The Good Teacher

Guy's timely intervention may have saved Markus, but it unwittingly dropped him into Grace's warpath.

"You! Fix this!" She demanded.

"I can't force him to do anything," Guy replied apologetically.

"Then why are you even here?"

Guy looked at Markus, who understood the gaze and chimed in, "I invited Master to stay with us for the time being, since he's out of a job."

"We can't afford to house a lodger!" Grace denied immediately.

Before Markus could interject and plead his case, Guy decided to take the initiative and started his piece, "Actually, I can pay rent. Apart from that, I can also help out with any tasks that may arise. I am also an orphan, so I have some experience handling chores and managing an orphanage."

When Grace learned that Guy was an orphan, her opinion of him softened a little. However, she didn't let him off the hook just yet.

"Fine! Since you're so hellbent on your decision, I won't force you anymore," She declared as she flung her hands in the air. She then added to Markus, "Take your Master with you and clean up the storage room at the back. There should be a mattress and a few old pieces of furniture, air it out and clean it. If you need anything else, get it yourself! We'll discuss the specifics of your stay here tomorrow!"

After unloading a tirade filled with warnings and demands, Grace swiftly left the area, leaving Markus and Guy alone.

"I'm sorry Master. I'll try to convince Matron when she is in a better mood to waive the rent."

Guy quickly shook his hands and replied, "Actually, I'm not as destitute and impoverished as you think. I actually have a decent sum saved up for myself."

"Master you don't have to say all that to soothe me. This is all my fault! I should have written a letter to Matron before coming here uninvited. Or I should have at least waited for my sister to be present. She would know how to calm things down. Worry not, Master. I will go in and clean up your room. Please relax and look around!"

Markus rushed inside without a second of pause and got to work.

Guy sighed and then chuckled mirthfully. No matter how hard he tried to convince Markus that he was loaded, the boy just refused to believe it. 'I don't know if I should feel fortunate or offended that my student thinks of me this way...'

Guy decided to survey the area while Markus was busy with his task. It was his first time travelling after arriving in this world, and he was feeling intoxicated with the spirit of adventure. One of the reasons why Guy felt so enamoured with pursuing charity work in his past life was because he truly enjoyed the idea of visiting different places and immersing himself in the myriad of cultures.

But he realised quite early that with the advancements in technology, it would be quite difficult to feel the rush of exploring uncharted territories and indulging in unknown and untouched cultures. However, in this world, everything was new to him. He was feeling giddy just thinking about his future travels.

He wanted to visit the village at the base of the mountain, however, before that, he wanted to thoroughly familiarise himself with the region around the orphanage. Although it was snugly fit along the sides of the mountain, the area was surprisingly flat and even. It was as if someone had carved out a region and reshaped the mountainside to specifically house this orphanage. The orphanage itself looked peculiar at a closer viewing. Through delving into the old Guy's memory, Guy knew for a fact that not all orphanages had such planned and purposeful design.

Usually, those buildings would match the area around them. In this case, the orphanage should look like the houses and buildings constructed in the village. And yet it had a more intricate and artistic construction, though the years had definitely stripped away its elegance.

'There's a story behind this building,' Guy surmised. He planned to dig into it in the future, once he solidified his relationship with Grace.

As he circled the building, Guy happened to notice two tails following him. He decided to entertain himself and indulged the two followers. After he turned the nearest corner, Guy hid himself flush into the wall and waited for the duo to follow.

"Did he turn around there?"

"Y-Y-Yes! I saw h-h-him!"

"Shhh! Don't make any noise! Don't lose him either. We need to let Matron know what that suspicious-looking man is doing! Mimi told me that there have been cases of kidnappers stealing kids in the middle of the night and selling them to rich masters as slaves!"

Guy heard the excited voice of a girl and the apprehensive voice of a boy droning and approaching his area. Guy decided to prank the kids and activated a few spells to set up a visual illusion. To any passerby with untrained eyes, they wouldn't notice his presence no matter how hard they looked.

"Where did he go?!"

"I d-d-don't know. He was here a s-s-second ago!"

A perky little girl hopped around the corner and swivelled her head in distress. Her two ponytails bounced against the side of her head like a rattle drum. Behind her, a thin and timid-looking boy followed and assisted in her search while straining his eyes. As Guy observed them, he found a lot of similarities in their facial structure and appearance. Barring their starkly opposing personalities, the two had many features in common. He knew that they were related in some way.

"Oh no, Kano! He got away! Quick, we need to find Matron Reva and let her know!" The girl grabbed the boy's hand and ran feverously.

"Dora, w-w-wait!" The boy cried out and disappeared around the corner with his sister.

Guy chuckled as he saw the two tumbling around while running. 'Dora and Kano,' he said to himself in a pensive voice.

After finishing his tour of the area, Guy figured that it was time to visit the village and make his acquaintance with the locals. Through experience, he knew that often establishing his presence and building a few connections with the villagers could work wonders for him in the future.

He carefully descended the steps from the orphanage towards the village, all the while preoccupying himself with the arduous thought of climbing back up.

As he stepped off of the final step, he noticed a middle-aged man pacing about anxiously. Guy didn't want to interrupt the man's contemplation and decided to circle around him silently. However, the man immediately noticed Guy and approached him with an excited skip.

"Hey there! Haven't seen you here in these parts before," He greeted with enthusiasm.

"Yes, I just arrived today. The name's Guy Larks, I will be staying up at the orphanage from now on."

"G and L!" The man muttered. "You wouldn't happen to be from the city, right?"

"I am! How did you know?" Guy responded with confusion.

The man overlooked Guy's question and continued, "Were you working as a teacher there?"

"I was! I'm sorry, have we met before?"

"Are you looking for a job?"

"I am!"

As Guy fielded the barrage of highly specific and relevant questions, a sense of discomfort rose from within. He wanted to figure out how the man knew so much about him, yet before he could inquire any further, Guy found himself being led by the man through the village.

"Excuse me, where are we going?" Guy asked along the way.

"Just so happens, there's a job opening for a tutor in this village. My mama will let you know more about it!" The man replied while picking up his pace with a slight hop in his steps.

A minute later, Guy found himself in front of a quaint home closer to the village centre. Unlike the others, this one happened to have a larger backyard, which was fenced off.

"Please come in, make yourself at home! Wife, we have another guest!" The man bellowed while entering his home.

Guy scrunched his eyebrows and followed along apprehensively, 'Everything feels so convenient. Too convenient!'

Once Guy entered the living area of the small home, he noticed the man who led him here speaking with an elderly woman and an aged yet surprisingly spry looking man.

"Great master-"

"Please just call me Krish. Hearing you address me like that makes me feel so old," The elderly man interjected mirthfully.

"I wouldn't dare!" The guide retorted. "Your prediction was right once again, great master! I found a man matching your description who can take over for mother. Here he is!"

The guide gestured at Guy Larks and invited him over to take a seat, "Teacher Larks, this is great master Krish Nara. He was the one who predicted your arrival today."

Guy bowed respectfully and sat down.

Krish smiled meaningfully at Guy and continued talking with the elderly woman. "As I said, after checking the outlook into your future I noticed some grave signs. So I found it imperative to bring it to your attention. Currently, your work as a tutor in this village, while meritorious, has greatly affected your health. I recognise that the job is stressful, especially when you have to handle children that are many generations younger than you. Coincidentally, my future-sight determined the arrival of a suitable and much younger replacement who would arrive here desperately in search of a job."

Krish then gazed at Guy and continued, "Young man. You were laid off from your previous profession as a teacher of magic at the Radiant Academy, correct?"

Guy nodded incredulously.

"As you can see, this man is more than qualified to carry the baton forward. In order to qualify as a teaching apprenticeship at the Radiant Academy, one must be knowledgeable in basic subjects after all."

The elderly woman smiled in relief and said, "Once again, you've saved my life, great master." She then turned to Guy and added, "Young man, I've been teaching the kids in this village for over thirty years now. I am coming of age, and hope to retire and spend the remainder of my life in leisure. However, I can't bear to leave without ensuring that there is someone to carry on in my stead. Since great master Nara is vouching for your accomplishments, I have no reason to hesitate any further. Are you willing to become a tutor for the children of this village?"

Guy was overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events. Miraculously, everything started to fall into place for him. He now had a job, and a valid reason to continue staying in this village. Grace could no longer ditch him midway!

'It's the work of this man!' Guy also recognised that these conveniences were in a large part, the work of the elderly man who the locals called great master Krish Nara. Guy knew that when things came so easily, there was always a caveat. Yet, he couldn't find anything even after running his mind to the max. Although his mana senses weren't fully polished, a cursory inspection indicated nothing of note in Krish's body either. For all intents and purposes, he appeared to be a regular man.

So, although it all felt a little suspicious, Guy couldn't find any reason not to acquiesce to the offer. Thus, answered with a respectful bow, "It would be my honour to carry forward in your stead as a tutor in this village."