The narrow, dark alley was utterly silent.


    Ophelia drove off and headed to the office.


    Having been dyed earlier, she arrived to find that most of the staff had already gone home. Only Marilyn and Chloe were still waiting for her.


    "Hi, Ophelia," they greeted.


    Chloe looked up and set down her phone. "I was just about to call you."


    "I got caught up in something on the way," Ophelia exined.


    Chloe handed her an invitation. "This is from the Heloria Designers Association. They''re holding aworking event this Saturday at the Cloudin Hotel. Do you want to check it out?" Marilyn, unable to contain her excitement, chimed in softly, "I got an invitation too! Ophelia, we can go together."


    Ophelia nced at the invitation in her hands.


    Chloe added, "With thepany expanding, it''s a good opportunity to recruit a couple of designers."


    Chloe had ns to spend the weekend with Wyatt, and Keh wasn''t around either.


    "Alright, I''ll check it out on Saturday." Ophelia agreed.


    "Yay... that''s great!" Marilyn beamed, her dimples showing adorably.


    But her smile quickly faded.


    "Ophelia, recently some of our evening gown designs and patterns have been shing with Huxley Fashion''s clothing line. There''s been some negative buzz online," said Marilyn. Marilyn handed her a tabletptop, and Ophelia briefly scanned the content.


    Huxley Fashion was a clothing brand owned by the Huxley family, which had previously offered her shares in thepany. Because of Phoebe''s involvement, Ophelia had sold her shares at a low price to someone else. Now, with this incident happening, it was hard not to suspect Phoebe''s involvement.


    Ophelia swiped throughparison images. One was an evening gown with blue-and-white patterns, and the other was a two-piece traditional-style outfit with simr motifs. The designs were so alike they could easily be mistaken for the same brand.


    Moreover, La Reverie had always prided itself on unique designs. For something this tantly simr to appear was bound to attract criticism online.


    "Look into which stage the leak happened." Ophelia instructed.


    She trusted her designers wouldn''t giarize, especially since she had personally selected the design.


    The final product had been a coborative effort with two designers, and as soon as the prototype waspleted, this issue arose. It had to be a problem in the intermediate stages.


    "Yes, we''re already investigating." Marilyn said as she left the room.


    Once Marilyn was gone, Chloe broke the silence. "Earlier on the phone, you mentioned taking over Sinir Group. What did you mean by that?"


    "I''m not entirely sure myself. It''s all Keh''s arrangement." Ophelia admitted openly. "But I do n to use Sinir Group to develop Gloomhaven."


    If it were just up to her, obtaining the development rights for Gloomhaven could take years, if not decades.


    But with Sinir Group''s backing, it was a different story.


    It eliminated many unnecessary hurdles.


    "Mr. Sinir agreed to let you develop Gloomhaven?" Chloe asked.


    "Not only did he agree, he''s been very supportive. He handed Sinir Group over to me. How''s that for support?" Ophelia smiled.


    Even as she said this, Ophelia couldn''t shake the strange feeling in her chest.


    At first, Keh had opposed the idea. She had taken it as him trying to protect her, not wanting her to hit a dead end. Butter, he inexplicably changed his mind, not only agreeing but entrusting her with Sinir Group. It was neither normal nor rational.


    But then again, this was Keh. The man was bold enough tomit a double suicide for his beloved one if it came to that He could do anything.


    Though this matter didn''t make sense logically, it seemed perfectly in character for Keh.


    Ophelia carefully reflected on that time travel incident, wondering if anything unusual had happened.


    But Ophelia realized that back then, she hadn''t paid enough attention to Keh.


    As a result, she couldn''t recall any useful information.


    "Do you think Mr. Sinir suddenly agreeing is suspicious?" Chloe asked.


    Chloe always had a knack for reading Ophelia.


    Ophelia raised an eyebrow but didn''t borate further. Instead, she shifted the topic.


    "Is Noah still staying at your ce?" said Ophelia.


    Chloe lowered her gaze, her lips pressing into a tight line.


    Just from her expression, Ophelia knew the answer was yes.


    "Honestly, having someone around to help isn''t a bad thing." Ophelia smiled.


    After all, Ophelia had noticed that Chloe looked much better these days, healthier and less worn outpared to when she was living alone.


    Chloe didn''t want to dwell on the topic.


    She straightened her posture and changed the subject. "This year, the Gloomhaven has three major projects, the railway station, the sports arena, and the public library. "Securing all three would give you the leverage to start negotiations with the political circles about the Gloomhaven redevelopment."


    "Yes." Ophelia nodded, realizing she had been inadvertently drawn into the momentum of Chloe''s determination. "I''m currently working on the railway station project." "Good luck. I''ll take care of thepany here while you''re focused on that," Chloe said.


    The two exchanged a nce, a resolute fire gleaming in both their eyes.


    The designer conference was scheduled for 10 a.m. on SaturdayBelonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.


    The following day, before heading out, Ophelia texted Lesly, instructing her to arrange a meeting at the Cloudin Hotel


    Once the conference wrapped up, Ophelia intended to handle that troublemaker properly.


    This event gathered designers from across Denex, including those who had traveled from out of town specifically for the


    asion.


    The venue was tastefully decorated, with soft piano music drifting through every corner, lending an elegant ambiance. Though called aworking conference, it was more of an annual opportunity for designers to mingle and expand their horizons. Of course, there were always those who attended solely to size each other up and unt their achievements.


    Marilyn had arrived a bit earlier than Ophelia. It was her first time attending such an event, and everything piqued her euriosity, like a girl who hadn''t seen much of the world.


    Marilyn recognized a few prominent figures, designers she''d only ever seen online, the association president, and some contestants she''dpeted against in a TV designpetition.


    Over the past six months, many of them had undergone significant changes.


    If she hadn''t met Ophelia and hadn''t been brought into La Reverie, Marilyn doubted she''d have had the opportunity to attend such an event.


    "Well, well... who do we have here? Isn''t this Mara? How did you manage to get an invite here?" a fashionably dressed woman wearing towering heels said mockingly.


    She nced down at Marilyn''s modest attire with tant disdain.


    ''Does she really belong here?'' she wondered as she mocked.


    "Didn''t you cling to Brock after some second-ratepetition? Sucked up to him all the way to the finals, didn''t you?


    "So who''s your new meal ticket now, huh? You''ve done pretty well for yourself, making it into a ce like this." Her tone was ironic.


    At her words, Marilyn frowned. She had never clung to Brock.


    Uninterested in engaging, Marilyn turned to leave, only to have her path blocked.


    Two women in impossibly high heels nked her, effectively boxing her in. They loomed over her, their condescending gazes making her feel small.


    "Oh, don''t leave so soon. Can''t take a little joke?" one said.


    "What''s the matter? Are you upset already? Wow, talk about being touchy," the other chimed in.


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