ICLWKIWML 62

Chapter 61

“You must be busy right now…”

“……”

“I’ll contact you once the preparations for this season are finished.”

He truly seemed to have a good grasp of how the atelier operated, no doubt thanks to being by the Crown Prince’s side. He even knew this was the busiest period of the year.

“But no one knows when that’ll be over…”

Of course, there was an approximate schedule, but changes happened all the time.

“I’ll wait.”

He escorted me all the way to the atelier’s entrance, his face overflowing with a broad smile as if he had gained something delightful.

Even as the door closed and his figure disappeared from sight, that smile lingered in my mind.

It was the new season—a time when most ateliers became impossibly busy.

Every year, without fail, ateliers entered a state of heightened sensitivity during this period, and this year was no exception.

In the capital, the major ateliers bustled with activity, rushing to match each other’s launch schedules as though in a fierce competition.

And there was always one recurring theme that surfaced around this time:

“Designer scouting.”

The battle to lure away talented designers was nothing short of war.

The most coveted targets, of course, were the designers working at the ateliers that had shown the sharpest rise in sales.

Which meant… this season, the atelier most at risk of losing staff was ours—Frill Blue Rose.

Aside from me, Claude, we currently had three sub-designers: Clurnet, Ribonne, and Teacher Taylor.

Every single one of them was an indispensable talent.

If any one of them were to leave, the loss would be far too great for an atelier like ours, where every individual’s presence mattered.

I couldn’t stop such a thing from happening if they chose it… but it would certainly trouble me deeply.

For most sub-designers, the ultimate goal was either to open their own atelier or to become recognized as an executive in one of the established, prestigious ones.

Either way, belonging to a long-standing, reputable atelier gave them a far better chance.

After all, in this industry, the atelier’s name was as good as one’s résumé.

Frill Blue Rose might currently be enjoying soaring sales and rising reputation…

But that was all.

We still hadn’t quite shaken off the image of being a new, upstart atelier.

With our sales doing well this season, it was inevitable that my staff would be flooded with scouting offers.

Perhaps, staff turnover was something I couldn’t prevent.

To say my heart wasn’t restless would be a lie.

I desperately hoped they would choose to remain with me.

Every one of them was precious. We worked so well together that I didn’t want to lose a single one.

So, I resolved to give my best.

But if that still wasn’t enough… then I would have no choice but to let them go.

With that thought in mind, I walked into the atelier. The staff were hard at work, busy as ever.

After wrapping up the morning’s design review and the concept meeting, I poured myself some tea to clear my head.

One cup of sweet black tea, and another—Teacher Taylor’s favorite—an Americano.

With a tray of tea and some sweets, I headed straight to her workroom.

I wanted to discuss the concept for the next collection with her.

This was our first attempt at a children’s clothing concept, and there were bound to be obstacles. I thought she might offer the right answers, as she always did.

But when I arrived… Teacher Taylor wasn’t there.

Where could she have gone?

There wasn’t the slightest trace of her presence anywhere in the room.

Has she not come in yet?

An uneasy feeling brushed through my mind.

I had watched her for ten years, and not once had she ever been late.

So punctual was she that Ribonne had nicknamed her “the walking clock,” a nickname everyone in the atelier used.

Not only that—no matter how sick she was, she had never once taken a day off.

I had even told her many times she didn’t need to be so strict with herself, but Teacher Taylor had never once faltered.

She was the very model the rest of us looked up to.

Could she be unwell?

Feeling a chill of worry, I returned to the shared workspace.

“Has anyone seen Teacher Taylor?”

At my question, everyone’s eyes went wide.

Judging by their surprised expressions, they too hadn’t realized she hadn’t shown up today.

Even as we prepared fabrics and set things in order, there was still no sign of her.

As time passed, the staff began to glance uneasily toward her empty seat.

And truthfully, I couldn’t ignore the anxiety either.

She had never been absent for this long before.

Is she really sick this time…?

I even considered stepping out to buy her medicine, when Ribonne suddenly called to me.

“Claude? Claude!”

“Mm?”

“What are you thinking about?”

Her hand waved right in front of my face before I snapped out of my thoughts.

“What did you say?”

“Should we prepare for the next concept meeting now? Or wait until Teacher Taylor arrives?”

“Let’s start now. She may not be able to come today…”

After all, I had already discussed the key points with her beforehand.

Once the preparations were swiftly completed, we began the concept meeting.

Since the concept determined the direction of the entire next season, everyone’s faces were taut with tension.

Especially now, with sales skyrocketing, it was a crucial time to push forward.

In other words—this was the most important moment for Frill Blue Rose.

The tense atmosphere soon made everyone forget about Teacher Taylor’s absence.

“For this season’s concept…”

“……”

“I propose a children’s clothing project.”

The room was instantly filled with an even heavier silence.

As expected, that reaction didn’t surprise me.

Naturally, the first to speak was Clurnet.

She pinpointed the very concern I had anticipated and agonized over for days.

“Children’s clothing has always been the least demanded category… is this really okay?”

Worry was etched clearly across the staff’s expressions.

Even projects that had proven successful before often failed.

And here I was suggesting we take on something completely unfamiliar.

To abandon our flourishing adult dresses and suits, only to veer into children’s clothing?

But my reasoning was simple.

Beautifully designed dresses and suits had brought us plenty of customers so far.

But most of those customers were newly arrived nobles in the capital, or transient clients from other ateliers.

It was difficult to lure away those who had been long-term patrons of the Aria Atelier.

If we wanted to avoid stagnation and continue climbing higher, it was time for a bold challenge.

And the most effective way was to target an entirely new customer base.

The target I had in mind was—

children.

Of course, starting a completely new line of business always came with concerns.

One after another, the staff voiced their doubts.

“Children grow too quickly, so perhaps that’s why demand is low?”

“If we can’t resolve that fundamental problem, then…”

Indeed, children’s clothing had always shown weak demand.

That was why no atelier had ever specialized in it.

Most designers assumed the problem was that nobles simply didn’t want to spend so much money on clothes their children would soon outgrow.

But the research I had conducted revealed something entirely different.

Most nobles could well afford their children’s clothing.

And they certainly weren’t indifferent to them—

After all, conversations about their children ranked in the top three most frequent topics nobles discussed in any atelier.

Their love for their children suggested there was definitely potential demand.

The real problem was that ateliers, fearing failure, had never made proper children’s clothing in the first place.

But if we created quality designs tailored exactly to what parents wanted?

The market could very well change.

“Customers don’t hesitate to spend money on children’s clothing.”

“……?”

“If they did, then why would the demand for other children’s goods—like those in this chart—be so high?”

“……!”

I presented the data I had prepared in advance.

As they studied the clearly organized chart, their eyes gradually lit up. Some even nodded in agreement.

“No atelier has ever specialized in children’s clothing. There isn’t even a proper catalog.”

“……”

“So naturally, the market remained small.”

“……”

“But if we raise the quality, the whole picture can change.”

Demand had always been there—it just needed supply to meet it.

Still, the staff’s faces remained uneasy.

There was a flaw in my plan, and they had realized it.

“…Are you saying you’ll make… a children’s clothing catalog?”

Eyes darted around in surprise.

It was no wonder—catalogs weren’t something one could create overnight.

They were notoriously the hardest part of establishing an atelier.

And to attempt one for children’s clothing, of all things?

In the Empire, the concept of children’s fashion was so underdeveloped that there wasn’t even a standard classification.

In short, children’s clothes were all the same.

I had, of course, considered that issue.

That’s why I’ve been preparing countless sketches since I was young.

Organizing those sketches into a catalog hadn’t taken me long.

And today—

I finally unveiled the long-awaited Children’s Wear Catalog.

The staff accepted the pages, flipping through them absentmindedly at first, then their eyes widened, round with astonishment.

Their surprise grew until it looked as though their eyes might leap from their faces.

Exclamations quickly followed.

“These are gorgeous! Look at this sailor suit!”

“Wow, this is adorable. How did you even come up with these suspenders?”

“That red cape is cheating—it’s too cute!”

They nodded vigorously, already sold on the project.

In the midst of their excitement, Ribonne wore a solemn expression.

I wondered if she had found some critical flaw, but instead—

“This is guaranteed to succeed.”

Her eyes glistened with emotion as they locked on me.

But if we spoke in specifics, there was still a problem.

Once again, Clurnet, with her sharp analysis, brought it up.

“Children’s clothing doesn’t have established measurements or standards. Won’t that be an issue?”

Naturally, I had prepared for that as well.

Using the knowledge from my previous life, I had drawn up detailed size charts and standard templates, which I distributed to them now.

“With this, making children’s clothing shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

The staff’s jaws dropped.

“When did you even prepare all this…?”

But it was far too soon to be surprised.

Sure enough, as they turned to the next page, shock spread across their faces once again.

“Claude, this is…!”