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Chapter 05
“…Excuse me? Who did you just say this child is?”
As expected, she should go back in time and beat herself just enough not to die.
Maybe slap herself across the cheek with her own left hand raised high in the air.
There was a clear reason why Erne was having such violent thoughts.
The child holding hands with the old man who visited her yesterday.
The old man, completely oblivious to Erne’s internal chaos, just smiled brightly.
He even remembered to say, “Please take good care of our young master.”
Not to mention, he handed her a thick envelope, saying it was a donation for the academy called Cheonghakdong.
But more than that, Erne was on the verge of passing out—hoping, just hoping she had heard wrong.
“He’s the only son of the Duke of Douglas.”
And seeing Erne still floundering in shock, the old man tilted his head.
There were rumors going around in Vanessa about their young master—apparently, it wasn’t just among the servants.
‘The rumors have already reached the people of Vanessa?’
With a smooth, practiced gesture, the old man placed the envelope firmly into Erne’s hands.
He was worried the teacher might reject the young master’s admission.
“Our young master is just a bit shy with strangers. He’s absolutely not a bad person. He’s the heir to the Douglas family, so I hope you’ll take extra care of him.”
“Hmph.”
Only then did Erne truly take in the pouting face of the child holding the old man’s hand.
‘Oh, for f**’s sake.’*
She screamed inside. A silent scream.
‘The villain’s son?!’
She vaguely remembered something in the original novel about the villain having a son.
But why—why—was that child now in her precious Cheonghakdong?
‘He’s the son of the very man who ruined Nesheld by interfering in the love of the male and female leads…’
Erne barely suppressed her near-tears and forced a smile.
“Young Master, I’ll be back to pick you up when the class ends.”
“Don’t be even a minute late. My time is valuable.”
What on earth is happening here…
The old man—no, the butler who introduced himself as the Duke of Douglas’ steward, Huger—nodded to both the boy and to Erne with a respectful bow before leaving.
Erne, still dazed, returned the nod. And by the time she raised her head again, all that remained was the sneering child of the Douglas family, Shuknen.
“There’s absolutely nothing I like about the countryside!”
Shuknen shouted, glaring up at Erne, who was still in a daze.
This was supposed to be an academy, but it looked like someone had just set out a few wooden desks.
He figured even their storage room at home was bigger than this place and couldn’t stop grumbling.
Even the name sounded rustic, and the two children who were staring at him curiously looked just as rustic.
Not a single hint of sophistication anywhere.
The only saving grace was the teacher standing in front of him—she looked far too elegant for this shabby place.
But Shuknen didn’t want to believe his eyes.
After all, if she was in a place like this, she had to be a country bumpkin too.
‘I’m the one and only heir to House Douglas! How am I supposed to be taught by a commoner like her?’
Just as Shuknen began to grumble again, Erne had finally regained some of her composure.
She let out a long sigh. Sensitive to others’ reactions, Shuknen flinched.
‘Damn it. Why does he have to be so ridiculously good-looking?’
No matter how you looked at him, his appearance didn’t match this countryside school.
Raised surrounded by only the best and most beautiful, Shuknen had a strong aesthetic sense.
Both objectively and subjectively. So if even Shuknen thought Erne was beautiful, she really must be.
‘Why does her sigh make me feel like I did something wrong?! I didn’t do anything!’
Pouting, Shuknen kicked the leg of the wooden desk with his toe.
“Your name’s Shuknen, right?”
“Why are you talking down to me?”
Gasp. The villain’s blood really was no joke.
A shadow of despair crossed Erne’s face.
But in contrast, Shuknen felt a strange guilt for making such a pretty teacher’s face darken in an instant.
‘Why! Of all people! Does a countryside teacher have to be this pretty?!’
He huffed, about to say more, but then shook his head quickly.
He was the proud, only heir of the Douglas family.
Even if she was a teacher, he couldn’t tolerate her speaking to him informally.
Erne stared at the sulky boy and composed herself again.
After all, she had agreed to accept the Duke of Douglas’ son.
She recalled what she’d vowed when founding Cheonghakdong.
“The future of Nesheld lies in its children!”
The origin of Cheonghakdong was to guide children raised in cliché-ridden toxic novels down the right path.
Erne shook her head, reminding herself not to forget that.
“I’m a teacher. Other instructors might not, but the teachers at Cheonghakdong—no, this teacher—will not use honorifics with children. I don’t want to treat anyone differently just because they’re of noble birth.”
“Even though I’m the one and only heir to the Douglas family?”
“So what? You’re still Shuknen. And Shuknen should call me instructor—wait, why do I keep saying that?!”
The Cheonghakdong image had imprinted itself so deeply into her mind that she kept calling herself “instructor.”
Flustered, she quickly changed her expression into a bright smile.
“Shuknen, just call me Teacher. My name is Erne.”
Erne reached out her hand toward the still sulky Shuknen.
He just glared at it stubbornly, not making any move to grab it, making Erne feel awkward.
Just as she was about to pull her hand back in embarrassment, Shuknen suddenly grabbed it tightly.
“…Okay.”
His words were still short, but Erne was genuinely touched that he’d accepted her.
Feeling the small hand that had shyly grabbed hers, Erne’s heart fluttered for the first time.
She did feel rewarded teaching Selene and Ash, but to think the villain’s child could be this obedient…!
‘Fine. The villain might’ve ruined the kingdom, but the kid’s innocent. If he grows up here, he won’t turn out like that villain.’
And there was already a terrible example in his household.
Like, say, the Duke of Douglas himself.
Erne made up her mind to guide Shuknen down the right path—with a stern expression.
‘He only turned out badly because he watched his father.’
Unaware that the Duke of Douglas would probably faint if he heard that, Erne hardened her resolve.
Shuknen, she felt, would need intense memorization training—and probably brainwashing.
It would take time to erase all the bad things he’d already learned.
But surprisingly, Shuknen adapted far better to Cheonghakdong than she expected.
＊＊＊
While teaching Shuknen, Erne realized that his way of thinking was definitely different from others. He didn’t look down on her, but his attitude toward Ash and Selene said it all.
“How am I supposed to eat at the same table as you? I’m the only heir of—!”
“Shuknen.”
“Y-yes, Teacher…”
For some reason, despite being cold to others, Shuknen was unusually well-behaved with her. Erne firmly believed this wasn’t a bad sign.
“Try using kinder words with your friends.”
Seeing his unfairly wronged expression, Erne couldn’t help but feel like she was scolding a kid who didn’t even do anything. Still, she stayed firm.
“And eating with friends is fun. People can’t live alone.”
“Why?”
Ever curious, Selene shot her hand into the air.
Erne gently put Ash down from her lap and replied,
“Because it’s lonely.”
“Hmph. Then I’ll never be lonely. I have lots of people around me.”
Erne laughed awkwardly at Shuknen’s comment.
She needed to teach him about people who were truly there for him, but couldn’t think of the right words.
Even if she tried, they were still too young to really understand.
“See? That means even you aren’t alone. It proves no one can live by themselves.”
“T-that’s hard…”
Ash drooped his shoulders and glanced at Erne anxiously.
Seeing the gloomy child, Erne scratched her head and clapped her hands to lift the mood.
“It’s okay. You’ll learn slowly.”
“But Teacher!”
Even now, bright and cheerful Selene clung to the hem of Erne’s skirt.
“Hmm?”
“What’s adultery?”
“…”
Erne clenched her teeth. This damned trashy novel world, again…
She quickly turned her head so Selene wouldn’t see her twisted face.
“Where’d you hear that word?”
She wanted to grab and shake the neck of whoever said that in front of the kids.
Despite her noble appearance, Erne still had a few coarse habits left from her days harvesting herbs.
“Um, I heard Aunt Jam from our house talking to Aunt Daphne. She said her husband had an affair and started swearing a lot! Oh! Aunt Jam cleans our house. Aunt Daphne cooks!”
Erne sighed deeply. Is there no happy family in all of Nesheld?
Ash and Selene’s homes seemed normal, but she wasn’t sure she could trust even that.
While rubbing her temples, Erne locked eyes with Shuknen.
‘The villain’s son…’
Out of habit, she thought of the villainous Duke of Douglas when looking at Shuknen, and nodded firmly.
“Right. Gotta shape his values now.”
Quietly, she clenched her fists and opened her mouth.
“Adultery is loving someone else while you already have someone you’re supposed to love.”
“Ew! That’s awful!”
Seeing the kids’ horrified faces, Erne felt a little guilty.
Was it right to say such bitter truths to kids she was supposed to protect?
But this was a necessary step if she wanted to raise them right.
She couldn’t let them grow up, have affairs, and give birth to secret-identity kids like in the novel she’d been dragged into.
This was all based on her own life experience, and she didn’t want to pass down the same messed-up future.
“It’s true. Adultery is really bad.”
“That’s so sad! Poor Aunt Jam!”
Selene not only understood but even empathized. She really was mature for her age.
“Then… are we going to cheat when we grow up too?”
Ash clung to Erne’s arm with a pale face.
At that horrifying question, Erne shook her head firmly.
“What are you saying? Selene, Ash, and even Shuknen must never become adults like that.”
“…”
“Cheating is worse than being a dog.”
…She wasn’t sure if that was okay to say.
But Erne had decided: better to teach reality than protect childish innocence.
And really, it was all because of Shuknen.
Thanks to her strong words, Shuknen’s eyes went wide—round as the full moon.
