Ko-fi shop has been renewed, you can find the link at the end of the chapter.
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Although Arnold had served his master for 15 years, not once did he believe that his master regarded him as anything more than a loyal stone. At most, perhaps, he could be compared to one of the horses his master liked to ride.
He was a cold and ruthless man. His interests burned out faster than a candle in the wind.
Born from love, yet incapable of loving. Born amidst the blessings of all, yet incapable of blessing others.
Such a man had found a woman he wanted to paint. Judging by the countless sketches discarded in the trash, it seemed he wanted to capture her exactly as she was, rather than some reimagined or reinterpreted version of her from his imagination.
So perhaps—just perhaps.
If there were even the faintest sign of change in his master.
It was enough to instill a sudden sense of fear. If someone who didn’t know love were to fall in love, how correct could his way of loving possibly be?
“Should I paint other things as well? Though I doubt I’ll find anything as beautiful as this.”
“…If you wish, I’ll search for it.”
“The spring in Ballestega… Wasn’t it once the property of the Dorthes royal family? Find out what’s become of it now and whether any remaining spirits dwell there.”
“I understand.”
After a brief hesitation, Arnold cautiously added, “If you were to find another woman—or someone else who could hold your interest—what would you do with that maid then?”
“Who knows.”
Felix replied indifferently. “Do I ever keep anything useless in my palace?”
Before Arnold could react, the woman’s frail shoulders flinched. At some point, she had apparently woken up.
Felix, who had been combing her hair with his fingers, met her gaze tenderly. “You’re awake.”
His tone was fundamentally different from the one he used with Arnold. Even so, the startled woman curled up even more. Her pale shoulders, briefly exposed, were marked with crimson bruises.
Felix abruptly pulled away the blanket covering her, burying his face into the nape of her neck, which carried her scent.
“A maid who falls asleep in her master’s presence… I suppose I’ll have to teach you from the beginning how to serve at night.”
It was the gentlest mockery Arnold had ever heard from the crown prince. The maid, unable to understand his ways, let out a quiet sob.
Arnold glanced at her face, partially illuminated by the moonlight. She had changed significantly from the day she first arrived at the separate palace.
He recalled her as an intelligent maid who, despite her blindness, was as sharp and adaptable as one could be. She had once been sensitive enough to discern even the footsteps echoing upstairs and could anticipate who was approaching. Now, it seemed she had no energy left to gauge Arnold’s presence. Her flushed face no longer bore the alertness or caution it once did, replaced instead by a mixture of pleasure and drowsiness, leaving her defenseless.
Felix, ignoring Arnold’s gaze entirely, pulled the maid onto himself. The pale moonlight cast delicate shadows of her body onto the floor.
Arnold immediately withdrew quietly, minimizing his presence. As he descended the stairs, the silhouette of the man and woman, entwined as one, lingered in his vision.
The loyal knight silently discarded the assumptions he had dared to entertain.
***
The crown prince, who had been absent from the hunting grounds for over ten days, finally returned to the separate palace after a long while.
When he left, there were two, but upon his return, only the crown prince remained. Duke Kristen, who had rushed over immediately, first checked among the servants to see if that woman was present.
Of course, she was not. When Hugo ran up to the third floor, Felix, who was sitting on the sofa in the living room smoking a cigar, greeted him with a laugh.
“Why are you running here like an anxious little puppy, Duke?”
He had no reservations about speaking bluntly to his uncle. Hugo barely managed to hold back a sharp retort, exercising great self-restraint.
“I heard you left the palace unattended for ten days. Isn’t the hunting lodge in the forest a place with weak security? You didn’t even bring many knights for protection. How could you stay so long in the middle of the forest?”
“There’s a sensitive woman who’s sharp about being observed but not so good at seeing what’s ahead.”
“…You didn’t bring her back from there?”
“She was sleeping. Besides, I’ll be going back soon, so why bother?”
Hugo nearly bit his tongue. The words, “I never realized you were so generous,” rose to his throat, but he swallowed them with the last bit of loyalty he had left.
“And the painting, have you finished it?”
“I’ve postponed it for now. I can paint anytime.”
“The painting… So, the painting, you mean?”
“Yes.”
The sketches Felix had drawn of the maid were all kept in the studio by the head maid. Felix hadn’t ordered them to be discarded, and there was also a duty to report every single move the crown prince made to the duke.
All the sketches were unfinished, and not one of them depicted her face. Proof that it hadn’t gone as he intended.
“The conclusion was that there wasn’t enough observation time.”
Felix, having finished one cigar, picked up another. As if it were natural, Hugo stood, trimmed the end of the cigar in Felix’s fingers, and lit a match.
After Hugo lit the cigar and stepped back, Felix placed the smoldering cigar between his lips. Even in this brief action, the royal’s dignity and poise, honed over a lifetime of receiving devotion, exuded effortlessly.
“So, what brings you rushing to me so early?”
“…Diana Escalif. I’ve done some personal investigations. It seems Prince Aizen has recently been planting more spies than usual.”
“If it’s about that, there’s no need to tell me, Duke. It’s not like I’m letting it slide because I don’t know.”
“You’re aware she came in with ill intentions, yet you’re letting her stay?”
“When hasn’t that been the case?”
Felix exhaled a puff of smoke from the cigar, the haze spreading thinly.
The man, accustomed to burning toxic roots as if it were second nature, was inherently indolent. If he found someone’s work ethic pleasing, he would give spies a chance — sometimes for a few days, other times for several years — as long as they didn’t try to harm him. The moment they were caught attempting anything, however, he would personally snuff out their life and preserve them on a canvas.
Sometimes it was hard to tell if this habit stemmed from sheer laziness or if he found amusement in playing with spies. Just as it was unclear whether he smoked those poisonous cigars to build resistance or simply because he enjoyed the taste.
Felix took a deep drag, letting the smoke roll in his mouth. It was a cigar made from ground toxic plants Hugo had recently imported from abroad. The flavor was undoubtedly foul, yet Felix showed no hint of discomfort.
“Men poison food or lace objects with drugs, while women open their legs. Nothing new; it’s all the same.”
Nothing new? Hugo thought differently. That maid was already receiving special treatment.
According to the head maid Katrin’s report, the maid neither cleaned the palace nor attended to the crown prince. Whenever Felix called for her, she entered the living room, during which time Felix forbade others from entering. No one knew what transpired within.
Recently, Felix had even taken her to the hunting grounds. The maids attending to her reportedly visited the hunting lodge at dawn, which was beyond absurd.
Though the answer seemed obvious, Hugo asked anyway, clinging to a sliver of hope.
“Is it possible that you’ve taken a liking to the maid…?”
“Diana is exceptional.”
“…Excuse me?”
“The more I see her, the more I like her.”
Hugo was at a loss for words. Exceptional. Coming from someone so sparing with compliments, it was already beyond a matter of mere liking.
“For someone who doesn’t even talk much with maids, this is quite unexpected.”
“She’s no longer just a maid.”
“Then what is she?”
“Someone who will be captured on my canvas.”
“A new model, then.”
“Exactly.”
For the first time in a while, the crown prince seemed to be in high spirits. However, his tone and expression, as he referred to the maid like an object, didn’t convey any genuine affection for her as a person.
And so, Hugo was left in doubt.
Diana Escalif. A maid whose very name might be false. Should he leave her by Felix’s side? Would she be able to break through that scoundrel’s solid walls, or wouldn’t she?
For now… she’s just an intriguing novelty he’s discovered after a long time.
Even in his youth, there had been similar instances. Felix, in his boyhood, was far more consumed with painting than he was now. Once he decided to paint, he would work obsessively, sometimes even forgoing food. But when the work was complete, he would lose interest in the model without mercy.
Felix’s passions always burned brightly like a flame and vanished just as quickly, like a flash of lightning.
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The portrait of Pride has opened a ko-fi shop with 5 advanced chapters. Ko-fi shop will be updated with each update in website. Here is the: LINK
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