Yes, Lady Funina!

Kujavina had already decided that if Richard really wanted to compete with her for Peruvieri, and if Richard ultimately won, she would not let Peruvieri leave the Hearth House alive.

What she can't have, no one else can have either.

Richard was unaware of what Kujavina was thinking, and even if he did, he wouldn't care. He was only somewhat interested in Peruvieri, not to the point where he couldn't live without her.

Moreover, he has only just arrived in Fontainebleau, and it's too early for him to start looking for a secretary or assistant. He hasn't even decided what he wants to do yet.

“Don’t be nervous. I have no interest in raising children. Maybe I will in the future, but definitely not now.” Richard told Kujavina to relax. He had no intention of fighting for custody.

Upon hearing Richard's words, Kujavina's expression softened slightly, and she regained her previous gentle and kind demeanor.

“But until my identity is completely settled, it shouldn’t be a problem for me to be a guest at the Hearth House, right?” Richard smiled at Kujavina. “If you can’t even grant this request, then that would be a bit too heartless, not something a loving ‘mother’ would do.”

Kujavina maintained her warm smile and nodded, saying, "Of course, but the rooms inside the Hearth House are a bit limited, and another group of children will be arriving in a few days..."

"There's no need to worry about that. I think with the capabilities of the Hearth House, they should be able to resolve my identity issue quickly, right? In that case, I won't bother the Hearth House too much."

“…As you wish.”

"So, happy working together?"

Kujavina was very unhappy. Richard's arrival was like a sudden evil dragon, like a dark shadow hovering over her kingdom, bringing countless variables.

But Kujavina was helpless in this regard. The reason was simple: she was no match for Richard, so she couldn't stop him from staying there for a while.

……

As soon as Peruvier returned to the group of children, her good friend Clementine came to greet her.

"Pepe, do you know that adult from earlier? I saw him greet you!"

As she spoke, Clementine's eyes sparkled with curiosity, almost as if she was about to exclaim, "Wow, so cool!"

“Not familiar with it.” Peruvieri sat back down in her seat and picked up the sketchbook that her mother had prepared for them that day.

Clementine sat down next to Peruvier, her boundless curiosity undiminished even by the beautifully illustrated book beside her. Seeing that Peruvier didn't seem inclined to say anything more, she continued speaking to herself:

“That person seems very capable. My mother has been very busy lately, with a full schedule, but she still made time to bring him to the Hearth House… Peruvieri, do you think that person might be a new teacher at the Hearth House?”

In the House of Hearths, besides the Mother who is in charge, there are many teachers responsible for teaching children knowledge and skills.

Therefore, it's understandable that Clementine would assume the other person was a teacher.

However, Peruvieri had a completely different view. If she were just a teacher, how could her mother possibly put down what she was doing to come and accompany her?

Moreover, based on what I just observed, it's clear that the man is the one who's taking the initiative in the conversation.

In nature, the more powerful an insect is, the larger its hunting grounds tend to be.

This also applies to the House of Hearths; only the strong have the right to speak.

And that man was clearly like that; he was so powerful that even their omnipotent and irresistible "mother" could only stand by and watch.

Peruvéli herself is emotionally detached, even cold-blooded, but she has extremely keen observation skills, especially in the perception of emotions.

She knew very well that her mother wasn't as gentle as she appeared, and the fireplace house wasn't the home she imagined, even though the adults there were kind, the children loved one another, and it seemed like a thriving community...

But a fake is still a fake. Peruvieri could smell a faint stench of blood in the air several times. The so-called House of Hearths looked more like a large spider's nest to her.

Everyone is both prey and hunter.

Of course, Peruvieri didn't intend to tell these things to her friends, because she knew very well that Clementine wouldn't believe it, and neither would Clementine or the other children.

They were all immersed in the beautiful fairy tale woven by their mother, ignoring the cruel reality beneath the beautiful world.

"What do you think that adult will teach us, Peruvieri?" Clementine seemed to have already decided that Richard would become the teacher at the Hearth House.

“I’m not sure, but I think it should be ‘martial arts’?” Peruvieri didn’t correct the other person’s guess, but went along with what the other person was saying.

“Martial arts…that sounds a bit scary, Peruvieri. Why do you all fight and kill each other?” Clementine clearly had no interest in fighting and killing.

Peruvéli, holding a brand-new sketchbook, turned to the last page, pointed to the fairytale doll sitting high on a throne piled atop countless toys in the picture, and said in a childlike, cool tone:

"Because [Mother] wants us to become 'kings'."

“Mother…wants us to become ‘kings’?” Clementine murmured.

“Yes.” Peruvieri looked at Clementine, wondering whether she should take this opportunity to reveal some 'truth' to her.

However, she immediately dismissed the idea.

"But what is a 'king'?" The confusion in Clementine's eyes seemed genuine; she truly didn't know what a 'king' was.

That's true. Children her age shouldn't know about the so-called 'king' without deliberate guidance and education.

Peruvieri pursed her lips. She didn't know how to explain this concept to the other person, or rather, she herself only had a vague understanding of the word 'king'.

“So there are things Peruvieri doesn’t know.” Clementine covered her lips with her small hand, as if she were chuckling, or as if she had successfully played a prank.

Peruvée tilted her head in confusion, not understanding what the other person was laughing at.

"Actually, I know. My mother said that a 'king' is someone who can defeat all opponents, eliminate all enemies, and shoulder the responsibility of the 'family.'" Clementine wasn't originally a child of the Hearth House.

In fact, she was only six years old and had only been at the Hearth House for a short time. Under her mother's instructions, Peruvieri became her first friend here, but not her only one.

With her cheerful and kind nature, after befriending Peruvieri, she quickly became friends with the other children, and in just half a month, she became friends with all the children in the Hearth House.

Although Peruvier believed that no one could rival her in academics and combat, she had to admit that she was far behind Clementine in making friends.

“Mother also said that she wants me to become a ‘king’ so that I can be considered her real child. Isn’t that strange? I am clearly her child, so why would she say I’m her real child? Could it be… that children can be fake?” Clementine blinked her bright eyes, her innocent and childlike voice revealing a hint of confusion.

"..." Peruvieri didn't know how to answer the other party.

But Clementine clearly hadn't expected to get an answer from Peruvéli, and instead asked about a completely unrelated topic. Children's language is always unpredictable; you can never guess what they'll say next.

"Do you know that adult's name?" Clementine asked.

Peruvieri shook her head; all she knew was that the other person was a strange adult.

“Let’s go ask them!” Clementine was a woman of action, and immediately grabbed Peruvier’s hand and ran toward Kujavina and Richard, who were talking not far away.

Peruvée was actually unwilling, because she had just returned from there, but Clementine was simply too strong for her to resist, so she could only let her lead her along.

Well, let's just assume that's how it is for now.

“Excuse me, Mother, I’m sorry to bother you. May I ask… what is your name, big brother?” Clementine approached Richard and Kujavina, first apologizing to her mother for interrupting their conversation, and then looking at Richard.

Kujavina never expected that her usually well-behaved daughter would suddenly bring Peruvieri over to ask such a question.

Considering that Peruvieri was still present, she was just about to patiently tell Clementine to go back to her seat and not to ask things she shouldn't ask, but Richard spoke first.

"Shouldn't you say your own name before asking someone else's?" Richard said with a smile as he squatted down.

Seeing the smile on Richard's face, Peruvier immediately understood the difference between him and "Mother." There was no doubt that Richard's smile was very comforting and sincere.

The "mother" part, on the other hand, seems fake and empty, like a moldy fruit wrapped in pretty sugar coating.

“My name is Clementine, and this is Pepe… ah, her full name is Peruvieri.” Upon hearing Richard’s words, Clementine quickly realized what he meant and introduced herself to Richard in a formal and measured manner.

When Peruvier saw Richard looking at her, she hesitated for a moment but didn't speak. She simply nodded as a greeting.

"Hello, Clementine, and Peruvieri, my name is Richard."

“Richard…” Clementine blinked her big eyes and tugged at Peruvian beside her with her small hand, speaking to her companion in as low a voice as possible, “Did you hear that? His name is Richard.”

Peruvieri was somewhat exasperated by Clementine's 'whisper,' but she wasn't deaf; of course she heard Richard's self-introduction.

And are you serious about whispering like that? Saying it to their faces, and they heard it!

"Excuse me, Mr. Richard, do you know Peruvian? I saw you greeting her just now..." Clévy's little face showed a curious expression.

"Of course we know each other, we even watched Spider-Man together," Richard said shamelessly.

"Oh? So Pepe showed you Bambi. You two are closer than I thought!"

As she spoke, Clementine nudged Peruvier beside her with her elbow, a childlike smile spreading across her face.

In response, Peruvieri replied, "I didn't show it to him on purpose."

To prevent Clementine from saying anything inappropriate, and to soothe her mother who was clearly showing impatience, Peruvieri took Clementine's hand again and said:

"Let's go back and look at the picture book."

“Hey, but…” Clementine instinctively wanted to resist, but found that her meager strength was no match for Peruvieri, and she could only be led by her.

“There are no buts.” Peruvieri was unusually assertive for once.

Having no other option, Clementine took advantage of the brief moment before Richard had completely left and asked from a distance, "Brother Richard, Peruvieri just said you would teach us 'martial arts,' is that true?"

'I never said that!' Peruvieri's face fell. She was about to say something, but she didn't know how to say it. Or rather, she didn't even realize that she was also looking forward to Richard's answer.

Before she knew it, she had stopped and turned slightly to hear Richard's reply.

Then the man's voice came:

"Teaching 'martial arts'... Sure."

After the two children left, Kujavina's expression changed drastically. Her face turned ugly, a far cry from her previous kind and gentle motherly demeanor. Her delicate features could even be described as ferocious.

“The House of Hearths has its own arrangements,” Kujavina said, as if emphasizing something.

“I know, I know, it’s just teaching martial arts, consider it payment for rent. Or can you find a martial arts teacher stronger than me?” Richard replied calmly.

Kujavina choked. In her original plan, she wanted to personally guide this batch of experimental subjects, but as Richard said, in terms of martial arts, even she could not teach better than Richard.

After a long pause, Kujavina seemed to accept reality and said in an unfriendly tone, "I will help you get your identity sorted out as soon as possible."

The implication was that she wouldn't let Richard stay at the fireplace house for long.

"Thank you very much."

Richard answered Kujavina with a slightly amused voice.

And so Richard became the children's martial arts teacher at the Hearth House, officially taking over their martial arts instruction from the very first day they arrived.

Among the Fools, martial arts have always been a very important subject. For example, the war orphans of the House of Hearths need to receive training in martial arts, assassination, and intelligence gathering from a young age.

Richard only had a superficial understanding of these matters.

“Peruvéli, look! It really is Brother Richard.”

During their first martial arts lesson, Clementine shook Peruvier's hand and shouted loudly the moment she saw Richard.

"Hmm..." Peruvieri's face remained expressionless, as if she didn't care at all whether the person who came to teach her martial arts was Richard or not.

Clementine was somewhat dissatisfied with Peruvieri's reaction. She knew very well that although Peruvieri seemed indifferent on the surface, she was actually quite happy.

Because whenever Peruvieri is happy, her eyes are always brighter than usual.

Everyone was afraid of Pepe's strange eyes, but Claire felt that this was Pepe's unique way of expressing her emotions.

It was through her eyes that Clementine realized her friend was simply bad at expressing herself, not devoid of emotion.

'Since Pepe isn't good at expressing herself, then I'll express it for her!' Clementine thought to herself.

"We meet again. I will now be instructing you in martial arts." Richard first returned Clementine's greeting, and then spoke to the group of young children.

……

Although Kujavina hated outsiders coming to her kingdom, she had to admit that Richard was indeed quite skilled. When it came to teaching martial arts, she couldn't do what Richard did, getting a group of children to patiently and willingly practice.

Some children even have smiles on their faces while practicing martial arts.

However, Kujavina disagrees with Richard on this point. She believes that martial arts training is a very serious matter, a process of honing oneself and learning how to kill enemies.

How can you smile during such a process? It's just too frivolous.

Kujavina felt she needed to speed up the process of helping Richard acquire his identity; she really didn't want her fireplace house to be tainted with Richard's influence any further.

In fact, acquiring an identity wouldn't be a difficult task for the House of Hearths, but it was different for Richard.

According to Richard's requirements, he needed to be a native Fontainebleau resident with identification documents from childhood to adulthood, not someone whose identity was fabricated at will.

Obtaining such an identity is as difficult as conjuring up a person out of thin air in Fontainebleau.

However, while this is a difficult task, it is not impossible for the Hearth House; it just takes a little longer.

Kujavina intends to personally oversee the process and shorten the timeframe as much as possible...

In the garden on the other side, Peruvieri, having finished her martial arts class, returned to her little garden, accompanied by Bambi, the little spider, and... Richard and Clementine, who had come up to her on their own.

Peruvée couldn't get rid of them, so she had no choice but to let them stay with her while feeding the little spider, Bambi.

The food that Peluvelli feeds the spiders is all caught by her own hands. Compared to the weak spiders, her hunting range is significantly wider, and she can easily catch all kinds of insects from trees, bushes, and ponds.

Then, the captured insects are placed in the little spider's hunting grounds, and Bambi watches quietly fight with its 'prey', win, and slowly eat.

The process was far from interesting, and Clementine lost patience after watching for a while. She also felt it was too cruel and couldn't bear to watch any longer.