Chapter 20

* * *

Translated by Sylph

Read only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net.

* * *

In the place Evi looked, only a large frame was hung, and no portrait was visible.

Instead, it was written that the current Imperial painter was doing the finishing touches, and it was scheduled to be revealed in the fall, in time for the Emperor’s birthday.

‘I was curious about what the current Emperor looks like.’

He was like a benefactor who had selected her for the Gifted Center. So she wanted to see him even more, but he wasn’t there.

Swallowing her regret, Evi looked at other portraits.

Besides the current Emperor, there was one more person whose portrait was missing.

It was the previous Emperor, who had been the cause of the Succession War.

Was it because he had killed his father and brothers? Only his name was engraved, and the place where the portrait should have been hung remained a lonely blank space without even a frame.

Leaving behind the room that seemed to have complicated adult circumstances, Evi headed toward a room further inside.

“I guess portraits of Imperial family members are hung here.”

Evi marveled at the portraits filling the walls.

The first thing that caught her eye were the portraits of Empresses wearing flamboyant crowns.

In the past, most were male Emperors, but as time passed, female Emperors also appeared, and their number increased.

Therefore, portraits of Imperial Consorts were also mixed in between them.

Of course, all of them were smaller in size than the Emperor’s portrait.

It wasn’t just the Emperor’s companions who were hung there. Small portraits were also hung below those portraits.

They were all portraits of children.

Amid the portraits of adults with solemn expressions, the portraits of children were mostly smiling.

Sometimes there were portraits of them holding their favorite dolls or toys.

Or portraits of them holding many books.

At the portraits of children of a similar age to her, Evi examined the paintings with a bit more enjoyment than before.

“None of them have names attached.”

Just as the staff had said, perhaps because the organization was incomplete, many of the paintings did not have names under them to indicate who was who.

Then, the moment she stood before the last painting on the wall, Evi’s steps stopped.

Until now, all the portraits had adults and children drawn separately.

But this portrait was different.

A young woman with red hair and green eyes was smiling brightly while holding a small baby in her arms.

Was it not long after it was born?

The baby held in the woman’s arms was wrapped in cloth, and its face was not even well-visible.

Evi gazed at the painting blankly for a long time.

It was someone she was seeing for the first time. Since she was here, she must surely be the Emperor’s companion.

She quickly checked the side of the painting, but as expected, no name or explanation was attached.

‘They haven’t attached it yet…’

Feeling even greater regret than when she couldn’t see the jewels properly, Evi stood before the painting again.

Since it was a scene of her smiling brightly while holding the child in her arms as if the child were precious, her mood should have improved upon seeing it.

“…”

Strangely, Evi suddenly felt a lump in her throat.

‘Who is it?’

She hadn’t felt this way with the other paintings she had seen so far.

Unlike the other paintings, she was drawn together with a child, but it was the same in that she was a stranger anyway.

Evi unconsciously took one more step closer to the painting.

Then, the smiling woman in the painting became visible in more detail.

Evi continued to look at the painting mindlessly.

To the point that she didn’t even know that the door of the distant portrait room was closing.

* * *

“…”

“…”

While other students were resting and chatting happily, Arcel and Ruska sat in chairs without saying a word, looking outside.

The students who had been tactlessly talking to them at first also gradually avoided the place, saying, “Something must have happened to them,” when the two hardly answered.

The person who first opened his mouth after a long time was Ruska.

“I heard Lilian’s portrait has been finished and hung. Do you want to see it before we go?”

“…”

At Ruska’s words, Arcel seemed to contemplate for a moment, then shook his head.

“No. I plan to come back later, so today is fine.”

If it were the usual Ruska, he would have grabbed him, asking when that ‘later’ would be and telling him to see it now.

But today, Ruska also just nodded once and didn’t say more.

“Right. Then I’ll get up first.”

“Are you planning to go see the portrait?”

When Arcel asked back, Ruska smirked.

“No. I won’t see it today either. I feel like I’ll cry disgracefully if I see it now.”

Ruska got up with a forced smile.

He left the exhibition room with a trundling step, his hands stuffed in his pockets.

What he had said to Arcel was not a joke. Was it because his mood had been slumped since the morning because of a dream?

In this state, he felt like he would sob like a young child if he saw Lilian’s portrait.

‘And according to father’s words, they also drew Princess Evbien in the portrait.’

Was it because no one had seen her face? He heard that they couldn’t draw Princess Evbien’s face.

Since he had decided not to go, it was right to look around somewhere else other than the portrait exhibition room, but strangely, his feet wouldn’t easily move away.

So, Ruska circled around the exhibition hall where there was nothing more to see.

Was it because he was separated from Arcel? Students again began to slowly approach around Ruska.

“Phew, this popularity of mine.”

Ruska muttered so and shook his head.

It seemed he looked easy to approach since he was walking around alone without Arcel, who was hard to talk to.

‘I should quickly go somewhere else.’

Pretending not to know, Ruska turned his steps and headed toward the entrance of the exhibition hall. If he went outside altogether, it would be difficult for them to follow.

At that moment, someone suddenly popped out quickly from the corridor leading to the portrait hall.

Thud!

Someone collided with Ruska with a loud enough sound.

“Ah! What!”

The opponent, who was staggering, raised her eyebrows as if annoyed, then became wide-eyed upon seeing Ruska.

“I-I’m sorry!”

He didn’t like the attitude of apologizing only after knowing who he was.

But Ruska decided not to press the matter. Right now, he felt more annoyed.

“It’s fine.”

He thought she would just pass by then. The female student who bumped into him bowed with a smile and said:

“Um, I’m Rimora Isel. If it’s okay, as an apology, I’ll later at the Gifted Center…”

“Sigh…”

At the too-obvious ploy, Ruska let out a sigh.

At the moment he was about to ignore her and turn away, Ruska remembered that Rimora had come out from the direction of the portrait exhibition hall.

‘I wonder if she saw Lilian’s portrait too.’

With a slight hope, Ruska asked her a question.

“More importantly, you’re coming from the portrait exhibition room, right? Is anyone inside…”

At that moment, Rimora’s expression stiffened, and she shook her head.

“N-No. I was going to go see it, but I just came out. I’ll be going now…”

Unlike her passionate way of talking a moment ago, Rimora left the place with a half-hearted greeting.

“What. What’s wrong with her?”

The way she left in a hurry looked like a person running away after doing something wrong.

Ruska looked at the corridor leading to the portrait exhibition room.

It was a place that felt a bit dark because there were no other ceilings except for the very high ones to protect the portraits.

What could there be to do wrong here…

Looking at the quiet corridor, Ruska felt somehow uneasy and was about to head toward the portrait exhibition hall.

At that moment, a staff member said loudly at the entrance.

“It’s time to move now! All students inside, please come out!”

At that sound, Ruska stopped his steps.

Although he had sat outside with Arcel for a long time, he didn’t expect it would already be time to move.

Feeling regretful, Ruska gazed into the corridor for a long time, then turned his steps.

Strangely, he felt a lingering uneasiness, as if he had left something behind.

* * *

Evi was quietly looking at the portrait.

Then she suddenly came to her senses and looked around.

‘It’s quiet.’

When she entered, she thought she heard the voices and footsteps of students in the distance, but now she didn’t hear any sound.

Furthermore, the inside of the exhibition hall was a bit darker than when she entered.

‘I should go back.’

Evi hurried toward the door. As she did so, her eyes kept turning toward the portrait.

‘If I can come here again later, I must check the name then.’

Thinking so, as she approached the door, she saw that the door, which was open when she entered, was closed.

‘That must be why it was quiet.’

Evi grabbed the handle and turned it with strength. It should open just like this and show the students outside…

“Huh?”

A look of failure crossed Evi’s face.

The handle would not turn. She tried to push it with her body just in case, but the thick door did not budge.

The door was locked from the outside.