Thanks to that, Cederoi knew in detail what the two children were interested in and the atmosphere during class.

‘Cederoi acted a bit off this morning.’

He thought. ‘He was usually a kid who would perk up his ears and listen when I talked about the kids, but this morning, he seemed absent-minded, like he lost his mind.’

Although Ashe didn’t particularly like people, strangely, he was good at picking up on conflicts, problems, or signs of change between people. Even relationships that seemed problem-free on the surface.

If someone asked how he was so good at noticing, he had no answer. It was just that subtle and tiny things, like eye contact, atmosphere, the rate of inhaling breath, or a moment of silence… Those seemingly insignificant and subtle things felt unusually clear to him.

‘Was there something between those two?’

Lost in thought, Ashe only woke up when Swan called his name. The boy looked anxious, and only after locking eyes with Ashe and seeing him relax did Swan seem to breathe a sigh of relief.

‘There are problems everywhere. With both kids and adults.’

Ashe thought.

“Um, Teacher. I solved all the problems.”

Swan said, pushing his notebook towards Ashe. Although Ashe asked him to call him by his name, Swan insisted on calling him ‘Teacher.’

Since it didn’t matter much to Ashe, he let it be, but every time he saw Swan like this, it made a certain part of his heart feel tight.

Cederoi was the same, but neither of them could find a sharp alternative.

Looking at the problems Swan solved, Ashe glanced at Arianthe. She was just doodling in her notebook with a pen in her hand, and it seemed that having a class today would not yield any results.

“Let’s go outside.”

At Ashe’s unexpected declaration, Arianthe and Swan both looked at him with puzzled expressions.

“Outside? Why?”

“Because there’s studying outside that we can never do inside. Come to think of it, we’ve never studied outside before, have we? Just one teacher and two students. It’s a perfect combination. Let’s have an outdoor class today.”
Arianthe pouted her lips again. The idea of ‘two students’ was not particularly pleasant for her. Arianthe still had no desire to become close to Swan. If the one studying together was Silas, or even better, Chronina Umbrose, she might have been excited!

Swan, who had been hesitating, cautiously asked, “Outside… Are we taking our books with us?”

“No, no. It’s not like that. An outdoor class literally means a class held outdoors. So, textbooks and materials are all outside. You can leave your books. There’s only one thing you need. Enthusiasm!”

“What’s enthusiasm, Ashe?”

“Hmm, it seems to be a difficult word for our lady. Then, how about Swan, who’s three years older, explaining it to Arianthe? What is enthusiasm, Swan?”

Swan, with a bewildered expression, glanced alternately between Arianthe and Ashe. Arianthe, who was staring at Swan with crossed arms, as if to say, ‘Let’s see about that,’ gently touched her dry lips and said cautiously, “Enthusiasm is… Well, it means… wanting to do something. That feeling.”

Ashe flicked his fingers and made a clicking sound. “Good, very well done. Enthusiasm refers to the desire to actively do something. The important thing here is wanting to do something actively. You can’t call it enthusiasm if you’re just dragged along doing what others say. Today’s outdoor class will be taking turns doing what each of you wants to do. With enthusiasm.”

Arianthe raised her small hand. “Then, Ashe, does it have to be studying? Can we do something else, like playing hide and seek?”

“Of course, Arianthe. Actually, hide and seek is an excellent study. Why is that, or no, Swan?”

“No, um…”

As if he expected that answer, Ashe, who looked serious and solemn as he stared at Arianthe, who was watching him closely with her arms crossed—almost as if challenging him—said carefully, “Everyone says that hide and seek is playing, not studying. But let’s think about it. When someone says hide and seek, they say it’s not studying but playing. However, consider this. To be good at hide and seek, what do you need to do, Arianthe?”

“You need to hide well!”

“Exactly. Then, how do you hide well?”

Arianthe and Swan’s eyes met for a moment. Both children had expressions of not understanding exactly what Ashe wanted to say.

Ashe snapped his fingers and made a sound. “Good, very well. To hide well, you have to figure out where I’ll hide. To do that, you need a strategy. You shouldn’t cheat, so you have to be careful about that. For example, think about hiding behind a pillar. You hide your body well, but what if your shadow leaks out?”

“I’ll get caught by the person who is ‘it’!”

“That’s right, Arianthe. So, we need to carefully consider the position of the sun and the direction of the shadow, which we learned last time. We have to find a place to hide not only our bodies but also our shadows. Then, what if you think about hiding behind the bushes, Swan?”

“We have to… find a good hiding place, right?”

“That’s it exactly. To be good at hide and seek, I have to figure out where to hide. To do that, I need a strategy. We must be careful not to cheat. For example, think about hiding behind a pillar. You hide your body well, but what if your shadow leaks out?”

“I’ll get caught by the person who is ‘it’!”

“That’s right, Arianthe. So, we need to carefully consider the position of the sun and the direction of the shadow, which we learned last time. We have to find a place to hide not only our bodies but also our shadows. Then, what if you think about hiding behind the bushes, Swan?”

“We have to… find a good hiding place, right?”

“That’s it exactly. To be good at hide and seek, you need to carefully think about where I’ll hide. For that, a strategy is needed. No cheating allowed, so be cautious. For example, let’s consider hiding behind a pillar. You hide your body well, but what happens if your shadow escapes?”

“I’ll be found by the one who is ‘it’!”

“Exactly, Arianthe. So, we need to think carefully about the sun’s position and the shadow’s direction, as we learned last time. We must find a place to hide not only our bodies but also our shadows. Now, what if you think about hiding behind the bushes, Swan?”