Chapter 417 The Spark Behind the Curtain

Just as White and Mateo were about to start another argument, Johnathan suddenly pulled something out and handed it to White. “Can your company make something like this?”

It was the same hidden camera he’d found in his residence two days ago.

White gave it a quick glance and scoffed. “This? We developed this ourselves.”

“What?”

Mateo, Johnathan, and Sierra all froze, their expressions shifting instantly.

Johnathan had only brought the device out to test White, to see if he recognized it–he hadn’t expected that it was actually created by one of White’s companies.

Their reactions were so stunned, even the usually oblivious White noticed.

“What? Why do you all look so shocked?”

Johnathan was the first to recover. He gave White another long look and asked, “You’re saying this was developed by a company you invested in?”

“Yeah,” White nodded. “Someone approached us asking for a custom camera like this. It was a special order.”

“We had it built two months ago. The buyer bought out the patent rights, so it’s never been released on the market.”

He sounded a little regretful. “If it hadn’t been a custom job, the company might’ve gone public by now.”

“Who ordered it?” Johnathan cut him off, ignoring the rest of his rambling.

White raised a brow and shot him a wary look. “You think I’d give you one of my client’s names?”

Johnathan had no response for that. Mateo pressed his lips together, hesitant, then asked, “Who designed it?”

Clearly, whoever made this had serious skill.

But White clammed up even further, eyeing the two of them suspiciously, as if suspecting a trap.

With no answer, they could only swallow their frustration and push their questions aside for now.

Just then, the seminar began. Johnathan shelved the discovery for later and turned to Sierra with a smile.

“Good luck.”

Sierra nodded and walked up to the stage.

Other than that press conference weeks ago, this was her first time speaking in front of such a large audience. And that press conference had been much smaller–and it was about defending herself.

Today was different. She was representing her university and showcasing her research team’s work and current achievements.

Saying she wasn’t nervous would be a lie. But as soon as she spotted familiar faces in the crowd–Johnathan, Mateo, her professor, Autumn–the nerves faded.

Her presentation was sharp and engaging. The room was silent, everyone listening intently.

When she finished, the open discussion began. Many people asked about the inspiration behind her research, and Sierra didn’t hold back. She shared that her motivation came from trying to save two family members and expressed her gratitude to her professors and seniors–especially her mentor, who had given her full support.

As her words faded, someone in the audience stood up.

“You mentioned a turning point that helped validate your drug’s effectiveness. Could you elaborate on what that was?”

Johnathan’s expression immediately darkened.

That incident with Dora had been swept under the rug–but too many people had been present. Word had leaked. This guy was clearly fishing for trouble.

Johnathan shot him a glance, and Mateo quickly ran a check on him. In no time, they had his info–he was a student from a foreign university. While his field of study wasn’t the same as Sierra’s, he’d been trying unsuccessfully to break new ground in his own research.

Most likely, this was driven by jealousy.

As soon as he asked his question, the room tensed.

Professor Martin, Autumn, and others who knew the truth looked visibly anxious. Meanwhile, the rest of the audience grew curious–they all wanted to know what had accelerated Sierra’s breakthrough.

Knowing this man’s intentions weren’t good, Sierra didn’t flinch. She calmly responded:

“The turning point was a life-or-death situation. I made the decision to use the drug.”

A wave of shock rippled through the crowd.

Everyone knew that was strictly forbidden.

Drugs in development required rigorous review. Administering one in the trial phase without approval was a clear violation.

But Johnathan had anticipated this. All the proper documentation had long since been taken care of. He nodded toward the university’s representative, who immediately stood up and announced:

“Due to the emergency, we fast-tracked the approval process. So Sierra’s actions were fully authorized and did not violate any regulations.”