As Lance spoke, his sharp eyes carried an unmistakable hint of warmth. But that only made things worse—the employee on stage grew even more panicked, his mind going completely blank ... Desperate, he sneaked a glance at Isaac, silently asking what was going on with Lance today. But Isaac was even more confused than he was. As far as he remembered, the CEO had been in a terrible mood earlier. Still wearing that faint smile, Lance opened the message. He felt a surge of happiness—he hadn't expected Addison to text him. His emotions were starting to be entirely tied to her. But as soon as he saw what she had written, his face went cold. His hand trembled slightly as he held the phone, his lips pressing into a hard line as he stared at the emotionless words on the screen.Everyone in the room was watching him closely, their unease growing with every shift in his expression. The shift in expression was impossible to miss— the warmth on Lance's face vanished after just a glance at his phone, replaced by a gloomy expression. The atmosphere in the conference room shifted immediately. The employee presenting in the center felt his legs go weak, and he was barely able to stay upright. It was downright terrifying. Just a moment ago, Lance had been in a great mood, but in the blink of an eye, a raging storm had taken over. His sudden shift sent a wave of unease through the room. Even Isaac looked unsettled. He knew exactly what that look on Lance's face meant ... A storm was coming, and they were all about to be caught in it. All he could do was hunch his shoulders and brace for the inevitable. At this point, he just hoped to go down with some dignity.And sure enough, moments later, everyone walked out of the conference room looking utterly defeated, their heads hanging low. Like a flock of startled birds, they retreated to their desks, trying to make themselves invisible. No one dared to make a sound. For a while, the only thing that could be heard in the office was the tapping of keyboards. Because in times like these, nobody knew what tiny, unintentional action might set off their CEO. And if that happened, they were done for. After everyone was seated, Lance finally stepped out of the conference room. He strode back to the CEO's office, radiating pure fury. Then came the deafening slam of the door—so loud it sent a shudder through the entire floor. The office remained eerily silent, save for the distant echo of the door slamming shut. An enraged CEO and a floor full of terrified employees... It wasn't until Lance disappeared into his office that people finally dared to lift their heads, exchanging nervous glances. "What's up with Mr. Johnston today? That was terrifying." "No clue! He read a text and just lost it ... I swear, for a second there, I thought I was about to drop dead from sheer panic." "A text? What kind of message could make him snap like that?" "I didn't dare look too closely. I only managed to sneak a glance from the side—it was just the text message interface." The man who had peeked at Lance's phone shuddered at the memory. I must've been out of my mind. If Mr. Johnston had caught me peeking at his phone, I'd be dead for sure. Hearing that it was a text message, the others immediately launched into speculation. "Could it be that a billion-dollar deal just fell through?" "Or maybe something went wrong at the lab?" One of them started, then hesitated. "Wait, no... Didn't Mr. Johnston already handle that?" "Yeah, wasn't he a total legend last time? He somehow got Dr. Nancy to sign the full authorization agreement just like that."