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Chapter 25
“Achoo!”
What’s going on? Why do I feel so chilly all of a sudden?
Erne hugged herself tightly, trying to shake off the shivers as she looked down at the children diligently reading their books.
She felt unwell and didn’t have the energy to teach today.
Did she perhaps overdo it during the outing?
“Hmm…”
Come to think of it, that quack doctor had once misdiagnosed her poor condition…
No way that misdiagnosis could be right. I better not jinx myself by dwelling on it.
Erne shook her head vigorously to rid herself of that absurd thought.
Somehow, she had been getting a strange feeling all day.
As she blankly stared at the quiet forest path, she was suddenly startled by none other than Shuknen.
“Teacher.”
She thought he was quietly enjoying his book in his seat.
But Shuknen walked up to her with both arms stretched wide.
‘If it’s a cold, it might be contagious…’
Erne hesitated briefly, but couldn’t bring herself to ignore the little boy bouncing up and down, asking to be hugged.
“Come here.”
The tiny eight-year-old frame pricked at Erne’s heart.
Shuknen had always been sickly since childhood and frequently caught minor illnesses.
Thinking of what this small body had endured, despite his cheerful demeanor, made her nose sting.
“Did you want a hug?”
“Yes.”
After that short reply, Shuknen sat on her lap and resumed reading his book.
Lately, Shuknen had been whining more, asking Erne for things.
Having heard from Windsor what Shuknen had gone through when he was ill, Erne couldn’t bring herself to reject his requests.
‘This could turn into a bad habit though…’
Erne had a weakness for things that were cute, pretty, and handsome.
She worried that being too indulgent would turn him into a spoiled brat, but she still couldn’t push Shuknen away.
“Teacher.”
“Hmm?”
Shuknen suddenly closed his fairy tale book with a crisp sound and looked up at her, as if he had something to say.
His rosy, cotton-candy-colored eyes stared at her directly.
His sparkling, bright eyes looked like they had been embroidered with light.
“What kind of man do you like?”
Caught off guard, Erne found herself lost in his eyes, unaware that her mouth had fallen open.
“Huh?”
Her eyes blinked slowly in surprise.
Whenever she got these pure and innocent questions from kids, she couldn’t help but wonder—since when did this Confucian-style academy turn into a dating advice center?
But with Shuknen staring up at her, eagerly waiting for an answer, she had no choice but to start thinking seriously about her ideal type.
“Well… I’ve never really thought about it before…”
If I had to say…
As her voice trailed off, Shuknen’s focus intensified.
He tilted his head, mirroring Erne’s head tilt, eagerly waiting for her to finish her sentence.
“Hmm…”
“…”
“I think there’s just one thing that really matters to me.”
A brilliant mind? A killer physique? Or maybe a heart so pure he could live without laws?
Erne mulled it over for a while, and when she finally made up her mind, she nodded to herself with a look of relief.
Right. Considering this is a trashy romance novel…
“Looks.”
Shuknen’s angelic face instantly crumpled.
Unaware of the icy reaction from Shuknen, Erne began to speak excitedly.
“If you’re going to look at someone for the rest of your life, their face has to be something you won’t get tired of. Of course, if they have a great body on top of that, even better.”
Even if it was a trashy novel, for Erne—deeply rooted in superficial values—appearance was a five-star priority.
Shuknen stared blankly at the smiling Erne, who was lost in her own delusions.
He sighed quietly.
He’d always suspected this eccentric teacher wasn’t quite normal, but today, more than ever, he didn’t want to be held in her arms.
Drooping his shoulders, Shuknen slowly slid off her lap.
“Shuknen? What’s wrong?”
“…I’ll go back to my seat and read.”
Hmm? Erne tilted her head in confusion, but Shuknen had no energy left to respond.
From the moment his father Windsor told him to help woo the teacher, Shuknen had taken the role of bridge-builder seriously.
Identify the teacher’s type and report it back to his father.
But to find out her top priority was looks—it was just… disappointing.
‘She says looks matter most, but she doesn’t even blush when she sees Dad.’
Shuknen was mature for his age. He had a pretty good grasp of adult matters.
And it was now clear that his father’s face was not her type.
Clicking his tongue inwardly, Shuknen muttered to himself.
‘It’s over. Totally over.’
Some things could be improved—but your face, that was something you were just born with.
Watching Erne’s non-reaction to his father’s appearance, Shuknen clicked his tongue in a way no child should.
‘Dad, I think it’s hopeless this life.’
Erne was clearly immune to Windsor’s face.
＊＊＊
“What did you say?”
“A date.”
Erne looked completely flustered.
She had just been playing in the dirt with Shuknen, waiting for the Douglas family’s carriage after Selene and Ash had gone home, when Windsor dropped that bomb.
“Why would I go on a date with a parent—Windsor, no less?”
It was an obvious rejection disguised as a question.
But Windsor had prepared his answer in advance, expecting her reaction.
“Not with me. I meant Shuknen and you.”
“…Ah?”
At Windsor’s words, Shuknen—who had been cluelessly listening—frowned deeply.
His input had clearly not been considered in this plan.
And yet, the funniest part was that Erne, the one who should’ve objected the most, simply nodded.
“Oh, with Shuknen?”
“Yes, with Shuknen.”
“Okay. Shuknen, do you want to go on a date with Teacher?”
The sigh that came from Shuknen was far too deep and heavy for a child.
He looked up at Windsor and Erne, then nodded with a resigned face.
“Yes, Teacher.”
Though his voice was tight, Erne, fortunately, didn’t notice.
Partly because she was feeling under the weather, her usual sharpness dulled.
Also, as mentioned earlier—Erne was terribly soft when it came to Shuknen.
Cute, pretty, and handsome.
Shuknen was all three.
So despite feeling sick, Erne allowed herself to be escorted by Windsor with a helpless expression.
“Where are we going?”
Erne asked, draping a coat over her shoulders as she climbed into the carriage.
“Well… Did you know there’s a lake in Vanessa? Deep in the forest, I hear. Supposed to be quite mystical. The people of Vanessa believe the lake’s guardian spirit protects them.”
Windsor began revealing information he had squeezed out of a count the other day.
“It’s known for the legend that if you make a wish and throw a pretty pebble into the lake, the spirit will grant it.”
It was clearly a tourist trap. Erne’s expression immediately turned flat.
She felt too dizzy to react to Windsor’s words properly. Plus, Erne wasn’t the romantic type. Especially not when it came to folklore like this.
“But Shuknen, why did you suddenly want to go on a picnic?”
Unlike Erne, who dismissed it as commercial fluff, Shuknen had been listening intently.
When she gently patted his head and asked, Shuknen’s eyes lit up as he replied.
“I have a wish I really want to make at the lake.”
So innocence isn’t dead yet!
Erne covered her mouth, overwhelmed with emotion.
To think she, jaded by life, had dismissed the legend as a tourist scam.
She gave herself a moment of self-reflection and then hugged Shuknen tightly.
“We’ve arrived.”
Windsor, unsure why Shuknen was being rewarded for his explanation, got out of the carriage with triangular eyes fixed on his son.
Shuknen and Erne followed him, and when they saw the lake, their jaws dropped.
“I didn’t know Vanessa had a place like this.”
Despite her feverish haze, Erne felt instantly revived by the breathtaking sight.
A round lake, hidden within thick woods and shrouded in mist, radiated an otherworldly, sacred aura.
Now she understood why people believed the guardian spirit granted wishes when you threw in a pebble.
“Well, I’ve got nothing to lose—might as well try it.”
Now she knew why tourists fell for overpriced souvenirs at destinations.
Erne scanned the ground, searching for a pretty pebble.
Windsor smiled proudly as she, who had shown zero interest all day, suddenly came alive hunting for a rock.
Next to her, Shuknen had already found a small, fist-sized pebble and threw it with all his might into the lake.
“Please don’t let Teacher be sick.”
Shuknen liked Erne. From the very first moment they met.
She wasn’t just a teacher—he had even wished she could be his mother.
The way she treated him not as a noble, but just a child—without bias—touched him deeply.
So Shuknen sincerely wished for Erne’s good health.
Beside him, Windsor also picked up a pebble and flung it with strength into the lake.
The calm waters rippled violently where his stone hit.
“Please let me protect Erne. No matter who the enemy is.”
Even if it was her biological mother—Queen Nesheld.
Even if it was the unknown culprit who cursed her with dark sorcery.
Even if there was a hidden force behind it all.
Windsor had fallen for Erne.
The woman he had slowly grown to love—he now wanted to protect her.
“Hm.”
Erne finally picked out a triangular-shaped stone.
Not for any special reason.
It just reminded her of the triangle-shaped rice balls she used to eat during her school days.
What should I wish for?
After some serious thought, she casually tossed the triangle rice ball—err, stone—into the lake.
“Please let me make lots of money. I plan to live long enough to smear poop on the walls of my nursing home, so make sure I don’t die before I use up all that money!”
The wish was absolutely for lottery-level wealth.
She clasped her hands and closed her eyes tightly, pouring her heart into it.
After all, there was no rule that only one wish could be granted, so she slyly added a bonus:
‘And let me live a long, healthy life too.’
Then, glancing sideways at the father and son making their wishes next to her, she whispered one final wish:
“And lastly… please reform that villainous father-son duo!”
