Saving The Villainous Monster From The Male Lead-Chapter 46 - 45: The Meaning Of An Art

Gale was the name of the first Emperor, who found the Kingdom of Seraphine. He was a common rebel and worked hard to separate the Kingdom from Yenna. Seraphine means Sinning snake and he wanted his kingdom to shine but also be strong and venomous towards any outer body that tries to destroy it.

He loved art. In his last days of rule, he founded this, Art Gallery. It was first only made for the imperial family, and the gallery held the artwork of the great painter Gale. The third king Gale II then made it public and allowed local artists to portray their work here. However, the paintings of the great painter Gale were confined in the basement near the memorial of the great King.

Art lost its importance soon after, leaving the gallery that was onced filled with people, empty. What the common people of Seraphine loved were the memorials of the late King, not the art.

Stella admired the art that was plainly hung on the white wall of the gallery. Art and artists have no value in this world. Only those who get the opportunity of creating a portrait of the Royal family get fame and money. Others get nothing but this plain wall to hang their artwork in this sad building, where very few came.

Personally, Eleanore didn’t like art. She could never understand the meaning behind those strange paintings. Yet, she admired those who came forward to support these artworks, to not let their creativity die.

Stella caught Eleanore’s hand and pulled her to a painting in the middle of the deserted gallery. She pointed to the beautiful landscape painting. "What do you see Elle?" She asked.

"Beauty." Eleanore replied immediately, unaware of the message that this painting holds.

Stella smiled and then turned to Eleanore, "True, it is beautiful. Under the huge tree a family is enjoying their play time. But, Elle. Did you see a huge silhouette of a person on the right of the canvas?" She asked.

Eleanore turned back to the painting. A silhouette was indeed present at the right side of the wide canvas. It looked like that person was simply looking at that family. How must he have felt on seeing that wholesome moment of that family under the huge tree. Happy or lonely? 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

"There are many ways to perceive a painting. What I understand is that that person is reminiscing about his past happiness with his own family. Loss of Family." Stella said.

"I think he feels Lonely." Eleanore added her point of view.

"Why?" Stella who always took everything positively couldn’t understand the loneliness Eleanore was feeling in this unknown world.

While Eleanore pondered on how to answer that, someone else answered that question for her. "I believe that person has everything in this world, but a family or someone of his own and is thus feeling lonely." Caelestis said.

Eleanore turned to look at him over her shoulder. "Right? Lady Eleanore?" He asked her.

"Yes." She replied.

"It’s a terrible feeling." He added.

Eleanore turned back to the painting, deep in thought. ’How does he know this feeling?’ She wondered.

They left the carriage and instead took the roadside. Stella introduced various street foods to both Eleanore and Caelestis. For a while, they forgot all the grievances they had against each other and just enjoyed themselves.

This lasted until the evening, when the time came to enact their plan. As they walked under the setting sun, Eleanore purposefully pushed Stella into a grassland, acting to have lost her balance to a stone, underneath her. Stella successfully hit her leg on the ground and got a cramp in her ankle.

"Stella!" Caelestis rushed to her and Eleanore also followed. "Are you alright?" He asked, helping her up by surrounding his neck with her hand.

"I’m sorry Stella. I didn’t mean to hurt you." Eleanore added, as Caelestis picked her up in his arms and helped her to a bench nearby.

"It’s okay, Elle." Stella reassured her. "We still need to see the restaurant I talked about earlier."

"Have you gone mad?" Caelestis yelled at her. "You are hurt. The restaurant can wait." He turned to Eleanore. "Can you please get a doctor for her?"

"Yes." Eleanore quickly left the place. "I just hope she is not hurt a lot." She said to herself, as she found a place for herself to sit near the square, under a waterfall.

Caelestis and Eleanore had planned to create a moment for the two. Pushing her was the plan but she didn’t think that she would scratch her knee and get a sprain in her ankle as well. It might have hurt her a lot. Eleanore sighed, as she realised that she might have to sit here for more than an hour from now.

’Just an hour,’ Eleanore thought to herself, ’I’ll be fine.’ Unaware that there was someone else waiting to meet her.

Out of nowhere a man sat next to Eleanore. At first Eleanore did not notice him, she continued to dwell in her thoughts, until he spoke.

"Lady Eleanore, would you like to have some?" A soft voice asked, bringing her attention to him.

The light pink hair flattered when a gust of wind passed through it, his crystal eye shone under the setting sun, as he faced her. His smile looked so calm and cool, that Eleanore felt hot around her own cheeks.

"Crown prince." Eleanore gasped. ’How did the crown prince end up here?’ She wondered.

Alastor’s index finger stopped Eleanore’s lips from moving. He shut her up. "Shh!’

Eleanore could feel the warmth of his finger on her lips. It was a strange feeling. One she had never felt before. She could not describe it but that made her heart flutter in a way she had never experienced before.

"Would you like to have some sweets?" He asked, extending the strange sweet wrapped in a tissue, her way.

Eleanore’s gaze fell on the small spongy looking sweet first and then shifted to his face again.