Chapter 5
“Oh. I see. Thank you.”
Celine gave the proper reaction as she had learned to, but in truth, she still did not understand Lillian at all.
If Celine was the moon, then Lillian was like the sun hanging bright in the sky.
“So I’m the teacher’s first student?”
Ellen was also excited, clenching both fists as he shouted.
Immediately, Lillian shot him a rebuke.
“Ellen. Do you think the teacher only has one student? She probably has experience too.”
“Huh? I do? But what does experience mean?”
“It means teaching experience, Ellen.”
At his mother’s words, the child’s eyes grew dim.
Celine suddenly felt uncomfortable.
Actually, you would be my ‘first student’… but I can’t exactly say that out loud.
So she decided to say something as close to the truth as possible.
“But in Elderwick, you’re my ‘first student,’ aren’t you? Take comfort in that.”
“…Really?”
The little boy’s green eyes sparkled like bright summer sunlight.
She had only told the truth, yet Ellen was not sad at all—he was blushing instead.
Lillian added fuel to the fire.
“Oh my. Our teacher is kind-hearted too. Isn’t she?”
“Yes. I already like the teacher a lot.”
Why? Already? Celine closed her mouth in disbelief.
“Right? I picked a good teacher, didn’t I?”
“Yes! Village Chief!”
“Yes, exactly. There must have been a reason Felix eliminated so many applicants.”
Lillian joined in as well.
So there were other teachers who applied for the school. I wasn’t told that.
Thinking about it logically, it made no sense for a village to place a teacher recruitment notice and receive no applicants at all.
“Is that true?”
Celine looked at Felix, who was sitting beside her and smiling kindly, and he spoke as if he had been waiting for the question.
“You should not be surprised yet. Teacher, you were by far number one among the applicants.”
Celine instinctively tightened her lips.
Me? I got first place at something other than cutting people’s throats?
For Celine, who hated her own line of work, Felix’s words made her heart leap.
Thump, thump.
Her ears perked up in excitement.
“Me?”
“Yes. No one else was willing to accept the condition of living and staying in Elderwick. There’s no banquet hall or dressing room here.”
“Ah.”
The people suited to become teachers were usually educated nobles.
And for nobles, social life was important.
It was obvious that they had had a hard time finding a teacher.
“We absolutely needed a teacher for the children’s education, but we kept getting stuck at the final stage. Even the few people who came to look around the village suddenly had carriage accidents or got injured…”
Felix trailed off awkwardly.
When Celine heard that, chills ran down her spine.
Shad.
There was a reason they had not told her about the other applicants.
It was obvious they had caused accidents to the others on purpose so that Celine would be chosen.
A nauseating wave of disgust rose in Celine’s chest.
She forced it down and asked,
“Were those people badly hurt?”
“No, just bruises and scrapes. But noble teachers are so fragile, you know. They said it would be hard for them to come back.”
“I see…”
Celine clenched her fist quietly so the others would not notice.
“Still, the fact that you accepted without complaint, even though you’re a noble, and came here safely and in good health… I can’t tell you how moved I was. Teacher, you seem like a very lucky person.”
At that moment, Felix’s sky-blue eyes sparkled as brightly as Ellen’s.
Celine shifted a little farther away.
That’s only my official identity. And I’m definitely not lucky.
But Celine’s lips were still dutiful to the mission.
She recited the textbook knowledge she had memorized until her head hurt during training ten years ago.
“If you’re a teacher, shouldn’t you naturally have a sense of duty? You should go wherever there are students to teach.”
“Ooh.”
“Oh my.”
Felix and Lillian widened their eyes.
Little Ellen seemed to understand only half of what Celine said, but he opened his mouth along with his mother anyway.
…Thanks for misunderstanding however you like.
“Ah? Teacher! You’re holding the cabbage I grew!”
Ellen pointed with his chubby finger at the brown flowerpot Celine was holding.
“Oh. The village chief told me about it. Thank you so much, Ellen.”
“You’re welcome!”
Ellen looked delighted.
But Celine, who was more accustomed to silence than chatter, was reaching her limit.
Ugh. This is draining me.
“Let me close my eyes for a bit.”
Everyone looked at her in bewilderment, but she simply leaned to the side against the carriage wall and closed her eyes right away.
Once she got to Elderwick, she would head straight home and stay there after work every day!
She could search for the imperial descendant under the moonlight after everyone was asleep.
* * *
“She must be very tired.”
Lillian said this while gently stroking Ellen’s hair as he slept with his head on her lap.
Her tone had become a little more relaxed, like she was speaking to an old friend.
“That’s true.”
Felix also spoke to Celine with a more comfortable air than before.
He looked at Celine’s sleeping form with his back turned to her.
Celine’s slender body looked like it would fly away if the wind blew too hard.
With her white dress and jacket, she looked like a small white cat curled up.
“Now even our children will be able to learn. She came all the way to this remote place where there’s nothing… she’s truly a wonderful person.”
“Lillian, is that all?”
“What?”
Felix, who seemed to be agreeing along with her, suddenly asked seriously, and Lillian raised her pale gold eyebrows.
Felix glanced at Celine for a moment, then quickly looked away and answered vaguely.
“No. I meant that I also thought I should treat her very well.”
“Hm. Sounds like there’s more to it.”
Lillian narrowed her eyes and leaned toward Felix.
“Later.”
“How boring.”
After Lillian pouted and leaned back, Felix chuckled.
“Lillian, you should sleep too. Your face looks rough. If your husband sees that when you get home, he’ll blame me.”
“Yes, sir. Village Chief.”
Felix crossed his arms and closed his eyes, and Lillian also looked away from him.
The carriage continued along the country road toward the place where the snow-covered peaks could be seen in the distance.
* * *
Celine woke up when she felt the temperature around her suddenly drop.
I fell asleep.
She had only meant to rest her eyes for a moment, but she had dozed off.
She could hardly believe that she had fallen into such a deep sleep among strangers, even if only for a short while.
This has never happened during a mission… Is my body really falling apart?
“We’ve arrived, Teacher.”
Just then, Felix met her eyes and pointed ahead with a gentle smile.
Celine finally shook off the shock and gave a very small nod.
“Wake up, Ellen. We’re here.”
“Mmm… Really?”
Ellen rubbed his eyes with his tiny hands and sat up.
Celine, however, leaned against the carriage and looked out at the setting sun.
The sky was clear and orange, and a fresh mountain breeze brushed over her skin.
The snow-covered peaks formed a majestic silhouette in the distance, but grassy fields stretched along the road where the carriage was traveling.
As they got closer to the village, dense fir trees and mountain cherry trees began to appear one by one.
So this is Elderwick.
Celine quietly took in the village.
It was cozier than she had expected.
She had imagined a rough mountain settlement because it was a remote village in the mountains, but the neatly packed houses along the gentle slopes gave off a warm feeling.
I never thought I’d find a place like this halfway up a mountain.
It looks peaceful on the surface, but places like this are usually harsh toward outsiders.
Stay alert.
Celine steeled herself before entering the village.
As the carriage passed the village entrance, where a stone tower carved with a guardian deity stood, the people along the road one by one lifted their heads.
Men carrying firewood, women tending the shared fields, children playing with sheep.
“Oh, the carriage is here!”
“They’ve finally arrived!”
As soon as someone shouted, the people gathered as if they had been waiting for this moment.
Celine moved her naturally lowered hand toward the place where her dagger was hidden.
But soon she realized there was no hostility at all on the faces of the villagers approaching her, and she eased her guard.
Right. I’m here as a teacher… There’s no need to use this.
The coachman stopped the carriage and pulled the reins, kicking up a bit of dust.
Before Celine could even get down, a woman quickly approached.
Her brown hair was neatly braided, and she wore a bright smile as she came closer.
“Welcome! You must be tired after such a long journey!”
Behind her, a pair of siblings who had been hiding stepped forward shyly, holding a huge bouquet of flowers.
The smaller girl held out the bouquet with both hands and said shyly,
“Hello. I’m Sophie. This is… for you, Teacher. You’re so pretty.”
Sophie’s cheeks turned red, and the boy who seemed to be her older brother added awkwardly,
“I’m… Leon.”
Leon was also embarrassed, and his ears were red.
He could barely look at Celine.
For a moment, Celine hesitated over whether to accept the flowers.
She had never received such a welcome before.
Behind them, dozens of villagers were looking at her with eager eyes.
It felt like the whole village had come out to greet her.
Ugh…
It felt as if even the distant snow peaks were melting.
In the end, Celine accepted the bouquet and bowed her head.
“Thank you.”
The villagers’ faces brightened even more.
Then, suddenly, several burly men who had been mixed in with the crowd stepped forward and spread a long piece of cloth wide on both sides.
Welcome! Teacher Celine Ravens! Stay healthy! From all the residents of Elderwick, the Village of Longevity.
Compared to that, the colorful sign Felix had been holding at the station was downright cute.
