One week after the concert, a new album appeared on all streaming ptforms.

  -Am I dreaming ? Tell me I’m not !!!!

  ?If you are dreaming then I am too mdr

  ??don’t wake me up

  -Already listened to it five times

  -how can every song be such a banger????mam this is illegal!!!

  ?our angel cooked fr xptdr

  -The album is in the store next to my house !!!! I bought 5, it’s all I can afford with my allowance T-T

  ?aaaah you are so lucky!!! there aren’t any at my culture store…

  ??Want me to send you one ?

  ???Me too please ! I live in Italy and there aren’t any here

  ‘Angel’s Horseboys’ was living its better days, becoming slowly one of the most active fan groups in France. The members, who had been starved for content with the MyTube channel slowing down, were relishing in the new album, even creating their own music videos with various photos and recordings of Mademoiselle Cyrielle. The concert was still a hot topic, and the fancams were quickly gaining traction. The lyrics videos of the songs were posted on the main channel, and even karaoke versions found their way on MyTube, prompting the fans to post their covers and spread Cyrielle’s name even more. She was everywhere, be it on the Internet, in articles, blogs, or magazines, where she was slowly becoming a popur model, thanks to the work of Bernadette Dupuit.

  The strict looking woman was sitting at her desk, in Femme Frenchie’s building, reviewing papers.

  “When will we get the rank for the album ?”

  The assistant looked at his tablet.

  “In three days. However, the streaming ptforms charts are updated everyday.”

  “So ?”

  “The title song ‘To my weak self’ is 45th on the french charts. It hasn’t yet entered the top 100th internationally.”

  “I see…”

  Bernadette was looking into space, in a daze. After thinking for a bit, she lifted her head to meet her assistant’s eyes.

  “Angel-Minet is working hard, even with just one talent. What do you think would happen if they had several ?”

  The assistant shuddered at the thought.

  “They could completely take over the entertainment industry. I mean, as long as those talents are half as good as Mademoiselle Cyrielle.”

  “That’s what I think too. Until now, they didn’t have the funds necessary to properly take care of their artists, it was Cyrielle herself that did all the heavy lifting. But now, the income of the album will start to appear, as well as all the photoshoots that she is doing, the photobook from the Versailles shooting, the cosmetic ad, and the MyTube channel. The paychecks will be astronomical, and Cyrielle herself is the prime investor for the company. But, do you know the most incredible thing ? For now, they refused every other investor. If they come with their own agenda, they are dragged to the door immediately. Basically, Angel-Minet has decred ‘If you aren’t doing it for the love of the talents, you aren’t even worth considering’.”

  Bernadette stroked her chin, a big smile forming on her lips.

  “What do you think, should we invest too ? Surely, they won’t refuse, not after we gifted them their current office.”

  The assistant slightly widened his eyes, a gleaming light spreading in them.

  “If we are Angel-Minet’s investors…”

  “We won’t only make an absurd amount of money, but we’ll also earn priority for Femme Frenchie’s photoshoot.”

  The man nodded energetically.

  “We will be forever linked to Angel-Minet, so it’s a kind of ride or die. If we are ever in trouble, they will help us, and we’ll help them if they have a hard time.”

  “Now that things have turned out like this, do you see them having a hard time ?”

  He didn’t need to think, the assistant shook his head.

  “Associating with them is basically a cheat code. But for that to happen, we need to give them something big, more than just a few photoshoot offers and interviews.”

  “You’re right, those won’t cut it anymore…”

  Bernadette pursed her lips, turning the gears inside her head.

  ‘What could I offer that would be attractive for such a booming company ? No, I’m thinking about this all wrong. There is only one person I need to convince, the one who is really holding the reins.’

  Her gaze nded on the wall, where a photo was framed. It represented a famous runway, one all models dreamed of walking, and designers of exposing their creations. The editor-in-chief smiled.

  “I heard Mademoiselle Cyrielle is preparing a collection for next year. What do you think, should we organize an event for her to dispy it ?”

  It was too early for that famous runway, but Bernadette could help Cyrielle reach it someday.

  ***

  At the same time, a well known singer was looking out a pne’s window. It was Manon Sarmer, a woman known as the favorite personality of french people, and an icon of female empowerment, as well as a famous ally of the queer community. All those titles, she had earned them during her sixty years of life, but she looked to be in her thirties at most. She was coming back to France after a tour, and was already pnning her 13th studio album.

  Manon was listening to music while looking at the clouds. She liked to take time for herself, she wasn’t the type to release an album every year, but a specific voice had prompted her to create music again. It was Mademoiselle Cyrielle’s. Manon Sarmer had a very soft and angelic voice, to the point that if you didn’t know her, which was impossible for any french speaking person, you wouldn’t guess it was an adult woman actually singing. It was the total opposite of Mademoiselle Cyrielle, with her powerful low notes and her raspy tone, that could make your insides vibrate.

  ‘I wonder what it would sound like with our voices mixing together. I’m a bit excited.’

  Usually, nobody would refuse to be featured in Manon Sarmer’s album, but Mademoiselle Cyrielle was peculiar. She seemed to be passionate about her craft, refused to appear on popur MyTube channels, and didn’t mingle with the big names of french entertainment industry. Her agency also mirrored her attitude, refusing investment if the intentions weren’t genuine.

  ‘I prefer people with strong values, compared to p dogs. The more I learn about her, the more intrigued I am. Maybe I shouldn’t rush this. I should first talk a bit with her, try to find out her opinions. I hope she likes me, but I do remember that she did some a cappel covers of my songs st year. It should be alright.’

  She smiled while looking at the night sky.

  ‘She is nicknamed ‘the angel’, and people say I have an angelic voice. This combo will be perfect.’

  With that in mind, she decided to close her eyes for a bit.

  ***

  Cyrielle was still working diligently on her collection, with the help of Path of Destiny.

  [Congratutions, you have finished ‘Quest 4 : Let’s get technical’ ! Proceeding with the next quest.]

  [{Make a collection}

  Quest 5 : Time for the pn

  You have now imagined all the garments in your collection. What is missing ? The pn ! Show the front and back view of every piece of clothing, along with the materials, colors, and suppliers of the fabric. You have to be precise !]

  ‘We are finally entering the real design process, it was so hard to reach this point ! But I still learned a lot of things from that, I feel like my ability expanded, and not only because of the ‘aesthetic’ category.’

  [Of course, the more you do something and understand its principles, the better you are at it.]

  ‘Still, creating a collection requires a lot of work…’

  Cyrielle looked at her desk, which was full of paper. During the week that had passed since the beauty salon appointment, she had been working without rest. There were moodboards, fabric samples, various designs, and floor pns as well as a furniture catalog for the leather brand’s interior decor. She had also operated her new scanner printer, and most of her sketchbook’s content was organized in her computer. Cyrielle had cssified every drawing, assembling them in files depending on the theme, and was cautiously preparing her various books. She had no idea what to write in them, or how to edit the scanned pictures, but it was something that would come ter, when she would have enough content.

  She stretched for a long time before getting up and walking out of her atelier, ying down on her couch.

  ‘I can’t believe my album is in the top 100 for french releases. It feels surreal.’

  [It’s normal considering your abilities. Anything different would have been due to nepotism and corruption.]

  Path of Destiny was really proud, she could feel it. Cyrielle giggled.

  ‘You’re right, it’s a very good album, it’s only fair !’

  [Now, do you know the answer ?]

  Her smile disappeared. The system was talking about the ‘drawing’ ability. Now, Cyrielle could somewhat sketch designs, but she had no real knowledge about how to do an illustration. She could try, but the best she could do would probably be a rough concept art, not an actual piece. She sighed, looking towards the atelier’s door.

  ‘I still don’t know. I want to keep thinking about it while creating my collection, it’s more fun than I expected. Let’s talk about it ter.’

  [If you ask me for more time, it feels like you already know the answer.]

  ‘Shut it.’

  -Brrr Brrr

  Her phone vibrated. Cyrielle took it out of her pocket, smiling slightly.

  ‘Is it Julie again ? She is so excited even though it isn’t her own album.’

  Julie had sent her text messages almost every hour, with screenshots of various music charts from all over the world. Cyrielle’s album wasn’t in the top 100 in most of them, but just being in the rankings was an honor.

  Cyrielle suddenly froze. The text didn’t come from Julie. In fact, it came from her worst nightmare.

  [Unknown : Hello, it’s your dad.]