2 - Another Grueling Day for the Aristocratic Kindergarten Teacher
Counseling Room.
Steam rose faintly from the teacups placed before the two men. Ephna was the first to break the suffocating silence.
"Guardians."
"Guardians?"
"He's Maylin's brother, teacher. Please, speak comfortably."
Two responses came at Ephna's words.
One was the Emperor, and the other was the captain of the royal guard.
'How am I supposed to be comfortable?'
On the other hand, look at our most revered Emperor. He was sitting so nonchalantly on a chair with a chick drawn on it.
The way he stirred his teacup was exceedingly leisurely.
"Since you've called us all the way here, I hope it's something worthwhile."
She was already intimidated. This wouldn't do.
'I can't afford to back down here.'
As kindly as possible, but without seeming weak. Ephna lifted the corners of her lips in a gentle smile.
"Yes. Then, without further ado, I'll speak frankly."
"Frankly?"
"Your younger siblings have been fighting frequently, so I requested this meeting because I thought a consultation would be necessary."
In other words, they were troublemakers.
The hand that had been leisurely holding the teacup paused. The lips that had been smiling kindly parted slightly.
'Why are you both doing that? You told me to speak comfortably.'
Ephna smiled brightly.
To be precise, only Ephna was smiling. Like sunshine, befitting the teacher of the Sunshine Class.
Clang. The sound of the teacup being placed down was precise. Maxion's brother, or rather, North Gidhehyde, the Emperor of the Empire, asked with a fairly composed expression.
"Fighting frequently, you say. What do you mean?"
Seriously, so what if he's the Emperor? Why has he been subtly using informal language since earlier?
"..."
Well, he is the Emperor.
Ephna flinched and turned her head away from his gaze. It was true that even the central nobles couldn't utter a word in front of the Emperor.
'Get a grip. If you lose here, you'll be dragged around until Maxion graduates, Ephna.'
She clenched her fist tightly under the desk. The voice that came out again was quite gentle.
"Children of this age are very active. It's a time when their gross motor skills are developing, so they basically move around a lot."
How to deal flexibly with a meeting with a guardian.
First. Lay the groundwork.
Second. Lay more groundwork.
Third. Keep laying the groundwork.
There's no major problem with your child. Reassuring the guardian was the priority.
Then they would ask.
"What does that have to do with fighting?"
"Haha. Isn't it a good thing if they run and play well?"
Yes, like that. But the main point was from now on.
"However, in doing so, they sometimes fail to control their momentary strength and hurt other children."
"..."
"Verbal arguments easily lead to physical altercations. Children are generally unskilled at controlling their emotions, so their hands go out first."
In short, they were saying that the two of them were arguing and then hitting each other.
The Emperor tapped his foot with an arrogant gaze.
"Are you saying someone dared to lay a hand on a member of the imperial family?"
He absolutely didn't think that his child would have been the one to do wrong first. It seemed that even the Emperor was no exception.
At the preemptive strike he launched, Maylin's brother, the captain of the royal guard of the Grand Temple, slowly swept back his hair.
"It seems the prince is quite mischievous."
"Mischievous... If you were to die for insulting the imperial family, your beloved sister would be quite sad."
Tap, tap. The Emperor tapped his teacup. As if it were the captain of the royal guard's lifeline.
"If I die, the people of the Empire would be the saddest. In the face of unfair treatment, the Grand Temple would withdraw its friendly relations with the Empire and return to being a sacred neutral nation."
Maylin's brother brought the teacup to his lips without expression.
"So the Grand Temple's ideology of serving the people of the Empire was so pathetic? To abandon all the people of the Empire for the death of one captain of the royal guard."
"No one can belittle the death of the captain of the royal guard as 'just' anything."
"There is also no precedent for anyone who has insulted the imperial family and dared to survive."
"It's a pity that the imperial family cannot humbly accept even small criticisms."
Ephna was the only one growing cold between the two men, who were exuding fierce energy.
'What Emperor and captain of the royal guard in the world discuss capital punishment and diplomatic severance in a kindergarten counseling room?'
She secretly let out a small breath. From her plump lips, a slightly firm voice flowed out, unable to bear it any longer.
"Both children are taking turns saying, 'You did it first,' 'No, I did it first.'"
The counseling room became quiet in an instant. At Ephna's words, the two men, who had been growling fiercely, closed their mouths.
'Yes, you're surprised, aren't you? That your own sibling is also responsible.'
Look at their expressions. They looked as if they were facing an unbelievably shocking truth. It was almost pitiful.
"That can't be... Maylin is a child who cherishes even a passing bug, teacher."
I thought so too when I read the original work. She may not catch bugs, but she boldly tugs on her friend's hair.
"Maxion is faithfully carrying out the imperial family's etiquette education."
Yes, yes. I know from reading the original work that Maxion is a very well-behaved child, but that's a different matter.
Slurp. Ephna took a sip of her tea with a neat attitude. The two men stared at Ephna with rather tense gazes.
They thought, 'There's no way my sibling would do that,' but they also had a sense of unease.
The moment the guardians wavered, the initiative in the meeting had already passed to her.
"As I said, it's a difficult age to suppress impulses. In fact, the biggest problem lies elsewhere."
"..."
"If this situation continues, the other children in the class will also have difficulty becoming friends with the two children."
No sooner had her soft voice echoed in the counseling room than the handsome faces hardened.
'My sibling is the one and only prince of the Empire, whom no one dares to treat carelessly.'
'My sibling is the youngest daughter of the grand priest, who can make even a flying bird fall!'
It was written on the two men's foreheads that no one would approach their siblings.
"Of course, I will do my best to guide the children, but you must also help at home."
Ephna smiled brightly at them. What followed her smile was a suffocating silence.
'Oh dear, parenting novices.'
Compared to the countless guardians she had dealt with so far, these two were, well, gentle lambs, no, gentle beasts. Something like that.
Maylin's brother quickly composed his bewildered expression.
"I... I'll have to talk to her."
Following him, Maxion's brother opened his mouth with a troubled face.
"I'll tell the imperial education officer."
"No, Brother. Directly."
"...What?"
"I know you're busy, but I recommend that you talk to Maxion directly!"
His coolly raised eyes blinked as if he were dumbfounded. He was flustered. The Emperor was. Or maybe he was just speechless.
But what could she do? The first step to a peaceful family and a peaceful kindergarten life was communication between family members.
"Do you not know who I am?"
"I do. You are the sky of the Empire."
"Then you must also know how much time I have allocated to this seat."
"Yes. Since you've taken the time to come to a place like this, I have no doubt that you will pay even more attention to Maxion."
I learned a lot from watching the two of you talk. How to never back down.
Ephna decided to put her life on the line and become a little bolder.
"You..."
The Emperor, who was about to say something, closed his lips without finishing his sentence.
The sun above the snow mountain. The orange eyes that the people of the Empire praised in unison quietly stared at Ephna.
Yes. She was terrified.
'Was I too bold? It seems like I've been too careless since I died once, hasn't it?'
Ephna's white hands naturally became polite. She neatly placed both hands on her lap.
However, Maylin's brother added to the blunder, making her efforts to be as polite as possible pale in comparison.
"The teacher is right. There's nothing as terrible as someone who neglects their family while making excuses."
He fed the Emperor while smiling gently.
But if there was one thing he was forgetting, it was that he was in the same situation as the Emperor.
Ephna forced a smile at Maylin's brother.
"Um, this is also for you, brother."
"Hmm?"
It seemed like he subtly thought it didn't apply to him.
"It would be good for both of you to talk to the children about their kindergarten life."
It was an occupational hazard.
An occupational hazard of having to say what needed to be said even while trembling. A struggle to avoid being swayed in a parent-teacher conference.
It seemed that her pitiful strategy had worked. The two men closed their mouths with complicated expressions.
'They must be thinking a lot.'
She took another sip of her cooling tea.
Clink. At the same time as she put down the teacup, the counseling room door opened cautiously. A small foot toddled in.
"Teachew..."
"Maylin?"
Everyone's gaze turned to the source of the sound.
There was Maylin, as cute and lovely as a baby bird. Maylin's brother reached out to Maylin with one hand, his legs still crossed.
"Maylin, were you bored? Come here."
Maylin stretched out her short legs and started running.
One step towards her brother. Three steps. Five steps. And the moment she reached right in front of her brother!
"Maylin?"
She passed him by.
She lightly ignored her beloved brother and hugged Ephna tightly.
