The Teacher of Budding Villains Suffers Today, Too - Chapter 49

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 49
What had begun as a brief visit to the Imperial Palace had become a full arrival.
Rachel couldn’t hide her nervousness. It wasn’t vanity—yet somehow, she felt as if every eye in the palace had turned toward her.
‘They probably aren’t paying that much attention, but I’m on edge anyway.’
Rachel kept scanning the corridors. It felt like someone might appear at any moment, searching for her.
But within the busy Palace, no one came looking for Rachel. At least not visibly.
‘It doesn’t seem like I’ll be going to the Magic Tower today.’
Lucas didn’t seem the type to summon her, either. Rachel surveyed the room that had been given to her and threw herself onto the bed. The soft give of the bedding enveloped her.
‘This is incredibly soft.’
There was something distinctly different about Imperial bedding. The thought that she’d arrived somewhere special made Rachel smile brightly.
“Would it be all right to sleep a while longer?”
As she burrowed deeper into the quilts, drowsiness crept over her naturally. Rachel’s eyes slowly fell shut.
All the tension that had gripped her body released at once. And so she drifted into sleep.
When she woke after a long rest, soft sounds drifted from somewhere nearby.
Rachel kept her eyes closed, focusing all her attention on what she could hear. Someone had definitely entered her room.
‘Who came in?’
It didn’t feel like a servant or attendant. The sounds lacked the quick, practiced movements of an adult. Then who but children would enter her room?
There was little need to ponder further.
‘Theo and Noah must be here.’
Rachel wondered briefly what the children could possibly be doing in her room.
‘Are they looking for something?’
It seemed they’d come searching for something they needed. In that case, she should probably get up and help them find it.
Rachel tensed her body to rise.
But that was the moment—
“Hey, be quiet! You’ll wake her!”
Theo’s urgent whisper to Noah reached her ears.
His words sparked Rachel’s curiosity. She’d been about to rise, but instead she changed her mind and relaxed. She was genuinely curious about what the children were doing.
“Hurry up and hang it!”
Theo’s voice came again. Hang it? Hang what, and where?
It didn’t feel like a mischievous prank. So Rachel found her curiosity nearly unbearable. She wanted nothing more than to sit up right then and ask what they were doing.
“I got it. Did you hang yours, brother?”
“Yeah. Let go.”
One, two, three.
Rachel heard both their voices in unison, followed by a small cry of delight.
“For something we threw together so fast, this looks pretty good, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah. I told you I’m the best.”
“What do you mean, brother? I helped make it too.”
“Anyway, when do you think she’ll wake up?”
Though her eyes remained closed, Rachel could feel their gaze fixed on her. They must be watching her. It seemed like she should wake up soon.
Rachel slowly lifted her eyelids and pretended to have just awakened.
“Mmm… what are you two doing here?”
“Rachel!”
Theo and Noah grinned brightly and waved hello.
Rachel smiled warmly to greet them, and the children rushed to her side. As she looked at them, her heart swelled with joy and she sat up.
“Are you happy now that you’re at the Imperial Palace?”
“We’re happy because we’re here with you.”
“It feels like the best parts of the Palace and the Academy got mixed together.”
Theo and Noah each shared their own excitement. Rachel gently patted both their heads.
Then something slightly unfamiliar caught Rachel’s eye.
“What is that?”
A hastily hung banner. On it were written the words: “Welcome, Rachel!”
“Oh, we prepared that!”
Theo pointed at the banner with a bright laugh.
“Because we’re so happy that you came.”
Noah glanced away a little shyly before speaking.
“You really went to all this trouble to prepare something so wonderful for me?”
Rachel threw her arms wide open and embraced both children. They couldn’t have had much time since she’d arrived at the Palace. Her gratitude was overwhelming. The emotion that washed over her was immense.
“Now that it’s just us with you, we’ll listen better from now on.”
“We really will.”
Theo and Noah made a promise Rachel had never expected. She opened her eyes wide and gazed down at the children.
The children quickly raised their little fingers upward. It seemed to be a gesture for linking pinkies. Rachel laughed brightly and linked her finger with theirs.
“Come on, let’s do our best again this time.”
“Yes!”
The answer from both children filled her with such reassurance. Rachel’s spirits soared beyond measure.
“Teacher, would you like us to show you the Imperial Palace?”
Theo took Rachel’s hand and promptly climbed down from the bed. Noah seized her other hand. For reasons she couldn’t quite name, Rachel felt her heart lift.
“Let’s visit our playground first!”
“Come play with us at the playground!”
The children mentioned a place called the Playground. Rachel was no stranger to what that place was. Lucas had referred to it occasionally in his letters—a place the children loved to spend their time.
She’d been quite curious about it, and now, at last, she had the chance to visit. Rachel stepped out of the room with eyes bright with anticipation.
“The Imperial Palace is really vast, isn’t it?”
“The Academy is nice too, but the Imperial Palace is better.”
The children bubbled with excitement. Not wanting to dampen their spirits, Rachel nodded along in agreement.
The three of them passed through a sprawling garden. It was so expansive that people moved constantly through it. She felt every eye upon her and the two princes as they walked.
She might have grown nervous, but Rachel kept her expression neutral as she crossed the garden. And at the end of that path lay an enormous playground—grand enough to be called an amusement park.
“Here it is!”
“Isn’t it wonderful?”
Swings and slides filled the space, along with countless play structures Rachel had never seen before.
“Later we’re planning to invite our school friends and play together.”
“Don’t you need permission from your older brother for that?”
“I think he’d allow it, don’t you?”
The two children spoke animatedly, their faces radiant with smiles. Rachel watched them for a moment, then carefully settled onto a swing.
“Oh? Teacher, you’re going to ride the swing?”
“We’ll push you!”
The moment Rachel sat on the swing, the children put all their strength into pushing it.
“Ah…ah!”
Startled, Rachel gripped the swing tightly and cried out. Emboldened by her reaction, the children began pushing with even greater force.
“You two…!”
“Teacher, isn’t this fun?!”
Fun was an understatement—she felt on the verge of fainting. Heedless of Rachel’s distress, the children pushed harder and harder still.
“Stop, stop!”
Rachel cried out loudly. At the sound, the children released the swing. By sheer luck, Rachel managed to steady herself just before tumbling off.
“Hah…”
A sigh escaped Rachel’s lips.
And then it came—the hollow laugh of someone nearby.
“Whatever is she doing?”
Finding the source of the voice was not difficult.
A golden-haired woman in a red dress. Flanked by numerous attendants and servants, she stood with unmistakable authority. This woman now faced Rachel directly.
“A grown woman riding a child’s plaything and shrieking like that?”
There was no mistaking who she was.
The new Empress, who had entered the palace following the death of the former one. She fixed Rachel with a piercing gaze. The moment their eyes met, Rachel’s body went rigid.
“To conduct yourself so crudely the moment you set foot in the Imperial Palace. One can hardly wonder at the Crown Prince’s standards.”
She turned her criticism directly upon Lucas. Rachel’s brow furrowed. She could endure being criticized herself, but hearing Lucas attacked like this was unbearable.
“Your Majesty, if I may speak with the utmost respect…”
“If you must speak respectfully, then do not speak at all.”
The Empress cut off Rachel’s words at once. Then she turned her sharp gaze upon Theo and Noah.
“You two are just the same. How could three brothers be so identical, as if cast from the same mold?”
The Empress continued without hesitation to criticize even the children.
“My child should not resemble these ones. Merely seeing all of this is harmful to my prenatal care.”
The Empress stroked her belly with both hands. The slight protrusion made it clear she was with child.
“Your Majesty.”
Rachel could no longer hold back. She spoke without restraint.
“Surely criticizing others is equally harmful to your prenatal care, is it not?”

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