Portrait of An Arrogant Master - Chapter 59
“We originally planned to have the wedding without an engagement ceremony, but since the Duke will be frequently away from the estate on business, we decided to postpone it. With the delay, I’ve been feeling quite anxious, so I wanted to at least have a portrait done.”
Indeed, while the noble ladies she mingles with are established matriarchs of their families, Isabella, despite being of marriageable age, has yet to wed. It seems the delay is due to the Duke’s busy schedule.
“He must want to spend your honeymoon alone. Be sure to be kind to each other.”
“Even though it’s an engagement portrait, isn’t it similar to a wedding portrait? After all, he had allowed portraits with both of you together.”
The two noblewomen spoke carefully to avoid offending Isabella. Generally, portraits of unmarried couples are avoided, so as Marchioness Lingston mentioned, it’s almost equivalent to announcing the couple’s union.
Moreover, despite the delay in their wedding, there has never been any rumor of discord between Isabella and the Duke. They had been betrothed before birth.
The Duke’s family, a leader of the nobility, was desired by the Werfel family, and the Duke’s family had no intention of connecting with the royal family. Thus, Isabella Werfel, the only daughter of a Count with honorable status, was the perfect match.
‘But he allowed me to paint the portrait?”’
This was unexpected. The Duke had clearly told her not to appear before him again after the commotion at the Duke’s residence.
Perhaps even the cold-hearted Duke couldn’t refuse a request from his beautiful fiance.
“How about it, Macy? If Marchioness Lingston agrees to postpone her portrait, could you do mine for my engagement?”
“Of course. If you give me such an honorable opportunity, I will gladly accept.”
With this arrangement, Macy had no reason to refuse. A portrait for a great noble’s engagement would help her reputation more than being displayed in any gallery.
“Thank you all so much. It’s going to be a wonderful engagement.”
Isabella then smiled brightly, like a blooming flower. She remained as beautiful and elegant as ever.
With both of them as models, it seemed Macy would create a masterpiece that would stand out in her career.
* * *
“Damn it! This isn’t right!”
The easel stumbled and fell. Yannick shouted in frustration, kicking the canvas on the floor and stomping on it angrily.
“How am I supposed to sell this kind of painting?!”
He had tried to mimic Macy’s style, but it was impossible.
Yannick hadn’t realized how terrible his own work was as he spent years watching Macy’s paintings.
Despite his reputation, he hoped his work might still sell, so he approached gallery officials. But they seemed to think it was the work of a student he was mentoring, not his own.
‘Damn it, hearing that Macy’s been out there hustling with her paintings only made me more furious!’
He heard that no gallery was willing to accept the imitation work, it was still a significant blow to Yannick. Furthermore, rumors started circulating that Macy might have been painting on Yannick’s behalf.
Anyone who had even a little interest in Macy knew she was suffering from the effects of her Name, and it was public knowledge that she had recently undergone treatment for it. Yannick’s slump seemed to coincidentally align with Macy’s decline, and all the signs pointed to Macy having been his ghost painter.
Though neither Yannick nor Macy had said anything about it, the truth was surfacing.
“Why don’t you just bring Macy back?”
Catherine, exasperated by the constant commotion, spoke up.
“Who doesn’t know that? But where the hell is she?”
“Have you checked Anna’s and Hils’ houses?”
“Yeah! I was stationed in front of their places all day, but she didn’t show up!”
When Macy first left, he assumed she would return quickly. The people who knew her were just locals, and he figured she wouldn’t last long without money. But months had passed, and she still hadn’t come back.
In such a desperate situation, pride was irrelevant—he wanted to persuade Macy to come back, but without knowing where she was staying, he couldn’t bring her back.
‘I heard she’s been working as an outing painter at Baron Shearton’s estate recently.’
He even went so far as to find out the date of the next outing and visited the place. He asked the guards if they could call his sister who ran away, but they said Macy wasn’t attending the event.
‘Later, I found out that was a lie. She must have asked them to cover for her!’
He should have realized when she, who used to be so docile, said she was going to confront Yannick directly. He should have noticed when she changed from the girl who never complained even when mistreated.
Now that she had recovered her abilities, she had no reason to miss Yannick. She was clearly intent on severing ties with him.
“So, did she latch onto that Name master or something?”
“The Name master?”
