Raven had said Johnny dismissed her for personal reasons, but offered no specifics. Earlier, Yale had seen Freya and Johnny embracing downstairs, leading him to assume their relationship was close and that Freya had used connections to secure her position at Cole. Although their company boasted considerable talent, someone with Raven's impressive resume—nationwide, even—was rare. He didn't believe Freya's background could surpass Raven's.

As this thought occurred to him, before Freya could speak, he sarcastically added, "But Miss Miller looks quite young. One might even think she hasn't finished her doctorate."

Regarding Raven's dismissal, Johnny intended to discuss it with Yale later. It was a personal matter between Freya and Raven, unsuitable for public discussion. He hadn't anticipated Yale's outburst.

He frowned. "Yale—"

But Yale, believing Johnny was covering for Freya, loudly interrupted, "President Gray, I'm talking to Miss Miller." He fixed his gaze on Freya. "Is it truly that difficult to answer a simple question about your education? Or is it that Miss Miller hasn't been accepted into a PhD program? Or perhaps the institution you're attending isn't ranked among the world's top universities, so you feel embarrassed to mention it?"

Freya found the question easy to answer. She calmly replied, "I haven't been accepted into a PhD program yet, but—"

Before she could finish, Yale laughed. He scoffed, cutting her off, "But? What are you trying to say? That even though you haven't been accepted into a PhD program, your expertise isn't inferior to ours? What makes you think that? Is it just because you have a pretty face and have been spoiled by sweet-talking men, so now you think you have real skills?"

Johnny's anger flared. "Yale!" Reasonable doubt was acceptable, but Yale's words were a blatant insult to Freya.

How could he not be furious? Yale removed his badge. "I'm resigning."

"You!" Johnny hadn't expected such impulsiveness.

Yale looked at Johnny. "President Gray, I always thought you valued talent and kept personal and professional matters separate. Now it seems I was wrong."

With that, Yale turned and walked away. Johnny, a man of pride himself, watched him go. "Take some time to calm down. If you decide to return after cooling off, I'll—"

"No need. I'll never set foot in Cole again!"

Without looking back, Yale left. Freya, however, also valued talent highly. She glanced at Johnny, who shook his head, signaling her not to worry. Yale was undeniably talented, and Johnny didn't want to waste such potential. However, from their first meeting with Raven, Johnny had sensed Yale harbored personal feelings for her.

This was Yale's private matter, and Johnny hadn't been particularly concerned. But now, because of Raven, Yale had become emotional, impulsively judging Freya without giving her a chance. This had gone too far. Furthermore, CUAP's core technology involved government collaborations and confidentiality agreements, meaning Freya's identity couldn't be revealed. If Yale could be so rash because of Raven, and held her in such high regard, even if Freya later proved her abilities, Yale might never truly accept her, instead believing Raven superior.

Inevitably, Freya would overshadow Yale in the future. If this became apparent to Yale, and he felt he was being partial to Freya, he could easily be manipulated. Such a scenario could severely damage both Yale and the company.

Freya understood his concerns, so she felt at ease. Johnny cleared his throat and addressed the others. "Although Miss Miller hasn't completed a PhD, rest assured her professional capabilities are entirely sufficient. I can vouch for that."

The others exchanged uncertain glances.