✩ Chapter 5 ✩
At last… the day has come.
For some reason, the Imperial Palace had sent a letter to the academy yesterday.
It said they would be visiting Swan Knight Academy.
The moment Rachel read it, her heart nearly stopped.
Could they be shutting the academy down because I never reported it to the Imperial Palace?
She spent every day worrying about it.
And now…
Today had finally arrived.
Please… let it be nothing serious.
Rachel hurriedly cleaned the reception room and prepared to welcome the guests.
Looking out the window, she saw the garden, still blackened from Kana’s failed experiment.
At least the inside of the building is still in one piece.
Trying to stay positive, she changed into the best dress she owned.
No matter what…
She couldn’t greet guests while wearing her work pants.
“Miss, our guests from the Imperial Palace have arrived.”
Hearing Colo’s voice, Rachel immediately walked to the entrance.
“Welcome. I am Rachel Swan, the headmaster of Swan Knight Academy.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you. I am Romenico, the Chief Chamberlain of the Imperial Palace.”
The Chief Chamberlain…
That meant he served either the Emperor or the Crown Prince directly.
The man who introduced himself as Romenico had white hair and the kind face of a middle-aged gentleman.
But his eyes were incredibly sharp.
It felt as though they could see straight through a person.
Rachel unconsciously swallowed.
“May I ask what brings you to our academy?”
“I heard that many students are being educated here.”
“His Highness the Crown Prince ordered me to inspect this place.”
“T-The Crown Prince?”
There was no real school system in this Empire.
There were academies…
But they were only for training mages.
Ordinary nobles hired famous scholars or intellectuals as private tutors.
However, as competition for skilled tutors grew fiercer, not every noble family could hire an excellent teacher.
As for commoners…
They had almost no opportunity to receive an education at all.
That was probably why the rumors about Rachel’s Swan Knight Academy had reached the ears of important people.
Rachel swallowed again.
“Please feel free to look around.”
“If you have any questions, I’ll gladly explain.”
“Thank you.”
Fortunately, Romenico simply followed Rachel while quietly listening to her explanations.
He never criticized anything or tried to find fault.
They toured the dining hall on the first floor…
The reception room…
The classrooms on the second floor…
And finally arrived on the third floor.
Student bedrooms lined both sides of the hallway.
“Are these the students’ rooms?”
“Yes.”
“Each student has their own bedroom.”
Romenico suddenly opened one of the doors.
Rachel almost screamed.
It happened to be Eckard’s room.
She had told him countless times to keep it clean…
Yet today it was just as messy as ever.
Standing at the doorway, Romenico quietly glanced around the room.
Without saying a word…
He simply closed the door.
Then he looked at Rachel, whose face had turned pale.
“The students study together.”
“Is there a reason they sleep separately?”
“W-Well…”
“They used to share rooms.”
“But there were a few problems.”
“What kind of problems?”
Rachel hesitated for a moment before giving an awkward smile.
“At first, I assigned two students to each room.”
“But they weren’t used to living with others.”
“They had grown up being cared for by maids and nannies.”
“So they often fought…”
“…and some even ran away in the middle of the night.”
“What do you do when a student runs away?”
“We bring them back.”
“No matter what it takes.”
“The teachers here have become experts at catching runaway students.”
To be more accurate…
They had been forced to become experts.
Many noble children felt trapped living by school rules instead of doing whatever they wanted at home.
Almost every one of them tried to run away at least once.
Rachel had even torn five pairs of work pants while chasing after them.
“So…”
“You take responsibility for every student until the end?”
“Yes.”
“Of course.”
“At Swan Knight Academy, we do everything we can to help every child become a proper knight.”
“Excellent.”
For the first time,
a warm smile appeared on Romenico’s face.
“I believe I’ve seen enough.”
“I’ll take my leave now.”
“There are still a few places I haven’t shown you.”
“Wouldn’t you like to see the rest?”
“I’ve already seen what matters most.”
“I’ve seen the headmaster’s determination.”
“I’ve already seen what matters most. I’ve seen the headmaster’s determination.”
Just as they returned to the second floor—
The classroom bell rang.
The classroom doors opened,
and the children rushed into the hallway.
“Yes! We’re finally free!”
“Huh?”
“I know that old man.”
“Me too!”
Rachel’s face instantly froze.
Old man?! That’s the Chief Chamberlain of the Imperial Palace!
But a professional teacher didn’t lose her temper over something like that.
“Mare.”
“Chase.”
“What did I tell you to do when you meet an adult?”
Where Romenico couldn’t see,
Rachel silently mouthed one word.
“Handwriting punishment.”
“Hello.”
The children immediately bowed politely before hurrying away.
Rachel thought their greeting was still far from perfect.
But Romenico seemed to think differently.
His eyes sparkled.
“I know those students.”
“Chase and Mare?”
“They’re children from quite famous families.”
Rachel didn’t need to ask what they were famous for.
Most likely…
Being impossible troublemakers.
“And yet…”
“They greeted me with just one word from you.”
“That’s our job.”
Rachel answered calmly.
Teaching children was simply her responsibility.
She never noticed…
The admiration growing in Romenico’s eyes.
“Aah… I’m exhausted.”
A few days later,
Rachel stretched her sore shoulders but never stopped writing.
She was recording each student’s daily behavior objectively.
It was something she did every night.
As these records piled up,
she could clearly see how each student was changing.
“I wish someone would invent a computer.”
At moments like this,
she missed the teacher’s work system from Korea.
If she had that,
she could organize every student’s progress in no time.
It would be wonderful if a system like that existed here.
After finishing her notes,
Rachel put down her quill and leaned back in her chair.
As she let out a small sigh,
she remembered Romenico’s visit a few days earlier.
Since nothing else had come from the Imperial Palace,
perhaps they intended to ignore the academy and let it continue operating.
Just as she finally relaxed—
“Miss.”
Knock. Knock.
Colo opened the door.
“Someone has come to see you.”
“At this hour?”
Was it another parent wanting to enroll their child?
But it was already dark outside.
Who would visit a school this late?
Besides…
The five students she already had kept her busy enough.
“We agreed not to accept any new students for a while.”
“Well…”
“This guest is… rather special.”
Colo hesitated.
Something about his expression felt unusual.
“I believe you should meet them yourself.”
If it were an ordinary visitor,
Colo would have politely turned them away himself.
The fact that he hadn’t…
Meant this person was important.
“Alright.”
“I’ll meet them.”
Rachel accepted without thinking much about it.
Then…
The headmaster’s office door slowly opened.
Standing there—
Were the Crown Prince…
…and the two Imperial Princes.
“I’ve been waiting for someone like you.”
“If you accept these two princes as your students…”
“I’ll donate as much money as you want.”
After hearing the Crown Prince’s offer,
Rachel politely bowed.
There was no reason to refuse.
The academy desperately needed funding.
Apparently satisfied,
Lucas placed several documents on the desk.
“You should read these.”
“They describe the personalities of the two princes.”
Rachel carefully read every page before looking back up.
“Is there anything else you would like?”
Lucas thought quietly for a moment.
“I’d like to visit the academy whenever I wish.”
Rachel’s mind completely froze.
The Crown Prince is going to visit the academy whenever he wants?
That was unbelievable.
“During each semester, we hold two open classes for parents.”
“You would be welcome to attend those.”
“I don’t want staged lessons.”
“I want to see the academy exactly as it is.”
“Ah…”
Rachel only hesitated for a moment.
If she refused,
the enormous donation would disappear.
She couldn’t let that happen.
She would just have to work even harder herself.
That was the only answer.
“Very well.”
“You may visit whenever you wish.”
She made that decision because of the money.
At the time…
She had no idea what kind of consequences it would bring.
“Would you like to tour the academy first?”
Lucas nodded.
Rachel,
Lucas,
and the two princes walked through the hallway together.
“These are the students’ rooms.”
Rachel opened a heavy oak door.
Inside was a cozy bedroom.
Compared to the furniture of the Imperial Palace,
the oak bed and sturdy wardrobe looked ordinary.
But Rachel had prepared everything with great care despite having very little money.
“This place is terrible.”
The Third Prince, Noah, spoke without hesitation.
Beside him,
the Second Prince, Theo, laughed quietly.
Those few words froze the atmosphere.
“Noah.”
Lucas called his younger brother’s name in a cold voice.
“I expect you to be different the next time I see you.”
“Brother…”
“That depends on whether this teacher can change me.”
Rachel silently swallowed her anger.
If this had been twenty-first-century Korea…
She would have immediately arranged a meeting with the parents.
Unfortunately…
This wasn’t twenty-first-century Korea.
Lucas let out a short sigh before turning to Rachel.
“As I said…”
“I’ll be visiting this academy often.”
“You must turn these two into proper human beings.”
“I trust you’ll make sure these two become proper human beings.”
