The research floor buzzed with controlled chaos, holographic displays lighting up and showing genetic sequencing data, the soft whir of automated equipment, hushed conversations between brilliant minds.

Through it all, Cassia Stellan moved like a force of nature.

Her heels tapped against the pristine white floor with metronomic precision. She wore a tailored red suit that hugged her powerful figure, the pencil skirt clinging perfectly to her mature curves. A spotless white lab coat draped over her shoulders like a cape, not just clothing, but a statement of absolute power.

Light from the vast, glowing equipment caught her sharp silver-streaked hair, creating an almost ethereal halo that only emphasized the ice in her hazel eyes. She looked every inch the untouchable CEO, the genius entrepreneur, the woman who had built an empire on innovation and ruthless efficiency.

But everyone who worked here long enough knew the signs: the barely perceptible tightness around her mouth, the way her fingers drummed once, just once, against her thigh, the microscopic narrowing of her eyes. That all told them that Cassia Stellan was annoyed.

And when Cassia was annoyed, careers hung in the balance.

She swept through the busy workspace with the confidence of someone who owned not just the building, but the very air people breathed inside it. Researchers, who were focused, hunched over their stations instinctively straightened as she passed, like students caught slacking when the headmistress walked by.

She stopped at the senior research area, where Sasha and Elara were working intently with holographic screens displaying impossibly complex genetic information that would look like abstract art to anyone without an education in bioengineering.

Her sharp, analytical gaze found her target: Dr. Vivienne Haximus, the senior researcher who headed the agricultural bioengineering division.

"Dr. Haximus," Cassia began, her voice smooth and crisp, demanding immediate attention. "The sterility problem. The plants we've modified can't produce a second generation. It's been three cycles since we started. I need an update, the early results weren't clear enough. Have your teams figured out what's causing them to fail?"

Vivienne Haximus, tall and flawless in her emerald-green outfit, straightened from her workstation. She stood confidently, but her ice-blue eyes showed a visible flicker of respect, and excitement.

"Lady Stellan," Vivienne replied, her voice losing its usual condescending tone and becoming genuinely focused. "The teams were right: the organism rejects the Vitae during the early growth stage. But we've changed our approach completely. The solution isn't about making things more stable."

Cassia's jaw tightened with frustration. "I know about the failure, Doctor. I want the solution. We need these plants for the contaminated zones now. The delay is unacceptable."

Vivienne's lips curved into a small, sharp smile, a look of pure scientific triumph. If it was before, Vivienne wouldn't have anything to smile about and would be worried about her job. But thanks to a new development she didn't have to worry about that. Hell, after this, she might even get another promotion,

She glanced at Elara and Sasha, who exchanged silent, relieved nods.

"We have the solution, Lady Stellan," Vivienne stated, her voice quiet but absolutely certain. "It was a fundamental design problem. We were treating the Vitae as a foreign element to be injected, but that was backwards."

She tapped a command, and the main holographic display changed. It showed a molecular model of a genetic sequence, now perfectly integrated with Vitae-receptive markers. They did exactly as Zaeryn had advised.

"The key is modifying things before conception. We're not adding the Vitae after the seed forms; we're encoding Vitae tolerance into the chromosomes. We make the Vitae receptivity part of the fundamental blueprint before conception, so it's simply part of what the seed is."

As she finished explaining herself, she had a proud smile across her face.

Judging by her body language, her proprietary tone, one would naturally assume she was the architect of this brilliant solution. Why wouldn't she be proud?

Only... she wasn't actually the one who'd thought of it.

Cassia stared at the holographic model, her sharp hazel eyes analyzing.

Cassia stared at the holographic model, her sharp hazel eyes analyzing the perfect data. The implications were staggering. It wasn't just a fix for sterile plants; it was a revolutionary concept. Her professional mask almost slipped, showing a flicker of pure awe at the brilliance of the idea.

"That is... incredibly elegant," Cassia breathed, praise that rarely came from her. Her eyes snapped back to Vivienne, sharp with suspicion. "Who came up with this solution? Your team was stuck on stabilization methods for weeks."

"My team has been at work on this for weeks, lady stellan and they finally found the solution." Vivienne explained.

As soon as she said those words, the whole room seemed to shift, scientists exchanging looks of disbelief and disappointment. Well, they knew that Vivienne was shamelessly lying and stealing someone's credit. The person who gave them the solution was an outsider, yet Vivienne was over here lying that the team did.

However not everyone disagreed with the fact that Vivienne was stealing the credit, some smiled and nodded in agreement.

Cassia nodded, however she noticed something from the corner of her eye. Two scientists seemed to disagree with Vivienne, Sasha and her colleagues were whispering to each other and shaking their heads whilst frowning. "Is something the matter… Sasha and Elara?"

Sasha and her colleague were startled that they got caught. Elara froze like a deer in headlights, her eyes going wide. She looked away quickly, clearly hoping to avoid this confrontation. Sasha did the same thing.

But Cassia Stellan didn't ask questions she didn't expect answers to.

"Dr. Sasha," Cassia repeated, her voice dropping to that dangerously quiet register that made junior researchers contemplate career changes. "You seem to have something you'd like to contribute to this discussion."

Sasha swallowed hard, glancing at Elara for support. Her colleague gave her a tiny, encouraging nod to tell her the truth.

Taking a deep breath, Sasha found her courage. "Lady Stellan," she began, her voice trembling slightly but gaining strength, "I... I have to correct the record. Dr. Haximus's team didn't develop this solution."

The room went deathly silent.

Vivienne's face darkened immediately, her expression shifting from proud to furious in a heartbeat. She shot Sasha a look that could have melted steel, a silent threat of professional consequences for this interruption.

But Cassia raised one hand, a gesture that commanded absolute silence and attention. "Continue, Dr. Sasha."

"The pre-conception modification approach," Sasha said, her words coming faster now, committed to the truth, "wasn't developed by any of us on the research team. It came from an outside source. Someone who observed our work and... and just suggested it. Casually. Like it was obvious."

Cassia felt something cold settle in her chest, a mixture of shock and something else she couldn't quite identify. That claim was extraordinary. Shocking. Certainly not something she heard every day in a facility filled with decades of collective experience.

"An outside source," Cassia repeated slowly, her voice carefully neutral, "solved a Level-4 classified research problem that has stumped my senior division for months? With a casual suggestion?"

Sasha nodded, looking miserable but determined. "Yes, Lady Stellan."

"Dr. Haximus," Cassia turned her full attention back to Vivienne, her expression hardening into something glacial. "Is this true?"

Vivienne met her gaze, and for a moment, calculation flickered behind her eyes. She had hoped to take credit for this, so that it can seem like she had led her team to yet another success, however that plan was dead. Now, she was clearly weighing options, deny it and risk being called a liar by multiple witnesses, or admitting it and facing the uncomfortable questions that would follow.

She chose honesty. Barely.

"It was indeed an outside insight, Lady Stellan," Vivienne said carefully, choosing each word like stepping through a minefield. "A theoretical suggestion based on... casual observation of our work during a facility tour."

Cassia's arms crossed slowly, deliberately. Her authority filled the space like a physical presence. "I want a name, Dr. Haximus. Who, exactly, has both the clearance to be given access to a Level-4 project and the expertise to offer 'casual observations' that solve problems my entire senior division couldn't crack?"

As she said those words, Cassia had already made a decision, whoever it was that had given them that solution was going to be part of Stellan Innovations. They were clearly a genius mind, 'and Stellan Innovations can use that, especially now that Sage has left,' She told herself.

Vivienne paused, and despite the seriousness of the situation, there was a flicker of something in her expression, satisfaction at delivering shocking news.

"The suggestion came from your daughter's... visitor," Vivienne said, savoring the revelation. "The unusual guest who was here yesterday. The young man." She paused for dramatic effect. "Zaeryn Noctis."

Cassia froze. That name…. Was not something she had hoped to hear, especially not in this conversation. It was a complete shocker. Every thought in her mind screeched to a halt. The name hung in the air between them like a grenade with the pin pulled.

"Zaeryn Noctis?" Cassia repeated, her voice barely above a whisper but carrying the pressure of an earthquake. "My daughter's boyfriend?"

"The same," Vivienne confirmed.

Cassia didn't say anything, she just stood in thought, and then said,"Interesting."

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