Chapter 727
727:
“The third designer threw together some flashy tricks, and suddenly it’s like everyone forgot what real design looks like. The crowd’s reaction was almost laughable.”
“Come on now—what’s the plan here? Dye a shirt and call it fashion? If I’m not mistaken, this is supposed to be a fashion design competition, not some kind of dyeing showcase. What’s the big deal about the colors this designer threw together? If that’s all they’ve got, maybe they should try their luck at a color-mixing contest instead.”
While Linsey remained frozen for a moment, a staff member quickly emerged from behind the scenes, rushing over with a fresh pair of gloves.
“Ms. Bright, my apologies. These ones are waterproof. Please switch to them right away.”
Snapping out of her daze, Linsey gave a quick nod, turned to accept the gloves, and slipped them on with practiced ease. “Don’t worry about it. I should’ve caught it myself.”
Glancing at the paint bucket, the staff member frowned at the visible smudge in the otherwise delicate color blend. In a lowered voice, he asked, “Would you like a fresh batch of ice water for the dyes?” He hesitated, then added with concern, “But we’re already halfway through the round. I’m not sure you’ll have enough time to finish your work.”
From his perspective, this step with the shirt was clearly just one part of Linsey’s overall vision.
Linsey didn’t respond immediately. A few seconds passed before she made up her mind. “No need to swap it. I’ll work with what I’ve got.” After securing the new gloves properly, she offered a calm smile. “Thanks for bringing them.”
The staff member almost spoke up, wanting to clarify that the gloves weren’t his decision, that he was only responsible for relaying messages between the competitors and the organizers.
𝖀𝗽𝗅𝗈𝖆𝖉 𝖙𝗋𝗮𝖈𝖊𝖉 𝖙𝗈 𝗀ⲁ𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀⧉𝖼𝗈𝗆
But Linsey had already turned away and returned to her workstation, fully focused once more. Choosing to wait until after the event, the staff member kept quiet—for now.
As he exited the stage area, he couldn’t help but wonder when exactly Aurora and the founder of the CR Corporation had crossed paths. From what he had been told, Aurora had only just set foot in Grester a few days prior, brought in under the Davidson Group’s banner. With no way to make sense of it, the staff member decided to let the thought go.
Back at her workstation, Linsey, now properly gloved, steadied her focus and resumed her task without delay.
Across the venue, Dolores—still locked in a tense exchange with competition staff—caught sight of Linsey’s new gloves from the corner of her eye.
She stopped, confused, and glanced at the staff member in front of her, who was still smiling pleasantly. Then she asked, “Weren’t you the one who said switching gloves would be unfair to the other designers? So what’s with the sudden change?”
The staff member, who had been doing his best to keep Dolores calm, was caught off guard as well, surprised that Linsey had received a fresh pair of gloves so soon.
“That can’t be. The rules were finalized before the competition began. All contestants are supposed to use the same standard tools,” he responded.
Dolores retorted, “What kind of nonsense rule is that supposed to be? We’re talking about gloves, not handing out brand-new T-shirts! That bucket’s filled with ice water, and her gloves were drenched. You wouldn’t let her switch them out—do you want our designer to get sick or something?”
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