chapter385

The project head from ATL Empire looked at me with clear hesitation, his voice trailing off. “Well… a change like this… I’d need to get formal approval first.”

“That’s perfectly fine. I can wait,” I declared, leaning back and making myself comfortable in the conference room chair.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ivanna suppressing a smug smile. Eloise, however, had completely lost her cool.

“Ms. Chloe, what exactly do you mean by making us wait? Do you realize whose time you’re wasting?” Eloise snapped.

“Exactly what I said,” I challenged, my tone deliberately provocative.

Eloise let out a low, questioning growl. “Are you trying to be difficult on purpose?”

The project head looked increasingly anxious as the tension spiked. “Ms. Chloe, could we… perhaps finalize the technical plan first? Then we can seek approval from the higher-ups for the branding changes.”

“No need!” A cold, resonant voice suddenly cut through the room.

Atlas strode into the conference room, Harmony trailing behind him like a shadow. He swept a sharp gaze across the room, his eyes lingering for a second on my defiant posture.

“We’ll go with Ms. Chloe’s suggestion,” Atlas stated firmly. “Add the sponsorship.”

My heart skipped a beat. Despite my outward confidence, I hadn't truly expected Atlas to agree so readily—especially with Harmony standing right there.

Eloise immediately pivoted, her face contorting into a fawning, oily smile. “Mr. Atlas, um… isn’t that technically against the project requirements? We are the exclusive spokespeople for ATL Empire. Adding another sponsor name—especially Tanum Corporation—might be difficult to explain to the board. It complicates the brand identity.”

“What? Are you under the impression that you’ve taken over the management of ATL Empire?” Atlas’s stern gaze locked onto Eloise, pinning her in place.

“N-No! Not at all!” Eloise stammered, her face flushing with panic. “It’s just… in the past, it was always an exclusive contract. If we include Tanum Corporation’s name, it implies they are also using Ms. Harmony’s image for their own PR. That usually incurs an additional fee.”

“Tanum Corporation is a strategic partner of ATL Empire, working exclusively on our projects. Are you suggesting that ATL Empire should pay double just to utilize Ms. Harmony’s image for its own partnership?” Atlas asked, his voice dripping with arrogance. He turned toward Ivanna. “Ms. Ivanna, is that how your agency operates?”

Ivanna didn't miss a beat, her smile sharp. “Of course not. Austier Agency’s current contract is exclusively with ATL Empire. We don't charge our partners for internal collaborations.”

Eloise turned pale. Ivanna’s response made her look completely out of touch—or worse, greedy. It was public knowledge that Harmony was Atlas’s companion, yet her manager was essentially trying to shake him down for double the price.

Harmony’s face went cold, and she shot a venomous glare at Eloise. Eloise was trapped; her original goal had been to humiliate me, but she had accidentally cornered herself in front of Atlas.

“Since that’s settled, please have Ms. Eloise draft the amended agreement for us to sign,” I said, looking around the room with a matter-of-fact expression. “Can we head to the site now?”

Harmony looked puzzled. “What for?”

Eloise, however, caught on to my meaning immediately, her displeasure written clearly across her face.

“Ms. Chloe, what is the point of that?” Harmony asked, her voice tight. “It’s just a minor revision to the marketing plan. Is it really necessary to drag everyone to the physical site?”

“Of course it’s necessary,” I replied, my gaze unwavering. “Tanum Corporation doesn't do things half-heartedly. Can you truly understand the flow of a showroom just by looking at a piece of paper? If you want to change the plan, you need to understand the space. Can you clarify exactly which visual elements you think need adjusting?”

Harmony opened her mouth, but no words came out. She had no technical knowledge to back up her interference. Eloise was seething, but under Atlas’s icy stare, she didn't dare act recklessly.

Harmony turned to Atlas, her voice softening into a plea. “Atlas, do we really need to go all the way to the site?”

The room went silent as everyone waited for his response. I knew Atlas well enough to know he wouldn't favor her here. In business, he was a different man.

“Follow Ms. Chloe’s arrangements,” Atlas said, his tone leaving no room for negotiation. “They are the professionals, after all.”

I suppressed a smile. If Harmony hadn't tried to make things difficult for Tanum in the first place, I wouldn't have pushed for these changes. But because of her vanity, I had just secured a massive round of free publicity. An ATL Empire promotional video featuring the industry's hottest celebrity was guaranteed to go viral—and now Tanum’s name would be right there next to it.

I had truly hit the jackpot.

“Then let’s head to the showroom!” I declared, standing up without hesitation.

As we walked toward the elevators, I was still baffled by how easily Atlas had handed me this victory. I remembered what he told me once: “Always fight for your own interests.”

I chuckled to myself and shook my head. Was this really just about business interests, or was something else at play?

As we reached the parking garage and got into the car, Carol started the engine and looked at me through the rearview mirror. “Chloe, you were incredible back there. You really took them to school.”