When Lotus returned, the other students were immediately disbanded to return to their dorms as Lotus also returned to check on the progress of the Ramshackle dorm. To her surprise, it was moving along rather well. The first floor has renovated decently and the second floor was almost done. Before, it would just be that her room would be let untouched from all the destruction, but ever since taking away her array stones, the room collapsed along with the other rooms just as easily. After all, it would be strange if only her room was left untouched. However, looking at the structure of the dorm, she knew that something felt off. She frowned and began to examine the structure carefully as she recalled how the other buildings in her school had been built. In the past, she also had a habit of watching others do their job and only knew after seeing their works that the effort that was placed into her old palace was one of great effort and great attention. Then, when it came to building her own schools, she was taught everything from Maisey. Maisey and his crew is a group of the kingdom's most talented craft fairies. Even the youngest craft fairy knows how to craft with metalworks and have a pair of gloves given the moment they displayed their abilities. Not just that, but the fairy crew Maisey directs are hand selected by himself and the audition and interview are conducted by himself too. Maisey is also a late bloomer who was noticed by her mother after he was seen crafting a beautiful glass chandelier. He was ignored by others for being a late bloomer, but his talent soon bloomed shortly after that. Since then, he was always making works of art for her majesty out of gratitude and the muse being her and the king's love for her, which is strange when stated, but it was the truth unfortunately. Then, the construction of her own non-profit schools also required her supervision. Since her third construction, she had already learnt how to tell if something is not correct with the construction. However, seeing this building, she could already tell that the foundation was off. Not only was the repairs sloppy, even the walls were not fortified. Was the money not enough to cover the repairs?
She thought for a while before noticing Sebek rushing past her when she felt a sudden breeze from behind.
"Sebek?" She muttered in confusion.
Did something happened?
Curious, she sent out her butterflies after him in secret as she glanced back at the construction site.
"Master?" Crystal questioned her curiously, "Would you like us to send some of my people to see what's going on?"
"Please do so." Lotus whispered quietly, "It won't do well if the building suddenly collapsed once it was completed. Find out what happened to the plans and the details of the construction plans between the school and STYX."
"Understood."
With that, more butterflies exited from her ring and morphed once more. She watched with a hesitant expression across her face.
Seeing this, the voice spoke up in her head, "Is it truly all right for us to intervene?"
"Ying Hui..." Lotus nodded calmly, "Yes. As the third supervisor of the Board of Education, I have all rights to initiate private investigations myself."
"I've heard of that as well." Ying Hui pouted, "But, I'm just surprised how you managed to get that position so easily! I mean, that's such a convenient position to have and at the right moment like right now too! Were you a seerer?"
Knowing the childish jest the spirit continues to banter about, Lotus chuckled as she watched on calmly in deep thoughts, "Of course not. However, I was in a bind back then as well."
It was during her travels across the world's more prominent countries that she came upon Afterglow Savannah. Her interest in learning more of the world's history, poison and medicine led her to the country where she can gain the chance to view the sources to her heart's content. In the past, she only learnt those things due to her position. However, it was during those times where she did not need to worry over the demands of the heavens that always hung over her head. Then there was Mo Li who had always studied besides her when she started to learn the more difficult words and used her documents as practice for literature. The smell of paper and ink. The silence. It was all soothing for her. Nobody came to bother them at all as they chatted in that silence. Now, such studies are only comforting because she was reminded of those times in the silence. However, as she stayed in the country, she decided to head further into the more rural parts of the country for a dangerous poison she was adamant on studying about. It was then that she noticed the numbers of people in the slums along with increase of petty crimes. If it had been a couple, then she did not mind. She knew how children of the slums struggled to survive and even kept an extra wallet just in case. However, what really surprised her there was the number of children that survived into adulthood due to their ability to read and write.
In her world, such knowledge was only available to the privilege or those lucky enough to receive education at even the lowest level of education. However, the number of people there survived and even took on jobs of waiter and cashiers just due to their ability to read and write. Even the janitors could read and write as well just to read the labels of the chemical. However, those who could not struggle all the more to live that they even get caught... Then when you compared all this to her birthworld...
It was clear which world was more powerful. Even if there were flaws, as long as the people were educated, many things could happen in this world. Perhaps that was why Peony could not help but start a fundraiser after she finished her studies. She struggled a lot and dad a lot of research into starting a fundraiser and donation for children. It took four months before she was able to collect enough and gain enough support that she was able to gain the permission to start a small non-profit school. She had never met the royal family, but there was a representative sent to her by the queen once and she received permission to educate her people as long as the teacher was someone the queen could trust. Perhaps it made things to their advantage that Peony also put a requirement that the person must be a citizen of Afterglow Savannah in exchange for removing the requirement that they must be nobles. After all, most schools run by the royal family were intended for noble children regardless of the low ranks of their titles. Which member of nobility would be willing to educate commoner children, much less even orphans in such rural and maybe even dangerous place around the slums?
She even had to do a lot of research in order to figure out the best negotiation strategy and then try doing that same process for all the other kingdoms? Lotus sighed painfully as Ying Hui shuddered in horror, "You mean, you had to study all those politics from all those nations and even converse with almost all of them to create your schools?! I knew my master must be talented, but she is simply amazing!"
"Ying Hui..." Xiao Li sighed in disappointment as the weapon artifact stared at their master in awe once again, "It must have been a hard time for her..."
"Oh..."
Lotus wore a dry smile as she continued, "Well, it did took me two years and, during those times, I learnt how to fight against scandals and nature of the kingdoms. I had to do a lot to gain the people's trust in my identity as Ash. However, it was only after those two years that I realized my students still needs to be certified as students and connect with the Board of Education in order to move into other higher education schools. To do this, I need to build that connection myself. I knew my literature teacher was a teacher of a school. However, I never thought that he was the headmaster of the school instead. When I finally decided to share with him my problems, he immediately brought me to the director of the Board of Education. However, I still do not remember how I managed to complete that negotiation. It seems my memory is still further from being perfect right now."
"So, the reason master created all those schools..."
Nobody said a thing since they knew the answer themselves. Being the first two from their world to have been around their master, they knew how much she instinctively cares for children. Regardless of her own age, she continues to protect and care for those children regardless of their background or relations. In their world, this is hardly considered since it is rare for those who are genuinely kind to survive long enough to help others. That was how their world is. However, they could feel it in their connections as master and contracted beasts. Their master still longs to take children under her wings. She still retains that maternal instinct in her despite having no children of her own. It was expected since she had treated and raised all of her citizens with her own hands as though they were her real biological children. And, they could tell that this feeling wasn't something that would disappear over a hundred years so easily. Perhaps it was this combined with the fear of the fate of those children of the slums that prompted her to do something dangerous to her own position.
However, despite doing this to help the people of the slums, Peony sometimes had pondered if she had done so just to relieve herself a little of the guilt and pain she felt from her past. It was too late now. Not even her old students were spared by her actions. Now, she wants to teach so many more... It was ironic as someone who killed her children wanting to educate and raise more. After all, they could never replace those kids. They are just new people she had met through her time in those nations... However...