Chapter 480

Chapter 480:

“Can’t wait to watch it implode p>

I risked a glance at Fabrizio. He didn’t pretend not to hear.

Still, his face remained calm and composed, every line perfectly held in place. That kind of self-control was one of the things admired about him.

“The one running his mouth is Jean-Baptiste,” he said, nodding toward the man in the scarf. “He used to be a senior designer with us. Quit last year. Made a mess of it p>

“Mess how?” I asked.

“He poached a few team members and set up shop on his own. Been milking the Valmont name ever since. He actually stole a project from us last month p>

I thought of Nyx Collective and Violet Lin. Not quite the same, but close enough to sting.

For a brief moment, Fabrizio’s face showed signs of wear, and I could see all thirty-six years of his age. “Valmont looks okay from the outside, but we’re under pressure. High turnover, shrinking margins, investors breathing down my neck. To be honest, I wasn’t confident about the autumn-winter launch. That’s why I reached out to you p>

Well, that explained a lot.

He must have caught something in my expression because he quickly added, “I’m not trying to guilt you. Just giving context. Anyway, forget them. All talk. Let’s go in p>

“Alright p>

We stepped inside.

Jean-Baptiste noticed Fabrizio immediately. He leaned over and whispered something to the man beside him.

The other man looked at me, leaned in, and muttered in French, “That’s her? The new girl from Skyline? She looks twenty. Other than a pretty face, what the hell does she have p>

“Probably doesn’t speak a word of French. Don’t know what she’s doing here p>

𝙁𝙤𝙧 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨: g⍶ⅼ𝗇𝗈ν𝘦𝗅𝗌⸳𝖼𝗈𝖒

They didn’t even bother to lower their voices.

I walked straight up to Jean-Baptiste and stopped so close he couldn’t ignore me.

“My French is crap,” I said, “but I understand enough. So thanks for calling me young and pretty. As for the rest, this job isn’t about age or face. It’s about the work. And you haven’t seen mine p>

His mouth twitched. The smug tilt in his shoulders vanished. He sat up straighter.

“You are—” he began.

I walked off.

I took a seat beside Fabrizio just as the host stepped onstage. The room fell silent at once.

Each brand was supposed to present its current concept and sneak peeks of its latest pieces. But no one was foolish enough to reveal their best cards. Most of the presentations were padded with outdated slides, recycled mockups, and vague design buzzwords.

Still, I took notes. It was my first roundtable, and there was plenty to learn.

Eventually, Valmont’s representative got up. He wasn’t a designer—more of a polished corporate type. Everyone expected the usual recycled pitch.

Then he clicked past the title slide.

“Autumn/Winter 2025 — Lead Designer: Mirabelle Vance” lit up the screen.

I was surprised. “Wait. I thought we were doing a collaboration. A team effort p>

Message from Noa: Happy Friday dear readers, hope you have a great time this weekend, there will be a new novel in a few hours, God loves you and Noa wishes you all the best. p>