CHAPTER 3: THE FIRST FACE SLAP.

Gloss POV

“You’re fired.”

The words hit harder than a bullet. My body went stiff, my stomach twisted, and for a second, I thought I might faint. Cold sweat rolled down my neck, and my vision blurred. The air in the boardroom changed like someone had opened a freezer door, trapping me inside.

The directors froze in their seats. Some had their mouths twitching like they were trying not to smile. They had been waiting for this, to see me fall in front of Dream Lancaster, the man who had never been wrong in judging people.

So this was it. My end was already written. Just like the novel said, the secretary’s humiliation started here.

Then, as if to mock me, I heard the system’s chime in my head.

[Urgent Mission Triggered: Survive Termination.]

[Method: Prove your worth before the board.]

[Reward: +5 Affection Points from CEO.]

[Failure: Immediate expulsion from the novel world.]

Immediate expulsion. I didn’t need anyone to explain that. It meant death. Permanent erasure. No second chance. Just gone.

I wanted to scream. Why did the system always throw me into hell without warning? Couldn’t it give me something easier like “bring Dream’s coffee” or “flatter the boss”? But no, it wanted me to risk my life in front of a billionaire with a frozen heart.

I didn’t have time to be afraid. My fists clenched tight, nails pressing into my palms. I forced myself to breathe, to push words out even when my voice trembled.

“With all due respect, sir,” I said, “I can’t be fired.”

The silence that followed was painful.

Every pair of eyes turned to me. Some widened, some narrowed, others sparkled with amusement. But they all had the same thought. This idiot just buried herself alive.

Dream’s silver eyes shifted to me. For the first time since entering the room, he actually looked at me. Not a glance, not a passing look. Really looked. The weight of it almost knocked me off my feet.

“Excuse me?” His voice was calm, but it was the kind of calm that scared you. Smooth but sharp, like glass ready to crack.

I swallowed. “If you fire me now, sir, you’ll embarrass yourself in front of the board. Because then they’ll realize your secretary caught a mistake in the quarterly report that none of your directors noticed.”

Gasps filled the room. The sound spread across the table like falling dominoes. Directors started flipping through their papers. Some shifted uncomfortably, whispering to each other. Dream didn’t blink. His gaze stayed locked on me, daring me to continue.

I raised my hand and pointed with all the fake confidence I could manage. “Director Han, wasn’t this your report? You signed it yourself, didn’t you?”

Han, the older man with gray hair and glasses, froze mid-breath. The smirk he had earlier disappeared. Color drained from his face. “I… yes, I submitted it, but—”

“But,” I cut him off, my voice louder now, fueled by fear and desperation, “you miscalculated operating losses by five percent. Instead of twenty, you wrote two. Just one digit, but it changes the company’s entire standing for the quarter. Isn’t that true?”

The boardroom filled with whispers again. Papers flipped open, calculators clicked, pens scribbled. Han’s hands trembled as he checked his report.

The system chimed.

[System Notice: +1 Confidence Point.]

Dream’s eyes slowly turned to Han. His tone dropped, low and cold. “Is this true?”

Han’s throat bobbed. Sweat ran down his temple. “I-I… it was just a typo. Nothing serious…”

“Nothing serious?” The words came out before I could stop them. “Director Han, I might be just a secretary, but unless my math is broken, a typo worth millions of dollars doesn’t sound small to me. Or do you all make mistakes like this for fun?”

Some directors laughed softly, others coughed to hide their amusement. A few even smiled behind their hands. The tension cracked a little, though everyone still looked nervous.

The system chimed again.

[System Notice: +2 Wit Points.]

Han’s face turned bright red. He slammed his papers down. “You insolent brat!”

“Careful, Director Han,” I said sweetly. “If you shout too loud, the whole building might hear that a secretary exposed you in front of your boss. Imagine the headline: CEO’s trusted director embarrassed by his own staff. That’s not a good look.”

The boardroom broke into laughter. Real laughter this time. Someone even choked on his water. Assistants rushed to calm their bosses. I had to bite my tongue to keep from smiling.

Han looked like he wanted to lunge across the table. “You… you dare—”

Dream’s voice cut through the noise. “Enough.”

Everything stopped.

You could feel the air shift again. No one moved, no one even dared to breathe.

Dream’s silver eyes turned back to Han, colder than before. “You submitted an incorrect report and thought I wouldn’t notice. Worse, you assumed I would accept it.”

“I… Sir Lancaster, it was—”

“Do you take me for a fool?”

He didn’t shout, but his tone carried more weight than any scream. Han sank back into his chair, shaking.

And just like that, the tables turned.

The system chimed again.

[Mission Complete: Survive Termination.]

[Reward: +5 Affection Points.]

Relief hit me so hard I almost fell to my knees. My hands shook as I gripped my notepad. I could finally breathe again. I was alive.

Dream’s expression didn’t soften. His lips stayed in a straight line, but there was something sharper in his eyes now. As if he was seeing me for the first time.

“Secretary Rivera.”

His voice was smooth but dangerous.

“Yes, sir.” My throat was dry, but I managed to speak.

“You’re still incompetent,” he said coldly. “But not entirely useless.”

The words echoed. Short and simple. But coming from Dream Lancaster — a man who never praised anyone — it felt like a victory.

I held my notepad tighter to stop my hands from shaking. “Thank you, sir.”

He gave a small wave, and the meeting was over. Chairs moved, people stood quickly, trying to escape his presence. A few directors muttered things as they left, some glaring at me, others just curious. Han left last, his face red and full of anger.

I stayed where I was, still trying to catch my breath. My heart refused to calm down.

Then I heard his voice again.

“Don’t think you’ve won.”

I looked up. Dream stood by the door, his suit perfect, his silver eyes sharper than glass.

“You’re still nothing to me.”

The words hit harder than the first “you’re fired.” Not because they promised failure, but because they promised a challenge.

I wasn’t going to let his taunts get to me. I had a life to save. Literally.