The presentation sessions were running smoothly—teams entered one by one, each given five minutes to pitch their proposal. Sally Brown kept glancing sideways toward Dhiviya, unable to focus, while Dhiviya remained unbothered. Her focus was razor-sharp.
Moments later, Shankar's number was called.
He nodded confidently at Dhiviya and walked into Room 3, the hall designated for the Main City Framework Design presentation.
Three jury members sat in the center of the room behind a long desk, facing a large projector screen.
Shankar stepped in, handed his presentation thumb drive to the IT technician, and reviewed the folder setup. He took the presentation remote in hand and moved to the center.
"A very good morning to all jury members. I'm Shankar from D.A Studio. I'll begin our presentation now."
His tone was confident. His flow—flawless. Slide by slide, Shankar unveiled the design strategy with clarity and conviction. No nerves. No stutters. Just solid delivery.
On the jury panel:
Malcolm, seated on the right, was fully immersed—this was the best presentation he'd seen all morning. Malik, at the center, barely looked up—fidgeting with his phone, disconnected. Jennifer, on the left, looked restless. She had been on James Brown's payroll, previously briefed to find fault in DA Studio's presentation. But Shankar's content was airtight.
Jennifer's mind wandered to a message she'd received earlier from Raghavan:
"Evaluate with integrity. Do not forget—we are watching. And this company has a very long memory."
That line echoed through her thoughts.
Do they know I was paid off? Am I really going to do this?
As the clock hit five minutes, Shankar wrapped up his presentation and stood confidently, waiting for the Q&A.
Malcolm opened his mouth to begin—only to be interrupted by Malik, who suddenly set his phone down.
"You seem very confident. Are you satisfied with your presentation, Mr. Shankar?"
Shankar nodded, about to respond.
Malik slammed the table.
"Bullshit. That presentation was pure rubbish. I have no idea how you're standing there so proudly after delivering such garbage!"
Shock filled the room.
Malik was another jury member in James Brown's pocket.
"Mr. Malik, what are you saying?" Malcolm asked, taken aback. "This is one of the best presentations today!"
Malik leaned forward aggressively.
"Nonsense. 'Best'? This is the worst one I've seen! I've been in this industry 15 years—don't pretend to know better than me."
"If I say it's bullshit, then it's bullshit. If you disagree, you're free to leave the room."
Shankar, still composed, replied politely.
"I apologize if I've disappointed you, sir. May I know which part of the presentation you felt was lacking?"
Malik scoffed.
"Your entire company is a joke. I checked your profile. A small startup coming in here to pitch a big project—what were you thinking? DA Studio isn't ready. You're 30 years too early."
He turned to Jennifer.
"Miss Jennifer, do you have feedback to support my rejection?"
Jennifer froze.
She had agreed to give favorable scores to James Brown's firm—but this… this was different. Malik's attack was excessive. The earlier warning from Raghavan haunted her.
I can't do this anymore.
Malcolm sensed something was off and quietly messaged Raghavan about what was unfolding.
After a long pause, Jennifer spoke up.
"I find no fault in this presentation," she said. "It's one of the most complete submissions we've seen."
She took a breath. Then added quietly:
"I'll return the money to James."
Malik turned, shocked.
"Are you saying my judgment is flawed? You both want to side with a startup? You do realize what happens when you go against me? You'll make an enemy out of me—and that comes at a price."
Jennifer squared her shoulders.
"This isn't about you, Mr. Malik. It's about giving future talent a fair chance."
Malcolm nodded.
"I agree. I saw nothing wrong with this proposal. I will evaluate it honestly, regardless of your threats."
"If doing my job makes me your enemy, then so be it," Jennifer added. "I'm not here to bend."
Malik had powerful sway in the corporate industry. Falling into his blacklist meant being shadowed—denied access, connections, and future deals across multiple firms. Everyone knew that.
The mood had soured. The jury wasn't in the frame for further discussion.
Shankar sensed the tension. Respectfully, he collected his thumb drive and left the room.
As he exited, Raghavan and Suruthi entered through another door. They had been monitoring the situation secretly to see how far Malik's influence would go.
Shankar met Dhiviya outside and briefed her quickly.
She nodded, glanced at Sally Brown, who was already watching her. Seeing Shankar's shaken expression, Sally smirked inwardly.
Her father's plan must have landed.
D.A Studio's confidence was finally cracked.
But Dhiviya just tapped Shankar's shoulder and strode toward the room with the same calm and fire.
Inside the room, the tension was still palpable.
Ignoring it, Dhiviya handed her thumb drive to the technician and stepped into position.
"Good morning, respected jury members. I'm Dhiviya from D.A Studio, here to present our second proposal for the Main City Development design."
Even before she finished, Malik snapped.
"DA Studio again? I just rejected one of your pitches—and now you're here with another? What is this—a school science fair? Every company gets one presentation. How did management approve this?
You! Get out. I don't want to see another person from D.A Studio in this room!"
Dhiviya stood firm. Still smiling.
Her poise irritated Malik.
"Why are you still smiling instead of leaving?" he barked.
Dhiviya's voice was calm.
"Mr. Malik, do you think AD Tech wasn't aware that D.A Studio is presenting two proposals for this project? Do you think the management made a mistake approving it?"
She pulled out her phone, glanced at the screen.
"RW30,000. Impressive. You were the highest paid asset on James Brown's payroll."
Her eyes met his.
"No wonder you're so eager to stop me from presenting. But if you think your actions will go unnoticed—especially with this kind of aggression—you should learn to be more discreet."
Malik froze.
For the first time all day—he wasn't the one holding the room's attention