The Lord Demon King is Unfathomable!

That night.

Kawenna returned to her suburban home, tossing her wide-brimmed hat adorned with floral decorations into the steward's hands, and rushed into the study, eager to share her day's experiences with her father.

"...Saint Sith above, you can't imagine how handsome and gentlemanly that man is! He is far more captivating than the newspaper portraits... I might not be able to sleep today!"

Seeing his starry-eyed daughter, Baron Ralph Devor remained indifferent, merely snorting through his nose.

"Seeing you like this, I would have thought he shook your hand."

"Father! How could someone as noble as Prince Colin ever notice a baron's daughter, get a grip!" Kawenna shot a glance at her father, her resentful eyes seemed to be complaining, why don't you try a little harder.

Ralph looked at her in surprise, unexpectedly finding that his daughter was rather clear-headed, suddenly feeling a bit comforted inside.

The majority of pain in this world isn't from how Hell is, but from not recognizing one's position in the surrounding environment, clearly being a baron yet having ambitions even an earl wouldn't dare have.

He's relieved she understood this truth at such a young age, as he himself sometimes wasn't as clear-headed.

"And then, you just joined the fun?" He lit a cigar, exhaling clouds of smoke as he spoke.

"Of course not, I found a new direction in life!" Kawenna looked at her father with fervent eyes, this time surprisingly not complaining about the unpleasant smoke smell.

Ralph, with a cigar in his mouth, became alert, looking suspiciously at his daughter, suddenly remembering she got a chance to attend a class at the Imperial Royal Academy through some girlfriend.

Honestly, he didn't have a good impression of her dancing girlfriend. That girl had been to their house, met him once, and then secretly wrote to him... Who in their right mind would be interested in their friend's father?

Although he's no saint, he does have some principles in life, at least not with his daughter's friends, so that matter went no further.

"What did that girlfriend of yours say to you again? Take your father's advice, that girl is definitely no good, you'd better be careful around her—"

"I won't allow you to say that about her! Besides, it wasn't her who said something, it was the honorable Prince Colin! He said—the future of Holy City art lies in abstraction, artists in Holy City need a spiritual liberation! Our brushes shouldn't just outline nature, but express more of ourselves!"

"Don't you think he's right? If it's about reflecting reality, magic photos feed back reality far better than oil paintings! If so, why should we persist in realistic expression instead of pouring ink more into the expression of the inner world?"

"No... uh, Colin? Is that what he said?" Ralph felt these words were full of logical traps, but thinking the other party was a prince, and one with jurisdiction over a continent, he immediately felt too sheepish to think deeper.

Kawenna nodded enthusiastically.

"Of course! He said it personally during the class... maybe not his exact words, but I heard everyone saying it!"

Ralph almost choked on his own saliva.

Others who didn't attend the class may spread rumors, but you, a little fool who attended the class, still parroting others, don't you have a mind of your own?

But—

Seeing her in such an excited state, Ralph didn't spoil her enjoyment.

After all, is it such a big deal?

He didn't really understand much about art; though there were many famous paintings collected at home, it was merely to hedge against the devaluation of gold coins.

The prosperity of Holy City art stems half from the Church Court's costless investments in art, and the remaining reason is the continuing debasement of Imperial Gold Coins, causing the old money of the empire to actively seek assets that could anchor their wealth.

"It's comforting you found something you're interested in, as long as you're happy... Anyway, I have no demands on you."

"Dad... you're truly wonderful!" A flush of emotion rose on Kawenna's face, and her bright eyes shone with tears.

Ralph smiled with comfort, but instantly became alert. From past experience, whenever his daughter suddenly treated him courteously, it meant—

"In view of Prince Colin's appreciation for abstract art, would you be willing to sponsor a little girl's dream?" Kawenna clasped her hands together in front of her chest, radiating a light reminiscent of a Holy Mother.

Ralph pondered for a while, sighed, and eventually reached to open the drawer.

"Speak, how much."

Kawenna leaned forward slightly, her eyes shining bright.

"Just 1,000 gold coins!"

"Just 1,000 gold coins?! Why don't you go rob a bank?" Ralph's eyes bulged wide.

Kawenna, however, didn't feel her proposition was inappropriate at all and rather displayed an air of helplessness towards her father's "fuss."

This old man simply doesn't understand what fashion and trend mean; if he did, he'd know that for true art, such an amount is nothing at all.

The painting Baron Mitiya did for Prince Colin is allegedly valued at 10,000 gold coins already!

If she could bring out a true master of abstraction, she could earn back the money in no time.

Of course, she actually wasn't that interested in making money; she's never worried about money in her lifetime.