Chapter 52
Then I shouted to the children.
“Alright, kids. Shall we wrap it up here?”
“Yes!”
The children answered in loud voices.
As soon as I heard their reply, I rolled up my sleeves. Then, closing the tent flap, I began tidying up together with the children.
“Phew.”
With the last table cleared, the cleanup was finally finished.
Straightening my back from bending over, I wiped my forehead with the back of my hand.
It wasn’t that I had actually sweated—it was a cool autumn day, after all—but doing that little gesture made me feel like the job was properly done.
The cleaning’s done. Now I just need to see the children off.
It ended faster than I had expected.
That was thanks to Claude’s help.
At first, I regretted making him wait—cleanup could have taken much longer. But thankfully, he offered to help first, stepping in to take the lead.
And he didn’t seem the least bit annoyed about it.
What a relief.
I wiped my forehead again, thinking that, and turned around.
Just then—
“Teacher!”
A sweet, birdlike voice rang out.
Looking down toward the sound, I saw the children gathered together in front of me, looking up expectantly.
“Huh? What’s going on here?”
I blinked in confusion.
The children glanced at one another, grinning mischievously.
“Teacher, this is a gift!”
Mina, who was standing in front, shouted.
Then, pulling something from behind her back, she held it out to me.
“This is…?”
“We made it ourselves!”
It was a small bouquet, crafted from folded paper flowers.
“We really wanted to give this to you, Teacher.”
“That’s right! To thank you, we made it for you.”
“So we each folded one flower in secret. Together, with one heart!”
Marco, looking bashful, explained.
The other kids eagerly chimed in, each adding a word.
I lifted the bouquet toward my nose as I listened.
Of course, there was no fragrance from a bouquet of paper flowers. At best, there was only the faint, musty smell of damp paper.
But maybe because it was filled with the children’s sincerity—
Though it should’ve smelled like nothing but paper, I swore I could catch the faint aroma of real blossoms.
“Thank you, kids.”
My chest swelled so much I thought I might cry.
I buried my face into the bouquet, pretending, so they wouldn’t see the tears threatening to fall.
“But Teacher, shouldn’t you be going now? That person is waiting for you.”
“That’s right! Cleanup’s done already. You should hurry along!”
Perhaps sensing I’d burst into tears if they lingered, Marco and Den cut in playfully to change the mood.
Thanks to them, I managed to hold it back.
But telling me to go?
I lowered the bouquet from my face, ready to firmly say no.
Putting on a stern look, I began to scold them—
“But I should at least see you all off… Wait, what are you doing?”
“Don’t worry, Teacher! Marco and I will make sure everyone gets home safely.”
Before I even finished, Den puffed his chest and shouted. He thumped his own chest, then winked at me with a “Leave it to me!” expression.
And of course, his partner-in-crime Marco started pushing me toward Claude.
“Come on, Teacher. Go on! The gentleman’s waiting for you.”
Where had they picked up such lines, and when had Marco gotten so strong?
Before I knew it, I was standing at Claude’s side, pushed there by Marco’s insistence.
“So don’t worry about us. Have fun at the festival!”
“We’ll be cheering for you, Teacher!”
And with that, Claude and I were shooed outside.
I turned to go back in, but it was impossible.
Claude was watching me, as if to ask why I wasn’t moving—and the children were gripping the tent flaps tightly shut, blocking the way.
“They really don’t intend to let me back in, do they?”
“Seems that way.”
Claude nodded in agreement. Even he could tell the kids were determined to send me off.
“There’s no need to worry. I’ve already ordered them to make sure everyone gets home safely.”
With Claude saying that much, I couldn’t keep insisting.
I sighed heavily, shoulders slumping—then quickly straightened up again.
“Well then, shall we go? Like I said before, I’ll show you around the festival.”
“Thank you. I’ll leave it to you.”
“You can count on me!”
I answered with a bright smile and began walking with Claude.
But then I remembered what the children had said.
Cheering for me? Just what were they planning to cheer about?
I tilted my head in puzzlement.
If you really want to enjoy a festival, I think you have to start from the beginning.
With that in mind, I led Claude first to the entrance of the plaza.
“You are…”
“Yes?”
After just a few steps—when we’d finally moved away from the vendor stalls—Claude suddenly spoke.
I turned my head, meeting his gaze.
His deep blue eyes stared into mine. I couldn’t tell what thoughts they held, but I knew one thing for sure: they weren’t looking at me unkindly.
Unlike the eyes of the deep sea—always shifting, unpredictable—today they were calm.
Like a peaceful ocean, they looked at me gently as he continued.
“You truly are a person of great responsibility.”
“H-Huh? Am I?”
He’d lowered his voice to call me, so I’d tensed up, wondering what was wrong. But then—this?
I gave an automatic reply, stunned into blinking dumbly.
“I could tell from the moment I entrusted Estelle to you. That you’re someone with strong responsibility.”
“….”
“Every time I saw you, you were acting for Estelle’s sake. And just now, too—how you insisted on seeing the children through to the end. That sense of duty.”
As I just stood there blankly, he kept speaking.
The more I listened, the hotter my face grew.
What kind of sudden compliment is this? And with such a calm expression, too…
Because he said it so matter-of-factly, I could tell it wasn’t just empty words. He meant it.
Ugh, now I’m overheating…
Embarrassment flooded me, and my cheeks grew warm.
I quickly turned my head aside, fanning myself with my hand, hoping to cool down.
“Claude, you’re the one who’s truly responsible. You’ve been watching over Estelle all this time.”
Always anticipating what she’d need, always preparing for her.
“And the birthday gift too—you knew about the Harvest Competition she wanted to join, didn’t you?”
At my question, Claude nodded.
Just as I thought.
From the moment he left Estelle in my care, he’d been gathering reports and information about her.
So even without me mentioning the competition, he already knew.
“See? That makes you far more responsible than me. Even the letter you sent proves it.”
I remembered the letter Claude had sent me.
Standing beside Estelle, who had been jumping with joy at her fertilizer gift, I had quietly read it and thought: This is exactly what I’d hoped for.
The letter said—
Through his younger brother Aris, he would send me reports of Estelle’s life at the Academy. Not just the big events, but the little everyday details, too.
For him to offer that first—it was a blessing.
The Academy was notoriously closed-off. Not only was general access restricted, but they also strongly discouraged any leaks to outsiders.
That was likely because so many highborn children attended. Teachers and students alike were sworn to strict secrecy.
Rumors weren’t allowed to circulate even within its walls, let alone outside.
Unless it was something truly catastrophic—something too big to contain.
But such cases were rare.
Which meant that otherwise, I’d have no way of knowing what was happening with Estelle.
Yet Claude had offered to tell me.
I hadn’t even asked for help—he’d simply offered, of his own accord.
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