Protected: Painter Of The Night / Doctor Frost: Hate crime 🤬🩸 (third version)

October 3, 2021August 13, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Shame and love

September 19, 2021September 9, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Painter Of The Night: Time ⏳ and crime (second version)

August 28, 2021September 15, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 3 Comments

This is where you can read the manhwa. https://www.lezhinus.com/en/comic/painter But be aware that this manhwa is a mature Yaoi, which means, it is about homosexuality with explicit scenes. If you want to read more essays, here is the link to the table of contents: https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/04/table-of-contents-painter-of-the-night/

This won‘t be a long analysis like “The end of the vicious circle”, for my main purpose here is to try to reconstruct Yoon Seungho’s terrible past, and as such its chronology.

1. The incident in the study

We know now for sure that the starting point of Yoon Seungho‘s downward spiral was the incident with Jihwa.

Chapter 77: The young boy was caught doing something immoral, though like I elaborated it in my previous analysis, there‘s no doubt, the main lead was drugged, and Jihwa had been somehow manipulated. While some might see two teenagers fooling around, I have a different perspective. Then I came to realize why the perception from the manhwaphiles diverges so much. It is, because the readers are actually projecting their own thoughts and expectations. Hence this is normal that certain readers are still expecting something innocent and pure. Yet, since I believe, Yoon Seungho was never a sodomite from the start, but was turned into one, for me the smile and gaze from Yoon Seungho in that scene seemed so fake and artificial, especially if you compare it to this one: (chapter 57) versus (chapter 77) In the first one he oozes innocence and affection, in the other he’s in ecstasy, roofied. However, we have to envision that this smile could have just been a projection of the butler, which means that this represents a distorted memory. Like I explained in my previous essay, the noble has the same gaze than the painter under the influence of opium and alcohol.

“Date rape drugs make a sexual assault, including rape easier in one or more ways, such as:

making a victim more compliant and less able to say no
weakening a victim so they are unable to resist or fight back
making a victim fully or partially unconscious
weakening a victim’s inhibitions, so they consent to sexual activity they may otherwise decline” quoted from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/320409#types

And if you pay attention to Yoon Seungho, he was not active at all. He was behaving like the painter in chapter 54.

2. Kim’s past actions

Observe the butler‘s actions. He opens the door without announcing himself. But remember the butler’s MO, it is to delay to deliver the information. We could observe this on different occasions like chapter 44 or 50. He never told the painter about the scholar’s departure(chapter 44), just like he only reported the conversation between Jung In-Hun and Baek Na-Kyum many weeks later. (chapter 50) That’s why I come to the conclusion that he never ran immediately to father Yoon in order to report the incident. The butler just needed to inform him later. While in the past, I used to think that he had used rumors again as an excuse, I have now a different perception. For me, it was someone else badmouthing the main lead, well aware that father Yoon feared gossips the most, (chapter 50) an older version of this image. This explicates why Yoon Seungho had regained consciousness and could fight back against the servants, when he got dragged to the shed. (chapter 77) Besides, observe that the main lead was sequestrated in the storage room on two occasions at least.

3. The shed and study

Hence Yoon Chang-Hyeon ordered to drag the young boy to the barn. (chapter 77) However, since it happened twice, I am deducing that this was not the case for the second time. But if you pay attention to Yoon Seungho‘s bedroom, you will notice that he was living in the actual painter‘s study. (chapter 77) And this means that the intelligent noble was in a privileged situation. Remember Jihwa’s words: (chapter 05) With this remark, the noble expressed a certain annoyance, for he would live next to Yoon Seungho. This truly shows that the painter’s room was a sign of Yoon Seungho‘s favoritism towards the low-born. So if the main lead had such a good reputation and was even favored by the eldest master, this signifies that he could only attract people‘s gaze. Thus some persons definitely envied or resented him, like Yoon Seung-Won and father Lee. And it occurred to me that the younger master had every reason to feel jealous of his elder brother. He might have had the impression that his father had no eyes for him. In other words, he could only benefit from such an incident. If his brother lost his father‘s favor, then he imagined that he would get noticed by his father. As you can imagine, I believe that someone must have poisoned Yoon Seung-Won‘s mind. From my point of view, only a grown-up could have access to the drug. I can‘t shake the butler‘s philosophy from my mind: „Ignorance is a blessing“! The person behind the plot knew about the children‘s weaknesses (innocence, longing for love and recognition, desire) and decided to use them to his advantage.

4. He is not in his right mind

But then suddenly it occurred to me that chapter 77 is a reflection of episode 5. Note the resemblance. Jihwa talked here about virginity by opening the commoner’s shirt. The manhwaphiles will certainly remember that during that night, the noble got rejected, for the lord’s mind was elsewhere! And here we have a proof that Yoon Seungho acted differently in the past. His mind was elsewhere due to the drug, but he didn’t stop his friend. Observe the similarity between the gestures: (chapter 5) (chapter 77) The young boy’s head stood above his childhood friend, exactly like with the painter. Jihwa also removed the shirt, but since the low-born stopped him, this signifies that Yoon Seungho had the opposite reaction. He was allowing his friend to kiss and touch him. However, the young noble couldn’t enjoy this moment, as the butler arrived so that the red-haired aristocrat ran away and abandoned him. Very early on, I had elaborated that Jihwa must have done something to his friend and ran away in order not to get caught. I had come to this deduction due to the incident with the door and the painter’s worries. He feared to have been seen.

5. The reflections in the kaleidoscope

That’s how I recognized a certain pattern in this story, the final proof that the story is built like a kaleidoscope:

chapter 05:
Chapter 16: Here, the artist was imitating the red-haired aristocrat’s actions in the past. The only difference is that he was the passive one!! Striking is that both chapters have something in common: one is always seducing the other, and the latter isn’t accepting the advances. In addition, the masturbation was not disclosed to anyone, yet someone notified Jihwa about the painter’s late return.
Chapter 17: I judge this episode as a reflection from chapter 5, for the gestures are similar: the hand on the painter’s shoulder. Furthermore, the readers will note the presence of the sweets, the butler carrying food, but he’s avoiding the lord’s chamber. At no moment, he reports Jihwa’s trespassing, his master only discovers the assault, for he hears the commotion. The artist wouldn’t have been slapped, if the staff had immediately announced Jihwa’s visit. Striking is the aristocrat’s confession: (chapter 17) Other common points with chapter 77: “seduction”, the violence of the noble, his rage because he feels that the painter is lying and had lost his virginity with Yoon Seungho. Besides, I would like to point out that the lord only discovered Jihwa’s assault through the gossip. He came too late, hence he couldn’t stop Jihwa from insulting and slapping the low-born.
chapter 50: Jihwa was living in anxieties that he needed alcohol, an indication that in the past he must have struggled as well. We have to imagine that back then, he feared that his father Lee would hear about this incident, but father Yoon never let transpire the incident to the outside world. From my point of view, father Lee must have denied his son’s actions, but the aristocrat with dragon’s eyes was no fool. And remember that I used the same chapter to outline that Kim communicated the information to his master in delay. Note that in this episode, time was essential. Both figures were struggling. While the one hoped, the murder would be done soon to put an end to his suffering, the other had the impression that he was running out of time. He couldn’t change the artist’s heart and mind, too wounded.
Chapter 57: The visit to the physician showed us the lord’s past. Back then he got hurt by his father, but he was still looking fine. More importantly, he still trusted his butler. Father Yoon requested some medicine, for he believed that his son was not right in his mind. The physician presented the box full of drug which Kim has been giving to his master since his youth.
Chapter 66: Here, Min arrived unannounced at the mansion and could observe in the lord’s chamber what Yoon Seungho had done. Here, he revealed the so-called culprit for the painter’s disappearance. The common denominators are: the delayed disclosure about the crime, the servants not doing their job and gossiping, the passivity of the butler.
Chapter 67: After the main lead had discovered the crime disclosed by Min, he rushed to father Lee’s mansion and caused a commotion. What caught my attention is that we had again an incident with a door. In addition, Jihwa couldn’t run away. He was trapped in the room, yet he refused to face his friend. The other similarities are another rejection and the delayed arrival of father Lee putting the blame on Yoon Seungho.

And now pay attention to the number of the episodes: 05 – 16 (1+6 = 7) – 17 (1/ 1+6) – 50 – 57 (50+ 1+6) – 66 ( 5+1/ 5+1) – 67 (6 / 6 + 1) – 77 (1+6 /6+1) Here we have the kaleidoscope. For me this is no coincidence. But more importantly, all these chapters contain seduction, but also rejection, resistance and the presence of drug.

6. Jihwa’s dream

And by putting these chapters together, we get finally the evidence that Jihwa was the boy in the protagonist’s room. Then it came to my mind why the red-haired master was still unhappy in his relationship with Yoon Seungho. When he was wooing his friend in his youth, he saw the friend’s smile and gaze and imagined that he had been accepted. (chapter 77) I also believed that he had to envision this smile from Yoon Seungho to justify his action. An older version from this chapter: (chapter 19) That’s why Jihwa was blushing the whole time. His dream seemed to have come true!! But unfortunately, they got interrupted. But he didn’t realize that this “dream” was just an illusion, and he had been played. Because he had opened the friend’s shirt, he noticed his virginity. That’s why he had an eye for that. (chapter 5) He had gained this experience with his friend. Since I see some parallels between chapter 77 and the first Wedding Night, which stands for illusion and dream, it becomes even more evident that Yoon Seungho had been drugged and both young boys got played. During all these years of separation, the second lead kept his virginity intact for his friend. Once the main lead got betrayed and abandoned, Jihwa saw finally that his dream could come true. Since Yoon Seungho’s gaze had haunted him for so long, he hoped to obtain the same gaze, as in his mind it was the symbol of love and affection. Besides, he had another reason for approaching his friend. Since he had caused his downfall, deep down he imagined that if they became a real couple, then he could do as if the time of their separation had never happened. They would live, as if nothing had happened.

And now, you comprehend why Jihwa was so sure that his friend would never purse and seduce another man! (chapter 17) Yoon Seungho had never done it to him. Remember my observation: the main lead had been totally passive in the study due to the drug. In fact, he had never rejected anyone, (chapter 52) because he had been trained as a kisaeng. And these observations made me recognize another important aspect: Jihwa, exactly like Baek Na-Kyum, has never discovered that sex could be a form of violence. From my point of view, the chapter 77 shows us that sexual assaults can take many different forms. Using a KO-drug is definitely a crime, but due to Jihwa’s lack of experience, he couldn’t recognize the true nature of the situation.

That’s why I believe that Jihwa will still help Min, because he feels bound to him by secrecy. He is acting like the butler, he wants to survive and not get caught, that’s his driven motivation. However, he will be cornered and forced to make a decision: save his own skin or help someone. In my first version, I had written that the moment he discovered Min’s actions, he would be able to judge the situation correctly this time. And this expectation became a reality. (chapter 100) Black Heart taught Lee Jihwa an important lesson, the importance of consent. Someone can be forced to sex, which the second lead never truly grasped. He had to pay a huge price for the stolen kiss and his betrayal 10 years later. Interesting is that Lee Jihwa ran away, because he rejected to be responsible for the painter’s death, a synonym for Yoon Seungho’s curtains. (chapter 100) This is what I had also written in the first version.

However, as you can imagine, I am expecting a growth from the second lead. He will make the opposite choice than Kim, save the painter, while I am more than ever convinced that the butler won’t change his bad habit.

7. The chronology

But let’ s return our attention to chapter 77. When the butler opened the door, the second lead ran away leaving his friend behind. But Kim didn’t report the incident right away, he started spreading some rumor. Why? It is because we have the presence of rumors in chapter 17, 50, 57, 66 and 67. And notice that 17, 57, 66 and 67, he never stopped people from gossiping, while in chapter 50 he revealed the intel as rumor.

Since all the episodes involve the unannounced visit of a noble (17, 50: here Seungho barged in the scholar’s room, 57, 66, 67), I could only come to the conclusion that father Lee was the one who paid a visit to father Yoon, and revealed the incident by naturally putting the whole blame onto Yoon Seungho. But unlike in chapter 67, father Lee visited discreetly the mansion, as he feared gossips. That’s why the physician mentions that Jihwa was supposed to have the illness (chapter 57), but he could never identify the issue. And now, you comprehend why father Lee was red, totally embarrassed (chapter 67), for he was well aware of the truth. We have many possibilities here. Either someone leaked the info to the father secretly, or the son must have confided to him about the incident. Remember that in chapter 68, the painter confided to her his deepest fears and struggles. Let’s not forget that the son had hired an amateur spy in order to be updated about the events occurring in Yoon Seungho’s mansion. Consequently, I am inclined that the incident must have reached father Lee’s ears, and in order to maintain his respectability, he preferred covering up the commotion by blaming the elder son Yoon.

Since father Lee had intervened and Kim chose to reveal the “truth”, father Yoon could only perceive the incident as a truth. Consequently, father Yoon ordered his servants to drag Yoon Seungho and to confront his son. From my point of view, father Lee was questioned as well, but as you can imagine, he covered up his own son’s action. Since everyone was pointing the finger at the main lead, no one sided with the young boy. In other words, he got not only blamed, but also framed.

Right after he asked his staff to drag him to the shed as a punishment. But as you can imagine, Yoon Seungho couldn’t have any idea why his father reacted like that, for he had been drugged. He had no recollection, hence he denied the existence of the incident. However, the father chose to believe Kim, as he had the crowd. Imagine his reactions: the main lead had to hear from him what he had supposedly done. I would like to point out that victims of rape due to KO-drug suffer from immense guilt, as they showed no resistance or even seemed to “enjoy” the incident.

The valet gaslighted the poor boy by making him feel guilty (chapter 77), but despite his harsh and cruel words, the young protagonist chose to continue trusting him and his words. Let’s not forget that Kim claimed that his father would fix his “problems”. (chapter 77) From my point of view, the young master was determined to show good will and to listen to Kim’s advice.

Because he was sent to the shed and we see the straw mat beating right after, we have the impression that this was the punishment he received for this incident. But this was an illusion created by the author. Why? First, when the father visited the doctor, the young boy was still looking fine. He had such a rosy complexion, and still admired and trusted the butler. However, the main lead’s gaze changed after the straw mat beating. He recognized that he had been betrayed and abandoned by Kim. Observe the slight movement of the iris. First, the iris is directed at Kim, then it moves in the opposite direction. By looking away, he clearly unveils his inner thoughts and emotions: he has been betrayed and abandoned by his butler. He resents him, yet until that moment he was still willing to trust despite the multiple betrayals. He is disillusioned.

But there’s another indication that the straw mat beating didn’t occur right away. It is, because of the following panel: (chapter 55) First, there’s no rain. Secondly, Yoon Seungho was feverish and his eyes were so bruised after the harsh punishment that I doubt he could still see clearly the boy’s gesture so from faraway. So for me, that’s the moment when he is dragged into the courtyard and not during the straw mat beating. In the past, I used to think, it was Yoon Seung-Won, but then after the latest episode I started doubting it. However, like one of my followers reminded me that Byeonduck had confirmed about Yoon Seung-Won’s identity. Yet, observe that the lord and the boy have no face. Why? It is because the two persons embody not only Yoon Chang-Hyeon and Yoon Seung-Won, but also father Lee and Lee Jihwa. The scholar Lee was the one who had asked for the flogging! That’s the reason why he said this to the lord years later: (chapter 82) This statement proves that he had done it before! Furthermore, the red-haired master is connected to the straw mat beating. (chapter 12) This explicates why Lee Jihwa resented the brother and the father, for in his eyes they were responsible for his childhood friend’s suffering. And since the father had done it once, then he had no problem to order a second flogging or straw mat beating, just like the king Yeonjo who punished the Crown Prince Sado so brutally. So because the eldest master next to Seung-Won is dressed differently in chapter 77: (chapter 77) I could only come to the conclusion that these two panels are not referring to the same incident.

From my point of view, Yoon Seungho received the second straw mat beating after the rape!! And this means that Kim had been present, but he had not intervened. (chapter 65) Here, he had been brought back to the past. Remember the past mirrors the present. In my eyes, the rape of the main lead occurred at the same time than the painter’s. It took place in fall. So when did Baek Na-Kyum get sick?

It was after the first sex marathon! He was dragged to the bedchamber and due to the long sex session, he got sick. Notice the parallels:

he is so wounded, but the father refuses to call for a doctor (chapter 33)
it is raining, and the painter got sick due to the wet clothes (chapter 27/29)
Father Yoon abandons his son and leaves him behind. He doesn’t even carry his son himself. (chapter 33) Note that Yoon Seungho called for a doctor, he even carried himself to the study and waited there, until the doctor had given his prescription.

And now, the manhwaphiles comprehend why I came to this interpretation.

What happened is the following. Once he had been abandoned by the father, the rapist could approach him and have sex with him. Kim heard the boy’s resistance, but he chose to remain outside, until the man was finished. (chapter 65) I am quite sure that the butler’s passivity was justified that it was done for the main lead’s sake. However, once it was over, the butler was forced to see the consequences of his bad choice. But the valet refused to become responsible and gaslighted the young master again. If he had not kissed Lee Jihwa, if he had put his prick in the hole etc… The main character had still acted like a dog and a cat, and this time he reported it to his master directly so that the latter came to the conclusion that Yoon Seungho was still useful for him. Or the eldest master knew about it anyway. But the main lead never got to discover that Kim had heard him outside the room, but had remained silent and passive.

And now, you comprehend why Yoon Seungho was so hurt and disappointed by Kim. Kim never protected him or even defended him at all. He made sure that the young boy would be blamed and should feel guilty or he remained paralyzed and speechless. He never rushed to his care. And since father Yoon speaks “chambers”, this means that the protagonist had already become the lord Song’s “favored servant.” But he had not reached the bottom, he needed to become a kisaeng. In my eyes, the young boy got punished, as he was still refusing his role as „favored servant“. And now, you comprehend why Kim threatened the doctor in chapter 33. The latter had reminded the butler of his own wrongdoings: (chapter 33) Back then, he not only followed his master’s requests, but also he did nothing at all. He stayed immobile and shocked. (chapter 77) I believe that when the valet looked at the young boy’s gaze and perceived his own true reflection (a disgusting and fake domestic), the man was surprised. He never imagined that he would be judged differently: (chapter 67) The main lead must have thought similarly. But due to the long exposure to abuse and to the drug, Yoon Seungho repressed these thoughts and emotions.

8. The beneficiaries

So if my theory is correct (Yoon Seungho was drugged), we have to question ourselves. Who benefitted the most from the protagonist’s downfall?

Yoon Seung-Won: he could finally obtain the study next to his father’s bedchamber. He would finally get some “recognition”. And note that the brother got dressed exactly like the main lead. He had finally reached his goal: he was the better son.
the pedophile
Father Yoon: I am convinced that the father made a deal with the rapist. Now, the author has revealed that it was Yoon Seungho in the kisaeng house (chapter 68). Father Yoon imagined that if he had sex with a kisaeng house, he would be cured. However, something happened in the gibang. The young boy refused which forced the nobles to intervene. Yoon Seungho got dragged and tied up by the black guards. Naturally, father Yoon could only jump to the conclusion that with such a rejection, Yoon Seungho was admitting his homosexuality. This could only reinforce the prejudices the father had about his son. The irony is that with such an attempt, father Yoon exposed that he was a man obsessed with sex. He never understood that sex is strongly intertwined with love and warmth. Thus I deduce that father Yoon never associated sex to affection. For him, it was either a synonym for power, submission or duty as the noble has to make sure that he has sons to continue the legacy. With this new insight, I come to the conclusion that the man was totally fooled by his surroundings and most importantly by the rapist. Everyone lied out of selfishness and cowardice, and let the young boy take the whole burden. Hence the father truly believed in his son’s homosexuality and out of resent and contempt, when he saw an opportunity to use his son for his own career, he was trained as a kisaeng. In my eyes, this idea was definitely suggested by the pedophile, though I doubt that he was directly involved in the incident in the kisaeng house. And the man dreamed of bringing greatness to the Yoons with his “connections”. However, this was just a pyrrhic victory, as both Yoons lost more than they gained, for the rapist hadn’t kept his promise.

That’s why I believe that the younger brother was indeed involved in the first incident misguided by the rapist, instilling his jealousy, an older version of Min and Jihwa. But the young son never imagined that his father would treat his brother like that. The panel from chapter 55 exposes Yoon Seung-Won’s guilt and silence. But as time passed on, he could still benefit from this. He finally got recognition from his father. (chapter 86) But it was in detriment of the Yoons’ power! The father lost everything, yet the younger master didn’t suffer much from it first, until he reached adulthood. Now, the father was putting his whole hope on him, and that’s how Yoon Seung-Won realized the existence of such a burden. That’s the reason why he contacted his brother again. He hoped to get an office through his brother’s connections and power. Remember that Baek Na-Kyum’s real torment started with the arrival of the learned sir to the mansion. Hence the moment “lord Song” came to the propriety, he started scheming to achieve his goal: he was bewitched by the young protagonist, he needed to taste him. However, from my point of view, the pedophile had sent the butler for this exact purpose. He must have definitely known how Kim would behave in there. I have already exposed that for me, the butler represents the poisoned gift from chapter 19. (chapter 19)

But since the whole tragedy was caused by delayed information, I deduce that timing is essential, especially when it comes to “justice”. Since the “accomplices” and “perpetratrors” never got punished, they imagined that they had escaped human justice. However, karma was waiting for them. Jihwa was never happy, though he had become the main lead’s lover. Why? It is because he had to live with his guilt. Moreover, he had wished to obtain Yoon Seungho’s love. In other words, he was living an illusion. The brother didn’t gain anything in the end, as his comfortable life and good reputation were based on Yoon Seungho’s suffering. Secondly, father Yoon almost lost everything. However, I doubt that all of them learned their lesson, just like the pedophile. This explicates why Yoon Chang-Hyeon schemed again in season 3. (chapter 94) He hoped to appear as a good lord, while his son had mistreated his own messenger.

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for topics or manhwas, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, retweet it or push the button like. My reddit-Instagram-tumblr-twitter account is: @bebebisous33. Thanks for reading and for the support, particularly, I would like to thank all the new followers and people recommending my blog.

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Treacherous colors 🟪 🟫

July 27, 2021September 9, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Sex and passion 😍 (second version)

July 8, 2021November 3, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Protected: Painter Of The Night: The gifts 🎁 (second version)

May 26, 2021December 22, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Painter Of The Night: Love and Sex 👨‍❤️‍👨 (second version)

May 10, 2021September 21, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 18 Comments

Feel free to make some donations/sponsoring: Ko-fi.com/bebebisous33 That way, you can support me with “coffee” so that I have the energy to keep examining manhwas. It would also cover my expenses for the blog.

When I examined the sex scenes from the first season (see the analysis “Sex or Love?), I realized that each character had different expectations from the sexual encounters. They were either looking for sex or for love, but each time they were not able to express their desire and even to recognize the distinction. Why couldn’t they sense the difference? It is related to the way the characters were raised.

1. Sex and philosophy

On the one hand, Baek Na-Kyum was taught by the learned sir and Heena noona that sex and as such homosexuality was dirty (chapter 34), only spiritual love was allowed (chapter 19) (chapter 68). This signified that in his education, not only sex was prohibited, but also sexual desires were denied. Although love was expressed through hugs (chapter 66) (chapter 68) and caresses (chapter 10) (chapter 68), they were devoid of sexuality. The painter experienced love, but was not allowed to experience sexuality. He was only authorized to paint it for the scholar’s sake. On the other side, Yoon Seungho was raised the opposite: love was not allowed, as it was a sign of submission and weakness. Sex was permitted, because it was considered as a fight in order to defeat his opponent. These were the butler’s doctrines. That way, he could still have a connection to the main lead. If he came to love someone (the pedophile), the lord could definitely abandon the valet and reveal his betrayals. In other words, he used pity as a way to tame the lord. At the same time, sex also served to gain some benefit, as it was an exchange of favors (giving versus receiving), (Chapter 71). I connect this philosophy to the king and indirectly to the butler. With sex, the nobles could exchange some favors. These huge divergences in the mindset explicate why there were so many misunderstandings between Yoon Seungho and Baek Na-Kyum, as their education diverged so much.

2. Sex and prostitution

Yet, despite the contrast, both educations had something in common: prostitution. Heena noona hates sex, because it is related to her work. The scholar rejects it, for it is beneath him. He expects the low-borns (Baek Na-Kyum and Heena noona) to become his prostitutes, if it’s necessary, while he can maintain his image of a proper scholar. Father Yoon used his son as a prostitute, and the main lead realized it after his father’s betrayal and abandonment. This explicates why “prostitution” stands in the center of the second season. For Baek Na-Kyum was brought to the mansion against his will, but he received certain privileges, his status was never clearly defined. Although Yoon Seungho thought, he had won the battle (chapt45), as the painter had accepted him as his sexual partner, he had to realize slowly that he was wrong. He imagined that since the artist had remained by his side and was accepting to have sex with him, he had achieved what he wanted: in his unconscious it was to be loved. Yet, it was just an illusion. The painter saw himself as a whore and the master as a man consumed by lust. As you can see, the noble was forced to judge the nature of the sexual encounters differently. He had associated sex to love due to their Wedding night, therefore he imagined that the moment the painter was accepting him, the problem was solved. He would be able to relive this wonderful moment, but however nothing like that happened. He felt never satisfied, as there were no feelings at all. Hence he even had sex during the day, believing that the artist’s lack of experience was the problem. (Chapter 45) While the lord became Baek Na-Kyum’s sexual emancipator, the painter became the lord’s teacher for love. This explicates why the low-born forced the lord to question his own identity and feelings.

But let’s return our focus on the common denominator: prostitution. As long as the painter chose to stay, because he had a roof over his head and could eat properly, we could definitely say that till 49 his stay at the mansion was indeed closer to prostitution than a master- servant relationship, because the commoner was never treated like a domestic. He only had sex with the lord and had some privileges. (chapter 46) He was never asked to do other work, although the artist tried to change his situation. Since he was behaving like a whore, he felt that he had no right to express any thought and emotion. He couldn’t show any pleasure. That’s why there were no feelings in their sex encounters, and the lord could sense the difference. Consequently, when the lord realized that he was still perceived as a man consumed by sex (chapter 48), he changed his behavior. He acted like a real client at the brothel (chapter 48), but at the same time he cornered the painter to have multiple climaxes in order to let him experience that he liked having sex with him. (chapter 49) As you can observe, the lord linked sensuality to love. If he could provoke ejaculations, then it meant that the artist was definitely feeling something for him. However, the moment the lord liberated the painter from his pejorative perception about himself (he is a prostitute), the painter reacted the exact opposite. Now, he was the one using Yoon Seungho, the latter was his plaything. (Chapter 49), his prostitute, for he was the one procuring pleasure to Yoon Seungho. As you can see, the roles had been switched. This means that now the painter had the upper-hand in their relationship. We could even say that the noble was willing to accept his fate. (Chapter 49) Yet there was a difference from the past. Yoon Seungho would feel pleasure as well. This is not surprising that Kim chose to intervene and separate the couple right after. Without sex, the painter had no power over the master. That’s the reason why the butler revealed his knowledge the morning after. The protagonist had to hear from his butler the real cause for Baek Na-Kyum’s passivity and torpor: (chapter 50). Through this revelation, the lord was indirectly confronted by his own reflection: he was indeed asking from Baek Na-Kyum sexual favors in exchange for his stay at the mansion. That’s the reason why the lord had a “relapse“ and kept his distance from the painter.

3. Abstinence and love

However, because Yoon Seungho was now associating sexual pleasure with the painter, the noble was no longer able to have sex at all. Don’t forget that Baek Na-Kyum symbolizes love. Seungho-Ya 😉 couldn’t even get an erection with a fellatio given by someone else. (chapter 52). This was important, because for the noble, it meant that he could no longer have sex with other partners. Without sex, the lord was forced to question himself and ponder on the true nature of his relationship with Baek Na-Kyum. He felt jealousy during that night, he was very protective as well. (Chapter 52) His sexuality had already become an expression of his love, although the main lead was still unaware of his own feelings. That’s why I come to the conclusion, chapter 52 was actually revealing Yoon Seungho’s monogamy, although it looked the opposite. And this becomes truly visible, when the gangrape was about to occur. He felt no urge, when he was with the guests, yet the moment he brought the artist to the bedchamber, he couldn’t stop himself from kissing his loved one. (chapter 54) He was definitely longing for his warmth. This explicates why the noble got so infuriated, when he was confronted with the consequence of his bad decision: (chapter 54) the artist was on the verge to be no longer monogamous, as he would be tasted by other aristocrats. In this scene, the lord would have indeed become a client and pimp, if he hadn’t chased away his guests. Although the painter was indeed upset afterwards about this incident (chapter 55), deep down he sensed that his master had protected him. This night was important for the main lead: he was forced to admit his own feelings for the painter. Therefore, we could say that the issue with the prostitution was solved after chapter 54. Yoon Seungho thought that the moment he confessed, the painter would get scared and run away, but it didn’t happen. Why? Love among men and especially between a brutal noble and a commoner, was a taboo, like Min had underlined. Secondly, if the lord had indeed feelings for him, he had behaved like a beast during that night. He had mistreated Baek Na-Kyum. In his mind, the artist would never accept him.Besides, the painter had clearly denied the affection from the main lead. In his eyes, the painter’s words were indicating a rejection. (chapter 54) Thus I conclude that Yoon Seungho and Baek Na-Kyum had come to an implicit agreement: they had a master-servant relationship (chapter 56), although Baek Na-Kyum started perceiving himself as a domestic from chapter 51 on again. He kept following the head-maid and Kim (chapter 51) in order to help them. Therefore the readers could witness the return of the white headband in chapter 52: his task was to paint for his master. (Chapter 52)

However, this new situation didn’t last long due to the artist’s abduction. The lord thought that since he had properly confessed to his servant (chapter 62) here, he whispered to Baek Na-Kyum that he adored him), he would bind the artist to himself.

4. The real relapse: sex, the symbol of submission

Nevertheless the commoner disappeared making Yoon Seungho think that the moment he revealed his vulnerability, he got betrayed and abandoned. This explicates why the noble punished the artist, when he was found. Since they had a master-servant relationship and the artist had run away, this meant that Baek Na-Kyum was rejecting the lord’s love. Hence he could only treat him like his sex toy (chapter 63), exactly like he had wished in chapter 49. The only difference is that this time, the painter was here for the lord’s pleasure. The roles had been switched again. As the manhwaphiles can perceive, the noble and painter had a similar reaction: they both tried to deny the existence of love in their relationship. That’s the reason why the noble stopped the artist from confessing: (chapter 63) They just had a sexual relationship which could provoke pleasure, but that was it. But in order to ensure that the artist wouldn’t run away again, he used sex to “tame“ Baek Na-Kyum. If the main lead could procure multiple climaxes to the artist, then the latter was forced to admit that only Yoon Seungho could be his “partner“. This explicates why the noble kept pointing out how the artist would react to his lover’s body. (Chapter 63) (chapter 64) He was moaning and would ejaculate constantly thanks to the main lead. Yet, during this second marathon, the noble was actually deceiving himself. (Chapter 62)

5. Love and servitude

Although he treated the painter like a servant, as the latter was asked to paint, Yoon Seungho couldn’t help himself cleaning Baek Na-Kyum and bringing him to his bedchamber. (Chapter 65) This shows that the painter had gained a new position: he was indeed a favored servant. He was allowed to spend the night in his lover’s bed and he could see the lord getting dressed. (Chapter 65) The slight change was that now the main lead was aware of this. This truly exposes the lord’s affection for the artist. He might have treated him like a plaything in the shed, in reality he had attempted to show “his skills“ as a lover. He had licked him, bit him and the painter had felt pleasure, though he kept saying no! This is not surprising that Yoon Seungho had denied the kiss in the study. (Chapter 64) Because that’s how he had been deceived that night in the study. (Chapter 49) Baek Na-Kyum had silenced him with the kiss, as the main lead was about to protest. (Chapter 49) When he mentioned the kiss, the symbol for love, in his confession, it was connected to sensuality and not affection. Hence he didn‘t kiss him at the end of the second marathon. As a conclusion, by bringing the artist to his bedchamber, the lord never realized that his action was betraying his words from the night before. They were definitely more than 2 naked bodies. The lord trusted the painter so that he could lie down next to him in the bed. (Chapter 65) Striking is that Heena noona’s intervention destroyed their terrible but short-lived master-servant relationship, because the noble was faced with the truth: he had brought back the artist to the mansion against his will. (chapter 65) What caught my attention is that the painter’s disappearance mirrored the lord’s wrongdoing. Lee Jihwa and the main lead had both kidnapped the artist. That’s why I believe that when he heard Heena’s words in the study (chapter 68), the noble could only come to the following conclusion: he could only let the painter choose his destiny. But the moment the artist decided to remain by his side, he needed to change Baek Na-Kyum’s position in the mansion. He was no longer a servant, but a noble guest. Hence the lord tied the scarf like aristocrats did. (chapter 69) Consequently, we could say that the painter had a similar status than Jung In-Hun. Yet, there was a huge difference: the owner of the mansion was now acting like the painter’s servant. Hence Deok-Jae’s words came true: (chapter 46).

6. Nobility and love

From chapter 69 on, there were two masters in the mansion: (chapter 71). Why? It is because the lord made the decision that the painter chose him, then this means that he became his wife, though at the end of season 2, he was not thinking about marriage yet. He was not aware of this perception. By becoming his official partner, the spouse obtains the status of his husband: nobility. This explicates why the lord ate with his lover (chapter 74) and allowed him to smoke. Then in season 3, he gave him ladies-in-waiting in order to give him some company. (Chapter 78) He even gave him the music box, which was mistaken as a dowry. However, the problem is that the painter was still fighting his own feelings for the protagonist due to Heena noona’s words and past experience with the scholar. He feared that this new situation was too beautiful to be true, hence he thought that the lord’s feelings would fade away. But there was another reason for doubting the lord’s affection: there was no sex. (chapter 74) The painter had come to associate sex with love too. Yet, the moment he relived his trauma, he only found comfort and safety in the lord’s embrace. (Chapter 76) The main lead didn’t reject the painter’s urge for a hug in front of commoners. At no moment, Yoon Seungho felt embarrassment. He treated him like a special treasure. That’s how the painter came to realize that Yoon Seungho‘s love for him was true and genuine. Consequently, he decided to rely on him and to trust him. That’s why in this panel, the painter closed his eyes: (chapter 76) We could say that he was reminded of his own past. When he was a child, he sensed love through hugs and caresses. Since the painter could feel the lord’s genuine affection and warmth, he recognized that even when there was no sex, love was present. All his senses made him perceive the lord’s love: (chapter 76) His words showed his care and concern, then he bought him an expensive music box. (Chapter 76)

7. The symbols for the couple‘s love

But by accepting the noble’s affection, the painter was also incited to question his affection for Yoon Seungho. On the other hand till chapter 94, he hadn’t voiced it yet. As you can see, the abstinence at the end of season 2 and the beginning of season 3 had a important function. It helped the painter to admit the existence of love and more precisely the lord’s affection for him, a reflection of the lord’s situation in season 2 (50-54). Simultaneously, it meant that the painter could no longer deny his attachment to Yoon Seungho too. Therefore it is not surprising that in the bedchamber, when the artist tried to initiate a kiss, it could be perceived as the start of a love confession. (Chapter 80) And now, you comprehend why the painter didn‘t confess during that night. He got interrupted. The kiss was the symbol for their love. Thus it is no coincidence that just after his confession,. (Chapter 94) the painter initiated a long and sensual kiss with his “husband“. (Chapter 95) Since the painter had received caresses and embraces in his childhood, he came to view the kiss as the symbol for true love. And note that the kisses exchanged in the gibang were full of passion and love. This was the perfect combination of love and sex. (Chapter 95)

On the other hand, the lord had developed a different preference: the locked gaze, the warm embrace and the joined hands. Thus when he confessed his affection for the painter in the kisaeng house, observe what he did: (Chapter 96) This shows that Yoon Seungho has always longed for a pure and spiritual love in the first place. His sexual preferences were already palpable in the last love session (season 2): (chapter 72) We could say that he discovered all his sexual preferences thanks to the painter.

Thus my prediction in the first version that the painter would express his love through sex later came true. He tried to initiate it with a kiss. He was moved by the lord’s loving gaze and smile. (Chapter 80) But he failed due to the intervention of the butler and other schemers. Besides, the whispering of „Kyumah“ could only make his heart race. Let’s not forget that his painting in the sand (chapter 1) externalized his own philosophy: love and sex can’t be separated. Note that the couple is is hugging and kissing at the same time! 😍 This picture will represent the peak of their love! Striking is that when the couple confirmed their mutual affection, they did in the kisaeng house, the symbol for prostitution. This truly exposed that Yoon Seungho had been treated like a male night servant in the past. .

As you can imagine, I am expecting a new version of this love session. (chapter 72) in the next season, for the painter is still calling his lover “lord Seungho“ (chapter 99) (chapter 102) This means that he is still viewing himself as a low-born. But note that contrary to the past, Baek Na-Kum is now wearing a hanbok and he has no other clothes. Thus I am deducing that the painter’s next lesson is to drop his notion that he is a commoner. He will be taught to view himself as an equal to Yoon Seungho. Only when he has internalized that there is no gap between him and his lover, then he will be able to address him as “Seungho-YA!“ At the same time, both protagonists will come to realize that they can express their love differently. Poetry, painting and more importantly through their desire to protect their loved one. The lord will start protecting Baek Na-Kyum more actively, just like the painter will decide to show more interests in his lover’s skills and past life. Baek Na-Kyum will feel responsible for the bloodshed in the shaman’s house. In my opinion, the lord will confide to him what happened to Min and the other nobles. I am assuming this, for the lord remained silent, when the messenger of his father came to the mansion. He didn’t want to scare his lover because of his brutal outburst. (chapter 84)

8. Sex, passion and confession

What caught my attention is that unlike in the first season, where characters came to find love and had sex or the reverse, the second season presented each sexual encounter as a sex session, but at some point love came to the surface.

chapter 45: The trigger for the change is the noble’s words. The latter keeps talking to the painter asking for an reply. Hence in my eyes, there are glimpses of love the moment Baek Na-Kyum said this: It sounded like a confession, hence the seme became more passionate:
chapter 48/49: Here the lord acted like a client. Yet, notice that the lord is speaking again forcing to express himself. And the moment the painter cried and started voicing his own opinion, the sexual encounter was affected. (Chapter 49) The lord comforted the artist and hugged him: (chapter 49) An expression of love and affection, but the painter rejected it, as he mistrusted his own judgement. He couldn’t help thinking of the learned sir’s fake embrace. Striking is that despite the rejection, the painter kissed and hugged back his lover (chapter 49), which made the lord believe that he could only get embraced by the painter, if they had sex.
This explicates why in chapter 63, the lord forced the painter to hug him: . Although the second sex marathon starts like a pure sex session, the moment the painter calls Yoon Seungho differently, the lord’s attitude changes. The painter is turned around and faces his lover, a sign that they are getting closer. Striking is that again through their conversation, the painter is pressured to think about his own emotions. However, due to his own insecurities and fear, the noble still can’t trust the artist’s words, therefore there’s no confession. As you can see, love was not absent, it is just that both main leads were in denial.

Naturally, the night in chapter 58 and 70, 71, 72 and 73, are different. Although in chapter 58, the noble confessed and made love to the painter, he was also cornering his lover. The latter was not really able to move. He was trapped under his body, the lord was blaming him for turning him into a wreck. (Chapter 58) Thus he should become responsible for him. Yoon Seungho was unconsciously trying to push the painter to reciprocate his feelings, an imitation of Lee Jihwa‘s confession. Nevertheless, the painter remained silent, therefore it meant that his love was still denied. That’s why it stands more under the sign of dream and illusion. Consequently, the night in chapter 70, 71, 72 and 73 contrasts so much to the one from chapter 58. This time, it symbolizes the lord’s pure love. As such, the sex is already a real expression of love. That’s why the lord asked to be called intimately: Seungho-Ya (chapter 72) On the other hand, this love session was strongly intertwined with the notion of forgiveness and punishment as well. This is important, it reveals that Yoon Seungho had internalized that sex was the expression to redeem himself. He had been tasked in the past that if he desired to obtain “forgiveness“, then he should have sex. And by comparing all these sexual encounters, I came to the following conclusion: the lord’s words definitely contributed to change the nature of the sex session, just like the hug.

And observe that the lord started hugging the painter more often outside sex, but the painter could never sense his affection. In chapter 49, he judged the warmth as fake. In chapter 66, he had a flashback, hence he couldn’t witness his lord’s attention and care. But the lord discovered this kind of embrace, when he helped the painter in chapter 53: That’s how the noble experienced the embrace as a source of comfort and affection. Therefore you can comprehend, why I wrote above that the painter was teaching the lord how to love properly, but also why the embrace became the symbol for love in the lord‘s eyes. He had never been embraced before by a man. And Lee Jihwa had recognized the true signification of this gesture, when he spied on the couple (chapter 43). That‘s how he knew the friend‘s biggest desire: and was deeply hurt after this discovery (Chapter 57) However, this shows that Yoon Seungho is a quick learner, because he knew what to do, when the painter was in pain and destress. At the same time, it explains why he could fake the embrace in chapter 62: This hug stands in opposition to the one at the end of season 3: (chapter 102) The artist was forgiving his lover! Love represents selflessness, tolerance, forgiveness, warmth, affection and assistance which is transmitted by the embrace. Now, you understand why Yoon Seungho was still not satisfied after the sex session in the study, he was longing for the hug. (Chapter 84) In his unconscious, he knew that if the artist hugged him, he would have forgiven him. But he had no idea about it, thus he couldn’t suggest this. So far, he had experienced the embrace from the artist while having sex. Deep down, he had already internalized the embrace to forgiveness. So we could say that the absence of the embrace in this scene was the lord‘s punishment for the fake hug in the shed. And the painter let him discover the true nature of a warm embrace: (chapter 88) This is not surprising that this hug was not connected to sex at all. Yet it moved the lord so deeply. As the manhwalovers could sense it, season 3 was focused on love and sensuality. During that season, the couple was able to voice about their sexual desires and their preferences. (chapter 91)

As for the lord’s addiction to grab the artist’s hand, we have to envision that it is related to the lord‘s huge trauma. (Chapter 86) No one close to him had grabbed his hand in order to show their support. This gesture in the picture embodies abandonment. On the other hand, the painter had been the first one to take his hand and to swear “loyalty“. (Chapter 30) The joined hands were repeated in season 3 , the only difference is that this time, Baek Na-Kyum was doing it willingly. (Chapter 88) The symbol for support, company and responsibility.

As a conclusion, the dichotomy between love and sex in the relationship between the protagonists is no longer existing at the end of the third season. Both have come accept their love for each other. But it already started vanishing at the end of season 2. Although the painter had not confessed properly yet, the return of the embrace and his request for help are strong indications that Baek Na-Kyum was now accepting his affection. He was now trusting the noble, hence he revealed an important clue about the abduction.

Consequently, I am predicting that in season 4, we will see a new erotic painting of the couple, the symbol of their affection which will stand in opposition to the ones from season 1. It won’t be about conquests and as a tool to procure an erection for the nightly activities. That’s the reason why I am now expecting only one erotic picture: the document of their official union. (chapter 1) versus chapter 41 (chapter 41) Under this perspective, it becomes understandable why the couple neglected these pictures. They were all devoid of affection, it was more about prostitution and battle! And here is now the question? Where are these drawings?

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for topics or manhwas, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, retweet it or push the button like. My instagram-tumblr-twitter account is: @bebebisous33. Thanks for reading and for the support, particularly, I would like to thank all the new followers and people recommending my blog.

Painter Of The Night: Home 🏰(second version)

April 25, 2021September 11, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 4 Comments

This is where you can read the manhwas. https://www.webtoo ns.com/en/mystery/dr-frost/list?title_no=371 https://www.lezhinus.com/en/comic/painter But be aware that this manhwa is a mature Yaoi, which means, it is about homosexuality with explicit scenes. If you want to read more essays, here is the link to the table of contents: https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/04/table-of-contents-painter-of-the-night/

1. What is home?

Before starting analyzing the manhwa under this aspect, it is important to define the term home. In a dictionary, this is what you find:

the house, apartment, etc. where you live, especially with your family

the type of family you come from

a place where people or animals live and are cared for by people who are not their relations or owners

someone’s or something’s place of origin, or the place where a person feels they belong

your own country or your own area https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/home

As the readers can detect, home has a lot of significations. The reason is simple. It depends on the perspective. When people are asked where their home is, some will answer that their home is the place they are actually living, others will reply that it is the place where their family lives or where they were born and raised. But all have something in common: Home is where the heart is. To sum up, home is very subjective and personal.

2. Home and identity

Since home is related to our disposition (liking, family), it means that home represents a part of our identity, it even defines us. This explicates why psychologists sometimes visit their patients’ home in order to better grasp their personality and issues. (Dr. Frost, chapter 8) As you can see, home is strongly connected to identity and personality. In other words, without home a person loses his identity. This is no coincidence that homeless people often have no ID.

3. Baek Na-Kyum’s home

Consequently, the manhwaphiles can comprehend why Baek Na-Kyum had huge abandonment issues and a low self-esteem in chapter 46. He felt so lonely and lost, for he had no place he could call home. It was, as if he had no identity. When he deserted the mansion, he first thought of the kisaeng house and his noonas (chapter 46), until he remembered how he had been sent away by Heena noona. (chapter 46) This moment was terrible for the painter, because he had the impression to be abandoned a second time. Note that he is not calling the kisaeng house his home… for him, it was no longer a home, because his heart had been wounded there. Hence the manhwaphiles sense why the painter was using his mind in chapter 75 (chapter 75) and was restraining himself from falling more for Yoon Seungho. He had come to view the mansion as his home, and if he came to accept Yoon Seungho as his companion, then the latter would become his home, his family. Don’t forget my previous statement: Home is where the heart is. He was afraid of getting hurt a second time. If the lord came to have a change of heart, he could lose his new founded home.

Since the fight with Deok-Jae (which I am explaining more in details later), the painter had come to view the mansion as his home, hence he stated this to his lord: (chapter 58) And now, you comprehend why he stopped in the middle of the street during his escape. He had recalled how Heena had sent him away. (chapter 46) The painter had come to associate home to a family and as such to people. This explicates why the kisaeng had forbade him to bid farewell to his sisters. I am not saying that the kisaeng’s decision was ill-intended. She knew that if he met the kisaengs, the latter would have convinced him to stay. As you can see, he had experienced himself how his sister had abandoned him in the end. To conclude, for Baek Na-Kyum, in the past home was a synonym for family and a place.

4. Heena’s definition of home

But why would she coerce her brother to leave the gibang? Observe that she never gave her brother a choice. She never realized her wrongdoing, because she imagined that she had done it out of love, and it was for the painter’s best interests. Anyway, when Baek Na-Kyum reproached his lover his fickle nature (chapter 75), in my eyes, this perception should be applied to Heena noona who could send away her brother in such a way and never contacted him afterwards. That’s the impression she gives. (chapter 68) Observe how she blames her brother for not contacting her, while she had strictly forbidden him to come back. At the same time, the readers should question her behavior. How come that she never showed any concern for Baek Na-Kyum for 18 months, until she found out that he was living with Yoon Seungho? Why didn’t she contact him in the first place in order to check out if he was living properly? She gave him instructions, and the main lead listened to her, and now she is reproaching him that he should have disobeyed her. In my eyes, Heena noona acts more like a person with a fickle nature. She shows great care and concern in chapter 65 and 68, but she never searched for her brother’s whereabouts before. So far, the readers can only assume that she had no idea that he had been living as a drunk, and she only discovered his whereabouts by hazard. (chapter 64) Yet, this is just an impression because of this scene. Yet, in season 3, Heena confided to Min, and the latter revealed the content of her confession: (chapter 99) The idiom “bittersweet affections” indicated that the learned sir had expressed regret and disappointment concerning Baek Na-Kyum. This means that Heena knew that Jung In-Hun’s affection towards the low-born had been changing. As you can see, I come to the conclusion that Heena was already aware of the existence of tension between the painter and his former teacher.

What caught my attention in chapter 68 is the following: Heena noona is not even using the word “home”. At no moment, she employs this expression. When she parted from her brother in chapter 46, she mentions the noonas and when she asks her brother to follow her, she says: “Come with me”. As you can see, Heena doesn’t consider the kisaeng house her home. That’s the reason why I think that for her, the kisaeng house had been her workplace and she associated home more with people she cared about, similar to the painter. And this observation made me realize why the sister sent her brother away. Heena noona has never liked the kisaeng house, let’s not forget that she is a slave and she can not leave that place. And the guards could be judged as her wardens, they are keeping an eye on her, similar to the role played Yoon Seungho in chapter 45. For her, the kisaeng house was a synonym for prison and hell, where she kept meeting these terrible and violent rich nobles. (chapter 68) Hence in her mind, when she asked her brother to leave the kisaeng house, she imagined that she was helping the painter to escape from prison. Since she admires the scholar so much, she saw in him her helping hand. He would assist her brother to become a free man. The readers should notice that the learned sir always left the kisaeng house with the low-born (chapter 68), when there was a ruckus. So when the kisaeng made the request to the teacher (chapter 46), she envisioned that he would acquiesce her request, since he had done it so many times in the past (taking care of Baek Na-Kyum and becoming responsible for him). Moreover, she knew that the artist liked and admired Jung In-Hun. For her, the scholar was a liberator, because he acted so differently towards the kisaengs and Baek Na-Kyum. That’s the reason why she thought, she was doing the right thing for her brother, while in reality she was just projecting her own desires into the artist. And this interpretation was proven correct, because when she vanished from the gibang in season 3, she was no longer dressed as a kisaeng. (chapter 99) She was deserting the kisaeng house, and as such the noonas. And note the parallels between chapter 46 and 97/99. In both cases, the painter couldn’t bid farewell to the other kisaengs. (chapter 46) (chapter 99) It is because she was using her brother. In the first desertion, her choice was influenced by her unconscious. She had just projected her own thoughts and desires onto the artist’s. In season 3, she had made a conscious choice. In exchange of her brother, she would gain her freedom. Thus she used the expression “us” (chapter 97) This time, it was for her own sake. But the price for her freedom was that she had to sell her brother. She could still have a clean conscience by convincing herself that Yoon Seungho had killed her idol. At the same time, she needed to fake her death. (chapter 99) [For more explanations read the analysis “Heena’s curtains”] This means that she was betraying the eonnies one more time. And that’s how I had another revelation. In my eyes, after their separation, Heena had come to view her life in the gibang differently. She had been able to perceive the good aspects of her life as a kisaeng. She could live a comfortable life and as such get new hanboks. (chapter 64) That’s why I believe that she came to forget her brother, like “out of sight, out of mind”. But how did she come to view the gibang as a place of hell? In my opinion, it is related to Yoon Seungho! She knew about his misery. Thus I am deducing that the painter’s vanishing from the gibang coincides with the end of the lord’s misery. Thus I have the impression that her definition of home came to change. It was less connected to the kisaengs and the painter, as such to family. She came to like the place.

But let’s return our attention to episode 46. (chapter 46) Because she didn’t allow her brother to speak his mind, she hurt his heart and created more wounds than before. That’s why I perceive the argument in chapter 68 as important. For the first time, Baek Na-Kyum is not listening to Heena. Since home is where the heart is, her brother could only reject her proposition to come back to the kisaeng house. He had been abandoned by the noona. However, because he was afraid of his own feelings towards the aristocrat, he created new problems with his confession. His description reinforced her bad impression about Yoon Seungho. That’s why Heena noona will never believe that this place can become the artist’s true home. For her, this place can only represent a new prison, for she has a negative perception of nobles. Hence she needs to rescue her brother. (chapter 69) Besides, I believe that she has another reason. The lord is connected to her own guilt, but she is not admitting her responsibility. In the first version, I had expected that due to his confession, the kisaeng would never trust Baek Na-Kyum’s words later. And this was proven correct. Why? First, Heena noona embodies a certain kind of knowledge: prejudices. Because she has already experienced many things, she has the impression that she knows everything. However, she is not realizing that her world view is based on her own perception. Secondly, her superficial knowledge turns her into a blind and deaf person. What she sees and hears will be interpreted the way she perceives the world. I had even written this back then:

“Even if her brother tells her how well Yoon Seungho treats him and how much he loves his companion, she will have the impression that he has been brainwashed or coerced. Why? It’s because she has always treated her brother that way.”

In addition, she knows a part of the truth, while her brother was left in the dark entirely. Thus she reproached her brother his stupidity: (chapter 97) Contrary to him, she knows, because she saw and heard things, when Yoon Seungho suffered! Yet, her knowledge is totally superficial, like the last panel exposes it. She just jumped to (false) conclusions. That’s how she got herself manipulated. Because of her bias, she became an easy target of deceptions. That’s the reason why she believes herself in rumors. Like the scholar said it himself, (chapter 29) there exists a kernel of truth in the grapevine. Moreover, with her caresses and hugs, she used love to stop her brother from speaking his mind. (chapter 46) That’s the reason why Baek Na-Kyum could only express himself through painting, as he had become mute. Due to her decisions and actions and the scholar’s, she contributed to turn the artist into a boy full of insecurities, unable to express himself. Consequently, Heena noona was put in front of the same choice in season 3. Note that the return of the painter to the gibang coincides with her departure. This means that due to the couple’s love session, she was reminded of her own past. She was forced to recall why she had associated the gibang to hell in the first place. (chapter 96) She was definitely scared in that scene. That’s the reason why at the end, she utilized her brother to leave the gibang. (chapter 97) However, the gods wanted to confront her with the true consequences of her choices. She wouldn’t live with her brother, their paths would get separated. (chapter 99) She had to choose between her brother and her life, and she selected freedom over Baek Na-Kyum. This is no coincidence that their bloody reunion happens in front of the scholar’s home. (chapter 99) This mirrors that her original dream was to live with her brother and the scholar, but this was just an illusion. She had hoped that once the artist was by Jung In-Hun’s side, the learned sir would come to buy her, and they would live together. She counted on the learned sir’s affection for the painter. But this was never Jung In-Hun’s intentions and he excused his behavior by putting the blame on the protagonist. (chapter 99) That’s the reason why the kisaeng mentioned the bittersweet affections. The scholar came to see the painter as a burden. This new approach gives us a clue why the artist chose the noble over his noona in chapter 68. The lord might have been violent, yet unlike all the other characters he allowed Baek Na-Kyum to be true to himself and to express his thoughts and emotions. Let’s not forget that in reality he was the only one encouraging the painter to paint, which was the commoner’s true passion. He even praised him, while even Heena couldn’t restrain herself from criticizing her brother. Freedom is an important condition for calling a place or people home, next to comfort and safety. But when the kisaeng left the gibang, it was just a fake freedom, as her safety is strongly intertwined to the benevolence of the noble protecting her! (chapter 97) Hence I come to the conclusion that Heena associates home to the learned sir and not to her brother. Exactly like the artist, she made a choice. She sided with Jung In-Hun, the poor learned sir, who got disappointed with Baek Na-Kyum. But she believes now that he is dead. Hence by leaving the kisaeng house, she doesn’t realize that she is abandoning everyone: the eonnies and Baek Na-Kyum. She has no one by her side… except the noble who sent the guards. From my point of view, she is trusting the butler.

5. What is home for the couple?

In season 2, we could see the transformation of the meaning of home. For Baek Na-Kyum, the mansion of Yoon Seungho had become his home, like we could perceive it in chapter 46. or in chapter 58. Why? It is related to the way he was treated by the head-maid, the butler and even Yoon Seungho. All of them considered him as part of the mansion. The head-maid gave him advices, the butler through his comment indicated that he belonged now to the mansion. (chapter 52) And finally Yoon Seungho treated him well on different occasions by sharing his breakfast with him or sending him to the doctor or by protecting him from Deok-Jae. Yet I believe that the decisive factor is the momentary separation. Although the painter had lost his position as favored servant, the noble never sent him away. He let him live in the study and kept treating him well. The artist could sense that despite the distance, the noble was not willing to cut ties with him. This explicates why Baek Na-Kyum resisted to the vicious servant, when the latter tried to force him to leave the property. (chapter 53) This was his home now, and he wanted to protect what he had finally found. Despite the pain, he didn’t move. He was ready to do anything for his home. This gives us a glimpse of the painter’s future behavior, when his lover is targeted. There’s no doubt that he will fight for him. And now, if you compare the two following panels, you’ll realize the similarities between the two scenes: (chapter 46) (chapter 76) In both scenes, the painter has a revelation. In chapter 46, he is alone and has no place to go. However, he is strong enough to stand on his feet, while in episode 76, he is paralyzed by fear and becomes so weak. Yet, exactly like in the first image, he feels lonely, but since he can’t escape, this position makes him realize his vulnerability. He needs help and protection. That’s why the moment he realizes the noble’s presence (chapter 76), he seeks his embrace and warmth. (chapter 76) Only there he feels safe. This terrible experience opened his eyes: he has to rely on someone. (chapter 76) Thus for the first time, he requests assistance. So while in the lord’s arms, the painter can slowly calm down, however he is still very shaken, as he has just experienced a life-threatening situation again, revealing the traumas left behind by the first abduction and the blackmail. Yet, after a while he expresses the wish to go home. (chapter 76) With these words, it truly outlines that the mansion has become Baek Na-Kyum’s real home, a place where he feels comfortable and secure, which represents a continuation of chapter 46. While in chapter 46, he just considered the mansion more like a refuge or shelter, now he connects it to family. It has truly become part of his identity. But the embrace on the street let him discover that Yoon Seungho could become a home too.

Striking is that there’s a difference between the Korean and English version, when the lord replies to his request. In the original version, the lord is now admitting that the mansion is also his home now, whereas in the past it was just a prison and he wanted to have a companion by his side. In the English version, there’s only silence. This difference affects a lot the interpretation. By remaining silent, the noble is not acknowledging the mansion as his home, but this doesn’t mean that he has no home. In my opinion, Yoon Seungho perceives the painter as his home, hence he prefers remaining there hugging his lover. The painter gives him the warmth and love the lord has always been longing. That’s why he gives the excuse that they should stay there. It seems that the English version sounds colder than the original, yet I believe that Yoon Seungho is using his position in order to legitimate his refusal. Why do I think that the lord views the painter as his home? First, like I wrote above: Home is where the heart is. Secondly, I had already explained that Yoon Seungho would always follow the painter, because he considered him as his home and as such his family. So far, the lord has always perceived his mansion as prison and the bedchamber his cell. This explicates why the lord rejected the painter’s departure in season 3. He needed him by his side, as he had become his pillar. (chapter 85) Baek Na-Kyum represented the foundation of his home. Without him by his side, his “home” would crumble.

Striking in chapter 76, is that because the lord insisted to remain seated, the painter starts enjoying more and more the lord’s embrace, hence his head moves closer to Yoon Seungho’s and at the end he even closes his eyes. From my point of view, this long and tender hug let him sense that the mansion was not truly his home, but the lord. But this was not entirely conscious. The latter has become his family. That’s why he had been longing for his presence and warmth in the last days. (chapter 74) This was a new version of the chapter 51 and 52. And you all know the saying:

“Absence makes the heart grow fonder”

This signifies that since both protagonists found their home, they found a part of their identity. Both protagonist could only become stronger. Thus the readers could assist to the return of the painter and lord’s memories. This is no coincidence that the painter could voice his wishes in front of his lover: (chapter 78) (chapter 84) And it was the same for the lord. That’s the reason why they both argued with each other and with others too. They could now stand on their own, but they still needed the support of the partner.

Under this new perspective, it becomes comprehensible why there was a change in season 3. There, both protagonists learned that home was not a place, but where the heart is. This is no coincidence that Yoon Seungho made the decision to renounce on his possessions, when he had the impression that his “bride” had died. That’s how he learned what home means. It is by his lover’s side, to be in his embrace, and not necessarily the mansion like during the argument exposed it. During the last scene, both protagonists were pushed to recognize that they are now a real family. Yoon Seungho is the painter’s home and it is the same for Baek Na-Kyum. This is perceptible in the final scene: (chapter 102) It doesn’t matter where they are. Home is where the heart is. Hence the first question he has is: (chapter 102) As long as he is by his side, everything is fine. This new definition of home appeared, when the painter and the lord confessed to each other. (chapter 96) (chapter 96) It didn’t matter where they were. Thus they could confess in a gibang. They felt safe together. And this is the same in the mountain. Observe that the painter is not asking why they are in the mountain and what the lord intended to do there. In fact, he was more focused on the past than the present. However, for the painter, home is not just a family, he liked to sleep in a warm bed and have a warm meal each day (chapter 68), since he had lived like a homeless for a while. Hence both will have to look for a real home, a house. Moreover, the lord will have to provide for the painter, and the latter will feel obligated to assist his lover. This means, in season 4, home should have a new definition. It is not just a family, but also the mansion and the country! Don’t forget that many people died in season 3.

6. Yoon Seungho’s bedchamber: a glimpse of his identity

Since I had elaborated above that home was part of an identity and the home would reflect the owner’s personality, I wish to examine Seungho’s bedchamber again. In other words, I will read his room: (doctor frost, chapter 9). What caught my attention is that the lord’s bedchamber is literally empty: There are only one big white vase, a red box, candles (chapter 55) and a windscreen. (chapter 55) The latter shows trees painted in black, there’s barely nature in the end. It mirrors the lord’s symbolic death. The emptiness of his room reflected the lord’s life. He was living like a zombie and avoided emotions, as he had no souvenir at all. Although he reads a lot, you never see them in his room. Why? It is because he separated his spirit from his body. In his bedchamber, he was a captive trapped in the past, hence he had nightmares. Moreover, I think that his bed is the source of his nocturnal panic attacks, as the colors are the same than the king’s. And now, the manhwaphiles can better comprehend why the noble has never considered his mansion a home. In this house, and in this room, he had traumatic experiences (abuse), which were so horrible that he had entirely repressed it. Nonetheless, the moment the painter calls the mansion his home, this has a huge impact on the lord’s life. The latter is now “forced” to consider the mansion as his home too. Hence in the Korean version, we have this panel: Then in season 3, the lord’s bedchamber became the painter’s bedroom too. Thus at the end of season 3, the painter visited the lord’s study in his lord’s absence. (chapter 98) This shows that he had conquered the bed. Season 3 exposes the painter’s conquest of the bedchamber. The turning point took place in chapter 87, when the artist went to the study on his own volition. (chapter 87) I can’t help myself thinking that in season 4, the painter will bring his possessions to the bedchamber for good contrary to season 3. (chapter 79) The music box was brought back to the painter’s studio after the argument. Since the lord bought a music box for Baek Na-Kyum, and the latter treasures this item, it also has a special meaning for the lord too. The music box represents the lord’s heart, but the main lead didn’t grasp the true meaning, until it was too late. So far, the broken music box got neglected after their argument (chapter 85), yet I am still hoping for its return, for the lord had recognized its true signification to the painter afterwards. (chapter 85) But we shouldn’t forget the lord’s Spring poem (chapter 92) Little by little, the lord’s study will be filled with treasures belonging to Baek Na-Kyum which are connected to the noble. This is relevant, because thanks to them, the lord can recall the good moments with the artist. Slowly the lord’s bedroom will become more and more a study. With the arrival of souvenirs, the bedchamber will be filled with life again. This will symbolize that the lord is slowly taking over the bedchamber, and filling his room with things he likes. Where is the orchid? So far, all the nobles had plants in their room: (chapter 43) (chapter 82) Hence I am wondering if Yoon Chang-Hyeon didn’t punish his son by taking away the orchid, when he painted on the servant’s body: (chapter 36).

7. Conclusions

Through this examination, I could expose that each character had a different definition of home, and their perception of home was never constant. However, I have neglected one figure: Kim. The butler associates home to the mansion and nothing more. He is not even including the staff or the lords. That’s the reason why he is switching alliances all the time. But if he is on the verge of losing his mansion, he will do anything to stay there… like for example betraying Heena. Remember that she sold her brother for his own sake, and she didn’t feel deep remorse, when she saw her wounded brother. She even asked an explanation for his wounds: (chapter 99) This new interpretation leads me to the following observation. In season 4, we will witness a new battle again, and it will be about the ownership of the mansion. Who is the true owner of the propriety? Kim, Yoon Chang-Hyeon, Yoon Seungho or lord Song?

Painter Of The Night: The Ghost and the embrace 💞

April 17, 2021August 13, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 31 Comments

As you can imagine, the embrace between the two protagonists stands in the center of this analysis, because we had so many pictures with a hug, like these two: (chapter 76)Yet, the peak was reached with the following picture, for Baek Na-Kyum and Yoon Seungho seemed to have merged as one: The readers can barely detect the painter’s presence: only his head and hand are visible indicating the depth of their intimacy and closeness. However, the title is mentioning the presence of a ghost. The latter can not be Yoon Seungho, because the panel above announces his official wedding with the commoner due to the presence of the red and blue lanterns called Cheongsachorong. These are used for wedding ceremony in Joseon. Therefore who is the ghost? And why do I perceive the existence of a spirit in this chapter? But before revealing the identity of the ghost, I would like to expose the reason behind such a title. While focusing on the embrace, I came to the following observation.

Each time Baek Na-Kyum and Yoon Seungho embraced each other, I detected the presence of a ghost. During the second season, we had 6 real hugs:

chapter 49,
chapter 53 ,
chapter 62 ,
chapter 66 ,
chapter 71,
chapter 76.

While comparing all the hugs, I will determine the ghost’s identity each time. In chapter 49 the painter was reminded of Jung In-Hun due to the warmth exuding from the main lead. The painter couldn’t restrain himself from thinking about that fake embrace (chapter 29), therefore he chose to push away the wealthy aristocrat out of fear that he might get hurt and betrayed again. The commoner judged the embrace and warmth as a deception. This means that the low noble as a “spirit” was the reason why both protagonists couldn’t get closer. The low-born was only acknowledging Yoon Seungho as his sex partner and nothing more. Striking is that in episode 76, we have a reference to the hug from chapter 49, as the position of the painter’s head in this image resembles a lot to this one: (chapter 49). Yet the outcome is different, as the manhwaphiles can witness how the painter moves his head closer to Yoon Seungho’s. Moreover, the artist’s gaze is truly looking at his lover. We even have the impression that the artist is smelling the lord’s scent in order to reassure himself. Although the manhwaphiles couldn’t enter Baek Na-Kyum’s thoughts this time, they could perceive the change of his attitude. The embrace is no longer judged as fake. This signifies that the ghost Jung In-Hun has vanished for good, which is even reflected in a different panel: (chapter 76) The lord allowed the low-born to embrace him in front of people, whereas the scholar had to ask the commoner to follow him in a deserted alley. (chapter 29) The low noble feared people’s gaze, his attitude truly showed that he didn’t want to be connected to Baek Na-Kyum. His action was definitely a sign of hypocrisy and cowardice. That’s why in chapter 76, the painter could only come to the conclusion that the lord’s embrace was genuine and the lord’s feelings were not trivial. Moreover, the main character never pushed his lover away(chapter 76), he even lowered himself and sat down on the ground for a while, so that Baek Na-Kyum could calm down. Imagine, when the powerful lord arrived to the place where the main character had a panic attack, everyone was bowing in front of the noble. They didn’t even dare to face him, yet when he saw his lover trembling, the master lowered himself and attempted to help his partner. However, his gestures led to be misinterpreted in the beginning, hence a shop owner started interfering. However, he was stopped with a frightful gaze: Besides, when the noble kept calling the protagonist in an informal way (Na-Kyum-Ah), people could realize his real intention. He meant no harm. In fact, he was treating the low-born like a precious treasure, who needed help. By calling his name Na-Kyum-Ah, the main lead tried to reassure his lover. Hearing his name made the low-born realize that he wasn’t attacked by the jester. This explains why the artist immediately embraced his companion. (chapter 76) Thus we could say that “Na-Kyum” had finally become a magical word like Seungho-Ya. Another contrast to the scene in episode 29 is that the way the low noble called Na-Kyum. (chapter 29) The former teacher was just caught by surprise, hence “Na-Kyum” was said more or less randomly. On the other hand, Yoon Seungho used this name as a sign of intimacy. He desired to give comfort and warmth to his lover. And now, you understand why Baek Na-Kyum hugged his lover by instinct. With his embrace, the protagonist would feel safe, which contrasts so much to the one in chapter 29. Back then, after the hug the learned sir brought the artist back to the mansion, although the low-born had run away out of fright. He mostly feared for the scholar’s life (chapter 29) thus he tried to find him. And now the mansion has become the painter’s home, just like the lord’s embrace. It is a synonym for comfort, warmth and safety. Another huge contrast is that for the first time, the painter asked for Yoon Seungho’s help directly. (chapter 76) Imagine that so far, he has never relied on others. Even as a low-born, he was willing to save others (Jung In-Hun or Deok-Jae or Heena (chapter 65). Surprising is that when he was bullied by Deok-Jae, he never complained and asked for the head-maid’s assistance or his lover’s. His attitude to never rely on others was even more perceptible in his escape in chapter 46. The cause for this behavior is linked to his abandonment issues. Due to his past, he was forced to only rely on himself. Nonetheless, in chapter 76 he changes his attitude. This shows that he is now opening up. That’s why his head rests on the lord’s shoulder completely. (chapter 76) This is a sign of trust, Baek Na-Kyum is willing to trust his lover. By comparing these 2 hugs, I come to the conclusion that Jung In-Hun has been totally removed from the painter’s mind as well. This embrace and marriage represent the scholar’s defeat. From now on, he won’t be able to use the painter as his pawn, because the latter is no longer attached to him. The lord’s love for Baek Na-Kyum can not be used as a weakness, since the low-born is reciprocating the affection. That’s why I would say that this panel (chapter 76) embodies the learned sir’s loss. There’s no one separating them, not even Heena noona who was the last person defending the scholar and as such representing his interest. So was Jung In-Hun the ghost I was referring to? Yes and no… because there’s more to it. That’s why it is important to examine the other embraces.

In chapter 53, the ghost was Yoon Seungho himself, since he was considering himself as a spirit. (chapter 53) However, the painter’s hug made him realize that he was a human after all, and that his fists and punches could definitely hurt his precious painter. Unlike in chapter 76, the painter’s voice couldn’t calm down the vengeful spirit(chapter 53), hence the gentle boy needed to intervene directly. The lord was definitely deaf to the artist’s words. Striking is that here again, we had the presence of danger, the painter feared for Deok-Jae’s life. Moreover, despite his fear and shaking hands, (chapter 53)the commoner chose to protect the vicious servant, but Yoon Seungho too. He desired him not to let his emotions blind his behavior. The gentle and selfless man didn’t even ask for help, he stopped the noble with his body twice: first his face, then he hugged him. Striking is that in chapter 62 and 66, we had a similar situation. One of the protagonists was behaving like a ghost. In chapter 62, Yoon Seungho, who was reliving his traumatic past, almost became a demon (chapter 62), whereas in chapter 66 the artist had a flashback, hence he wasn’t himself. (chapter 66) This meant that in both episodes, neither the aristocrat nor the commoner could sense the lover’s comfort and warmth. (chapter 66) Both of them didn’t feel safe and displayed extreme fear due to betrayal and abandonment.

But let’s return to the embrace in chapter 53, because this incident has another common denominator with the embrace from episode 66 and 76, the presence of a certain witness: Black Heart. There’s no doubt that the vicious noble felt extremely jealous in both episodes (53-66). The manhwaphiles should envision that despite his rage and his terrible behavior, the artist was willing to embrace such a man, which could only make Min envious. Moreover, the low-born showed courage and even strength. He didn’t reproach anything to his sexual partner. He just attempted to calm him down. Then even after seeing how poorly the main lead had treated the artist, the latter chose not to leave Yoon Seungho’s side. Min was definitely certain that after waking up, Baek Na-Kyum would follow his sister and come back to the kisaeng house. (chapter 69) That’s why he was waiting there. He imagined that the boy would be delivered to him on a silver plate, yet nothing like he had expected happened. In chapter 76, we have a new version of chapter 53. However, when Black Heart witnesses the painter’s second embrace, he can detect the huge difference. (chapter 76) This time, the artist is seeking his lover’s warmth and love. There’s no fear related to the “monster”. While in the past (53-54) The Joker mocked Yoon Seungho for his affection, here he can’t do it at all. The noble is not denying anything. In fact, he accepted the low-born’s embrace without feeling shame or embarrassment. He didn’t pay attention to the town folks, he just followed his heart. While in chapter 54, Min was able to separate the protagonists with his mockery and words (chapter 54), in episode 76 Black Heart is truly defeated. And by contrasting these two scenes, it becomes obvious why Yoon Seungho assaulted his guest back then. The noble was in fact punishing The Joker for insulting his lover, as the latter was just reduced to his status: a low-born. He had no name and as such no identity. The powerful aristocrat didn’t do it in order to protect his honor, but the artist’s. At no time, the main lead was afraid of losing his reputation, he is well aware of his bad notoriety. Thus this shows that in chapter 54, the one who feared more social norms was indeed Baek Na-Kyum, which was still visible in chapter 75. That’s why the commoner denied the lord’s affection. (chapter 54)The expression “it can’t be” was referring to permission and social rules. No wonder why the noble felt so hurt in the end and retaliated. He misunderstood the artist’s rejection.

What caught my attention in chapter 76 are Black Heart’s behavior and words. First, he notices that he is too late. (chapter 76) He imagined that time would work for him, as in his mind, no one would ever stay by Yoon Seungho’s side. That’s why he didn’t hurry the second abduction. The latter had such a terrible reputation (mood swings, his huge rage, his violence), yet nothing could pressure the artist to leave the mansion. Even his noona was not able to convince him to follow her and to return to the kisaeng house. However, when he saw the couple in front of the tailor’s shop, his jealousy and greed reached a new peak. That’s why that night he had planned to visit Nameless. He wanted him to abduct the artist a second time. The expression “time is running out” outlines The Joker’s urgency. He couldn’t wait any longer, as he could witness how close they had become within 2 weeks. And if you look at the panel above, you’ll detect the presence of a shadow, in other words, a ghost. However, this is the jester Nameless looking at the couple. When the painter faced the joker (chapter 76), the ghost from his nightmare (chapter 61), the painter got so panicked that he got paralyzed. Only the lord’s embrace could calm him. As you can see, the commoner denominator between 53 and 76 is that the presence of a terrible ghost. The latter pushed the artist to embrace his lover. This time, he needed himself protection. However, Nameless was not the only ghost witnessing the protagonists’ embrace. Lord Min has already become a ghost himself in my opinion. First, he is wearing a black hanbok which I am associating to death. Moreover, because he threatens the criminal to kill him (chapter 76), I view The Joker as a grim reaper. What caught my attention is his reaction, when he saw the heartfelt hug. He had to vomit and this is no coincidence. (chapter 76) Observe that the color green is connected to two reactions: “to be green with envy” and “to be green” (sickly). Besides, we have in French “être vert” as a synonym for fuming, furious and disgusted. Hence it’s not surprising that it exist these emojis: 🤮🤢. Both contain green. That’s why I believe that when Min saw the embrace between the protagonists, he got so upset and disgusted that he felt the urge to vomit. It was definitely a mixture of envy and rage. However, he had to lie to the others in order to hide his “weakness”. (chapter 76) For me, there’s no ambiguity that The Joker was not honest here. First, he has no dark circle and red eyes like Jihwa who definitely drank again. (chapter 76) Besides, has Black Heart ever apologized to others? No. He didn’t even care, when he smoked opium in front of commoners. When he was asked to stop it, (chapter 52), he never expressed a real apology, he rather criticized the other for ruining the good mood and his fun. Besides, he looks down on low-borns and even Jihwa… (chapter 76) so why would he apologize? It is, because he is slowly recognizing that his urges for Baek Na-Kyum are not linked to sex!! When he saw the hug, he could recognize the affection between the two lovers, and he felt powerless. Moreover, he envied Yoon Seungho even more than before. Let’s not forget that Min fears social norms despite his nihilistic tendencies. In this scene, the main lead showed courage and genuine affection, something that The Joker can’t do. Till chapter 76, he thought that he had been bewitched and he only felt the urge to have sex with Baek Na-Kyum. In other words, he wasn’t honest to himself and to the others. Until now, he had always imagined that once he had tasted the artist, his thirst would be satisfied. But the warm and tender embrace made him realize that he was wrong. Consequently, when he saw the hug, his envy and jealousy reached a new peak. He had to vomit. This signifies that the resent from chapter 53 became much stronger and obvious to the point that others could detect it now. Hence he has to lie. But in my opinion, he had another reason for vomiting. From my point of view, while the main lead spent his time drinking and reading, Min was busy smoking opium. Let’s not forget that Byeonduck portrayed Min with such a hanbok (chapter 56) and the pattern reminds the readers of opium smoke. Contrary to Yoon Seungho who only smoked it once during that terrible party, Min chose to keep smoking opium. First, the manhwaphiles could detect that he enjoyed the kick in chapter 52. (chapter 52) Secondly, the hanbok was another indication. Finally, I perceive the lord’s nausea in chapter 76 as another evidence for Black Heart’s opium addiction. Vomiting/nausea are listed as side effects of opium. From my point of view, when he saw the happy couple in the street (chapter 74), he chose to smoke one pipe in order to relieve his frustration before visiting Jihwa and urging him to contact Nameless. This was a new version of chapter 56. That’s why they came both to meet the criminal. (chapter 76) Hence I come to the conclusion that Min is slowly turning into a ghost himself, losing his mind due to his addiction to opium and at the same time due to his greed and obsession for Baek Na-Kyum. The embrace in chapter 53 led to the kiss and indirectly it was the trigger for Min to change his original plan. (chapter 56) Therefore I deduce that this second embrace is forcing him to change his plan again. From my point of view, he is no longer interested in tasting the painter once and have him killed afterwards. Black Heart is now determined to take away Baek Na-Kyum from Yoon Seungho. He is definitely longing for the artist’s love. He has every reason to be so jealous. The painter showed such a loyalty and courage. He is no longer fearing people’s gaze unlike in the past. Then, he even forgave his lover for his violence and mistreatment. Slowly, Min is showing his vulnerability in front of Jihwa and as such losing his power over him. He is definitely less laughing. As a conclusion, in chapter 76, the ghost Jung In-Hun vanished for good, while a new one appeared: Black Heart, who is now dressed like a grim reaper. However, there’s a huge difference, because Min has never entered Baek Na-Kyum’s mind and heart. He has no chance at all.

But wait… you might now wonder why I have not mentioned the hug from chapter 71 yet. Where was the ghost? Note that in this panel, the artist is portrayed without eyes. This insinuates that the artist is somehow blind. Secondly, we have this picture where the manhwalovers could see the lord’s footprints. (chapter 71) My explanation is the following: Baek Na-Kyum wasn’t sure how to judge the lord’s behavior. Imagine that in the morning, his lover had tied him up, while in the evening he was so gentle and calm. That’s why I believe that in this hug, the artist wasn’t certain how he should perceive the lord’s embrace. He knew that it was no longer fake, but like he explained it much later… how long would Yoon Seungho have feelings for him? Therefore I believe that in this scene, Baek Na-Kyum viewed him as an illusion, a spirit who could give him warmth and comfort. (chapter 71) Note the difference with the following picture: (chapter 76) First, the painter’s gaze is much softer and less questioning. In addition, the position of his head is different which exposed that they are much closer now. Besides, let’s not forget that the embrace took place before the long love session. The artist’s reaction was totally normal.

As a conclusion, the last picture from chapter 76 displays two major developments. (chapter 76) The protagonists are no longer separated by their fears and issues. The ghosts in their mind and heart have finally disappeared. That’s why they are portrayed like one here. However, there are now other shadows and ghosts surrounding them, the ones who would do anything to destroy their relationship, like Min, Jung In-Hun and father Yoon.

Painter Of The Night: A Fool 🤡 in love 😍❤️‍🔥 (third version)

April 5, 2021September 1, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 9 Comments

Announcement: I updated the essay “Painting and desires – part 3”

Like I already pointed out in the essay “Animals of misfortune”, chapter 74 is a new version of chapter 40, for there are similarities in the topics (responsibility and jealousy) and the situation. The main leads are on a date again. However, I didn’t examine a particular scene in details: the walk on the street. Hence this will be in the center of this analysis and by contrasting the two scenes, the manhwaphiles will discover the protagonists’ state of mind reflecting the evolution of their relationship.

After leaving the physician’s, the lord is strolling in front of the painter (chapter 74), exactly like in the past. (Chapter 40) On the surface, it looks like a repetition. Yet, the first contrast are the steps. While in chapter 40, lord walks away and the painter remains immobile first, in chapter 74 the young man is following the lord step by step. This illustrates the progression of their relationship. Yoon Seungho is like his guide and the commoner just follows him, full of trust.

Moreover, in the two scenes, we have a prank (chapter 40) (chapter 74). However, the trigger for the joke is diverse. In chapter 40, he got jealous, while in chapter 74 he was curios. And this comparison between the two pranks led me to realize that the red dot on the forehead had another signification. In my first interpretation about the chapter 40, I exposed that the red dot on the forehead was the symbol of marriage, the bride would wear such a sign. However, if you recall that Yoon Seungho described the painter as a fool , the red dot is also a reference to the Third eye, the chakra. In other words, when the lord put the red point, he hoped that the painter would experience an awakening. By meditating, he would introspect himself and get new insight. That way, he would no longer be foolish. And exactly like the main lead wished, it truly happened. Through the lord’s critical thinking triggered by rhetorical questions , Baek Na-Kyum realized that he was indeed hoping for more, although he claimed the opposite during the conversation. (Chapter 40) That’s why after pondering, the artist visited his teacher and expressed his wish for the first time that he would like Jung In-Hun to become responsible for him, like the former had promised. As you can see, the red dot and the questions did cause an Awakening. But it was a brutal waking up, as the painter discovered how the learned sir truly viewed him: a prostitute and nothing more.

But why did the lord play this prank, not recognizing that his gesture was totally ambiguous? According to him, he was just hoping that the painter would meditate, while in his unconscious, he was already claiming the artist as his “wife”. The reason for this prank was that he got jealous and annoyed, when he saw the artist smiling by simply thinking that the scholar would pass the exam soon. Imagine, the commoner was walking right behind him, yet Baek Na-Kyum was not mentally and emotionally present. His thoughts were directed at the scholar. This is not surprising that Yoon Seungho resented his lover. In the aristocrat’s mind, this signified that the painter was not even enjoying his time with him. He preferred thinking about the learned sir than talking or looking at his lover. In other words, he was standing behind the lord absentminded. And the lord sensed it, hence he looked behind. How did he notice it? It is because the artist didn’t keep asking about the date. There was a silence after the question. And when he saw the blushing accompanied with a huge genuine smile, Yoon Seungho was hurt that he couldn’t help criticizing his lover. Note that with such a comment, the noble is not interested in initiating a conversation, he already knows what the low-born is thinking. And if you contrast this to the scene in episode 74, you’ll detect a huge difference. Although the artist is absentminded as well, he is already meditating about his lover and his relationship. The lord’s back (chapter 74) is the trigger for him to ponder. And this shows the noble’s increasing influence on Baek Na-Kyum. Meditating is definitely the lord’s favorite occupation so far. In addition, this shows how much the aristocrat means to him. All his thoughts are now directed at Yoon Seungho. Therefore we have to imagine this. While Baek Na-Kyum is walking, the lord notices that he is just walking lost in his thoughts. Hence he throws him the hat as a joke. On the one side, he definitely wants him to be present mentally and emotionally, like in the past. On the other hand, note that unlike in the past, there’s no reproach, in truth he desires to discover what the artist is thinking. This is one of the biggest wishes Yoon Seungho has ever had: (chapter 49) The lord always felt the need to share what was in their mind. Now, I can truly grasp why it’s a dream for Yoon Seungho. Remember when I described how the lord lived for so many years in the darkness. He only knew that he existed through his mind and thoughts. But during this whole time, he could never communicate his thoughts to anyone, he felt terribly lonely. This explicates why he had such a huge desire to communicate with the painter. He felt closeness in their soul, which he could detect in the art. As you can see, although the noble detected that his lover was lost in his thoughts, he no longer reprimands him. In fact, he voices curiosity. Moreover, he is no longer claiming that Baek Na-Kyum is transparent contrary to chapter 40. There’s a reason for that. The artist has changed so much as well. He is indeed applying his lover’s philosophy: introspection and meditation. And this leads me to the next observation. There is a huge difference between these two scenes: the chronology.

Chapter 40	Chapter 74
criticism	no reproach
Prank	Introspection
Questions: why?	Prank
Introspection	Open question

This meditation at the beginning displays the artist’s maturity. However, if you pay attention to Baek Na-Kyum’s thoughts, you’ll notice that he is not meditating about himself, but about his lover. (Chapter 74) He recalls all his actions, and he notes the lord’s selflessness and humbleness. And this truly exposes that now the roles have been switched. The so-called foolish one is Yoon Seungho, but the latter has long forgotten his own words. On the other hand, Baek Na-Kyum is the one wishing more, he is definitely not content with a kiss from time to time, while Yoon Seungho is thinking like the artist in the past: (chapter 74) versus (chapter 40). What caught my attention is the significance of hope. Yoon Seungho is definitely no longer hoping for a love confession, which makes me think that in chapter 58, he wasn’t entirely honest. He still had that dream, this explicates why he mentioned Jihwa. He envisioned that the artist would get jealous. But the artist remained silent. Then he confessed twice (“I adore you” and ) in order to push the protagonist to reply to his confession. He definitely dreamed that if he confessed, the painter would feel pressured to return the affection. That’s why the painter was trapped under the noble and the latter was grabbing the painter’s hand. (Chapter 58) His gestures illustrated the pressure made on the artist. But the master never got a reply. Thus it elucidates why the noble got infuriated after the painter’s disappearance. He might have admitted his defeat, nevertheless he hoped for a confession, as a new form of allegiance. That way, Baek Na-Kyum was obliged by his words. However, in chapter 74, the only desire the noble has is to exchange their thoughts. He has truly given up on his dream. When in chapter 49 the master voiced this wish for the first time, he was lowering his expectations. That’s why I believe that this indicates that Yoon Seungho is no longer hoping for more. He is so in love, and the past Yoon Seungho would call him: a fool!

However, there’s a huge difference between episode 40 and 74. Contrary to the actual Baek Na-Kyum, Yoon Seungho was acting under the influence of his unconscious and he wasn’t aware of this. That’s why he never realized the signification of the gesture with the red dot. He had no idea that he was already in love and he was longing for the painter’s confession. On the other hand, the painter is already aware that he has developed some feelings for Yoon Seungho. He even admitted to his noona that he would think a lot about the noble (chapter 68), which is a similar attitude to the past Yoon Seungho. The latter was confusing the heart with the mind, however the low-born has been just afraid of admitting his affection.

Striking is that in his reflection, Baek Na-Kyum senses that he’s hoping for more. (Chapter 74) The repetition of “nothing more” is an evidence for the painter’s longing for more. There’s no doubt that his wish is physical intimacy, because for the artist sex is a synonym for love. Consequently, he stands up during the night in order to look at the lord’s bedchamber from far away or he is awake, (chapter 74) when the noble visits his study. All this exposes that he is longing for the lord’s warmth. A simple kiss is enough to make the painter blush, but not enough to satisfy his “thirst” for affection.

When the lord plays the prank with the hat, Baek Na-Kyum’s attention returns to his lord standing in front of him. When he sees the noble smiling and showing curiosity, he is definitely moved. From my point of view, he is slowly realizing his true affection for Yoon Seungho. That’s why his eyes are bigger than before, like in this panel. (Chapter 74) He is literally glowing. He is enjoying this moment with the noble, hence he stares at him so intensively. And this represents the biggest contrast to the chapter 40. Back then he didn’t truly enjoy the walk with the master. He was either embarrassed or thinking about the scholar. At the end, he was even called “a fool”.

From my perspective, this scene (chapter 74) marks a turning point in the painter’s love life. He is on the verge of accepting his feelings, for the noble. That’s why we have the color of the rainbows, a sign for hope. He has made up his mind for three reasons. First, he has just admitted that the lord has changed. This signifies that he recognizes that Yoon Seungho is trustworthy. Secondly, he views the noble’s huge and genuine smile. I believe that this was one of the triggers for Baek Na-Kyum to face his love. Let’s not forget that in the past, the commoner was definitely affected by the scholar’s smile. (Chapter 7) Secondly, as the lord is the mirror of the artist and the former once expressed the wish to see the painter’s smile (chapter 63), I deduce that Baek Na-Kyum has a similar mentality. As long as he can make someone happy, he is really touched and thankful. The manhwaphiles should reminisce that the painter has always felt as a burden and had abandonment issues. But there’s another important reason for Baek Na-Kyum to be so affected by Yoon Seungho. For the first time, someone is wishing to know his thoughts. (Chapter 74) Imagine, in the past the scholar reprimanded him (chapter 10) or silenced him with a caress. Heena noona had a similar atttitude, she never asked for his opinion, when she sent him away. (Chapter 46) The painter is realizing that the only one who is treating with great respect is the noble. First, the lord eats his meals with the artist in his room, giving the impression that Baek Na-Kyum is the host and the lord his guest. Secondly, the lord allows him to speak freely. Thus the painter is so moved to the point that he is about to recognize his affection for Yoon Seungho. But then he remembers Heena’s words: (chapter 74) he would be a fool, if he followed his instinct and heart. This leads me to the conclusion that Baek Na-Kyum restrains himself in the last moment and doesn’t reveal his true thoughts. When he recalls his sister’s warning, I interpret that he is refusing to have a leap of faith. However, he is not recognizing that he has already changed. He might deny his attachment to the master, yet the tailor is not blind: (chapter 74) Baek Na-Kyum’s behavior is acting like a man in love. This change of behavior is the sign of his slow transformation, but he doesn’t realize it. This explicates why he doesn’t pay attention to his surroundings and shows no embarrassment. He no longer cares for reputation or appearances. What truly matters for him is Yoon Seungho, the foolish one who is not asking for more. Besides, since the chapter 40 was about responsibility, it implies that Baek Na-Kyum is not willing to become responsible for Yoon Seungho, still too afraid of getting hurt. He has been a fool in love in the past with Jung In-Hun, he fears to re-experience it.

Another divergence is that this time, the lord is declaring the commoner as his wife consciously, that’s why he chose such a headgear, which is reserved for women. Contrary to the past, this significant gesture is noticed by the tailor, that’s why we see him whispering. (Chapter 74) There’s no ambiguity that he will mention it to the other shop owners, creating some new gossips. However, I don’t think, town folks will condemn the lord, because he has definitely changed. After the disappearance, there was no scandal any longer and the aristocrat didn’t organize any sex party. He had settled down for good. Consequently if the artist disappears for a second time, I doubt that the tailor will believe in his escape. He saw how they flirted in front of his shop.

However, as you can imagine, I believe that “their blossoming romance” can be interrupted. We have Min monitoring their moves and after watching them from afar, his envy and jealousy will reach a new peak. In this scene, he was sensing that his chances to get Baek Na-Kyum were diminishing. He could definitely sense that the relationship between the protagonists had changed. Baek Na-Kyum was not keeping his distance from Yoon Seungho. He even accepted the hat without protesting, while in the past he rejected the lord and remained distant to him. (Chapter 54) And in the first version, it came to my mind that we could have a new version of this scene due to the Joker’s arm and hand. In chapter 52, the lord was protecting the painter with his arm and hand, which became true in chapter 76. The lord’s hug gave Baek Na-Kyum a certain comfort and safety. The existential fear could slowly disappear.

Due to the last terrible experience, the noble is slowly realizing that he needs to pay better attention to his surroundings and enemies. As a fool in love, he must recognize that he is behaving the same way than Baek Na-Kyum in chapter 40: (chapter 40) After the fake abduction, he had not investigated the matter, though the painter had mentioned one detail: (Chapter 76) For him, the incident had been resolved, but he never imagined that in reality, he had not solved the problem at all. The real mastermind was Min. Hence after the last tragedy, he is tasked to investigate the circumstances which led to the bloodbath in the shaman‘s house. (Chapter 102) He knows the perpetrator, he is himself the murderer, but what he doesn’t know is how it came to this. The painter’s question is actually inciting the main lead to investigate the matter, and as such to discover the helping hands. Lee Jihwa blamed Min, and the latter reproached the red-haired master. But the Joker asked him this: (chapter 102) How come that Black Heart had the learned sir’s glasses? He has now to prove his reliability and trustworthiness towards his partner. He should become more proactive, if he wants to protect his loved one better. My final conclusion is that in chapter 74, we don’t have one fool in love, but two! The painter has unfortunately forgotten Min’s confession in chapter 52. If he hadn’t thought too much about Yoon Seungho due to the separation and been surprised by Min, he would have realized that his life was in danger. Both protagonists are so in love that they don’t realize that their special relationship represents a threat to others, especially to people who stand for social norms and traditions. Simultaneously, their scandalous relationship is a source of envy for others, as Baek Na-Kyum and Yoon Seungho were able to break free from the shackles of social customs and hierarchical society. The couple becomes a symbol of liberty and true love … no wonder why The Joker is so envious. Because both were two fools in love, they couldn’t detect the enemies around them and the existence of the plot. On the other hand, the last tragedy brought back the two lovers to reality. They needed to pay more attention to their surroundings.

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Yoon Seungho’s suffering path (fourth version)

April 2, 2021June 13, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Yoon Seungho’s erections (second version)

March 21, 2021June 15, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Peace and Love ☮️ (second version)

March 14, 2021September 9, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Painter Of The Night: “Love💘 , embrace and caress👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨” (second version)

March 11, 2021August 29, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 4 Comments

It would be great if you could make some donations/sponsoring: Ko-fi.com/bebebisous33 That way, you can support me with “coffee” so that I have the energy to keep examining manhwas. Besides, I need to cover up the expenses for this blog.

In my last analysis entitled “The Light in the Heart”, I had portrayed Baek Na-Kyum as someone whose recovery and transformation were completed due to the number of white candles next to the painter’s head. (chapter 70) 3 symbolizes perfection and completion. But I have not entirely explained how the artist could overcome his traumatic past and even find closure. So far, I elaborated that the missing farewells played a huge role in the painter’s trauma, as they triggered his abandonment issues. Thanks to Yoon Seungho’s decision, the artist was allowed for the first time to bid farewell to his noona properly. (chapter 69) But there’s more to it. In my opinion, the physical touch, in the form of caress and embrace, played a huge role in the painter’s traumatic past too. However, before starting to explain this element, I need to elaborate how it came to this.

First, I have to admit that I had problem to discern the true nature of the relationship between the painter and Heena. She is acting like a mother, although the protagonist describes her as his older sister. (chapter 70) Then thanks to my readers @_Winnie_L_ and @AkaiHikariChan who pointed out, the kisaeng is definitely too young to be the mother, I got a new revelation. Since Baek Na-Kyum is a reflection of Lee Jihwa, it means that the commoner was raised by an absent parent too. That’s why we don’t see the head-kisaeng at all. She is also like a ghost, the female version of father Lee. (chapter 67) Thus we have two possibilities. Either the head-kisaeng is someone else and Heena noona took over her role, or Heena noona became the head-kisaeng, but she never claimed Baek Na-Kyum as her son. Thus the painter ended up with a ghost mother. On the one hand, Heena noona acted like a sister in front of him and she requested from him to be called “noona”, on the other hand, she behaved like a mother towards Baek Na-Kyum. Observe that Heena is the only one with a name. The only difference is that the head-kisaeng relied on the kisaengs to raise the low-born, whereas the noble Lee employed his domestics. This explicates why Heena noona started acting like a mother. But this caused her to struggle due to her young age. She was so overwhelmed with this task, that she had to rely on the scholar. And there is a reason why the kisaeng trusted the low noble so much. She was not just blinded by her own feelings (chapter 68). Her decision was influenced by her past experiences and fears. The head-kisaeng judged the learned sir as a good and responsible man. And how could he win her trust? Since the story is constructed like a kaleidoscope, this means, we must have a new version of this during the first season. In my opinion, the scene with the worker is the repetition from the past. (chapter 29) First, observe that the young girl is sitting on the teacher’s lap and the learned sir is holding a book. So if someone saw this from far away, the beholder would think that the scholar is reading the book to the child. It even gives the impression that he is actually teaching the young girl to read. But note that in this scene, the low noble is in reality talking to the commoner. For the young girl, it means that she is forced to sit and do nothing. That’s why she turns her her head to the learned sir wondering what he is expecting from her. (chapter 29) What is she supposed to do? Observe that he replies to her interrogating expression with a smile, yet he doesn’t give her any instruction. I would say, he treats her like a doll. And now, replace the young girl with Baek Na-Kyum, and the latter has to sit there for a while. You can easily grasp why the painter could only fall asleep. (chapter 70) In front of the kisaengs, the scholar created the illusion that he was teaching, while in truth he just saw it as a diversion. This explicates why he utilized this idiom to Yoon Seungho. (chapter 6) Diversion has two meanings:

something that takes your attention away from something else: Shoplifters often work in pairs, with one creating a diversion to distract the staff while the other steals the goods.
an activity you do for entertainment: Reading is a pleasant diversion. quoted from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/diversion

This outlines that this expression is far from anodyne. While we all associated “diversion” to the second significance, the low noble meant the first meaning. In the past, I used to think that the scholar was hoping for the artist to doze off so that he would spy on the guests at the kisaeng house. He was talking to the noonas with the boy on his lap in the hope to discover “secrets”. However, since I realized that Jung In-Hun was the one who brought the baby to the gibang, he had many reasons to go to the kisaeng house. He could hope to get connection to powerful nobles and even get information. However, from my point of view, since he had entrusted the artist to the noonas, he knew that the gibang was the perfect place to hide secrets as well. Remember that the conversation in this precise chapter was about “secret and protection”. (chapter 29) And now the scene at the kisaeng house can only be perceived in a new light. (chapter 68) Jung In-Hun must have come to an agreement with a rich noble and made a deal with him. The presence of the painter was no coincidence, and it diverted attention from the real target of abuse: Yoon Seungho, who got dragged away. The painter and the other noona thought that Heena had been the victim of violence from a noble, but she was not. She served as diversion. Too blinded by her prejudices and own fears, the young woman wasn’t able to perceive the true nature of the learned sir. While she saw the scholar as a hero, because he hugged the painter and took him away from this terrible place, she never questioned the scholar’s attitude. If he had been a true hero, he would have rescued her and not abandoned her. She never got aware of his betrayal. In other words, the scholar helped to create a secret. This explicates why the learned sir is well aware of the nobles’ fear. In his eyes, they all have something to hide.

But let’s return to our first observation: the head-kisaeng neglected her adopted son, for she was too overwhelmed with the huge responsibility. The manhwaphiles should remember that neglect is a form of abuse and it can lead to the loss of senses. That’s why I described Lee Jihwa as blind and deaf. With this new interpretation, I come to the conclusion that Baek Na-Kyum had the same fate. Moreover, his mind’s eye couldn’t get developed. Due to his abandonment issues, he desired to grant Heena’s wishes. That way, he wouldn’t be rejected. However, this couldn’t fill the void. That’s the reason why Baek Na-Kyum drew a lot of paintings as a child. (chapter 1) Here, the witness was lying, as he was distorting the past, the painter wouldn’t draw erotic pictures constantly. The head-kisaeng didn’t take care of her son and during the day, the noonas were all resting so that the painter was on his own. This panel illustrates the painter’s isolation and loneliness. At the same time, I envision that the scholar visited the kisaeng house during the night so that he could approach the noonas, explicating why the boy would doze off too. Moreover, painting was a way for the painter to cope his loneliness and his loss of senses. As a conclusion, the painter was not only suffering from abandonment issues, but also from neglect which made him more and more dependable on Heena noona and the learned sir.

Yet, this doesn’t end here. Each time, Heena noona was confronted to violence, she sent away the painter. He was not just forced to leave his noona’s side, he had to leave the house as well. He ended up in the countryside (chapter 70) , in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by water and rice fields. While some might view these panels as quite idyllic, I interpret these as the opposite: Baek Na-Kyum had no roots and no roof over his head. He couldn’t even find a refuge, which reminds us of the scene in the first chapter: (chapter 1) This picture exposes the painter’s lack of attachment. He has no home, no wall to protect him… there’s only emptiness surrounding him, which contrasts so much to Yoon Seungho’s situation, who lived in a prison. Hence I understand now why Baek Na-Kyum is determined to remain by Yoon Seungho’s side. (chapter 68) For the first time, he has a room for himself, and even if he is pushed away, he can express his sadness and seek comfort in his room: (chapter 41) and (chapter 52). Note that each time, he was unhappy, he was requested not to cry (chapter 26) (chapter 68: he is sent away due to his tears) (chapter 70) If you pay attention, you’ll notice the only one allowing the painter to voice his wound and to shed his tears is indeed Yoon Seungho. Each time, he desires to know the cause for Baek Na-Kyum’s tears. (chapter 1) The difference is even palpable in chapter 26: He left him some space and time to cry, hence when he returned, he didn’t say: don’t cry. He just makes this comment (chapter 26). And like I underlined it before, the lord is always focused on the reason for the artist’s tears. This led to the confrontation: who is responsible for his heartache? (chapter 26) Sure, in the bathroom, Yoon Seungho is still very rude, however he never employs the negation. Nonetheless, the low-born could never perceive this divergence, as the nuance is not so obvious. This explicates why in chapter 41, the artist misjudged the noble’s intervention. When the latter wanted to see his face and as such his tears, (chapter 41) the former refused to do so, because he anticipated that the lord would ask the same thing: stop crying. However, the master wanted to know the cause for his agony, which is totally different. This scene is really important, because it shows another issue. Baek Na-Kyum was never allowed to cry. His tears were associated to annoyance and burden. That’s why he desired to be left alone in the end. He feared that if the lord saw his tears, he would be requested to stop crying. And this fear of letting his tears coming up explains why the painter hid his eyes with his arm during the physical abuse. (chapter 34) Under this new approach, we understand better (chapter 68) why the lord chose to retreat. Here, the master saw the commoner’s tears with his mind’s eye and realized that he needed to give him some space and time again. But more importantly, he never entered the room, giving him some privacy. He learnt an important lesson here: solitude doesn’t stand in opposition to distance and abandonment. In this scene, Heena noona never requests from the painter to stop crying, she just wipes his tears with her hand and caresses her brother’s cheeks. (chapter 68) In my opinion, she hoped that if he voiced his emotions, he would follow her. She had an interest in this, that way she could express her disapproval and use her authority to force the painter to obey her. (chapter 68) What the noona didn’t realize is that the main lead’s decision to respect the low-born’s needs (crying and not entering his room) was the reason why Baek Na-Kyum selected him in the end. There’s no doubt that the lord was associated to home for good, because he is the first one who allowed him to cry and to have a room, where he could seek refuge after getting hurt. Under this new light, the readers can better grasp why Baek Na-Kyum is healed now.

However, my examination is still not finished. I had portrayed the commoner as suffering from the loss of sight and hearing due to his neglecting mother/noona. But this doesn’t mean that he had lost his body too. Since he was deprived of these two senses, he had to rely on the physical touch in order to compensate his isolation. And now, you understand why the learned sir and Heena noona had such power over him and why the young boy was so submissive. They used the caress and the embrace as a way to impose their will. That’s how they got so close to Baek Na-Kyum, explaining why the commoner would lose his voice after all (speech ability). He became submissive in his desire to please his loved ones. He saw in their caresses and embraces a sign of affection. He was not wrong, but their attachment was linked to their own interests. Thus their love was rather superficial.

What caught my attention is that the kisaeng stroke the painter’s cheeks, (chapter 46) when the latter was sent away, But she didn’t hug her brother. Why? It was to stop him from protesting. (chapter 46) But I would even go further. I don’t think that Heena noona used to embrace her brother. This perception was somehow confirmed in season 3. (chapter 94) Here, the infant hugged his noona, but she didn’t return his gesture. Moreover, she hadn’t stopped the laughing nobles as well. Furthermore, (chapter 66) note the huge distance between the two characters in the last panel. This is no coincidence, therefore I perceive the embrace in chapter 66 in a new light. (chapter 66) It was the first time that Baek Na-Kyum got embraced by his noona. And all this, thanks to Yoon Seungho. In my opinion, the kisaeng got really scared and concerned for her brother. And there’s a reason for this lack of worry. She relied too much on Jung In-Hun. Her false perception is particularly visible, when she claims . (chapter 68) Why does she expect this? From my point of view, her words imply, she must have helped the learned sir in the past: one thing is sure. She was not entirely honest with her donsaeng here, as the manhwaphiles can detect the drop of sweat. But more importantly, we have to question ourselves if the gibang was not used in the past to spread rumors about the Yoons again, and Jung In-Hun could heard something. I am even envisioning that she must have reported conversations to him, a new version of chapter 24: Remember that in that scene the painter doesn’t comprehend the meaning behind this order. If this theory is true, then she never saw the consequences of her action, similar to her brother in chapter 24. If she truly did it, she must have justified this, because the learned sir needed it, she was responsible for him. This would explicate why she is surprised that the artist is responsible for the learned sir. Anyway, due to her assistance, she expected from Jung In-Hun that he would take care of the painter. There’s no doubt that she loved the scholar, and since the boy had entered the kisaeng house due to the learned sir, there is a high possibility that Heena noona got close to Baek Na-Kyum for that reason too. That way, she hoped to earn the scholar’s acceptance and admiration. Since the painter was left alone and longed for love, the latter could only rely more and more on Heena noona, especially due to the incidents where Baek Na-Kyum was wounded. (chapter 94) She created a dependency, while simultaneously, she would delegate her responsibilities on the other noonas. Heena noona became the painter’s mother, yet she was never one officially. Consequently, I believe that her bond was not entirely selfless, which became truly visible in season 3. Let’s not forget that the kisaeng was portrayed as quite rude and selfish in certain scenes. The way she hugged her brother was not tender in my eyes. (chapter 68) For me, her real “admiration” was for the learned sir, therefore it becomes understandable why she wasn’t bothered, if Jung In-Hun asked for her help in exchange for taking care of Baek Na-Kyum. According to my theory, the learned sir had brought himself the baby to the gibang, this means that in chapter 46, he could only accept the kisaeng’s request. He had no other choice, for in Heena’s eyes, they were somehow related. From my point of view, Heena noona hoped that Jung In-Hun would even assist her and help her to leave the gibang. But this never happened. In my opinion, there exists another reason why the painter was sent to the learned sir. And it is related to Yoon Seungho, the erotic paintings and the pedophile.

The kisaeng helped the scholar, while the latter assisted her with her burden: raising a boy. From that moment, a toxic relationship started, which could only affect the young boy. This would explicate why she accepted that Jung In-Hun would leave her behind while getting beaten. For this kind of incident recurred, we have to imagine that the low noble and the kisaeng contributed to add another artist’s trauma: the abandonment issues and the loss of home.

From that moment, he was forced to roam around with the scholar during the night. (chapter 70) And now, we have to question ourselves why the kisaeng chose to send away the painter in the end. From my point of view, it wasn’t really to protect him… since Baek Na-Kyum was now an adult, the role of the scholar was no longer necessary. First, the artist was supposed to be literate. At the same time, the low noble couldn’t take him any longer, when the kisaeng got hurt again. This kind of diversion was no longer possible. The man was old enough to intervene, hence not only he could have defended his sister, but also he could have investigated what was happening in the gibang. That’s why Heena sent him away to the scholar and observe that the noonas were not even informed. (chapter 46) Why? Because she knew that they would have questioned her. Moreover, the noonas might have convinced the donsaeng to stay in the gibang. In my eyes, the noona thought that she was doing it for her son’s best interest, while in reality she had other motives to ask the painter to leave the gibang. Unconsciously, she desired to leave that place too. From my point of view, she dreamed that the learned sir would take her away at some point. This interpretation was proven correct in season 3. (chapter 97) In exchange for her services, she had to bring Baek Na-Kyum to Min, the noona would be able to escape the gibang.

Therefore it is time to focus on the learned sir again. Exactly like I had anticipated, the low noble blamed the painter for his inability to read: he would doze off , while in reality the low noble made sure that the artist would fall asleep. Besides, if the painter was awake during the night, this signifies that he had to sleep during the day. And in order to obtain the painter’s assistance, he noticed that the low-born was sensitive to physical touch: the scholar chose the hug. That’s why we see him embracing the young boy in chapter 68 or piggybacking in chapter 70. We have to envision that first he embraced him in front of the kisaeng, then once they had left the town, the noble would change the position. Yet, I believe that Heena had here romanticized this embrace. It represents a distorted memory mixed with fantasy. What caught my attention is that in both hugs, the noble could hide his face and in particular his eyes. At the same time, the learned sir wasn’t faced with the commoner’s tears and sadness. He could feign ignorance. (chapter 70) But this could only work, until the painter entered adulthood. After that, he could no longer use the boy as tool and diversion. Even if the learned sir’s affection was genuine in the beginning, the nature of their relationship could only change, for the learned sir had kept using him in the past. It had become a habit.

Envision this: his ties with the kisaeng house were cut off. And since he had never taught the painter to write and read properly, Jung In-Hun was cornered. Moreover, there is no ambiguity that the learned sir started viewing Baek Na-Kyum as a burden, this means that at some point Jung In-Hun must have felt the exact opposite of this: (chapter 44)

And since the scholar has always disdained the commoners, he could only abhor the idea to keep hugging the artist. The latter was now a grown-up. Hence he used the erotic painting as an excuse to abuse Baek Na-Kyum physically. That way, the noble was no longer obliged to caress or embrace the painter. However, because of this method, he destroyed the painter’s body symbolically. (chapter 34) And this leads me to the following conclusion: the painter ended up in the same state than Yoon Seungho’s. Both lost their senses and their own body. And now, you can comprehend why the main lead can’t cry yet. The return of his tears will mark the end of the transformation and his recovery.

Nonetheless, let’s return our attention to the scholar and his relationship with the painter. If the manhwaphiles pay attention to the progression of the first season, they will notice the increasing intimacy between Baek Na-Kyum and Jung In-Hun. First, it started with a stroke (chapter 10), then in chapter 24 he touches his shoulder and kisses his hands. (chapter 24) With my new interpretation, you can comprehend why he did this. He tried to use the same method from the past: he knew that physical touch would make the artist submissive. And the climax was reached in chapter 29 with the fake embrace and the betrayal: (chapter 29) From that moment, it went down again. We returned to patting (chapter 35) and strokes (chapter 35) and finish with this final touch of the painter’s cheek: (chapter 38) And the physical interaction reflects the learned sir’s loss of power. Despite his attempts, he was not able to obtain the artist’s submission like in the past. That’s the reason why he could only resent the artist. We have to remember that the low noble really detested this physical intimacy, hence he would tighten his jaw or grind his teeth. (chapter 24) Note that in many panels, we never see the scholar’s facial expressions, but there is no ambiguity that he could never truly hide his disdain. But the painter was still blinded by his “admiration” for Jung In-Hun. However, after the argument at the library, the painter lost his sight and hearing again. He was too wounded by the final blow.

And now, you understand why Yoon Seungho’s actions (seeking intimacy) could only help the painter to recover. First, he had been able to remove the poison from the artist’s mind before the backstab in the library. The lord had encouraged Baek Na-Kyum’s critical thinking. This explicates why after the scholar’s betrayal, the painter’s independent mind resurfaced first. (chapter 46) Then the readers witness the return of the artist’s 5th sense (touching) in chapter 49. That’s the reason why the noble could finally get the painter’s attention afterwards. For me, the touching has always been the most important sense in his life, which explains why Heena and Jung In-Hun had such control over the low-born. Then in chapter 52, we assist to the revival of the artist’s sight: (chapter 52) And now you comprehend why Heena and Jung In-Hun were defeated. The hug in chapter 66 helped him to satisfy an important need: he was truly embraced while getting comforted. Simultaneously, the hug is not entirely related to the kisaeng, but to the study. Remember that we never saw her hugging him before. At the kisaeng house, he didn’t feel like he truly belonged there, and Heena would always send him away due to his cry. While Heena anticipated with this embrace, the painter would follow her like in the past, she experienced a shock. Now, the painter was no longer blindly listening to her suggestion. And now, you understand why she kept touching the artist. She was trying to influence the painter through the physical touch. Under this new light, I understand why she said this after all: (chapter 68) Yoon Seungho is famous for intimacy, then this would signify that she would lose control over the painter forever. This explicates why Heena noona is not respecting her brother’s wish in the end. And if you compare the two farewells between the kisaeng and the main lead, you will detect a huge progression: (chapter 69) They hug each other here, the painter can get closure, because this is just a goodbye. The noona asks him to send letters, this means that she is telling him that he is not abandoned. This night was important, because the painter’s abandonment issues got treated. Hence it is no wonder why the painter could move on from the past during the same night.

And now, it is time to come to the final part, the significance of the painter’s memory in chapter 70. From my point of view, we should perceive as a new version of chapter 34: Back then, he recalled the repressed physical abuse. However, his conscious dismissed it again. However, this time it is different. The painter in possession of his whole body is reminded of the scholar due to Heena noona’s farewell. The closure he got by bidding her farewell triggered a long repressed memory too. The learned sir was the one who consoled him in the past. And while he recalls that night, the adult Baek Na-Kyum realizes that the scholar’s care was not fake in the past. He would keep him company and talk to him, he was his companion of the night. However, for me, this scene outlines his superficiality and indifference. He diverts his attention so that he wouldn’t feel sad any longer. But it was, as if he was ignoring his sadness, for he wouldn’t talk about the incident. (chapter 70), He would even smile making him look indifferent. (chapter 70 Then he makes the following reproach: he was lazy. (chapter 70). For me, during that night the artist realizes that despite the huge blow in the library, Jung In-Hun had not been bad to him all this time. He had good memories. This means that he was able to take his distance and look back at his childhood under a new perspective. The learned sir had been there for him in the past. In this moment, when he saw the moon, he was reminded of the learned sir. It might not follow him specially, but it is always there. (chapter 70) The learned sir will always be a part of his life, as he belongs to the past. As you can see, in this scene, Baek Na-Kyum was moving on. Therefore I interpret this scene as a real breakthrough. The painter is no longer under the influence of the scholar. The latter can not longer manipulate him like in the past [though now I believe that he is dead], and this revelation was triggered by Heena noona and her embraces. But at the same time, he is not rejecting or resenting the man. And this interpretation becomes even more visible in season 3: (chapter 94) His heart and mind are now in peace. He is no longer suffering from a guilty conscience. And this truly exposes that the artist’s abandonment issues were created by Heena.

Under this new interpretation, the scene at the bathroom becomes another significance. The lord decided to let the painter feel and see his affection. He chose a different approach: caressing the finger and the hand tenderly, then the chin before kissing him. (chapter 70) However, what caught my attention is that his touch is never to shut the artist’s mouth. Observe that he lets the mouth open, while he caresses the hands, the chin and even after kissing the painter. (chapter 70) He has the right to speak, while Heena noona and Jung In-Hun used the embrace and caress as a way to render Baek Na-Kyum mute. And since the affection through physical touch was a way to win the painter’s heart, there is no doubt that Yoon Seungho is on his way to win his heart. Now, the painter is finally looking at him and the scholar’s influence has been finally erased. Baek Na-Kyum is now totally over Jung In-Hun, as he has now only view him as a companion and friend, and nothing more. He is no longer his idol. In other words, the low-born has finally found closure. In episode 70, his heart is free.

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for topics or manhwas, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, retweet it or push the button like. My reddit-instagram-tumblr-twitter account is: @bebebisous33. Thanks for reading and for the support, particularly, I would like to thank all the new followers and people recommending my blog.

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Stockholm Syndrome (second version)

February 23, 2021January 12, 2023 ~ Bébébisous33

Painter Of The Night: Desires and communication 📲 (second version)

February 21, 2021September 11, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 6 Comments

1. The significance of communication

In the essay “Respect and love” I demonstrate that both protagonists aren’t honest to themselves, exposing their lack of self-respect. This is one of the reasons why they keep disregarding each other. While they are hurting each other, they force each other to question their own action and words simultaneously. Hence the readers are witnessing their transformation. Little by little, the protagonists mature and turn into adults. They become more responsible. Their growth coincides with the development of attachment and the realization of their affection. At the same time, this evolution is strongly intertwined with the painter’s sexuality. The latter is making his first sexual experiences, which leads him to slowly accept his homosexuality. Yet he still fears his own strong libido and as such his love for the noble. Therefore till chapter 68, the artist is still dishonest with himself. As the manhwaphiles can see, the painter’s honesty is linked to respect and love. Striking is that both values are dependent on communication.

“Love without communication is impossible”. from Mortimer Adler

“Much unhappiness has come into the world because of bewilderment and things left unsaid.” from Fyodor Dostoevsky

2. Communication and relationship

With these quotes, it becomes obvious that communication represents the foundation of a good relationship, where there exist respect, love and trust. Silence or lies stand in opposition to communication, because they create a false perception or an illusion. Since manipulators employ lies by commission or omission, the latter can be judged as weapons. Moreover, unsaid things and deceptions display a lack of trust. That’s why the relationship between the noble and the low-born can only stabilize, the moment they talk to each other properly. Once Yoon Seungho and Baek Na-Kyum reveal their true thoughts and emotions to each other, they not only show trust, but also can discover the true personality of their lover. However, if you pay attention to the evolution of the story, you’ll observe two details:

Yoon Seungho is the one who keeps talking, revealing his desire to exchange thoughts with the painter. This explicates why the lord was so hurt in chapter 49. He wanted to communicate (“share what’s on our mind”) with the low-born, but the latter refused, because he just considered the noble as a sex toy to procure him pleasure out of fear to get hurt and deceived again.
The painter is only opening up once confronted with sex and his own sexual desires.

3. Words, sex and its impact on relationship

Now, I would like to elaborate more these observations, hence I will start with the first chapter as illustration. The manhwaphiles should remember that at the tavern, Yoon Seungho was very talkative. (Chapter 1) He expressed his genuine admiration for Baek Na-Kyum’s talent and creations. Yet, at no moment the painter noticed the compliments. He had been forced to touch the loins, which shocked him, and then he remembered the lord’s bad notoriety. Therefore all the lord’s good words fell on deaf ears. The painter was more concerned with appearances and rumors than anything else. That’s why the conversation failed. Since Baek Na-Kyum was not interested in the main lead’s feelings, he feigned ignorance first, and lied at the end. Striking is that their first conversation was connected to books and sex, therefore this already limited their exchange. Moreover, this first chapter clearly reveals the lord’s interest in the low-born. He not only sent a domestic for the investigation about the mysterious creator, but also asked about his recent whereabouts. And curiosity usually initiates a conversation. But there’s more to it. From my perspective, the main lead felt no longer satisfied with the erotic pictures. He wanted to share his emotions and thoughts, when he looked at them. However, he had no one to talk to, so in his mind, if he met the artist, he could come into a conversation with the creator. That’s why he wanted to invite him in the end. The painting of sex sessions would give him the perfect occasion to discuss with someone.

And observe, when the first session starts, he can’t help himself talking to the artist, while Jihwa remains silent, as he doesn’t pay attention to him. If you read the story again, you’ll sense the master’s strong desire to communicate. When the painter arrives in the bedchamber in chapter 8, the lord welcomes him warmly with a huge smile and speech. (Chapter 8) Observe the contrast. The main lead doesn’t reveal his anger towards the noble with the mole, it is not worthy for Yoon Seungho of giving him an explanation for the humiliation. He just smiles (Chapter 8) before grabbing him by the topknot. His words and behavior truly display a huge respect and a desire to exchange thoughts and observation.

Moreover, when the master is not talking during the sex sessions, then he is in a locked gaze with the artist. (Chapter 8) This mirrors the noble’s need to talk and now, you understand why the main lead had to evict the aristocrat with the mole in the end. By requesting to send away the commoner, (Chapter 8) he was more or less asking from the host to remain silent. (Chapter 8) The latter just had to focus on the guest’s sexual desires which confirms my interpretation that the main lead is treated like a head-kisaeng. Since the noble showed him no respect, then the main character didn’t need to respect him either. But more importantly, the protagonist made sure that he would be treated the same way. He also wouldn’t listen to his words, because the noble with the mole didn’t want to hear him speaking either. Therefore the door is closed, before the man can protest. As a conclusion, the aristocrats only visited him for sex or other pleasures and nothing more, while the noble had to remain quiet. Hence we have a silent main lead in his relapse: (chapter 52) However, even here the manhwaphiles can notice the transformation. The guests are no longer here for sex, just for smoking opium and drink wine. That way, the noble doesn’t feel lonely.

And Jihwa was not different from the others. Like Yoon Seungho described it to father Lee, (chapter 67) the childhood friend would only visit him during the night (“used to”). However, it changed the moment the main lead paid a visit to the red-haired noble early in the morning (chapter 3). After that, Jihwa realized that he could also go to his friend during the day (chapter 5 and 12 ). And now, you comprehend why the lord questioned his presence in the morning and why he assumed that his visit was related to sex in the end. It looks like Jihwa never showed an interest in the lord’s thoughts and emotions too. And there exist two reasons for that. First, he had the impression he knew everything about his lover. (Chapter 57) Secondly, there was a risk that the main character could talk about the past and as such mention Jihwa’s betrayal. The lord’s emotions (sadness, anger, pain) represented a huge burden to the red-haired master. (Chapter 59)

This illustrates that the lord was never allowed to express his thoughts and emotions, until the artist arrived at the property. And now the readers can comprehend why Yoon Seungho said this in chapter 18: (chapter 18) Thanks to the artist’s presence, Yoon Seungho had been able to talk and people would actually pay attention to his presence and words. They started listening to his words. Imagine, one word and the straw mat beating was stopped: (Chapter 13) No wonder, why he thanked the painter in chapter 18. He could only be happy, when he confronted his childhood friend, as there was a real exchange for the first time. (Chapter 13) Argument is also a form of communication, and it happens between people in a relationship. Not only his words were finally noticed, but also he was able to draw lines to Jihwa. By influencing the host with the hope, Yoon Seungho would send away the painter, the childhood friend didn’t recognize that he was attempting to turn the protagonist into a puppet, therefore he could only fail. Moreover, Jihwa had no idea that Yoon Seungho’s true desire was to get close to someone, to engage a honest conversation. Therefore the main lead could only reject the friend’s words and proposition. As a conclusion, with the painter’s arrival, the lord’s words were little by little listened, he was able to communicate more with others: Jihwa, the nobles and the staff. After scolding the maids in the kitchen (chapter 38), the head-maid started showing her respect to her lord. But more importantly, he gave her the order personally to bring the painter’s lunch to his study. (Chapter 46) He could finally voice his thoughts, everything happened thanks to the painter. This explicates why Yoon Seungho kept seeking the artist’s proximity, although the latter kept rejecting him (his escape, his lies, his refusal to paint for him etc…). He had realized that his living conditions had improved despite the struggling with the low-born.

His strong desire to communicate exposes that he had no companion by his side. In my opinion, Yoon Seungho justified his existence as a free spirit in order to hide his loneliness and emptiness. It was his explication why the nobles and Jihwa wouldn’t listen to him and disrespect him. Yet, the real cause for this situation was his traumatic past, where he had been forced to silence. Moreover this explains why he never paid attention to intruders in the end. He didn’t have the impression, he would truly live in that mansion. Besides, because people were supposed to visit him during the night for sex, then he was never expecting visitors during the day. Hence he spent his days smoking in front of the window. (Chapter 5) This outlines the main lead’s isolation and loneliness. Simultaneously, with this new approach, the readers grasp why Yoon Seungho couldn’t anticipate to become Min’s target in the end. He noticed Black Heart’s envious gaze , (chapter 8) but he didn’t envision what jealousy and greed would provoke. In my eyes, he couldn‘t identify these emotions properly.

The problem is that Baek Na-Kyum refused to converse with the lord. In chapter 4, the artist didn’t allow the main lead to express his opinion about the plagiarized poem. (Chapter 4) He was not worthy to comment this poetry, as he was just a man consumed by lust. However, the commoner never asked why the noble would judge the poem so poorly. He already assumed that he was just making fun in order to humiliate the scholar, while in reality the noble wanted to reveal the author’s true personality: Jung In-Hun was just a deceiver. And since he had been hurt by the painter’s comment, he retaliated too: since he was just a commoner, he had no right to criticize the lord.

And now, it is time to focus on the second aspect: Yoon Seungho and Baek Na-Kyum only started communicating properly through sex. The reason is simple: the painter was only honest, when his unconscious revealed his true desires. Right from the start, the artist was sexually attracted by the lord, but he kept denying it. However, the aristocrat did notice the painter’s genuineness in the sex sessions, which could only reinforce his strong attraction towards the low-born. He loved his art, and now he saw that someone was truly perceiving him. (Chapter 2) Baek Na-Kyum was the first who made the main lead realize the existence of his body. For the first time, he felt attraction through the gaze and saw something beautiful in himself. And what was the lord‘s immediate reaction? He started talking about his thoughts, though this was more a monologue than a discussion. (Chapter 3) (chapter 3) Exactly like the painter, Yoon Seungho began talking while having sex. He even formulated his first desire in front of his childhood friend: (chapter 3) And now, you comprehend why his relationship with Lee Jihwa was doomed to fail. The red-haired master was more focused on sex and his own sexual emancipation than his lover‘s well-being. (Chapter 3) He never asked him why he was behaving so differently. He didn‘t notice that the lord was more communicative.

4. The first real conversation

But let’s return our attention to the main couple. The real conversation between Yoon Seungho and Baek Na-Kyum only starts in chapter 16. Nonetheless, the only one talking is Yoon Seungho. He keeps asking questions about Baek Na-Kyum’s sexuality, waiting an answer from the artist:

Here I only selected a few inquiries from the main lead, however what caught my attention is that with his behavior, the noble was putting the artist under pressure. The latter remained silent, but the beholder detect how these questions affect the artist. They actually excite him in reality. Why? It is because the lord’s words incite the painter’s imagination. Note that in the second panel above, he is describing the sex session. And the painter gets really excited, when the noble says this: (chapter 16) On the surface, it looks like he is sulking, the reality is that he is already fighting against his urges. The hand is trembling due the arousal. While you have the impression, he is bothered by Yoon Seungho, the truth is that the artist is getting more and more excited due the lord’s picturesque questions. Funny is that in this scene, the aristocrat is the more innocent one. He plays with the head-band and his “innocence” is truly visible through his facial expressions too: . What is the painter’s real sexual desire? We have the answer in this panel: Getting violated by a stranger! In the wet dream in chapter 6, (chapter 6) a stranger in form of a shadow enters the artist’s room. The lord’s identity is only discovered at the end. But in his fantasy, the main lead was even grabbing him by the hair. It was definitely not a tender gesture. He was even caressing him against his will. And note that when Yoon Seungho questions when he got the most excited to the point that he had difficulties to breath, the commoner remembers this image and not the strokes. (Chapter 16) As a conclusion, the artist is actually a person who likes BDSM. This explicates why the painter’s trembling hand was grabbing the shirt in chapter 12 while facing the lord. He was hiding his erection (chapter 12) triggered by fear. This new interpretation explains why the artist painted the sex at the pavilion in the end. (Chapter 41) If the forced sex had truly traumatized him, he wouldn’t have been able to do so. Furthermore, he questioned the authenticity of the lord’s affection, when he recalled the moment, he was offered to the other nobles. He was upset and offended. (Chapter 55) Yet he didn’t even think about the scene at the pavilion for one minute. This means that Baek Na-Kyum only accepts the main lead as his lover. Fear and pain are not perceived as something negative, they can evoke pleasure.

In chapter 16, Yoon Seungho got the painter so excited that he felt the need to run away in order to hide his erection. Striking is that when the lord starts masturbating him, the commoner starts blushing and crying. But these tears and reddening are not the expression of pain, they express the opposite: pleasure. (Chapter 16) Moreover, he didn’t get angry at Yoon Seungho for touching his phallus. He got more scared that someone had seen him enjoying the masturbation and I would even say, getting grabbed by force. Therefore the lord got an erection and was so happy at the kisaeng house. Finally, he had been able to talk to the painter. He even got to receive a honest answer for the first time, where he was even called “my lord”: (chapter 16) To sum up, Baek Na-Kyum showed a certain respect to the main lead in this chapter. But more importantly, the master was in a good mood, because he kept thinking how he could procure pleasure to the commoner.

5. The secret meaning of „no“

However, he felt a little insecure at the same time, because the commoner had kept saying “no”. That’s why during their first Wedding night, the lord asked him about his first sexual experience: (Chapter 21) The painter reveals the truth by replying that he enjoyed it very much, it felt like a dream. As you can see, chapter 21 was a reflection of the episode 16: we had a discussion, where the lord tried to initiate a conversation, tears of joy connected with pleasure, the lord asking to be called “my lord” and the realization of a dream. But we have another evidence that despite his words, he wanted the main lead to continue: (chapter 16) The commoner’s hand is placed on the shoulder indicating that he is pushing Yoon Seungho to his side. He could have tried to remove the lord’s hand on his phallus, but he didn’t. The hand was even trembling from pleasure. That’s why the second sex marathon shouldn’t be judged as a rape in my opinion, although the painter kept saying no too. First, the painter makes the exact same expression than in chapter 16: (Chapter 63) And even the lord notices that the painter is getting more and more excited by the roughness. He keeps describing how the painter is reacting below (chapter 63) which can only increase Baek Na-Kyum’s arousal, as his words are again very graphic. Note that the lord’s pictorial “filthy” expressions affect the painter deeply, exactly like in his second wet dream: (Chapter 63) Therefore I come to the conclusion that in chapter 63, the painter is not crying, because he is really hurt and angry at the main lead. These are tears of pleasure mixed with pain, which is linked to BDSM. That’s why he keeps blushing the whole time. (Chapter 63) This explicates why he kept ejaculating, despite saying “no” or recognizing that there was a witness. He felt no longer scared or embarrassed, like in chapter 16, where he ran away to hide. With this new version of the sex marathon, the painter truly discovered his sexual preferences. Therefore, when we see this (chapter 63), we shouldn’t project our own emotions into the artist: pain and disgust. Remember this: the painter felt his blood running hot, when the lord grabbed his hair violently in his wet dream. (Chapter 6)

And now, you understand why the artist is scared to admit his affection to the main lead. (Chapter 68) He is still scared and embarrassed of his own sexuality. It must have felt strange in that historical period. What caught my attention is that we have two chapters where tears are mixed with pleasure and happiness (chapter 16-21), while we have two chapters where the tears are associated to pain and sadness (25-26; 41-42). Besides, in the last sex session from the first season, the painter was the one asking the lord to be quite rough! (Chapter 42) Yet, the noble couldn’t help himself showing tenderness and affection at the end with the passionate kiss. As a conclusion, the second sex marathon contains all these elements: sadness, pain, pleasure, anger and happiness.

6. Yoon Seungho‘s desires

And it is the same for Yoon Seungho. He likes BDSM and cosplay. That’s why he plays with the head-band (chapter 16), and in chapter 35 he accepts to be a servant or in chapter 49 a sex toy. Due their different sex sessions, he discovered that he likes being rough too. Therefore he couldn’t enjoy, when the painter was so passive. He recognized that he took pleasure, when the painter was showing resistance too. (Chapter 63) This explicates why he couldn’t stand the expression “I like it”. This was too insipid. So when he became rough in chapter 48, he truly hoped to provoke tears of happiness caused by the sensation of pleasure. (Chapter 48) However, since the painter ended up crying and criticizing the lord, he had the impression, he had failed. As you can see, the lord might have had a lot of sexual experiences, yet with the painter, he entered a totally new world: full of warmth and love, yet there was pain connected to pleasure as well. This explicates why he could open up and reveal that his real dream was to make the painter smile (chapter 63), which contrasts so much to Baek Na-Kyum’s dream: cry of happiness.

I deduce that Yoon Seungho discovered BDSM through the painter, and we should see this as a treatment for the sexual abuse. First, he is put in the same position than lord Song. Thus he learned that sex could only be enjoyable, if there was consent. (Chapter 79) Hence people saw the sex session in the shed as rape. Nonetheless, the manhwaphiles shouldn’t forget that Baek Na-Kyum was living in the mansion as a servant. Hence according to Joseon’s social norms, he was in no position to reject the main lead. However, for Yoon Seungho, it was different, for he was a young master. He had a title that was supposed to protect him. Consequently, the main lead can reproach the mysterious lord Song that he never asked for his consent and he would even treat him like a male kisaeng!

However, we shouldn’t forget that right from the start, the lord was seeking for a companion to share his thoughts and emotions. Due to the sex sessions, their honest conversations were limited to sex. First, they started arguing, because their couple had started on the wrong premise. Both were not honest to themselves in reality. Through their discussion, they were forced to listen to each other: chapter 25-26. Yet without any confrontation, they were not able to converse properly. Both of them were hiding something out of fear and pain, that’s why the conversation in chapter 47 failed too. As you can sense, their physical connection was never satisfying for the lord, he always hoped for more and tried to initiate conversations (chapter 35, 39-40, 41, 42). Both needed to learn to trust each other, but it was not possible because of their lack of self-respect.

7. Kim as a fake mediator

Remember that the aristocrat desires to talk to the painter right from the start, and later he wants to share his meals with him. And each time, Kim intervenes. First, he manipulates the lord to visit the artist in his study, well aware what Jihwa has already done. Then in chapter 50, he finally reveals the content of the conversation between Baek Na-Kyum and his scholar. And this conversation happens right after the lord asked to take his meal with the artist. He made sure that their interactions would only be limited to sex. In my opinion, Kim started meddling between the two protagonists, because that way he could refrain them to communicate directly to each other.

“There is only one rule for being a good talker – learn to listen” from Christopher Morley

That way, the butler hindered the painter to discover Yoon Seungho’s true personality. If they didn’t have an opportunity to talk, then the artist couldn’t learn through listening. That’s why the use of aphrodisiac in chapter 36 was actually an act of sabotage. The manhwaphiles shouldn’t forget that in chapter 35 the lord tried to discover the painter’s likes and offered the latter to join him to his room. But in order to ensure that there would be no conversation, Kim warned the artist about the lord’s bad mood. (Chapter 36) While, it looked like he was protecting the painter, he was undermining their relationship. He was actually using triangulation.

Triangulation is an approach used by many different people who share one thing in common: insecurity. As a result, they’re willing to manipulate others in harmful ways to get what they want or feel a sense of security in a relationship. Quoted from https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-triangulation-in-psychology-5120617

I had described the protagonists as insecure, and Kim could sense these anxieties and took advantage of it. And this is no coincidence that the painter’s love confession took place in the gibang. Kim was not present, and he could only join them much later. As a conclusion, Kim made sure that there would only be sex between them and nothing more. But when he realized that sex would bring them closer, as they started communicating, he separated the couple. They should no longer have sex together. First the valet used the conversation in the library as a justification, (chapter 50) Then he utilized the lord’s misconduct in the storage room. He should wait for the painter’s visit in his bedchamber. (Chapter 75) However, the valet could never stop the progression. The irony is that their first deep conversation took place outside the mansion. (Chapter 39) Once again, the lord had a teasing attitude, yet he was gentle and considerate. This is not surprising that due to their interaction, Baek Na-Kyum started listening to the lord. He took his questions and advices very seriously (chapter 40). Thus he confronted the learned sir about his future. As the painterofthenightphiles can detect, by communicating they began trusting each other more, and as such showing more curiosity and understanding to their counterpart.

After the kidnapping, the butler imagined that the lord would kill the artist for his abandonment, yet it didn’t happen. In reality, the lord prepared himself the painter’s bed. Then when he went to the barn in order to see what was happening, he heard and saw a painter saying “no”, while the lord was quite rough. So in his mind, after this sex session, the painter would be scared of the lord and would run away. What he saw was violence because of the past. Note when he tried to manipulate the master, he mentioned the main lead’s rape at the barn. (Chapter 68) With these words, he was implying that the low-born suffered the same fate than Yoon Seungho, because it looks like that on the surface. He imagined that he would achieve his goal (sending away Baek Na-Kyum) by using his knowledge, but in my opinion the opposite happened, like I had expected. What caught my attention is that the butler only mentioned Yoon Chang-Hyeon (chapter 68), as he had sent the painter to the storage room like his father. Yet, at no moment he made an allusion about lord Song, though he saw the sex in the barn as sexual abuse. He was thinking of the pedophile’s crime. He couldn‘t bring up the pedophile for two reasons: As a domestic, he can‘t badmouth the king. Secondly, he has to blame the father, as his own responsibility in Yoon Seungho‘s suffering would come to the surface. Remember my theory: Kim was the one brought the young master to the king thinking that the latter would protect Yoon Seungho.

Yet the problem with BDSM is that the couple needs to set the rules first, and these are strongly intertwined with “respect and love”. They have to communicate. That’s why the moment the painter accepts his affection, he is forced to recognize his own sexual preferences. This is no coincidence that in the bedchamber, Baek Na-Kyum voiced his desires after vowing loyalty to his lover. (Chapter 88) Furthermore, the chronology is important. The painter communicated first his thoughts and wishes, before they initiated the love session. (Chapter 88) This contrasts to the sex session in chapter 48/49. The lord had used sex in order to force the painter to share what was on his mind. Finally, in the gibang, the painter had talked a lot about his childhood to his lover before kissing his lover. (Chapter 94) They had a long conversation, where the lord could ask questions. This conversation ended with a love confession. (Chapter 94) This is important, because sex had now a different function. Sex was now a real form of communication, they would share what was on their heart. With their bodies, they would convey emotions. They would use the hand (chapter 88) or the kiss (Chapter 95) so that no misunderstanding would be created. Therefore it is not surprising that even during their love session, they would keep talking, and even express their desires: (Chapter 96) And observe that even after the love session, they continued sharing what was on their mind and heart: (chapter 97) And now, you comprehend why the schemers had to separate the couple! From this moment on, they would communicate constantly, and this outside sex. Thus when they are in the mountain, they can speak freely. (Chapter 102) They are no longer a noble and a commoner walking together, but a real couple. They are equals sharing their happiness and pain.

However, this doesn’t mean that their love story ends here. This marks only the beginning, because the lord has so much more to show to the painter. Their love will keep growing and affecting other aspects in their life. Moreover, they are now paying attention to what is happening around them (chapter 102) Here, the painter wished to understand why they were separated for so long. This means that Yoon Seungho has to discover the circumstances which led to this tragedy. That‘s how they will realize that the enemies are close to them. The lord has to recognize that he needs to share everything, like for example the discovery of Deok-Jae’s corpse. (Chapter 97) As you can see, the topics of their conversation will diverge more and more. I do think that he was incited to let the painter sleep in order to „protect“ him. Yoon Seungho needs to recognize that warning and drawing lines are not enough to protect the loved one. He will have to take real measures to turn his statement (taking responsibility for the painter) into a reality: he will have to fight for his right to happiness. Taking the civil service examination only represents one step. Furthermore, appearances can be deceiving. The pure artist is not so “innocent” in the end. He has definitely met his match in Yoon Seungho, though I believe that his role is to heal Yoon Seungho from his PTSD and give him closure. And this can only happen, when the victim of sexual abuse confronts his perpetrators, the old bearded men!

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for topics or manhwas, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, retweet it or push the button like. My Tumblr-Reddit-Instagram-Twitter account is: @bebebisous33. Thanks for reading and the support.

Painter Of The Night: A man consumed by lust

February 16, 2021August 26, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 6 Comments

Feel free to make some donations/sponsoring: Ko-fi.com/bebebisous33 That way, you can support me with “coffee” so that I have the energy to keep examining manhwas.

I would like thank Luzy again for her observations, because her comments inspired me a lot.

What caught my attention is the idiom employed by the painter to describe the wealthy main lead: a man consumed by lust. These words were pronounced, when the commoner criticized the main lead for mocking the poor quality of the poem. Since he was just a man obsessed with sex, he had no right to make fun of the poetry and author. He was worse than Jung In-Hun in his eyes, as he lived in debauchery. Striking is that the low-born kept seeing the lord that way until chapter 47: (chapter 48) But strangely, the main lead never realized it, until each time the commoner had to externalize it. How did he not see it before, and how didn’t the noble recognize that the artist hadn’t changed his perception about him in the second season? Thus I will try to answer these two questions in this essay.

I had exposed that Yoon Seungho feared his own image due to his self-hatred. Consequently, it meant that he had to rely on others to get a reflection about himself. However, we have to imagine that neither Kim nor Jihwa nor the other nobles gave him a honest portrait. They had no interest to reveal that he was a man obsessed with sex. Why? It is quite simple. Yoon Seungho’s mansion had become the kisaeng house for sodomy, and Yoon Seungho was the head-kisaeng. If you read the story from the start again, you’ll detect how the main lead is actually disrespected by his peers the whole time. Jihwa enters the lord’s mansion unannounced on multiple occasions (chapter 5here, no servant is sent to announce the noble’s arrival, which is quite rude; chapter 10, chapter 12, 17, 43). He acts, as if he owns the place. Moreover, the noble with the mole requests from the host to send away the artist (chapter 8). He acts, as if he had a saying in this, nevertheless he is just a guest and not the owner of the house. Moreover, he requests the whole attention from the main lead, as though the latter had to follow the guest’s desire. . No wonder, Yoon Seungho got infuriated and ejected the man. The painter’s presence revealed the disregard the noble had for the host. Striking is that even after getting dragged by the topknot, the aristocrat demanded an explanation for this humiliation. He didn’t realize his wrongdoing. This is not surprising that the Joker’s friend noticed the change in the protagonist. (Chapter 8) For the first time, the protagonist didn’t allow his peers to look down on him and requested more respect.

In chapter 19, Min invited himself at Yoon Seungho’s house in order to taste the expensive wine. (Chapter 19) He imposed himself upon the main character, yet Yoon Seungho didn’t feel upset. In fact, he just accepted the suggestion by a silence. It was, as if the protagonist was not allowed to refuse the invitation. More surprising is the place where The Joker suggested this: the brothel, an indication that the Yoon residence is considered as the noble kisaeng-house. I would even say, his mansion is the real place for pleasure and vices. And now, you comprehend why Yoon Seungho was pressured by the nobles in chapter 33. In the past, he would have given in, yet this time he showed them that there was a line not to cross. (Chapter 33) Imagine what would have happened, if the noble had followed their suggestion. The artist would have indeed turned into a prostitute.

From my point of view, the young nobles considered the protagonist as their head-kisaeng, he entertained them and allowed them to do immoral things (sodomy, wine and opium), while they could maintain their respectability and honor. Yet, since a kisaeng belongs to the lowest cast, it signified that the lord could get mistreated, exactly like a kisaeng. Besides, only the lord got the bad notoriety, he was a hell-raiser, because the aristocrats desired to hide behind him. He was their scapegoat and shield for their debauchery. He actually embodied all the vices the aristocrats were doing in secret. And now, you understand why the guest in chapter 53 told Min, he wanted to having fun without ruckus. (Chapter 52) In Yoon’s residence, there was no parent or authority to interfere. This explicates why father Lee blames the main lead for his son’s sodomy. He corrupted Jihwa, while in reality Jihwa treated Yoon Seungho like his possession and his personal concubine. He was the one visiting his place and not the other way around, like a husband visiting his “wife” (chapter 67) explicating why Jihwa could only get infuriated and jealous. The “husband”, treated like a concubine, was unfaithful. The second lead was even perceived by the town folks as the mistress (chapter 45), in other words the mistress of the house (the second definition: a mistress is a person of authority and power). This explains why he could trespass the mansion, like he desired. He considered Yoon Seungho’s mansion as his property, where he could enter at any time.

But if he was the real mistress of the house, why didn’t he stop Yoon Seungho from fooling around with men? Why didn’t he act more responsibly? First, the young man was blind and deaf, hence he couldn’t truly grasp what was going on. Secondly, he was too afraid to confront the friend. Remember that he always played tricks behind the lord’s back. Besides, we shouldn’t forget that Jihwa was himself treated like a servant by Min. If the mistress is disregarded, then the head-kisaeng can only get mistreated. Moreover, the second lead never realized that the nobles’ behavior contributed to the lord’s bad sexual habits. The manhwaphiles should remember that the second lead blamed the main character for fooling around (chapter 57), yet his friend was the one participating to the sex session. At no moment, he reproached him his behavior. In Jihwa’s eyes, only Yoon Seungho was responsible for this due to his past. Yet, he never tried to change the situation. I would like to remind the readers that the origins of Yoon Seungho’s bad notoriety are quite complex. Many people had an interest that Yoon Seungho focused on sex and nothing more: Yoon Seungho (he wanted to hurt his father), father Yoon (covering up his cowardice and own misdeeds), lord Song (making sure that the main lead doesn’t retaliate), Kim (leading a peaceful life and covering up his own wrongdoings), the nobles… and in the end Jihwa. The latter always wounded the main lead by using the past in order to attach the protagonist to him due to his neglecting father. Since the second lead had obtained a certain control over Yoon Seungho, he saw no reason to change. He could outlive his sexuality and have sex any time he wanted. Sure, his dream was to obtain the childhood friend’s love, yet he never saw the urgency, because he believed that time would help him. For him, there was this hope that at some point, the main character would confess. Yet, with Baek Na-Kyum’s appearance in Yoon Seungho’s life, the fragile balance was destroyed due the sex at the pavilion. For the first time, Yoon Seungho felt true desires and pleasure. This detail is important, because it truly outlines that Yoon Seungho was living like a head-kisaeng. He had sex without feeling any pleasure, just to serve others.

And now, it becomes understandable why the noble claimed the artist as his possession in two occasions (chapter 8 and 33). First, he voiced that the low-born would only paint for him. (Chapter 8) He was clearly demonstrating that he would never accept to give up on the painter. Slowly Yoon Seungho started asking respect for himself from others. In reality, he is a noble and he is quite rich through trade. This explicates why lord Min used the wine as an excuse to come to Yoon’s residence. He couldn’t ask the main lead, if he could borrow the painter. Furthermore, this statement and the humiliation revealed that Yoon Seungho was no longer a pushover. Hence Black Heart was more careful around the main lead. From my perspective, The Joker imagined that if the lord got drunk with the expensive bottle, he wouldn’t notice the artist’s disappearance. However, because the wine was stolen, Black Heart couldn’t achieve his goal that’s why he asked for a harsh punishment for the theft. Besides, Yoon Seungho showed no interest to organize a sex session any longer. His eyes were already set on Baek Na-Kyum. Since his initial plan failed, and the lord was no longer organizing parties, then he could only use the sex sessions as an excuse to see the painter. (chapter 33) (chapter 52) Everyone among the aristocrats did see the main lead as a head-kisaeng, who had to please her guests. Thus Byeonduck created such panels indicating that the nobles had always taken advantage of Yoon Seungho. (Chapter 54) They look like conniving creatures. Their wish would get granted in the detriment of the host. And now you comprehend why the lord got so angry, when he saw this. (Chapter 54) It was not just a reflection of his own past as an uke, but he saw his actual reflection. His house was a brothel and nothing more, and his guests were taking advantage of him. That’s why he got so infuriated and evicted the aristocrats. They truly showed no respect to him. It took many months for the lord to recognize this. And now you comprehend why he abhorred the idea of prostitution. He wasn’t even realizing that he was still doing it. Therefore Yoon Seungho could only come to the conclusion in chapter 55 that he needed to confess. First, this night made him realize that all this attempts in the past were to win the painter’s heart. Yet he was well aware that with his last action, he had almost sold his loved one to nobles, thereby the painter could only reject him. Besides, he had another reason to expect this outcome: his self-hatred.

Under this new interpretation, the manhwalovers comprehend why the household had a terrible reputation. (Chapter 29) Since a kisaeng belongs to the lowest class in Joseon society, the servants could look down on their master. Despite his title, he was living like a head-kisaeng, therefore the staff showed no respect towards their lord. (Chapter 32) This explicates why they didn’t follow his order, when he asked them to keep an eye on the artist. Nevertheless, as time passed on, the noble started acting more like a lord, hence the head-maid accepted his reprimand and decided to treat him differently. That’s why she bowed to Yoon Seungho in chapter 46. (chapter 46) And by comparing the two last pictures, the readers con detect the butler’s absence. the latter was responsible for the past situation, because he didn’t want to get into trouble. As long as the lord was acting like a head-kisaeng, providing entertainment for the local aristocracy, the valet could lead a peaceful life and definitely sway his misdeeds under the rug. Moreover, he could even use the master’s authority and act like a lord.

But let’s return our attention to The Joker. When the main lead stated this: (chapter 8), he was looking at Min, for he viewed the noble’s envy in his gaze. Since the artist was not allowed to paint for others, then the only possibility left for Black Heart was sex. If the painter joined their sex orgy, then he could achieve his goal: taste the commoner. Therefore you comprehend why The Joker is determined to kill Baek Na-Kyum. If he kills him, then Yoon Seungho is left with nothing. He is like in the past: he becomes again a “head-kisaeng” with no right. But as you can imagine, the Joker is deceiving himself. I doubt that he would be satisfied with just one session.

The problem was that Yoon Seungho never sensed that he was treated like a prostitute, because they created the illusion that he was the alpha among the sodomy community. (Chapter 33) The lord fell for this illusion, and he would have never realized it, if the painter had not entered his mansion. I also fell for this illusion myself for a while, calling him an alpha, while he was disrespected the whole time. However, this doesn’t mean that the main lead is powerless. He has indeed connections to the government (exactly like the kisaeng-house) and he is definitely rich, because he is a trendsetter. Min keeps copying his clothing and the master’s windscreen is the same at Min’s pavilion and the noble with the mole. That’s why Yoon Seungho never got to see his true reflection. In his mind, he was either busy reading or fighting with nobles, while in reality he was having sex for the most part of the time. Moreover, no one truly gave him a true reflection, since they had no interest to switch the situation.

And this negative reflection is also palpable in the paintings Baek Na-Kyum created, yet curiously the rich main lead never saw this image reflected in the pictures for many reasons. First, his unconscious noticed something else, the painter’s desire, so that the lord acted differently towards the artist. (Chapter 2) Therefore the main lead’s gaze in the picture mirrored the image of a man showing true interest, warmth and beauty. Later, he only got to see the ruined painting, which triggered a huge anger, hence he didn’t pay attention to the image. Then in the third picture, (chapter 16) he was no longer interested in the creation, since Yoon Seungho had already started wooing the commoner. (Chapter 16) Here the second lead was exploring an unusual position. Although the protagonist could have noticed this reflection “man consumed by lust”, because Black Heart commented it as lewd, he still didn’t observe it. His gaze and mind were all focused on the painter and his face. Then in chapter 41, he never saw the multitude pictures of him having sex with the low-born (chapter 41), because his gaze was only focused on the inauguration drawing with Jung In-Hun. (Chapter 41) And the moment the painter accepted him as his sex partner, he showed no interest in the paintings. However, he got annoyed, when he saw the first new creation. (Chapter 47) It was unfinished, and it gave the impression that both of them were acting like whores. That’s why the lord was indeed a little annoyed and made the following remark: (chapter 47) And it is in this chapter that he gets to discover his reflection… or better said, Baek Na-Kyum hadn’t changed his judgement about him, which provoked the next crisis. With the last painting, Baek Na-Kyum reproduced the situation, where the master was focused on provoking reactions in his partner in order to force him to abandon his torpor. (Chapter 52) Therefore the beholder couldn’t detect any love and affection in this drawing, only the attempt to incite pleasure. This explicates why Min described this as salacious, and had the feeling that the commoner was only interested in sex either.

Striking is that in the first painting, Baek Na-Kyum used a big wallpaper (chapter 2), while he only used small sheets of paper later. In my opinion, this is strongly connected to the return of the repressed sexual desires with the low-born. What also caught my attention is when he painted all the situation, when he had sex with Yoon Seungho having sex, the characters have no facial expression. It was, as though the lord was treating the commoner as his sex toy at his disposal. And that’s how the painter explained the rape. (Chapter 41) For him, every action from Yoon Seungho was caused by his obsession for sex, while the lord was trying to win his heart.

And while comparing all the creations, I recognized that they reflect not only his image as man consumed by lust, but also the disappearance of Yoon Seungho’s past life as sodomite and head-kisaeng. First, the huge painting with Jihwa is ruined, exposing that the latter is losing his control over his childhood friend. (Chapter 2) Simultaneously, Baek Na-Kyum destroyed it because of his jealousy (under the influence of his unconscious). The manhwalovers shouldn’t forget that in that wet dream, he wanted to take Jihwa’s place, attracted by the lord’s huge penis. Yet, he justified it with his doctrine. Furthermore, the second painting with Jihwa is created on a small sheet of paper reflecting the loss of the red-haired noble’s influence.

Later, when Jihwa ruined the painting with the threesome, the result was showing that Yoon Seungho’s life as head-kisaeng was starting vanishing. (Chapter 44) from that moment, the protagonist was no longer hosting any sex orgy which led Min to take over this role. Jihwa’s gesture symbolized that the childhood friend was not allowed to fool around with other men. However, he was quickly replaced by the painter. Let’s not forget that in the noble’s mind, Jihwa was just visiting him for his own sexual desires. He never recognized the childhood friend’s feelings. He had no reason to see otherwise, since the second lead treated him poorly. (Chapter 59) That’s why, after having sex with Jihwa, the “head-kisaeng” neglected his guest and went directly to Baek Na-Kyum for the painting in chapter 15, because the noble is already interested to taste the artist. At the same time, the low-born got his first sexual experience with the main lead. (Chapter 25) And here, the lord couldn’t perceive his own image as man consumed by lust, because his gaze was looking at the painter’s expression. This exposed the lord’s desire to see the attraction for Yoon Seungho in the painter’s eyes. His eyes were always focused on the painter the entire time, revealing that he was longing for more than sex. He wanted to see a mutual attraction… in reality, he wished to see a painting oozing warmth and love, exactly like in the publications he bought. And note that Yoon Seungho never got to see the last drawing, because his heart was too wounded by the distance. He hated so much the idea that the artist considered himself as a prostitute, while all this time, Yoon Seungho was just longing for love. Striking is that the ultimate picture is a blank sheet of paper mirroring the transition. (Chapter 65) Here, the lord has finally cut ties with his past. This marks the start of a new life and the painter will reflect his rebirth. But as you can see, the multitude of pictures (chapter 41) only mirrored the painter’s perspective about the main lead. For him, he was just a man obsessed with sex, while in truth he was just longing to get love. The problem was that the protagonist had never been taught how to show love. Furthermore, Kim made sure that the artist would only see this image. That’s why it took Yoon Seungho a long time, before he realized that he needed to recreate the Wedding night, so that the artist would be able to perceive his true feelings. For me, there’s no doubt that at some Baek Na-Kyum will create a huge painting with the main lead, and the low-born will be represented as well. Both will be portrayed with facial expressions exposing confidence and love. I am even predicting that Baek Na-Kyum will paint a new inauguration portrait with Yoon Seungho, which will contrast so much to the one with Jung In-Hun, where the commoner had no face and as such no identity.

Protected: Painter Of The Night: The power of … (second version)

January 10, 2021October 7, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Painter Of The Night: Valet Kim: a dog 🐶 , a matchmaker or a father? (third version)

December 30, 2020July 4, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 8 Comments

This is where you can read the manhwa. https://www.lezhinus.com/en/comic/painter But be aware that this manhwa is a mature Yaoi, which means, it is about homosexuality with explicit scenes. If you want to read more essays, here is the link to the table of contents: https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/04/table-of-contents-painter-of-the-night/

As painful as the chapter 64 was, it revealed a lot about Kim’s personality and his relationship with Yoon Seungho. Therefore I decided to focus on the butler. On the other hand, this is not the first analysis I wrote about him. So far, I had described him as the helping hand and the best man. Then in other essays, I had compared him to a dog, to a matchmaker or even to a surrogate father. But who is he really, and more precisely, what is the true nature of his relationship with the lord?

In order to answer this question, it is important to gather all the info we have about him. Valet Kim is the servant who served the main lead since the latter was a young teenager. This means, he saw the sensitive and intelligent boy growing up into adulthood. (chapter 57) And if we look at the picture, the manhwaphiles can detect that Kim seemed to have the teenager’s trust. This is visible thanks to the domestic and Yoon Seungho’s gestures. They are talking to each other in a very natural way. We can conclude that they were close, especially if I include this panel in my examination. (chapter 57) The way the boy is looking up at Kim indicates that the main character is quite attached to him. And because of this scene, the manhwaworms could sense the domestic’s qualities: care, trust, affection and loyalty. But what many readers failed to realize is that servant Kim is actually following father Yoon in reality. This means that the elder master trusts this domestic. The latter is even the one who introduced the physician to the lord of the mansion. (chapter 57) That’s why I come to the conclusion that the butler Kim was in fact loyal to the elder master and not to Yoon Seungho. He might have had an affection for the teenager, yet in truth he serves the head of the family. And notice that valet Kim is still giving the expensive medicine to the protagonist, although this was ordered by father Yoon. (chapter 57) But more importantly, the manhwaphiles should question themselves about the nature of this medicine. It is a drug to mess up with the main lead’s health? And this clue reveals that Kim is not working for Yoon Seungho. One might argue that Kim is just following father Yoon’s orders, but the latter lives so far away, hence the eldest master has no control to threaten the butler. Hence Kim could have stopped feeding the medicine, especially after knowing how father Yoon treated the son. In other words, it looks like his loyalty to father Yoon is still intact. This is palpable in two occasions. (chapter 35) In this scene, the valet gives an order to his master and not an advice, since he employs the verb “must”. Why? Because he thinks, the letter was sent by the elder master. And Yoon Seung-Won knew that Kim was loyal to their father. Hence when he sent the letter, he used his father’s name and authority, but in order to maintain the illusion that father Yoon was the author, the brother also requested that valet Kim would bring back himself the reply. The deceitful brother used not only the butler’s fidelity to his advantage, but also gave the impression that father Yoon cared somehow for the black sheep. It was, as if the elder master was trying to rekindle with his older son. The readers can sense more his loyalty to the elder master, if they compare his reaction, when Yoon Seungho received the fake letter from lord Song.(chapter 56) Here, the domestic got scared, by just hearing the name. Nevertheless, he gave his master the advice to postpone the meeting due to his health. Yet, observe how he hides his discomfort and fear to his master by suggesting to postpone the meeting which exposes that he is hiding his true emotions. He justifies his advice by faking concern for his lord. Hence the lord can only have the impression, he is protecting his interest. Striking is that since we saw him scared, we have the impression that he is brave enough to propose not to the follow the invitation. My initial impression was to think that he got afraid of the name lord Song due to the lord’s traumatic past and he feared for his master’s mental health condition. However, the moment the valet realizes that the noble is on his way to meet this aristocrat, he gets so scared that he leaves the mansion immediately. So he doesn’t want them to meet. (chapter 56) Then in chapter 57, the butler expresses his worries concerning father Yoon. He doesn’t want the elder master to hear the news about Jihwa’s public confession, as the servant is well aware of father Yoon’s mentality. (chapter 57) He seems concerned for Yoon Seungho again. He knows that the head of the family hates homosexuality. He witnessed how the father separated Jihwa from Yoon Seungho with the excuse of an illness. He was present, when the teenager was imprisoned in the mansion. (chapter 57) One might question his loyalty to father Yoon, since the butler chose to remain by Yoon Seungho’s side after the topknot incident. However, I could respond that the valet saw it as his duty to keep an eye on the elder son on behalf of the head of the family. From my point of view, valet Kim decided to follow Yoon Seungho for other reasons than true loyalty to the protagonist. In the past, I used to think that he felt guilty for the main lead’s suffering. But I had to review my judgement. If he truly felt remorse, then he should have treated the eldest son differently in the mansion. Yet, he let him become a head-kisaeng. Moreover, the guilty conscience only resurfaces the moment he is confronted with a situation reminding him of his wrongdoing. (chapter 65) This shows that he has been successfully repressing it. In truth, he did it out of selfishness, while faking affection and loyalty to the Yoons. The readers shouldn’t forget that the head of the family decided to leave the main domain and live in the countryside. Therefore he abandoned the mansion to his eldest son. By remaining by Yoon Seungho’s side, butler Kim was ensured to have a quiet life. The man was a wreck, hence he couldn’t manage the mansion. (chapter 57) Furthermore, as an infamous hell-raiser, no powerful noble would be interested in him. When the purge occurred, the son had become the sacrifice and scapegoat, hence he was forced to remain at the property. And now, you can grasp where the butler’s loyalty lies. He is faithful to the mansion and property, and not to Yoon Seungho or father Yoon in reality. This explicates why he lies to Seung-Won and tries to stop him from entering the lord’s chamber. As Seung-Won is only the second son, he is not considered as the lord of mansion, while father Yoon is the senior and is supposed to be the head of the family. Because he is bound to the domain Yoon, he is definitely acting more like a dog than like a matchmaker or a father. He is able to find his owner very quickly, as if he was following his scent. (chapter 57) He barks like one, when he yells at Deok-Jae. (chapter 47) He is also sent to fetch the painter, when the latter is somehow “abducted” by the scholar. (chapter 24) But the most conclusive evidence for this association is his rapport to the door. He is always shown next to an opened door or even often stands on the door threshold. (chapter 64) (chapter 45) Since dog owners often put the sign “beware of the dog” on their door, you understand why I see it as an evidence that the valet is more as a dog than anything else. The butler is the guardian of the mansion, watching out for the owner’s safety. However, here we should comprehend it in a figurative sense. On the surface, the butler is looking out for the reputation of the Yoons, while in truth he is just focused on living a peaceful life far from trouble. (chapter 65) That’s why in chapter 45, he let the false rumors circulate in town, because his relationship to a commoner is not revealed. This would cause a real scandal. On the surface, it looks like Kim cared for his lord and as such for the Yoons. (chapter 64) The dog is not only a symbol for loyalty, but also it represents obedience and secrecy. He knows what is happening in the mansion, but he won’t let it transpire to the outside world. Therefore I deduce that valet Kim is quite similar to Jihwa. He knows the main lead’s whole past and tragedy, but he doesn’t truly feel sorry for the main character, for if he revealed the truth, because it would expose his culpability. (chapter 12) Simultaneously, he uses his knowledge to his own advantage, similar to Jihwa, although the latter was manipulated by Kim’s lies. And if you take into consideration the role played by the dog in different mythologies, you’ll note that they all have something in common: they are guardians of the realm of death, like for example Anubis (Egyptian) or Cerberus (Greek). And since I interpreted the mansion as Yoon Seungho’s prison and compared the master to a zombie, until he met the painter, the manhwalovers can now understand the butler’s real function. He is actually the guardian of the realm of death for the lord. To sum up, he is contributing to the lord’s misery and loneliness, as he keeps him bound to the domain and family. Moreover, the gentle valet is aware of his true role, as he has internalized the social norms. As a domestic, he is supposed to serve his master with respect and obedience, which he does on the surface. However, the reality is different, as he lies to him on multiple occasions. Hence he needs to act in the shadow. Why? The real goal of the butler is to live a peaceful life without any big responsibility. As a guardian of the kingdom of death, Kim is the one who allows people to remain by Yoon Seungho’s side or not, but since the painter is affecting the noble’s life, Kim can only perceive the painter as his enemy and source of danger. Yoon Seungho might decide one day that he would like to leave the property and join the capital.

And now, you are wondering why I believe that the butler feels guilty, but don’t forget that his bad conscience is not the real reason for staying by Yoon Seungho’s side. In my opinion, he is the one who abandoned the main lead, as he didn’t protect him from father Yoon and from the rape. Like I mentioned it above, the teenager trusted his butler and showed him his affection, therefore he must have considered him as his surrogate father. Yet the moment the former needed his help, the latter chose to do nothing and remained loyal to father Yoon. The young man must have felt abandoned and betrayed. How do I come to this conclusion? First, his attitude in chapter 64 shows him in a negative light. Out of fear and shock, he runs away and leaves the painter to a terrible fate. (chapter 64) This is not the first time that the butler had a similar reaction. In chapter 26, he tries to calm down the painter asking him to stop crying, and when the latter criticizes him, the domestic decides to leave the bathroom with the excuse that he needs to fetch him new clothes. (chapter 26) (chapter 26) He is leaving the artist behind, as he doesn’t want to be confronted with his wrongdoing: his passivity and cowardice. Then when he meets the protagonist in the main way, he sees his cold and distant gaze. So he knows that his master is in a bad mental condition, yet out of fear, he still leaves the artist behind, well aware that something bad could happen. That’s why he chose to intervene in the shadow (like for example, sending a servant to the scholar) so that I am now convinced that he even witnessed what happened to Yoon Seungho, but chose to close the door. There’s a reason for this assumption. First, he is connected to an opened door. Secondly, there’s this incident with the door in chapter 16. (chapter 16) The butler chose to open it in secret, because he desired to remain anonymous, so that his loyalty wouldn’t be questioned. As soon as it was opened, he ran away without looking back, fearing to see what was happening. That’s the butler’s trauma in the end. Back then, he chose to remain passive and close the door leaving his young master behind. But Yoon Seungho caught his terrified expression, which he can never forget, that’s why he pointed it out to the painter. (chapter 64) (chapter 64) He resented valet Kim for his betrayal and abandonment. That’s why I believe, in that scene, Yoon Seungho is using the same words than his rapist from back then. (chapter 64) In this scene he is reliving his own traumatic past, the first rape. And after it had occurred the first time, the valet must have told him this: (chapter 23) This idiom exposes his attitude, he will act, as if he knew nothing. And since I revealed that father Yoon trusted Kim and the latter was loyal to him, I am now quite persuaded that father Yoon is responsible for the sexual abuse of his son first. Striking is that my theory was confirmed in chapter 65 and 74. However, the valet acted, as if nothing happened, while the teenager was blamed for letting the servant see the rape. (chapter 65) It is even worse than I had anticipated, because he was even asked for assistance, but the valet turned a blind eye. The advice (“ignorance is a blessing”) expressed by the butler exposes his complicity. The valet became the willing helper of a rapist. In his eyes, he couldn’t stop it, as he was just a domestic. (chapter 65) Since Kim never revealed the secret of the “so-called conversion therapy” leading to the sexual abuse, father Yoon trusted his loyal servant. That’s the reason why he accepted to leave Kim behind. He knew that he would do anything to maintain the reputation of the Yoons. Furthermore, this trauma explains why the master keeps having sex outside the storage room. He is well aware that the servant will never remain there, hence he asks him in a cynical way if he wants to become a peeper. (chapter 64) Now, I can understand why Yoon Seungho has such abandonment issues. For him, valet Kim was his father, as the latter was nice and caring for him. Yet during the rape, he did nothing, as he was just a servant. And now, you understand why he feels that he has been backstabbed by his two fathers, why the main lead is using his position to keep a boundary between himself and Kim and why he is using his right as lord to keep the painter by his side. He has internalized that being a lord can protect him from pain and vulnerability. In his delirious fit, he believes that he can get what he wants. Back then, he was just a young master and not the lord of the mansion, and Kim was just a domestic. After coming to this perception, I see the chapter 64 in a different way. The chapter 64 exposes the valet’s cowardice, culpability and selfishness, hence I judge the lord’s behavior in a different light. The monster is the result of the betrayal and abandonment from two fathers, and both decided to avoid reality and see the consequences of their choices. Notice that father Yoon ran away just like the valet. But the chapter 64 could mark a turning point in Kim’s life in my opinion, as he sees the consequences of his silence. That’s why the valet decides to accept the new situation: (chapter 65) Baek Na-Kyum is now the lord’s companion, while in the past he used to plot against him. In that moment, the valet recognized that ignorance is not a blessing, because this doesn’t erase the event. Observe that Kim has a similar approach than Jihwa again. Since the painter returned to Yoon Seungho’s side, the noble has now the feeling that nothing happened. For the first time, Kim sees the true face of his master (chapter 64), and the former contributed to this due to his passivity. Now, he is facing reality, seeing the consequences of his inaction. However, the butler’s resignation doesn’t is short-lived. It even looks like the butler didn’t learn his lesson, he chose to turn an blind eye to that terrible night finding fake excuses, (chapter 65) even blaming the physician for remaining silent. And since Byeonduck has this approach that only pain can lead to changes, we have to imagine that Kim will have to suffer this time.

The chapter 16 exposes that Kim was well aware of his master’s action and decided to intervene. One might question the valet’s motives. If he intervened, why did he help the painter in the end? This would contradict my earlier interpretation: the butler is a dog and as such, he is obedient to his master. However, let’s not forget that he is a guardian of the Yoons and their reputation. By separating the commoner from his master, he ensures that Yoon Seungho’s reputation doesn’t deteriorate much more. Kim hates uproars, as they represent a source of danger for his life. As you can detect, the butler is determined to protect the Yoons’ notoriety, but out of selfish reasons. The manhwaphiles should remember that in chapter 17, he asks the maids not to approach the study like that. He is determined to keep everything under cover. He disapproves the master’s actions, as they are going against social norms. As a noble, he shouldn’t have a sexual intercourse with a low-born. That’s why he let the boy desert the mansion after the rape. He didn’t do it for the artist, but for his master’s respectability, because if this was known, then the valet’s good life would be in danger. Kim has deeply internalized social norms, any deviation represent a threat to his peaceful live. Moreover, he would attract attention again. But when he witnessed the master’s despair and fury after the escape, where all the servants had to suffer the result of his decision, he chose a different strategy. Back then, I described him as his matchmaker. He tried to present his master in a better light so that the artist would have a change of heart and accept Yoon Seungho’s advances. However, now I have to admit that I have a different judgement. He was not a real matchmaker, he was trying to turn the painter into a favored servant so that the appearances would be maintained. He decided to use a similar strategy, the aphrodisiac as a first step. And with all these new discoveries, I come to the deduction that the butler was a real accomplice of father Yoon’s schemes. If they became close sexually, the painter would become a servant and take over his role as close assistant. That way, his presence in the lord’s bedchamber could be explained. That’s why he lets the painter attend the noble during his illness and even allows his presence, when the doctor is here. In other words, he would like to hide the scandalous relationship with the low-born under the pretense that he is just a favored servant.

Now, you can comprehend why the butler let Deok-Jae sell the expensive dresser . (chapter 45) First, it symbolized that the painter was more than just a favored favor. But more importantly, he never cared about the item, since (chapter 65) He knew that the noble wouldn’t pay attention to it, since it was broken. His passivity and silence explain why the servants could talk behind their master’s back and spread gossips, sell his things and even not follow his orders. (chapter 32) Kim has no real control over the staff, although he is the right-hand of the master. His indifference and his fear for responsibility explains his lack of authority. That’s why in chapter 63, he doesn’t even attempt to correct the maids talking badly about Baek Na-Kyum, although he already knows that there’s more to it. His silence should be considered as a sign of admission, reinforcing the servants to think badly of the painter. The painter is a liar and betrayer. I have to admit that Kim’s passivity really annoyed me in that scene. (chapter 63) He is indeed a hypocrite, a selfish person, (chapter 64) although he doesn’t look like one. No wonder why the lord felt so betrayed and abandoned, and hates hypocrisy the most. He stands in opposition to Jihwa in the end. While the one did nothing, the other acted too much out of selfishness.

Furthermore, with this perception, the manhwaphiles comprehend why the domestic never tried to convince the painter directly that he was not a prostitute. Since the latter was no longer refusing his lord, then in his eyes he had achieved his goal. There’s no huge difference between a favored servant and a prostitute. Both are not allowed to refuse the sexual advances from the partner. They have no rights, their pleasure doesn’t matter. That’s why he saw no need to reveal the conversation between Jung In-Hun and Baek Na-Kyum. He only disclosed it, the moment he saw his master was able to get closer to the painter and the latter had overcome his heartbreak. Besides, this explains why he criticized the painter in chapter 52. He was not fulfilling his role as favored servant. (chapter 52) He was not the “wife”, the mistress of the house, just a servant. As you can observe, the butler is someone who abides to rules very strongly, he can’t accept a relationship between a low-born and a noble. That’s why I come to the conclusion that Valet Kim never understood the real needs of his master in the end. He never grasped that the noble was missing love and couldn’t cope with his betrayal in the end, because for him love is not important, only a peaceful life. And with this new approach, it becomes understandable why Yoon Seungho was never repulsed by the low-born. Since his childhood, he felt closeness to a commoner, and considered Kim as his father.

But after the abandonment, Yoon Seungho had learnt a terrible lesson. Kim was just a domestic. This explains why there’s no intimacy and closeness in the present situation. Their actual conversations are very limited, the master gives orders or asks questions, but he never expresses his feelings or thoughts in front of the butler. He even hides his sadness and pain in front of him. (chapter 56) He trusts him to a certain extent, because the valet took care of him, while he was delirious. The domestic even stopped him from committing suicide. (chapter 57) Yet their relationship was never the same like in the past. For the lord, Kim decided to remain by his side out of loyalty and duty, nothing more. That’s why he is so adamant to remind the domestic of his actual position. (chapter 50) This explicates why Yoon Seungho can’t trust Kim’s words in the end. (chapter 62) In his eyes, he betrayed and abandoned him once, therefore it is definitely possible that he is lying. The longer the lord lives with the artist, the more he senses that Kim shouldn’t be trusted. This explicates why the lord’s relationship with the valet is deteriorating. In season 1, he never doubted Kim’s words, but now it has changed. The painter’s genuineness makes Yoon Seungho detect the butler’s fakeness and hypocrisy. And since the lord threatened him with the sword, I am envisaging that he will do it, the moment he feels that his loyal butler betrayed him.

That’s why I come to the conclusion that valet Kim didn’t consider Baek Na-Kyum as his new adoptive son and when he “defended” him, it was always because of social norms, because of the master’s rights and position . Notice that after Deok-Jae had played the “prank”, Kim criticized him and mentioned Yoon Seungho. His gesture could have affected the master. (chapter 47) This explicates why the vicious servant never got punished in the end. Baek Na-Kyum was not considered as Yoon Seungho’s official partner, he was just a favored servant. This explains why he has no protection either and he could get kidnapped so easily. There was a motive behind his nice gestures. He desired Baek Na-Kyum to feel comfortable, so that he wouldn’t become greedy and not ask for more rights. He noticed his talent, when he saw his painting in chapter 44, hence he realized that painting meant a lot to him. Therefore he bought materials for him. (chapter 45) The purpose of this action is simple. On the one hand, he gave the impression that he was protecting Yoon Seungho’s interest, on the other hand he was pushing the jealous servant to plot something so that Baek Na-Kyum would disappear. Kim was well aware of Jihwa’s visit in chapter 43. He knew that the second lead would do something out of jealousy. Kim needed the painter’s submissive attitude, as this could only affect his lord positively, turning the mansion into a golden cage. And while I envisaged that the shock Kim experienced during that night would make change his mind, (chapter 64) chapter 65 even destroyed this expectation. He remains the same, because his philosophy is: (chapter 65) Sure, he feels guilty again, as he tries to justify his silence and passivity with fake excuses. (chapter 65) Yet, his guilt is towards Baek Na-Kyum, that’s why he is reminded of the past and his own cowardice. However, since he has always run away from responsibility, his remorse was never strong to make him reflect on his own behavior. Back then, he didn’t help his young master and remained silent and now the story is repeating itself. By connecting both events, it becomes obvious that Kim hasn’t changed at all. There’s a reason for that. He never suffered himself, like both main leads did. And like I wrote, for the author, pain is the driving force that pushes people to change.

As you could observe, valet Kim has internalized the values of his time and his social status. He liked Yoon Seungho, but not to the extent of considering him as his adoptive son. For him, he was just a commoner and a servant of the Yoons. Therefore he saw it as an act of disobedience, if he had protected Yoon Seungho back then and defied the master of the mansion. One might argue that he couldn’t have stopped it due to his vulnerable status. Yet people shouldn’t forget that Kim chose to remain, not only passive but also silent. Moreover, father Yoon trusted him so this means that the valet was his eyes and ears. He could have act behind his back. The result was that he became an accomplice of the perpetrator. By covering up the scandal, he contributed to Yoon Seungho’s misery. He chose reputation over a young boy, who truly loved him. That’s why the noble feels so insecure, even a commoner was not willing to show his love for him. The latter preferred covering up the crime, as reputation and norms seemed to be more important than a person’s life. He wanted to stay out trouble. And now, it is too late, as there’s a scandal which Kim couldn’t prevent. As you can see, no one in this manhwa is free from mistakes and huge flaws. Many admire the valet Kim for his loyalty and his secrecy (acting behind the lord’s back), yet under this new perspective these actions leave a bitter taste, because they all contributed to the misery of the two protagonists. In fact, I realize that this was done on purpose. Kim deliberately chose to ruin their relationship. But even if you can’t perceive Kim’s evilness, let’s not forget this saying, the road to hell is paved with good intentions, which would also fit the butler’s character. He means it well, yet his choices are terrible, as he prioritized the wrong values. Furthermore, willing helpers play a huge role in a dictatorship. Their excuses can be fear and cowardice, but also their adherence to the wrong values. Moreover, this truly exposes that internalizing social norms blindly can not be right, because people need to question them in order to bring positive.

That’s how I judge this character now. For me, Kim is not a father, but a black dog, the guardian of the realm of death. Hence the lord couldn’t come back to life. With this new interpretation, his death seems more imminent. By dying, the butler contribute to the lord’s emancipation. The latter can finally leave the mansion, his prison. It was the place where he lived a hell.

Painter Of The Night: “It all started with…”

November 26, 2020March 30, 2023 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ Leave a comment

Please support the authors by reading the manhwas on the official websites. This is where you can read the manhwa. https://www.lezhinus.com/en/comic/painter But be aware that this manhwa is a mature Yaoi, which means, it is about homosexuality with explicit scenes. If you want to read more essays, here is the link to the table of contents: https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/04/table-of-contents-painter-of-the-night

Now, you are wondering why I chose such a title, because it offers so many possibilities. And that’s exactly the reason why I selected this title. I didn’t want to reveal immediately the real topic of the subject. Furthermore, I desired to look at the manhwa under this aspect, since it helps the readers to get a new understanding of Yoon Seungho’s actions and behavior.

1. … A painting

It all started with a painting, which caught Yoon Seungho’s attention and aroused him so much, that he became slowly dependent on the erotic pictures made by Baek Na-Kyum to the point that he had to use them all the time. (chapter 1) However, the moment Baek Na-Kyum stopped publishing, the addicted noble realized his terrible situation. He needed to have the creator by his side, since he couldn’t give up on his “addiction”. The paintings had become his drug and the moment the author stopped publishing, it made the lord recognize, that he needed to become the supplier. He couldn’t remain a buyer, since he was put in a vulnerable and insecure position. Therefore we could say as well, it all started with the painter’s vow.

Because of Baek Na-Kyum’s resignation, the lord suffered immensely, yet simultaneously the latter didn’t want to change his habit for his nightly activities. That’s why he had to find the source of his addiction: the anonym artist. And now, the first image gets another dimension. His smile not only expressed his happiness, but also exposed his intoxication at the same time. In other words, his euphoria was more artificial, as he was in the presence of his drug. This explicates why the lord was so self-centered and selfish in the beginning. He was prioritizing his own needs. Don’t get me wrong… I am not saying that his feelings for the low-born were not genuine, it was actually a combination of both. His unconscious had sensed the painter’s sensitivity and felt a certain closeness, yet because of his debauchery, the lord had perverted it and was behaving like a drug addict. Now, it becomes more understandable why Yoon Seungho had already announced a death sentence, (chapter 1) in case his wish didn’t get fulfilled, and why he became so “bloodthirsty” after the rejection. Just like a drug addict who becomes violent, if he is unable to get his drug, he felt the urge to release his anger. (chapter 1) It was, as if he was in withdrawal and couldn’t bear the thought, he hadn’t obtained what he desired. So when I compare the painter and his work to a drug, it puts the low-born in a bad light. Nonetheless this is not my intention at all. For me, the painter represents his cure in reality. Let’s not forget that the powerful aristocrat’s heart has been poisoned, corrupted by his father, therefore in order to get cured, he needs to find another “poison”, it’s like fighting a poison with another poison.

First, the painter confronts him with his own reflection (beautiful, attractive), which he has never experienced before. This drug is even more addictive than before, procuring new sensations. He becomes so high that he can’t control his erection and feels the need to have sex so early. (chapter 3) We see here the lord intoxicated by the new drug. It did release him from his prison, his self-hatred. Moreover, it helped him to see more clearly for the first time. His eye in his mind was now free from any corruption. Nonetheless the next day, he is faced with a different image. More precisely, his ears have to hear a terrible truth. Now, he is a man consumed by sex, which causes him to become pensive and depressed. He is no longer feeling the urge to have sex with Jihwa. And now, the manhwaphiles comprehend the true nature of the new drug: the painter’s gaze is liberating the lord’s senses, very similar to Jihwa. This is not surprising that the first two paintings (chapter 2) (chapter 10) he makes show our lord looking at the painter. Imagine, in the second image, he even has two sex partners by his side, yet his attention is directed at the creator and not his partners. This painting exposes their locked gaze and their growing intimacy. Baek Na-Kyum’s gaze has become the lord’s obsession, his new drug. The paintings Baek Na-Kyum creates exude warmth, beauty and naturality which stands in opposition to the world, where the lord is living: fakeness, superficiality, distance and coldness. But the lord’s attraction towards the painter increases so much that he would like to taste the artist. In other words, if he devours Baek Na-Kyum, he might get high again because the pictures are no longer enough to satiate his urges. Now, you can understand what this means. Having sex with the low-born signifies, he is “increasing” the dose. Note that this coincides with the third painting, where he is looking at Jihwa and not at the painter. During that night, he asked the commoner to join them. He was clearly expressing his interest in the artist. The locked gaze was no longer satisfying. This is also not surprising that the next day, he has no problem to cut ties with his long-time lover Jihwa. The artist has slowly replaced the sex partners. Without realizing it, the lord is becoming monogamous. Observe that from chapter 16, he has no nightly activity at all, contrary to the past. He makes a relapse in chapter 33, due to his guilty conscience. However, the moment he realizes that some nobles, especially Min, are looking at his “drug”, he recognizes what it really means, if he came to lose his new “drug”. His life and situation would be worse than before. Baek Na-Kyum’s gaze only belongs to him, hence he is willing to face a negative reflection.

Notice that the moment he is no longer obsessed with the paintings but with the artist’s love, he is no longer interested in his nightly activities. After chapter 21, he waits for the painter. He has already become monogamous. The long awaited picture serves a different purpose. Yoon Seungho would like to have a proof that he is loved by the painter. The image no longer represents his victory over a man and as such the noble he despises, but the mark of their love. He doesn’t feel the need to get aroused by the pictures.

2. … a kiss and embrace

Striking is that the moment he has sex with the artist, he discovers a new world: love and warmth. That’s the reason why this night still haunts his mind till the chapter 58. It all started with an innocent kiss but most importantly with the painter’s hug. (chapter 19) Notice that the moment the painter confesses to Seungho, he puts his hands on his shoulder and then he kisses him. But this doesn’t end here, later he puts his hands around his shoulders. (chapter 20) For the first time, the noble is embraced. And now, if you look at all the sex sessions he had with Jihwa or the others, the main lead was never truly hugged. (chapter 8) (chapter 9) (chapter 15) [I am not quoting the paintings again which could be added to this list] One might argue that in the first panel, the sex partner is hugging the main lead from behind. However, this gesture reminds us much more of a fight than of a real embrace, corroborating my initial interpretation of sex sessions. In truth, they are battles, where the ukes are the defeated ones. It looks like the noble is restraining the protagonist from moving. It’s, as if he was trapped. From my perspective, there is always a distance between him and the sex partners, especially in the threesome. (chapter 10) The lower part is focused on Min, while the mouth is busy kissing the other aristocrat. Yet Seungho’s chest, eyes and mind are neglected. Striking is that the main character is portrayed with no arm exposing his incapacity to hug anyone. And now, you understand the importance of the hug. During their first night, the painter keeps hugging the lord, although his gesture is quite reserved in the beginning. This ignites a desire in Yoon Seungho, the latter feels the need to return the embrace and hug the artist. (chapter 20) Yet, the more time passes on, the more the low-born holds the noble more tightly. (chapter 21) The painter voices the wish to be embraced. That’s why the former puts him on his lap. (chapter 21) You can sense that Yoon Seungho is willing to fill the gap and feel as close as possible to Baek Na-Kyum. He hugged him on his own first, yet the artist was the one embracing him fully at the end. (chapter 21) That’s why we could say that it all started with an embrace, the real cure. The painter’s gaze accompanied with the hands on Seungho’s shoulder created a new euphoria. This explicates why he was so obsessed with that night, why he attempted to renew this wonderful experience. In chapter 25, he tried to hug the painter from behind but failed terribly. (chapter 26) This was a gesture of defeat and submission and never an embrace full of love. One might argue that the noble had already hugged the painter before, (chapter 16) hence the artist’s hug during their Wedding night can’t mark the start. Yet, if the manhwaworms look at the way the master held the commoner in chapter 16, they’ll notice that the lord is hugging Baek Na-Kyum from behind. He was definitely restraining him from leaving his bedchamber, like a predator catching his prey. Sure, there’s no doubt that there exist emotions behind his gesture. Nonetheless, the hug was more under the influence of the unconscious. Consequently it is different from the night in chapter 19. Here, the lord was more looking for sex, whereas in chapters 20 and 21, it was a mixture of sex and love. However, at the end love became triumphant and the lord was no longer interested in sex.

And now if you perceive the painter’s gaze and hug as “drugs”, you can imagine why Yoon Seungho became so infuriated, hurt and violent at the pavilion. Like a person on withdrawal, he couldn’t control his emotions and behavior. Once he became sober, he realized his mistake. His mind had become clearer again. In my perspective, the “cure” helped him to release his emotions, which he had been repressing for so long. This explicates why he was reminded of his tragic past and relived his traumatic experience. He had decided to become numb in order not to feel any pain. The problem is that the moment he discovered love, he was not recognizing that he was allowing his heart to feel pain as well. Love and pain can’t be separated.

With this new perspective, it becomes understandable, while the lord hugged the artist while bathing. (chapter 59) He became addicted to the hug. The problem was that the painter seemed to have forgotten their lovemaking. On the other hand, the lord couldn’t forget the painter’s arms therefore he often grabbed the artist’s arm (chapter 22) (chapter 30), as if they were a treasure to him. The roughness vanishes gradually, for the lord changes for the better as well. But more importantly, in the following gestures, the readers can sense his desire to hug the artist. And as time passes on, the gesture becomes more obvious and pronounced. It started with an arm, (chapter 22) then it was the chest(chapter 40) , (chapter 42) until it became a real hug. (chapter 49) However, the real climax is reached in chapter 58. This time, the aristocrat in love is holding him so tightly with his both arms. (chapter 58) There is no gap between them, the artist is no longer putting some distance with his head, unlike in chapter 49 (third panel above) or the lord is grabbing the neck to make sure that the artist keeps kissing him (second panel above). Yet, while they make love (chapter 58) , the lord is no longer holding him and gazing at him, he is just grabbing his hand and whispering his love confession. This signifies that the lord has truly given up on his dream and has accepted reality. The painter’s gaze and hug were just an addiction and he is admitting that he will never be loved. He will see this night as a wonderful illusion but he won’t feel any anger, despair and pain after that night. We could say that the lord has finally defeated his inner demons and addiction. He is free from his past and can now use his mind clearly. (chapter 61) Baek Na-Kyum purified the lord so that the latter has truly become selflessness and no longer needs sex. He won’t organize any sex session or any party with wine and opium. In my opinion, the last debauchery symbolized his final relapse. Observe that during that week, he had no sex and wasn’t even aroused, when a noble gave him a blowjob. Sex has become irrelevant thereby we can conclude that his transformation is complete. He has become a truly reformed man. (chapter 61) And as much as it pains me that the lord won’t look for the artist right away [that’s my theory and since Byeonduck liked a tweet where I expressed this], I believe, this picture symbolizes something positive too. The lord’s mind and heart are at peace. Now, he can think and see lucidly and once he discovers Baek Na-Kyum’s painting and the tools left in the study, he will recognize his mistake.

3. … the arms and hands

And because it started with a hug, it becomes comprehensible why the lord loved hugging his lover. In reality, he wished to be embraced too and the hug in chapter 16 externalized his deeply repressed desires. This is not surprising that a hug from the painter could stop Yoon Seungho’s rage and fury. Imagine his emotions, when the low-born did this. In that scene, the master was acting like a monster, nevertheless it didn’t stop the artist to embrace him despite the slap and his ugly behavior. But for Baek Na-Kyum, it was the same as well. He also longed to be embraced hence for him, their Wedding night represented a dream, where he could express his desire and experience what he wanted to have. He wanted to express his love, shower his learned sir with his affection. Strangely, it started with a hand (chapter 30) forcing the low-born to accept him as his new master. However, notice that the painter’s hands become more decisive and grab more firmly Yoon Seungho’s wrist in chapter 42. (chapter 42) This reflects the evolution of their relationship. The painter is here accepting the aristocrat as lover. Simultaneously, he is touching the place where the lord’s unconscious is voicing his desires. And this gesture triggers the lord later to put him on his lap, attempting to embrace him. And the more the lord hugs the painter, the more the latter is affected by it. The reason is simple. Just like the main lead, the commoner was deprived from warmth and love for so long and receiving it for the first time, this could only move the main lead. The manhwaphiles should remember that the artist asked the master to hold him in chapter 41 (chapter 41), exposing his need for comfort and embrace. Yet back then, the lord was confusing love with sex hence he couldn’t give correctly what the painter desired. He was not able to distinguish the difference. In truth, both were lost persons mixing up sex with love due to their terrible fathers.

Nonetheless the latter rejected the affection from Yoon Seungho in chapter 49, as he had been reminded that a hug could be fake. So he was still doubting the protagonist’s feelings. The significance of the embrace explicates why the low-born is affected in chapter 58. He keeps blushing displaying his emotions. He is really loved, displayed by the lord’s words and gestures. That’s why the hug is reciprocated but it is too beautiful to be true. Consequently the noble doubts its existence.

But because it all started with a kiss with a hug and love confession, we have to imagine that the artist will feel the same need than the protagonist in chapter 22. He will long for his lover’s arms, especially after that terrible experience. That’s why I am convinced that the moment Baek Na-Kyum returns to the mansion, he will definitely try to embrace Yoon Seungho, missing his warmth and protection so that we have a new version of the hug in chapter 53.

As a conclusion, we have two protagonists deprived from their own body due to their fathers’ abuse. Finally, both were able to find what they had been longing for a long time. And since the lord is no longer a man consumed by sex, he will be able to show his love differently, supporting his love in his education and his talent. Yoon Seungho will become his sponsor and drop the surrogate father for good.

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for topics or manhwas, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, retweet it or push the button like. My tumblr-twitter account is: @bebebisous33. Thanks for reading and the support.

	important3a81023817 on Jinx: Following the Teddy Bear…
	raychio on Jinx: Following The Teddy Bear…
	Bébébisous33 on Jinx: Following The Teddy Bear…
	Bébébisous33 on Jinx: Following The Teddy Bear…
	buttery26a4ec98f2 on Jinx: Following The Teddy Bear…