Chapter 53
Chapter 53
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Spreading the Gospel to the Snobby Bitch (6)
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Becoming a star overnight.
Mirni had already been through it once before.
These days, her SNS followers—much like Instagram's—were steadily climbing, surpassing 950,000.
Major corporate ad deals were starting to roll in, her SNS value skyrocketing exponentially.
On top of that, modeling gigs kept pouring in, turning her days into a whirlwind of busyness, just like she'd shot straight to stardom.
Deep down, as she watched herself thriving like this...
'I'm totally killing it!'
...she couldn't help but feel a smug sense of expectation that she might be the most successful one in the party.
Back in Midgard, Mirni had been the weakest in the group, scraping the bottom in both status and class.
It couldn't be helped.
She wasn't born nobility, wasn't even human—just a non-human catfolk, a thief from the slums.
Yuseong had been there, sure, but he'd joined as a porter from the start, so calling him a full party member felt off. Later, he'd rallied guerrilla bands into a full legion—a towering figure.
She wasn't brazen enough to strut around someone who'd risen above caring about status or class.
...And in Korea, no one could even compare.
Anyway!
Excluding that outlier Yuseong, Mirni really was the biggest success story.
...Up until two days ago.
"...This article has to be fake, right?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"No...! Come on! Selling one painting and hyping it up like this? That's insane!!"
"...It's not that insane."
"What!?"
"The person, the painting, capital, connections. And finally, luck. Not three factors—all five lined up. How could that not succeed?"
"......"
"Think positive. It's no different from Mirni making it with zero capital or connections, right?"
"Okay, sure, but... still pisses me off!!"
"......"
Not losing to some pointy-eared bitch of all people—that fact alone had Mirni fuming and howling in frustration.
Sylvia shook her head at Mirni with a cold, jaded gaze.
Her personality really is...
'Sigh, more importantly... Alicia of all people...'
Sylvia couldn't entirely dismiss Mirni's feelings, either.
It wasn't sour grapes.
Just...
...She never dreamed it'd blow up this big.
Ten days—that's how long it took Alicia to hang up her painting and sell it.
A certain YouTube reporter put it this way.
- (Why'd she blow up so fast? Hmm... I'd say five big factors.)
First off, the [person] painting them is a winner!
The reporter grinned slyly as he continued.
- (Look! Even in a photo, she's drop-dead gorgeous, right?)
- (Hey, come on, don't give such shallow reasons...)
- (Pfft! Shallow? That's the problem with Koreans. Let's be real—we say looks don't matter, sex appeal is bad, but have you ever seen that actually work?)
- (Whoa, don't blow it up like that all of a sudden...)
- (It's not blowing up—it's facts! Facts! We preach inner beauty all day, but people care more about the outside. All that 'inner over outer' talk? Total bullshit. That's why Koreans get called hypocrites!)
- (...Please! For the love of God, don't lose your shit on air!!)
He was a YouTube staple, infamous for his wild antics across topics. Hated by antis, but his raw honesty drew viewers effortlessly—3,000 live in seconds.
Calming down a bit, he moved on to the [painting], [capital], [connections], and such.
- (But... even with looks drawing eyes, the painting has to deliver for this hype.)
- (Spot on.)
- (You'll see—it's got that medieval holy art vibe, but fresh. Unique colors, killer figure work. Like a new angel paradigm we've never seen?)
An angel—or divine something—painted by this 'Elf'? Each one brimmed with life, vividly real, like they could exist.
The angels and figures in old holy art all embodied that era's plump, maternal heft—
- (Compared to those fat pig-filled canvases back then, this is a breath of fresh air.)
- (Watch your mouth, you bastard!)
- (I'm just stating facts... Angels in those holy paintings? All pigs. They weren't flying—they'd crash from the weight...)
- (...!!?)
- (Anyway, point is, her stuff's unique.)
Sure, plenty of holy artists reinterpreted figures, but none topped the old masters.
Why rate her so high? The 'potential' shining through.
- (Potential to surpass the past.)
Unlike talents that wither unseen, she had every condition primed.
Collector Jang Chunman's vast [connections] and [capital] let a total newbie crash a small exhibit.
No art school? In Korea, that's a death sentence for painters—yet this was wildly unconventional.
But Jang explained in an interview it was no big deal.
- <Art school? Sorry, but her talent and skill already tops active professors. What more could she learn from them? Other techniques might even taint her unique worldview. I just showed her work to the world—no extra push. People bought it because they fell for the paintings themselves.>
Luck or skill? Debates raged.
But one thing was clear: artist 'Elf' was shaking up Korea and beyond like no one in ages.
And seeing the painting at the article's heart firsthand...!
"I don't get it..."
Valian tilted his head.
"Just some pointy-eared brat's scribble—why the hell's everyone obsessed...?"
"'Cause it's special in this world."
Leon said that as he admired Alicia's work.
He'd argued as much, but having seen elves to death, even he felt zero impact.
Unlike the excited crowd nearby.
"Check out that color palette... How do you even get shades like this?"
"Huge difference between screen and real life. No wonder you gotta see art in person~!"
"......"
Something in those words clicked for Leon.
'Spirit dust? Looks mixed in...'
Otherwise known as spirits' 'dandruff.'
Leon grimaced again.
"Yup, dandruff alright."
"...Luke, 'dandruff' isn't the best term—'powder' or 'glitter' sounds better..."
"What? Even your kingdom folks call it that."
"......"
"Anyway, slathering this crap on does make it pop."
Spirit dandruff—or powder—was that sparkly shed by spirits when manifesting.
Some scholar said spirits can't normally interact with our world, but summoners' mana forces bits of them through.
The backlash flakes off their body—that's the glitter.
No harm to the spirit, though.
Not a full-body summon—just bits shedding like a scrub, a shedding sensation for them.
"Gross, nasty..."
"......"
Spirits don't build up grime like humans, so it's not truly dirty dead skin—but words gonna word.
Once labeled 'dandruff,' it just feels gross.
No matter how pure it is, the vibe's off.
Yet some paid top dollar for it: painters and bards.
"Painters mix it in paints. Bards use tons in performances, right?"
"Yeah, amps up the colors and draws eyes easier."
For Midgard artists, spirit dandruff was essential.
Mixed in paint, it boosted hues and that intangible 'aura' humans pick up on.
Modern art world? Straight cheat item.
First time seeing such wild colors and glow here.
"That bitch went full throttle."
"...She's just using her abilities, no?"
"That's what full throttle means."
"......"
At least, that's what Yuseong brazenly claimed—he'd never used mana making money. Sylvia would've bet her wrist it was a lie.
'Still, good for her, Alicia.'
Finding her place.
Sylvia sighed in relief, worries easing.
.........
.........
......Until the next day, when word came that Alicia had gone missing...!