The students at Ruger Field’s internal contest were talking with excited faces.
“That’s amazing. So, if we do well on this assignment, we can debut as designers right away?”
“Isn’t this a chance to turn your life around? I heard if you join a famous company at the bottom, you’ll waste two years just making coffee. If you get a handbag directly into RR, what level do you need to be at?”
“Honestly, even if the sales are just moderate, you could probably live as a freelancer, right? If you sign a follow-up contract with RR, it would be amazing. But even if you can’t, I think the lower tiers would line up just to work with you once.”
They were so excited that they seemed to have forgotten they were in class.
“Teacher! I have a question.”
Everyone’s attention turned to a student’s question.
“This assignment? Or the contest?? …Is it only individual submissions?”
“No. Although we met within the framework of the class and introduced this contest as an assignment, I recognized all of you as professional designers.”
“…!”
“There’s nothing particularly good about it. The criteria for evaluating professionals are extremely strict. Especially RR’s standards, which are the top in the luxury industry. There’s a high possibility that there may be no winning work.”
“…”
Ruger Field knew how to handle the students’ psychology.
“Instead, I don’t plan to put any special restrictions on the contest so that you can work professionally. Even though I am the chief designer at RR, it takes dozens of hands to launch a new bag. You need to be able to work under similar conditions to have a chance, right?”
“…?”
Ruger Field emphasized once again for the confused students.
“You can form teams, or even participate with external personnel. You can collaborate with industry experts in design, production, and sales. Use all the tools you deem appropriate to create the most valuable handbag.”
He added that each team must include at least one student from the class and that duplicate submissions were not allowed.
The students were busy strategizing again.
“Ah, what is that senior who won second place in the Hermès contest doing these days? Their design was amazing.”
“If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve contacted the leather workshop in advance. Doesn’t it take months to get some high-quality leather?”
“Let’s quickly book the studio for a photoshoot! The teacher seems to value sales, so we’ll get extra points if we sell it at a high price. Marketing is all about concept and photos!”
It was chaotic.
Some students quickly formed teams and began having heated discussions, while others promptly started making calls to secure collaborators.
‘What should I do?’
Adriana was visibly flustered by the atmosphere that had turned into a team assignment.
‘Team assignments are so tough…’
Although it was an unavoidable form of assignment due to the nature of the university, Adriana always struggled a lot with them.
“….”
It was because no one wanted to team up with her.
Although she was relatively mediocre in talent in a place full of geniuses… she particularly suffered from malicious rumors since her freshman year.
“How did she get into our school? A fashion student who can’t even draw~ Her craftsmanship is just so-so~ Did she have some sponsor or something?”
“Hey, I heard she goes in and out of the professors’ studios a lot. Only the male professors seem to look for her?”
“Oh, is she the type to make up for her lack of talent with her body? She does modeling work while we suffer through assignments, and yet her grades are so good…”
“With that face and body, she doesn’t need to go through the hardships we do. She lives such an easy life, right?”
‘These people…’
Given Adriana’s personality, she walked around even more confidently when she heard such words. If she didn’t carry herself with pride, the rumors would become the truth.
So whenever she happened to run into a group gossiping in the restroom, she would confront them even more strongly.
“What? Do you guys need to sleep with men to get them to do you favors? Can’t you just smile and take their calls? Life must be tough if you’re ugly.”
“And can you please manage your boyfriends? They keep texting me ‘Are you awake?’, ‘What are you doing this weekend?’, they’re more interested in my schedule than my manager. Do they need a job?”
Having dealt with all sorts of people over the past three years, her mental fortitude had strengthened, and she acted perfectly unaffected on the outside… but when it came to team assignments, she couldn’t help but feel intimidated.
‘No one is asking to team up with me this time either.’
At times like this, she felt wronged. Since entering college, she hadn’t slept more than 3-4 hours a night. Despite having to model to make a living, she always prioritized her studies.
She was passionate and hardworking, not inferior to anyone. But it hurt to see those qualities being belittled because of her appearance.
‘Should I just do it alone again this time?’
Still, there was one person Adriana wanted to work with.
‘Should I just ask him?’
She cautiously looked to her side.
“Hyun! If you don’t have a team in mind, do you want to do this contest together?”
“Hey, we were going to ask him first! We already have a workshop and most of the necessary fabric. Hyun, you just need to show up.”
“Hey! Recruiting Hyun is crossing the line. Are you trying to use a cheat code? But how about our team? Here, Kristy’s mother is a designer at Laurent! Her connections are amazing.”
‘As expected.’
Sure enough, many students gathered around Hyunsoo. Almost every team had someone hovering nearby.
Even with just two classes, Hyunsoo’s genius had already been proven to all the students. He was the only student recognized by Ruger Field as being at an active level.
Hyunsoo was famous even among the students who didn’t take this class.
‘There’s no reason for him to work with me. I wouldn’t be any help.’
Even someone who said everything without caring about others’ opinions… couldn’t bring herself to ask this time.
No matter how much she thought about it, Hyunsoo and his mom were the perfect team. She had nothing to contribute. Besides, they didn’t even live in New York.
“Oh, sorry.”
In reality, Hyunsoo was politely declining others’ offers.
“I already have a team, so it’s hard to join. Even if it’s not this contest, let’s work together next time if we get a chance.”
“Oh…”
“If you send me your designs, I’ll give you my best feedback. There’s no need to put my name on it since duplicate submissions aren’t allowed.”
Some teams were worried about their designs being leaked, while others who knew Hyunsoo’s personality were genuinely grateful.
“Wow, really? We’d be thankful, but I feel bad about it.”
“Hey, there’s no need to go that far. What’s your number?”
“…”
Adriana thought Hyunsoo was someone who was very admirable despite being young. He usually helped others as if it were his own work when they asked for help.
So she didn’t ask unnecessarily. She didn’t want to put Hyunsoo, who had a kind heart, in an awkward position.
‘I should ask Kate or Kristy to team up. They wouldn’t abandon their roommate, would they?’
Adriana decided to give up cleanly and got up from her seat.
“Huh?”
At that moment, Hyunsoo grabbed her wrist.
“Where are you going? Aren’t you joining us?”
“…Us?”
“That’s disappointing. After all the time we’ve spent taking classes together. Fine, go ahead. We’ll see how well you do without us. Mom, she said she’s not joining us.”
Hearing this, Kwak Hee-ae was startled and said,
“Why, Adriana? Can you think it over again? Maybe it’s because I’m older, but there’s no one who makes me feel as comfortable as you do.”
“Oh…”
Then something completely unexpected happened to Hyunsoo.
Adriana suddenly sat down on the floor and started crying loudly.
‘All of a sudden??’
Naturally, everyone’s attention was drawn.
There Hyunsoo stood, holding Adriana’s wrist, while she sat on the floor crying her heart out. It seemed like a huge misunderstanding was brewing.
‘What’s going on???’
Seeing a sign that she wanted to team up, he asked her to join, and now she was crying.
Hyunsoo’s eyes were filled with confusion.
‘Will I ever understand women in my lifetime?’
Suddenly, he recalled his father’s golden advice.
“Trying to understand makes you third-rate. Just react first, that’s what makes you first-rate.”
“I’m really grateful! I’ll work hard so I won’t be a burden!”
As soon as class ended, Adriana kept kissing Hyunsoo and his mom on the cheek.
Although it was somewhat overwhelming, her genuine happiness made it hard to pull away.
“Don’t worry about that. Your role in this project is very important.”
“Thanks, even if it’s just words. Let’s have video calls often!”
“Sure.”
After saying goodbye and leaving the building, Hyunsoo’s mom asked with a worried face.
“Son, will we really be okay?”
Her concern was understandable.
Though they hadn’t told Adriana yet, Hyunsoo had decided not to participate in the design this time.
The project would proceed with Hyunsoo’s mom taking charge of both design and production, and Adriana assisting her.
‘I’m best at something else.’
Hyunsoo had chosen the role of marketing and sales this time.
“Mrs. Kwak is handling it; of course, it’ll be fine! I trust you, why don’t you trust yourself?”
“…Still.”
“Just focus on making the best bag. I’ll make sure it sells.”
Hyunsoo reassured his mom with confidence.
He had good reason to be confident.
‘I made a Fortune 500 company successful with this.’
Back when he was running a company, this was what he excelled at the most.
Developing excellent products was important, but even more crucial was proper marketing. Without successful investment attraction, nothing could be achieved.
Hyunsoo planned to use his past experience to set up the best stage to sell his mom’s bag.
‘Adriana’s role is really important here.’
Anyone who’s experienced regression would agree, there’s something called the “Regressor’s Dilemma.”
‘How much should I get involved?’
From the moment Hyunsoo regressed, he became a variable.
The future had already changed.
The fact that he was living healthily and attending Johannes High School was different from the past.
Because of this, the lives of his family and everyone he met at school were affected.
Here lies the regressor’s dilemma: ‘Am I responsible for the future changed by me as a variable?’
After much self-reflection, Hyunsoo set certain standards, but now he was worried about Adriana’s future.
‘She’ll succeed greatly as a model at a relatively late age.’
He didn’t know the exact timing of her success, nor what experiences she’d go through to become such a model.
‘But is it okay for me to advance that timeline a bit for my mom’s success?’
Assuming Adriana accepted, Hyunsoo planned to develop her charm a bit earlier than in the past and use her as a model for the handbag.
However, there was one concern…
‘If she isn’t ready yet? If her later success is due to the experiences in the meantime? Can she grow into the same supermodel without those experiences? If her future gets twisted because of me, wouldn’t it be entirely my responsibility?’
It was a complicated issue.
Even if the person agreed and it was done with good intentions, if the results didn’t follow, there was only one solution.
‘Well, then I’ll take responsibility and make sure she succeeds somehow.’
Hyunsoo was confident. This was his specialty. If Adriana’s career took a hit, he planned to support her until she achieved even greater success than in the past.
‘First, let’s get the photographer. What’s that guy up to in 2020?’
Saturday morning.
After returning late from New York last night, Hyunsoo had no time to relax in the morning.
“Let’s go! Let’s go! Let’s go!”
Charles and Dianté showed up early and dragged him to the park.
“You guys are really obsessed with basketball.”
“Of course! I can feel my skills improving rapidly, how could I miss a day?”
They meant it literally.
They were addicted to Hyunsoo’s customized training and didn’t want to skip a single day.
Hyunsoo reluctantly packed his things and left the house.
‘I asked for this, so I can’t complain.’
Naturally, he had a deep understanding of the body.
He could give detailed guidance on the most ideal shooting form, dribbling height, and running posture depending on the body’s length and type.
“Wow, did you see my shot just now? It was a perfect arc.”
When he corrected their posture, their shooting success rate increased, their dribbling became smoother, and they could play basketball at a higher level.
‘These guys are too passionate.’
The only downside was that if they neglected training even a little, they’d revert to their old habits, so they constantly sought him out.
“Alright, again!”
“Don’t show your palm.”
“Uh-huh, lower your waist.”
The trio’s special training, which started in the morning, continued until the evening when the football season opener began.
Thirty minutes before the opening game.
A blond man, looking like a noble prince, approached Hyunsoo with a swagger.
“Are you Hyun?”
