Published: March 2, 2025
Earth, France, Paris. The fragrance of flowers wafted through the air, birds chirped melodiously, and a gentle breeze lifted the hem of her skirt, revealing a pair of fair calves.
Carmel adored this environment—quiet, beautiful; although surrounded by high walls, it wasn’t stifling. Instead, it exuded a classical charm.
At this moment, Carmel was seated in the central garden of the Celestial Villa, holding her painting tools and quietly depicting the scenery she observed—this, to her, was the essence of life and joy.
The brush danced across the paper, lines began to appear, followed by coloring, and the painting was completed swiftly. Moments later, as soon as one painting was finished, she took out another sheet of paper, seemingly wanting to forever remember everything here.
But the tranquility was short-lived. At a certain moment, as the gates of the courtyard were pushed open, two figures appeared in Carmel's peripheral vision.
One figure was familiar—that was the steward of the Celestial Villa, a meticulously dressed old English gentleman. The other, however, was cloaked entirely in a black robe, concealing his body without a trace of exposure.
Carmel merely cast a quick glance and then lost interest, continuing to hold her brush and sketch the lines. However, as the two figures drew closer and inevitably entered the scene she was painting, her brush gradually came to a halt.
Carmel’s skill set was quite intriguing; she could bring her completed paintings to life, imbuing them with a degree of instinct and even combat awareness. This skill wasn’t limited to just depicting people; it could also be used for objects. Although the combat capability of object depictions was not prominent, they still had other uses—like manifesting a resting place while out in the wild.
Correspondingly, ever since Carmel received this skill, she had unconsciously used it every time she painted. Firstly, the colors of the skill’s depictions were vibrant and more expressive. Secondly, having more paintings was always a good thing, wasn't it?
However, just moments after using her skill, Carmel was taken aback. She raised her head and looked at the man in the black robe, slightly puzzled as to why her skill had shown an unusual reaction. But the doubt came quickly and faded just as fast. Carmel simply shook her head lightly and didn’t intend to delve into the causality of it.
Thus, she picked up her brush once more and began sketching lines on the paper.
The tip of the brush lightly touched the paper, and Carmel calmly sketched a human outline, which bore an impressive resemblance to the approaching black-robed figure. Yet, when the outline was completed, Carmel’s expression suddenly paled. She felt as if her insides had taken a heavy blow! Blood surged uncontrollably within her and burst forth from her lips. She let out a "pfft," blood spraying and staining the paper.
“Miss Carmel, are you alright?”
The steward keenly sensed something was amiss. He stepped forward and asked kindly. It wasn’t until some time had passed that Carmel finally looked up, glancing at the steward’s aged face and then at the black-robed man standing concealed behind him. Thoughts whirled in her mind, yet Carmel merely wiped her mouth and gently shook her head.
“It’s nothing, I’ve just been feeling a bit unwell lately.”
Having coughed up blood, how unwell could she possibly be… the steward internally complained, knowing Carmel was just being evasive. However, with his duties pressing, he simply nodded, offering advice like “take care of yourself,” and turned to head back in the direction he came from.
Only when the two figures disappeared into the backyard did Carmel pick up her brush again, staring at the outline of the figure she had just drawn. An uncontainable curiosity stirred in her eyes.
Who could it be?
She pondered in her heart.
But regardless of who it was, she certainly couldn’t continue the painting.
...
After returning to her room, taking a shower, and changing clothes, Carmel spread out another sheet of paper, preparing to create another piece by the window.