The Teacher of Budding Villains Suffers Today, Too - Chapter 2

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 2
The mansion of Duke Keliwu was magnificent beyond all comparison to the Swan Baron House. Even from a distance in the carriage, its sheer grandeur was unmistakable.
As Rachel swallowed hard, her throat tight with nerves, the carriage door opened.
“We’ve arrived.”
The moment she stepped down, the towering walls—easily twice the height of a grown man—loomed over her with crushing weight.
‘If the Duke’s mansion is this enormous, how vast must the Imperial Palace be?’
Rachel shook her head, deliberately pushing back the creeping sense of intimidation.
Days earlier, she had sent a letter of introduction to Duke Keliwu through Colo, mentioning that she wished to discuss matters concerning her father’s debt repayment.
Once she met the Duke, she planned to present her proposal for operating the Swan Knight Academy and gauge his reaction.
There was a reason she had chosen Duke Keliwu as her first target. It had to do with circumstances that had recently become public knowledge about his household.
As she turned these thoughts over, a sharp, piercing voice cut through the air.
“When will that child ever learn any sense?!”
Rachel peered through a gap in the wall to see inside.
An irate noblewoman stalked across the garden, her face flushed with anger, while her attendants trailed helplessly behind her.
“Yerdin der Keliwu! Still sneaking out of the mansion like a fool?! I should strike him from the family registry altogether!”
This was precisely why she had chosen Duke Keliwu as her target.
Yerdin der Keliwu—the Duke’s youngest son.
According to Colo’s account, Duke Keliwu had three sons.
The eldest and second son were both remarkably talented and had risen swiftly through the ranks under their wealthy father’s support and their mother’s passionate dedication to their education.
If only the youngest could follow suit, the family would form a perfect triad.
But that was a vain hope.
The Duchess, renowned for her extensive connections, had hired the finest tutors from across the realm for private instruction, yet Yerdin showed no interest in his studies whatsoever, caring only to torment his parents.
Bad enough if he’d simply played alone in his room. But the cruelest irony was that his closest friend was none other than the Third Imperial Prince—a fact that drove Duke Keliwu to distraction.
Under ordinary circumstances, a father would rejoice that his son was acquainted with a prince. But the Third Imperial Prince himself was a notorious problem.
Even the Imperial Family had given up on him, so the Duke could hardly forbid his son from spending time with him.
The Duke had quietly washed his hands of the matter and left all discipline to his wife, and the Duchess was now at her wit’s end over her youngest son’s education.
“My lady, please… do calm yourself a moment,” one of the servants ventured cautiously.
Unfortunately, her words had the opposite effect.
“Calm myself?! I’ve gone through endless trouble bringing in tutors, and now they’re all refusing to continue! Where am I supposed to find another teacher of his caliber?!”
The Duchess struck her chest repeatedly in frustration. For a woman who had lived an elegant and refined life until now, her son’s defiance was clearly an immense ordeal.
“Bring Yerdin here at once! If he doesn’t return before sunset, I will not spare any of you!”
“Yes, yes! Of course, my lady!”
“And I’m cutting off his allowance—every last copper!”
Still seething, the Duchess stamped away toward the mansion with heavy strides.
‘Every household has its troubles. Though not quite as dire as mine.’
Compared to her own struggles under debt collectors’ threats, their situation seemed manageable enough. Yet Rachel felt no envy for them.
‘Still, the Duchess seems very… human. Especially when she threatened to cut off her son’s allowance.’
She’d expected a duchess of that rank to wave a fan gracefully and deliver gentle reproofs in measured tones.
‘I wonder what the son looks like.’
Perhaps it was her nature reasserting itself. Rachel found herself curious to meet Yerdin and hear his side of things.
But the thought was fleeting. Her purpose in coming here was clear, and she ought to meet the Duke first before seeking out his son.
Rachel cleared her mind by shaking her head lightly.
‘Wait… who on earth is that?’
Just then, a highly suspicious figure entered her line of sight.
A thief?
That was her first instinct upon seeing him.
And for good reason—someone was attempting to climb over the Duke’s outer wall.
The figure strained with all his effort to scale a barrier twice his own height and slip into the mansion grounds.
Yet the likelihood of him being a thief seemed remarkably low.
Whatever else might be said, anyone with skill enough to clear that wall would surely have been caught long ago had they been a common burglar.
Besides, any proper thief would wear dark clothes and appear unkempt to avoid notice.
This incompetent burglar was dressed in garish finery, dripping with accessories as if begging for attention.
‘Could it be…?’
There was only one person who could scale the Duke’s wall at this hour—clumsily, yet with such daring audacity.
Rachel approached cautiously.
“Excuse me…”
“Yipe!”
At the sound of her voice from behind, the figure—balanced precariously with one leg over the wall—jumped in alarm and tumbled to the ground with a thud.
“Are you alright?”
Rachel hurried forward, helping the child up from where he’d landed hard on his backside.
“You’re Yerdin, aren’t you?”
“What? Who are you?”
Yerdin’s voice turned sharp, his guard rising visibly. It was exactly the reaction Rachel had anticipated.
Rachel smiled and opened her mouth.
“I’m Rachel Swan. I came to consult with the Duchess about finding a tutor for the Young Lord, and I happened to find you.”
Yerdin’s expression relaxed slightly at her words, though his face darkened the moment she mentioned tutoring.
“If you have business with Mother, go ahead. Don’t expect to come in as my teacher and take it easy.”
Rachel delivered her decisive blow as Yerdin brushed the dirt from his trousers and turned toward the main gate.
“If you go in now, you won’t be able to leave the house for a while. She said she’d cut off your allowance too.”
The moment the word “allowance” left her lips, Yerdin flinched and turned back around.
“…How do you know that?”
“Your mother mentioned it. It doesn’t seem like this is the first time you’ve snuck out without your parents knowing. Is something wrong between you and your family?”
……
Yerdin said nothing, his lips pressed into a thin line. He clearly had something troubling on his mind.
“You don’t have to talk about it if it’s difficult.”
Rachel stepped back. There was no point in poking at old wounds—it would only backfire.
As she watched silently for his response, Yerdin, who had been gnawing at his fingernails, murmured something.
“…I can’t lose the allowance.”
Rachel observed as Yerdin’s expression grew increasingly dejected.
For the youngest son of a duke’s house, money really shouldn’t be necessary.
Yet if he desperately needed it, he must be doing something his parents would disapprove of.
“Would you tell me why you need the money? Maybe I can help.”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“You’ll just tell my mother everything.”
“I understand your suspicion. If I were in your position, I’d feel the same way.”
Rachel spoke with genuine honesty.
‘How can I earn this child’s trust?’
The most important thing when bonding with children is earning their trust. Only after understanding each other’s hearts could real conversation truly begin.
“Um…”
“Yes, go ahead.”
Rachel answered with a gentle smile. The fact that the boy had initiated conversation was itself a positive sign.
“But why are you trying to help me? We’re strangers, and you don’t have to.”
“If my small effort can make a real difference for someone, there’s no reason not to.”
It wasn’t flattery. This bright conviction had drawn Rachel to the church in her past life.
“I believe the world changes through these small kindnesses. Whatever others might think, that’s what I believe.”
As Rachel smiled gently, Yerdin stared at her face for a long moment.
After a long silence, he finally spoke, his voice heavy.
“…Can we move somewhere else?”
* * *
The two spent a good while talking in the Cafeteria.
Deciding that Rachel was someone he could trust, Yerdin opened his heart to her.
Through his story, Rachel came to understand that Yerdin was far from a simple troublemaker.
After reassuring the boy, she returned with him to the Duke’s residence.
In the meantime, the household had fallen into chaos—the Young Lord still hadn’t returned.
The moment Yerdin appeared at the gate, the guards jolted in alarm and immediately escorted him to the Duke’s study.
“Yerdin! Where on earth have you been?!”
The Duchess’s scolding poured down the instant he stepped into the study.
Just as she was about to continue her tirade, she caught sight of Rachel following behind him and blinked in confusion.
Standing properly before his parents, Yerdin lifted his head and spoke with grim determination.
“Father, Mother. I’ve never asked for your ear like this, and I’m not sure how you’ll receive it, but… please listen to what I have to say.”
“Silence! From now on, you’re confined to this house! Not a single coin in allowance!”
Unable to contain himself any longer, Duke Keliwu cut off his son’s words by slamming his hand on the desk.
To Rachel’s eye, the atmosphere was far too volatile for any real conversation.
Perhaps the Duke and Duchess were simply the type of parents who never truly listened to their children.
At this rate, even the resolve Yerdin had finally mustered would crumble into defiance, and he’d fall silent.
This was her moment to step in.
“Good morning, Duke Keliwu, Duchess.”
“Ah, yes—I’ve been curious since the start. Who exactly are you? You’re not the one who coaxed our son outside, are you?”
The arrow aimed at his son had been redirected toward Rachel.
“I am Rachel Swan, former headmistress of the Swan Knight Academy, and I believe myself well-suited to educate your son.”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————