The day after Evangeline drew a picture for the bald slave and received coins.
After finishing her work, Beatrice, who had been chatting with Evangeline as usual, noticed a female slave lurking around them for so reason.
Thinking she might have so ill intent, Beatrice glanced at her, only to have the female slave timidly approach and ask them.
“Um, are you… doing that thing again today?”
“That thing? What do you an? If you’re thinking about making us do sothing strange…”
“No, no! It’s just that I heard that the girl over there draws pictures for coins… right?”
At those words, Beatrice’s eyes widened in disbelief.
It was surprising. She didn’t recall ever spreading the word about drawing pictures yesterday, so how did this person find out about it?
However, unlike Beatrice, Evangeline warmly smiled and replied as if such questions never crossed her mind.
“Ah! That’s right! Would you like a picture? What would you like it to be?”
“Uh… anything is fine…”
“Then I’ll draw your face, so can you smile for ?”
“Uh? Oooh…”
The female slave looked flustered at Evangeline’s request, managing to put on an awkward smile.
That awkward expression was then captured in a drawing by Evangeline.
It was a bit crooked, yet it captured her features well.
Upon seeing the completed picture, the female slave burst into a chuckle and mumbled.
“Hehe… what a strange expression…”
“Gasp! You don’t like it?!”
“No… thanks to you, I feel like I haven’t smiled in a long ti… here’s the paynt for the drawing…”
“Thank you!”
“Hehe, they say dreams co from seeing the sun, right? I’ll support you, work hard…”
The female slave, after handing the coin to Evangeline, left with a slight smile while expressing her encouragent.
Once she left, Evangeline excitedly showed the coin she held to Beatrice and exclaid.
“Wow! Look at this, Beatrice! I already earned one today! Just like that bald uncle said, drawing pictures might be better than running errands!”
“Yeah, it seems that way…”
Unlike Evangeline, who was joyfully oblivious, Beatrice was bewildered.
That woman just now also knew about Evangeline’s dream.
While she pondered what was happening, another slave arrived, and that curiosity was soon resolved.
“Hey, you! Are you the one who draws pictures for coins? Which one are you?”
“Ah, it’s . But where did you hear about that?”
“Oh, that? A bald guy from our side ntioned it. He said there’s a little girl who’s diligently collecting coins to see the sun. So when I heard that, I thought I should help out a bit, and ca here!”
It seed that the bald slave Evangeline drew for yesterday was actively sharing her story with those around.
Seeing both that woman and this man well-inford about Evangeline’s situation made quite the impression.
Anyway, the fact that that bald slave was promoting Evangeline for free was interesting.
Was it rely because she liked the drawing, or was it because she felt Evangeline’s situation was that pitiful?
It was undoubtedly curious.
“Haha, this is totally , right? With this, I think others would be willing to pay at least a coin or two! I’ll spread the word around, so cheer up, little one!”
Even more surprising was that the people coming to help Evangeline didn’t end there.
“Hey, is that her?”
“Here, I’ll give you a coin, so draw a picture too!”
So slaves were lining up, wanting to receive a drawing from Evangeline and handing her coins.
One coin may not seem like much.
But when do people usually share what they have with others?
Unless they genuinely wanted a picture, it was clear that they ca just to help Evangeline.
It was a kind gesture, but Beatrice couldn’t comprehend why people were acting this way. So, she went to consult the most knowledgeable person she knew, seeking their opinion.
“Why are people acting like this all of a sudden? They’ve never done this before.”
The elder chuckled and answered Beatrice with a smile.
“Ah, most of these folks have beco slaves because they did bad things outside, but as humans, there’s always a desire to do good at so point.”
“A desire to do good?”
“Right, mostly for self-satisfaction or perhaps a wish to redeem their wrongdoings in so small way. If they can feel that way from a single coin, it’s not too high a price.”
If it were for such calculating reasons, it was certainly understandable.
However, the elder smiled at Beatrice, who was nodding in understanding, and continued.
“But it seems that the goodwill directed toward that girl is not solely for those reasons.”
Saying this, the elder called Evangeline, who was playing by herself next to him.
“Child, you said your na is Evangeline, right? Could you draw a picture too?”
“Ah, of course! Do you have any specific requests?”
“Then draw next to the entrance of my tent. And just a helpful suggestion: In the future, when you draw for soone, position the drawing next to their tent. Then they can see the picture every ti they pass by, aning more people will ask you for drawings.”
“Wow! That sounds like an amazing idea! Grandpa, you’re a genius!”
“Hahaha, I used to hear that a lot when I was younger. Anyway, you’re drawing my face, yes? I’m counting on you.”
“Yes! Since you gave good advice, I’ll draw with even more effort!”
Evangeline shouted with eagerness, then put her drawing on the elder’s tent.
Was her declaration of hard work sincere? The drawing showed the elder’s completely white hair colored in with stone dust.
“Hahaha! This is truly a masterpiece. Since you’ve drawn such a wonderful picture, I suppose I need to pay you accordingly. Here, take this—your paynt for the picture.”
“Thank you… huh? Huh?!”
Seeing this, the elder smiled brightly, giving Evangeline coins.
Evangeline’s eyes widened as she received the coins, realizing what she had just gotten.
“Y-You gave too much! The paynt was just one coin, but this is ten!”
What the elder handed her wasn’t just a single coin, but ten coins.
Thinking it had to be a mistake, Evangeline attempted to take back nine coins from her own hand to return them to the elder.
However, the elder pushed her hand back and said,
“It’s not a mistake. Giving you ten is correct, just accept it.”
“But… the paynt is only one coin?”
“I thought the picture is worth ten coins, so it’s fine.”
“But this is precious… I can trade it for sothing delicious…”
“Haha, I’ve grown old now and lost interest in such things. So, Evangeline, use that to help achieve your dream.”
With a kind smile, the elder’s words reached Evangeline. Feeling the weight of what was given, she asked softly,
“Are you really sure? You’re giving all this to ?”
“Of course, truly.”
“Wow… wowww!!! Beatrice, look at this! I received ten coins for the picture! I already has nine, so now I only have to collect 81 more! I’m so excited!”
With a handful of coins and excitent, Evangeline jumped around.
Beatrice, watching her, turned to the elder, who gazed back at them with warmth, and asked in a small voice,
“Is it really alright? That’s everything you’ve collected so far.”
The elder was regarded as a leader amongst the slave group that Beatrice belonged to.
He was intelligent and had contributed much, earning coins from Davis frequently. Yet, he never used those coins for himself, saving them religiously.
Instead, he used the saved coins to buy dicine or comfort items for soone hurt or in a bad situation.
Possessing a noble character surpassing his knowledge, he was genuinely respected and followed by all in the group.
Even so, the coins he owned wouldn’t influence his standing among the slaves, which is why Beatrice asked him if it was okay to use them in this way.
However, the elder chuckled, seemingly unconcerned, and replied to her question.
“Of course, it’s not a problem. I collected them with the intention of using them for sothing like this from the beginning.”
After that, the elder continued speaking to Beatrice.
“Do you rember what I said earlier? That the goodwill towards that child seems not solely for those reasons? The answer to that is right there. Take a look.”
Watching Evangeline, who was smiling brightly, the elder said,
“How could anyone see that girl and not want to help her?”
Hearing this, Beatrice could finally grasp why people ca to assist Evangeline.
She watched Evangeline.
Looking at her smile, reminded her of a blank white paper, yet there was sothing appealing in that untainted purity, sothing Beatrice knew all too well.
Perhaps others were drawn to Evangeline’s essence in the sa way, Beatrice thought.
*
From that day on, Evangeline’s pace of collecting coins continued to accelerate.
“Hey, kid! Draw one in front of my house!”
“Hey, I’m first! Line up, line up!”
Following the elder’s advice, leaving drawings in front of the tents beca a trend among the slaves, and the rumors about Evangeline spread among more of them.
Thus, the number of slaves wanting Evangeline’s drawings never ceased, allowing her to quickly approach her target of collecting 100 coins.
“Hehe! Look at this, Beatrice! I’ve got so many coins! Just a little more and I’ll be able to see the sun! I can even draw the sun here, can’t I? I can’t wait!”
Filled with anticipation, Evangeline clutched her book and squird excitedly.
The closer she got to her dream, the brighter she seed to shine.
Watching Evangeline glow, Beatrice felt her own excitent growing.
If Evangeline was shining this brightly now, just how radiant would she be after seeing the sun?
Caught up in such thoughts, Beatrice snapped back to reality as she saw Evangeline waving her hands up and down in front of her.
“Beatrice, what’s wrong? You look spaced out.”
“…Oh, it’s nothing. By the way, how many do you have left?”
“Hmm, let think! I earned eight today, so… three! Just three more to get to 100! If I collect a little tomorrow, I think I can reach it!”
Just three more for a hundred.
At that thought, Beatrice laughed softly and pulled out sothing she had tucked away in her clothes.
“Here, Eva. Take this.”
“Uh? This is a coin! Three of them! Wait, are you asking for a drawing too? Then you don’t need this! You’re my friend, so I’ll draw for free!”
Receiving the three coins that Beatrice was offering, Evangeline’s eyes widened as she exclaid.
Caught off guard, Evangeline’s reaction made Beatrice chuckle and say,
“No, I’m not asking you for a drawing… that’s your gift. With that, you’d hit 100, right?”
“W-Well, even friends can’t take things for free!”
“If you can’t do it for free… then let’s say it’s a paid request?”
“A request? For what?”
Evangeline tilted her head in confusion, and Beatrice explained.
“I want you to draw that once you’ve seen the sun tomorrow, show first with that picture. That’s my request.”
Once she heard the request, Evangeline smiled brightly and responded,
“Sure! I’ll show it to you first! Let’s make a promise!”
“Yeah, a promise.”
Beatrice made a promise with her bright-smiling friend, Evangeline.
She believed that seeing the sun would make Evangeline shine even brighter than the sun itself.
Beatrice was looking forward to tomorrow, filled with excitent.
*
And then the next day.
Davis called all the slaves together.
There were two reasons he would gather all the slaves like this.
One was when he had sothing to announce to them.
The second was when a slave was to be executed for a cri.
“Everyone, look closely. There is a slave here who has dared to touch my property.”
In this case, it was the latter.
The one who had committed the cri was a small girl slave.
The charge was stealing.
Reviews
All reviews (0)