A guide to survival in a heavy girl's world

Because the design was sufficiently detailed and clear, and came with a sewing instruction manual personally created by Chihaya Tetsuya, the factory delivered the first batch of samples in just three days. Chihaya Tetsuya immediately went to the showroom with Nagasaki Suyo to conduct a simple rehearsal using a mannequin and samples.

However, when he just arrived at the showroom, he immediately met another designer who had the same idea as him——

"Good afternoon, Mr. Chihaya."

Jean greeted Chihaya Tetsuya in a familiar manner, and Chihaya Tetsuya politely saluted him and said:

"Good afternoon, Mr. Jean...Are you here for rehearsal as well?"

"Yes, after all, my clothes have just been made, and as a designer, I definitely want to see the actual effect of wearing them first!"

Jean answered very cheerfully:

"Mr. Chihaya, as a fellow designer, should understand this feeling, right?"

"……Yes."

Chihaya Tetsuya nodded.

"I just received the samples from the factory... In order to allow enough time for adjustment, I came here as soon as possible."

"And, he brought a very cute companion with him."

Jean stroked his chin and looked at Nagasaki Suyo who was beside Chihaya Tetsuya.

"So, this lovely lady is..."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Jean. My name is Nagasaki Suyo, and I am Mr. Chihaya's personal advisor."

Nagasaki Suyo also politely introduced herself to the great designer in front of her.

On the other hand, after hearing Nagasaki Suyo's name, a flash of surprise crossed Jean's face.

"Oh, it's not Miss Xiangzi, but another new girl?"

Having said that, he immediately gave Chihaya Tetsuya a meaningful look.

"If we add those two idol girls... I see. Given Mr. Chihaya's personality, there's a possibility that this situation could develop~"

"???"

Chihaya Tetsu, who didn't understand what was said, could only respond with a polite yet confused expression.

And Rang didn't intend to explain any further, he just chuckled and shook his head, then came to Nagasaki Suyo and took a few paper bags from her hands very gentlemanly -

"Then please allow me to visit your booth for a while."

“…Eh? Please, please wait a moment!”

Nagasaki Suyo quickly reached out and grabbed the bags that were about to be taken.

"Well, this is the first batch of new products that we [Starry Sky] haven't announced yet. As expected, we can't let outsiders see it before the exhibition starts—"

Ever since she heard that Chihaya Tetsuya's clothes had been plagiarized by others, Nagasaki Suyo has been very concerned about it. Especially since this exhibition happened to involve dealing with the plagiarist, she became 100% more vigilant.

In order to prevent Chihaya Tetsuya from encountering the same accident again, Nagasaki Suyo must protect these fruits of Chihaya Tetsuya's hard work and ambition at all costs.

"It's okay, Sushi."

Seeing this, Chihaya Tetsuya shook his head and said in an extremely calm tone:

"As a top designer, there's no need for Jean to plagiarize my designs, and..."

Having said this, he suddenly raised his head and looked into those interested eyes:

"This time, my design isn't so simple that it can be learned completely based on its appearance alone."

"……All right."

After hearing this, Nagasaki Suyo had no choice but to loosen her hands and bowed her head to Rang.

"I'm sorry, I just said something offensive..."

"It's okay, it's okay. Miss Nagasaki's reaction was more correct. It was me who was too abrupt."

Let's smile and show understanding:

"Mr. Chihaya seems quite confident in his work this time. This makes me even more curious about what kind of interesting work you will come up with!"

"I can't guarantee whether they meet your standards, but at least these clothes... are what I can offer right now, and they best showcase the StarrySky brand philosophy and my design abilities."

Chihaya Tetsuya said:

"I hope you can give me some advice."

"..."

On the other hand, looking at Chihaya Tetsuya's neither humble nor arrogant demeanor, Nagasaki Suyo was both proud of him and amused by his competitive spirit that had been secretly aroused.

I wonder if Mr. Jean can sense the little uneasiness in his heart that he can't let go of...

At the same time, after seeing all of Chihaya Tetsuya's reactions, the frivolous smile on his face faded a little.

"Okay, then, let me look forward to Mr. Chihaya's work."

After saying that, he picked up the bag in his hand again and followed Chihaya Tetsuya to his booth.

……

There was only less than a month left before the exhibition. Except for StarrySky, other brands had also begun to set up their booths. Some brands had even put out some of their exhibits in advance in order to attract attention.

While passing by these booths, Nagasaki Suyo immediately realized what the forefront of fashion is.

(All of them are completely new clothes...)

This is completely different from the situation in previous buyer stores, because all the brands participating in this exhibition hope to gain maximum attention, and each brand is showing its most innovative designs and decorations to the greatest extent.

The strong visual impact and fresh feeling instantly made her feel like she was in the fashion industry...

After quickly exploring the various brands' booths, the three finally arrived at the empty StarrySky booth. Since the booth hadn't officially been set up yet, the only thing present was a mannequin that Chihaya Tetsuya had requested from the organizers. Following Chihaya's instructions, Nagasaki Motoyo and he unloaded the clothes from the bag and placed them on the mannequin one by one. This was Nagasaki Motoyo's first time seeing the exhibited garments in person.

Just like that, after taking a look at all the clothes, she naturally let out a sound of great surprise—

"...Wait, wait a minute, Tetsuya?"

Nagasaki Suyo couldn't help but pull Chihaya Tetsuya's sleeve and asked in a low voice:

"These...are the clothes you prepared?"

"Well, that's right."

Chihaya Tetsuya nodded in confirmation.

“Although it’s only a part of it, these are indeed the clothes I want to exhibit.”

"Eh……"

Nagasaki Suyo couldn't help but reveal a somewhat dazed expression.

"Sweatshirt, sweater, shirt, pleated skirt..."

She read out the names of the clothes in front of her, and murmured absentmindedly:

"Are all... Real Clothes?"

"Well, all of them are everyday clothes."

Chihaya Tetsuya nodded again and said:

“Those that haven’t been exhibited yet are all everyday clothing.”

"what……"

Nagasaki Suyo was very confused by this.

It’s not because these clothes are poorly made, nor is it because they don’t look good. On the contrary, if she saw such clothes in a shopping mall, she would definitely take the initiative to come forward and think about buying them.

But the problem was that this was not a shopping mall, but a joint exhibition for showcasing brands. Especially after seeing clothes from other brands, her worries deepened.

She knew that the main purpose of this joint exhibition was to warm up for the upcoming [TGC], and [TGC] was indeed not a very high-end fashion show. But even so, when various fashion brands were coming up with innovative new fashions, wouldn't everyday clothes like these that can be seen everywhere on the streets seem a bit too ordinary and out of place?

"...Mr. Chihaya."

Just when Nagasaki Suyo was still worried about this, Jean suddenly said with a serious face:

"If I'm not mistaken, in addition to mannequins and real models, you should also have a device to display these clothes, right?"

"..."

After hearing Rang's question, Chihaya Tetsuya was slightly startled at first, then nodded and said:

"That's true, but...how did you know that?"

“…pattern.”

As he spoke, he walked forward and gently twisted the material of the sweater in front of him. Then he walked over to the short skirt next to him and measured it with his fingers...

"This is no longer simply 'standard', but has reached the level of 'neatness'. Not only that, you even take into account the matte and reflective finishes of different fabrics."

After that, under Nagasaki Suyo's bewildered gaze, Jean spoke again:

"It seems like you really want to beat me at this exhibition."

“I just simply gave the best work I could.”

Chihaya Tetsuya said the same thing.

"As for winning or losing, I can't predict it, but I believe that all the customers and models who come to my booth at this exhibition...will have the most enjoyable experience of the day."

"I see. So, you're more concerned with enjoyment than victory or defeat?"

The seriousness on his face gradually turned into more tangible happiness.

"Although I had already raised my expectations to the highest level before this... the result was still beyond my expectations."

Having said this, he first withdrew his gaze from the clothes, then shook his head reluctantly:

"No, no, to preserve the maximum amount of surprise, I'd better not watch any further... Anyway, I'll be looking forward to the day of the exhibition."

After saying that, he patted Chihaya Tetsuya on the shoulder, then turned around and prepared to leave. When he passed by Nagasaki Suyo, he suddenly stopped and turned around to the bewildered Nagasaki Suyo and said:

"By the way, Miss Nagasaki, you have to think carefully about how to make your boss happy next."

He pointed at Chihaya Tetsuya with a smirk on his face:

"This seemingly gentle and considerate gentleman seems to have a possessiveness that is completely different from his temperament. Your suspicion just now might even make him jealous."

After saying this, regardless of Nagasaki Motoyo's surprise and Chihaya Tetsuya's hesitation, he just took a step and left the scene in an extremely cool manner...

……

"...Let me make it clear first, I'm not jealous this time!"

After leaving, before Nagasaki Suyo could speak, Chihaya Tetsuya immediately said:

"After all, the costumes used for this preview were incomplete to begin with, and the display equipment and backgrounds weren't even set up. It's understandable that you couldn't tell, Su Shi. Furthermore, the designers of other brands must have put a lot of effort into designing the costumes, so it's not impossible for me to lose to them..."

"……puff."

Hearing Chihaya Tetsuya speaking even faster than usual, Nagasaki Suyo couldn't help but chuckle, and then immediately hugged his arms.

"I'm sorry, Tetsuya... As your advisor, I'm really too amateurish. Not only did I fail to grasp your philosophy, I also failed to understand what you just said."

"It's not your fault. It's more like you're being too good to see through my display strategy with just a few samples."

Feeling the softness trapped in it, Chihaya Tetsu was also shaken and could not help but explain in embarrassment:

"And I'm not as petty as you say, sir! Everyone's tastes are different. Even if Su Shi really prefers another brand, I definitely won't be angry—"

"That kind of thing is absolutely impossible!"

Before Chihaya Tetsuya could finish his words, Nagasaki Suyo immediately interrupted him.

"Whether it's [Starry Sky] or you, Tetsuya... you'll always be the unshakable number one in my heart, even if your opponent is that world-class designer."

As she spoke, she buried Chihaya Tetsuya's arms in her arms even harder.

"I'm willing to prove my feelings in any way."

"I, I know!"

Feeling the increasingly dangerous soft touch, the heat that had been bothering him recently also rose up.

In order to avoid being exposed, Chihaya Tetsuya quickly nodded and said:

"So, it's okay if you don't hold me so tightly!"

"……Really?"