Once Nathalie Quinlan came in, she didn’t waste any time and walked straight to Williansen Barness, asking him, "Did something happen today?"

Williansen was momentarily speechless.

She wasn’t hiding anything either: "Ever since I got to the research institute this morning, I’ve noticed people turning back to look at me and talking among themselves when they see me."

"Williansen, what exactly happened?" Nathalie’s bright and piercing eyes showed no hint of fear.

The tense string in Williansen’s heart unwound at her words. Looking at her, his previously stiff back relaxed, and he tersely said while looking into the girl’s eyes, "I just found out this morning. Zevaney Kingsley from Group 1 reported to several senior officials at the institute, claiming that the ’Super Algorithm’ we showcased during the group assessment was plagiarized from a major scientific figure. This gossip has spread widely within the institute, and now almost everyone knows about it. The institute hasn’t reached a conclusion yet, but things aren’t looking good for you right now..."

Zevaney Kingsley has the support of the Independent Continent Kingsleys Family.

Nathalie Quinlan is merely an outsider, not even considered part of the Inderians, what can she use to contend with Zevaney Kingsley?

Williansen clenched his hand hanging at his side.

If this had happened half a month ago, he might not have cared much, considering that’s just how the First Research Institute is.

Team up, exclude outsiders.

Members with powerful backing, like Zevaney Kingsley, can run rampant at the First Research Institute. Those without such a background, like him and Wincent Sullivan, are only subjected to exclusion and suppression.

These are the norm at the First Research Institute.

Nathalie is not even considered an Inderian, and if she gets bullied, so be it.

He wouldn’t be surprised at all.

However, after half a month of getting to know each other, Williansen, in his heart, already considered Nathalie as one of his own.

So when he got to the institute this morning, and heard the gossip around him about Zevaney reporting Nathalie’s plagiarism, a nameless anger surged in his heart, holding his breath the whole morning.

Williansen exhaled a breath of turbid air, looked at the girl in front of him with complex emotions, raised his hand halfway but then put it down, feeling uneasy about how to comfort her: "Nathalie, you... don’t overthink it. Things might not be as bad as we fear."

"Yeah."

Agnes Baker chimed in, not sure when she had joined the group, her face filled with anger, suppressing the flames of rage between her brows, saying, "We’re all part of the same group, and I will always support you! Those results came from our experiments and sleepless nights; what right do they have to claim we plagiarized?"

"Nathalie, I’ve already found the tapes recording all our experiments. If the institute wants to investigate, I’ll hand over these tapes to them."

Wincent Sullivan was also standing nearby, surrounding the girl, pointing at a pile of tapes recording the experiments stacked on the lab table.

"These tapes are enough to prove that those experimental data are results we got from our experiments, not plagiarism or stealing as they claim!"

Nathalie had never taken Zevaney Kingsley seriously.

This morning, everyone was looking at her.

She thought something big had happened.

It turned out to be just Zevaney accusing her.

After listening to Williansen explaining the situation, indifference remained in her brows and eyes, clearly not taking Zevaney’s sudden attack to heart.

Only after Williansen, Agnes Baker, and Wincent Sullivan stepped forward to stand by her side, choosing to share all consequences, was she slightly moved.

Understanding what was going on, with her hands in her pockets, indifferent posture, she raised the corner of her mouth with a rebellious arc, her brows and eyes full of audaciousness: "Don’t worry, I’ll be fine."