The Teacher of Budding Villains Suffers Today, Too - Chapter 5

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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 5
‘It’s finally here.’
For reasons she couldn’t quite place, the Imperial Palace had sent a letter to the School yesterday.
The message was simple: the Imperial Palace would be visiting the Swan Knight School.
The moment Rachel read that letter, her heart seemed to drop into her stomach.
What if they were here to shut the school down for operating without Imperial Court authorization?
After days of anxious waiting, the moment had finally arrived.
‘Please let this be nothing serious.’
Rachel hurried through the reception room and finished her preparations to receive the guests.
When she glanced out the window, her eyes fell on the garden, blackened by soot from one of Kana’s failed experiments.
‘At least the indoors are presentable.’
She forced herself into optimism and changed out of her work clothes into the most decent dress she had in her wardrobe. No matter what, she couldn’t receive visitors in loose trousers.
“Miss, someone has arrived from the Imperial Palace.”
At Colo’s words, Rachel straightened and headed toward the entrance.
“Welcome. I am Rachel Swan, headmaster of the Swan Knight School.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Romenico, Chief Chamberlain of the Imperial Court.”
A Chief Chamberlain would be among the closest attendants to the Emperor or the Crown Prince himself.
The man who introduced himself as Romenico was a middle-aged figure with white hair and a gentle demeanor.
Yet his gaze was sharp as a blade—it could cut you if it merely grazed past.
Meeting eyes that seemed to pierce right through her, Rachel found herself swallowing involuntarily.
“May I ask what brings you to our School?”
“We heard rumors that you instruct many students here, and the Crown Prince has ordered an inspection.”
“The… the Crown Prince himself?”
This empire had no “school” system at all.
There were academies, of course, but those were understood to exist solely for mages.
Ordinary nobles instead used their wealth to employ renowned scholars or intellectuals as private tutors.
But as competition to secure talented teachers grew fiercer, not every noble house could afford to bring in truly great scholars.
As for commoners, they had no access to education whatsoever.
Which was why rumors of Rachel’s Swan School had apparently reached the ears of those in high places.
Rachel swallowed again.
“Please, look around freely. If you have any questions, I’ll be happy to explain.”
“Thank you.”
Fortunately, Romenico simply followed Rachel and listened to her explanations without finding fault or offering criticism.
They toured the first-floor dining hall and reception room, then the second-floor classrooms before making their way to the third floor.
Student bedrooms lined both sides of the corridor.
“These are the students’ rooms?”
“Yes. Each student has their own bedroom.”
Romenico, who had been about to pass by, suddenly opened one of the doors without warning.
Rachel’s face went pale. It was Eckard’s room.
She had told him countless times to keep it tidy, yet today it was an absolute disaster.
Romenico stood in the doorway and surveyed the mess with an expressionless glance, then quietly closed the door without comment.
When he turned back to Rachel, her face had gone white as a sheet.
“Why do they sleep separately when they attend lessons together?”
“Well… sharing a room does help build camaraderie, but there were some complications.”
“Complications?”
Rachel hesitated for a moment, wondering how much to reveal, then forced an awkward smile and spoke.
“At first, I had them share rooms in pairs. But these children aren’t accustomed to communal living—they were raised since childhood with nothing but servants and nursemaids attending them. They’d quarrel constantly, and some would even attempt to run away in the middle of the night.”
“And when a student attempts to flee?”
“We do whatever it takes to bring them back. Our teachers have become quite skilled at catching runaways.”
In truth, they had been forced to become search specialists.
The young nobles, accustomed to having their way at home, found the School stifling with its rules and lack of freedom. Nearly all of them had attempted to run away at least once.
During those recovery missions, Rachel had torn through five pairs of work trousers.
“I trust it’s fair to say we take full responsibility for each student we accept?”
“Yes, of course. Here at the Swan Knight School, we devote all our efforts to producing Knights of true character.”
“That’s admirable.”
For the first time, Romenico’s face brightened.
“I’ve seen enough. I’ll be taking my leave now.”
“But there are still places I haven’t shown you yet—won’t you see the rest?”
“I’ve confirmed what I needed to. That’s quite enough.”
The two were making their way down to the second floor when—
As the bell signaled the end of class, the classroom door swung open and children spilled out in a rushing stream.
“Wow, finally free!”
“Huh? I know that man.”
“Me too!”
Rachel’s expression twisted visibly.
‘That man? To the Imperial Court’s chief steward!’
But losing her composure here wouldn’t be professional.
“Mare, Chase. What did I tell you to do when you meet an adult?”
Rachel mouthed the words at the children from an angle Romenico couldn’t see.
Bow properly.
“Good day to you.”
The children offered a hasty bow and hurried past him.
To Rachel’s eye, the greeting fell far short of what was proper, yet Romenico seemed to view it differently. His eyes gleamed.
“I know those students as well.”
“Chase and Mare?”
“They’re from rather prominent families.”
The reason for their prominence hardly needed asking — notorious troublemakers, no doubt.
“Yet they respond to a single word from the headmaster with a bow.”
“That’s part of our role here.”
Rachel answered evenly. Guiding the students was her responsibility, after all.
But she failed to notice something.
The unusual brightness in Romenico’s eyes.
* * *
“Ugh, I’m exhausted.”
Several days later, Rachel rotated her stiff shoulders while her pen never ceased moving across the page.
She was recording objective observations of each student’s day — work she performed every night without fail.
As these records accumulated, changes in the students became apparent at a glance.
“I wish someone would invent a computer.”
At moments like these, she missed the school management system from South Korea.
With that, she could compile all the students’ progress reports in one go.
How much better things would be if such a system existed here.
Once the records were complete, Rachel set down her pen and leaned back against her chair.
A quiet sigh escaped her as she recalled the Imperial Court’s chief steward’s visit days ago.
Since then, hearing nothing from the palace suggested they might be willing to turn a blind eye to how the school operated.
She was settling into that quiet reassurance when—
“Miss.”
A knock sounded, and Colo entered through the door.
“Someone has come to see you.”
“At this hour?”
Could it be a parent coming for an enrollment consultation?
But the window beyond showed dusk settling into darkness. No parents would visit the school at this time of evening.
Besides, they were already stretched thin with the five students they had.
“We decided we weren’t taking new enrollments for a while.”
“That’s… this visitor is rather special, you see…”
Colo’s words trailed off. The atmosphere felt unusual.
“I believe you should meet them yourself, Miss.”
With most people, Colo would have turned them away without hesitation. That he hadn’t meant the visitor was someone important indeed.
“Sure, why not.”
Rachel agreed without much thought.
And through the slowly opening door of her office emerged the Crown Prince and the royal princes.
* * *
“I have waited this long. I would be grateful if you would accept them.”
To the Crown Prince’s words—that he would donate whatever funds they needed if she would take on his two brothers—Rachel offered a respectful bow.
With their current operational costs in mind, there was no reason to refuse.
Satisfied with her answer, Lucas pushed a document across the desk.
“It would help if you referred to this document regarding the princes’ temperaments.”
Rachel took the papers and read through them carefully before looking up.
“Is there anything else you would like us to provide?”
Lucas fell silent for a moment before speaking.
“I would like to be able to inspect the school whenever I wish.”
Rachel’s thoughts came to an abrupt halt. The Crown Prince frequenting the school? That made no sense.
“There are two open parent observation classes per semester. You’re welcome to attend those, if you wish.”
“I don’t want some polished show. I want to see the raw truth.”
“Ah….”
The deliberation was brief. The moment she refused his terms, she knew the substantial patronage would evaporate—no doubt about it.
Who would want that? More importantly, Rachel herself didn’t.
Grinding her own body to dust and holding on—that had to be the only answer.
“Yes, of course. That’s acceptable.”
A conclusion born of avarice. She could not foresee what consequences this decision would unleash.
“Shall we take a tour of the school facilities?”
Lucas nodded at Rachel’s suggestion.
And so Rachel, Lucas, and the two princes rose from their seats and walked down the corridor.
“This is where the students lodge.”
She opened a heavy door of ancient wood, revealing a modest interior within.
Oak beds and sturdy wardrobes—humble compared to Imperial Court furnishings, but Rachel had lavished care on these spare accommodations, determined that her students would want for nothing.
“This is pathetic.”
Third Prince Noah blurted it out, and beside him, Second Prince Theo let out a snicker.
His words froze the air.
“Noah.”
Lucas called the third prince’s name in a glacial voice.
“I trust that when we meet again, you’ll have something better to show me.”
“Brother, that depends entirely on what this instructor does about it, doesn’t it?”
At Noah’s insolent remark, Rachel mentally sketched the character for patience and swallowed her fury.
Had this been twenty-first-century Korea, she would have scheduled a parent-teacher conference on the spot.
But unfortunately, this was not twenty-first-century Korea.
Lucas exhaled a short sigh and turned back to Rachel.
“As I said, I intend to visit regularly. So you’ll need to make certain these two ruffians into decent human beings.”

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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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