Considering its size, the Academy is like a newly established country.
To avoid getting lost, Eliya made two preparations.
One is the Clock Tower.
If you’re inside the Academy grounds, you’ll find the towering Clock Tower in the center, no matter where you are.
It’s a sort of landmark right in front of the educational facilities used by the students, functioning like a signpost.
The second is the guides placed near the entrance.
On busy days like the first day of school, there will be a crowd, making it chaotic.
To manage this, they hired staff to maintain order and guide people.
“Those who don’t know the way to the Academy, please come here-!”
Several guides are shouting, holding wooden signboards in various places.
In front of them, several people are gathered, waiting for guidance.
Since there might be some who miss the Clock Tower and are wandering around aimlessly, Eliya has prepared these countermeasures.
“Mom. Are we following them over there too?”
Amor asked.
Actually, it isn’t necessary.
Eliya and Judas know their way around here.
They could easily just teleport and be there in no time.
But Eliya chose not to do that.
“Let’s do that.”
The children need to get used to the geography and environment of this place.
Using teleportation or having herself and Judas lead them would deprive the children of the opportunity to adapt and grow.
“I’ll go first!”
As soon as Eliya spoke, Donum dashed towards a nearby guide.
Pides followed closely right behind, like they were in a competition.
“I’ll win!”
However, neither of them could run five steps before being caught by Judas.
“Oh man…. I knew this would happen.”
Judas had anticipated the impulsive actions of the two kids.
Especially Donum, who had been itching to run since earlier.
Pides also couldn’t keep his feet still, fidgeting.
“Let’s try to be a little calmer in crowded places.”
Judas said, tucking the two kids under his arms.
This isn’t some vast prairie.
Trying to rush around like wild horses in a crowded area is giving him a headache.
Caught, Pides quickly settled down, but Donum became even more excited for a new reason.
“Whoa, it feels like I’m flying!”
It seemed he found it amusing to dangle there.
Judas just smiled at his innocent youngest daughter’s reaction.
Amor and Spei quietly held their mom’s hand and followed the two in front.
Suddenly, someone recognized them.
“Judas?”
“Hmm?”
Richard and Beninita.
Dillon and Mei.
And their children.
“Erin!”
Pides immediately recognized his closest friend.
Richard and Beninita’s eldest daughter.
15 years old, a second-year middle school student.
She has a lively personality inherited from Richard.
That’s why she gets along well with Pides and Donum.
“Hello, Erin! And hi to Beirin and Patrick too!”
Beirin is Richard and Beninita’s second son.
12 years old, in the fifth grade of elementary school.
Patrick is Dillon and Mei’s son, who is 7 years old.
Spei and Donum are the same age peers in preschool.
“Pides! Donum! Are you having fun?”
They used to run around together when they were younger.
But as Erin grew older, she became more mature.
They can’t play in the mud like puppy dogs anymore.
Pides regretted that.
He also felt a longing to see Erin’s different vibe more often.
Richard subtly glanced down at Pides with a wary look, and Judas coughed to draw attention.
“I didn’t expect to run into you here. It’s nice to see someone familiar at the entrance.”
“We just arrived and ran into each other.”
“Hello.”
Patrick bowed politely.
While the other kids seemed somewhat childish, Patrick was extremely well-mannered.
Judas simply ruffled Patrick’s head.
Eliya, Amor, and Spei came over to greet them.
Since they see each other often, everyone became accustomed to meeting Emperor Eliya in a private setting.
“Everyone gathered in front of sign 7, we will be moving-!”
The guide standing in line shouted.
Holding up the sign with a big ‘7’ for everyone to see.
“It feels a bit awkward… should I say alien? It’s as if we’ve come to a foreign country.”
“Right….”
Richard and Beninita commented.
Everyone else felt the same discomfort with this environment and atmosphere.
It’s just strange how they’ve assembled nobles and common folk randomly and are transporting them like this.
Judas understood the foreignness that they felt.
‘It’s a place conjured from information in my head… sounds strange, but still.’
This Academy was created based heavily on Eliya’s reference from Judas’s memories.
From the city and road design to how to manage the people coming here.
With so many elements clashing with the basic sensibilities of this world, selecting and training academy staff had been no easy task.
‘Eliya even wrote a separate book when training the faculty.’
Perceptions and concepts about children are different.
Eliya wrote about parenting theory to change those perceptions.
‘It’s a concern… will the kids adapt well?’
At some point, children need to leave their parents’ care.
Sending them to the Academy is a sort of vaccination for both the children and the parents.
Even knowing this, worrying is inevitable.
It’s not just the children’s adaptability he’s worried about.
Being around others inevitably leads to friction and conflict.
Such encounters mature the human spirit.
But sometimes, overly intense experiences can cause regression in a person.
‘Such things shouldn’t happen to our kids… right? No one would want to go against the Imperial Family.’
Even knowing it’s meaningless, worries bubbled up uncontrollably.
What eased that worry was his youngest daughter in his arms.
“Daddy! Tie my hair up!”
Judas rubbed Donum’s chubby cheeks.
Warm, soft, and fluffy.
Just touching it made him feel good.
“We’re moving now, so I’ll tie it up later. Also, pay attention to what that person is saying up front. They’re explaining about this place.”
“Okay!”
While she may not remember, practicing to focus on someone speaking isn’t a bad idea.
Judas carried Donum in one arm and held Pides’s hand with the other.
His wife, who was right next to him, was holding onto his waist.
With his other hand, he was holding Spei.
Amor was walking alongside, holding Spei’s remaining hand.
Judas gazed at Amor, then looked ahead at Richard.
More precisely, he observed the distance between Richard and Erin.
‘Somehow… it looks awkward.’
Once, Erin would cling to Richard all day.
But for some reason, a strange distance has formed over time.
It was clearly evident even now.
A 15-year-old daughter and her father.
It’s something unavoidable, isn’t it?
‘Will Amor and I become like that one day too?’
It’s not quite like that yet, but signs are gradually showing with Amor.
Especially, lately she hasn’t been insisting on getting her hair tied anymore.
‘Well… I’ll just have to accept it. What else can I do?’
Though a bit wistful, Judas brushed it off.
It’s a natural phenomenon that occurs as children grow.
If he can’t accept it, he’d become the foolish parent.
‘It’s not like she and I had a conflict or anything.’
That’s the goal of a parent after all; to raise their children to be healthy and independent.
Remembering the teachings Eliya gave him, Judas quickly felt at ease.
Suddenly, he pecked a kiss on the cheek of his wife walking beside him.
“Hmm? Why?”
Even in front of people, Eliya asked with no reservations.
“I just wanted to.”
“What? How cute.”
“Daddy me too!”
He also kissed the cheek of his youngest daughter, who was asking for a kiss.
Pides was starting to shy away from kisses, but Donum and Spei weren’t there yet.
As such, Judas showered his two youngest with more affection.
For now, that was enough.
What truly matters is the present, not the future.
*
Given that it was the Academy’s first opening, the number of enrollees was quite substantial.
Not everyone was entering as first years, as students were also transferring in from different grades.
There might be challenges since they lack foundational knowledge, but that was a problem they’d have to adapt to and solve gradually.
Anyway, the massive crowd headed towards the Grand Plaza under the Clock Tower.
The plaza, large enough to accommodate over ten thousand people, was bustling with excitement.
The Academy classes students largely by age.
Preschool, Elementary, Middle, and High School.
Before classifying the enrollees into the respective divisions, an opening ceremony was to take place.
The somewhat disorderly crowd looked in one direction.
At the high podium installed to look up at.
Atop it stood the pivotal figure of this Academy’s establishment.
The saintly figure who resurrected after perishing with the Evil God and unified humanity.
The one known as the Last Emperor.
Eliya de Bevel.
Clad in a red cloak, she surveyed the public before speaking.
Her somewhat emotionless red eyes were those of a ruler.
Amor, Pides, Spei, and Donum.
Her seated children were witnessing their mother in this manner for the first time.
Given the enormity of her achievements, they often heard of them.
However, the mother they had at home didn’t seem that overwhelming.
Though they respected and loved Eliya, it was hard to comprehend if she was someone people revered and held in awe.
After all, she constantly begged Judas for hugs and kisses like a child.
The time spent in her arms felt as long as their childhoods.
Moreover, her compassionate, gentle, yet generous attitude towards her children prevented them from recalling her majesty as an Empress.
That’s why, in this moment, the children found Eliya strange.
A presence that could silence thousands with silence and mere gazes emanated overwhelming pressure.
The children acknowledged that the Empress was indeed the ruler who brought the world to its knees before her.
That strangeness transformed into another form of respect.
It also became a source of pride.
They felt proud and delighted that their mother was that remarkable.
This was the positive result of Eliya raising her children with boundless love.
Amidst it all, Pides thought to himself.
‘Mom is amazing…!’
The strength that emanated from her tiny frame compared to his father was breathtaking.
It was impossible not to admire.
In a breathless atmosphere where even breathing felt hard.
Finally, Eliya spoke.
In a soft, calm tone.
Despite not stressing her words, her voice penetrated the minds of the crowd.
“Learn.”
What she intended to convey was exceedingly clear.
“Be it academics, simple experiences, human relationships, or physical development. No matter what it is, learn. Sharpen yourself and define, then prove who you are.”
“……”
“This place is the Academy. A venue solely for education. If you wish for that, this facility stands ready to support your progress in any way. So, learn without worry. That’s all you need.”
Know who you are.
Contemplate how you will live.
That was the one thing Eliya wanted to convey to the new enrollees.
She also spoke to her own children.
“That’s all.”
Eliya made her point concisely.
She turned with her cape billowing and walked back to her place.
Where Judas was seated.
Despite the imposing appearance of the Empress, she casually folded her arms around Judas’s and sat beside him, intertwining their fingers.
While the principal spoke, she fidgeted with her fingers, sharing kisses and giggles.
Then spotting her children, she waved at them with a smile.
Seeing her, the children of the imperial family thought.
Before she was the Empress, she was undoubtedly the mother they knew.
*
“I’m Pides! … I am Pides! And….”
Judas watched Pides’s introduction, which fluctuated between formal and informal.
Gallahaid was beside him.
After arriving late with Maria, he followed Judas, while Maria went to see Amor.
‘How cute.’
It was self-introduction time for the second grade of elementary school.
The classmates focused especially on the prince’s greeting.
Eliya went to see Spei and Donum, who were in preschool.
So, there was no one to go see Amor.
Maria went, but it remained on his mind.
‘Still, there’s a difference between having a parent there and not… Of course, my mother-in-law is great, yet…’
“And someday, I’ll grow as tall and big as my dad… I mean!”
Pides’ last words suddenly drew everyone’s attention to Judas.
Standing dazed among other parents, Judas awkwardly smiled.
After Pides, the other kids briefly introduced themselves.
Pides quickly adapted and mingled among the other kids.
Even the ones intimidated by his royal status opened up quickly because of Pides’s vivacity and sociability.
The speed of adaptation was unnaturally fast.
At one point, he locked eyes with Judas and Gallahaid and asked.
“Why are dad and grandpa still here?”
“……”
Watching Pides rejoin the other kids after saying that, Judas chuckled to himself.
‘That son of mine….’
Beside him, Gallahaid chuckled.
“Still, it’s impressive. He can blend in so quickly with other people.”
“Well, it’s certainly better than not fitting in at all. It stings a little, though.”
Judas watched Pides having fun by himself, then made a resolution.
“I should go see Amor.”
With Gallahaid present, that should be enough.
“Switching places with my mother-in-law would be better in many ways.”
“……”
Both Judas and Eliya were aware of the situation between Maria and Gallahaid.
They just pretended not to notice.
“Uh, well… right. Do what you want to.”
Gallahaid replied with a forced expression, nodding.
“Pides, is your dad going to see sister Amor?”
“Yup!”
Pides answered without hesitation and rejoined his friends.
‘This is quite something. He seems to trust me, but….’
Pides’s nonchalant attitude about whether his dad went or not was actually not bad.
That’s a form of trust.
Believing that even if his dad was momentarily absent, he would return.
In situations like this, feeling anxious or throwing a tantrum is actually an unhealthy reaction.
‘Still… I feel a bit sad.’
It was something to appreciate that his son was growing up healthily.
*
In the Middle School Division, first year class 1.
Amor was sitting at a window seat.
After the students finished introducing themselves, the homeroom teacher began explaining various things, which she listened to attentively.
She would need to adapt to life here.
Though she wouldn’t be staying in a dorm, she’d have to spend long hours at the Academy.
She knew that, yet her mind was quite distracted.
‘It feels empty….’
It was her first time being in such a crowded place, away from the royal palace.
Counting herself, there were 20 students.
These were not just figures she would see today; they were people she would meet moving forward.
Her feelings were quite mixed.
Before coming, she was excited and full of anticipation.
However, now that she was here, it wasn’t as thrilling as she had expected.
‘Is it because of mom and dad…?’
Eliya went to see Spei and Donum.
Judas went to see Pides.
Amor’s keen intelligence, similar to Eliya’s, quickly assessed her situation objectively.
However, she couldn’t pinpoint it with the same precision Eliya could.
Not certainty, but lingering doubts remained.
‘Am I feeling… lonely, right now?’
As the eldest daughter, there was quite an age gap compared to her younger siblings.
Thus, she had been trying to make sacrifices for her younger siblings.
Even though Judas and Eliya always tried to love them fairly, Amor felt an unspoken sense of responsibility to do so.
In fact, while living in the royal palace, she didn’t feel this emptiness from making sacrifices.
After all, she was always beside her mom and dad.
But this place was different.
The more she sacrificed, the more her mom and dad weren’t around.
‘Of course, Grandma loves me. Naturally. But still, yes…’
As her concentration wavered, time passed.
When the teacher’s explanation ended, the kids briefly got to know each other and exchanged greetings.
Today was only for introductions and guidance, and they would be leaving afterward.
The real classes were to start tomorrow.
Amor smiled as she received greetings from her classmates.
Amidst that, her thoughts were still tangled with thoughts of her mom and dad.
Just as it was time to head back, she looked behind, trying to find Maria.
“Grandma….”
But in her place stood another person.
Judas.
Her father.
Seeing Amor’s eyes widen in surprise, Judas playfully grinned.
“Surprised?”
Amor found herself running toward him unconsciously.
“Daddy!”
“Oh dear, my daughter. Did you miss me?”
Amor dashed over and hugged him tightly, making Judas beam happily.
Meanwhile, Amor embraced him in silence for a moment.
Someone she could lean on.
Her dad, and mom.
But….
‘……’
Amor made some kind of resolution.
*
After returning from the Academy’s opening ceremony.
Amor said, “I want my own room.”
Until now, she had lived in the same room with Judas and Eliya.
Now, Amor was declaring her independence.
“……”
Then, on that day, Judas’s world crashed down.
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