After eating the canned foodstuff, they dumped the empty cans in the dustbin. After that, Reu sat on Uru's desk and signaled Caeson to start teaching.
Caeson started with a story. On the whiteboard he began drawing a boy who wore a round cap on his head with a black marker. It was not too professional—rough.
He drew curly lines and a boat that was not too symmetric.
The children began whispering.
The boy with pink glasses said, "What is he drawing? Those curly lines?"
The girl who wore the black cap said, "I think he is trying to make ropes waving."
The green-haired boy Harry asked, "But what is that ugly box? And why is he trying to join sticks?"
The red-eyed and red-haired kid Gotham curiously asked, "Is that a person wearing a hat?"
After that, Caeson finally stopped his artwork and spoke in a slow and steady voice.
"So kids, today I will tell you a story."
He began telling the story of a boy who started sailing in the deep and huge sea, riding a small wooden boat with his mystical abilities and making friends along the way.
They eventually ended up in his crew.
Adventure after adventure.
The crew grew big and vast.
His main goal was to become the Pirate King.
The kids immediately began interrupting the class.
A boy shouted, "What is a Pirate King!"
"I mean what is a pirate?", "And how can someone become king? Doesn't it depend on family or birthplace?"
But Uru had become deeply interested in the storytelling.
Seeing this, Reu told the students to wait and keep quiet.
"Our teacher is very good. He knows what he is saying, even if there is a need for some basic knowledge first."
Caeson thought to himself,
He is right. In this world, there are no pirates.
So he began explaining.
"A pirate is someone who sails the sea with ships, living freely with his crew—moreover, with his friends—seeking adventure across many lands."
The round-faced girl Uru asked,
"How do they live? I mean… what do they do for survival?"
Caeson twisted his face slightly before answering.
"Well… they search for treasure on different Pieces of land across the sea."
"So let's get back to the story."
"The boy who wanted to become Pirate King sailed through the sea, from one ocean to another, making friends and also some enemies."
"I forgot to tell you… there are also bad pirates who take advantage of normal civilians."
Green-haired Harry asked immediately,
"So who protects them?"
Caeson replied,
"Well… there are good pirates, and there are Marine soldiers who work under the government."
Instewl suddenly spoke.
"Like the Royal Senate… but they aren't very good."
Everyone started staring at him after that statement.
Caeson continued his story.
And after one hour, every kid was completely hooked in the wonder of that story world.
Even Reu had become desperate to know what would happen next, especially the moment where one of the crewmates betrayed them.
But suddenly, from the other room, Bishop Elane entered with Sister Tama and Sister Alisa.
Caeson stopped.
Reu finally returned to his senses, stood up from the desk, and said,
"Oh… yes. It is already prayer time. I forgot. Sorry."
Bishop Elane tapped his temple with his hand and said,
"There is something that has happened."
Sister Tama and Sister Alisa remained quiet, slightly tilting their heads.
All the kids stood up and started looking at them, trying to confirm the seriousness of the situation.
Reu moved toward Elane and asked,
"Is everything okay?"
Suddenly—
A loud noise came from outside.
An announcement echoed through the atmosphere.
"The people of the Kingdom of Cavorite!"
Outside on the street, everyone began gathering from shops and houses.
There was a cart, and three people around it.
One man stood on the cart with a long moustache. He wore red and yellow long clothes along with a hat.
Everyone who gathered started whispering.
"Why is there a messenger here?"
"Did something bad happen?"
The messenger shouted loudly.
In one hand he held a wooden mechanical device, and in the other he had yellowish papers tied together with a thread.
"This is an emergency!"
Inside Caeson's mind palace, Hawker spoke.
"Is that a wooden microphone?"
Caeson stood beside Reu and the kids.
"Who is he?" he asked.
Reu began explaining.
"He is a messenger of the Royal Senate."
"The Royal Senate is a group of families who rule the Kingdom of Cavorite from long period of history, well all of us know about that. Before the calamity of zombies across the six kingdoms civilians were demanding to exist a democratic society but it changes."
"They keep integrated the kingdom in that hard time and operate it wisely. This make them more promising towards the normal civilians and yet they make decisions on behalf of the civilians to maintain order and make life easier."
Caeson nodded.
The messenger began announcing the message.
"There is a war that has started between the eastern and western kingdoms!"
The moment everyone heard the word war, panic spread through the crowd.
"The Kingdom of Pentarone against the Kingdom of Deccan!"
"The Kingdom of Bruda against the Kingdom of Theron!"
The messenger continued.
"The Marshall Legion, which was controlled jointly by the six kingdoms, has now been disbanded. It was originally formed under the Verstina Treaty."
The civilians began questioning loudly.
"What was the reason for this?"
"And more importantly… who will protect us now?"
The crowd became noisy and restless.
Caeson understood the situation, but something felt off.
How could such political tension develop in just one night during a crisis like this?
Reu, standing beside him, seemed to realize something.
He adjusted his glasses with four fingers and said,
"Something must have happened."
"It is not possible for them to start a war in a situation where ruthless monsters with power beyond humans are roaming everywhere."
Hawker smirked inside the mind palace.
"He is a quick catcher."
Caeson replied in his mind,
"Oh wow… I thought the same thing."
The messenger turned another page of the paper and continued reading.
"There is something that happened two days ago."
"Most of the zombies have disappeared. There are still small groups, but nothing major."
The people listening shouted immediately.
"What is the problem with that? That's good news!, now we can move freely as before."
Everyone present began applauding.
Hope started glowing in their eyes.
Maybe now they could live normally again.
The kids were happy.
Sister Alisa and Sister Tama also looked relieved.
War was bad… and it was not happening in Cavorite.
The zombies are gone.
The messenger continued speaking.
"It is difficult to understand, but the central region of the Forest of Fig Trees has also rotted and dried up."
"Accusations are being exchanged between the southern kingdoms and the northern kingdoms, that it is result is any experiment."
"But the Kingdom of Cavorite is still in a good position."
"Our good reputation with the Kingdom of Bondphile has resulted in something positive."
"We are temporarily forming an alliance with them."
People in the crowd began questioning again.
"But what will we eat if all the fig trees have rotted and dried up?"
The messenger folded the papers and said,
"This is a difficult time for all of us. But the Royal Senate will find another way."
The messenger's cart began moving forward.
The civilians looked angry and depressed.
Most of them could barely afford one meal a day. Their main source of survival was figs. Supplying and distributing figs was the primary job for many of them.
Now—
How would they survive?
Caeson quietly asked Reu,
"Why don't they start farming?"
Reu swallowed tightly and stared at the kids, who were also looking sorrowful.
Then he answered slowly.
"This soil… is no longer capable of producing anything."