“Butler, please guide these guests.”
Jordana handed the two guests over to the mansion’s butler and began to walk away. Memories from the limousine earlier flashed through his mind.
- Jordana, don’t you think your rudeness is tarnishing Desiderio’s reputation?
Jordana’s cheeks twitched. A strong breath escaped from his nostrils, causing his long beard to sway.
Nonsense. The one tarnishing Desiderio’s reputation is none other than Youngguk. This deal shouldn’t have happened from the beginning.
‘I should have stopped it somehow.’
It was because of Monica Rossellini, the granddaughter of the founder and the chief designer who would lead Desiderio in the future, who suddenly became enamored with an unknown Asian actor and even traveled to Korea to recruit him.
Not only did Jordana oppose this, but there was also strong resistance from the company’s side.
It was a natural outcome. Considering Desiderio’s brand value, it was unthinkable. It would have been better not to use a model at all. Besides…
It was rare for the chief designer to move personally for a model contract. Usually, it was the other party trying to meet Monica by any means.
However, not only did the chief designer move personally, but she also offered the best conditions among all the models they had ever contracted.
- I think I need more time to consider it.
Initially, Youngguk rejected the contract. At first, it was suspicious enough to wonder if he had lost his mind.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that for an Asian actor to sign a contract with Desiderio was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“Arrogant punk.”
The statement of rejection was in the past tense, implying that the contract was eventually signed, and with even better conditions.
It was due to the fervent courtship of chief designer Monica Rossellini. She not only sent gifts to the filming site but also stayed in Korea, an Asian country, for a whole month. Jordana thought it was a pointless effort.
“Alfredo, keep an eye on that guy from now on.”
Alfredo frowned. He didn’t like his brother Jordana’s attitude, who was the chief designer’s secretary at Desiderio.
No matter how unknown the actor was, he was a model who had signed an exclusive contract with Desiderio. The high-handed attitude shown at the airport and the sneering throughout the limo ride were unpleasant even for a sibling.
“He might do something arrogant using Desiderio’s name, so watch him day and night.”
The butler, who looked like a character from The Godfather, matched well with his deep-set eyes and black suit.
If he had a cigar in his mouth, he would be charismatic enough to be mistaken for the head of the Italian mafia.
“Mr. Jang, I will guide you through the mansion.”
The mansion was so vast that it could be called a castle, and besides the butler, there were numerous staff visible. Even at a glance, there seemed to be dozens of them. Of course, managing such a large mansion would require that many people.
“How should I address you?”
“Please call me Anders, Mr. Jang. I am the butler of Memoria.”
“Memoria, so this place is called Memoria?”
“It was the castle of Count Negroni in the 16th century. Back then, it served as a villa frequently visited by Count Negroni. Only the exterior from that time has been maintained, and the interior, such as bathrooms and bedrooms, has been remodeled as needed. But Mr. Jang, your English is very good.”
In my past life, I had dreamed of expanding overseas and studied English. That effort was now bearing fruit. Of course, it was also thanks to Anders for speaking English instead of Italian.
Following Anders’ guidance, I toured every corner of the mansion for over thirty minutes. Finally, I was shown the bedroom.
It felt like entering a scene from a Shakespearean play. Starting with the antique chandelier, the high ceiling was adorned with a Michelangelo-style mural reminiscent of a cathedral.
The room was as spacious as an apartment. Opening the tall windows, the view of the garden, which looked like an arboretum, came into full view.
At the surreal sight, Lee Bongchun’s mouth dropped open.
“Hyung, your mouth will drop off.”
“Wow, I’ve never been to a place like this in my life. I vaguely thought it would be a hotel since they said they’d provide a place to sleep, but this is…”
I was equally amazed. Although I had experienced most high-end hotels in my past life, it was my first time staying in a place that reminded me of a medieval castle.
At that moment, a painting on one of the walls caught my eye. It was a familiar piece. It was ‘Brilliant Night’ by Lucia Socani, a great Italian artist of the 20th century.
‘It must be a replica.’
In my past life, I had a long but short interest in art. Considering that Lucia Socani’s works were sold for billions of won, I thought it must be a replica.
Of course, no matter how wealthy they were, they wouldn’t hang a billion-won piece in a guest’s room. But why did it look more like an original the more I looked at it?
I wanted to ask Anders, but he had already left after showing us the bedroom, not wanting to make us uncomfortable.
“By the way, Youngguk, what did you say to that secretary in the limo earlier? His expression hardened immediately when you said something in English.”
Lee Bongchun’s voice broke my thoughts. What should I say?
“I didn’t say much, just asked if he had a bad day.”
“What did he say?”
“He just said he wasn’t feeling well.”
“No wonder! He looked upset the whole time. I thought he needed to go big. My intuition was right!”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Mr. Jang has arrived?”
Monica Rossellini, the chief designer of Desiderio, was engrossed in preparing for a project to welcome the upcoming New Year.
Her shoulders felt as heavy as a giant’s due to the all-nighters over the past month, but her exhausted face lit up at the news of Youngguk’s arrival.
“He finished his shooting schedule early and arrived earlier than the scheduled date.”
“Jordana, why didn’t you tell me?”
“Vice President, you were in charge of the project, so I didn’t think to inform you separately. I thought model management was my responsibility. I apologize.”
“Hmm, is Mr. Jang at Memoria now?”
“Yes, he is.”
Jordana couldn’t understand Monica.
He had been assisting her for a long time and thought he understood her nature. She wasn’t in the position of successor just because she was the granddaughter of the founder.
As a designer, she was passionate about everything, but as a businessperson, she was colder than anyone else. In fact, Desiderio’s reputation had spread further since Monica became the chief designer, and its brand value continued to rise.
“Vice President, are you planning to go now?”
“No. He must be resting to adjust to the time difference. There’s no need for me to disturb his rest. We’ll meet in a few days anyway.”
“Vice President, may I ask you something if it’s not too much trouble?”
Jordana couldn’t hold back his curiosity and asked. No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t understand.
Even after returning to Italy, he had wondered if what had happened over the past few months could really happen at Desiderio. Perhaps Monica had found something he hadn’t.
“Why is Mr. Jang so important that you desired him so much? To be honest, there’s still a lot of opposition within the company to using Mr. Jang as an exclusive model. Since it was a result of your unilateral decision, it could be a problem when you inherit management rights in the future, so I’m asking.”
Monica knew that Jordana wasn’t asking with bad intentions. She knew it was sincere advice out of concern for her.
“Jordana, I trust my instincts.”
“Trusting your instincts seems too much of a gamble.”
“That’s why we’ll see when we reveal our cards.”
Monica added with a smile.
“Whether it’s a bust or a jackpot. Isn’t that right?”
Desiderio’s headquarters were different from a typical company. Instead of a tall building, they used a vast area as their headquarters, resembling a university campus. I could understand why it was called the Silicon Valley of the fashion industry.
We traveled for quite a while on a vehicle similar to a golf cart.
“Here we are, Mr. Jang.”
The place we arrived at with Alfredo, who was acting as an interpreter, was one of the innermost parts of the headquarters. It was said to be where they stored samples of the upcoming Desiderio collections.
As soon as we got off the golf cart, several people approached.
“Mr. Jang, please go up with them. We need to take exact body measurements. Most of them can speak English, so communication shouldn’t be a problem. And Mr. Lee, how about touring the headquarters with me?”
“Hyung, go with Alfredo. I’ll go up first.”
“Are you sure?”
“It’s the headquarters; what could happen?”
Lee Bongchun showed an awkward expression. In fact, he couldn’t speak Italian or even English, so he wouldn’t be much help.
He felt relieved that Alfredo, who was acting as an interpreter, would personally show him around the headquarters.
‘They’re even measuring my finger length.’
The inside of the headquarters wasn’t much different from a typical clothing company, contrary to the vast grounds. I felt embarrassed for thinking it might be a Baroque-style building like the Memoria mansion.
The designers measured not just my height but also my finger length, the size of my ears, and even the distance from my collarbone to my chin. Although I had experience getting custom suits, it was the first time every part of my body was measured so meticulously that it felt awkward.
“Mr. Jang, would you try on this suit?”
A typical blonde Western beauty with a slim waist and long hair brought a suit.
“This is the sample suit that best matches Mr. Jang’s body type. We’d like to see how it fits.”
I was changing into the suit in the fitting room. Just as I had changed into both the top and bottom, the fitting room door suddenly opened, and assistant designers came in.
They pinned the bottom hem, waist, and shoulder lines with needles to shape the suit, which was so excessive that I almost got pricked by the needles.
I had heard that models frequently experienced this on the runway, and if they were clumsy, their bodies would be covered in bruises.
After changing into all the clothes, I came out of the fitting room to see familiar faces. It was chief designer Monica Rossellini and her secretary Jordana.
Jordana’s eyes widened as he saw me walking out of the fitting room. The same reaction came from the other designers standing nearby.
Seeing this, chief designer Monica smiled faintly and said.
“Jackpot.”
