The palace where the Benefactor of Paradise City lived was entirely different in style from the one in Rock Cellar City.
It could even be said that they were polar opposites.
The Benefactor of Rock Cellar City, the "Honest Afuxin," was actually something of an artist. Although his art was somewhat bloody and cruel, Iver considered its quality quite impressive.
The most important—or rather, the most highly regarded and prestigious—art form in Parthia was called miniature painting. It was different from the realistic style popular in Iris, which pursued harmony, light, and shadow. Instead, it sought delicate brushwork and vivid colors, using color rather than light, shadow, or lines as its core.
Miniature painting had both realistic and abstract styles. Generally speaking, however, it did not emphasize light and shadow, and barely emphasized spatial depth or perspective. Its main purpose was two-dimensional decoration. Its subjects were usually highly recognizable figures, and nearly all of them were shown in profile, somewhat like illustrations in a picture book. Alternatively, there were various evenly scattered runes, flowers, plants, animals, clouds, and water, giving it something of the style of gongbi painting.
Afuxin's works perfectly followed every rule required by miniature painting and suited the Parthians' aesthetic even more. No wonder he proudly displayed them in the hall for everyone who passed by to admire.
For this purpose, his palace had been built entirely around displaying his artworks to the greatest possible extent. In a sense, it was not really a palace at all, but more like a gallery exhibiting paintings. Thus, it did not have many functional rooms. The luxurious yet uncomplicated decorations were merely "seasoning" prepared to complement the artworks.
The ornaments made of gold were essentially picture frames, while the curtains of water were drapes protecting the treasures.
As for the