The next day after telling Ahin to run away from home, he said he had something to do . Since people would worry if he disappeared without a word, he said he would inform his close friends, and surprisingly, things went well when they agreed to his plan .
Well, that was an unexpected development .
There was just one minor problem: a few paladins would join our party because they couldnât stand sending their successor alone .
âThe sword of Agrigient! Something is different about it, in a good way!â
âLook at the weight of it . So well balanced! Woah!â
âMilitary is definitely Agrientâs greatest strength! Such a great sword . â
⌠that was what was going on .
Valer was excited to show off his sword and brag about it; Assisi felt embarrassed about it, but he liked their compliments .
Agrigientâs military was well-known . It was evident that Agrientâs prestige and pride in its army had spread all over the world .
Seeing my frown at them, Ahin tilted his head . I was just silent .
âUnlike before, I doubt I can be of any help now . â
Hearing his bitter words, I spoke .
âSo what if you canât help? We just wanted to travel with Ahin . â
Even the one man who had a terrifying gaze behind me wasnât handy during our travels .
Ahin fell silent at my answer as if he wasnât sure what he was supposed to say .
âYes, so donât worry . â
Ahin responded with a smile .
Ahin did have the prettiest smile of all .
I had met many pretty people before, but Ahinâs beauty was by far the most blinding one . Oh, there was Havel too .
God, everyone looked so good!
Even Valer, who had such a simple mind, was handsome . What a dirty world!
âAfter going five hours from this village, a border village of Bureti will come . â
âShould we buy something?â
We needed to move on horseback for five hours . We couldnât reach our goal at a definite time . It would take a lot of time as we moved slowly .
âThen, letâs head to the village first . â
We soon arrived at a village that had been developed so much that it couldnât be called a âvillageâ anymore . Many places in the countries had an excellent environment and trade, so even the small towns and villages didnât look so little . Thus, the same logic applied to Belgium . It was a village, but it was as beautiful as Bruges .
Once we reached the village, Valer dragged both Havel and Ahin with him and disappeared .
He didnât even listen to our words and dragged them away as if he had something to talk about .
Well, it seemed like they didnât want me around .
I led Assisi to the alley down the hill .
âAssisi, shall we take a look over there?â
There were many artists here, and the place had a natural environmentâpainters who retired from Bruges art shops or couldnât go there riddled the village .
Perhaps because I saw many people carrying paint kits at the townâs outskirts, I was already excited . At first, I only thought of looking around . I moved along the streets without much information, but as I kept watching things, it seemed like I could understand the art .
I wondered if I would ever get to see a picture like these .
Many painters placed their art on the streets or in front of their houses for other people to behold .
There were so many pieces of artwork to find .
Recognized painters might not do it because their environment would make it inevitable for them to garner fame, but it was that for painters to live in an unlavish life . Even if they did have money, they would starve themselves to buy suitable quality paints .
It felt like only people with money could create real art .
Even if the village paintings werenât hanging in palaces or corridors of mansions, such small images had their charm . These depicted the villagersâ ordinary life, and there were so many such paintings of fields and sunsets .
While I was looking at them, something suddenly caught my eyes . Huh? That pictureâŚ
Without knowing, I looked through the canvas . I was feeling the style of painting . I was staring at the picture with all my heart when I realized that someone was standing beside me . I turned to find Assisi, who didnât respond much; it was tough to think of him as a dangerous man .
Why did he look so shocked, though?
Without a doubt in my voice, I asked .
It was difficult to see such a painting; Assisi was looking at it in shock . The painter looked thin, and there were a lot of different paints on his clothes . Looking at the painter, it seemed like art was more than just a hobby to him .
I looked back at the painting . It shocked me to find a picture like this in this era .
âIncredible . Just my taste . â
âYes, it is weird⌠huh?â
Everyone drew a pretty view to show, but this one was grotesque . Although bizarre, it was attractive and weird at the same time .
The painter was shocked after hearing my answer . He was looking at me as if he doubted what he heard .
âWi-will you buy it?â
âYes, thatâs why I am asking for the price . I donât have much on me now . â
Maybe three gold would do
Three gold would be enough for an ordinary family to live their lives for a month comfortably, but maybe not for a painter .
A picture like this wouldnât see fame or the light of day now, but it would undoubtedly be recorded in history one day!
âThree bronzes would do . â
âWell, that is a lot . â
It seemed like the painter was feeling bad for asking that much . I felt terrible at what he askedâasking for three bronzes for this painting? And I liked it to boot . Seeing the town painted in pale colors, I thought for a moment .
Yes, I would willingly invest in this .
âIâll give you this . â
The painter retreated a couple of steps as I handed him a pair of earrings, the smallest trinkets I brought .
âArenât they gems?â
âYes . Very expensive . â
âI-I canât accept such things . â
âBut Iâm not giving that just for this painting . â
âGive me every painting in here, including this one . â
I smiled, not realizing how flustered and shocked the man was . After smiling, I spoke to assure him about my purchase .
âBecause of my situation, I wonât be able to take this painting with me, which is why I am asking you to keep this with you until I pick it up . â
âAnd when I return later, I will buy more from you, so you need to paint until then; however, if you arenât well-fed, you wonât be able to produce paintings . â
The painter was rendered speechless, looking at the pair of earrings in my hand . It was like he was crying; I could feel how much effort he had placed into the paintings . Even if this man went to spend all the money on drinking, it didnât seem like a waste . I held the hand of the painter, who was teary-eyed .
âBe sure to keep painting . I really like this one . You need to do more!â
âI will definitely come back later . Until then, cherish my painting . â
âYes . Yes, I will . â
When I smiled, the painter wiped the tears from his eyes .
I didnât know it at that time .
But that man would make a considerable mark in this world of art .
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