Chapter 3 (1/2)

Chapter 3

After insisting on giving Vivian the room that she had used 200 years ago, Edmund acted like a person that went insane, spending all his money recklessly.

As all of his belongings were moved to another place, the large space that remained was filled with things that Vivian could use.

The spacious dressing room that was filled with Edmund’s clothes, was quickly emptied and filled in an instant.

Valerie, Reeding, Tom Jackson, Laurent Zuwitt, Sonnet, Morgan Summer, Alexandra Je… It was Vivian’s first time hearing about them, but many of those clothes looked high quality upon first glance, and various luxury goods, such as shoes, indoor clothes, watches, bracelets and necklaces filled the rest of the empty dressing room.

Vivian barely managed to dissuade him from calling in the owner of the workshop to change the furniture, but since the current study had become a dressing room, Edmund decided to refurbish an old room into a study.

“It’s amazing, really.”

“Thank you.”

This had all happened over the span of a week.

“It’s not a compliment.”

“Even so, thank you.”

He responded cheekily with his eyes curved.

If he was left like this, the room would be filled with jewels, so Vivian said that she wanted to leave the mansion and look around, wherever it may be.

She sat in the carriage and stared out the window dazedly.

It’s her first time going out after appearing here.

Edmund had immediately prepared a carriage, saying that he wanted to show her wherever that he found good.

“In fact, any of Sasha Summers’ paintings are deemed as one of the best collections in any art gallery. Particularly, portraits she had drawn are the representative works of each gallery.”

As soon as Vivian turned her head, she made eye contact with Edmund. It seemed that he kept looking at her while she was staring out of the window.

“Is that the case with the place that we’re going to now?”

“Yes. It actually houses one of the most famous paintings in the world.”

“…The people here don’t even know that Sister was a mage.”

When Vivian blurted that out, Edmund laughed softly, before putting leaning his chin on his hand and following her line of vision outside the window.

“Also, what we’re about to see is really famous.”

Vivian inadvertently wondered how expensive the painting was for him to speak so profoundly.

When she asked why was her sister so famous, only at the very end of the week, Edmund told her how much the most recently bided painting by Sasha Summers was auctioned for.

He smiled faintly as he muttered, “It’s a pity that I had to use such a shallow standard to introduce Sasha,” in response to Vivian’s wide-opened mouth.

Ever since then, whenever she heard that it was famous, her first thought would be that it was expensive.

“How many mansions is it worth?”

“…It’s more accurate to say that this particular painting’s price can’t be fixed.”

He sat comfortably as he undid the topmost button of his shirt.

“We are heading towards the Deer. The painting that I want to show you is termed the goddess of the Deer. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that tens of thousands of people from all over the world come to see her every year.”

From the way Edmund used ‘her’, it seems that it was a portrait drawn by her sister.

Vivian tried to recall any portraits within her memories, but she couldn’t think of anything. It was to be expected. Her sister hated it when she showed interest in her paintings, and so ever since then, Vivian deliberately stopped paying attention.

More than that, what caught her attention was their destination, the art gallery’s name.

‘The Deer’.

The art gallery’s name contained Edmund’s surname ‘Deer’.

“Is it your family’s art gallery?”

Then again, wealthy and distinguished families also owned galleries or art museums 200 years ago. In the Summers’ case, they had an orchestra.

“Yes.”

“What painting is it about?

“If you don’t remember this too, it will be a little sad.”

“Why? It seems like it’s a painting of me?”

Vivian had casually said that, but Edmund’s eyes were wide open with an expression that asked how she knew about it.

“It’s the painting of you that I liked the most. This painting was also the first time I saw you.”

“…It’s a painting that you liked?”

Their first meeting had only taken place a week ago, so hearing him say that their first meeting wasn’t a week ago felt weird.

As he folded his arms, he tilted his head downwards slightly. Languid eyes and curved corners of his mouth. It seemed like just thinking about that painting made him feel better. He nodded slowly.

“I like you.”

His low voice made Vivian’s heart race for no reason at all.

She felt that he was mystifying.

The person in the picture wasn’t living but merely frozen at that moment. Yet how does he make eyes that conveyed deep affection?

“Sasha is…”

Edmund talked about the portrait that he remembers. His quiet voice had a unique echo and was pleasant to hear.

“It was the first time that I had seen you, and without realising, I was entranced. What were you thinking, why were you making such an expression, what had happened? As those questions kept circling in my mind, I fell in love.”

“…Is that so?”

His blond hair shone resplendently underneath the rays streaming in through the window. He looked like a character of a renowned painting due to the sunlight shining on his face in deep thought.

“That’s why.”

Vivian looked at him quietly and closed her eyes at the dazzling scene.

Underneath the still afternoon sunshine, the carriage arrived at the art gallery.

As Vivian held his hand, she exited the carriage and before her feet had touched the ground, she quietly inhaled at the sight of the scenery before her eyes

The first thing that she saw was a noble family’s mansion.

“I know this mansion”.

The location where the garden should be was sprucely like a park, and the wide road leading towards the mansion had two bronze statues decorating each side. There were more statues than she had expected, and it seemed like they were added afterwards.