Chapter 79

As soon as Crystal ended the call with President Liu, she exhaled sharply, clearly annoyed. She turned toward Lyla, her sharp eyes narrowing as she crossed her arms.

"Lyla," she began in a clipped tone, "do you realize what a mess you've created for yourself?"

Lyla flinched slightly at her cousin's cold reprimand. She had been expecting this. Crystal had never supported her decision to debut as an artist without revealing her background, and now, it was coming back to bite her.

"Lyla," Crystal continued, her voice dangerously calm, "I warned you about this, didn't I? You insisted on keeping your background hidden, wanting to prove yourself without the family's influence. And look what happened. You've made yourself an easy target."

Lyla swallowed, feeling the weight of Crystal's words.

"It's not like I asked for this to happen," she muttered, her fingers tightening into fists on her lap.