"A few days ago," the HR Departnt head continued carefully, "Miss Ophelia, your sister, personally ca to requesting a position within the company."
"She officially started on the very sa day," he added quickly. "And we directly arranged for her to join the Sales and Marketing Departnt as an intern. We also confird personally that she had already begun working there."
The mont those words fell, the atmosphere inside the office instantly turned strange.
At that point, Apollo finally understood the entire situation and where the misunderstanding had originated.
The mont the pieces connected together in his mind, his eyes narrowed slightly.
With his intelligence, it did not take long for him to figure out why Ophelia had suddenly wanted to work inside his company.
She was feeling insecure.
Ever since Ashley returned, Ophelia had clearly beco restless and uneasy, constantly afraid that her place within the family would slowly change. And if she were to discover now that Apollo himself had personally arranged a position for Ashley within the corporation, then that imbalance inside Ophelia’s heart would only deepen further.
Her insecurity would only continue growing.
Because of that, Apollo chose not to expose the misunderstanding any further.
Instead, he simply nodded lightly toward the head of the HR Departnt, signaling that he already understood the situation.
At the sa ti, however, Apollo also knew he needed to handle the matter carefully so neither side would feel wronged or unfairly treated.
Still, one thing remained clear in his mind.
Since Ophelia had entered the company through her own initiative, then she also needed to understand one important fact: inside the Gildenvale Corporation, she could not casually rely on the Gildenvale family’s na to throw her weight around or act superior to others.
Especially not toward Ashley.
Because among the two girls, Apollo already knew very clearly whom he needed to prioritize most now.
"I understand," Apollo said calmly, "but the sister I’m referring to is my real sister, Ashley Gildenvale."
As he spoke those words, the coldness in Apollo’s expression softened ever so slightly, his tone becoming noticeably gentler when ntioning Ashley.
"Although she hasn’t formally appeared within high society yet," he continued, "I’m already preparing her for that environnt. And allowing her to work within the company is the best way to gradually expose her to my business network, corporate operations, and the environnt she’ll eventually need to face."
Apollo explained the matter casually, yet the aning hidden beneath his words was impossible for the head of the HR Departnt to miss.
Especially the way Apollo deliberately emphasized the words ’real sister.’
Even though Apollo did not openly deny Ophelia’s relationship with the family, the implication was already clear enough. In Apollo’s eyes, Ophelia’s standing and Ashley’s standing were fundantally different.
Whether Ophelia was rely an adopted sister, a god-sister, or simply soone raised alongside them no longer mattered.
What mattered was that Ashley was the true Gildenvale heiress.
And that distinction alone was enough to quietly determine where loyalties within the company should ultimately lie.
To the head of the HR Departnt, Apollo’s words almost sounded like an indirect warning, subtle but unmistakable.
A warning to make sure he did not mistakenly curry favor with the wrong person in the future.
The realization instantly made the HR Departnt head feel even more nervous than before.
Straightening his posture imdiately, he nodded seriously toward Apollo, not daring to show the slightest carelessness anymore.
"Sir, please leave it to ..." the head of the HR Departnt said respectfully, bowing his head at once.
Apollo rely nodded before adding another reminder, his tone calm yet firm. "I’ve already discussed this with my sister, so there’s no need to make their backgrounds obvious or give them special treatnt."
"The two of them will start from the grassroots level and work their way up through their own ability and rit. Don’t make exceptions for them or treat them differently from the others. Just keep an eye on them quietly."
He understood that if the employees began buttering up Ashley and Ophelia or making things easier for them simply because of their identities, then there would be no point in letting them start at the bottom in the first place.
His intentions would beco aningless. Since only he and the head of HR knew the truth, it was better to keep things that way for now. He also planned to speak with Ophelia personally about it later.
After all, she was the one who insisted on working under him, and deep down, Apollo felt this might truly be the best path for her. Perhaps this experience would teach her how to stand firmly on her own strength instead of relying on others.
Maybe this was also what her father would have wanted for her, to live a aningful life rather than remain a delicate ornant placed on display, beautiful yet doing nothing of substance.
"Consider it done, sir..." the head of the HR Departnt responded with another respectful bow before quietly leaving the office.
Not long after the door closed behind him, Apollo’s special assistant entered while carrying a thin folder in his hands. He waited for the HR head to completely leave before shutting the door behind him. Walking toward the desk, he lowered his head respectfully and stood in front of Apollo before beginning his report.
"Sir, I investigated Miss Ashley’s background and traced every possible lead from the lake where she was found, but no matter what we do, we always hit a dead end..."
His voice gradually beca heavier under the oppressive atmosphere inside the office. "It’s as if she never truly existed before that mont and simply appeared out of nowhere."
The assistant did not dare et Apollo’s eyes. Even without looking, he could already feel the man’s sharp and suffocating gaze fixed on him, making cold sweat form along his back. He feared seeing Apollo’s current expression because the report in his hands clearly reflected his failure to complete the task assigned to him.
Yet he truly could not be blad for this. There was simply nothing to uncover about Ashley. No records, no traces, no past connections, nothing at all. Even after digging through highly protected identity databases and confidential channels, they still found absolutely no existence tied to her before the incident.
It was as though her entire life before losing her mories had been erased completely from the world. Under such circumstances, how could he possibly trace her origins or locate their mother? It was practically an impossible mission, and he could not exactly fabricate information just to produce results.
"Then what about the people who abducted her?" Apollo finally asked, his voice low and dangerously calm. "Did the police find them, or do you at least know where they are now?"
As he spoke, he lifted a hand to massage the bridge of his nose, seemingly trying to ease the growing headache building inside his head. However, the action did little to conceal the terrifying, murderous aura slowly seeping from his body.
The atmosphere inside the office instantly beca heavy and suffocating, causing the assistant’s breathing to unconsciously tighten. Although Apollo’s expression remained controlled, the cold fury hidden beneath his calm exterior was enough to make anyone understand just how desperately he was restraining himself from exploding on the spot.
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