The Shepherds Are Dense

Chapter 56: Golden Dawn

—Balance.Having caught Aiwass's remark upon the first painting, Yanice instantly grasped his canons of beauty.

"Balance" was in no sense a pejorative. It was the very road to beauty which she followed herself.

The had an effect on one's physical shape, gradually shaping one's body and aura toward their own definition of "supreme beauty." Yanice was neither tall as a human nor short as an elf; her body elicited ambiguous gendered responses; her face and aura were neither mature nor young.

Since "balanced aesthetics" were the most broadly enjoyed.

That was Yanice's individual understanding of the —and why she followed the .

Whereas those rude, biting professional critics within the Iris Circle—always able to unearth faults even Yanice herself had not thought of, and indulge in vacuous armchair theorizing—

An artist's inspiration would always be partially lost in the translation of becoming an artwork.

Audiences would never be able to enter the realm in a painting, never really understand the thoughts or feelings that existed while the artist created.

They might only interpret it by their own mind and eye.

True beauty was transcendent—able to touch individuals regardless of race, gender, background, age, or culture.

But as for why someone felt touched, that depended on the individual.

Because instead of looking at the painting itself, they were looking at themselves in it.

Their own existence.

Their own fantasies.

Their own fears.

Their own aspirations.

So, interpretations by viewers would always have something of themselves in them.

Yanice enjoyed asking people what they perceived about her paintings.

Being the artist herself, she naturally knew what the "proper" interpretation was supposed to be.

By questioning, she could determine if the other was truly knowledgeable or merely praising in vacuo—how gifted or accomplished they were—and from the assessment they grudgingly wrested from her, she could reverse-engineer their personality, experience, even their alignment.

To her, every response was like a concentrated glimpse into a person's life.

It was an exercise in psychological testing, and one she relished.

—But Aiwass's response surprised her.

His assessment was free of any apparent personal bias.

It was objective and equitable, but not without feeling.

He was not afraid to criticize faults from her early, inexperience process, but also offered genuine compliments to the witty details she had gone to so much trouble over—those too often neglected by others.

It was like a critique… from an alternate version of herself.

A wiser later self, reporting back objectively on her progress.

There was no questioning it—Aiwass was her .

"…Have you ever thought about walking the Path of Beauty?"

Yanice couldn't help but inquire, "I think you would be the farthest-walking human on this Path."

"Eh?"

Princess Isabel blinked in shock and swiveled back to her teacher, astonished.

She had never heard her teacher bestow such great commendations on someone before!

Her teacher's evaluation of her had been flat-out —

Yanice's very words had been:

By your gift, no form of the Path of Beauty can be taken to extremes—not even 'Chanter.' Selecting 'Polymath' is the correct choice. If you strive for perfection in song, you'll go mad before you arrive."

But curiously, upon hearing her teacher acknowledge Aiwass in such a manner, Isabel didn't feel even a trace of jealousy.

Only happiness—

And a quiet, pleased sense of pride.

Like the joy of bringing home a friend, and having your parents give them their highest praise.

—*And I’m the one who carried him as a baby!*

She whispered to herself inside.

Of course, she didn’t dare say it out loud.

She would get scolded—she that Aiwass had been raised by Professor Moriarty, and that she’d only played his mother in a dream once.

But she couldn’t fully separate herself from that dream.

She still held onto that memory.

Not so much a self-deception—more a refusing to forget.

And Yanice's sentiments were no simpler.

She had adopted Isabel as her disciple partly because she thought her "beautiful" and "adorable," and partly because she was intimate friends with Queen Sophia.

They had met for the first time sixty years ago, soon after Sophia came into power.

Sophia had been a bright young girl at the time—even younger than Isabel was today.

But their characters were complete opposites.

Sophia had been lively, sociable, unencumbered by convention.

She dressed up in disguise often, sneaking out of the palace to watch plays, or wearing schoolgirl clothes to sneak into schools and question students about what they thought of new legislation.

That had been Yanice's inaugural exhibition in Avalon.

She encountered the young Queen Sophia at her exhibit and was so enamored with her beauty and vivacity that she volunteered to paint her on the spot.

They talked while she painted.

And half through, Sophia's royal bodyguards suddenly stormed in.

Only then did Yanice know that this girl who appeared younger than herself was the newly anointed Queen of the country.

Sophia was fearless and forward-thinking.

She had little use for old traditions and started sweeping reforms—

She outlawed numerous barbarous punishments worse than death,

Ended the prohibition against women becoming knights,

Repealed the law against execution of noble lineages,

And even permitted study of formerly prohibited arts in the interests of the kingdom's prosperity.

Alchemy, the arts, preservation methods, medicine, and the establishment of classes such as translator and detective from the Path of Wisdom—

All began under Queen Sophia.

Yanice spent two decades with her by her side before finally departing to continue her world travels.

She went back to Avalon and accepted Isabel as a pupil because she could see the shadow of her old companion in the child.

But secretly, she hadn't thought Isabel was actually able to inherit her legacy.

Art took time—enormous quantities of it.

The fivefold difference between the lifespan of humans and elves was a gap that could never be bridged in this sphere.

But Aiwass was unique.

Yanice could sense that he had the same idea of beauty.

He was good-looking and restrained—a masculine type of beauty—but he also had a feminine sensitivity and delicacy.

His aura was mature, his conduct steady and tranquil, but he exuded a young vitality.

Although he trod the Way of Devotion as a priest, Yanice strongly perceived a great arrogance in his perception of the world.

That union of opposites left Yanice feeling as though she were gazing at a different rendition of herself—

Alike, yet different—

Aiwass, upon hearing this, was shocked.

How weird.

Guess what? Sherlock said the yesterday, but for the Path of Wisdom.

And now tell me I'm best suited for the Path of Beauty…

Do I have you two duke it out?

…Nah. I fear Sherlock would perish.

Following that, Aiwass politely declined, and Yanice attempted a second time to suggest the Path of Beauty.

And after he declined again, she didn't insist.

Walking a Path didn't merely take the proper talent—it took obsession as well.

If the heart wasn't behind it, then it would never work.

Forcing a person down a Path they didn't truly believe in would only send them astray in the end.

It would all be for nothing.

Yanice simply felt regret.

Aiwass obviously possessed the ability for the Path of Beauty, but not the interest in pursuing it.

If he had joined this Path, he would have a much better future than on the Path of Devotion—

Perhaps even attaining Fifth Tier, near human limits, like her.

And with humanity's shorter lifespan, his potential might even exceed hers.

With this thought, she made up her mind.

"Since you love my art so dearly," Yanice said with a wave of her hand,

"then I'll bestow upon you."

Aiwass's eyes sprang wide.

His scalp crawled.

Even Princess Isabel whispered in amazement and refused to utter a word.

Aiwass understood how much Yanice loved that painting—

Of the three:

was her first magic painting, her promise to tread the supernatural way—

It contained her young fervor, measuring herself up to the apostle Hippocrates.

took in the view from the edge of the world, a goodbye present to her beloved friend Sophia who would never lay eyes on it.

It was both the culmination of her journeys and the crystallization of her friendship.

But …

It was the height of her untainted technique.

It was done during the Horus Empire, taking in the breathtaking scene of people worshipping the sun at sunrise.

Done prior to when she started imbuing paintings with magical power, it was the best she ever did a Path's influence.

Then her paintings contained mystical effects that could change the world.

This was the final painting that could be shown to the public—

The most well-acclaimed work of her entire career.

A .

Its worth was incalculable.

—Who bestows something like on a first meeting?!

"Of course, it's not entirely without conditions…"

As Yanice went on, Aiwass at last exhaled a sigh of relief.

Good. So there a price.

It was favors with no apparent cost that were most difficult to repay—particularly ones this large.

But when Yanice specified her "condition," Aiwass's face went strange once again.

"You're a genius, Aiwass. I think you'll do very well on the Path of Devotion…

Although you've just set foot on the supernatural path, you'll come up quickly.

"As you can see, my student Isabel is a rather fragile girl. I'm not so sure about her advancement rituals.

"When you're ready for your Second or even Third Advancement…"

If by then you've caught up to Isabel, perhaps you could. wait for her, and do the ritual with her?

A Full Moon Rite would be okay."

That… was essentially condition whatsoever.

Assisting a friend at a Full Moon Rite—or barring an enemy at a New Moon Rite—

That was normal procedure in the supernatural community.

It was more of a loose favor than an official duty.

Having friends across other Paths at the same level was a huge boon for supernatural advancement.

Yanice asked for "just once," but as long as Isabel didn't fall too far behind, this effectively became her personally locking in a permanent party member.

It made sense to enter a dungeon with a pre-made group of people, after all. That had a significantly better win rate than solo queuing.

Having someone you could trust implicitly was a huge boon.

So Aiwass didn't actually have any reason to say no.

Although in his situation… there one tiny problem.

'…Should I confess beforehand to Her Highness if I get the opportunity?'

He sat and thought.

'If it turns out she discovers I'm her "Mr. Fox" the ritual…

Wouldn't that be something of a traumatic experience for her?'

Aiwass lapsed into thought.

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(End of Chapter 56)