The room was left with only Lawson and Lillian.

Lillian smiled sweetly and said, "Little guy, I really doubt your skills, but since I'm bored anyway, why don't we give it a try?"

She struck a new pose, tugged slightly at her clothes to create a teasing, half-revealed allure. At the same time, her eyes were only half open, her gaze unfocused, carrying a lazy hint of confusion and a touch of fiery provocation.

Lawson didn't rush to paint.

He first walked halfway around the wooden bed, examining her from every angle, then returned behind the easel, closed his eyes to concentrate, summoned the desktop, and began to take screenshots to select the best angle.

Seeing his focused look, a trace of surprise flashed deep in Lillian's eyes. She realized she might have underestimated this skinny young man.

Very soon, Lawson chose the most alluring screenshot and began to paint.

From Lillian's perspective, she saw the boy, who had been deep in thought with his eyes closed, suddenly open them, and then his hands began to move as quickly as carriage wheels.

All kinds of paints were swiftly applied to the canvas, and the palette knife and brushes danced lightly across the board like a sculptor's chisel.

The boy's expression was focused, but his eyes seemed a bit vacant and lost, as if he was deeply immersed in his own mental world, completely ignoring her, a living, breathing beauty.

"How interesting~"

Lillian had already put away her earlier disdain and was now looking forward to the final work.

Come to think of it, as someone from a small place, this was her first time modeling for a real artist.

The feeling was quite novel, and she felt a bit honored.

After all, those who could have an artist paint them face-to-face were usually wealthy and powerful ladies.

Time ticked by, and in the blink of an eye, the whole morning had passed. When the aroma of food drifted into the inn room through the window, Lawson finished the last stroke of his painting.

He stopped, wiped the fine sweat from his forehead, and said softly, "Lillian Miss, it's done."

"Let me see."

Perhaps thinking Lawson was just a clueless kid, Lillian dropped her act and showed the casual innocence of an ordinary girl.

She quickly walked to the canvas, took one look, and couldn't help but let out a surprised "Ah!"

"Mother of Spiders, is this really me?"

'Mother of Spiders?'

Lawson was startled inside, but his expression didn't change.

Lillian didn't seem to notice her slip of the tongue. She stared intently at the canvas, her eyes shining with excitement.

"Little guy, your painting skills are truly amazing. I've never seen such a good painting before. This will definitely fetch a high price!"

Lawson pressed his lips together and forced a smile: "Oh~ that's really good news."

Lillian noticed: "Eh~ you aren't being forced, are you?"

Lawson shook his head repeatedly, then wiped the sweat from his forehead and lowered his eyes: "No, no, no~ I'm just a bit tired and want to rest."

"Oh~ then have a good rest... I'll be going now."

Lillian didn't seem to think much of it and simply turned and left the room.

After a while, Silas came in, holding a tray with a bowl full of hearty food.

Lawson looked at the golden, shiny roast chicken and the large jug of goat's milk on the tray, and thought to himself, "He must be here to poison me!"

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Chapter 9: Stealing Another's Love

"Eat, eat as much as you want, it's all yours. This is your reward."

In the room, Silas smiled as he looked at the painting, very satisfied.

After a while, he turned to look at Lawson, only to see him focused on gnawing the roast chicken, not touching the goat's milk at all.

His eyebrows twitched slightly, and he smiled, "Why are you only eating the chicken and not drinking the goat's milk?"

Lawson cursed inwardly: 'Who knows what you put in there?'

By common sense, if someone wanted to poison you, they'd most likely put it in a liquid, since it's easier to do and harder to detect.

Roast chicken, cooked directly over fire, usually wouldn't have any problems.

So, he only ate the roast chicken and didn't touch the goat's milk.

It was just a guess at first, but seeing Silas's reaction now, he was almost certain there was something wrong with the goat's milk.

Of course, he didn't show it, and hurried to explain.

"Mentor, fresh goat's milk tastes way too strong. Back in the village, every time I drank it, I'd throw up, and if I forced it down, I'd get diarrhea."

"Is that so?" Silas stared at Lawson without blinking.

"Mentor, I'll drink it!"

Lawson put on a look of facing death, pinched his nose with one hand, picked up the jug with the other, and carefully brought the goat's milk to his mouth.

Halfway there, his face suddenly turned red, and with a clang, he put down the jug, quickly pulled out the chamber pot from under the bed, and opened the lid.

There was still some dirty stuff left in the chamber pot, and a strong stench rushed out.

At this point, even if Lawson didn't want to throw up, he couldn't help it.

"Ugh~~~"

He vomited violently into the chamber pot, even throwing up all the chicken he'd just eaten.

After a few retches, he couldn't help but apologize, "Mentor, I'm sorry... ugh~ I really can't help it... ugh~~~"

Because his mouth was covered, the vomit came out of Lawson's nose.

Silas was so disgusted he waved his hand forcefully, "Get out and throw up outside~ Get out! Get out!"