Chapter 257: Elise's Dull Eyes Suddenly Brightened

"Is it a gout flare-up, Elise?"

"How did you know?"

"Professor Miriam suffers from it too. I have a traditional herbal remedy passed down in my family. It won't cure it completely, but it's excellent for pain relief without the side effects of Western medicine."

Elise's dull eyes suddenly brightened. "Really? Send me the recipe immediately! My mother-in-law has been in so much pain she can't sleep, and painkillers aren't working. If this helps, I'll owe you big time."

Clara smiled gently. "It's nothing. Don't mention it."

Theo suddenly chimed in. "Have you noticed? Ever since Clara joined the lab, she's solved every problem. She's like our lucky charm!"

Felix walked in. "What lucky charm?"

Elise explained with a smile. "We were just saying how brilliant and capable Clara is. A real blessing."

Before Felix could respond, Celia shot up from her seat, pale-faced. "Someone tampered with my computer! All my experimental data is gone!"

"What?"

"Another virus? That can't be..." Theo immediately checked his own computer. "IT just upgraded the firewall last week..."

Elise frantically booted up her machine.

The lab instantly tensed.

Theo exhaled in relief. "My data's intact. Elise?"

"Mine's fine too."

Both turned to Felix and Clara.

Felix shook his head. "No issues here."

Clara confirmed with a nod. "My data is safe."

Only Celia's files had vanished without a trace.

Elise ventured cautiously. "Could you have saved them in the wrong folder?"

Celia bit her lip. "I checked everywhere."

The group exchanged uneasy glances.

Theo frowned. "This is bizarre. Only your data was affected..."

Celia's voice trembled. "This wasn't a glitch. Someone deleted them on purpose!"

The air turned icy.

Theo's expression darkened. "That's a serious accusation. You'll need proof."

"Professor Marsh, I don't want to suspect anyone. But what else could explain this?" Celia clenched her fists. "Nothing like this ever happened before..."

Her gaze suddenly locked onto Clara. "Not until she arrived!"

Every eye in the room fixed on Clara.

Clara met Celia's stare calmly, but the other woman quickly looked away.

The usually quiet Elise spoke up. "We need to investigate this properly..."