Now that the major problems were finally behind me, I could let go of the stress that had been weighing on me for months. Starting today, I intended to live a peaceful life again—at least as peaceful as a king's life could be.
…You say not everything was stressful because I enjoyed the research?
You aren't wrong.
Even a Pharaoh enjoys learning and discovery.
But as a ruler, there is an art to how much effort you show others.
If you work too hard, people assume that pace is normal for you.
And then you get buried in more responsibility.
A leader must know how much work fits the amount of effort he chooses to reveal.
At the end of the day, what matters is doing your duty and also keeping your sanity.
Even while thinking in such roundabout ways, I still knew the truth:
I was fortunate.
Life in Eterna had been good to me, and the people around me made my role easier.
Today, I planned to inspect the newly built school.
The children I brought from Ingracia were learning here too.
I once told Yuuki something important:
If children grow only among monsters, they might never learn human common sense.
But this school solved that.
Many adventurers and workers had moved to Eterna with their families, so their children studied here too.
Our laws forbid child labor—children should enjoy their youth.
They study only what interests them.
Humans and monsters receive the same education, building friendships naturally.
That was the goal.
Adults also studied here, practicing writing and arithmetic.
These skills open doors.
Without them, life becomes harder.
So the adults eagerly trained, and their determination inspired the children.
Writing was the hardest subject for most.
Even for me, the complexity of this world's language was no joke.
If not for Solarys, Sovereign of Wisdom, I might not pass a written exam myself.
Children were doing extremely well, though.
To encourage learning, I translated manga into this world's language.
The school loved it.
It became a status symbol to own manga.
Kenya, being both strong and possessing manga, had somehow become the "boss" of the school.
"You stinky boys! Stop playing around and help clean the classroom!"
That was Alice, losing her patience again.
"Huh? Why do we have to—"
"Shut up, Ryota! If we make Alice mad, she'll kill us!"
"No way! I'm beating Alice today and becoming the real boss!"
Kenya puffed his chest out.
Such a brat.
…But they were still kids.
It made sense.
It seemed everyone knew Alice was the real boss.
Kenya wanted to fight her because he didn't want to admit it.
This was classic childish crush behavior.
Boys annoy the girls they like because they don't know how to express themselves properly.
This rarely works.
Alice, on the other hand, seemed completely unaware of anything resembling romance.
"Didn't I tell you? I'll show you how scary I really am!"
And she meant it.
All eleven-year-olds act like this, I suppose.
Other students watched with amusement.
"Who's gonna win today?"
"Obviously the Empress."
"She's the youngest but the strongest!"
"He can't win. Kenya likes Alice."
"GAIL! Don't say that!" Kenya yelled.
"How could Kenya ever like me?" Alice scoffed.
The secret was out.
And Alice shut it down immediately.
Good.
Too early for romance.
Gail, the oldest of them, kept an eye on both, ready to intervene.
It was entertaining, but I came here for a reason.
Hinata was supposed to arrive later.
"All right, enough. No fighting in the classroom," I said as I entered.
The moment I stepped inside, Chloe rushed at me, jumping into my arms.
"Pharaoh Atem!"
Her aura had grown stronger—I didn't sense her coming at all.
Her skills were improving rapidly.
"Hey! That's cheating, Chloe!" Alice shouted.
But she wasn't about to lose.
She ran forward and hugged me too.
Even with my strength sealed under layers of restraint, I still had the presence of a king.
Yet these children never feared me—they trusted me.
It was refreshing.
Then—
"Long time no see, Atem-sama arinsu!!"
A little girl in a kimono jumped out.
She had adorable fox ears and looked about Alice's age.
Could it be…?
I lowered myself slightly so I could look her in the eyes.
"Are you Kumara?"
"It is me, arinsu!" the girl with the bob haircut chirped—no, Kumara chirped.
Yes. Now that I focused, her aura was unmistakable.
Kumara had evolved after receiving a name from me. That evolution clearly allowed her to take a human form. I had left her in Hinata's care along with the other children before the school was even built. Kenya and the rest began attending classes after that.
I had always imagined Kumara remained in the Labyrinth… so seeing her here, going to school, making friends, smiling—
It was a pleasant surprise.
"Eh—Atem-sensei has come—"
Kenya and Ryota noticed me late. But before their voices could spread properly—
Cheers exploded around the room.
"W-WOAH—Atem-sama!"
"It's actually him! Amazing!"
"I'm gonna brag about this to my dad later!"
The classroom erupted into chaos—students shouting, pointing, crowding, sparkling with excitement.
Their joy washed over me like warm sunlight.
Moments later, teachers rushed in after hearing the noise. They formed their own disordered crowd.
"H-His Majesty himself is here?! If you had contacted us first, I would have personally guided you!"
"What foolishness! I am the vice-principal! I should be guiding His Majesty Atem!"
"Mere vice-principal! Begone! His Majesty granted me the position of principal—I deserve the privilege!"
And so, even the adults lost their composure.
Our school staff consisted of retired adventurers and merchants from Blumund—people Myourmiles had scouted. The principal was a goblin village chief I had elevated. He wasn't a teacher, but he excelled at resolving disputes and preventing discrimination toward monster children.
The rest of the teachers were human. Holy Knights filled in as special lecturers. Hinata often visited to teach personally.
Everything had been running smoothly.
The Holy Knights initially looked confused working with monster students… but they overcame that quickly. They treated everyone equally—firmly, kindly, patiently. Their work helped the school more than I expected.
I raised a hand to settle the commotion.
"Do not trouble yourselves," I said with a calm but commanding tone. "I only slipped out of the castle today. I have something to discuss with Kenya and the others."
"I see! Then please come observe their learning progress next time!"
"Yes—yes! If you inform us beforehand, we will prepare the perfect learning conditions!"
The teachers and the children all nodded vigorously.
But hold on…
"Perfect learning conditions?"
That sounded suspiciously like they were planning to stage something.
Which completely defeated the purpose of an unannounced visit.
Before I could address it—
"Oi oi oi—His Majesty Atem looks troubled," a familiar voice said.
Holy Knight Fritz stepped forward. He was today's lecturer. If he hadn't intervened, their commotion would have continued endlessly.
"Fritz, you are today's instructor?"
"Oi oi, drop the 'san,' Your Majesty Atem. Just Fritz is fine."
"Then in return," I said lightly, "drop the 'Your Majesty.'"
"That… would be impossible." He smiled awkwardly. "At the very least, allow me to call you Atem-sama. If I drop all honorifics, every citizen will glare at me."
He had a point. Addressing another nation's ruler by name alone required either ignorance or courage bordering on foolishness.
"You're right. Save the casual tone for when you're not in public."
"Thank you for understanding," Fritz said, winking playfully.
…Why did this man's wink feel strangely natural?
Enough of that.
"Setting that aside—thank you for assisting with the school."
"Don't mention it. Compared to Hinata-sama's training, this assignment is paradise. You eat well, the children admire you… the knights practically fight each other to get this duty."
I paused.
So the training really was that intense.
Just then—Solarys, the Sovereign of Wisdom, stirred within my mind.
"Notice: Hinata's training intensity is equal to pre-war Holy Knight conditioning multiplied by 3.2. Knight survivability remains within acceptable thresholds."
Before I could reply, I sensed a sudden spike in pressure entering the room.
Not magical power—intent.
A cold feminine voice slid into the space like a blade.
"Oh? Congratulations, Fritz," Hinata said sweetly—too sweetly. "Was my training too rigorous? I customized it based on your strength, but it seems I was mistaken."
The air tightened.
The children instantly froze.
The teachers straightened up like soldiers caught slacking.
Even the adults who had crowded in earlier went still, pale, stiff.
And Fritz…
Fritz was dead.
Emotionally, at least.
"E-eh—H-Hinata-sama?! Misunderstanding! It's a misunderstanding! I was merely… using polite speech! Bureaucratic niceties… nothing more!"
Poor man.
Completely doomed.
I stepped back slowly.
A Pharaoh knew when to intervene—and when to let a man face the consequences of his own tongue.
Solarys murmured helpfully:
"Recommendation: Retreat. Estimated risk of collateral involvement: 89%."
Good enough reason for me.
I slipped away, leaving Fritz to his fate.
May the gods—or at least Hinata's mercy—protect him.
One thing was certain:
Atem, King of Eterna, would not be rescuing him from this trial.
Not today.