Chapter 3

Two men I had just seen on the news yesterday were standing at the conference room door—

The Bureau Chief of the Riverdale Criminal Investigation Bureau and the CFO of Rontech Enterprises, a Fortune 100 company.

The VP's face went white at the sight of such important figures. He practically bowed, a strained smile plastered on his face.

"What brings you two gentlemen here today? Is there something we can help you with?"

The Bureau Chief and the CFO didn't even glance at the VP. They walked straight toward me.

"Austin, where's the evidence?"

"If someone is trying to frame you, we'll make sure your name is cleared!"

I nodded toward and pointed to the report on the floor. Trembling before the two powerful men, Dylan picked it up and handed it to them. They began examining it on the spot.

Yvonne stared at me in shock, clearly not expecting me to have experts on call to investigate.

"Who are you? How did you get them to come here?"

I kept playing my game. "None of your business. As long as someone can prove my innocence, that's all that matters."

Dylan shot me a venomous look, his face a mask of guilt, but he didn't dare say a word.

He was Yvonne's junior from college. Right after graduation, she brought him into the company as her personal assistant.

Dylan's performance was poor, but he was good at saying the right things. Things like, "You're about to get a promotion!" or "You're definitely going to close the deal with this client."

Every now and then, he'd get it right by chance. Yvonne would praise him endlessly, and gradually, everyone in the company started to believe Dylan was a lucky charm, making him a minor celebrity.

Then he started publicly claiming that my hard-earned achievements were the result of his innately lucky nature. Yvonne knew I had worked day and night on those proposals, yet she still looked at Dylan with adoration.

"I knew it was your good luck that made him succeed."

Watching Dylan take the bonus that should have been mine and become the top performer made all my hard work feel like a joke.

And now he was framing me in public? Did he really think I was a pushover he could just walk all over?

After the examination was complete, the Bureau Chief looked at Dylan, his expression grave.

"The handwriting on the incorrect parts of this report matches yours. I also checked the security footage. You were the only one who entered the office."

"The CFO also traced the data's origin. You were the only one who handled it from start to finish. Therefore, you alone are responsible for this erroneous data!"

A moment of silence fell over the conference room, followed by an eruption of excited chatter.

"So it was a setup... My god, Austin was innocent all along."

"This 'lucky charm' really went too far. It's one thing to steal credit, but to frame someone?"

Dylan's face went completely pale. He stammered.

"Th-then... I must have made a mistake."

"A simple 'mistake' fixes everything?" I leaned back in my chair, watching him leisurely. "You did something wrong. Don't you need to apologize?"

The Bureau Chief and the CFO stood behind me, their eyes fixed on Dylan, ratcheting up the pressure.

He had no choice but to reluctantly lower his head.

"I-I'm sorry..."

I stood up, shook hands with the Bureau Chief and the CFO to thank them, and after they left, I pulled out an invoice.

"Now that the false accusation has been cleared up, let's talk about compensation for my computer."

Dylan's arrogance returned instantly. He crossed his arms and laughed.

"I'm dying to hear how much a piece of junk computer is worth."

I held up one finger. "Ten..."

"Pfft, what, ten thousand dollars?" He pulled out his phone. "I'll Venmo you right now."

I shook my head. "Ten million dollars."

The room erupted in laughter. "I've never even heard of a ten-million-dollar computer!"

"I was just starting to feel sorry for him. Turns out he's just a blackmailer."

The VP slammed his hand on the table on stage, pointing at me and yelling.

"Austin, how far are you going to take this!"

"I just got a call from the President and the Chairman! They heard an employee was causing trouble and they're on their way to handle it!"