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/
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The first reaction many readers had was to celebrate the butler’s courage, because he chose to tell his lord the truth and confront him with his true reflection. And unlike all the other characters, he mentioned one positive aspect: the lord’s good heart. 
(chapter 68) In their eyes, valet Kim had turned into a hero not fearing his death. But we had another hero in this chapter, the scholar Jung In-Hun. The latter took the crying Baek Na-Kyum in his arm and brought him away from the scene, where Heena noona was getting beaten by a rich noble.
(chapter 68) In her eyes, he was a hero, because he showed concern and care towards her tenderhearted brother. 
(chapter 68) Yet, only a few applauded Jung In-Hun for his behavior. Why? It is because many readers have already perceived his true nature: his hypocrisy and coldness hidden behind his calm demeanor and huge smiles. That’s why we need to examine more closely the behavior of these two father figures. Are they truly heroes? In order to answer this question, it is important to look at the definition of heroism and at the characteristics of a hero.
Heroism is characterized by:2
- Acting voluntarily for the service of others who are in need, whether it is for an individual, a group, or a community
- Performing actions without any expectation of reward or external gain
- Recognition and acceptance of the potential risk or sacrifice made by taking heroic actions https://www.verywellmind.com/characteristics-of-heroism-2795943
So let’s start with the scholar’s heroism. I would like to remind the reader that this scene is told from Heena noona’s perspective. If the manhwalovers observe Jung In-Hun’s action, they have the impression that the scholar is indeed helping someone in need. He is comforting the upset boy. (chapter 68) So the first condition is met. However, neither the second condition or third component are present in the teacher’s gesture. Jung In-Hun is not exposing himself to danger, risking his own life as he doesn’t come to help the real person in danger: Heena noona. Actually, the real person who needed to be rescued was the gisaeng, and not the artist. 
(chapter 68) Yet, the so-called hero abandoned her to her misery, as he walked away from the room. (chapter 68) This shows that he wasn’t willing to risk his life or position. There are no selflessness and sacrifice. Secondly, he did hope something in return: while consoling the kind boy, he hoped to get recognition from the gisaengs. They would see him in a positive light, hence if he came to visit the brothel again, they wouldn’t ask him for money, and I can even envision that they would give him some wine or food. Furthermore, they would allow him to roam around. No one would question, why he would come to the gisaengs. His reason was simple: he liked the tenderhearted boy. Finally, we have to question about the scholar’s appearance at the brothel. Why was he there, so dressed up? This scene is relevant, because it displays how Heena noona got manipulated in the end. The teacher used Baek Na-Kyum as tool in order to save his own skin. In reality, Jung In-Hun was there in order to get noticed by rich and powerful nobles. He hoped to find some connections, as he knew that the brothel was the place, where influential aristocrats would like to spend their time. In my opinion, this is what happened. Jung In-Hun knew the importance of Baek Na-Kyum at the brothel. From my point of view, he used this knowledge to achieve his goal. He must have approached the guest at the gisaeng, while Heena noona was serving him. But the rich aristocrat got upset that a scholar was bothering him and started beating the poor woman. Seeing this, Baek Na-Kyum cried which gave Jung In-Hun the excuse to leave the place. He needed to console the boy. While reading this, the manhwalovers sense the origin of Heena noona’s prejudices towards rich aristocrats. The latter would disregard her, because the teacher was around, as the latter was hoping to get some benefit from it. With this scene, Byeonduck exposes the origin of Heena’s blindness, which is also visible in different panels, like this one: 
(chapter 68) As you can detect, the absence of her eyes reflect her blindness. The feelings she is projecting onto the painter’s are actually her own. 
(chapter 68) Now, we know why Baek Na-Kyum was so indoctrinated in the end. His own sister was also a victim of the manipulator, whom I had already diagnosed as a person suffering from a narcissistic personality disorder. Note that she uses the same vocabular than the scholar. 
(chapter 18) Hence I come to the conclusion, the teacher used the school in order to manipulate the commoners and the gisaengs. While he portrayed himself as righteous and kind, he described the powerful nobles as violent and arrogant, so that he would get the admiration from the commoners. In truth, he was deceiving them, since he looked down on them. Yet he needed them in order to get some connections to the powerful and rich nobles visiting the gisaeng house. On the other hand, since he didn’t want to get too close to the gisaengs, he employed the innocent boy as a shield, misleading Heena noona to think that Jung In-Hun had feelings for her brother. That’s why he hugs the protagonist so tightly. (chapter 68) For Heena, he was a hero, because he gave the impression that he cared for them, whereas it was the total opposite.
If we pay now attention to the butler’s behavior, it looks like the first aspect (“Acting voluntarily for the service of others who are in need“) is present in his action. He wanted to help Heena. 
(chapter 67) However, the second component (“Performing actions without any expectation of reward or external gain“) doesn’t apply, because he is not doing it for free. Let’s not forget Kim’s philosophy, which was exposed in chapter 65:
(chapter 65) He hates scandal and trouble. The gisaeng created such a uproar that Kim almost lost his credibility in front of his master. 
(chapter 65) He had two reasons for allowing her to meet the painter. First, Kim feared that she would cause more chaos in the future. Secondly, Kim realized that Baek Na-Kyum had become a huge source of trouble. He knew that the artist had been abducted, hence he got aware that Baek Na-Kyum had become a target of nobles. Furthermore, as soon as he had been returned, his sister made such a ruckus that she had turned the mansion upside down. Besides, like I had mentioned before, due to her behavior, she had put Kim in a difficult spot. Finally, he had another ground for giving his help: (chapter 65) He had seen the painter hurt in the bedchamber, so his words “Lord Yoon will not harm Nakyum” were proven wrong. Therefore I conclude, he had something to gain from his intervention. But what exactly? In my perspective, Kim wanted to get rid of the painter. The valet had already anticipated that Heena noona would ask her brother to leave the mansion. That’s why he said her this: (chapter 67) The butler anticipated her words and actions, as he is very perceptive (see chapter 23). At the same time, he told her the truth: 
(chapter 67) He had never received the authorization from his master. However, the manhwalovers should recognize that he painted his master in a rather negative light, while leaving a good impression on her. 
(chapter 67) In his mind, the butler thought that Baek Na-Kyum would leave the place right away after the harsh treatment he had received. For him, there was no doubt that no one in his right mind would stay at such a place. He knew that Yoon Seungho would come back soon. In other words, he was not helping Heena or Baek Na-Kyum here. He was doing himself a favor: his desire was to lead a peaceful life. Therefore, this explanation contradicts the first point.
As for the third point (“Recognition and acceptance of the potential risk or sacrifice made by taking heroic actions“), the manhwalovers should question this: When he granted the favor, was he putting his life at risk or was he willing to sacrifice himself? In my opinion, he was not, as he was acting behind his master’s back. He waited for the lord’s departure, then he allowed her to enter the mansion with the hope that Baek Na-Kyum would follow her right away. That’s why he was waiting outside next to the door. At the same time, he couldn’t tell her to hurry. At no moment, he was risking his life. He was using his position as the loyal valet to make decisions on his own, and even lied to the head-maid, when she questioned his behavior.
(chapter 67) In my opinion, we have here a new version of the painter’s escape from the first season: Kim acting as a shadow helped the artist to run away (chapter 29-30). However, the problem is that he got caught by Yoon Seungho. 
(chapter 68) What should he do now? I would like to remind the manhwaphiles that Kim had not only disobeyed his master’s order, but he had acted, as if he was a lord. He had given the permission without Yoon Seungho’s consent. 
(chapter 68 It is important to recall that this story takes place in Joseon, therefore Kim’s action can definitely be judged as a betrayal and usurpation of power. One might argue that he desired to help Heena, yet like I exposed above, he did out of selfishness and not because he felt concerned for the painter and for her. As such, Yoon Seungho has the right to be upset. He is the master and someone is acting behind his back, overlooking his orders. Under this perspective, the head-maid appears more loyal to her lord than Kim himself. In this scene, he was only serving his own interest.
People were rejoicing that Kim became brave, because he criticized his master for his behavior. But what they failed to realize is the importance of the timing. Why now? Observe that Kim only starts confronting the main lead after Yoon Seungho threatens him with consequences: 
(chapter 68). Note that the protagonist doesn’t menace to kill the gisaeng. He just desires to send her away, but he is now determined to punish his butler for his disobedience. He usurped his position, and as a lord he is allowed to do so. And that’s the moment, when Kim starts speaking the truth, which many readers associate to something positive.
However, this is important to realize that truth can also be used as manipulation. This is called paltering. Psychologists discern 3 types of lie: lie by commission, lie by omission and paltering.
“Like lying by omission, paltering can involve failing to disclose relevant information, but unlike lying by omission, paltering involves the active disclosure of true but misleading information: paltering enables would-be deceivers to actively influence a target’s beliefs” (Rogers, Zeckhauser, Gino, Norton, & Schweitzer, 2016). quoted from https://workplacepsychology.net/2016/12/18/to-deceive-using-truthful-statements-is-called-paltering/
This type of lie and manipulation is often used by politicians and even traders. They try to divert attention from the real main issue, and in our case: the butler’s disobedience and abuse of power. The other advantage is that since the paltering person is using truth as his tool, it is easier to remember and not get caught by the target. Moreover, the manipulator doesn’t have to feel guilty, as it looks like ethically more correct than lies.
That’s why it is important to look at the timing, when Kim reveals the truth. Here, I would like to bring another scene, where Kim’s first paltering was visible: chapter 50 
Note, that in that chapter, the lord had the sword in his hand, and strangely the valet came late. As you can imagine, this is no coincidence. In my opinion, butler knew that something bad had happened and in order to escape his lord’s bad mood, he arrived late on purpose (lie by commission), but at the same time he revealed his knowledge about the cause for Baek Na-Kyum’s depressed mood in order to divert his master’s attention. That way, he could put the blame on the absent noble, but also on the painter. The latter had disregarded him due to the scholar’s words. At the same time, he made the lord feel insecure, because it showed him that he had behaved exactly like a client, a man obsessed with sex. That’s why with the butler’s intervention, the master had a relapse. What mattered for Kim was a peaceful life, the rest is 
(chapter 65) Yet, he never expected such a change of behavior in the main lead, that’s why he blamed the painter afterwards. 
(chapter 52)
Hence I come to the conclusion that Kim’s MO is mostly paltering. And now, it is time to return our attention to the conversation between Yoon Seungho and his valet. It is important to examine each argument Kim brought up: 
(chapter 68) Initially, it looks like he is appealing to the lord’s heart, but in reality the main point is the noble’s judgement. The valet is reprimanding his master for his lack of discernment. He misjudged the painter’s behavior. This is relevant because in this panel, I view a first emotional manipulation. His real intent is to make the lord doubt his own judgement, like “look, back then you made the wrong decision… therefore you could be wrong here”. But the readers know that Yoon Seungho is right. Heena is determined to take away his lover, so his initial judgement about Heena is indeed correct. In his eyes, she represents a source of thread, he might lose the artist. One might argue that Yoon Seungho is sequestring the painter which is also correct, yet like my reader Luzy pointed out, this is the painter’s decision. Neither Kim nor Heena nor Yoon Seungho have to make the decision for him. And here, Kim and Heena are trying to do so. The problem is that Kim got caught. But let’s go back to my initial thought. Kim used his knowledge (the lord’s misjudgment) in order to make his lord doubt himself. and he appealed to his emotions for that. This type of manipulation is called gaslighting:
“Gaslighting is a form of emotional abuse that’s seen in abusive relationships. It’s the act of manipulating a person by forcing them to question their thoughts, memories, and the events occurring around them. A victim of gaslighting can be pushed so far that they question their own sanity.” https://www.healthline.com/health/gaslighting#:~:text=Gaslighting%20is%20a%20form%20of,they%20question%20their%20own%20sanity.
As a conclusion, Kim made the lord feel insecure and doubt his own judgment and used facts in order to achieve his goal. The lord should rely on his butler’s discernment. But the mercy and favor for the painter are just a subterfuge, he is trying to mask his wrongdoing.
I could bring up another panel as illustration: 
(chapter 68) Here, he is using the past in order to distort reality and memories while speaking truth. What Kim doesn’t mention here is his involvement in that incident. 
(chapter 65) Kim is destroying the lord’s confidence, so that Yoon Seungho will rely on Kim’s judgement.
If you pay attention to Kim’s words during that confrontation, Kim is actually utilizing many psychological and emotional manipulations:
- Guilty trip (chapter 68) “You are so cruel to this boy”. He might be right, yet why didn’t he say anything in chapter 64?
(chapter 64) He literally looked away, because truth wasn’t helpful in this case. Feigning innocence and ignorance was more appropriate. 
(chapter 23) - Shaming and vilifying the target:
(chapter 68) - Projection: it is a defense mechanism used to displace responsibility. Here, Kim decided to use Baek Na-Kyum as justification for his infraction: (chapter 68)
- Triangulation: “Triangulation is a tactic used to manipulate an interaction between two people who are not communicating directly with one another. It is problematic because a third person becomes involved in a situation that should be between the two individuals involved in the conflict.” https://www.e-counseling.com/mental-health/what-is-triangulation-psychology/
(chapter 68) Here, Kim is mentioning the past, where he played an active role between the father and son. In other words, he is reminding the master that he is acting like a mediator. However, this revelation exposes the servant’s manipulation. He was one of the causes for the falling apart between father Yoon and the eldest son. We have to imagine that he never revealed the real reason for Yoon Seungho’s rebellious nature to father Yoon. And here, he is behaving like in the past. He tries to intervene between Baek Na-Kyum, Heena noona and Yoon Seungho, as if he had the right to. 
(chapter 68) - Diversion: (chapter 68) he is bringing up the past to divert Yoon Seungho from the main problem: Kim abused his position.
- Negging: (chapter 68) making a person feel bad about herself, by giving backhanded compliments or comparing to another person. On the surface, it looks like constructive criticism, while in reality the victim is supposed to feel terrible and doubt his personality. https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/negging
I have to admit that I can’t give you an illustration of all psychological tricks Kim used in this confrontation. On wikipedia, there is a whole list of different psychological manipulations, which served me as orientation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_manipulation Nonetheless, as the readers can detect, I tried to look for more info for this analysis.
After portraying Kim as a manipulator, I would like to remind my reader of two aspects: I described the butler as the gatekeeper, the one who opens the door. And now, if the manhwaphiles pay attention to this picture, (chapter 68) they will detect that the door is now open. The valet opened Pandora’s box in my opinion. That’s why Yoon Seungho was hurt and at the end ran away. 
(chapter 68) He had heard, how Heena noona was comparing him to misfortune, reinforcing his negative opinion about himself. 
He had been already prepared mentally by his butler. He was as wounded as Baek Na-Kyum, when the scholar had voiced his true thoughts about the painter. 
(chapter 40) While the artist’s fate is to become a prostitute, the other is destined to bring misery. He already externalized this perception about himself in chapter 49: 
(chapter 68) For me, chapter 68 is the new version of chapter 40. That’s why I wasn’t rejoicing at all about Kim’s behavior. He was far from being honest with his truth. In reality, he used truth mixed with emotions as his ultimate tool in order to save his own skin. In other words, he functioned as the noble’s mirror.
This scene made me think of “Snow White and the 7 dwarfs”, where the mirror of truth tells the jealous queen that Snow White is far more beautiful than her. With this truth, the queen is led to take actions against the heroine and torment her. And here, we have another allusion how truth can be used as a weapon. The mirror never told the queen how to become the most beautiful woman. He never gave her any advice, it retained information: beauty can be different. It is not just the physical aspect, but it is about the personality. Therefore we could say that the mirror of Truth manipulated the queen leading her to her own demise. However, at no moment the queen never questioned the mirror of Truth and its ulterior motive. That’s exactly how Kim behaved the whole time explaining why Yoon Seungho never suspect his words. They reflected the truth. Yet the valet never intervened for his sake and for the painter’s sake. He only did, when he noticed that his lord was angry and let others take the blame, like here the father or Yoon Seungho himself. However, the readers should remember that in this scene, Kim had abused his authority. That’s also a fact.
Therefore I don’t consider Kim as a hero, quite the opposite. He is the worst manipulator, the reason why Yoon Seungho ended up with self-hatred and became violent with his swing moods. Kim isolated him, eroded his sense of reality, making him fear his own image. Besides, he didn’t even help him, when he got raped. Since Yoon Seungho has been manipulated psychologically and emotionally for years, he ended up hating himself.
“Long term effects of emotional manipulation:
- Isolation and numbness
- Requiring approval
- Feeling resentful
- excessive judging
- depressive disorder and anxiety” https://peaksrecovery.com/blog/effects-of-psychological-emotional-manipulation
- insomnia
- chronic pain
- guilt
- eventual feelings that their partner or parent is correct, and that they are “no good” or ugly, for example https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/327080#long-term-effects
That’s the reflection Kim wanted him to have, so that the latter would never question his servant’s actions. And now, this picture has another meaning for me: 
(chapter 57) His gaze is only focused on his valet, not realizing that the latter is not honest with him. From my point of view, there’s a reason why Byeonduck put Jung In-Hun’s so-called heroism (chapter 68) next to the valet’s . (chapter 68) For me, she put the readers in the same situation than Heena noona’s. Just like the kisaeng, many readers expressed their admiration for the butler, because he had told the truth. They associated truth to goodness. Heena noona also watched the kindness in the scholar’s gesture leading her to think that the teacher was a honest and caring person, yet she overlooked that the teacher had in reality abandoned her. He never protected her and let her suffer. This picture truly reflects his cowardice and treachery 
(chapter 68) He slowly takes the artist in his arms. He doesn’t rush to her side, remains silent and immobile. His passivity reflects his true personality, but Heena is too focused on her young brother to grasp the situation. (chapter 68) The crying boy is used as a diversion. Besides, I am quite certain that Jung In-Hun was actually the source of her misery by trying to get attention from powerful nobles. Note that the scholar and Kim utilize both the painter’s to hide behind their misdeed. He serves as a justification why the scholar left the gisaeng behind and why Kim defied his master’s order. The domestic used kindness and pity as legitimations (chapter 68), while it was the opposite. He desired to get rid of them.
But there’s hope in my opinion. Baek Na-Kyum refused to listen to his sister’s words, which Kim hadn’t expected. Therefore he got caught, he anticipated Baek Nakyum’s eagerness to leave. (chapter 67) Secondly, by giving his master a reflection of his behavior, the valet lost his influence on the main lead. Remember that I wrote that Baek Na-Kyum served as the lord’s mirror, therefore he will take over the valet’s role. He will reveal his true reflections: his flaws and wrongdoings
(chapter 68), but also his quality: his honesty
(chapter 58). Let’s not forget that the artist realized his dedication in chapter 58. Note the huge difference. The artist never uses others in order to judge the lord. Kim will realize soon enough the consequences of opening Pandora’s box. He might have achieved his goal (the lord won’t punish him for his disobedience), yet he lost his lord’s trust. Notice that right after this quarrel, Yoon Seungho started treating Baek Na-Kyum like a noble. 
(chapter 69) 
(chapter 72) From that moment on, Yoon Seungho was no longer viewing the valet as the unofficial lord. We could say that he had lost his status as “hero” in the main lead’s eyes.
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(chapter 67) My first thought was: “Where were you all this time?”
, because I immediately connected it to chapter 3, when the protagonist visited his childhood friend early in the morning. Back then, he barged with an erected phallus 
(chapter 3) and had sex with Jihwa at the pavilion, where both were not quiet at all. The red-haired noble kept even moaning. 
(chapter 3) Their intercourse was noticeable, but at no moment father Lee interrupted them. And now, the erected phallus was switched to a sword, and unlike in chapter 3, where the second lead was eager to meet his sex partner
, the master chose to hide behind a windscreen. 
(chapter 67) However, this time father Lee intervened. Why all of the sudden? For the first time, his son caused a real trouble, because someone entered his house with a sword: a huge scandal! Furthermore, he must have realized that his son’s life was in danger, hence he had to intervene. The domestics couldn’t deal with such a powerful noble. And now, you understand why I couldn’t restrain myself from smiling, because the father Lee’s reproach sounded so hypocrite. 
(chapter 41) He spent the whole night drinking and his father never asked about his whereabouts. He never showed any concern, as he has his staff to take care of him. In other words, he put the whole responsibility on the domestics. After confessing to Yoon Seungho in public, no servant shows up and takes care of him indicating that neither father Lee nor the staff heard about the scandal. Nameless was the one who was asked by the inn owner, if he could take care of the young noble. 
(chapter 59) He even gave him a dry robe and a home for the night. Since the servant only showed up the next morning in chapter 41 and he didn’t even appear during the night in chapter 59, it illustrates that the staff is more attached to the mansion than to the impulsive noble himself in truth.
(chapter 50), he is even willing to risk his life 
. (chapter 67) He simply follows his master’s request, as he feels, that’s his duty and lord Lee could ask for his accountability. 
(chapter 45) That’s how isolated the father is cut off from reality and world. This is not surprising that his son resembles him, he also lives in his own world. 
, which corresponds to the expression “sensory isolation”. Back then, I had imagined that he had been abused as well. I was wrong, since it was just neglect which I had already detected. However, the consequences of such a severe neglect are as terrible as abuse. Consequently, abuse and neglect are often considered the same. 
(chapter 13)
(chapter 13); aggression 
(chapter 17)
(chapter 51)
(chapter 59) In chapter 56, Jihwa sent a fake letter reminding Yoon Seungho of his trauma, yet he acts as if the other is to blame and shows no remorse. That’s why many children suffering from emotional neglect have problems with rules and laws. 
(chapter 9)
(chapter 57)
(chapter 67), although he had lied to him in the past.
(chapter 67)
(chapter 50)
(red circle). Because of the character’s previous deafness and blindness, I immediately connected it to the wise 3 monkeys: 
(chapter 67) This is is visible in this panel. The character can’t even stand. Min, the Joker and surrogate father, treats Jihwa as his servant and punishes him, because he had not followed his order. Jihwa has not entirely developed his identity, since he has always lived in his own limited world. A father has not only to provide security and comfort, he helps the child to learn self-control and boundaries. A father is associated to rules and should teach his child how to channel aggressivity. In other words, he serves as a role model for the child. But with the absence of a father, this is impossible. And since the domestics belong to the lower social class, Lee Jihwa always had the upper hand and could do anything: his father never appeared, when Jihwa was destroying his room with his sword in chapter 21. Besides, father Lee never paid attention to the friends his son had. He blames Yoon Seungho for his son’s debauchery, yet at no moment he intervened in the past. The main lead is correct to blame the father and put his son in a different light. 
(chapter 67), but it was short-lived due to Yoon Seungho’s appearance. We have to assume that Yoon Seungho played the role of the father after the former had been abandoned by his own father. However, he could never assume this function properly, as he was suffering himself and couldn’t give him the emotional and educational comfort Jihwa needed. Let’s not forget that the protagonist chose to ignore his own feelings, to even numb them. Hence it was impossible for them to connect emotionally. 
(chapter 57) “wayward” is a synonym for rebellious indicating that Yoon Seungho had started questioning his father’s behavior and words. Simultaneously, I believe that the father judged his son’s behavior as too childish, thus he said that he had been suffering from an illness for a long time. The adolescence represents an important step in the child’s development. That’s the moment when a teenager decides to take his distance from his father in order to find his own identity. Since the main lead was described as intelligent, it was normal that the main character would decide to make his own decision and could sense his father’s flaws. Consequently father Yoon could only see the critical remarks as a sign of insubordination. This is not surprising that he blamed his son, when something happened due to Jihwa. 
(chapter 67) and it is even possible that he gets a scar or a tattoo. 
(chapter 67) This scene was important as it represented a new version of chapter 18. This time, the lord aimed at Jihwa’s face and the servant was not harmed. The main lead put the whole responsibility on the former friend. 
(chapter 57) There’s no doubt that father Yoon put all his trust in Kim. This explicates why Kim acts, as if he had the authority to give orders.
(chapter 57) due to the hat and the robe. What caught my attention is that he acts behind his lord’s back, when the latter is absent. 
(chapter 57) By examining Kim again, I have to admit that I suddenly had this question: who gave the painting to Yoon Seung-Won? Did the valet act on the lord’s order? 
(chapter 37) Or did he decide to act on his own? Let’s not forget that during that evening, the valet had been reprimanded by Yoon Seung-Won for lying to him. It is possible that the valet chose to give the painting in order to put the blame on Yoon Seungho, as he feared that the young master could report his lie and behavior to father Yoon. The latter might not be present at the mansion, but there’s no doubt that he asked his trusted servant to keep an eye on his eldest son, whom he considered as a troublemaker. This would explain why the main lead keeps taking the medicine. And now, you can grasp why Kim is more loyal to father Yoon than his actual master. The latter gives him more freedom, yet he expects from him more responsibility. Under the ruling of father Yoon, the butler could avoid any trouble by tattling on the young master Yoon Seungho or by faking ignorance, when it was necessary. Since father Yoon put all his trust in the valet, he was not able to see evil or hear evil in the end. Kim framed innocents or he feigned ignorance. As a conclusion, Father Yoon was put in the same situation than father Lee due to Kim’s actions.
(chapter 64) The teenager was left behind by the servant, and his hand couldn’t even stop him. But since it is a reflection, I think that the butler was the one who brought the main lead to the predator, naturally his intention was not to have him raped. And now, I grasp why the lord feels the need to hurt people with his hand, like for example strangling the painter 
(chapter 61) or grabbing the topknot of a noble
(chapter 8). His hand expresses not only his rage, but also his powerlessness. With his hand, he wasn’t able to stop the valet from leaving him behind. He had tried to stop his father from leaving his side with his hand too. 
(chapter 86) Furthermore, Yoon Seungho couldn’t even punish the valet for betraying him, because he had no authority and no strength. Back then, he was just a teenager. In chapter 63 and 64, Yoon Seungho was indeed reliving his traumatic past. Because the butler was recollecting two different memories (the night before and the lord’s sexual abuse), my first impression was that the young boy had been abused in the shed. 
(chapter 77) My theory is that the main lead was raped by “lord Song”, the king. Therefore I assume that the man was invited by father Yoon. Remember that the kisaeng Heena proposed to her donsaeng to seek the protection of a nobleman, as he is a low-born. 
(chapter 97) My idea is that the valet thought that by seeking the monarch’s protection, the young master’s suffering would end, for the king stands above the scholars and elders. Anyway, I believe that the valet made a bad choice and regretted it afterwards. Due to his guilt, he developed resent towards Yoon Seungho. And this explains why Kim said this to the painter in order to ease his pain: 
(chapter 12) He couldn’t tell him details, since he would reveal his complicity to the crime. Furthermore, since the valet led the painter to the pavilion, it is very likely that Kim was the one who offered Yoon Seungho to the pedophile, which makes his crime even worse. 
(chapter 65) Since he had not assisted the young master repeatedly
(chapter 77), he became more and more burdened by his guilty conscience. He turned into an accomplice, for he never revealed his involvement and mistakes.. He could no longer reveal the truth, because he would have to get punished. He feared father Yoon’s wrath and he had reasons too. He could definitely die. That’s the reason why he reproaches the doctor his passivity and silence, though in my opinion, it was not about the abduction, but about the tonic. Sure, in Joseon, there was no law called “Duty to rescue or Failure to provide assistance”. 
(chapter 65), they can’t, because they feel guilty and remorse. Note that right after voicing his wish to forget the incident, he recalls Yoon Seungho’s tragedy indicating his incapacity to forget. This explains why Kim gives the doctor the following advice: 
, (chapter 62) especially when you think that Baek Na-Kyum is just a commoner. But the problem is that he was biased, just like his father who had the impression that his son was a homosexual due to the testimonies of close people (Kim, Lee Jihwa and probably Yoon Seung-Won). After the rape, Yoon Seungho got punished. And this interpretation was proven correct in season 3 
(chapter 77). But here Kim remained silent too. 
(chapter 77) It was even worse than before, because after the straw mat beating, he was paralyzed. No one spoke for him and believed his words, and Kim wasn’t willing to step in. Moreover, I believe that Kim had another reason for remaining silent. 
(chapter 65) That’s why I believe that the author is not showing that Kim and the physician chose secrecy and silence, because they feared for their life. They only started fearing for their life, when the truth is about to be revealed, as the painter was not dead yet. As the victim, he was a witness. Because once the lord discovers the butler’s passivity and complicity, it becomes a matter of life or death for him. According to me, there are two doctors. So the chapter 65 unveils that the first doctor didn’t testify, as he wanted to help the artist. 
(chapter 65) In my opinion, the butler had deceived the commoner, he let him believe that Baek Na-Kyum had run away because of the lord’s violent temper. The painter had come wounded to his office. This negative perception of the young lord Yoon could only make the doctor jump to wrong conclusion. ,Striking is that this scene 
(chapter 63) revealed that the doctor was hesitating to give his opinion to the butler, he thought that the artist had run away. And what is the common denominator of all these scenes with the doctors. They all chose silence for different reasons. Just like Kim, the doctor had become an accomplice. As for the second, he remained silent out of fear, that he could get into trouble.
(chapter 65) My theory is that the valet used the drug as an excuse to silence the physician. Now, the doctor is hoping that the boy says no word about it, so that his “wrongdoing”, the false medication, won’t be discovered. Kim blamed the doctor that after that, his master had behaved like a crazy man. The result was that both physicians chose silence!! Why? It is because the valet had pushed them to make this choice. And note the pattern. Kim used pity and compassion for the first doctor, and fear and brutality for the second! Exactly like in this scene: 
(chapter 65) This represents his attitude in life, therefore he is responsible for Baek Na-Kyum’s loss of innocence. His other leitmotiv is 
(chapter 23) He acts, as if he knows nothing reminding us of this scene.
(chapter 28)That’s why I believe that the butler was lying back then and had even allowed the artist to run away that morning. I see a new version of chapter 29. But let’s go back to chapter 65. 
(chapter 64) 
(chapter 65) the artist after their intercourse and even gives him his own shirt. He shows a certain sense of responsibility. 
(chapter 82) Why didn’t he ask for a punishment after this humiliation? It is because he couldn’t. However, he must have definitely sought revenge. And the main lead became the sacrificial lamb, as in father Yoon’s eyes, his son was the reason for the purge: desertion, betrayal and probably drugs played a role in the purge. It is definitely possible that I have to change this theory about his traumatic past, but as you can observe, the main elements don’t change:
(chapter 65) The lord realized that something had happened. Due to the painter’s reaction, he was brought back the past. 
(chapter 66) Striking is that the painter’s words were the trigger for revealing the truth. 
(chapter 66) This stands in opposition to silence. Therefore it is no coincidence that Min revealed the truth. 
(chapter 66) The irony is that Heena suspected the main lead of kidnapping her brother and everything looked like her words were true: the wrist, the wounds around his wrist, his actual position (the mouth covered and his hands tied together…)
(chapter 66) 
(chapter 66) Thus the circumstances were turned against him. 
(chapter 65) But she was not present, when Min admitted Lee Jihwa’s crime. That’s how I realized that while chapter 65 represents silence, deception, cowardice and passivity, chapter 66 embodies the exact opposite. Min told the truth, Heena tried to save her brother by creating a ruckus! For Yoon Seungho, silence is a sign of culpability which he learnt from Kim. Hence he lied to the kisaeng 
(chapter 65), and later never spoke to the painter about the incident. If he had done it, he would have been forced to admit his misjudgment and wrongdoing. And now, you understand why Martin Luther King said this:
(chapter 57) It doesn’t matter, if the butler told lies to the physician in the past, as they are now perceived as truth. Remember what Kim confided to the painter: 
(chapter 86) He believes that he is the only one left who knows the past. But he is wrong, since the doctor also recalls the past. Hence how can Kim prove that he is telling the truth, since he told a different story to the physician? In addition, we have also lord Song. Besides, by giving the drug to Yoon Seungho without his knowledge and consent, Kim committed a wrongdoing. His knowledge won’t serve him in the end. I am deducing that the saying “silence is a true friend who never betrays” will no longer be valid. Therefore we have to expect a betrayal, and that would be from the physician, especially after we recall the butler’s warning in the first season, which was addressed to a different doctor from my point of view: 
(chapter 33) Let’s not forget that in chapter 65, the servant tried to put the whole responsibility on the physician, making him feel guilty. And since Byeonduck is even using elements from the first and second season, I believe, we will have a reversed situation in season 4, where the doctor will speak up and put the whole blame on someone. Neither the physician nor Kim expected that the painter’s body wouldn’t remain silent 
(chapter 102) He needs to find the answer, which stands in opposition to silence and burying the truth (sweeping it under the carpet). This signifies that this time, Yoon Seungho has to gather information himself, and he can not rely on Kim: 
(chapter 98) As you can see, slowly people are forced to talk
(chapter 99), hence their testimony can be questioned and perceived as lie.
(chapter 100). This is important, because by getting confronted with lies, the lord will be able to discern the truth! In other words, silence embodies darkness and as such death. 
(chapter 74) Thus there was only silence in the lord’s nightmare. And this contradicts this statement: 
(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 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) 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 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 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 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 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) 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 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 
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. 
. (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 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 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 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. 
(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 31) Consequently in chapter 34, the painter sensed a change of perception about his body after the sex marathon. For the first time, he detected his heartbeat and the butterflies in his stomach, which were triggered by the main lead’s presence.
(chapter 34) The parallels can be observed by the absence of the eyes of the protagonists in certain panels. Compare the picture with the mirror 
(chapter 63) Striking is that the character represented with eyes plays the role of the liberator for his sex partner. Due to the sex marathon, Yoon Seungho had helped the painter to free himself from his torpor, since due to the coercive persuasion, the artist had come to deny not only his sexual orientation, but also the existence of his own body. That’s why he could no longer admire his learned sir like before after the sex marathon. By recognizing the existence of his own body, the painter couldn’t feel the same attraction towards the teacher. And since the sex marathon played a huge role in his healing process, we have to imagine that the sex scene in the barn has the same signification for Yoon Seungho. He is on his way to be liberated from his self-hatred, but as you can imagine, it will be a painful process. Back then, the painter got ill and the lord ran away from his responsibility. That’s why this time, the blinded person will be the one suffering from the sex marathon: he will feel like dying, when he realizes that he wounded his lover blinded by his prejudice and anxieties. 
(chapter 63) He has no guarantee that this is true, and love is like a leap of faith. This isn’t something that you can grasp or see. Besides, he would have no control over him, if he accepts the confession. Loving means taking risks, which is linked to fears. This displays how much the master has been brainwashed. Since the painter disappeared in his mind, he came to acknowledge his father’s doctrines one more time before dropping them completely, when he discovers the truth. 
(chapter 63) 
(chapter 63), so his love confession to never let the painter go symbolizes one of the last principles Yoon Seungho has internalized. As a master, he can decide about the painter’s fate. So if we consider this scene as a hypnosis session, where is the mirror? As you can imagine, the painter’s face and gaze serve as a mirror for the lord, where he can perceive himself. Therefore the last image shows our protagonist looking closely at the painter’s face and his eyes.
when his father betrayed and abandoned him. This will help him to forget the father’s gaze engraved in his heart. The latter was full of hatred and resent, which the main lead internalized. And with this new interpretation, the chapter 63 appears in a different light. It gives the manhwaphiles hope. 
(chapter 65)
(chapter 69) He had ruined his relationship with the artist. Because he refused to make the leap of faith in the shed, Yoon Seungho decided to make the opposite choice. He let the painter decide about his own fate, yet he was definitely living in agony. The wounded, fearful and desperate gaze revealed his turmoil. 
(chapter 69) In my eyes, the absence of the lord’s eyes during the night of revelations stands in opposition to the lord’s gaze full of expressions in chapter 69. Note that in that episode, the author always drew his eyes, underlining that now the noble was using his own eyes finally. He is no longer relying on Kim and his information. I was also right that this night would affect Yoon Seungho’s relationship with the valet, yet I didn’t expect, it would unveil his true personality. For me, this second sex marathon was a real eye-opener: it made me recognize Kim’s hypocrisy and cowardice. From that moment on, I could no longer view him as a real father figure.
(chapter 40)
(chapter 62)
He rejected his concern and yelled at him. In chapters 62-63, the positions are switched. Yoon Seungho is the one upset and pained, since he is convinced that the artist abandoned him, therefore his anger is aiming at the commoner. Yet, the true culprit of his wound is his childhood friend Jihwa. Simultaneously both have a common point: Baek Na-Kyum gets hurt, because he becomes the target of Yoon Seungho’s anger, while in chapter 40, he is backstabbed by his admired sir and used the master to get some comfort. Yet, the situation is similar, as the real culprits of the wound never witness the consequence of their actions and words. 
(chapter 63) And if we take the chapter 41/42 into consideration, the painter did request that the lord should be particularly rough.
(chapter 42) As you can see, the chapter 40 can not be really detached from the sex scene which follows the teacher’s betrayal. Another contradiction is that the painter is just asking the lord to stop, since Baek Na-Kyum is exhausted, while the aristocrat believes that the commoner is pushing him away, begging him to let him go for good.
(chapter 63) But this divergence comes from the fact that this scene is a new version of the sex marathon, which I mentioned above. Back then, the painter made a similar request. As conclusion, the violence of the sex in chapter 62-63 is strongly connected to an emotional wound, a repetition of chapter 41/42. And in my opinion, the artist understood the situation and the lord’s motivation. Hence he doesn’t feel badly about Yoon Seungho. Notice that the next night, Baek Na-Kyum doesn’t think badly of this sex marathon. 
(chapter 40) 
(chapter 63) What caught my attention is the contrast between the two declarations. While the artist’s feelings for his admired sir seem to be very strong (I adore you), his words don’t really correspond to his affection, because his feelings have already diminished. He did lie to his teacher and protected the main lead in chapter 38. That’s why the “I adore you” should be judged as an exaggeration. It was, as though the painter desired to convince himself and his teacher that he was still attached to him. Besides, he needed to persuade him not to abandon him, after hearing so many reproaches. This observation leads me to the conclusion that Baek Na-Kyum made up his mind to still follow his teacher out of loyalty despite the harshness of Jung In-Hun’s words. On the other hand, the author used a litotes (“I do not dislike you”), implying that in fact his attachment is much stronger. And this is exactly what happens during this scene. Despite the harshness, the painter is forced to question his true feelings for the main lead and recognize them. He is even willing to confess, yet he is stopped. I doubt that Yoon Seungho would have perceived it as a love confession, as he hates meek words. I can use this panel as a reminder:
(chapter 48). Yoon Seungho is exactly like the painter, he loves strong and metaphorical confessions, like “you’ve made me a wreck” or “I will never let you go”. But let’s return our attention the scholar and Yoon Seungho. Both nobles act the same way. Both can’t accept the artist’s declaration, yet their motivation diverges. The teacher finds it disgusting to be connected to a commoner, whereas Yoon Seungho is too afraid of being lied. He has the impression that this dream can never come true. Yet, while contrasting them, we see the painter’s determination who is willing to overlook the reproaches expressed before by both aristocrats. And he remains faithful till the end. That’s why he waited for Jung In-Hun at the gate in episode 44. 
He needed to see with his own eyes, how the learned sir had truly abandoned him. This represents another explication why the low-born didn’t react like Kim and Min anticipated. He didn’t follow his sister out of loyalty, compassion and a certain trust. However, Heena noona was able to sow seeds of doubts. 
(chapter 40) In this picture, the scholar leaves the painter behind, a metaphor for his abandonment. He even repeats this action, when he leaves for the capital. In chapter 62-63, Yoon Seungho sees in the commoner’s escape a rejection and betrayal. 
(chapter 62) This panel illustrates the thoughts of the protagonist: the commoner has turned his back on him.
(chapter 40)
(chapter 40) 
(chapter 62) 
(chapter 63) In both cases, the aristocrats questions the commoner’s motivations for his actions. While Jung In-Hun’s interrogation serves him as an occasion to break his promise by putting the blame on Baek Na-Kyum, the other character is more curious to know about the reasons for his desertion. From my point of view, this shows the noble’s desire to comprehend the painter better. And this illustrates that his obsession with the “why” is well meant. Why is he pushing him away? If he knows the cause, he could find a solution in order to bring the painter to his side. 
(chapter 40) The painter became happy, when he heard that the civil service examination would take place soon. He immediately thought of his learned sir and envisioned that this would please his former teacher. Jung In-Hun’s excitement became the painter’s joy, this is how the painter was thinking in that scene. 
(chapter 40) 
(chapter 29) By contrasting both panels from chapter 40, the readers can detect the painter’s lie. He expects something from the low noble. He is indeed hoping that Jung In-Hun will keep his promise and he will take his responsibility for him, since the painter supported him. 
(chapter 40) The former had Yoon Seungho’s attention all the time, and we all know that Jung In-Hun’s desire is to get attention and admiration. Striking is that the comparison enlightens the materialistic and narcissistic side of Jung In-Hun, while Yoon Seungho appears purer. He is just content with a smile. Besides, he would like to be the source and recipient of Baek Na-Kyum’s smile, whereas the other wishes to get favors (clothes, a room closer to the lord’s chamber, the favor to spend the evening in the bedchamber etc). That’s why by contrasting both chapters, the protagonist’s purity and simplicity become even more palpable, which is hidden due to the violence employed during that confrontation. 
Furthermore, if we take the chapter 41 into consideration, since we have a flashback of the incident at the library,
then the readers can recall that in this episode, Baek Na-Kyum was so heartbroken that he asked from Yoon Seungho to be embraced. He needed a shoulder as solace and comfort. The low-born literally begged him, while crying to be hold in his arms, but the noble didn’t know how to respond to this request.
(chapter 41) He only knew sex. In chapter 62, the lord hold the artist in his arms, only to betray him afterwards. The warmth is faked. 
(chapter 62) Yet, if you pay attention, you’ll observe a second hug in the barn: 
(chapter 40) while in chapter 63, it is the turn of our seme to reveal his expectations and desires. 
,(chapter 62) while the scholar calls the artist a fool
. (chapter 41) He is just jealous, furious and repulsed. Yoon Seungho is seeking closeness and uses sex in order achieve his goal, therefore he is is refusing to stop. He is so desperate to remain intimate with the painter, while the other noble has only one thought: keeping his distance from the low-born. 
(chapter 63) and words 
(chapter 63) have a huge effect on the upset protagonist. They trigger the noble to open up and reveal himself. That’s why the chapter ends with a face to face: the aristocrat is not decided to look at the painter’s eyes directly. 
(chapter 40)
(chapter 62) 
(chapter 62) 
(chapter 71) and Yoon Seungho’s outburst 
(chapter 70). Furthermore, when the painter is able to calm down the main lead by calling his name “Lord Seungho” and showing a blushed face, the aristocrat initiates a real conversation 
(chapter 62) 
(chapter 71) There was a “love confession” in the barn, but the lord didn’t use the typical expression for that: 
(chapter 76). The only problem is that Baek Na-Kyum is still fearing his own emotions for the infamous noble. Therefore he has not confessed yet, which will be the reason why both main leads will suffer again. The painter has just opened up and is not trusting Yoon Seungho entirely. 
(chapter 37) The younger brother was taught his father’s principles too, but unlike Yoon Seungho, the younger brother is NOT living according to their father’s rules. This means that he is living differently. And now we have to question this: how is his life different? 
And notice the brother’s embarrassment. He avoids his brother’s gaze. He can not deny it, for if he did, he would have to reveal the true identity of the “pedophile”. Hence the younger master is humiliated. The younger master can not argue with this point. That’s the reason why I come to the conclusion that the brother has already internalized his father’s values: Yoon Seungho should keep working for the family, like he did in the past. He should use his connection. He is truly viewing his brother as an accessory for the family’s benefit. And it is time to examine the chapter 37 one more time. In the first composition, I had demonstrated that the brother was selfish, insensitive and quite arrogant, since he never asked his brother about his well-being. All his business mattered. But I can add more layers to his description and it starts with the way he was introduced.
(chapter 37) However, I can bring up another evidence for this conclusion: the fake letter from lord Song.
(chapter 56) The forged message was a new version of the letter in chapter 35. And under this light, we can judge the character in a rather negative way. He is acting like Jihwa, using his knowledge of the past to his advantage. He desires to use his father’s power over his elder brother to achieve his goal: getting the support from his older brother so that he can please his father. 
(chapter 13), Yoon Seung-Won was asked by the father to restore the family’s influence. But since he had witnessed how his father obtained his support, he thought, he could employ the same method: using Yoon Seungho. One might argue that the poor boy is pressured now by father Yoon and the weight of the expectations can be extremely burdensome. However, here I would like to point out that unlike the main lead, Yoon Seung-Won was never trapped in the mansion and not hindered to participate in the service civil examination. Furthermore, he was never exposed to any kind of violence. He was allowed to roam freely, yet in my opinion, all this time the younger master relied on his father’s power and influence. Seeing that the letters didn’t provoke any reaction, the young noble paid the lord a visit, as he was pressured by the time. And what caught my attention is that once asked about the motive of his visit, he replied to the main character: 
(chapter 37) He mentioned his father directly, but he never answered to the question properly, since he didn’t announce the true reason for his visit. Why? Since he used the name of his father in the letters and in the conversation, I can only deduce that the brother knows the true power of father Yoon over the main character. He is actually playing with the protagonist’s fear and he knows it too well. Notice his hands: they show a certain discomfort, indicating that he is well aware of the signification of his words. One might argue that he has been pressured by the father and he is just a pawn. To this, I can only retort that he is doing the same to his brother. By asking him to visit their father, he is not just requesting from his brother to reconnect with their family, but also to submit himself to father Yoon. In other words, the elder master could utilize Yoon Seungho’s connections and wealth for their family’s interest. Besides, this would signify that the father would become the main lead’s pimp again. As the new head of the family, father Yoon could decide to treat his eldest son like in the past. And if my theory of the incest is correct, then this means that Yoon Seung-Won is asking his brother to relive a hell again. This is not surprising that the lord gets upset and becomes cynical: 
(chapter 37) Who would accept such a suggestion after getting treated like an sex toy, a prisoner and as a pariah at the end? And now envision that Yoon Seungho has been exposed to physical and sexual abuse because of his father. This scene reveals the selfishness and cowardice of the brother. This is not surprising that the lord clenches his fist, and his hand is shaking: there’s definitely fear due to the father and anger towards his brother. Yoon Seung-Won knows his father’s rules, but he doesn’t desire to apply them, as he is well aware of the meaning. And now the following panel gets another significance:
He desires to have a private conversation and suggests his brother to send away the painter. His reason is simple: he would like to appeal to his brother’s compassion, he must be in a rather difficult situation. His father is now relying on him. But since the master of the mansion is not following this suggestion, the brother chooses to mention the father. The illness is an excuse, but Yoon Seung-Won is determined to maintain his image as a loyal and honorable son. Yet, like I pointed out earlier, the true intention with the father’s evocation is to put Yoon Seungho under pressure. And now, I would like to bring another evidence that the younger master is well aware of his brother’s fear in front of their father. He witnessed the constant abuse, and as such he noticed and internalized the brother’s anxieties. Remember that the moment Jihwa heard that the brother had visited Yoon Seungho, Jihwa chose to rush to his childhood friend’s mansion. Why? He knew that Yoon Seung-Won’s visitation would torment the main lead and provoke nightmares, indicating that this must have happened in the past well. And since the main lead is connecting his brother to his past trauma, then this reveals that the younger master is related to the protagonist’s suffering. Why? In my opinion, Yoon Seung-Won must have been favored all this time, whereas the powerful noble was just treated like a servant. In other words, even if the younger brother was weak as well, he never tried to help his brother behind his father’s back. This explains the resent from the protagonist. He can never consider him as a relative. Let’s not forget that when the elder master moved from the house, only valet Kim remained by the main lead’s side, showing that all the other servants sided with Yoon Seung-Won and the father. 
(chapter 37), while in reality he is just a hypocrite. I would even add, he is quite immoral. He lies about the illness, fakes letters in the sense that he uses his father’s name and authority. Then he utilizes social norms (“the right thing”), though he is well aware what the visit would mean for his brother. I also perceive an evidence of father Yoon’s influence in the younger master’s behavior: his words and behavior. Remember that I connected the lies to the protagonist’s dissociative episodes, indicating that the elder master must have punished his eldest son, when he imagined that he had been lied to. Observe the reaction Yoon Seung-Won has, when he realizes that Kim has been lying to him: 
(chapter 37)He gets outraged and yelled to the butler, although he is not the lord of the mansion. Striking is that he would have opened the door
(chapter 37), if the painter hadn’t screamed through the door. Not recognizing the voice from the inside, the young man got surprised and stopped. And this single gesture outlines his disrespect towards his elder brother in reality. I had already observed his selfishness and lack of sensitivity, but with the new elements, I can definitely determine that the younger brother has indeed internalized father Yoon’s values. He treats servants and commoners like people with no right. His tone is quite strict, authoritative and rude.
(chapter 37) This is not surprising that he requests his brother’s assistance in the end. He has experienced it first hand, has envisioned that through his father’s influence, he could manipulate the brother and get benefit from his increased fortune and influence. However, this time the lord didn’t follow his suggestion, since he has already started moving on. In fact, the younger lord was mocked through the main character’s following suggestion: Yoon Seung-Won should also live according to their father’s principles. 
(chapter 38) This reinforces the immorality and ruthlessness of the brother’s suggestion. With the letter, Yoon Seung-Won has the impression that in the end, the main lead bent to his will. This means that he is ignoring his brother’s reproach and rejection. But since the brother used their father’s name in order to approach his brother, it looks like, it was Yoon Seung-Won’s decision to utilize the brother. Even if this idea is not correct, and the father did use the younger son as a pawn to approach Yoon Seungho, this doesn’t diminish the atrocity of the younger master’s gesture. He is not just a pawn, but a real accomplice, because he knows his past but prefers his own comfort over his brother’s life. However, let’s not forget that during their conversation, the younger brother never spoke in the father’s name, like for example: “Father Yoon desires to reconnect with you and asks for a visit from you”. Even that way, the father’s honor would have been maintained, since the main lead was asked to pay a visit to their father unofficially. My final point for this interpretation is the importance of reputation in father Yoon’s eyes. The latter chose to act behind closed doors and maintain his image as a respectable aristocrat. By sending letters to his eldest son who is well-known in the mansion as an infamous sodomite, his image as strong lord is kind of tarnished. He is the one asking for help from his son… a humiliation in his eyes. Now, you can better comprehend why I believe that Yoon Seung-Won is not just a pawn in reality. 
That’s why he said this to the servant. By putting the blame on his older brother, he excuses his father’s behavior for not showing more concern for him. He didn’t leave the bedchamber in order to bid farewell, because the lord had been troubled due to Yoon Seungho. The latter serves again as an excuse to save the appearances. By giving the ruined painting, Yoon Seungho was indeed determined to provoke his father. He shows him his hypocrisy and the consequences of his principles. At the same time, the ruined painting illustrates his message: the Yoon family will never get a benefit from his sexual performances (“damaged image”). 
(chapter 37) Here, he envisioned that the lord’s companion was a noble due to the green hanbok. He is definitely more than just a pawn, in my eyes he has become a willing helper of father Yoon’s dictatorship, since he could profit from his situation. He is like an indoctrinated child, since he behaves like his father in a certain way. On the other hand, he has not completely lost a certain sense of morality. Since he is showing a certain discomfort during the conversation in chapter 37, it displays that he recognizes the wrongness of his request. But his interests are prioritized over his brother’s well-being. Another aspect is that he is not so brutal compared to his model, Father Yoon. But he has a common denominator with the elder master. He is also quite naïve. Hence Yoon Seungho could see right through his brother and his lies, just like the father. The master of the domain was well aware of the true purpose of his younger brother’s visitation: sponsoring. In the end, the younger master is forced to take the exam, like the scholar Jung In-Hun. I had imagined that their paths would cross, unaware that the learned sir would die before. There’s no ambiguity that Yoon Seung-Won would get annoyed and humiliated to hear that his brother chose a scholar with no connection and wealth over him. 
(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. 
(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. 
(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. 
(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. 
(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. 
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.
(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 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. 
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. 
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.
and secondly thanks to the intervention of the cat. Coincidence is a proof that they have no control over their life and love life. It was, as if the invisible hand of gods had decided to have them met. Yet, determinism doesn’t use the idea of gods or of an exterior force leading the characters to encounter each other. If you pay attention to the way they meet, you’ll realize that their decisions, influenced by their liking and living conditions, were the reasons why they met in the street. The noble Baek Na-Kyum was strolling in that part of the town because he wanted to sell his erotic paintings. So because of his hidden hobby, he is led to go to a part of the town where commoners live. In other words, the protagonist enters Yoon Seungho’s world. On the other hand, Yoon Seungho as a low-born catches Baek Na-Kyum’s attention due to his unusual attitude. He shows neither remorse nor fear in front of the angry aristocrat. He is very defiant. That’s love at first sight. However, this is true love as sexuality is immediately included, while his affection towards Jung In-Hun was more related to the innocent and pure love of a child. Striking is that Yoon Seungho is exposed for his scandalous relationship with the son of a noble family showing that he doesn’t care about social status and distinction between nobility and commoner. It is also the same for the painter who sells his erotic paintings in order to buy glasses for his servant.
This shows that right from the start, Baek Na-Kyum has not truly internalized the hierarchical society and it is the same with the strong-willed commoner. They might not belong to the same social class but their mentality is in reality similar. Besides, they have both a strong libido and a certain sexual fantasy. Yoon Seungho is willing to have sex anywhere (f. ex. in the woodshed) 
and after meeting the impressive and attractive seme, Baek Na-Kyum becomes so inspired that he creates a threesome. 
The painting could be seen as another evidence that the painter had to create such a work. There’s no real free will in the end. However, the idea of a threesome indicates that the innocent noble has indeed a kinky side which was triggered the moment he met Yoon Seungho’s eyes. And now, it explains why Yoon Seungho was destined to meet Baek Na-Kyum outside his mansion in the original manhwa.
He had to meet him at the tavern because it was the commoner’s world and since the noble was interested in the painter, he couldn’t just send for him. The latter could refuse but in his presence, Yoon Seungho imagined that the artist would never dare to reject the offer.
In other words, Baek Na-Kyum seems to have a predisposition to follow social norms, although in his heart, he doesn’t acknowledge societal hierarchy. He lives in his own bubble in my opinion. That’s why I come to the conclusion that Baek Na-Kyum’s inner conflicts will always represent one of their problems in the evolution of their love story. The noble will suffer pressure from his family and his servant Jung In-Hun who will betray him, making the main lead discover what love truly is. But because of their affinities, they were destined to be together.
Due to his love for cats, the noble is led to a woodshed where he witnesses Yoon Seungho having sex with someone else. Note that the cat is the reason why he feels pleasure for the first time 
and why he gets caught in the end. If the cat had not appeared, then he would have never discovered the sexual intercourse. If he had never liked cats, he wouldn’t have played with him. 
Furthermore, he was strolling through the district where commoners live as he was on his way to sell his new painting. His so-called choices could only lead him to the place where the attractive seme was. This was no real coincidence again. Now, why a cat? 
, Yoon Seungho will be able to discover Baek Na-Kyum’s identity and the latter will be blackmailed. Notice that the merchant knows his true identity.
The painter will have to work for Yoon Seungho, yet the reason will diverge. The commoner has already set his eyes on the artist, since he hasn’t really forgotten him.
He remembers his face (“your eyes off”) and his words (“dirty buggery”). Their attraction was mutual and he needs to create a reason. As a conclusion, the introduction of the alternative universe makes us realize the dimension of determinism which is strongly linked to Nature (sex, cat). Baek Na-Kyum’s choice will be to acknowledge that his love for the seme is stronger than social norms, so that we can say, even if there exists determinism, there’s a certain liberty. Yet it is much more limited than it looks like as our decisions are influenced by our environment, experiences and past.
(chapter 40)
(chapter 40) However, we have now to understand that this gesture was under the influence of his unconscious and the lord had not recognized his own feelings for the painter so far. He was more under the impression that he was making decisions rationally. Furthermore, he was not taking the painter’s feelings into consideration, since he was well aware of Baek Na-Kyum’s “adoration” for Jung In-Hun. In other words, this gesture signified that Yoon Seungho would become Baek Na-Kyum’s husband and companion, even if the artist was not in love with him. Now, you might be wondering why I focus first on the red dot than the event at the tailor shop. There’s a reason for that. Here, the topic “reliability” is more developed and plays a huge role in their relationship. 
(chapter 39) Here, he accepts the blame, because he has now a reason to have some sexual interactions with the painter. Consequently, he proposes another fellatio 
(chapter 39) under the pretense of forgiveness, which the artist refuses by objecting that he is not blaming the noble at all. 
Notice that the painter is forced to become the accountable one and take the blame for the whole situation. And this shows that in that scene the lord is actually the one with the upper hand as he uses Baek Na-Kyum’s shyness and embarrassment in order to tease him and actually obtain what he has been longing: intimacy with Baek Na-Kyum. 
(chapter 39) However, when the boy apologized to the lord and claimed that he was responsible for everything
(chapter 39) In my opinion, the painter’s reaction must have been triggered by Seungho’s offer for a fellatio. Observe that, while he’s whispering to the painter, the latter’s face blushes again, but more importantly, there’s a sudden light in the artist’s eye.
(chapter 39) He needs to satisfy him as he is now excited too. As you can observe, there was a shift of responsibility at the tailor shop. However, the lord shows a certain reliability as he just asks for a foreplay because of his concern that the painter could feel uncomfortable afterwards. 
(chapter 39) As a conclusion, the lord showed signs that he was willing to be responsible for the low-born, although at the end, the artist ended up as the one who had to become the accountable one. In order to compare both scenes (39-58), it is necessary to list all the important elements present in the chapters 39-40 again:
(chapter 39) And now, it’s the opposite: Seungho is against the wall as he can no longer deny his feelings for Baek Na-Kyum.
(chapter 58) Note that both idioms have a similar connotation: destruction (ruins, wreck) and blame (you/don’t). However, Jihwa’s words contain reproach and resent indicating that he is not enjoying his situation. Since the main lead is to blame for Jihwa’s misery, the former should become responsible for him. As the manhwalovers can detect, Jihwa’s confession has a different signification. Jihwa is recognizing his defeat, which indicates that he indeed associates affection for weakness and a sex/love session as a fight. He never confessed before, because he didn’t want to surrender but preferred his childhood friend being the one. Jihwa was hoping that due to his loneliness, the main character would seek comfort by him as the only one remaining loyal by his side. That’s why he pushed away any possible rival before.
(chapter 59) Consequently, Seungho would come to develop an affection for him and confess to him. This is the other reason why Jihwa was thinking, time would work for him and kept waiting, but got only frustrated, as his situation never changed until chapter 3-4. That sex session at the pavilion gave him hope
(chapter 3), which explains why he treated the painter so arrogantly and even barged later at Seungho’s house in the chapter 12, a behavior which Seungho disapproved. The red-haired noble had imagined, his status had improved and he was on the verge of becoming his official lover. This analogy between love and demise/defeat is important, because it truly shows how much Jihwa and Yoon Seungho had internalized these values and why it took the lord a long time to confess to the painter properly. Therefore, when the red-haired noble admits his attachment to his childhood friend, he knees in front of his childhood friend, a symbol for defeat and submission.
(chapter 58) Simultaneously, this explains why Jihwa’s words reflect resent and selfishness 
(chapter 58) And now, if we contrast it with the main lead’s confession, we discover a different state of mind. The lord is definitely admitting his defeat as well, yet he is not blaming Baek Na-Kyum, in fact he is enjoying his actual situation. There’s a certain admiration for the “you” who has turned him into a wreck. The word responsibility has a different signification here. It’s no longer blame or accountability but maturity and trustworthiness. He’s no longer paying attention to his pride, there’s no resent. His only joy is to be able to show his love for the artist, since the latter is allowing him to express his feelings through words and actions. 
(chapter 58) After reading it for the first time, the reader would judge “wreck” in a rather pejorative light. On the surface, it seems that the lord is referring to the painter’s drunkenness, yet it gets a different meaning after reading the whole chapter. Moreover, it becomes more obvious that the noble judges “wreck” as something admirable, since “wreck” is combined with absolute. Despite his terrible state and his first rejection, the artist was determined to confess no matter what. He was brave and strong, although he looked terrible at the same time: drunk, desperate and full of tears. Yet, at no moment he blamed his “learned sir” for succumbing to his feelings or saw his love as something terrible. Unlike Jihwa and Seungho so far, he was true to them. It was so pure that the lord could only be impressed. That’s the reason why he wanted to mock him in the first place, as he had been taught that love is a synonym for weakness and surrendering to feelings was like admitting his inferiority and his defeat. This explicates why the lord was haunted by the pure and genuine kiss in the first place, it was something new.
(chapter 58)
(chapter 58) He expresses his thoughts and emotions hoping that this would move the painter. As you can observe, responsibility is in the center of this chapter but unlike in the past, the meaning has changed. The protagonist finds the artist trustworthy. Here, feelings are important and unlike in the past, the lord is now decided to succumb to his feelings without feeling any humiliation or resent. He is actually rejoicing his situation, as the painter has acknowledged and accepted his love for him, when they make love. He is now allowed to love him without any expectation, but at the same time he is asking the painter to take responsibility for him: 
(chapter 59) For the aristocrat, Baek Na-Kyum embodies trustworthiness, therefore he can rely on him now and unveil his true self, full of vulnerabilities. In my opinion, the lord was a wreck in the past but now, he embodies the opposite. He has found his true self again, a very sensitive and gentle person, who likes to be honest and is able to open up and trust someone. In my opinion, the wreck is an allusion to the rebirth of the phoenix. 
and already announces his final transformation. But in order to understand why I came to this interpretation, you have to read or remember the essay called “Drawings and emotions, part 3”. Back then, I discovered a link between the moon and the house. 
We have to imagine that the lord was the one opening the door so that the fresh air would enter the room, since we hear the sound of steps. It looks like the bubbles are entering the lord’s chamber and notice the change of colors. first, the number has increased there are 5 and the colors are different. One is red and the other white and glowing. Two are very small and the last one is even vanishing. From my perspective, the white one represents the lord’s mind, while the small blue one is the unconscious. As for the red, I would say that it symbolizes the lord’s wound and trauma which is still fresh, while the transparent bubble disappearing could embody father Yoon’s shadow. Little by little, the agony caused by his father’s abandonment and betrayal is diminishing. 
So he has been waiting for this moment, but since he sensed his condition worsening, he had to speed up the procedure. This explains why he left the door open. The opened door symbolizes the noble’s confession. He is now revealing himself to the painter and let’s not forget my association of the door to the painter. Finally, he is letting the artist enter into his mind and heart for real. 
(chapter 55) For the first time, Byeonduck chose the chimney and not just the roof or the walls. In my opinion, the change indicates the transformation of Baek Na-Kyum. The chimney is a metaphor for warmth and love. In French, the word “foyer” has two meanings: home and fireplace. As you can see, French relate home with the fireplace. And this is no coincidence. For Baek Na-Kyum, the mansion is slowly turning into a real home, where he can feel warmth and love. Simultaneously, we could say that the artist has become the fireplace for the lord, where he can finally feel loved and accepted. Since I have started analyzing this manhwa very carefully, I have no doubt that these two drawings convey much more than giving the info: the servants are preparing the medicine for their master during the day. Furthermore, this kind of picture doesn’t seem to contribute to the story itself. So why paint such drawings? It is because they serve another purpose: a metaphor for the next scene. Notice that shortly after this panel, we see Baek Na-Kyum bringing a bucket of water. He wants to take care of Yoon Seungho himself. 
He must have been acting on his own accord as Kim doesn’t pay attention to him. Kim is not even looking at what the artist brought indicating that Kim had no expectation from him. Imagine, now the artist is willing to help and makes decisions on his own. Besides, he doesn’t feel out of place, when the physician is giving his recommendation or criticizing the lord for his bad behavior leading his illness to worsen. The painter feels as if it was his place to take care of his lover. He is the one giving the warmth and care to his lover, paying attention to his every move. The chimney signaled the painter’s future behavior. 
This is the moon again which I had already associated to the powerful but sick aristocrat. What caught my attention is that for the first time, the stars are visible in the sky. The moon is more glowing as well and seems to get closer. If you compare it to the former image with the moon night 
, you can observe that the moon seems to be even closer than before. This reflects the improvement of the relationship between the painter and Yoon Seungho. Since the chimney symbolizes the artist, it is normal that this time, we don’t see the roof or the walls of the mansion. The chimney is closer to the sky and stands above the roof of the mansion. In other words, Baek Na-Kyum has not only become closer to the lord but also he is thinking only about the main character. We have to imagine, the commoner as the chimney is starring at the moon. 
As you can see, the pictures about the sky were important as they displayed what was going to happen. They announce the change in the sick main lead’s and the painter’s attitude. Baek Na-Kyum is no longer a servant but the fireplace of that mansion. That’s why the white headband disappears again. 
The lord is not even aware that he has dropped his mask of indifference. His eyes are shining, his mouth is even smiling. Striking is that the mouth lets even transpire a lot of affection: “very much enjoy”, “my boy”. His actions contrast so much to the first scene. In my first analysis of the first episode, I had compared him to a fan meeting his idol. However, from my point of view, his emotions are actually much stronger than I had envisioned. The mouth is not under the control of the mind, the conscious. Why such a reaction? It is because the painter has just spoken to him. Therefore I come to the observation that right from the start, the artist’s mouth plays a huge role in their relationship. Baek Na-Kyum’s mouth is the trigger for the unconscious to reveal itself. However, at no instant, Yoon Seungho realizes the contradiction between his body and his mind. He is so happy to meet the painter he admired so much, because he felt a connection through the creations. It’s as if his unconscious had sensed the power of the artist’s emotions (love, warmth) behind his pictures. The unconscious through the eyes recognized the sensitivity in Baek Na-Kyum’s works. For me, the lord had already fallen in love with Baek Na-Kyum, even before he met him for the first time. Yet, I believe, the moment he sees his face and hears his voice, his feelings become even more intense to the point he already has an erection.
His body, led by his unconscious, is attracted by the low-born. Interesting is that at no time, Baek Na-Kyum’s status as a low-born is relevant. The noble feels the need to touch his hands, even treasures them. He allows the artist’s hands to touch his loins. There is such a closeness exposing the noble’s desire: his body wishes intimacy, yet his mouth is still fighting the urges expressed by the unconscious. That’s why he keeps talking about the paintings and the effect they had on him. 
the lord’s face slowly gets frigid and the smile vanishes gradually. 
For me, the lie triggered the return of his mask. Look at his faze: it was as if it was paralyzed. The conscious takes over the control of the lord’s face. He is disguising his emotions. He is deeply hurt. His feelings have been rejected, since the painter told him that he wasn’t the person he had been looking for. The conscious might control the face and the mouth for an instant, yet his hands are under the power of his unconscious. That’s why he grabs the sword so quickly. 
The manhwalovers only witness the sword leaving its protection outlining the rapidity of his hand. This gesture displays the anger he is hiding behind his frozen face. From my perspective, his hands and his feet are expressing what he is feeling inside. There is this rage and pain for being pushed away. He’s already the vengeful spirit, his unconscious feels the need to vent his inner emotions. However, since I observed the return of the lord’s mind, we have to imagine that the main lead has the impression, he is making decisions rationally. He is just following what he said the night before. If his wish is not granted, then someone has to pay. I believe, the speed of his hands and feet indicate that the latter are actually influenced by his unconscious, the lord can’t detect the power of his unconscious as they are actually obeying the order of his mind: someone needs to die. And note that soon after he rushes to the servant’s side. 
For me, he is here wearing his mask again. However, his eyebrows and mouth are betraying him. He has a frowning face. 
(Chapter 102) 
Only after the murder, he sees the painter’s tool, while he explains the reason for his action in a rational and calm manner. My question is: Why didn’t he check out who lied in the first place? Why did he have to kill someone? From my perspective, in this scene, the lord’s heart played a huge part in his behavior. In my opinion, he’s already developed some feelings for the painter, hence he didn’t vent his anger on him. Deep down, he knew that his servant had deceived him, though he couldn’t tell how. He didn’t notice the servant’s discomfort. 
(Chapter 1) Thus he was portrayed with no eyes. Sure, not everything was a lie, yet the commoner mixed a lie with the truth, turning his testimony into a deception. What appeared as trivial was in truth betrayal. What the domestic didn’t know is that the lord hates lies, for they were the reason for his downfall. He needed to hurt someone, because he had been wounded by the painter’s lie. But the latter was just a white lie. So in the picture above, I see the lord’s conscious attempting to justify his action. 
Yet his gaze and smile contradict his mouth right after. There is a glimpse of a smile, his eyes are showing an interest. The idiom “the boy” illustrates a certain closeness. I mean, he could have called him “the low-born” but he didn’t. For me, this picture illustrates the lord’s satisfaction. He has obtained what he wanted: the painter. 
It looks like the sword would remove the cloth so that he can see the artist’s naked body. The way he uses the weapon exposes that his unconscious doesn’t want to hurt the artist, although he is actually displeased to be lied again. This gesture expresses a certain sexual desire, but the counterpart is not noticing it due to his uncomfortable and frightening situation. That’s why there is no rage unlike at the tavern. The sexual desires have returned. Furthermore, we could say that the main character has got used to or that he is well aware that Baek Na-Kyum has the creator of the erotic paintings by his side. He feels less betrayed. 
First, he wipes the painter’s tears and later he even grabs his hands again.
I would even say, the gesture with the sword is another caress showing the power of his emotions. His unconscious feels the urge to touch and caress his face and his hands. Both have already become Yoon Seungho’s weaknesses. Notice that he even lowers himself to the painter twice and gets very close to him. 
His feet always lead him to the artist’s proximity. He remains by his side, until he is lied a second time. From that moment, he stands up and starts walking revealing a certain uneasiness and edginess. He is troubled and frustrated because he has been indirectly rejected again. Yet, unlike at the tavern, his reaction is less violent and this for two reasons. First, his unconscious is definitely more attracted than before. Secondly, his mind is well aware that the painter is not telling the truth. In other words, his heart and mind are not fighting each other. Their goal is the same, they want to have the painter by their side. Yet the conscious doesn’t realize that behind its decisions, the heart is already influencing his mind. Why does he want the erotic drawings?
Striking is that he even sent his staff away, creating a certain intimacy. He definitely wants to get close to Baek Na-Kyum physically and mentally. But since he’s just a spirit, he doesn’t notice that his hands and feet have been acting on their own… led by his unconscious. 
(chapter 11)
(chapter 53). Notice that although these drawings are illustrating the same gesture, the perspective diverges. In the first one, the focus is on the lord, while in the second, the recipient of the slap is in the center. Why did Byeonduck switch the perspective? I could use my earlier explanation that in chapter 53, the creator wanted to let the noble appear as a vengeful ghost and not as a human. However, there exist other explications. 
(chapter 53) The gaze, the mirror of his soul, reveals his shock and agony. The hand hurt the loved one, although it was meant to defend him. At the same time, by putting the painter in the center of the drawing, the author enhances the painter’s bravery.
(chapter 23) Note that here the lord is taking away the apple from the painter. He’s eating his frugal meal. Furthermore he stands above him and his gestures clearly indicate that he has been following and observing the artist before eating his fruit. Here, he appears as selfish and self-centered. He takes without asking. This stands so much in opposition to the shared meal in chapter 47. 
(chapter 47) This time, the roles are switched, the aristocrat is willing to renounce to his own meal. Besides, he is also giving up on his own seat to Baek Na-Kyum. In other words, the latter is now the one standing above the aristocrat because it was as if he had become the master, since he is sitting on the lord’s seat. Even the noble reminds him to remain seated so that he can keep eating. This contrast emphasizes so much the powerful protagonist’s huge transformation. He is selfless, benevolent and really caring. 
(chapter 47) Now, there is a direct contact between them. One might argue that this is related to their sex sessions, which is true. However, let’s not forget that the unconscious is voicing itself through the hands, hence despite the experienced intimacy, his unconscious is still unsatisfied. Therefore in chapter 47, the hand feels the need to touch his mouth. Sure, someone might say that he wants to ensure that the painter is not hurt. However, he could have used his eyes and just look at the mouth. That’s the reason why I feel that the gesture was revealing something else. The hand is expecting something from the mouth! Deep down, the lord is wishing to hear something from the painter but nothing has happened so far. At the same time, observe that the lord is smoking right after. It was as if this gesture (caressing the low-born’s mouth) had bothered him so much that his mind decided to control the hand again. Consequently he starts smoking. He needs to act as if he was indifferent. This explains why right after his mouth is revealing the thoughts of the mind: 
. The smoke is helping him to calm down and control his emotions, yet the mouth can no longer mask the influence of the unconscious because of the choice of words. As you can detect, the use of the smoke is no longer effective. Notice that “hurt, “embrace” belong to the vocabulary field of emotions. So the mouth is not truly rationale. As a conclusion, the mouth is revealing little by little the truth. Furthermore, the hand displays a certain longing: the lord’s unconscious is expecting to hear something from the painter’s mouth. What is it exactly? 
(chapter 11)
(chapter 12)
(chapter 26)
(chapter 31)
(episode 48)
his mind didn’t allow his mouth to become emotional and confess his love to the painter. 
But the painter’s mouth is telling the brutal truth. The lord has never confessed to him hence it is a lie that Yoon Seungho loves him. At some point, the Queen gets defeated by Snow White, however I am not expecting the same ending here. The lord will be forced to confess. He has to be reveal his true emotions if he wants to hear a love confession from the artist. We shouldn’t forget that the artist works as a mirror. The moment Yoon Seungho declares his affection to the painter, the latter will reciprocate his feelings because he will mirror his emotions. 
(chapter 25) and in that bathroom. Each time, he spoke, his sincerity hurt the lord. With his words, the artist confronted Yoon Seungho with reality. The lord could no longer lie to the painter and to himself: the love confession was addressed to someone else and he knew that. I could even say that the slap in chapter 11 was a violent reaction because with the ruined paintings and with his words (refusal of working for him), he had rejected Yoon Seungho which the unconscious could not accept. Hence the constant rejection was always very painful for the lord, the painter’s mouth kept wounding his heart, the unconscious, since the conscious was denying the existence of any feeling. Baek Na-Kyum’s mouth is the mirror of the truth. The lord’s conscious has to accept the crude honesty: he is in love with Baek Na-Kyum. As long as he continues denying it, his unconscious and heart will always be wounded by the painter’s mouth. That’s why he needs to stop denying this. Simultaneously, this explains why the artist’s mouth has a calming effect in chapter 53 
. For the first time, the painter’s mouth is showing concern and care. There is no rejection, the artist’s voice and words let transpire feelings which the unconscious has been longing for a very long time. That’s why in that moment, the lord can’t help touching the painter’s cheek and white head-band. The unconscious has finally received something it had been longing: acceptance and warmth. But this is just a brief victory as the moment is ruined by Min’s appearance. However, through this examination, it became obvious that Yoon Seungho needed to confess first. And this observation was proven correct. Yoon Seungho admitted his attachment to the painter in chapter 55. 
(Chapter 49) This is important because for the first time, he is acknowledging his body as a part of himself. This indicates that in the past, he considered his body as a part of his mind, he only viewed himself as a spirit existing through his mind. This explicates why he abhorred the idea to be associated to the image of a man consumed by lust.
(chapter 50) His mind was no longer controlling his body, he acted on his impulses. He let his heart do what it wanted. He no longer ponders like in the past. This explicates why he confuses the mind with the heart. We could say that he was deceived because of all the time he spent thinking. Imagine his reaction when he realized after making that decision that the painter was no longer reacting. He got scared that the painter had fallen sick again, he imagined for one moment that this was a repetition of the incident after the sex marathon. Now, you might be wondering why I bring up this scene again. I would like to point out that in chapter 32, when he said
(chapter 32) he was already living under the illusion that he was just following his mind. He made the decision consciously that he would have more rounds with the painter, whereas in reality, he already was under the influence of his heart. He felt unsatisfied with the first round as he had just forced the painter to acknowledge his sexuality. Deep down, he wanted Baek Na-Kyum to accept him as his “husband” but despite the painter’s facial expressions and his climax, the noble sensed that there was something missing. So he kept having sex with him until the painter felt sick. In chapter 49, it was different, as he had already learnt to pay attention to his lover. Nevertheless, this indicates that the lord’s learning process was not complete. During that night he finally accepted the existence of his body. On the other hand, this also illustrates that he was slowly giving up on the idea that the painter could ever open up to him. Striking is that both made a similar decision during that night. While the painter chose to accept the lord only physically, the lord made the same decision. That’s the reason why in the end, I believe that when I confused the noble’s thoughts with Baek Na-Kyum’s, it doesn’t change much, as the thoughts are quite similar. Both acknowledge the existence and influence of the body. We could say that their expectations were aligned. This outlines how similar the two characters are. Both were living under the influence of their minds. One was brainwashed, while the other chose to live as a spirit in order to avoid any pain. Nonetheless, I believe that he was also brainwashed.
(Chapter 50) His mind might have chosen to resign, yet his body was telling the opposite. His heart wanted more, but his wish was denied by Kim. The author revealed that Kim was selecting the lord’s hanbok. Consequently, I am deducing that the butler had predicted how his master would feel. His heart would be bleeding. Notice that the valet Kim only tells him the truth, after the lord is dressed up and not before. They meet at the scholar’s chamber, when he discovers that Baek Na-Kyum only views himself as a prostitute, hence everything changes. Now he can’t even let his body lead. If he did, then he would make the painter feel dirty. In other words, he would hurt him. 
(Chapter 50) How strange that the moment he comes back to life, he has to die a second time, he can’t let his body take the lead. That’s why he remembers the painter’s sleeping face. His mind is telling to distance himself from Baek Na-Kyum, yet his heart is showing him something else: the painter.
(Chapter 50) The man gets torn due to the conflict. Therefore I have a different interpretation of the last panel. One might say that he becomes a ghost again. It was as if he was vanishing again… disappearing in the books. 
(Chapter 52) Simultaneously his body was indeed taking the lead in his chamber too. The moment he discovered the painter’s presence at his door and even heard his guest’s words, he couldn’t help himself to react. 
(Chapter 52) That was his heart pressuring him to kiss Black Heart. He wanted to protect the artist. He simply let his body take the lead. To conclude, the lord‘s resolution in the study became a reality. 
(Chapter 51) Baek Na-Kyum from far away had the impression that this was his lover’s laugh. The lord was masking his wounded heart with these fake parties. Either he laughed so loudly in chapter 51 or ignored his guest’s remarks in chapter 52. 
(chapter 52) In the last picture, he still wondered why the painter came to his side, he must have heard about the rumors. But since Black Heart understood the lord’s actions perfectly, he kept rubbing salt into the wound so that the host finally gave in. 
(Chapter 52) Nonetheless, there was a certain rage and brutality in his gaze. Thereby he might have been defeated in that moment, yet.he had not lost the war. Why? It is because he was boiling internally. He was furious. His mind chose to give in to prove Min’s words wrong. But why? It is related to his brainwashing and past trauma. He shouldn‘t take it to heart. 
(Chapter 50) If he does, it will bring him only misery. And in the bedchamber, it looked like Kim‘s words were correct. Black Heart had bothered him so much that the only solution he had was to give in. That way, he would no longer be bothered. He would be left alone and find his „peace“. However, deep down, he was so annoyed and angry. Notice that his rage changed him. He became proactive allowing his body to take the lead. 
just like his steps were guiding him to a different room. Strangely, he was indeed following his body and not his mind. The mind made the decision to bring the painter back, the body chose not. That’s why he stopped the moment he heard the scream from the painter’s room.
That’s how the readers discovered the contradiction. That’s also the reason why this manhwa is not easy to understand after first reading. 
(chapter 53) He feels warmth coming from Baek Na-Kyum. This also helps him to feel that he is more than just a shadow, he is a man in reality. Furthermore, the painter didn’t even resent him for the slap but instead even embraced him. 
(Chapter 53)
(Chapter 53) Thus in the shaman‘s house, the lord fulfilled his wish. He wouldn‘t stop because someone had asked him to.
(Chapter 102) As you can see, Min was put in a similar situation, the only difference is that he was now the target of the protagonist’s fury. The gods decided to reveal to Black Heart how wrong his thinking was. A life of a commoner is not different than the noble’s. Yoon Seungho‘s heart got broken, the moment he saw the painter‘s bloody face. 
(Chapter 102) Therefore he transformed into a shadow with a bleeding heart. 
(Chapter 101) In the shaman‘s house, he was not beaten to death, but stabbed to death. This was the usual punishment for a noble. The irony is that because the painter was unconscious, he couldn’t stop Yoon Seungho. The latter let his body take the lead and committed murder. He couldn’t act differently, as he had lost his reason to live. The main lead had once again confused the mind and the heart. This explicates why he couldn’t detect that the painter was just unconscious. And that‘s how Min became a spirit. 
(Chapter 52) In my opinion, he must be mocking the other noble. He feels that his fellow is just too stupid and naive. Yet Min is actually overlooking an important aspect. There is an explanation why the other aristocrats are calling the protagonist a lunatic. Yoon Seungho is indeed revolutionary as he rejects social hierarchy and as such criticizes nobility with its privileges. During the 18th Century, libertines were fighting for liberty and equity and this is not surprising that the French revolution began 1789. Remember what I told about libertines, sex was just one aspect in their life, they advocate reforms and changes in the tripartite society, in the rigid social hierarchy. That’s what Black Heart is overlooking, whereas the nobles sensed this aspect but were not able to define it. 
His retreat was not a defeat, he was just ignoring their opinion. Yoon Seungho just saw them as nobodies hence he had no reason to fight back for his reputation, since he never valued his notoriety. What Min perceived as a first victory was nothing in Yoon Seungho’s eyes.
(Chapter 33) Here, he was challenging the lord for the first time. Furthermore like I had already underlined before, the lord created this image of hell-raiser as a shield. Thanks to his bad notoriety, he could deceive people and protect himself. Ecstasy was never his goal unlike Min, since Yoon Seungho desired to divert people’s attention. And based on my theory he never took pleasure in sodomy, he rather forced himself to live up to his bad reputation. 
(Chapter 52) No noble imagined that the main lead had an interest in government posts. Admittedly, only the readers know the reason why he is sponsoring Jung In-Hun. It happened because of the painter. However, I detect another manipulation here because of the following picture: 
[chapter 11] The noble has always been honest in front of the painter hence his words outline how powerful the main lead is in reality. He already has connections in the government but he never made it public therefore aristocrats thought, he was indulging himself in lust. While he went to sex orgies, he did pay attention to what was happening at the capital, yet he never showed up there due to his trauma. I would even add that he even influenced the government, but always unofficially and indirectly so that people would never make any connection to him. His power seems to be quite important since he proclaims that he can ruin the teacher’s career. This can be also the explication why he even adjoins that he will never get caught with Jung In-Hun’s murder. 
(Chapter 11) He can use his connections in the worst case to cover his misdeed. Nonetheless, I sense that he is also referring to his reputation as a man consumed by lust. As a conclusion, Min has no idea how powerful the noble he is challenging truly is. His judgement is based on the nobles’ reports and hearsay. That’s why Black Heart believes Yoon Seungho is easy to understand, since the rumor is quite simple. To summarize, Min is just another arrogant and stupid fool, overestimating his own abilities and underestimating his opponent. Like one of my readers wrote, Black Heart confuses cunningness with intelligence. Yoon Seungho is not only ruthless but also very smart.
(chapter 52) But this doesn’t stop here. He even confesses Jihwa’s involvement.
(Chapter 52) How can I not judge him stupid? I guess, opium has already confused his mind and reduced his vigilance. He is indeed careless and thoughtless. Besides, in the picture above, I noticed another important detail. He started insulting Jihwa as sodomite. This word “sodomite” reflects his opinion about sodomy as such. He is no homosexual per se, he just uses sodomy to submit the other masters. He is indeed similar to Yoon Seungho in that aspect. Both perceive sex as war, however the powerful noble did it out of resent towards nobility, whereas the other wanted to establish himself as the new ruler among the local aristocracy. Black Heart desired to prove his superiority over the other lords. the main lead had a different goal, it was to tarnish and ruin the image of the nobility. One might argue that the outcome is the same… which is correct, yet due to this, Min jumped to the false conclusion. Min assumed that Yoon Seungho had the same intention. 
(Chapter 52) The painter gets upset with the kiss but instead of letting his emotions take control of his thoughts, he ponders about the cause of these negative feelings. Why is he upset? 
(Chapter 52) Notice the appearance of Yoon Seungho’s hand. It is directly put under the noble’s chin. This gesture is not anodine. His intention appears clear to me. He is aiming at his chin in order to mold his mouth. But he can’t make it too obvious, hence he disguises it after that with a kiss. The kiss is to shut Min’s mouth.
Observe the lord’s hand is still grabbing the chin and his mouth is literally devouring Black Heart’s mouth. It was as if he was covering up Min’s mouth. He made sure that he would stop talking. Note Min’s expression. He never expected such a gesture, he thought that the lord wouldn’t retaliate like that, he would retreat. On the other hand, the main lead is not happy, he is actually furious. 
(chapter 46) What a difference! Min dared to challenge his host and this time, Yoon Seungho didn’t remain passive or retreat. He accepted the defy. This is what I take away from this scene. 
Bebebisous33s' analyses in K-Dramaland and Manhwas 