Koven closed the notebook. “Lucy, I underestimated you before. Do you know that if you had a good mentor, you would've definitely surpassed me?”Lucy was pleasantly surprised by Koven’s evaluation. He had already praised her highly before, but Lucy thought that he was just saying it to save her from embarrassment. Listening to him now, Lucy realized that he had high expectations for her.Being held in such high regard, Lucy felt uneasy all of a sudden. Flustered, she was beginning to doubt herself. Was she really as capable as Koven said?“Koven, I just read the books like you asked. Aren’t you exaggerating?”“What? Don’t you believe me? Look at what you’ve highlighted. It’s not easy to express understanding of things you’ve never learned before. When I was first starting out, I didn’t have your insight and skills.”Lucy was even more embarrassed now. Was Koven really being sincere? Lucy was still doubtful.“Y-You’re making me shy.”“There’s no need to be shy. You must accept th
Following Koven’s instructions, Lucy did not abandon her unique style, which was a combination of traditional elements and tailored designs to create a unique piece of clothing. Koven highly admired her current level of skill.“But this isn’t enough. You have a general idea in terms of style, but you still need to improve in terms of professional competence. No need to worry. I believe in your abilities. Just read more books. Nothing is too difficult for you,” said Koven.Lucy used to find fashion design courses boring and dry, so she feared that she would not be able to cope or might give up halfway. However, Koven was a great mentor. Not only was he able to answer Lucy’s questions professionally, but he could also help her better understand some of the more complex concepts. This made Lucy more confident about her future.Without even realizing it, it was time for lunch. Lucy asked Koven to stay for the afternoon. He originally had other plans at his studio, but he could not say
Lucy blushed at Koven’s praise.“You’re exaggerating. Cooking is simple. If you want to learn, I can teach you.”Koven nodded eagerly. “Sure!”He wasted no time in picking up a piece of beef.Although the casserole dish was easy to assemble, the cooking time in the oven had to be precise and required the skills of a professional chef. It was the true test of a chef’s culinary expertise.Koven had a mouthful of beef. It was tender and flavorful, truly delicious.Then, Koven had a mouthful of potatoes. The chunks of potatoes were cut to the perfect size, and they were soft and extremely appetizing.Koven exclaimed in amazement. “Wow! This casserole is better than what I’ve had in restaurants!”He was not exaggerating. The restaurants either overcooked the beef or undercooked the potatoes, but Lucy’s version was perfectly balanced.“Did you learn to make this dish from someone else?”Lucy pushed the food toward him, encouraging him to eat more.“Not exactly. I found a cooking v
"Thank you for your concern, Koven. I’ll definitely keep an eye on her.”Lucy wanted to say that she had been wary of Charlotte a long time ago and had developed a sense of vigilance against her ever since getting provoked by her.On the other hand, it seemed to be the second time Koven felt threatened by Charlotte’s subtle warnings.He sighed and said wryly, “You don’t know this but… In our line of work, networking is crucial.”“What do you mean?”Lucy remembered Koven’s warning earlier. She thought that the most important thing for fashion designers was their abilities. “I know I told you that a combination of skill and hard work is important.”Koven explained, hoping to dispel Lucy’s doubts.“Back in the early years of the fashion industry, everyone’s intentions were pure, and there weren’t that many ill-intentioned people yet.“But in recent years, many falsely acclaimed fashion designers have emerged under the guise created by talent agencies. They occupy the path that man
A few bites into the meal, Lucy lost her appetite. More importantly, she wanted to know what else Charlotte had said to Koven. If she had said anything offensive or threatening to Koven, Lucy was not going to let her get away with it.“How do I avoid these situations from happening?”Koven did not have a huge reaction. In fact, his expression barely changed since he told Lucy these things, and he still had a good appetite. “I mentioned earlier that you have Matthew to back you up. There’s no need to draw a clear line between what he can or can't help with. I’m sure that the two of you help each other a lot in your relationship, and I believe Matthew wouldn't just let something like that happen to you. "I know how he is, and there’s no doubt how much he cares about you.”Lucy found it hard to believe that Koven had such a clear understanding of her relationship with Matthew when they had only known each other for a short time. However, his next words provided her with the answer
Koven sighed. “After finding out that I wanted to be your mentor, she started to reach out to me, trying to isolate you by pulling me in.”“Is she really that childish?”How dare Charlotte still resort to such cliche tactics? Lucy almost found it degrading. “Lucy, you need to understand that these methods may sound cliche, but they work. The scariest part is that she’s taking advantage of other people’s kindness.”Just the mention of Charlotte’s name seemed to burden Lucy endlessly. If that was the case, she was going to confront her head-on.“What conditions did she offer you?”Koven waved his hand dismissively. “Forget about it. I won't accept any amount of money from her. I even wanted to tear up the dress she asked me to make. After the way she insulted me, I would never agree to anything she said.“Lucy, the reason Charlotte is targeting me is because of our relationship, so you should think carefully about how she might use the same tactic on others. If she already tried to
The concept of their collaborative brand’s design was focused on the signature minimalist style that Hudson’s company excelled in. However, executing this collection required designers with strong expertise.The designers from Hudson’s company lacked sufficient experience, and their design philosophies were different from their desired direction, so they were set aside.That meant that they had to find replacements who were even more skilled, which was quite the challenge, given the short timeframe.The collection was scheduled to launch in the latter half of the year, which meant they had only six months left.Given that there were no other options, Hudson came up with a compromise. “How about this? Designer No. 3 works for my company. His work may be lacking a little, but it seems we have no other choice for now.”Abandoning the plan to launch the clothing line in the latter half of the year was not an option. Many major brands would be launching new products at the end of the y
Matthew’s voice was not loud, but each word struck Samantha’s heart like a hammer. It left her breathless as she wondered what Matthew would say next.Seeing as she was still standing there, Matthew said, “Did I not make myself clear?”Samantha tried to hide her frustration and disappointment. After spending so much time with Matthew, she knew his temperament well. It was best to do as he said.“But Matt… I thought you still haven’t chosen anyone.”“Who I choose is irrelevant now. What I want to know is how you came to know about this.” Matthew sat on the couch and looked at her with a rigid posture.Matthew did not have to ask. He could already guess that it was his mother, Gabriella, meddling in his business again.He noticed that information about his activities was leaking from within the company. It was not just him being paranoid. Gabriella never failed to bring up what he was doing, covering it up with clumsy lies, which only made her more suspicious.After finding out ab