Chapter 497: Chapter 497

350 words

<html><head></head><body>Bianca Savigny paced back and forth across the wine cellar, her phone clutched tightly in her hand. Beads of sweat dotted her forehead. "Has anyone seen Evelyn?" She stopped a passing waiter, her voice thick with urgency. "Miss Roland? I think she went toward the wine cellar." Before the waiter could finish, Bianca was already sprinting in that direction. At the corner, she nearly collided with Evelyn Roland, who had just emerged from the cellar. "Evelyn! It's an emergency!" Bianca grabbed Evelyn's arm, her fingers trembling slightly. Evelyn frowned and calmly withdrew her arm. "Another social media scandal?" Her tone was as casual as if she were discussing the weather.  "It's about Melanie Linton's suicide! The whole internet is accusing the Starlight Initiative of profiting from tragedy!" Bianca stomped her foot in frustration and shoved her phone into Evelyn's hands. The screen was flooded with vicious comments and accusations. Evelyn scrolled through the vile remarks, her expression growing colder by the second. "Evelyn, even though your name isn't directly mentioned in the trending topics—" "I know."  Evelyn cut her off, handed the phone back, and turned toward her office. At the same moment, the atmosphere in the lab was equally tense. Daniel and David Murphy rushed in, their faces pale. "Sebastian, we have a problem!" Seeing Sebastian Valdemar present, they visibly relaxed. Zachary Merouin leaned in curiously. "What's going on?"  Sebastian took the phone and quickly scanned the screen. His face remained impassive, but his knuckles turned white. "Sebastian?" Daniel spoke cautiously. "Stay in the lab. Don't go outside." Sebastian's voice was icy.  Zachary finally glimpsed the phone's contents and frowned. "Someone's clearly manipulating public opinion." "I'll handle it." Sebastian tossed the phone back to Daniel and walked to the window. Zachary followed. "Need any help?" "No." The refusal was crisp and final. Sunlight streamed through the window but couldn't penetrate the darkness in Sebastian's eyes. Knowing his friend's temperament, Zachary didn't press further. He simply patted Sebastian's shoulder. "I'm here if you need me." The lab fell into an eerie silence, broken only by the faint hum of machinery.  </body></html>