"I—I wasn't looking!" she blurted, way too fast. "I mean—I was! But not there—I mean—not like that—I'm sorry!" she fumbled, horrified at how fast her dignity had left the room.
A beat of silence passed.
And although his expression remained unreadable, the corner of his mouth twitched. Almost like a smirk. But it vanished too quickly to be sure.
"You don't have to come to the office daily," he said, his gaze fixed on her face.
Alina blinked. "I don't?"
She had assumed it was part of protocol—to check in with the principal every morning like human schools. She opened her mouth to ask but stopped when his eyes narrowed faintly.
"…Okay, sir," she replied quickly, nodding.
In truth, she was a little relieved. Meeting him every morning was like standing in front of a stone wall that could come alive and burn you alive at any moment. Not that he had done anything—his aura alone was enough to make her bones hum. And that horn—definitely demon. She really should keep her distance.
But just as she was about to step back, he spoke again.
"There's a meeting after class," he said, voice calm but firm. "Your presence is required."
Alina nodded again, even though her mind was already spiraling. Why is it important for her to attend? Did she do something wrong? Is it about the flood? Or her class? Or related her?
With a sigh, she turned and made her way to the staffroom.
As she opened the door, the familiar grumpy figure of Professor Hobb was already seated on his seat.
"Good morning," Alina said softly, almost like she was approaching a wild animal.
Professor Hobb looked up and scowled immediately… until he sniffed.
His nose twitched. His gaze narrowed on her bag like a predator spotting prey.
Alina blinked, then remembered—the cookies!
She quickly unzipped the top, pulled out the small box, and offered it to him with a gentle smile. "Would you like one?"
He gave her a suspicious look at first. Then, with a grumble, took one and bit into it.
And his eyes lit up.
For a moment, he looked like an entirely different person. Like someone who just found a forgotten treasure.
Alina didn't say anything. She simply smiled and walked to her seat.
Gabriel was already seated on his usual seat with a soft cup of tea beside him. He was looking through some papers with a calm expression, his golden hair falling gently over his forehead.
When he saw Alina enter, he smiled kindly. "Good morning."
"Good morning," Alina replied as she walked to her seat and placed her bag down.
She looked at the papers in his hand and tilted her head. "What are you doing?" she asked curiously.
"Hmm?" Gabriel looked up at her again. "Ah, I'm taking a test for my class. Some of the older ones need extra care in spell reading and language interpretation, so I've prepared a small assessment for them."
He chuckled softly, "Though I doubt half of them will take it seriously… one of them turned their last test into a paper plane."
Alina couldn't help but laugh.
***
Alina opened the little cookie box she had brought from home and pushed it gently toward Gabriel.
"I baked these this morning… want to try one?" she asked with a hopeful smile.
Gabriel looked at the cookies, a little surprised. "You made them yourself?"
Alina nodded. "Yeah. Simple recipe, but I thought it might brighten the morning."
He picked one carefully, almost like he didn't want to break it, and took a bite. His eyes widened slightly, then softened as he chewed.
"This is… very delicious," he said, clearly impressed. "Sweet, but not too sweet. Warm, soft in the center… you might have just made my day."
Alina laughed gently. "I'm glad you like it."
Gabriel smiled, one of those calm, warm smiles that always made her feel lighter. "You know, if this teaching thing doesn't work out, you could open a bakery."
Alina chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind."
***
With a happy heart and a slight cookie-fueled bounce in her step, Alina walked down the hallway toward her classroom. The day felt lighter, sweeter somehow.
She reached the classroom door and, still humming a tune in her head.
She gently pushed open the classroom door with a smile—only to freeze in place.
Her jaw dropped.
What…?
Inside, the babies were already seated at their tiny desks in neat rows, wearing their cute red uniforms. All of them were facing the chalkboard attentively. But what made her gasp wasn't just their behavior.
It was her.
Standing right there in front of the blackboard—teaching, smiling, writing numbers—was… Alina. Or someone who looked exactly like her.
"Wha—?" Alina blinked hard, staring at the scene.
All the babies turned their heads at once, wide-eyed, blinking between the two Alinas like little owls.
Drake stood up slowly, his tiny tail flicking behind him.
"Huh?? Teacher! You're here??" he squeaked. "Wait… do we have two teachers now?"
Luna narrowed her eyes, sniffing the air suspiciously.
Boo suddenly stood on his chair and pointed dramatically at the front of the room. "OH MY GOD! You're not pretending again, Felix, right?!"
At his outburst, the whole classroom fell silent.
The "Alina" at the board paused, turned slowly… and with a puff of smoke, transformed into a smirking, pale-skinned boy with fox ears and silver eyes—Felix.
"Ta-da~" he said, flicking his fluffy tail proudly. "You caught me!"
A chorus of gasps filled the room.
"Felix!!!" Vlad Jr. stood up, his little hands clenched in outrage. "Impersonating Miss Alina is a royal crime!"
Felix shrugged innocently. "But I was just trying to help! You were all sitting around doing nothing! So I thought, why not teach a little math? See? I taught them to count to ten."
Alina placed a hand on her chest, letting out a long, deep breath as she walked in. "Felix… I nearly had a heart attack."
He's difficult to understand. So cold sometimes, and then suddenly playful…