I Became a Kindergarten Teacher for Monster Babies!

King Boulder stood unmoving, his face carved with disgust. Slowly, almost lazily, he lifted one hand. The ground trembled faintly, and small pebbles rose from the floor as if summoned by his will. With a flick of his fingers, the stones shot forward one by one, striking Hellthorn's slick body.

Thwack. Thwack. Thwack.

The frog let out a guttural croak that twisted into an ugly scream. He hopped desperately, trying to dodge, but Boulder's aim was merciless. Each strike echoed like judgment until the chamber itself seemed to mock the once-proud elder.

"Pathetic," King Boulder muttered coldly, watching the creature writhe. "That is all you ever were."

Before Hellthorn could limp to safety, another force swept the room. Lord Blaze, tall and fearsome, lifted his hand. A thin flame ignited between his fingers, flickering like a serpent's tongue. He let it spread until it coated the very pebbles King Boulder had conjured, heating them red-hot.

"Let him feel it," Blaze growled, his crimson eyes narrowing with contempt. He snapped his wrist, and the heated stones pelted Hellthorn again, searing his slick skin with sharp bursts of steam.

Hellthorn shrieked, his croaks breaking into panicked squeals as he hopped frantically, smoke rising faintly from his slimy form. He scrambled toward the shadows, trying to escape the burning rain.

They did not chase him. They stood tall, their expressions carved from stone and fire, watching with merciless disdain as Hellthorn finally vanished into the cracks of the chamber wall, still screaming in pain.

"Hide," Lord Blaze said coldly, brushing invisible ash from his hand. "That is all you are good for."

••••••

Alina stirred in her sleep, her body restless even though exhaustion had pinned her down. A voice reached her first, thin and trembling, childlike.

"Teacher… teacher…"

She tried to open her eyes, but they felt glued shut, as though something unseen pressed them closed.

"Teacher, please… the monsters are taking me…" The voice cracked into a sob.

Her heart lurched, but she could not tell whose voice it was. The sound was distorted, echoing as though it came from everywhere at once.

Then another voice overlapped, higher and panicked. "Teacher! Teacher, wake up! The monster will eat us!"

Her chest tightened painfully. She forced her eyes open, and the world that greeted her was not the quiet place where they had hidden.

A shadow towered over her.

It was vaguely shaped like a man, but wrong in every way, as if nightmares had molded a body. Its skin dripped with black ooze, stretching and retracting like tar. Two glowing red eyes cut through the darkness, gleaming with mockery. Its smile split unnaturally wide, revealing jagged teeth too long for any mouth.

Behind it, the air writhed. The babies were there, she could hear them, but their faces blurred like smudged paint. Their cries clawed into her ears.

"Teacher…" one sobbed. "Don't let him take me."

She tried to move, to grab them, but her limbs were heavy as stone. The monster bent low, its foul breath brushing her skin, and reached with long, spindly claws. It grabbed one of the babies, she still could not see who. The child writhed in its grip, their scream so raw it ripped through her bones.

The monster's crimson gaze shifted to her, mocking, savoring her helplessness. And then, with that wide, rotten grin, it began to lift the baby toward its mouth.

"NOOO!"

Her scream tore from her throat and snapped her awake.

She bolted upright, drenched in cold sweat, her hair clinging to her face. Her breath came fast and sharp, as though she had run miles. The world around her was quiet, too quiet. Her eyes darted frantically, and she froze.

The babies were safe.

All of them slept soundly in their makeshift beds, their small chests rising and falling peacefully. Lucien and Boo still rested against her lap, their faces serene, lips parted in soft breaths.

Her hand trembled as she reached out to touch them, needing to feel the warmth of their bodies, to prove they were not just illusions. Relief flooded her chest, so fierce it nearly hurt.

But her heart still pounded violently. The monster's grin lingered in her mind, those blood-red eyes carved into the back of her eyelids.

She swallowed hard, brushing a damp strand of hair from her face, and whispered to herself, barely audible, as if afraid the nightmare would hear.

"It was just a dream… only a dream…"

But how could she have fallen asleep? She was careless, her body ached all over.

Alina leaned back against the rock and her eyes wandered upward. The moment she caught sight of the sky, her breath hitched.

Thousands of stars glittered like scattered jewels, spread across a velvet night that seemed endless. The moonlight painted the meadow in silver, and for a fleeting moment, the fear inside her quieted.

"The universe is really beautiful…" she whispered, her voice trembling with awe. The words felt like a prayer rather than a thought.

She closed her eyes for a second, listening to the babies' even breaths, then opened them again, unwilling to waste the sight.

"I wish we all safely overcome this situation," she murmured softly, her chest tightening with helplessness. "I don't know what to do. I don't have any real power inside me, but I will do whatever I can, even if it is only with my hands, my heart."

Her gaze lingered on a cluster of stars that shone brighter than the rest, and her voice grew smaller, filled with hope and fear tangled together.

"Please… let Dante win. Don't let that evil demon take them. He looked like he wanted the babies more than anything. Maybe it is because all of them are special, maybe because their families are extraordinary… but they are just children. They deserve to grow up safe."

Her throat tightened, tears pricking her eyes. She wiped them away quickly, afraid one of the children might wake and see her weakness.

The stars blinked down silently, as if listening to her. And with her heart so heavy, her head finally tipped to the side again. Her body gave in to exhaustion, eyelids sliding closed.