A Painting of the Villainess as a Young Lady

“Did you have a good time the other day? I heard ‘Crimson Tragedy’ is quite entertaining. It’s the talk of the town.”

“…Did you put a tail on me?”

“Of course not. I just heard some rumors about it. Since it’s considered a masterpiece, I thought I might take some time to watch it myself.”

During today’s session of painting the crown prince’s portrait, Rajaden was being particularly moody. He kept his taut smile fixed on Violet.

Though it wasn’t enough to disrupt her painting, his continuous moodiness led Violet to neatly organize her sketches and put down her pencil. She didn’t hesitate to sigh in front of the crown prince.

“Despite being an adaptation based on historical facts, It was enjoyable to watch. The lead actors were quite memorable.”

Of course, that was a lie. Violet didn’t really enjoy the play.

“In what way?”

“The actress was beautiful.”

For some reason, Rajaden’s voice sounded bitter. Violet felt uneasy. Had he eaten something bad?

“You rejected my invitation, yet…”

Rajaden muttered to himself. Violet ignored him and refocused on the canvas.

“Well, I’m glad you had fun.”

“……”

At that moment, a vague memory surfaced in Violet’s mind. Had Rajaden asked her out to see the play with him? Her sigh deepened.

“If it had been an order, I would have complied.”

“You never miss a chance to get the last word in.”

“I was just expressing my thoughts… Shall I conform to your wishes?”

“No. Just be yourself. That’s more natural.”

Switching gears rapidly, Rajaden abandoned his displeasure and adopted a tender expression.

“I will be the one who adjusts to you.”

“Oh, okay…”

It really didn’t suit him. Violet responded without hiding her distaste, but Rajaden just kept looking at her with that same tender expression.

Even after that, the trivial conversation continued, but Violet focused on her painting. Despite her half-hearted responses, Rajaden persistently asked her various questions.

When asked about her preferences, she answered absurdly, like saying that she enjoyed a dish made with dragon meat, its heat neutralized with a poisonous frog’s secretions.

Of course, dragon meat didn’t exist in the current era, so her words were nonsense.

Even so, Rajaden praised her, saying, “Your sense of humor is remarkable.” Violet diligently mixed colors and painted.

The key to the crown prince’s portrait was capturing ‘light’ from beginning to end.

Descendant of the Sun God, son of the light-enshrouded imperial family.

While she couldn’t completely capture his likeness, the painting on the canvas gave off a similar atmosphere.

Rajaden, bathed in holy light, appeared more reverent in the portrait than he did in real life.

She incorporated yellow, white, and complementary colors like blue and a similar light green to enhance the color palette.

Though it was difficult to create depth by adjusting saturation instead of brightness, the painting turned out even clearer because of it.

Her painting resembled a depiction of a deity from a holy book rather than a traditional portrait.

The painters of this current era, who prioritized realism, might not acknowledge a painting such as this. As she half-heartedly answered Rajaden’s questions, Violet thought to herself,

‘What exactly do I think of him?’

Human emotions were indeed fickle and complex. She didn’t like Rajaden, but it was hard to say she outright disliked him.

He was just fundamentally incompatible with her. His heavy-handed approach to things especially brought up unpleasant memories.

Her first impression of him had been terrible. How could she forget the time he went on about that ‘poisonous rose’ nonsense?

Yet, as a person, she didn’t find him utterly repulsive.

Violet sighed.

“Let’s call it a day, Your Highness.”

Despite repeatedly thinking that he wasn’t the one for her, it was inevitable that Violet’s thoughts kept circling back due to Rajaden’s persistent advances.

This was precisely Rajaden’s strategy.

No matter how hard he tried, Violet remained consistently lukewarm.

Those seasoned in politics and high society were all accustomed to maintaining a poker face, but even considering that, her reactions were undeniably indifferent.

“…It seems I really mean nothing to you.”

In the end, Rajaden had to admit this. His gloomy expression was so pitiful it was hard to tell if he was acting or genuine.

“……”

Violet glanced at him while tidying up her art supplies. Rajaden looked at her and smiled again.

“I can adjust to you. In every way. …So, please, give me a chance.”

As Violet finished organizing, Rajaden kissed the back of her hand and spoke imploringly.

.

.

.

On her way home, Violet repeatedly pondered Rajaden’s words.

She could see the ulterior motives behind his golden eyes.

Even if there was some sincerity in his words, it was hard to believe that was all there was to it.

‘This is why…’

This is why, no matter how hard he tried, she couldn’t bring herself to fall for him.

A corner of Violet’s lips went up as she gazed at the sky outside the carriage window.

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