Dionysius had originally pnned to bring Dematero along to meet Xanthia. After all, the idea of observing Xanthia’s casual doodles to assess her mental state had been a pn carefully concocted by the two of them.

  However, when Santos saw the pair walking shoulder to shoulder, acting all sneaky, he became curious about their intentions.

  So, he decided to join in on the fun, thinking there was no harm in it, especially since he had nothing else to do.

  Yet, after learning what they were up to, he wasn't particurly pleased. There was something that nagged at him—the idea of setting up an art studio for Xanthia seemed to encourage her to “not focus on her real talents.” After all, Xanthia’s speciality was singing, so why should they push her into painting just because she cimed to like it?

  He couldn’t help but feel aggrieved. He had been wanting to form a band himself, yet no one paid him any attention.

  Of course, Santos had no idea about the true purpose behind Dionysius and Dematero’s actions. He simply assumed they were shamelessly catering to Xanthia.

  As for whether Xanthia truly had any talent for painting, Santos had his doubts.

  The art studio Dionysius had arranged for her was situated very close to her apartment—just a ten-minute walk away. It was located on the fifth floor of Cardinali Pza, in a somewhat secluded corner.

  Originally, the space had housed a “murder mystery” themed store, but as business dwindled, the shop eventually shut down.

  For a period, “murder mystery” games, akin to adult rolepy, had been quite popur. However, once the novelty wore off, most of these stores had colpsed, with only a handful of top-tier ones managing to survive. Many of the mediocre shops folded, as customers quickly grew tired of the experience, especially when the scripts weren’t compelling or the hosts weren’t up to par.

  After the store closed, the space remained vacant with no new tenants.

  Since it was sitting empty, Dionysius decided to make use of it by calling in a favour from his father. He transformed the space into an art studio to win his sister’s favour.

  Though Demetrios only handled the selection of performers for the Cardinali Arts Troupe under the “ShardTech Conglomerate,” his status was influential enough to help.

  Dionysius was particurly skilled at using his father’s connections for personal gain, especially when it came to matters like these. Securing a small shop in a back corner of Cardinali Pza wasn’t a challenge for him.

  “Do you like it?” Dionysius asked casually as he gave Xanthia a tour of the studio.

  “It’s great,” Xanthia responded, her voice ced with appreciation. “I didn’t expect all the art supplies, easels, and other tools to be so well-prepared. You really put some thought into it.”

  In reality, she didn’t need half of the supplies. She wasn’t a professional artist. Her "Terrifying Brush" allowed her to create various brushes at will, giving her an edge in her paintings.

  Dionysius’s heart swelled at his sister’s praise.

  He’d always worried that Xanthia would reject his kind gestures, just as she had in the past, making him feel like his efforts were in vain. But now, seeing her smile, he felt that everything he’d done had been worthwhile.

  Dematero also chimed in, saying, “Xanthia, this studio will be your personal space from now on. You can paint however you like, and remember, you should always do what makes you happy!”

  Dematero believed that, in order to truly understand Xanthia’s mental state, she needed to be free from any pressures and create paintings that were truly heartfelt. Only then could they gain insight into her true emotions.

  Xanthia smiled and nodded, “Of course! Thank you both for your support!”

  This new studio space was also approved by the system as a “grinding experience upgrade” zone. Painting here would yield more experience points.

  Seeing his sister’s smile, Dionysius felt a warmth fill him, content that all his efforts had been worthwhile.

  During the tour, Xanthia had begun to entertain some mischievous thoughts.

  She considered painting more dark, Cthulhu-inspired works in the studio to attract customers from Cardinali Pza to visit her art gallery. This would, of course, bring in some additional “pain points” as a bonus.

  She didn’t even need to market it. She could simply wait for “cashcow visitors” to come across her gallery.

  The traffic at Cardinali Pza was decent. The fifth floor, where her studio was located, was home to several restaurants and a cinema. Many people would stroll around after meals or before their movie started, perhaps grabbing a drink or a snack. There was a good chance they might wander into her art gallery.

  Rather than keeping the space private, Xanthia was more inclined to turn it into a public gallery. She’d even come up with a name for it: “The Terrifying Gallery.” If it became popur, it could become an urban legend or even a social media hotspot.

  The thought of such a possibility made her excited, and she found herself itching to immediately start creating a heap of dark, emotion-inducing works with her “Terrifying Brush.”

  However, like writing, painting required materials.

  There were plenty of dark-themed, Cthulhu-inspired artworks avaible online, but Xanthia found them cking. They didn’t have the shock value she was after.

  The problem was that these artworks were purely imaginary. To truly evoke terror and stir up negative emotions in viewers, it wasn’t enough to just rely on fantasy.

  Even though the “Terrifying Brush” could enhance her dark-themed works, Xanthia quickly realised that simply replicating online artworks or drawing from her imagination wouldn’t generate the level of impact she desired.

  Through her recent experiences with the “Terrifying Brush,” she had come to understand that only when the viewer believed the scenes, monsters, or people in her artwork were real would they be deeply affected and plunged into true terror.

  This realisation was a bit disappointing to her. She’d originally assumed that by merely replicating dark artworks from the internet, she could quickly generate a massive amount of pain points. But in reality, these reproductions only generated a small amount. To create a big explosion of points, she needed to find more authentic sources.

  But where could she find such dark material in the real world?

  Then, the answer hit her.

  If she couldn’t find it in the real world, she could always use the “Nightmare Phone” to enter the Nightmare Space. It turned out that the connection between the two was the key!

  Xanthia’s mind clicked into pce.

  In order to fully unleash the power of the “Terrifying Brush,” she needed to bring people into the “Nightmare Space.”

  Once they became her “tool pyers,” they would explore and experience terrifying, despairing worlds. She could then collect the materials from their experiences and turn them into artwork in the real world.

  In this way, her paintings would be far more potent than anything she could create by simply copying others’ works or drawing from imagination.

  It was simir to how a writer crafting a military novel would fare far better by drawing from real experience rather than mere imagination. The difference would be palpable, and the reader would feel it in the storytelling.

  Xanthia now understood why she had received such powerful tools as the “Nightmare Phone” and the “Terrifying Brush” when she opened her blind box. The near-perfectly real simutions in the Nightmare Space could provide the raw materials she needed for her “Terrifying Brush.”

  She realised she had been using the “Nightmare Phone” just to py games in the real world, while the “Terrifying Brush” had been misused as a mere toy.

  Both tools were designed to harvest pain points, but in her hands, they had been used for more trivial purposes, much to her regret.

  Just as she was lost in thought, Santos couldn’t hold back any longer.

  “Xanthia, are you really good at drawing? I feel like your talent is clearly in music, not painting. You’re just wasting time with art. Wouldn’t it be better to focus on singing?” he said with a smug expression.

  Xanthia smiled inwardly. With the “Terrifying Brush” at her disposal, her painting skills were actually the highest of all her abilities. She had reached Lv4 (Expert level) in basic drawing techniques. She was more than capable of creating high-quality artworks.

  But before she could respond, Dionysius jumped in, defending his sister, “What do you mean ‘wasting time with art’? My sister likes painting, and as long as she’s happy, why shouldn’t she paint? I just want her to do what she enjoys. You’re the one making trouble!”

  Dionysius didn’t care whether Xanthia was really talented at painting. He was more interested in validating some things, so he just wanted his sister to paint freely and have fun. But Santos had the audacity to tell her not to paint, and that was obviously going against him.

  Dematero also joined in, “Santos, don’t underestimate Xanthia. Music is an art, and painting is an art. Both forms are connected. I truly believe Xanthia’s artistic talent is limitless. She should follow her heart and do what makes her happy. Our role is to support her, not restrict her.”

  By now, Santos was absolutely furious. He felt like these two were ganging up on him. What was with all this biases when it came to friendship? Did they really think he couldn’t be as attractive as Xanthia? If he dressed as a woman, he was sure he could outshine her any day.

  At this point, Xanthia spoke up, “I love singing, and I haven’t scked off in my vocal training. Juggling both painting and singing is no problem for me. In fact, I’ve already developed quite a decent skill in painting.”

  “Really? I don’t believe it!” Santos scoffed. “Alright, if your drawing skills can’t impress me, then you should join my band as the lead singer. That’s where you truly shine!”

  Santos had secretly wanted to recruit Xanthia into his band for some time. He was impressed by her abilities in many ways, but his pride prevented him from simply inviting her. Instead, he had to take a roundabout way to make his proposal.

  Xanthia, with confidence, replied, “Not convinced? Fine. I’ll sketch a portrait of each of you three right now, one for each of you. Consider it a thank-you gift for today.”

  ShoujoDirector