Isabella walked behind Evelyn. Her steps were timid, and her head bowed as she followed her half-sister like an intimidated lamb.

That was how she was supposed to act to save herself from trouble or offending her sister.

“Don't stutter when you explain the painting. I don't want people to look down on me,” Evelyn said.

Isabella suppressed the urge to scoff in self-mockery. She wasn't supposed to stutter? Why would she stutter explaining the art she spent hours creating with so much effort?

That art piece was supposed to be one of the samples for the design assessment to enter the college.

However, when Evelyn came to call her because she needed a helper to carry her shopping bags when she went to have fun with her friends, she saw the piece and immediately fell in love.

She couldn't wait to show it to the world in her name. After all, that was precisely what she had been doing for three years.

“Do you hear me?” Evelyn asked. Her voice was soft, but only Isabella knew the truth behind that soft facade.

Evelyn never bullied her openly. It was just the subtle things she did to ensure Isabella could never lift her head high.

She couldn't be considered evil or immoral. Still, just like the constant dripping water on a rock can break it after weakening it for years, rather than in one heavy blow from time to time, Evelyn’s subtle repressions suppressed the hope of shining in Isabella's eyes.

“Yes,” Isabella murmured after a pause.

Evelyn turned briefly to comment on her lack of response when she saw her friends walking to her.

“Well, if this isn't our infamous prodigy with god-gifted hands,” Macy Turner said, holding Evelyn's hand. Her gaze moved to the soft-looking Isabella standing behind Evelyn.

“Isn't that the dress you wore at the annual function dance three years ago?” Symphony mocked Isabella, who shifted from one leg to another.

“Seriously, Isabella, your obsession with wanting to be exactly like Evelyn grows daily. Don't you have your own identity? You copy her everything. Even the brooch you are wearing is similar to Evelyn's,” Laura spoke.

Isabella's hand subconsciously went to the brooch she was wearing, and she gulped, feeling even more timid.

Tears welled in her eyes, and she blinked them back quickly.

She wasn't trying to copy Evelyn; she just didn't have anything to wear that didn't belong to Evelyn before.

Even after earning money from her part-time jobs, Isabella could barely earn enough to supplement her pocket money and buy art supplies along with her mother's medications.

She never had the privilege to buy a clip, let alone a dress she could wear to a function.

“Let's go, guys. Don't bully her,” Evelyn said, her voice soft as always, and her personality angelic.

“Evelyn, you are just too good for your own good,” Macy said, hooking her hands with Evelyn as they walked towards the hall.

As soon as Isabella walked into the hall where the party was, she first noticed the painting that was the center of attraction.

A soft smile appeared on her face.

So what if she didn't get credit for the painting? At least her art was gaining recognition.

“Isabella,” Evelyn's voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she walked closer to the dean, who was looking at her expectantly.

Their art teacher, who immediately recognized the art style that belonged to Isabella, looked at the girl with pity.

She wanted to tell everyone the truth, but the last time she tried, Isabella had turned back and said the painting belonged to Evelyn.

To this day, the art teacher couldn't decipher why Isabella wasn't ready to own credit for her paintings, which were getting worldwide recognition. One of her paintings had been sent as a representation from the school to the International exhibition.

“This painting is called Beauty of Death,” Isabella whispered.

“Beauty of Death?” Everyone was surprised.

The painting depicted a beautiful scene. How could it mean death?

“Are you kidding us?” The dean asked. Evelyn looked at Isabella with a doubtful expression.

Was this girl rebelling at a time like this? She wondered.

“Yes. Death is often depicted as sad and brooding. It means the end of life, and is painful for the people who are left behind. But if we see it from another perspective, it's a beautiful scenario,” Isabella smiled.

“You are free from worldly desires; your mind is finally at ease as you drift into nothingness. Our soul enjoys all the beautiful scenes of nature that we neglected when we were alive, burdened by worldly desires. Even if someone chooses salvation, the need to be alive is there,” Isabella whispered before she looked at the painting dreamily.

“This painting describes death. This girl, who has finally attained the highest form of freedom from life, is walking down the path of heaven as she takes in the cold wind that caresses her soul to the deepest level she has ever felt, and her eyes are mesmerized by the beauty of it all. She sees this beauty because she is finally free, and nothing burdens her; there are no responsibilities or worries. Because it's silent, the kind of silence she has been yearning for all her life,” Isabella whispered the last part.

Everyone stood there unmoving for a few seconds before they started clapping loudly.

“Evelyn, we could never look at it like that. How can you come up with such a beautiful thing? You are seriously god-gifted, " the onlookers said, starting to praise Evelyn.

Isabella smiled and walked away from the scene.

At the same time, Zaniel, who had to take the soul of a person who died in a car accident at some distance, looked at Lucian, who was hovering over the school and watching something.

When he followed him, he heard what that human girl was describing as death and couldn't help but feel slightly amazed.

“Have you ever seen someone describe death so beautifully?” Zaniel asked Lucian, who kept looking at the girl.

“She calls it beautiful because she wants to die and achieve that freedom. She sees herself in that portrait,” Lucian commented before he looked at Zaniel.

“Are you done?” He asked.

When Zaniel nodded, they left quietly.

Lucian turned to look at the girl one last time, his curiosity piquing. Was it a coincidence that this was the third time he saw her on the same evening?

Not wanting to brood about the painting, Isabella walked freely in the school's corridors, reminiscing about her memories there.

They were subtle and quite boring for someone with a good life, but for her, being able to study was enough.

As she walked to the corner, she saw a glimpse of someone walking towards the other corner.

She furrowed and followed the person, her brows raising when she noticed it was Alex.

A soft smile appeared on her face.

Alex was one of the only people in the school who didn't dislike her or look down on her, someone who treated her as a human.

She has had a crush on him since he pulled her out of the freezing water on a picnic, saving her life. Not only that, he even reprimanded Evelyn's friends, who were laughing at her miseries.

At that time, she believed for the first time that there were good people in this world who could see the human inside her.

Since then, Isabella has found every opportunity to get close to and know him better.

He was a decent man, a leader of the Smith family with an exotic Jewelry business.

“Al—” Isabella called his name, but stopped when she saw Evelyn standing some distance away and Alex walking to her with a smile.

She didn't want to interrupt anything, and mostly felt like leaving.

However, a part of her wanted to know why they were meeting like this when they could meet in the hall.

“What can I do for you, Evelyn? When will you accept my proposal? You know how much I like you. I have been bearing your useless half-sister just to please and get close to you,” Alex said.

Isabella stood there frozen on her spot.

Her already weakened form trembled a little at what she heard.

It had been two years since she started liking Alex, and she had been doing her best to be good to him. She even occasionally purchased his favorite shakes to appreciate his efforts to be close to her.

But it seemed he was kind to her all this time for her sister.

“I don't think you like me, Alex. I never told you to go around Isabella to come close to me. Besides, aren't you going to dance with Isabella tonight? Do you think I am that kind of person?” Evelyn asked softly.

Alex pressed his lips into a thin line as he held Evelyn's hand.

“You know I did it all for you, Eve. If it weren't for that bet where I had to make her fall for me, I would never waste my time on a useless bumpkin like her. Besides, who said I will dance with her? I will indeed ask her, but only to put an end to this. I will humiliate her in a way she will regret ever liking me and ruining your life,” Alex said before he leaned close to Evelyn, probably to kiss the girl.

Isabella's heart broke completely.

She staggered as she turned and left, running away from the scene.

She couldn't believe what she heard. It was hard for her to digest that the man she had had a crush on, who had acted like a true gentleman, had such an ugly face behind his smile.

Tears rolled down her cheeks, and she wiped at them furiously.

Was it not enough for those people that her life was so miserable that they had to play a prank like this on her?

Running as fast as she could, she reached the ground and looked at the shining moon with angst.

“Why? Why must I suffer so much? What sins did I commit? Why must my mom suffer like this? I have always heard that love is supposed to be the most beautiful emotion, so why are we suffering so much from this emotion?” Isabella raised her voice before crying painfully.

“What did I do to deserve this?” She fell to the ground.

Lucian, intrigued by her and roaming carelessly around, heard her cries from some distance and frowned.

The school that the girl was at was around 10 km away from where he was. How could he still hear her wails? And why was she crying like this?

“Has her faith in god finally started to falter?” He smirked.

As he raised his hand and saw her breathing heavily, he raised his brows.

Was it the time for her beautiful death?