Adelyn paused mid-step when she heard someone call out her name.

Although it had been a while since she started coming here, she hadn’t socialized enough to recognize many people in ZX Media.

So, for someone to call her out like that—

There was a high chance she already knew who it was.

And the moment she turned, she realized she hadn’t guessed wrong.

It was—

Corrin Thatcher.

The star manager of ZX Media.

He wore the same corrupted smile on his face that he had worn the last time she met him in Freya’s office.

And just looking at that smile, she knew—

He was up to no good.

But then again—

Since he had already called her out, she couldn’t simply walk away and ignore him.

So, putting on her own polite, formal smile, she responded,

"Manager Thatcher, how may I help you?"

Corrin stopped in front of her, giving her a long look from head to toe.

Then he scoffed arrogantly.

"Help me? Really? Heh!"

He shook his head.

"Staying with Freya for just a few days, and you’re already growing as arrogant as her."

Adelyn’s brows lifted slightly.

But then, smiling faintly, she replied in a calm, polite tone, "I never bothered Sister Freya to teach me arrogance. And if you don’t believe me, why not try remembering my attitude the day we first met? You may realize not much has changed since then."

Thatcher’s expression immediately changed.

He hadn’t forgotten that evening at all.

He had held all the best cards in his hand —the best offer.

He had been confident that, with them, he would easily make Freya lose to him again.

And yet—

This woman had humiliated him.

He hadn’t forgotten that insult.

And he wouldn’t forget it anytime soon.

He would make sure she realized what she had lost by not choosing him that day.

"Arrogance only feels worthwhile when it comes with success," he jeered. "And right now, neither you nor your Sister Freya has achieved anything worth being arrogant about."

Adelyn didn’t respond.

Not every comment deserved a reply.

Taking her silence as a sign of victory, Corrin stepped forward more confidently. His one hand slipped into his pocket as he looked at her with open disdain.

"Tch ... I clearly gave you a way out that day," he said, his tone filled with contempt. "You could have chosen me, and I would have helped you easily. With my name and status in the industry, getting you a role worth attention wouldn’t have been difficult."

"But you had to act all superior."

He scoffed again.

"Look at where that pride has gotten you. You’re still running in and out of Freya’s office with nothing to show for it. And trust me —even if you keep doing that for a year, you’ll still have nothing in your name. Not a single project, not a single role, not a single bit of recognition."

His eyes sharpened.

His voice turned pressing —almost forceful.

He wanted to intimidate her.

To assert his authority.

To make her regret her decision.

But—

When his gaze met Adelyn’s—

She remained completely calm.

Unmoved.

Unaffected.

As if none of his words had reached her at all.

And the more he saw that—

The more it irritated him.

But then, suddenly, something crossed his mind.

A mocking smile curled on his lips.

He let out a short laugh and took a step back.

"I heard you recently made it to an audition?"

There was no trace of congratulations in his tone.

Only ridicule.

"Are you proud of that?" he continued, laughing again. "If you are, then how did you forget how they treated you there?"

To be honest, Corrin had been quite surprised when his assistant told him that Freya had managed to get her new artist to the audition stage.

For a moment, he had even thought—

That perhaps Freya would turn things around this time.

But when he heard what had happened during the audition, he couldn’t help but feel relieved.

What was so impressive about attending an audition where you were only there to be humiliated?

Thinking about it now ...

he couldn’t help but laugh at Adelyn’s composed expression. It was a clear pretension to hide the humiliation she had to go through during the audition.

"I heard that just to make things difficult for you, they changed your script at the last moment," he said with a sneer. "Not only did they make you compete against industry veterans, they even made it clear that you were there as a joke."

Adelyn paused slightly at that.

A joke?

Really?

How had she not realized that?

She couldn’t stop the faint curl of her lips.

She knew the industry was full of gossip and distorted truths.

But even so—

This was still impressive.

Wasn’t the game of Chinese whispers fascinating?

It could turn anything into the most ridiculous story.

Not only had the well-known Director Rhodes personally asked her to audition for the female lead—

But in their version, he had done it just for a joke.

If that wasn’t absurd, what was?

And above all—

Corrin believed it.

After all his years in the industry, he still fell for such nonsense.

Well—

People often believed what suited them best.

"Will you just stand there and keep pretending?" Thatcher snapped through gritted teeth, clearly irritated that he still hadn’t gotten a reaction from her.

Adelyn blinked at his words.

Her lips parted slightly—

And just when Corrin thought she would break down and beg him for another chance—

She closed them again, pressing them into a faint, almost mocking smile.

"Manager Thatcher," she said calmly, "it seems you enjoy gossip quite a bit. Please, take your time laughing over it."

She paused briefly before adding,

"I’m here to meet Sister Freya, so I’ll be on my way now ..."

And with that, she had no intention of lingering any longer.

She turned and walked away.

Behind her, Corrin reached out, trying to stop her.

But before his hand could even touch her—

She had already slipped past him.

"You—!"

He stomped his foot in frustration.

"Adelyn Grace," his brows furrowed as he muttered through his clenched teeth, "I will make you regret this arrogance. One day, you will beg me to accept you."

However—

What he didn’t know was that his words would remain nothing more than a wishful delusion—

One that would never come true.