Chapter 56

“Brad, has it never occurred to you that this situation is strange?”

Liv thought back on her first meeting with Brad. So, the very first meeting when they met as the victims of the same fraud.

By this point, even Brad, who had been lost in all the fancy words, seemed to be starting to feel a little uneasy. Feeling a bit disheartened, Brad stammered.

“Bu-but the businessman has already paid for it on my behalf. And he said everything would be free of charge if I showed him my sponsorship contract.”

“What on earth did you…”

Speechless, Liv opened her mouth. Brad seemed a little intimidated by Liv’s reaction, but he still remained stubborn. It seemed like the businessman had told him something quite convincing.

Perhaps it was the promise of selling his paintings or opening a solo exhibition for him in the capital that particularly swayed Brad. After all, these things were usually possible for artists who had made their debut. It made sense for Brad, who must have felt a great sense of shame as the number of times he was excluded from the art exhibition increased, to be tempted.

But unfortunately, Liv didn’t think the businessman really appreciated Brad’s skills. If Brad was really good enough for such a great businessman to approach, he would have won an art exhibition.

Paying on his behalf? It also made her worried that some threatening gangsters would suddenly be chasing him, saying that they came to get debts.

“You said you sent a letter yesterday, so I’ll tell him that you are sick today. So please fix it right away before the next work date. And the sponsorship contract? Do you really think the Marquis would write something like that?”

“Why would the Marquis want me to keep painting? I’m sure he does it because he likes my painting! There’s a reason why he provides me such a good environment!”

Seeing Liv responding with a straight face, Brad refuted with a little offended expression. He believed with all his heart that the Marquis liked his painting.

“How can you be sure of that?”

“What? The Marquis asked for another painting in exchange for the wrong one! It means he wants my painting!”

Liv was about to refute Brad that what the Marquis liked might not be his painting but the model in it, but she paused.

It was because she realized that she was secretly thinking that the reason the Marquis wanted Brad’s painting was because of her.

Really. Her delusion was just as ridiculous as Brad’s wild imagination that he would soon get a sponsor.

Brad’s face crumpled even more as he tried to figure out the meaning of Liv’s pause.

“Are you also looking down on me because I couldn’t debut?”

Brad snapped angrily. In his response, it was clear how he usually accepted the fact that he couldn’t have his debut.

Liv, biting her lower lip, tried to soothe him.

“You know it’s not like that. I’m just…”

It wouldn’t reach him now no matter what she said. Even though she knew it, it was hard for Liv to give up.

She had known him for a long time, and she didn’t want to see him lose a lot of money because he got caught up in something obviously suspicious.

“Anyway, I got it. So end your relationship with that businessman immediately. No matter what you said, I could only conclude that he’s a scammer.”

“It’s because you didn’t see him!”

“The coffee house we met at. Wasn’t he your companion there?”

Brad paused at Liv’s question. He seemed to not expect that she would point to a specific person at once.

Having confirmed that her guess was correct through Brad’s reaction, Liv grabbed her forehead.

In fact, she thought something was strange when she ran into him that day. She wondered what was happening when she saw him with someone he didn’t usually associate with. And it turned out that he was enchanted by a con artist.

“Brad, this is a really pure concern. Even if the Marquis really writes you a sponsorship contract, it’s too dangerous to use it as a trade item. And you even borrow money with that as collateral? It would be wise to take care of it before it’s too late.”

She didn’t know if it could be taken care of, but he should try to do it first.

Brad shook his hand at Liv’s request. There was a forced smile on Brad’s face as he patted Liv on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry. It won’t take too long. I’m just trying to buy time because I haven’t found a way to convince the Marquis yet. I will develop a revolutionary art technique that will catch the Marquis’ eye until the next session.”

Liv, who was about to say something more, sighed and shook her head.

That was all she could do. It was impossible for her to interfere any further, so she could only pray that Brad would come to his senses.

***

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