I was confused. “Why isn’t such a talented painter like him famous?”
Spencer adjusted his glasses and explained in a melancholic tone, “He gave his painting to Crystal because she wanted to be the champion for a particular art exhibition. Only I knew about this incident.”
If Crystal was right in front of me, I would wish for nothing more than to show her a thumbs-up. I had to give it up to her—she might not be capable in other domains, but she was extremely skilled in charming men. It was a type of talent to hoodwink so many men and make them do bad things for her willingly.
“Will I suffer a terrible defeat, then?” I started to feel anxious.
“It all depends on fate,” gloated Spencer.
Remington frowned, showing that he did not think that I had a high chance of winning. My palm started to sweat while I gripped my brush. Then, I glanced at Harvey, who was twirling his brush casually and staring at me in disdain. Immediately, my anxiety disappeared.
Although I had stopped painting for years and did not produce any artwork for six years, my skills back then were top-notch. Before Christopher left, he even cupped my face and said that I was the best.
Since I was the best, there was no reason for me to fear a challenge. I walked to the canvas briskly and twirled my brush skillfully.
“What do you want the challenge to be about? Flowers or phoenixes?”
“Phoenixes! I hope that you can manage to draw more.” Harvey laughed in contempt.
“What? Phoenixes?” The crowd went into an uproar. Someone even exclaimed, “When we were competing to draw phoenixes, Harvey was the fastest amongst us all. Not even Remington could compare to him! Yet, he’s challenging someone to this! Isn’t that bullying?”
“Yeah, this is his signature skill. Looks like Ms. Tanner will definitely lose.”
Although I heard what they were saying, I felt extremely calm and was not affected at all. There were many types of art challenges. Amongst them, drawing flowers and phoenixes were the most common. Drawing flowers put one’s artistic skills to the test, while drawing phoenixes not only depended on one’s skills but also on speed.
The painter who could draw the most diverse phoenixes within half an hour, and produce the most aesthetic masterpiece would win.
When I was learning art, I had spent half a year just drawing phoenixes. I did not know how quick I was, but I would definitely not fear any challenges.
After the timer was set and the challenge began, I calmed down. All that was left were the blank canvas and paints right in front of me. My brush flowed against the canvas, painting it in different colors. The strokes did not seem to follow any pattern, but in reality, they all fell in place in perfect synchrony.
A huge fiery phoenix was soaring in the sky, its blazing tail floating behind it. A flock of birds followed it—some were flapping their wings eagerly, some had their beaks open mid-chirp, and some were gazing wistfully at the majestic phoenix.
I could hear people speaking beside me, with a few exclaiming in shock. However, I ignored them. The way I held the brush was not a mistake. There existed a famous painter in Hawen a hundred years ago who held the brush in the exact same manner. I was not deliberately trying to copy him, but I had realized that this grip suited me a lot.
When I finished sketching the last two birds, I heard Remington yell, “Take note that there are only ten minutes left!”
As I had not finished coloring the two birds, I started to panic and accidentally knocked over the black paint beside me. When the paint spilt across the canvas, the entire venue fell silent. Everyone was shocked by what I had done—irregular black patches had appeared on the canvas.
“Oh no!” I yelled out in shock. If there were irregular patches of paint on the canvas, my artwork would be disqualified.
