Chapter 483: Eliminate Estelle Lockwood!

Chapter 483: Chapter 483: Eliminate Estelle Lockwood!

After hanging up the phone, the person in charge from the organizing committee wiped a bead of cold sweat from his forehead. He dug out Estelle Lockwood’s design draft and immediately felt caught in a dilemma.

He knew exactly what Claire Yeats wanted: to use the Yeats family’s power to squeeze Estelle out of the competition. But Estelle’s design... this design was even better than Claire’s!

Furthermore, he couldn’t understand one thing. Claire was clearly the champion of the previous competition. Ember’s work back then had been full of soul and inspiration. Why had Claire’s skill regressed to such a state in just three short years? It wasn’t even a tenth as good as her past work.

But so what? She was still the champion, after all. Even if Estelle was Star’s chief designer, being eliminated by the previous champion seemed perfectly reasonable. At most, people would just say that Estelle had bad luck.

However, the man in charge still had a shred of conscience. He figured he should discuss the matter with his superiors. If leadership felt Estelle’s design shouldn’t be buried, then Claire’s bribery would be for naught.

Just then, Evan Yeats called.

"My sister just likes to play around with these designs. I think you know what I mean," Evan said.

"In the design circle, it’s about talent, but it’s also about family background. The Yeats family will act as her escort.

"My father, the Head of the Yeats, has just returned from abroad. I’m sure you know that Claire was raised by our side since she was a child. My father treats her like his own daughter."

The man in charge didn’t dare say another word. What Mr. Evan said was true. The Yeats family was indeed a behemoth he couldn’t afford to offend. If anyone was to blame, it was Estelle for not having a powerful family to back her up.

Half a month later.

The shortlist for the qualifiers was confirmed, and two hundred contestants received the notification. On Twitter, Claire shared the good news with her fans.

[Ahhh, I knew our Claire could do it!]

[I don’t know what the other contestants are so excited about. It’s just the qualifiers. Our Claire is definitely going to be the champion!]

[Claire is seriously so amazing!]

[I heard her work this time received unanimous praise from the judges.]

[Any news from Star?]

[Haha, I’m dying of laughter. None at all! A certain well-known designer made such a huge fuss during the audition registration, but what now? The shortlist is out, and it seems Estelle Lockwood didn’t make the cut!]

[To the commenter above: I’ve checked the Twitter and YouTube accounts of all the major designers, both domestic and international. Today, two hundred people have gradually announced the good news and showed off their spots in the qualifiers. And guess what? A certain someone really isn’t among them!]

[Holy crap, it’s true! Where is that chief designer from Star? Why isn’t your name here?]

The internet was flooded with relentless mockery.

Claire couldn’t help but secretly rejoice.

"Claire!" Third Aunt Yeats exclaimed, her face flushed with excitement. Ever since making a fool of herself at the Tidal Pavilion last time, their family’s business had been cut off by Nathaniel Sloan, and they had long been struggling to make ends meet. "Old Mr. Yeats is back!"

Claire’s eyes lit up as the wheels in her head began to turn.

Third Aunt Yeats slapped her thigh. "Quick, go see Old Mr. Yeats right now. Put on a good show, act pitiful, and sweet-talk him. He hasn’t met Estelle yet. As long as you can..."

Claire understood her aunt’s implication perfectly. It was true—Old Mr. Yeats was the one currently in control of the Yeats family. He hadn’t met Estelle, and his entire impression of her came from documents and hearsay. But Claire was someone he had watched grow up. As long as she hinted to Old Mr. Yeats that Estelle had terrible moral character, then...

Coupled with the bustling drama online, Claire hatched another plan. She spent a hefty sum to hire a troll army.

Soon enough, a group of people claiming to be "Estelle Lockwood fans" appeared online, accusing the design competition of being unfair. This immediately struck a nerve with the netizens who had initially been feeling pity that such a famous designer hadn’t made the shortlist.

[Just because Estelle didn’t make the cut, it means the competition is unfair?]

[This is hilarious.]

[I’m boycotting Star right now!]

[Yeah, let’s be reasonable. Those jewelry pieces from Star were top-notch. If they were really Estelle’s works, it’s impossible that she wouldn’t make the shortlist. I bet she stole someone else’s designs!]

[That’s too much! Boycott Star!]

Meanwhile.

Inside the design competition’s judging panel.

A middle-aged woman furrowed her brows and demanded, "Mr. Ellis, could you please explain why contestant Estelle Lockwood’s design was eliminated in the first round?!"

Two design drafts appeared on the large screen. One was Estelle’s *Cloud Sea Building*, and the other was an unnamed draft.

The middle-aged woman, Ms. Riddle, was also one of the judges. "Everyone, please take a look. These are the two design drafts from the first round of the auditions—the very round where contestant Estelle was eliminated! I believe anyone with eyes can tell which of these two is superior!"

An uproar rippled through the audience.

There were thirty-five judges in total. Because the volume of audition entries was so massive, there was no cross-review process; decisions were basically left to individual judges. It was true that between two designs of similar quality, a judge’s personal preference might determine which one advanced and which was eliminated. Ms. Riddle admitted that the competition’s process wasn’t perfect, and this was one of its inherent flaws.

However, the difference between these two designs was like night and day! Yet, Mr. Ellis had eliminated the ’day’ and kept the ’night.’ No sane person could tolerate such an outcome!

The other judges in the audience were similarly dismayed.

"With such a stunning design, Miss Lockwood could easily make a run for the championship. She was eliminated this early on?"

"Uh... with all due respect, I really can’t see the merits of the design that beat Miss Lockwood’s."

"It’s an incredibly ordinary draft. If you threw it in a pile, I wouldn’t even bother giving it a second glance. How could it possibly have eliminated Estelle’s work?"

"Yeah, Mr. Ellis. Did you make a mistake? Give us an explanation."

"If a work like Estelle’s is eliminated, what authority will our XM Design Competition have in the future?"

"Mr. Ellis, let me remind you that Miss Estelle was recorded the entire time she submitted her audition piece. If she refuses to accept this outcome and publishes her design online, can you guess how much public backlash we’ll face?"

The judges were filled with righteous indignation.

However, Mr. Ellis just lifted his chin arrogantly, his expression filled with disdain. "Yes, I admit it. Estelle’s design is indeed very good."

"You admit it, yet you still..." Several judges choked on their words, wondering if there was something wrong with Albert Ellis’s brain to eliminate a design he knew was good.

"You all feel it’s a pity to eliminate Estelle, but that’s only because you don’t know who created the other design!" Mr. Ellis remained incredibly haughty.

The crowd stared in confusion.

Seeing the indignation in their eyes, Mr. Ellis let out a scoff, his tone dripping with condescension as if he were bestowing charity upon them. "Then I’ll tell you.

"In the first round of the auditions, Estelle’s opponent was the previous champion, Miss Ember—who is none other than Claire Yeats, the very person the Yeats family specifically instructed us to look after!"