209 - Pink Painting and the Blonde Young Lady
Looking at Leonardo's stunned expression, I confirmed the success of my mischief. For my part, I just wanted Leonardo to understand that having your picture made into a model without your knowledge, or receiving a painting of yourself, isn't enjoyable. But it seems the effect was greater than I expected. Though unexpected, the effect on the surroundings was also incredible.
...Is this that thing about the visual effects of color?
I've heard that colors have surprisingly large effects on people, like how containers for prepared foods with red in them make the taste feel stronger, or how blue-light street lamps have a calming effect and help prevent crime. For my part, I just tried incorporating some CG coloring knowledge about how shading with pink makes things look erotic. But I never imagined it would attract people this much.
...So this is what "pink is erotic" means, huh!
Whether it's common knowledge or not, as far as how this phrase is used, I think it means characters with pink hair in creative works are erotic, but I won't worry about it. The embroidery painting sewn with pink thread mixed in was drawing people in like a moth to a flame. Pink is erotic, and that's fine.
...Also, Leonyaldo-san is erotic too.
I'd vaguely realized it, but my brother is erotic. I was stitching those back and arm muscles every single day. I thought they were captivating muscles, but I hadn't expected adding the color pink would make them turn out this erotic. Troublesome women like Kaya stand out, but Leonardo is a pheromone man who effortlessly attracts women. And among those crowding around the embroidery painting, there were also men.
...Leonyaldo-san's pheromones are effective on men too, huh!
As his little sister, he's a brother with many unreliable sides, but he must be overflowing with sexual appeal. At least, he's a big hit with the ladies and gentlemen here.
Satisfied with Leonardo's reaction, I moved away from the painting. Several gazes followed me as I returned to Leonardo, but when they noticed Leonardo where I was headed, all those gazes were drawn to Leonardo's face. It can't be helped, since he has the same face as the painting they were staring at so intently. Small gasps and short scream-like sounds spread through the room like ripples, eventually swelling into a large wave of murmuring and commotion. Even those absorbed in the painting sensed something amiss from this noise and followed the surrounding gazes to Leonardo's face. All eyes in the room converged on Leonardo's face.
"Let's go, Tina."
He called me with a slightly strained voice and grabbed my arm a bit roughly. I was pulled against Leonardo's body, so I couldn't see his face just above me. But I think not seeing it was for the best. The room, which had been buzzing, fell silent as if struck by water.
...Huh? Is he angry?
It was just a little mischievous impulse, but did I go too far? Judging from the reactions around us, Leonardo's face must have become one he couldn't show me. The room, which had been dominated by a lewd atmosphere until a moment ago, had frozen over as if by magic.
"Y-you! If you made this painting..."
One brave person called out to me. They called out, but before they could finish their words, their voice cut off, and Leonardo covered my ears with both hands as if enveloping my head, so I couldn't hear the rest. What is it? When I tried to turn around, this time Leonardo truly hugged me. At this rate, I couldn't even walk, let alone move.
In the end, I was carried by Leonardo as we escaped from the room where the embroidery painting was displayed. It happened to be convenient when a servant came to call us, saying Jemian's business negotiations were finished.
"No carrying deshu, Leonyaldo-san."
"There was no helping it in that situation."
I nervously looked at Leonardo's face, wondering if I'd made him angry, but his expression was perfectly normal. It was the usual Leonardo. Though his ears seemed a bit red, so maybe he wasn't angry but rather affected by his own erotic pheromones. I'll go with that.
...Because Leonyaldo-san said it himself before, right?
On the day he first encountered a bath in this life, Leonardo suggested we bathe together, saying that since I was a toddler, there was no need to feel embarrassed even with a girl. I of course refused, but to make Leonardo understand that even having your body seen by a toddler is embarrassing, I burst in on him while he was bathing. At that time, Leonardo, whose bath I'd barged into, said that there was no place on his body he'd be ashamed to have seen.
...Wait. I just realized. Haven't I been doing the same thing from age eight until now?
At age eight, I barged in on Leonardo's bath to drill into him that "even a toddler is embarrassed to be seen naked." At age ten, I made an embroidery painting and displayed it at the art gallery in Lagarette to drill into Leonardo that "receiving a painting of yourself isn't enjoyable." Even if it's to make him understand that something you don't like isn't enjoyable, I'm still deliberately doing to him what I wouldn't want done to me.
...Well, I suppose I should reflect a little.
What I was doing was too childish. No, I'm a child now, so it's not a problem that my actions are childish. But still, I think deliberately doing to someone else what you wouldn't want done to you is not good. Now that I've realized it, I want to improve.
"I think I might have gone a little too far deshu. I'm sorry, Leo."
"Well... I have my doubts about the motif, but it's amazing. You worked hard on it, didn't you? Thank you."
Setting aside the mythological motif and the lewdness of the finished piece, he praised me honestly, saying that sewing an entire picture in embroidery was genuinely impressive. Then, as if finding it hard to say, he told me that myth wasn't a love story between a god and a human daughter.
...I'm sorry about that too. I know. I was fully aware that the real myth was about the War God Herkeles' rampaging rod ( . ).
Anyway, I was only thinking about drilling into Leonardo that receiving a painting of oneself isn't enjoyable. To ensure I could reliably inflict damage even on the dense Leonardo, I was the one who placed the order about the myth during my consultation with Jemian. Jemian proposed a portrait that emphasized Leonardo's physical beauty, but I pursued eroticism excessively and also brought up the Herkeles myth to have an excuse ready. In this case, the War God Herkeles is probably the victim. Finished as a pink painting and displayed in an art gallery.
...At this year's Recollection Festival, I should apologize to Herkeles at the Itsurateru Church.
"This way."
Saying that, we were led to the same reception room I'd been shown to before. Last time, I was taken out by Basilia the moment I entered the room, but today there was no sign of Basilia. Instead, Jemian welcomed us with a genial smile.
"Well, well. You've come. The little finger of Ashantee and her guardian."
...Ah, my value and Leonyaldo-san's have been swapped in Jemian-sama's eyes.
As can be seen from the difference in his attitude toward his own illegitimate daughter Basilia versus a young painter-in-training, Jemian's attitude toward those who create art and those who don't is very easy to understand. "Finger of Ashantee" is a term referring to those involved in art, following the example of the goddess of art Ashantee who continuously produces works of art from her fingers. Since my embroidery painting had a different artist for the preliminary sketch, I don't think it can strictly be called my work, but Jemian seemed to quite like it.
He beckoned me over, and I obediently tried to sit in a chair, but Leonardo caught me by the shoulder. When I looked up wondering what it was, Leonardo had a slightly troubled expression and indicated Salisa and the door behind us.
"I think the conversation will be a bit dull and tedious, so could you wait outside, Tina?"
"It's about the embroidery I sewed, deshu ne?"
I'd be involved as a party concerned, so would it really be alright for me to leave? When I tilted my head wondering that, I saw Jemian shrug. Perhaps they were going to complain to Jemian about having displayed that painting in the gallery.
"...Understood deshu. I'll be just outside, so call me when it becomes a story worth telling deshu."
Thinking inwardly about whether I'd done something wrong by making Jemian an accomplice to my mischief, I left the reception room. I said I'd wait outside, but I didn't intend to go far, so I decided to look at the paintings displayed near the door while I waited.
...Hm?
Maybe it's my imagination, but I feel like I'm being watched. Did one of the gentlemen or ladies who saw Leonardo's embroidery painting in the previous room follow me? Casually turning my face toward the direction I felt the gaze from, a well-dressed girl who looked every bit a noble young lady was standing there. She had her blonde hair neatly tied up, wore a small hat that was purely decorative, and appeared to be a petite girl of about fifteen or sixteen.
...Have I met her somewhere?
I felt like I vaguely recognized her and tilted my head. The girl must have noticed that our eyes met. Her beautiful face bloomed like a flower as she smiled.
"Le, Leo! Leo!!"
The moment the girl took one step toward me with a clack, an indescribable chill ran up my spine. I reflexively knocked on the reception room door to call Leonardo, and the door opened immediately.
"What happened!?"
I hugged Leonardo, who burst out saying that, and hid my body against him. Then I quickly poked my head out from Leonardo's shadow to look back at where the girl had been standing, but there was no one there.
"...Huh?"
It was the place where the girl should have been standing just moments ago, but there was no trace of her. I looked at Salisa, wondering if she might know, but she had a slightly troubled expression. Salisa had also seen the girl, but she might have looked away for a moment when Leonardo appeared. The girl had vanished in that time.
...But since Salisa saw her too, that means it's not some strange phenomenon like spirits, right.
"Tina, did something happen?"
Relieved that the girl had disappeared, the strength left my body. As I leaned my full weight against Leonardo's body, he seemed to understand that something had happened. The hand placed on my head in concern gently stroked my hair.
"There was a big sister with scary eyes deshu."
Her face was beautiful, and she smiled like a flower, but it was a smile that stirred up an indescribable unease. I was scared enough to call Leonardo's name instinctively.
"...A suspicious person?"
"I don't think so deshu. She felt like a proper young lady from a good family..."
The more I described the girl's appearance, the more questionable it became. There was nothing about her that should seem suspicious, yet I was enveloped in an unbearable unease. The content of what I was reporting to Leonardo seemed more than a little unfair to a lady with no faults at all.
"...Last time I got kidnapped when I left Leo's side, so I don't want to be apart deshu."
I felt guilty even trying to explain what had made me so uneasy, so in the end, I avoided explaining. Surely I was getting uneasy for no reason because I had bad memories of this place. Once I realized that possibility, the unease I felt toward that girl must have just been my imagination. I had never met that girl before today, nor had I suffered any disadvantage from her. Yet I had gotten upset and made a scene for no reason.
...Did that big sister get surprised and run away because I made such a fuss?
I felt like I'd done something truly awful. The guilt welled up, but I couldn't shake off the unease no matter what.
I couldn't reach the planned point.
Typos and omissions again another day. Fixed any typos and omissions I found.