“Children, it’s time for lunch!”
Derek stepped out of the house, carrying a large basket in his hands. He walked to the front of the podium and began distributing today’s meal.
The line of children immediately became restless. Each one craned their neck, trying to see what was for lunch today. At that moment, a boy wearing tattered robes took advantage of the chaos to squeeze forward. He seemed intent on cutting to the very front of the line, but the thin, small boy ahead of him wasn’t about to let him get away with it so easily.
The thin boy reached out and gave the boy in tattered robes a sudden, hard shove.
The unexpected force from behind made the boy stumble. He lost his balance and fell uncontrollably to the ground. The boy who had tried to cut the line braced himself with his hands, his face flushed a deep, angry red.
He clenched his fists, glaring death at the boy who had pushed him. The thought of this scrawny kid making him lose face in front of so many people caused a surge of reckless courage to wash over him. He scrambled to his feet and swung a fist at the thin boy.
“Who gave you the nerve to cause trouble here!”
A soft, melodic voice drifted from behind him.
He pulled back his fist and turned around. There stood Vivian, her hands on her hips and her eyebrows knitted in a frown.
“Big Sister Vivian, this new kid tried to cut the line!”
Seeing that he had someone to back him up, the thin boy immediately began acting tough, smirking and winking at the boy who had tried to cut.
“His name is Toby. He just arrived last week. I heard he’s a refugee from the Syard Holy Kingdom,” Shana whispered as she leaned in toward Vivian’s side.
“Little Toby, is it? Don’t you know that cutting in line is a loathsome thing to do?” Vivian questioned the boy loudly.
Toby lowered his head, not saying a word. He gritted his teeth and retreated a few steps, slowly moving back to his original position.
“You think you can just go back? You think there are no consequences for making a mistake?”
“Those who do wrong must accept their punishment before they can be corrected!”
Vivian took a quick stride forward and plucked Toby out of the line. Grabbing him by the ear, she led him to the very back.
“This is your spot. If I catch you cutting in line again, I’ll beat you.”
Vivian waved a fist in front of him before turning away, no longer paying attention to the child who looked like he was about to burst into tears. The other children covered their mouths and giggled, gloating over his misfortune. No one felt sympathy for a boy who had brought this upon himself.
After that minor interlude, the line quickly returned to normal. Priest Derek acted as though he had seen nothing, proceeding as if nothing had happened. He pulled out a piece of bread and handed it to the child at the front of the line.
“Next,” he said calmly.
Managing a group of rowdy children was no easy task. Whispering during class and chasing each other during breaks were inevitable. Before Vivian arrived, the place was divided like warring states; in a class of only a dozen or so children, they had managed to split into three or four small cliques.
Confrontations and verbal attacks between these groups were common.
“You little brats from the countryside, why did you come to our city to steal our bread?”
“Why don’t you unwanted city trash just go die!”
Such verbal assaults had given Derek a massive headache. However, as an old man, it wasn’t appropriate for him to get into fights with a bunch of kids. His verbal discouragement had only made the situation worse.
But after Vivian arrived, spring had finally come for the church!
This vampire girl had only been there for a few days before she became one with the children. Surrounded by the crowd, she was declared the sole “Child King” of this land.
Daring to form secret cliques? Trying to exclude others? You get a beating!
Talking during class? Running around like a wild animal? You get a beating!
Cutting in line? You definitely get a beating!
And so, faced with the iron-fisted rule of Vivian, the group of disruptive children quickly regained a sense of order, making Derek’s life much easier.
Lunch was soon distributed. Everyone had two pieces of black bread and a portion of goat cheese in their hands. Vivian found a random table and neatly arranged her lunch.
‘I should save the cheese for Nolan. I’ve already eaten anyway, so I’ll let him have a taste of something fresh.’
She murmured to herself before picking up the black bread and starting to gnaw on it.
‘As expected, there are still wood shavings mixed in…’
Vivian looked up at Shana, who was sitting across from her. Shana was eating with great gusto, as if she were consuming some rare delicacy.
‘Whatever, the sawdust tastes fine too.’
Despite the bread’s unsatisfying taste, Vivian finished it quickly. Although she had white bread from Blake hidden away, she couldn’t possibly take it out to eat now. That kind of behavior would be no different from the Roman Emperor Nero building his Golden House after the fire; it was far too likely to provoke resentment. To be the king of these children, she had to blend in with them. Eating the same food as the kids was the best choice.
“Ahem, children, I have some good news for you,” Derek said with a light cough.
“Recently, I spent a large sum of money to hire a Paladin to start a new basic swordsmanship class for our school!”
“This course might not turn you into a master swordsman, but at least you’ll be a bit better than those farmers who only know how to swing a hoe.”
“The swordsmanship course starts next week. Anyone who wants to participate can come to me to sign up. You can pick up a piece of pork jerky after class.”
After speaking, Derek placed a small booklet and a pen on the podium.
“Me, me, me! I want to join!”
Vivian immediately raised both hands. As long as there was a chance to join in on the fun, she absolutely wouldn’t miss it. Furthermore, her clever little mind quickly realized that the Paladin Derek mentioned was most likely Nolan.
‘Hehe… Can I do teacher-student roleplay too? I love that!!’
At the thought of being a student, looking up at Nolan with pleading, watery eyes…
She imagined herself grabbing his arm and crying out, ‘Teacher~ Teacher~ Please teach me!’ Vivian trembled with excitement.
“Good, Vivian is signed up. Anyone else?” Derek noted it down and looked up again.
“Um… I want to sign up too.”
Shana timidly raised her hand, her lips trembling. She was mostly just mimicking Vivian’s behavior rather than actually wanting to learn swordsmanship. But Derek didn’t mind; he wrote her name down.
“I…”
Toby, who had just been scolded by Vivian for cutting in line, slowly raised his hand as well.
“That’s three.”
—
After lunch, the once-serious classroom turned into a playground for the children.
“You… you evil Demon King! Prepare… to face the judgment of the Light!”
Toby, wearing his tattered robes, sat atop a wooden horse. He held a small wooden sword, pointing it straight at Vivian.
Opposite him, Vivian’s face was covered in lines drawn with charcoal, twisting together to form a ridiculous demonic visage. She wore a “demon crown” woven from dead branches and flower petals on her head.
‘It clearly looks more like a stereotypical elf,’ Vivian couldn’t help but complain in her head.
“Do not hesitate, brave Knight Toby! The princess of the kingdom is still waiting for you to rescue her!”
“I will bestow a blessing upon you!”
A thin boy stood on the podium, shouting at Toby. He was draped in a piece of white cloth he had found somewhere and held Derek’s textbook, playing the role of a priest.
Having received the blessing, Toby rode his wooden horse and launched a fearless charge toward the Demon King, Vivian.
“Too weak! Far too weak! Are the knights from the capital only at this level?”
Vivian effortlessly batted the charging Toby to the ground, her voice full of merciless mockery.
“It’s too late! Use that move, Toby!”
The boy on the podium saw Toby get knocked down and grew anxious, wishing he could jump down and take his place. Toby struggled to roll over and pulled a wooden cross from his robes.
“Evil Demon King, your end has come!”
He lunged forward and tossed the cross at Vivian.
“Ah, I’m dead.”
Vivian rolled her eyes back, her legs kicked out, and she lay on the ground, motionless.
“Boo hoo~ Thank you for saving me, brave knight. Let’s get married.”
Shana acted as though she were weeping, stepping out from behind Vivian.
Then came the daily life of the knight and princess after their marriage, and the game transitioned into playing house.
“Wait, why am I the grandma again! I want to be the daughter this time!” Vivian complained, her face still covered in charcoal.
“Because you’re the oldest one here. If you aren’t the grandma, who is?” Shana asked.
Vivian was speechless. She couldn’t argue with that, so she could only play the role of the wicked grandmother once more.
And so, Vivian played with the children until the sky turned dark in the afternoon, only stopping once the children had all gone home.
“Hum, hum, hum~ What a happy day~”
She hummed a light tune, walking with a bouncy step toward the training grounds behind the church.
“It’s time to go home, Nolan!”
Vivian cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted toward Nolan, who was instructing the soldiers nearby.
A short while later, the two of them were once again walking hand in hand through the streets of Ma’en City. Looking at the orange-red sunset before her, Vivian thought back to the fun she had in the classroom for no particular reason.
A strange thought suddenly popped into her head:
‘Maybe I should try having a baby?’
‘Actually, I really like playing with children…’