?Chapter 649:


    The next morning, as Ste walked into the institute, Lainey rushed over with a sneaky grin and pulled her aside. “Stel, guess who’s here at the institute today?”


    Ste shook her head. But with how crowded the hallway was, she figured it had to be someone important.


    “Who is it?”


    Lainey leaned closer. “Professor Frank McGill from Osnuria. He’s super famous! Won a bunch of awards years ago, and people still study his projects in ss.”


    Ste froze for a second. She knew that name. He was a big deal in their field, and she had even read through his patent work back in college.


    “He’s really here? Just like that?”


    Someone that important should’ve had a formal visit nned. This felt way too sudden.


    Lainey lowered her voice. “Apparently, he’s here for Nina. Word is, he’s close with her grandfather.”


    It all made sense now. Nina had brought in another powerful ally, and this visit was probably aimed at her.


    Lainey looked a little worried as she added, “The first thing he did after arriving was ask if you were around. I don’t think that’s a good sign, Stel.”


    Ste made up her mind to deal with things as they came. She gave Lainey’s shoulder a gentle pat and smiled softly. “Thanks for telling me.”


    Then she walked over to her workstation, nning to organize her things before heading to theb.


    But she had barely taken a few steps when Nina spotted her with those sharp eyes and called out with a bright smile, “Sylvia, you’re here! Frank was just looking for you.”


    Ste paused mid-step. It looked like there was no avoiding this meeting.


    She turned around and came face to face with Frank, who was dressed in a brown suit and wearing a beret. “Mr. McGill,” she greeted him politely. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”


    Frank looked her up and down but didn’t even bother to shake her hand. His voice was cold and condescending. “Ms. Gilbert, you say you’ve heard of me, but I haven’t seen any respect in your actions. You’rete.”


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    Ste almostughed. She calmly lowered her hand and replied, “The institute starts at nine. It’s only eight fifty. By any measure, I’m notte. Mr. McGill, using someone unfairly the first time you meet them seems rather rude, don’t you think?”


    She had nned to show him some respect, given his seniority, but his attitude left her no reason to hold back.


    Standing next to him, Nina chimed in with a stern look. “Sylvia, Professor McGill is highly respected in our field. How can you talk to him like that? And he didn’t mean to use you.”


    Ste nced at Nina, her eyes narrowing slightly. “If you don’t understand what ‘use’ means, maybe it’s time you brushed up on your vocabry.”


    Nina’s face instantly darkened. “What’s that supposed to mean?”


    “Exactly what you said… no usations, right?” Ste answered coolly, throwing her words right back at her.


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