then, Lance also caught up. His mind seemed to have cleared during the walk over. His cheeks were red with embarrassment, and he kept his gaze anywhere but on Elliana. He opened his mouth like he had something to say—but no words came out.


    Elliana studied Lance with a knowing smile, then turned to Emmanuel and deliberately said in an aloof tone, “It’s not that I don’t want to help, Emmanuel. But Lance thinks I’m too dumb to be useful. I wouldn’t want to force my help on someone who doesn’t value it.”


    Hutton, having just been scolded by Elliana moments ago, now stood silently off to the side, his posture straight and manner subdued like a well-mannered elder.


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