Rowan only pulled on his lips to smile. Maybe, if Duke was with him just like every other launch or guesting, he would feel more comfortable. Not that Reeva could not keep him safe, but Duke had this way of making people wary around them.
The doors to the conference hall opened, and Rowan lay his eyes on the dimly lit place. There was a stage at the far side and rows of seats for the attendees. Since there was no need to eat, they didn't have tables. The only people with tables were the ones in front, the VIPS.
Darkness hugged most of the hall, and the attendees turned to find the supposed guests. A man on the stage smiled widely at the entrance of the guests. He moved his arms as if suddenly drunk in grandeur. "Everyone, revel in the greatness of Mr. Red Riding Hood!"
"Whoa, he really came!" "I can't believe he's really here!" "Why does he look different last night?"
Rowan discreetly took a deep breath and walked with confidence along the path to the stage. His hands would even wave at everyone he caught looking his way. He knew that Reeva and the rest would only walk in later, just so the spotlight would only be on the painter. Moreover, it was just a short walk to the stage; nothing could go wrong.
It was just that Rowan felt like strange eyes were on him all of a sudden. He stared to the side and met the reverent gazes of most people clapping at his attendance. However, he was so sure that someone among them eyed him differently. It triggered his reflexes as if it was sending murderous intent to him, a supposed simple painter.
"Mr. Riding Hood, does something catch your attention?" The president chuckled as he noticed how Rowan looked in a direction for more than a few seconds. "Is there anyone in the society that you'd like to meet? I can call them up here."
"No need, I'm sure they'd present themselves later in the night on their own. They might be growing shy." Rowan only smiled at the people upon taking the stage. "Good evening, Ghoul's Society. Let's have a chat throughout the night, shall we?"
The attendants all walked to the stage now that the spotlight was already on the stage. Rowan sat on the chair given to him, soon fiddling with his microphone. The president called over the real emcee, and she began talking about Rowan's art career as if no one in the room knew about him. On the screen behind them were flashes of the different artworks he launched recently.
Then, there was a photo of the most tantalizing one, [Birth of a Nightmare]. Even Rowan looked at the photo of his latest work. Just like normal artists, Rowan suffered from the distortion of it being his own work. The more he looked at it, the more he felt like calling it ugly for some reason.
Then again, he was still proud of that completed piece. He just didn't want to stare at it, lest mistakes he missed fixing would surface.
"So, let's talk about this painting, Mr. Riding Hood." The emcee flashed an inviting smile. "Everyone who has been so excited about works knows that you are religiously devoted to landscape paintings. Every work of art you put out there normally features places. The closest you have gotten to a portrait is the multiple framed portraits featured in [The King's Thousand Faces].
"[Birth of a Nightmare], however… we see a whole person in it." The emcee gestured at the man wrapped in cloth. "Are we going to expect a change in your style? Will you be making paintings that have human subjects now that you have revealed your real name, Mr. Riding Hood?"
Rowan chuckled at the question. He then brought the microphone closer to his curled lips. "Actually, no. I've always stuck to my chosen theme, which is haunting sights. [Birth of a Nightmare] just happened to be a murder scene. What is a murder scene without a body that lay lifeless on a surface?"
The emcee gasped and looked at the painting again. She wanted to see how the person was just part of the background. However, the very image of the man was so terrifying that she couldn't look away from its face or the fact that it was just part of the view.
At those words, the president asked, "You claim for [Birth of a Nightmare] to be a murder scene. You also claimed long ago that most of your works are based on the fears of the others around you. Does that mean… you know of a murder that has yet to be solved?"
"Mr. Ghoul, have you ever heard of an unsolved murder involving the man in the painting?" Rowan only gestured at the screen behind them. "My artworks are depictions, not real clues of anything that once happened. They are only pictures drawn from fears; they are not real. However, the invoked emotions from the audience are definitely hard to deny."
That painting showed his death. His death was not real because Duke saved him. However, the fury reflected in those eyes that begged revenge was one of the most real emotions that he ever felt.
The people began chattering. It was true. Just because someone painted a hanged man, it didn't mean that they saw a real man hanged from whatever place the painting was set. At the subject, they grew excited again at their own thoughts. For someone to make such a scene look so real that his innocence was questioned by the rest…
"Mr. Riding Hood, how do you feel now that you're famous? Don't you think it's disgusting to fancily show off something solemn like death and exchange it for money?"
Someone asked from the audience, and the people looked at the person who asked. Even Rowan looked in his direction and caught the way the man stared at him. He had a regular build for a working man, but his eyes were sunken from repeatedly sleeping so late at night.
The man also had the clothes of a regular man. He didn't wear anything fancy in coming to such a meeting, compared to his neighbors who were all like cosplaying creatures from folklore and pop culture. However, one look was all it took for people to feel like something was wrong with him. Then again, it could just be Rowan and his sensitive ass.
Instead of frowning or getting angry like the rest, Rowan smiled at the man. "My fame is instrumental to my cause, so I won't dampen it with arrogance or humility. As for the solemnness of death, I don't think it's disgusting for someone to depict it in a fancy way. After all, death is viewed differently by everyone. Some treated it as the end or the worst thing, while others saw it as a release or a rite of passage."