harleyscars Chapter 112 Things as Brilliant as the Stars
Chapter 112 Things as Brilliant as the Stars
The true owner of "The Four Virtues" is the owner of the Art Gallery. The museum merely deposits and exhibits these four paintings; it does not own the entire series.
Therefore, Mr. Artisan could do whatever he wanted with the painting without any problem.
Even if it means completely destroying it.
“There are no legal issues here, and the police have no right to intervene,” Hugo said, turning to Sera, whose face showed disappointment.
“Artists are born with the right to interpret their work. This most powerful insect artist can make the most perfect defense for himself, package his behavior as a kind of creative activity, and say things like ‘destruction is also part of creation’—clichés that sound reasonable at first but are actually nonsense. He might even be praised by art critics who don’t know what they’re talking about. I heard that this kind of activity is quite popular in the United States art scene recently, and it seems to be called ‘performance art’.”
Despite the detective's mocking expression, his words subtly hinted at offering advice to the owner of the Artisan Pavilion. Officer Sera was momentarily confused about the detective's stance.
If Azure or Officer Jenny were here, they would have seen through Hugo's bluff instantly.
Often, deduction and reasoning alone cannot reach the inner thoughts of the person involved. The human brain is like a black box. Observing its reactions to the outside world can certainly help us infer what's inside the box, but it's never as easy as letting the box speak for itself.
Hugo, of course, didn't believe that the Bug-type Gym Leader of Flying Cloud City would do something so attention-seeking. What he was doing was simply trying to get Black Box to talk.
He deliberately makes baseless conjectures, using indirect and veiled attacks to torment his opponent's mind. Usually at this point, the person who is unwilling to have their motives misunderstood will take the initiative to reveal their true motives.
Faced with Hugo's sarcasm, Monsieur Artie's composed and playful demeanor wavered, however—
"Detective Hugo, stop your provocation. I'm not going to tell you the truth." The Bug-type Gym Leader crossed his long arms and sighed. "Just consider me a show-off. This is my own karma."
"Self-inflicted punishment? Retribution?"
Hugo paused slightly upon hearing these two terms, and clues from the puzzle that had already been solved resurfaced in the detective's mind.
Seeing Hugo fall silent, Sera couldn't help but ask Atie—
“Mr. Yati, you are a great artist. Why do you insist on destroying those four paintings of ‘The Four Virtues’? Is there some hidden story behind this? Our Feiyun Police Station will assist you.”
“There’s no particular reason. Those four paintings are my works, and I’m free to do with them as I see fit.”
Inside the cocoon of the studio, Mr. Atti kept his eyes down, avoiding Miss Sera's glaring gaze.
Is he truly an artistic genius? In no time at all, Aya had mastered the art of exercising the right to remain silent and was now tormenting the policewoman.
"Even if it was vandalism, why did you have to ruin 'The Four Virtues' in such a terrible state in front of everyone? Didn't you already sneak into the museum last night? You could have easily taken the original artwork then, so why did you create an alibi this morning?"
Yati still didn't answer, but simply shook her head slightly, a look of dejection on her face.
"Is it really just for attention-seeking?"
Due to Aya's uncooperative attitude, even the usually calm Miss Sera became emotional and raised her voice slightly. She herself was a local resident of Feiyun City and had visited that art museum several times with great interest to immerse herself in art, and had also stood attentively in front of Mr. Aya's masterpiece.
She simply couldn't believe that the person who created such a dazzling work of art would commit such a near-criminal act of destruction for such a reason.
However, Yati remained silent, leaning against the wall, almost blending into the silken cocoon behind her, like a portrait that could not speak.
When the atmosphere reached a stalemate—
"I understand what's going on."
Sera turned her head and saw Hugo straightening his white suit jacket with a wry smile, standing up straight and facing the artist who was leaning against the wall.
"Your Excellency is indeed engaging in performance art, but the act of art is not despicable destruction, but rather regeneration."
"Regeneration?" The policewoman considered the meaning of the word. "Does it mean resurrection?"
"There's a slight difference. 'Resurrection' is generally used to describe reappearing before the world in its former glory, while 'regeneration' is about using everything from the past as nourishment to transform into something new. At least, we would consider the transformation of a Bug-type Pokémon from its cocoon to a butterfly as a kind of regeneration, rather than resurrection."
"Oh, it seems you already know..." A bitter smile, just like Hugo's, appeared on Yate's face.
Sera looked at the two who seemed to appreciate each other, and inwardly grumbled, wondering what they were smiling so bitterly.
“It’s not difficult. You gave me a lot of hints during the conversation. As long as you understand the personality of the person involved in the case, it’s not hard to guess their motives.”
The detective looked around and slowly said, "Everything you've done is for this dojo, isn't it?"
The owner of the Art Gallery, who created this art palace, responded to the detective's gaze as if he had gained new vitality, and said proudly—
“Detective Hugo, do you remember when we met I told you that I am an artist who loves the creative process more than the result? That wasn’t just a boastful statement. In fact, I have always been troubled by the limitations of the medium of art. No matter what form of art it is, when a work is presented to the world, that art becomes something solidified, and it can no longer grow or transform. I think such a work is imperfect.”
"There's no time like the present. Since we've met a kindred spirit in the arts today, let's have a splendid premiere."
The curator of the Yati Pavilion walked to the center of the cocoon workshop and pulled down a silken thread that was hanging from the air—
In an instant, the dojo floor began to tremble, as if something slumbering beneath the ground was awakening...
Before the detective and police officer could panic, Aya took the initiative to explain:
"This is a specially designed mechanism inside the gym. Once this thread is pulled, the ceiling of the Flying Cloud Dojo's maze section will transform into a giant art gallery, with different paintings spreading across the entire sky like a starry curtain. My latest creation, the silk art, will work in conjunction with this technology, using the mechanism as its driving force to bring the art, which should be static, to life!"
The museum owner led Hugo and Sera out of the battlefield and into the maze area, where the two guests witnessed an amazing scene!
Inside the cocoon, the walls, covered in color, seemed to shimmer with light. The silk curtains that had hung from the ceiling as decoration swayed gently with the circulating air, peeling away layer by layer to reveal paintings arranged densely behind them, like merchandise on a shelf.
The painting moved slowly, as if thick strokes of oil paint from an expressionist painter were gradually spreading across the entire sky!
Looking around, there are scenes of humans and Pokémon living in peace, epic tales of legendary Pokémon standing atop mountains, passionate battles, dazzling beauty contests, individual figures, and hordes of Pokémon... a wide variety of hundreds of giant paintings that are dazzling to behold, yet they are so harmonious that they seem like a whole, without any sense of aesthetic fatigue!
Even a layman can see that any one of those paintings is a masterpiece no less than "The Four Virtues," and each one is a work of art that can fetch astronomical prices at auction!