"Dad, it's already morning."
Through my drowsy consciousness, a soft voice lingered. As my senses slowly returned, I felt a gentle hand shaking me.
My awareness, which had been buried in a dream, suddenly surged back into reality.
"Ah... I fell asleep with Seoyul last night."
We had talked about trivial things, laughed, and played with hand games, then eventually succumbed to exhaustion, hugging each other and falling asleep. That was the last thing I remembered.
"You need to wake up~?"
Seoyul, shaking me gently, trying to wake me up. It's a bit of a strange feeling, being woken up later than my child, but I still couldn't bring myself to get up.
[Sleep]
[Drowsiness]
[Grogginess]
"I'm so sleepy..."
My head was filled with sleepiness. My body felt as heavy as a cotton ball soaked in water.
It couldn't be helped. Was it because so much vitality and energy was consumed while my body was returning to its normal state?
My younger body seemed to need a lot of sleep. When I was a baby, I could sleep all day long. Even when I was awake, I would just hurry to eat and fall asleep again.
[Alright... I'll get up...]
I lazily stretched for a moment.
At the signs coming from all over the mansion, I slowly raised myself and plopped back onto the bed.
The wings of the sky, which I had been wrapped in like a blanket, seemed to slip off before gathering behind me.
The wings of the sky, which had been squirming as if in thought, soon took form as a cloak.
Seoyul, who had been staring at this, frowned slightly.
"Hmm... Why isn't it wings?"
[Drowsiness]
[Huh...?]
"No, it's nothing."
Seoyul shook his head vigorously and gently took my cheeks in both of his hands.
At that moment, our eye levels were about the same. Time had passed, and my body had considerably recovered.
...Why does it still feel the same?
"Dad? Still can’t see me?"
[...Hmm]
"Yik."
When I opened my eyes slightly, there was a dull fog in front of Seoyul, blocking my view of him.
Seoyul, realizing I couldn't see him, showed a displeased expression.
He puffed his cheeks out slightly and leaned toward me.
"Still can't see me?"
[Yes...]
The result was the same. Seoyul's cheeks puffed up even more, and my face showed awkwardness.
It's embarrassing to admit, but I also thought that the condition for weakening the curse was a kiss.
But it didn't work on Seoyul.
I must have misunderstood the condition or perhaps there’s another requirement aside from the kiss.
After soothing Seoyul, who had puffed up his cheeks, I went downstairs to prepare breakfast.
It wasn't exactly a kitchen but more like a cooking room in size.
When I was very young, Eliana and Ariel used to prepare meals, but recently, I had taken over the task of preparing food again.
Of course, up until recently, the amounts I prepared were minimal. There were barely four people in the mansion, including myself.
But now, things were different.
"Is there anything missing?"
"No, no, there's absolutely nothing missing. Come quickly and sit down."
"Little one? It's overflowing, so come on."
"Ah, just a moment. I'll grab this..."
Unable to resist their repeated requests, I walked to the dining table.
There were more people seated around the round table now.
The people who had been away at the front lines had returned.
"Good, good."
I smiled, floating around a dozen bowls.
Thanks to them, the mansion, which had been dull, had regained some of its life.
The rampage in the hidden realm was effectively over.
The entrance was still present in the world, keeping the frontlines intact, but the monsters pouring out had stopped.
Therefore, the external forces that had supported us had all dispersed.
"I’ll go check on the hidden realm later."
The only ones remaining at the frontlines now were the guild’s defense force and some monster-hunting troops.
Although we had stopped the hidden realm’s rampage, the space itself remained.
Currently, the guild was managing it, and I was planning to visit it in the future.
"Senior Lee Jiyeon said she’d come before the semester starts."
Lee Jiyeon hadn't yet returned to Syoram.
She had headed to her family’s main estate with her forces, and she mentioned it would take some time due to some work.
This was what Lee Jiyeon herself had told me over the phone.
She did say she’d return before the semester starts. I thought about returning the favor when she did, and I sat down at my seat.
"The food’s more than enough, so don’t hesitate to eat."
"Hayul, if you eat this much delicious food every day, even a superhuman might gain weight."
Hong Yeonhwa replied playfully.
She looked at the food piled up on the table, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
‘...’
I tilted my head slightly and focused on Yeonhwa’s chest, analyzing her physical state with my power of knowledge.
It was clear that her physique had changed. But to me, that was good news.
After all, Yeonhwa, a superhuman, was still in a period of physical growth.
"...What are you looking at?"
"Eat this too."
"Huh? Oh... thanks."
After everyone finished their meal, I quickly used magic to clean up and headed out to the lawn. There, I saw colorful waves coming toward me from afar.
It was baby unicorns and spirits.
[Did you come? You must have slept well last night—]
[Shrrrr...]
I was swept away by the wave. My body shook as I tumbled into the grass.
[Seems like they slept well.]
I was surrounded by creatures rubbing against me.
Among them were the spirits contracted with Eliana and Professor Riana.
It was a little ridiculous, but seeing them act all cute made me smile.
[Yes, did you sleep well too?]
The fairies greeted me, too. Having played with the spirits early in the morning, they flew in from the same direction.
"...Spirits, fairies... unicorns? What kind of paradise is this?"
As I continued petting the children without stopping my arms, Daera Saejo, who had followed behind slowly, muttered in confusion.
[Ahaha, it just turned out that way.]
"How did it end up like this? How can you let spirits, fairies, and unicorns roam freely on such a big lawn? Give me back my common sense, priest."
[In this world, seeking common sense is the most futile thing.]
"...What is this? It sounds like nonsense, but I can’t deny it."
[Hehe. Oh, did you like the food?]
"Saejo, I really thought I’d burst. I ate so much from the supplies earlier, but the food you made was so much better. You didn’t put anything strange in it, did you?"
[It makes me happy to hear that as the cook.]
Saejo, patting her plump belly, approached.
I smiled brightly and asked,
[Saejo, are you all set?]
Daera Saejo was wearing the Syoram academy uniform.
To be precise, she /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ had on the ceremonial decorations and shoulder cape typically worn during ceremonies or festivals.
"Yes, yes. I didn’t forget anything. Ah, you’re such a nag. I thought I was going on my first picnic with the students."
As the winter feeling faded away, warm spring days were approaching.
Today, around the beginning of the new semester, was the 122nd batch freshman welcome event.
Daera Saejo, who had been accepted through recommendation, was part of the 122nd batch and had to attend the freshman event.
Therefore, she had been assigned a campus dormitory, but I invited her to stay at the mansion with me instead.
I still vividly remember Daera Saejo’s reaction when she stepped onto the mansion grounds on the first day. Her jaw dropped wide open.
It was such a funny reaction, I carefully stored it with my knowledge power. I planned to tease her with it later.
[Student... Daera Saejo is still a student, right?]
"A student and a freshie are different!"
[Both belong to an educational institution, though—]
[Bbbbbb]
"You think I don’t know this about you, Saejo! Does being a freshie make you a senior?"
Daera Saejo, holding my cheeks with one hand, chuckled. I also made a strange expression.
What should I call it... family tree? It got a bit strange.
Daera Saejo, the first disciple of my master, is a freshman in the 122nd batch, while I am a second-year student from the 121st batch.
In other words, I’m in my second year, and Daera Saejo is in her first year.
She is now my junior, and I, the teacher, am her senior.
From an outsider's point of view, it’s a bit of a strange relationship.
[Huff, huff.]
[Please let go...]
"Finally, you understand the dignity of being a Saejo? You should show more respect from now on!"
[...Saejo, what rank did you get in the entrance exam?]
By the way, Daera Saejo is in the top tier, but not at the top.
She didn’t stand out much in theoretical subjects.
She did have a valid excuse for everything she missed while she was missing in the hidden realm, but the result was what it was.
[This is outrageous...]
"What did you say, Master?"
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[Nothing.]