The Villainess’ Kindergarten

When I opened my eyes, I saw a familiar ceiling. When I got up from my seat, my head felt like it was going to explode. When I looked around, pressing my pounding head, I found myself in my room. I was obviously nursing Jasmine, so why am I here…?

 

The moment I tilted my head and was about to get off the bed to check on Jasmine’s condition, Lorna came running to me.

 

“No. Please lie down some more.”

 

She gave me a stern look and laid me back on the bed.

 

“It’s okay, hurry up, Jasmine is…”

 

I got up from the bed again and opened my mouth. But I was stopped by Lorna again and looked up at her, chewing on her lip.

 

“Are you really okay?”

 

Actually, I wasn’t okay. My head felt like it was going to explode and I had no strength in my whole body. But now I was more worried about Jasmine. At that time, Lorna, who sensed that I had no intention of giving up, opened her mouth.

 

“This is the duke’s order not to let the princess take a single step out of the room.”

 

Ah. I breathed a low sigh of relief. I myself felt that my physical condition was not good. However, since Baridas was away and there was no one to take care of the Duke and the children except me, I knew I was overdoing it. But if he came, I guess I can rest a little now.

 

“Okay.”

 

I nodded and went back to bed. Soon after, the doctor came into the room. He introduced himself as the Chilan family’s resident doctor, examined my body, and diagnosed me with overwork and lack of sleep. He gave me sleeping pills and various medicines, told me not to overexert myself for a while and to get some rest, and then left.

 

Like that, I fell into a deep sleep, as if I had been sleeping for several days.

 

* * *

 

When I opened my eyes again, it was already late at night. Maybe it was because I slept well, but my head was clearer than before. Perhaps because I had been lying down for a long time, my body felt a little sore. I stretched and looked out the window. The moon was brighter today, illuminating the garden. Should I walk a little?

 

I put on the white shawl hanging right next to me and went out of the room. As I walked slowly, I arrived at the garden where the children had prepared the engagement ceremony. Not that much has passed, but it felt like a long time ago. As I was quietly looking around the garden, a familiar figure from behind caught my eye.

 

Baridas, with black hair and wearing a uniform. That’s his appearance.

 

“Baridas!”

 

Perhaps because I was happy to see him after such a long time, I called his name in an unusually loud voice. He looked at me when I called, and I felt a little embarrassed because I called him so energetically. No, it’s natural to be happy. I did all the work while he was away. As I was making excuses for my actions, Baridas came towards me with a small smile on his face.

 

“Are you feeling okay, Fiora?”

 

I nodded at his words. Now I’m starting to doubt the content of the original story about not laughing.

 

I smile a lot, but who says I can’t smile?

 

“Yes, I’m okay.”

 

Even though I answered that I was okay, Baridas still seemed to be in bad condition, so he took off his coat and covered me. I thought it was a bit overprotective to do this, but it was hard and it was true that I had collapsed, so I said thank you.

 

“Thank you for taking care of the dukedom’s affairs while I was away.”

 

“Of course it’s something that needs to be done.”

 

You might think it was the obvious thing to do, but not to Baridas. Fiora’s response was excellent and thorough. Thanks to this, the number of patients decreased and the spread to other regions was prevented.

 

“No, thank you.”

 

I nodded to what he said, and after that, there was no further conversation between me and him. At that time, when I was staring blankly at the sky without even knowing the right time to get up from my seat, Baridas opened his mouth.

 

“I was worried.”

 

Worry? Ah. Come to think of it, I was unable to take care of Greenly, Lima, and Ren because I was taking care of Thomas and Jasmine. I thought the children were also very worried. The children must have heard that I collapsed, but I felt like I had worried them for no reason.

 

“I need to show my children that I am healthy quickly.”

 

Baridas’ expression seemed to change subtly at my words. While I was examining his expression, Baridas stood up and held out his hand to me.

 

“The wind is cold, let’s go inside.”

 

“Yes it is.”

 

I held his hand and was about to get up, but his head rang. I fell to the ground with a strong shaking sound, as if someone was grabbing my head and shaking it. Baridas caught me just before my body hit the floor.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

I barely came to my senses and stood up holding his arm. His head seemed to be fine again, perhaps due to a brief bout of dizziness since he had just woken up.

 

“Yes, I’m okay.”

 

I thought it would be better to rest a little longer for a while. He opened his mouth as if he thought so too.

 

“I think it would be better to sleep a little longer.”

 

I gave Baridas his nod and then turned on his heels to return to his room. However, before he could walk for a long time, his legs began to lose strength. I probably would have fallen to the floor without Baridas’ help. No, really, why do I keep falling? This was already the second time I almost fell in front of him. I couldn’t look up at him out of embarrassment and stayed still, looking at the floor. Baridas’s hands supported my legs and back, probably because he thought I had fallen.

 

“No, I’m fine.”

 

Even struggling and begging to be put down were all too embarrassing for me, a grown adult. The best I could do was cover up my red face. What the hell is this? I felt like I was going to die of embarrassment.

 

“I’ll take you there.”

 

I consoled myself, knowing that even if I tried to force myself to get off here, my body would only hurt.

 

‘Yes, I am a patient and a sick person. So this is not a shame at all.’

 

“…yes.”

 

In fact, the most embarrassing thing was that I felt comfortable being held by him. Wasn’t the reason why children like to be hugged by Baridas actually because he was good at holding them? So much so that I thought:

 

Baridas arrived at his mansion, holding me without a single drop of sweat, as if he was not tired. He dropped me off only after arriving in front of my room.

 

“Thank you.”

 

Nodding his head, Baridas opened his mouth.

 

“I think it would be better for you to rest for a while longer.”

 

“All right.”

 

He must have been satisfied with my answer and let go of my hand. I stumbled a bit because I had nothing to support, but I was able to stand when I leaned on the wall. Just before I entered the room, Baridas opened his mouth with a small smile.

 

“Sleep well, Fiora.”

 

The dark hallway was filled with only pale moonlight. The sight of him standing in that light was like a painting, so I stared at him for a while, forgetting to answer.

 

‘Really, he is handsome.’

 

It was clearly a mistake to think that I was somewhat immune to his face now. I couldn’t remember whether I was fascinated by his face or what he had said in response. When I entered the room, I collapsed, leaning against the wall.

 

‘Wow, what is it really? Why do you keep smiling like that in front of me? Really, don’t smile like that.’

 

I lay in bed thinking that my heart was pounding because he was so handsome. Looking at the dark ceiling, I felt a little calmed down. I have to go see the kids tomorrow.

 

I went to sleep thinking that.

 

* * *

 

But as expected, things in the world did not go as planned. The next day, I collapsed again. I looked up at the ceiling with barely open eyes and let out a small sigh. The cause of my weakened body was the cold wind last night. My whole body felt like a ball of fire. I rolled up my sleeves and checked my arms. As no spots appeared, it did not seem to be an infectious disease. Maybe it’s body aches or a cold. As I got sick, I missed my family and friends on Earth even more. These are the people who were always by my side when I was sick. And I thought of my children. I couldn’t wait to get out of bed and spend time with my kids.

 

‘I need to get better quickly, the kids will be worried.’

 

It felt like someone’s hand touched my forehead while I was sleeping. As a gentle, gentle hand brushed my forehead, I felt like I could breathe just a little easier. But that only lasted a little while, and my fever didn’t go down, so I spent about two days just sleeping in bed. Sometimes, when I faintly came to my senses, I felt like someone was stroking my forehead.

 

* * *

 

Three days after the collapse, my condition improved enough to sit down and eat. Lorna, who was eating watery stew, approached me, her hand holding the spoon shaking, and she opened her mouth.

 

“Can I allow the second prince and the third princess to enter?”

 

Second… she was talking about Thomas. I was happy to see that he was completely healed and that he came to visit me because he was worried about me. I smiled and nodded.

 

“Yes.”

 

Not long after, Thomas and Ren came running to me, holding flowers in both hands. There were tears in Ren’s eyes. She fell into my arms and started crying.

 

“…I was worried…”

 

I was thankful that she was speaking while sniffling, and I thought it was cute, so I hugged Ren and patted her back. Thomas, who was looking at Ren like that, also had red eyes.

 

“Thank you for taking care of me.”

 

Thomas handed me a bouquet of multi-colored flowers. At first, I remembered the small red flowers he had given me, and I burst out laughing and took the bouquet from him.

 

“I’m glad you’re healthy.”

 

Thomas smiled at my words and nodded his head. I felt good seeing Thomas healthy after a long time. If Thomas was healed, wouldn’t he also be healed by Jasmine?

 

I opened my mouth in anticipation.

 

“How about Jasmine?”

 

Thomas and Ren burst out laughing at the same time at my question. Then Ren shook her head and opened her mouth.

 

“She is almost completely healed. I guess she has already forgotten how painful it was, and she is whining that she doesn’t want to take medicine.”

 

At Ren’s words, I laughed and was relieved at the same time. I felt fortunate that all the children seemed to be getting better. At that time, I heard a pounding sound outside the room. And with a knock, the door burst open and Greenly and Lima burst in. Without even knowing who was first, they jumped into my arms and looked up at me.

 

“Sister-in-law, don’t be sick…”

 

“I hope you get better quickly.”

 

The cute invaders were looking at me with eyes that looked like they were about to cry. At that time, Ren and Thomas opened their mouths at the same time.

 

“Don’t overwork, sister-in-law!”

 

Hearing the two’s words, Greenly and Lima simultaneously glared at Ren and Thomas. Ren and Thomas looked taken aback by their rebellious behavior. Lima was the first to speak.

 

“Why are you leaving without us!!”

 

Lima was holding onto my waist even as he glared at them and shouted. Greenly did the same, holding on to my arm and not letting go. Thomas opened his mouth as he took their hands away.

 

“Look, it’s already noisy. My sister-in-law is currently a patient and needs to rest. But you guys are too noisy.”

 

“I can be quiet.”

 

Greenly opened his mouth as if it was unfair to be grouped with Lima, and Lima looked at Greenly with a betrayed expression at his remark.

 

“So you’re saying I can’t be quiet?”

 

Certainly, Lima’s voice was different in size and tone among the children. Ren must have felt that too, as she put her finger to her lips.

 

“Lima, lower your voice.”

 

Lima looked up at me as if she was upset, and I let out a small laugh and stroked her head. This noise and the affection the children gave me filled my heart.

 

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Translator Note:

Here again!! How are you doing? 😉