<Chapter 11>

“Sleep well, Paul.”

“……”

Paul blinked. He was sleepy, yet he didn’t want to sleep. He forced his eyes open, but his eyelids were growing heavier by the second.

Eventually, Paul’s eyes shut completely.

And not long after, he opened them again. He’d only napped for about thirty minutes, yet he felt strangely refreshed.

‘So refreshing.’

Once he came to, he realized Sora was patting him gently by his side.

Had she been doing that the whole time?

Paul felt a warm tightness in his chest. It was a comforting feeling, warm and soft like freshly baked bread.

‘So this is what it feels like to be cared for.’

He had never known. His parents had passed away, leaving behind only an egg.

Paul wondered if, had he ever had a “mom,” it might have felt something like this.

* * *

As expected, after a short nap, Paul calmed down.

Naps are good for growing kids. They help relieve the fatigue built up during morning activities.

I’d worried that dragons and elves, being physically stronger than humans, might not benefit as much. But it turned out there was no need.

“Let’s fold cards for Slap-Card Battle.”

When I showed Ardishu how to fold the cards, she picked it up in no time. She pressed each fold with care, her small hands surprisingly deft.

“Sh…”

Paul, on the other hand, was all over the place. He was impatient and kept skipping steps.

‘Oh dear. Paul’s going to need some fine motor skill development.’

I sat right next to him and helped him fold his cards.

We gathered around and ended up with an array of colorful cards in red, silver, and gold, all vibrant and flashy.

I slammed my card onto the floor with force to demonstrate.

Thwack!

“Like this! You throw your card like this! And if you flip the other person’s card, you win!”

It was a game of strength and technique. A fair match for both of them.

“I’m doing you a favor by playing with you. Don’t cry when you lose.”

“I-I can do it too!”

And with that, the fiery Slap-Card Battle began.

At first, Ardishu gained the lead, but her concentration wavered, and she started losing back-to-back.

“Ugh…”

“Now this one’s mine, right?”

In this game, the winner gets to keep the card.

This rule worked in Paul’s favor. With Ardishu’s well-folded cards in his possession instead of his own clumsy ones, Paul soared ahead.

And so, the game ended… with Paul winning flawlessly.

“Nice! Congrats, Paul.”

“This is nothing.”

Paul let out a smug little snort. I reached out to pat his head but quickly pulled my hand back. He’d definitely hate it.

‘I almost blew it. We just started getting close.’

No need to rush. If Paul got defensive again, it would be tough to deal with.

But then—

“…?”

As my hand neared him, Paul, who had tightly shut his eyes, cracked one open and looked up at me. His expression was oddly puzzled.

Maybe… he didn’t hate it?

My cautious hand hovered in the air, unsure. I still didn’t have the confidence to pat his head just yet.

So I turned my gaze toward Ardishu.

“You did great too, Ardishu. You almost had it.”

“Next time I’ll win. Teacher, cheer for me, okay?”

“Of course. Want to fold some cards together later?”

Ardishu nodded eagerly and stuffed a bunch of paper into her bag.

“I’m going to ask Nanny-unnie to help me fold cards. I’ll make a hundred!”

“That’s cheating! If you’re gonna do that, fold all hundred by yourself!”

Watching the two of them bicker made me laugh without realizing.

Suddenly, I remembered how kids back in my world used to fight and boast about making a hundred of something too.

What is it about the number 100 that means so much to kids?

‘To them, it’s this massive, almost magical number. Even using all ten fingers, it’s still not enough.’

I wondered… Would I someday teach these children numbers beyond a hundred?

The thought made my heart flutter. The excitement tickled at me like a spring breeze.

“Why are you smiling?!”

Paul scowled at me, clearly flustered that I was laughing.

“Ah, sorry, sorry. You’re just too cute.”

I apologized while patting his head. But this time, Paul didn’t seem to mind.

‘Oh-ho?’

My lips curled into a smile. Feeling mischievous, I ruffled his purple hair playfully.

“H-how dare a human!”

Paul ran to the mirror and started fixing his hair. But one stubborn strand kept sticking up no matter what.

“Ugh…”

“Let’s see…”

I spritzed his hair with a spray bottle and helped him smooth it down.

“Oh, now that there’s this one strand, should we do a hair strand duel? Paul, hold this.”

I pulled out one of my own hairs and challenged Paul.

The rules were simple. Each person held a strand of hair, and whoever’s hair snapped first lost.

“Mine’s thick and strong, so I’ve never lost a match with— Ack!”

“What the? Yours just snapped.”

I stared at my broken hair in disbelief.

Dragon hair wasn’t ordinary, apparently.

“Wanna try, Ardishu?”

“Yes.”

Ardishu plucked out one of her hairs and held it against Paul’s.

“Teacher! I won!”

“Wow, Ardishu, your hair is impressive!”

“I wanna try against you too, Teacher.”

Perfect. Ardishu needed to experience winning sometimes.

But then—

“Huh?”

Her strand snapped the moment it met mine!

What is this, some sort of rock-paper-scissors logic?

We tried several times, and the outcome was always the same.

“Wh-what’s going on?”

“How long are we gonna keep breaking hairs?”

“Ah, sorry.”

Paul grumbled and handed me one of the cards.

“Hm?”

“Take it. That’s a golden card I won with five straight victories.”

“You’re giving it to me? Thanks.”

“I, I’m not giving it! I’m just letting you borrow it! You gotta give it back in exactly 100 years!”

Paul yelled that as he climbed up onto the windowsill, turning his head dramatically.

“I-it’s not like I’m lending it to you because I like you or anything!”

And with that, he leapt out the window. A gust of wind blew in. From where I stood, I could see the violet dragon flying away.

“He’s gone.”

I couldn’t help but laugh again. ‘Borrowing,’ he said. Clearly, he was just too embarrassed to say it was a gift.

‘That same Paul who once threatened me…’

It was a huge leap forward. So moving, I almost wanted to frame the card as a keepsake.

‘Still, 100 years, huh. We really are from different worlds.’

Thinking about what a hundred years meant between us made that number feel overwhelmingly heavy.

I closed the window. Paul had completely disappeared.

I’d cleared the life-threatening phase for now, but Paul was still difficult. I’d have to keep an eye on him.

“Is he planning to keep doing pick-up and drop-offs like this?”

It’d be nice if he at least said goodbye.

“Teacher…”

Ardishu wrapped both arms around my arm. She leaned her weight on me, and I felt the sweet pressure of her presence.

“Um… I don’t like that you’re getting close to him.”

I was expecting some kind of cute whine, but what she said completely caught me off guard.

I looked at her, puzzled, as she hesitated. Then I patted her head.

“But I’m everyone’s teacher.”

“But he… he…”

Ardishu clung tighter to my arm. Her voice trembled.

“What did Paul do?”

“He broke my bunny. The sand bunny you made for me. I kept it safe because it was precious to me…”

Ardishu’s voice cracked as she spoke.

“How did it happen? Can you tell me everything?”

“Well…”

Ardishu began explaining step by step. Paul had barged into her room without permission. When she showed him the special sand bunny to make him respect the teacher, he got mad and smashed it.

‘They’ve already had their first fight.’

It came earlier than I expected, but it was bound to happen eventually.

“Teacher, are you mad? Because I lost the bunny…”

“I’m not mad at all. It wasn’t your fault.”

I spoke gently, hoping to reassure her.

“I’m actually glad. Because you trusted me enough to tell me what’s bothering you. Whatever happens in the future, promise to come talk to me, okay? I’ll always be on your side.”

“Really?”

“Of course.”

I answered with conviction. Ardishu buried her face into my arm. My sleeve grew damp, but I pretended not to notice and smiled.

“Tomorrow, let’s play in the sand again. I’ll make you a new bunny.”

I pulled her close and hugged her. I gently patted her back, and she soon stopped crying.

I wiped the tears from her cheeks with my hand.

“So that’s why you tried to give me those gifts the other day.”

It finally clicked when I thought of the diamond ring, the elixir, and the world tree leaf she’d suddenly offered.

“Yes… I thought you’d hate me.”

“There’s no way I’d ever hate you, Ardishu. Never.”

I repeated myself several times to reassure her. Thankfully, a soft smile returned to her face.

“It’s time to head back. Let me do your hair. Today, hmm, how about an Elsa braid?”

“What’s Elsa?”

“She’s a cool lady in blue who controls ice.”

I combed Ardishu’s hair, parting it so there was more volume on the right, then slowly braided it down.

‘A twist on the disco braid.’

I added a hairpin halfway through and tied the end with a blue ribbon.

“How’s that? Like it?”

“Yes! It’s so pretty!”

Ardishu beamed at herself in the mirror, checking from every angle.

“It’s all because you’re so pretty to begin with.”

“No, it’s because Teacher braided it so nicely…”

“My little Ardishu would still be pretty with her hair down. So no, it’s definitely because you’re pretty.”

“Hehehe.”

Her cheeks flushed a soft peach pink. I poked her round cheek lightly with my index finger. The soft, squishy texture was almost addictive.

As she fidgeted with her braid, Ardishu suddenly asked,

“But Teacher… lying is bad, right?”

“Yeah. Sometimes there are situations where it’s necessary, but most of the time… yes.”

Her eyes turned serious.

“You lied to me, Teacher.”
 

<To be continued>

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