Volume 1 Chapter 14

Volume 1 + Chapter 14: Teaching And The Poppy Flower  

Humans are social creatures, as everyone well knows. Regardless of the stage of life, any person who is truly human craves warmth.  

Children seek warmth from adults, friends, and elders, while adults seek it from their lovers, companions, and those they hold dear.  

Having gone so long without feeling another person’s body heat, the moment I felt Hina’s warmth and touch, my already low defenses crumbled, and I disgracefully fell asleep in no time.  

The chill of early winter hung in the air, and in such weather, seeking warmth is pure instinct.  

A soft, inviting blanket, a bed so plush it seemed to swallow you whole, and on top of that, a warm, cuddly, sweet-smelling child, how many people could resist surrendering completely?  

After waking up, I tried to make earnest excuses for having dozed off, but that did nothing to ease the strange atmosphere of being pinned beneath Hina’s gaze as she studied me intently.  

It was like curiosity, yet also like a carnivore eyeing its prey.  

To be honest, aside from one experience in my past life, no one in this life had ever dared to look at me that way.  

Whether it was Yuna or Hina,   

Aren’t these twins just a little too bold?  

[How much longer do you plan to keep staring?]  

My tone was harsh. I furrowed my brow and fixed Hina with a sharp, menacing glare.  

This was definitely not me being ill-tempered.  

Rather, it was the kind of situation that called for anger.  

Perhaps it was the last remnant of what you might call an [adult’s pride], but I was not fond of unexpected mishaps, especially when the one who dropped the ball was myself.  

[Yuu, you look so comfortable,] Hina said.  

Her words were highly ambiguous, though it was unclear whether the ambiguity was intentional or accidental.  

I leaned toward the former.  

[Shut up. Move. Get up.]  

The word “tenderness” had never been in my dictionary. I sat up straight away and pushed Hina aside, careful not to use too much force.  

I did not want to mess things up again and become a truly irredeemable scumbag. Bullying a little girl was something I would allow myself only once, never again.  

[……Let go.]  

She wrapped her arms around my neck from behind, pressing her cheek against mine. The sudden action startled me.  

Outwardly calm, I ignored the soft skin brushing against my face.  

In a flat voice, I spoke to Hina, who was acting this way.  

[……..]  

Hina remained silent, as if she thought this would make me give in.  

This was exactly why I disliked children, they were the most expert creatures at clinging and wheedling.  

[You’ve been provoking me one after another. Are you testing my patience?]  

I grasped her slender, soft arm. When she showed signs of pulling back, I let go, only to feel her arms slowly retreat from around my neck.  

Hina returned to her usual taciturn self.  

I straightened my clothes and put my shirt back on. The shirt, slightly cooler than my body temperature, helped calm my restless heart.  

I should never agree to such absurd things again. I had learned my lesson the hard way.  

It had been nine in the morning when I arrived, now it was already three in the afternoon. My phone was flooded with messages and calls from my underlings.  

Deciding it was time to take my leave, I made no attempt to see or find Yuna. Relying on my memory of following her here, I retraced my steps to the front gate.  

[Is Watanabe-kun heading home?]  

Though the butler was much older than me, he addressed me with polite honorifics.  

Perhaps that was the habit of wealthy households’ butlers.  

Then again, it made sense, as a friend of the master’s daughter, such a respectful address was not out of line.  

[Yes, that’s right.]  

[Won’t you stay for lunch? We have a portion set aside for you.]  

[No thanks. I already have other plans.]  

[Very well. Then please take care on your way, Watanabe-kun.]  

The butler, who had seen me to the door, smiled kindly and watched me leave.  

I turned back to wave as a gesture of thanks, then broke into a light jog toward the meeting place.  

My underling, afraid of being stood up, had threatened to spend the night at the establishment if I did not come. On his own initiative, he had gone to a family restaurant and arrogantly sent me the address.  

He was determined to wait for me out, no matter what.  

Honestly…  

This was why I said I disliked children.  

As it turned out, holding a child’s body was surprisingly light, and it gave you a pleasant feeling. That was why children loved to run and play.  

Whether girls or boys, they did not hate running. After getting off the subway, I started running again.  

I arrived quickly at the family restaurant my underling had messaged me about. There he was, looking utterly foolish, being spoken to by a pretty waitress.  

Thinking he had been noticed for his good looks, my underling wore a grin that was both lecherous and stupid. He had ordered nothing at all, just occupying a seat in their establishment. The waitress was actually trying to get him to leave.  

Not even realizing that, my underling had managed to make the sweet-smiling waitress’s expression grow stiffer by the minute.  

[Sorry, could you give me the menu?]  

[Ah! Bo…]  

A sharp glare shut him up instantly, and he obediently sat still.  

[? Ah, yes… of course…?]  

The waitress, still unsure what was happening, looked a bit bewildered. When she saw me reach out, she handed me the menu on instinct.  

I picked up the pen on the table, marked a reasonable selection of items, and returned the menu to her.  

[Thank you for your trouble.]  

[Oh, no… no trouble at all.]  

Still somewhat dazed, the waitress took the marked menu and walked away. With that, the issue with the waitress was settled.  

I took off my jacket and placed it on the seat. Running all the way here had not made me sweat, but I was a little warm.  

Noticing the neatly arranged textbooks, assignments, and notebooks on the table, I looked up at my underling, who sat across from me with a restrained, nervous posture.  

Judging by his attitude, he genuinely wanted to improve his math skills. It was not just empty talk.  

But since I did not know his level of receptiveness or understanding, making him grasp second-grade elementary math in a way he could comprehend would require many attempts.  

[Give me the notebook. Let me see how far you’ve gotten.]  

He handed me the notebook with a fawning, eager smile.  

At the same time, I noticed the waitress returning with the menu, looking somewhat awkward.  

Smoothly, I took two thousand yen from my pocket and handed it to her. The waitress, who had just arrived and not yet spoken, opened her mouth, then closed it, took the money, and walked away without a sound.  

Returning my attention to my underling’s notebook, I found that calling it a disaster would be an understatement. It almost made me wonder if he was mocking me.  

Seeing him nervously rubbing his hands together, I sighed and returned the notebook.  

[Everything you’ve written here is wrong.]  

[Erase it.]  

Cruel as it was, I had to make him undo his own work. Hearing that it was all wrong, he looked utterly dejected, lowered his head without a word, and erased his answers.  

[Now that it’s erased, I’ll begin teaching.]  

Adopting the patient, step-by-step tone I reserved for teaching, I began.  

[The units of length we use in daily life are meters, centimeters……]  

Starting from the very first lesson in the textbook, knowledge I had long since memorized perfectly, I sat up straight and taught him orally.  

From time to time, I tested his understanding by posing problems. When I found he did not grasp something, I rephrased it another way.  

After all, this was only elementary school material, and he was at the age when memory was strongest. Two hours sufficed to cover the matter. By then, the food we had ordered earlier arrived.  

At this restaurant, you could choose when you wanted your dishes brought out. I had selected a two-hour delay, and my estimated timing turned out to be just right.  

I ate the delicious food, while my underling kept his head down, writing. He looked quite serious, but I could hear him swallowing from time to time.  

[Eat first. Put the work aside.]  

I pushed the honey-glazed chicken wings in front of me toward the middle of the table. His head snapped up, his face showing how much he wanted to eat. He swallowed exaggeratedly but managed to hold back.  

[Boss, you paid for this. I can’t eat it.]  

Though he enjoyed playing the delinquent, my underling was still an upright person.  

[When you go home, have your family pack you an extra carton of milk each morning. Bring it to me. That’ll cover it.]  

[Two weeks will be enough to pay me back.]  

Hearing that, he could no longer restrain himself and began devouring the food ravenously.  

[Boss! Don’t worry! I’ll bring you the best milk there is!]  

With his mouth full of chicken and still talking, he was rather sloppy. I gave him a disgusted look and said.

[Shut up and eat.]  

I made a gesture of prayer and silently recited a prayer in my heart.  

The family restaurant was lively, everyone busy with their own affairs.  

As long as I did not close my eyes and pray, I would not draw attention.  

My heart was unsettled today. Wanting to recite a prayer, I did not care whether I was alone or not.  

After settling my mind, I began to eat slowly and mindfully, combining lunch and dinner into one meal.  

I thought that occasionally eating with someone like this was not bad. The liveliness and human presence were quite pleasant as well.  

After finishing, my underling threw himself back into the task of conquering his “enemy.” He wrote with furious energy, and nothing seemed amiss.  

The final dessert arrived. I asked the waitress for a small bowl, scooped half into it, and slowly ate my portion.  

To my surprise, my underling, whom I had expected to make some mistakes, did not fail at all.  

I praised him with a simple “Not bad,” and he became so bashful and fidgety.  

Seeing him pack up his things and prepare to start on his dessert, I turned my gaze to the view outside the window, waiting for him to finish.  

The scenery outside looked strangely familiar, and it reminded me of myself two years ago, when I had still been a lone wolf.  

I wondered if Rin-nee, whom I had met that year, would be surprised to see how many people were around me now.  

Looking at the four-leaf clover and delicate rose on the bracelet on my left hand, I sank into recollection.  

Had I become as fortunate and happy as Rin-nee had wished for me?  

Or had I transformed as she might have cursed me to?  

[Boss!]  

[Hmm?]  

My underling’s voice pulled me back to reality.  

I noticed the small bowl, as clean as if it had been licked. It made me suspect whether he had actually licked it.  

But even if he had, it was too late to stop it. I simply pretended not to have seen.  

Keeping a straight face, I put on my jacket and parted ways with my underling at the restaurant’s entrance.  

—

When I reached my front door, I saw a black sedan parked at the entrance.  

Judging by its shape, it appeared to be quite expensive.  

Accidentally, I locked eyes with the driver, a middle-aged man in a black suit with a face that looked rather unfriendly.  

As if deliberately trying to frighten me, he put on a menacing expression.  

At his age, he was still doing things like intimidating children.  

I silently derided his forced fierce face, then calmly looked away.  

The moment I opened the front door, I knew this was no ordinary situation.  

A number of people I had never seen before were lined up in the entranceway, standing in a row.  

They all had fierce appearances, fitting the image of Japanese yakuza quite well.  

[Welcome!]  

Though I was the master of the house, they, unexpected guests, greeted me with “welcome.”  

Turning the tables on me, were they…  

I realized this was a power move from their boss.  

Furrowing my brow, I hung my coat on the rack. The entrance, which was normally about a meter and a half wide, now felt cramped with these burly, tough-looking men standing in it.  

Walking through was still possible, but the space seemed diminished.  

They deliberately spoke loudly while glancing at me to gauge my reaction.  

I had no idea what kind of response they expected from me. So, as usual, I calmly placed my shoes neatly in order before stepping inside, acting as if I did not see them at all, completely composed and self-possessed.  

By now, I already knew the reason. When I slid open the living room door, I saw exactly what I had anticipated: a man in a kimono, seated on the sofa, clearly some kind of big shot. He was smiling amiably while speaking to my father, who kept bowing repeatedly.  

Beside him was a little girl, also in a kimono. Our eyes met.  

Then she smiled, a smile that made me feel threatened, like a poppy flower in full bloom.

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