Not knowing the truth behind the situation, Rosé and Ferre’s eyes shook terribly. The twins grabbed one each of Jean’s arms and pulled them.
“Jean, you’re not lying? Really?”
“Jean, really? You’re not lying?”
Sera smirked inwardly as the innocent young children took the bait.
“Now, please take a look. Sir Knight here and I see long noses. Don’t Your Highnesses think that they’ve gotten longer?”
Sera leaned down over to Rosé and Ferre as she said this.
Rosé and Ferre tilted their heads to the side as they stared at Sera and Jean alternately. Eventually, they concluded that nothing had changed.
“No, It didn’t get long.”
“Look at that. Whenever you lie, your nose gets longer, but my nose and Sir Knight’s nose didn’t get longer. By the way, how was your nose earlier this morning, Your Highness Ferre? It’s much longer now, right?”
She once again presented the mirror to the twins.
Somehow, just as Sera said, they felt that their noses really seemed to have gotten longer. The two nodded as their eyes brimmed with tears. Now, they really believed her.
Ferre, who was much more vulnerable, had his eyes turned to the ground as he touched the hem of his clothes. Meanwhile, Rosé spoke up.
“Then what should I do to get my nose back? Should I call the doctor?”
Rosé looked up at Sera as she said this. Her pigtails drooped like puppy ears, suiting Rosé’s mood.
“We don’t know when the doctor will come because he’s busy.”
“Then what should I do?”
“If you study hard today, I’ll tell you how.”
After Sera sent Jean out the room again, she held out the one test paper and one pen each to Rosé and Ferre. Sera was yet again one step ahead of the children.
It was a mistake on their part that they even thought that one single roach would be enough to knock her down.
“……”
As she intended, Rosé and Ferre couldn’t say no to this. Their small hands hesitated and touched only one corner of the test paper, and when their hands left it, it became slightly rolled up on that side.
“You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to. I’m sure your nose will just keep getting longer though.”
“I… I got it!”
In the end, Rosé and Ferre picked up their pens. Sera thought they’d hold out a little longer because they didn’t want to do it. But it was hard for Rosé to keep insisting because she cared for her younger brother, whose mood was easily dampened,
Sera explained to Rosé and Ferre step by step how to solve the test items.
The twins flipped through the papers on the desk a few times, checking the number of items and the contents of the problems there, and they easily answered them correctly.
They were nervous because it seemed like an exam, but there weren’t any difficult questions after they heard Sera’s explanation.
Most of the questions were tailored for Rosé and Ferre’s age, especially how they couldn’t read properly yet, so most of the questions were simple.
As the scoring time approached, Rosé and Ferre leaned forward as if they were going to bounce on their seats. They were still children who didn’t know exactly what a test was for or what the point of studying was, but no matter who it was, it’s only natural that they were still interested in the results.
“Should I mark your tests now?”
At Rosé’s words, Sera lifted her red pen high. The children’s eyes followed the tip of the sharp pen as though it was Zeus’ lightning bolt. Sera quickly began scoring Rose’s test paper.
“It’s raining circles.”
As Sera said this, she continuously went down the line and drew circles over the correct answers.¹
Rosé seemed to be nervous that she might get a cross mark, but she also seemed proud of the continuous circles.
Ferre almost jumped on his chair, wanting to see the results of his own test. He watched Rosé’s test being scored without blinking once. In his head, he was already comparing his answers with Rosé’s, trying to recall what he wrote down.
Soon after, Ferre’s turn came up, and Sera marked it much faster than before. After she finished checking the test papers in an instant, she returned them to their respective owners.
“Both of you did such great jobs! Your Highnesses are outstanding!”
Sera had a big smile. On the other hand, the twins shrugged and boasted.
“We’re smart!”
Rosé and Ferre were smarter than most children their age. Their small muscles were also well developed, so they were in a much better condition to hold their pens than their peers. More than that, they already had a basic grasp on the concept of numbers, so it was clear that they would be able to follow as long as they were taught well.
Here, Sera thought that it would be fun to teach Rosé and Ferre more in the future. She had high expectations. Whenever she met a student who could follow her lessons enthusiastically, she would get antsy wanting to teach them more.
“Now tell us how to get our noses back to normal!”
The lingering effect of the test results did not last long. Holding their test papers tightly, Rosé and Ferre asked Sera with worried faces.
“I didn’t forget. Now, Your Highnesses, please come over here and close your eyes. I’m the only one who knows how to get them back to the way they were.”
The twins closed their eyes, not doubting her words. Long silver and golden eyelashes, the same color as their hair, trembled as they closed their eyes.
“And also please open your lips slightly.”
The plump lips opened slightly just as they were told, as if they were hypnotized. Through their pink lips, their cute buck teeth could be seen.
Shhk!
Sera popped into their open lips the chocolate that she had prepared. It was the fruit-flavored chocolates that she purchased just for Rosé and Ferre a few days ago.
As they savored the sweetness that was spreading in their mouths, their lips clamped shut. Rosé and Ferre instinctively closed them as the pieces of chocolate melted on their tongues.
“Cho… colate?”
Ferre, who was obsessed with sweet things, spoke to himself. He could taste the soft, chewy flavor of melons, so this chocolate wasn’t like the usual chocolate that he had. It was much more delicious.
“Mm… It’s dewicious.”
Rosé’s pronunciation got affected as she chewed. She liked the rich strawberry taste that blended well with the chocolate. When it melted in her mouth, the small bits of strawberry could also be felt on her tongue.
“If you lie, your nose gets bigger—that’s not true.”
Sera glanced at the children, who were holding their cheeks with both hands as they quietly ate their chocolate. In front of them was the small box of chocolates that she bought last week, its lid slightly ajar.
‘Did we just get fooled?’
Rosé and Ferre’s eyes widened at the realization that Sera also lied to them, and they started protesting. The twins opened their lips to say something even though they haven’t finished eating the chocolates in their mouths yet.
Shhk!
Yet another piece of chocolate each went into their mouths while they were caught off guard. This time again, their lips reflexively closed while they savored the sweets.
“Is it yummy?”
It was an adorable sight to see their cheeks growing plump as they ate their chocolates despite being full of complaints. A satisfied smile tugged on Sera’s lips naturally.
“Mm… Yeah… It’s dewicious…”
“Since it’s delicious, you’ll forgive me, right?”
Sera looked into each of their eyes and smiled refreshingly. Rosé and Ferre were dumbfounded, but they couldn’t possibly spit out the chocolate in their mouths. The soft, melting sweet taste was so heavenly that they could just forgive her, just as she said.
Sera took off the lid of the box of chocolates. There were still a lot of pieces left.
‘If you give me one more chocolate, I could even sell my soul!’
Rosé and Ferre replied with not a hint of hesitation.
“Okayyy,” nom, nom, “I’ll do what you want!” nom, “Just because it’s yummy!”
Nom, nom. “It’s not because of the chocolate!” nom, nom, nom, “My heart is big so,” nom, nom, “I’ll forgive you!”
After saying this, Rosé and Ferre stopped talking and closed their mouths, their full attention now on quietly eating their chocolate.
Sera, who was smiling as a mother hen would at her chicks, took one piece of chocolate into her own lips before they all disappeared.