Chapter 181 Competition

Ashton squeezed my fingers. ‘Take it easy. I’ll come sit in on the presentation later if I’m free.’

I walked in alone.

The registration staff scanned my badge and made me dump my phone, smart watch, even the fitness tracker I never used.

No contact with the outside world for the next eight hours.

My room was a box, maybe twelve square metres, walls painted off-white, no windows.

One metal chair, one worktable, a stylus tablet bolted to the surface.

In the corner, there was a toilet tucked behind a sliding door.

At exactly nine, the screen lit up.

Three sets of words appeared in block text:

[Evening gala. Gemstones. Composure.]

We had to design four matching pieces—ring, necklace, earrings, bracelet.

I stared at those words for a few seconds.

Then I smiled.

I’d thought of this theme before.

Not the exact combination, but close.

Lucky guess.

Or maybe my instincts weren’t total crap.

Either way, I already had two concepts ready in my head.

I picked the first.