Izumi Spencer Inori, as a descendant of a wealthy family, and the only daughter of Mr. Spencer and Sayuri Zawamura, her monthly allowance was likely in the tens of thousands.
Even without her family's allowance, her main business was enough to make her a true rich loli at this stage.
So, a mere ten thousand yen was a drop in the bucket.
After giving a scornful look at the decadent capitalism and mocking his own lack of morals, Kasuga no Tou quickly put on a new face.
“No problem, Zawamura-san, please take a seat.” With a speed comparable to Sichuan opera face changing, Kasuga no Tou quickly removed the small stool hanging on the side of his backpack, placed it on the ground, and then made a gesture of invitation.
It really fulfilled the saying, "As long as I'm not embarrassed, the one who's embarrassed is someone else."
Kasuga no Tou didn't feel anything, but Inori was already feeling awkward.
Being treated this way by a classmate wasn't a good experience. After all, she usually presented herself as approachable in school and could always get along with her classmates, which is why she was so popular in school.
But now, facing Kasuga no Tou, she suddenly felt like she was a heartless capitalist, like she was exploiting someone's labor.
Of course, these things were just illusions. If Inori's actions were considered exploitation, then the other few people who were drawing portraits for others would be eager to exploit them quickly.
Having such a beautiful girl as a model, they would even do it for free!
And that smooth-talking jerk, not only could he get the favor of such a beautiful girl (though it was just for drawing), but he could also get the reward that made them envious.
“I…” Though she was shocked by the speed of this unknown classmate's face changing, with yesterday's experience as a foundation, Inori seemed to have a bit of an understanding of this person's character.
A quirky personality was fine, as long as money could solve the problem, then it wasn't a problem.
And unfortunately, as Zawamura-san, her confidence came from the fact that she might not have anything else, but if it was about money, it was definitely enough.
Having figured it all out, Zawamura-san sat down on the small stool provided by Kasuga no Tou without hesitation, quietly watching the boy prepare.
Because Inori was the first customer of the day, Kasuga no Tou hadn't even taken out his easel yet.
But to have a "huge amount" of ten thousand yen as soon as he opened for business, a fool would refuse.
With a practiced hand, he finished all the preparations and told Inori she could strike a pose that she thought was the most beautiful.
But the girl's next move made him realize what it meant to be redundant.
As one of the two most beautiful girls in Toyonozaki, Izumi Spencer Inori exuded an alluring aura with every move. This aura was different from the other school beauty in Toyonozaki, it wasn't brought out by her fiery figure and icy temperament.
Inori's beauty belonged to a style of delicate cuteness, a kind of approachable closeness (big fog), her silky golden hair, skin as white as porcelain, delicate doll-like features, these were all the unique charm belonging to the beautiful girl named Izumi Spencer Inori.
To be honest, Kasuga no Tou wasn't the kind of person who would be mesmerized by a beautiful woman. After all, his sister was a rare beauty.
But even Kasuga no Tou couldn't deny that Inori was a beautiful girl who wasn't inferior to his sister.
But these things didn't affect his painting. As a painter, discovering beauty was always the most important part of life.
He could even try to find the beauty in those two ordinary girls yesterday, let alone a real beauty like today?
Of course, those two girls yesterday were no match for Inori. In Kasuga no Tou's heart, the only beautiful thing about those two girls yesterday was the money they paid.
But today, compared to Inori, everything seemed so insignificant.
Money is truly the most wonderful power in the world.
Inori's attention was completely focused on the hand holding Kasuga no Tou's brush. Although she couldn't see the other side of the easel, she felt like the ordinary brush in Kasuga no Tou's hand had come to life, like a dancing sprite on paper, like a mischievous child with its own thoughts.
Whim, randomness, wanton wandering yet full of beauty.
As always, fast and efficient, in less than an hour, Kasuga no Tou had finished the portrait Inori had requested.
“Zawamura-san, it's done.” After hearing Kasuga no Tou's words, Inori let out a sigh of relief, her whole body collapsing quickly.
Making her maintain the same pose for almost an hour was simply asking too much.
Although she was known as the "appearance" beauty of Toyonozaki, Inori was actually just an ordinary otaku who couldn't be any more ordinary.
But her previous hardship was obviously worth it, because when she received Kasuga no Tou's painting, even Inori, who was used to seeing beautiful things, was shocked.
“This… is it really me?” The girl's small mouth opened slightly, looking incredulous.
Her disbelief wasn't because Kasuga no Tou had painted too well, but because he had painted... too strangely.
If only looking at the features and appearance, Inori could confirm that the girl in the picture was indeed herself.
But she could also guarantee that when she was modeling, her lips definitely had the most elegant, most appropriate, most composed smile.
It was the most suitable smile she had concluded after hundreds of experiments in school when facing other students.
But in Kasuga no Tou's painting, on half of her face, the original appropriate smile was gone, replaced by a faint loneliness and melancholy. The corner of her mouth, which was originally pulled upwards, was still there, but if you looked closely, it seemed to be subtly falling downwards.
And on the other half of her face, although the corner of her mouth still had a smile, even a simpleton like Inori could tell how fake that smile was.
The two halves of the face combined together, and surprisingly, there was no sense of incongruity at all.
If Inori hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she really couldn't imagine how someone could use a brush to convey so much emotion in the same painting.
Actually, the moment the painting was completed, Kasuga no Tou knew he was in trouble.
Painting it like this wasn't intentional. But when he immersed himself completely in painting, he could only combine what he saw in front of him with what was in his heart, then present it to everyone through his brush.
That is to say, the girl he had just painted was the image of Inori that he believed in his heart.