A tall, robust-looking bodyguard stepped out and opened the door to the back passenger seat. Briena and Clara recognized the bodyguard—it was none other than John. Their eyes remained fixed on the car door, knowing exactly who was about to step out.
Natalie stepped out of the car, surprising everyone at first, but then they quickly cald down—after all, she was famously known for having a powerful "sugar daddy" backing her up.
She was dressed in her usual style of comfortable yet chic clothing: a three-piece suit. A white V-neck top paired perfectly with a fitted peach-colored blazer and trousers, completed by sneakers. Though simple, the branded attire highlighted her natural elegance. She looked extrely confident and beautiful in her own unique way, drawing everyone’s attention and admiration.
Unlike Briena, Natalie didn’t smile at anyone or acknowledge the crowd, which led so to perceive her as arrogant. As she walked toward the venue, where reporters were still speaking with Briena, she ignored them entirely and strode ahead. However, the reporters quickly shifted their focus to her, determined not to let her leave without answering a few questions.
Briena and Clara could only watch in frustration as Natalie effortlessly stole the spotlight. Natalie hadn’t done anything, yet all eyes were on her as usual.
"Ms. Natalie, who does that car belong to?" one reporter asked.
Natalie turned to the reporter, her expression unfazed. "Didn’t I say last ti I have soone rich backing ?"
Her blunt response left the reporters with no room to trap her or make her feel embarrassed.
"Who do you think stands a chance to win this competition?" another asked.
"I’m not a fortune teller," she replied, her deanor calm and composed.
"How do you feel about returning to the competition where you were once declared a plagiarist?"
"I feel nothing," she answered, her tone unwavering.
"What do you think your chances are of winning? With Briena Ford here—Aroma herself—do you think you can compete against her skills?" a journalist asked.
Natalie glanced at Briena, who gave her a smug look. Natalie replied calmly, "With skills like hers, even soone with no skills can win against her."
The smug expression on Briena’s face imdiately turned into an angry one, but Clara quickly held her hand. "Keep your calm. Everyone is watching," she whispered.
Briena listened to her mother and both of them walked inside, trying to maintain their composure.
"Ms. Natalie, what do you an by that?" the journalists pressed, while Briena’s fans fud, outraged at Natalie’s insult toward their idol.
"I answered what you asked. Don’t make explain my own answers," Natalie replied coolly, before walking ahead. John and Ryan flanked her on both sides, shielding her from the crowd.
Once more they could do nothing against this arrogant woman.
All the participants in the competition were directed to the waiting area behind the stage, where they would later showcase their perfu-making skills live.
There were around twenty participants, out of whom only five would make it to the second round. From there, the top three would move on to the third and final round.
The event hall was packed with viewers, and the competition was being broadcast on television. The five judges had taken their seats, ready to evaluate the participants.
The perfurs were called in batches of five, dividing the participants into four groups. Five tables, equipped with all the necessary perfu preparation tools, were arranged on the stage.
Each perfur had to pick an envelope from a container, which contained a the for their perfu. They were required to create a perfu based on the the inside the envelope, making it a surprise round right at the start.
Briena was placed in the first group, while Natalie was scheduled to participate in the last group.
When Briena opened her envelope, her the was Seasons and Nature. She smiled lightly, as it was an easy the for her. She already had a formula for it and had practiced it many tis. Her grandmother had been smart enough to provide her with formulas that could match almost every possible the used in the competition.
Briena and the other four participants in her group began preparing their perfus. Briena, confident from her practice, wrote down the formula she had morized on the provided paper and started creating her perfu. The others followed the sa procedure, as writing the formulas was mandatory.
Briena was the first to finish and took her creation to the judges. They tested it, and from their expressions, Briena could tell they were impressed.
The results would only be announced after all twenty participants had completed their round. With nothing else to do, Briena walked back to the waiting room.
Everyone was impressed by how quickly Briena finished her perfu. From the judges’ expressions, it was clear they were pleased.
The second group went to the stage. anwhile, Briena glanced at Natalie, who was sitting with the mbers of her own group, waiting for their turn. Briena smiled smugly and started chatting with one of the participants from the third group.
The participant nodded in agreent with what Briena said and glanced at Natalie.
Once the third group was done, it was Natalie’s group’s turn. Natalie walked to the stage and stood in front of her table, only to find it in complete disarray. Chemicals were spilled, and so had even been mixed together.
The tir started imdiately. Natalie realized that if she requested replacent chemicals, she would lose valuable ti. Instead of panicking, she carefully assessed what she still had on her table.
anwhile, the participant from the previous group, whom Briena had spoken to earlier, approached her. "Ms. Briena, I did what you told to. I ssed up all the chemicals on her table."
That participant had ’three’ number tag on her clothes just like Natalie, so both were going to use the table number three.
Briena smiled and took the girl’s phone number. A mont later, the girl’s phone buzzed—it was a money transfer from Briena. The amount was far beyond anything the girl had imagined. Grinning from ear to ear, she thanked Briena and returned to her seat happily.
In the waiting room, Briena watched Natalie on the screen. What are you going to do now, Natalie? You’ll be out in the first round—forget about competing with in the final.
Reviews
All reviews (0)