Chapter 26

Chapter 26: Power Deployment #3

For the next day and the day after, Tae-hyuk could feel someone’s gaze while he was working in the art room .

Tae-hyuk showed an irritated expression as he wiped off the moisture from his brush .

“Ah, it is like having a pebble in my sneakers . ”

While he could ignore it, it was still annoying and constantly jarring .

He remembered the saying of a person in a marathon who was eliminated just before the finish line .

‘The hardest part of the race wasn’t the other people pressuring him from behind, but the small piece of sand in his shoes . ’

That was Tae-hyuk’s state right now . He had four crime skills, but he didn’t have the skill to detect another person .

“Who the hell is it?”

He couldn’t bear it and finally shouted .

The door of the art room opened like there was a reaction .

“Who’s in here?”

A schoolgirl with short hair that exposed her ears entered .

Tae-hyuk was filled with embarrassment . He was illegally occupying the art room . He felt sorry .

“Ahaha… Hello . I was just painting . ”

The schoolgirl came in and examined him .

“Are you in the art department? I know that the art department was closed due to a lack of resources . ”

“I’m just a student who is interested in painting . ”

Tae-hyuk smiled as innocently as possible . This was a workshop that he was barely able to find, so he didn’t want to be kicked out of here .

“I see . I’m actually retired, but I was also in the art department . Are you in the first grade?”

“I’m in the second grade . ”

“It is the first time I’ve seen you…”

Tae-hyuk gave his pre-prepared excuse .

“Ah, I just transferred this week . ”

“A transfer student! I am Lee Hana . If you are interested in the art department, then I will let you know the name of the teacher who is the adviser .

“Haha… I will think about it . Oh right, my name is Lee Cheol-su . ”

Tae-hyuk gave her a pseudonym .

He met someone a few days after starting to work here .

He didn’t want to advertise that he wasn’t a student at this school .

Lee Hana approached Tae-hyuk, then she laughed softly as she said,

“Can I see what you are doing?”

“Yes . Here . ”

Lee Hana looked at the painting that Tae-hyuk copied . Her face was filled with surprise .

“Wah! Wah… Did you really paint this?”

“I am practicing drawing by copying art . ”

“It’s really great! Have you ever gone to art school? I will go to the adviser immediately . We need such a talent in the art department!”

Lee Hana spoke excitedly .

Tae-hyuk was silent for a moment . He had just copied the original with a skill, so it was strange to hear such praise .

“I-It isn’t that great . I merely copied the brushstrokes . ”

“Don’t be shy! Well, if I look closer, then I can see that there are definitely a few missing details . ”

Lee Hana squinted at Tae-hyuk’s painting again .

“Is it not enough?”

“This figure is drawn with a simple technique, so you can never perfectly copy the original . It is withdrawn? Do you understand the difference between this painting and a withdrawn work?”

Tae-hyuk shook his head . He was just a high school student who could use crime skills, and didn’t have a profound knowledge on art .

Lee Hana laughed like she was glad to discover a new talent .

“While your painting doesn’t have a soul, you have great technique . You literally copied the painting that you saw, but you won’t be able to move the heart of the person who painted it . ”

“Soul?”

“Yes . Do you know what type of heart this painting was drawn with?”

Lee Hana pointed to the original painting that Tae-hyuk had copied .

It was a landscape painting that depicted a forest where the falling rain had stopped, and a beam of light was shining through the clouds .

Tae-hyuk replied honestly .

“A wonderful landscape . It feels like a living forest .

“Doesn’t it? The rain has stopped, and the forest is full of life . It is a place that I really like . When I die, I would like to die in a place like this . Everything felt so vivid when I was painting it . I was so grateful to be alive . ”

Suddenly, Tae-hyuk discovered a strange fact in Lee Hana’s words .

“Uh, then Sunbae painted this?”

“Omo, did you only just find out? It is something that I painted in my first year . ”

“I only used it as a reference because I thought it was the best painting here . I didn’t know that it was Sunbae’s . ”

“Ahaha . At any rate, bend the brush . I’ll tell you about the brush strokes . ”

From then on, Lee Hana’s drawing lesson began .

Tae-hyuk focused on her words, ignoring the notifications from the Demon Revealing Mirror .

He could guess what the contents were .

While his skill was enough to copy the artwork, he learned that it was also important to read the heart of the picture .

“Ah . It is already this time… I’ll have to end here today . Think about what you have learned today, and you will know why the painting was drawn . ”

Lee Hana gently winked .

Tae-hyuk used the moment to quickly glance at the Demon Revealing Mirror, where numerous messages had appeared .

[Your understanding of art has deepened . ]

[The Forgery skill proficiency has increased by a lot!]

[More sophisticated work is now possible . ]

After checking the skill, his proficiency level had gone up by around 20 points . He couldn’t miss this good chance .

Tae-hyuk asked with a puppy-like expression .

“Thank you, Hana sunbae . Can I see you again next time?”

“Ahaha! I’m a busy person . Well, it does feel good . ”

Hana laughed like she enjoyed it .

Tae-hyuk was startled .

All of a sudden, he felt that Lee Hana’s face was familiar .

‘Wait . Surely she isn’t that Lee Hana?’

She reminded him of someone . She was a genius female painter who became so famous that she held a solo exhibition in Paris in her early 20s .

‘It is obviously the same name . She was primarily a landscape illustrator . Eh…? Don’t tell me?’

She was famous for the dreamlike atmosphere of her paintings .

‘Wait . Then I was copying the painting of a person like that?’

He felt strange all of a sudden, as he never imagined that a celebrity would be so close .

It had only been a few days since Tae-hyuk first held a paintbrush . But now he had a discussion about painting with a genius painter . It was like practicing dribbling in front of Messi .

‘I heard that she went straight to Europe after graduating from high school . I guess that is the reason why she seems to be so strangely relaxed for a third year in high school . ’

Tae-hyuk looked at Lee Hana, and suddenly felt like there was a subtle halo around her .

Lee Hana waved her hand as she turned around to leave .

“Wahahat ~ ah, that’s right . There are rumours that a stalker is wandering around the school . Have you ever seen someone suspicious lately?”

“Stalker?”

“Yes . They say he is a voyeur . ”

“I haven’t seen anyone suspicious . ”

Tae-hyuk replied with a face that made it seem like he didn’t know anything .

In fact, he was the most suspicious person in this school .

“If you find something then please tell me . If the incident becomes bigger and the police comes, then this place might be closed down . ”

“This would be difficult . ”

“Right? I think so as well! Hahat!”

Lee Hana laughed and exited .

* * *

After Tae-hyuk was sure that she was gone, his smile disappeared .

“Stalker or a voyeur . ”

Lee Hana spoke calmly but he got the impression that she was nervous .

Of course, he had never seen such a person . But he had some ideas .

“Then, the eyes looking at me…”

The mystery was unravelled .

Tae-hyuk searched the art room, and noticed several hidden cameras that were installed throughout .

“Ohuhuhu . I got the bastard!”

This was what had been missing .

He discovered traces of the crime, and received a message about a new skill .

[Crime Skill: X-ray Vision has been learnt . ]

– You can see through things (this doesn’t apply to creatures) .

-The criteria to fully learn it has yet to be met .

-A skill has already been registered in the temporary skill window .

If you are register a new skill, then the existing skill will disappear .

Tae-hyuk almost screamed at that moment .

X-ray Vision! It was literally a man’s romance .

“Crazy, my heart!”

He cried out .

It was impossible to make a living with X-ray Vision .

However, that’s why it was better . He could literally see through the clothes that people were wearing .

“Ohu, ohuhuhu, ohahahahat!”

The feature was so perfect that Tae-hyuk felt like crying .

He then recalled the last messages on the Demon Revealing Mirror .

“Wait a minute . There is something strange . ”

He was so excited about the X-ray Vision skill that he hadn’t properly read the rest of the message . Tae-hyuk felt anxious and confirmed it in the Demon Revealing Mirror . His face fell like a dog that had been neutered .

“… I have to give up Forgery to learn X-ray Vision?”

It was the limit of temporary registration . The skill was temporary, so if he learned a new one, the existing skill would disappear .

He would miss the opportunity to learn it forever .

“Ugh, no! Then, is it asking me to choose between X-ray Vision and Forgery?”

It was like choosing between jajangmyeon and jjampong . It was a fateful decision .

Tae-hyuk bit his lip . X-ray Vision was a skill that couldn’t be abandoned . But Forgery…

“Ugh, damn! What is this?”

Tae-hyuk’s hands hovered over X-ray Vision, which he had always desired .

He then stabbed his thigh with a sharp brush tip . He felt as if his spirit had come back due to the shock .

“Goodbye, my pink life…”

He couldn’t give up Forgery that had over 50 proficiency points .

Eventually, Tae-hyuk tearfully abandoned the X-ray Vision skill . Tae-hyuk sat in the chair for a while with a sense of emptiness .

Then he muttered .

“Even though I didn’t get it… I will catch the strange voyeur . ”

There were rumours of a voyeur .

Maybe he wasn’t enjoying it alone, but was spreading it on the Internet .

If the incident became bigger, then the police would be dispatched, which would result in an almost 100% chance of this place being closed down . They would search through everything to collect evidence .

Tae-hyuk had only just found this workshop . Besides, he was able to raise his proficiency at a high speed due to Lee Hana . He was unable to abandon this place .

For one thing, he would never do anything completely selfless .

Tae-hyuk put away his brushes and paints and stood up . He set up a trap to catch the enemy .