Chapter 27: School Starts and Big Sister's Puberty Begins
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 27: School Starts and Big Sister's Puberty Begins
“Iris, Mom told you to turn your socks and panties inside out before putting them in the wash!”
“Whatever!”
Slam!
The rabbit-eared beauty ducked into her room and slammed the door. Puberty had officially graced my big sister with its presence. Mom let out a deep sigh, her shoulders drooping as she began turning Iris’s discarded socks right-side out.
“Mom~!”
At times like this, one of the children had to step up and offer some comfort. Our youngest was still too small, so the responsibility fell to the second child—the household’s designated buffer—to rally.
“Oh, my sweet son. Did you have fun at the academy today?”
“Yeah! Su-yeon got in trouble today!”
It was a glorious achievement. Im Su-yeon, that brat who had been told countless times by the teacher not to bring toys to class, finally had her Omega Drake Secret Combination confiscated.
It was the fruit of my labor—the result of my consistent efforts to distinguish myself and properly "educate" the "Sheep" by swatting her bottom as her master.
“Goodness... if my son starts getting angry at me like your sister does... I don’t know how I’ll go on...”
Such was the heavy burden of the head of the household. I kneaded Mom’s chest to cheer her up and graciously allowed her to get a good whiff of my "son scent."
Burying her nose in the crown of my head and taking a deep breath, Mother spent another day struggling to balance work and home life.
“I’m never going to get mad at Mom! So it’s okay! I love you, Mom~!”
“Yes, yes, Mom loves her son too~! Please grow up quickly. Mom’s having a hard time lately.”
Does she think I’ll start doing the housework once I grow up? I had absolutely no intention of doing chores. Her delusion was pitiful, but there was no need to correct her.
“But Sis has been acting weird lately. She suddenly got really tall, and her chest got big too! And she smells nice!”
“That’s because your sister is reaching the age where she receives the Goddess’s Blessing. Girls grow rapidly until they become adults.”
She began telling me things I hadn't heard at the educational institution.
“Whoa~! Do boys do that too?”
“Boys grow slowly. Hmm... Yong-hwan, you’ll probably keep growing until you’re twenty.”
So, girls hit a massive growth spurt thanks to the blessing of some random deity—be it a Goddess or whatever—while boys just grow normally.
Wait, hold on. That meant throughout middle and high school, the girls would look like adults while the boys would still look like little brats. Adding fantasy elements to a Gender-Reversed World produced some truly bizarre results.
“But if boys and girls are different, why do they both become adults at the same time in middle school?”
“They say the Goddess’s voice designated the age of adulthood. Well, it’s because from that point on, both can properly fulfill their ‘roles.’”
“Roles?”
I had a general idea, but I prodded her, curious to see how Mom would explain it.
“Um, it means your body becomes capable of making babies.”
She explained it so matter-of-factly. How boring. I wanted to tease her a little.
“Then can I make a baby when I grow up too~?”
“Yes, of course~!”
I had hoped she would stammer with a bright red face, but Mother was made of sterner stuff.
“Then I want to grow up fast and make a baby with Mom~!”
“Sure~ let’s do that~!”
Mom laughed and played along.
She’s joking, right?
It’s a joke... right?
Well, she was probably just giving a standard response to a young son’s nonsense, so I needed to wrap up the conversation properly.
“Is that why Iris is so angry lately?”
“Yes. At that age, the body secretes a lot of mysterious substances, which makes you sensitive and easily angered. So, Yong-hwan, you can be understanding, right?”
“Yeah! I love Mom and Sis the most, so I understand!”
“Oh, what a good boy~! Just keep growing up like this~!”
Mom hugged me and started swaying from side to side. Even though her job as a police officer must be exhausting, she really was an impressive woman.
“Son, Aunt Morian asked when you could film the commercial.”
“Huh? Oh, right.”
The pleasure provided by the transforming robot had been far too brief, while the responsibility was now threatening me with compound interest.
This was unfair. I had been practically hypnotized by that transforming robot at the time; it wasn't my fault. I wanted to cancel the whole commercial thing.
But as they say, you can see the potential of a tree from its seedling. I had to maintain my vital reputation for reliability.
In this neighborhood, the ladies didn't take kindly to men wandering around after sunset. It was a mad world where, under the guise of "Date Education," a woman could get off with a simple warning for a minor physical altercation if her male partner proved untrustworthy.
In short, how well a husband could support his wife without cheating—how much trust he could inspire—was a matter of utmost importance.
Therefore, taking the robot and then washing my hands of the deal would be a disastrous move for my future "ATMs" and protectors—the big sisters I was currently working so hard to bait.
“Tomorrow.”
When it came to work, the sooner the better.
“Tomorrow?”
Mom asked back. I nodded.
A promise must be kept. Because it’s a promise.
***
Lee Ji-yeon, the woman known as "Fluffy Teacher"—a young educator who still hadn't quite shed her "new to society" vibe—had been desperately waiting for school to start.
Before explaining why, one must first address why she was looking forward to the end of the vacation that everyone else craved so much.
For Lee Ji-yeon, who was entering her second—no, nearly her third year after this semester—vacation was nothing more than a temporary escape to recover her sense of self and remind herself that she was a woman named Lee Ji-yeon, not just a teacher.
Weekends were far too short. Some might say that two days of rest is plenty.
But after five days of trying to match the overflowing energy of young children, she wanted to tell them that two days wasn't even enough time to recharge her physical strength.
For the record, her friends didn't sympathize, but the parents understood her perfectly.
Anyway, an angel had descended into Lee Ji-yeon’s life. His name was Jeong Yong-hwan. A young boy from a single-mother household with an elf for a mother—he was her angel.
Single-mother households were incredibly common. Many women were fed up with the selfish, irresponsible, and useless parasitic lifestyles of men.
In the Alliance and the Empire, households with a father were actually rare. Part of it was that the male population was absurdly low.
Regardless.
Having gone through basic academies herself, followed by her own school years, student teaching, and two years as an academy teacher, this young angel was the most exceptionally cute child she had ever seen. He was her (future) husband.
A boy who was smart, polite to his teacher, and seemed like the type who would become student council president on popularity alone when he grew up.
There had been a few minor "incidents" while she indulged her private feelings for him, but that level of contact was just a bit of skinship common in male-female relationships.
And ultimately...
“Giddy-up! Giddy-up! Move faster~ faster~!”
Slap! Slap!
It was because of the days she spent with the young boy who gripped her horns and mercilessly smacked her bottom.
“Meeeeee~! Meeeeee~!”
She moved forward, bleating like a sheep and wiggling her hips from side to side. To be caught by a mere male—and a young boy at that—and treated like a beast... yet it was here that Lee Ji-yeon truly discovered the meaning of her life and happiness.
She wished his hands were a bit heavier, but since her husband would continue to grow, recording the increasing intensity of that pain was one of the joys of her life.
“You did a good job taking that brat Im Su-yeon’s toy. Don’t give it back all week.”
“Meeee~!”
At the touch of the small, delicate hand stroking her head, Lee Ji-yeon let out a blissful bleat.
“You got permission from the parents beforehand, right? A child who brings toys to the academy is a bad child, so she needs to learn a lesson. Right?”
Slap!
“Hngh?! Y-Yes...!”
Startled by the sudden hand striking her chest, Lee Ji-yeon answered in human speech. It didn't hurt, but she had been so focused on her bottom that the unexpected—though appreciated—strike to her chest made her jump.
“You’re a sheep right now!”
“Me-Meeeee~!”
“Yes, yes. That’s right. Right now, Teacher is my ‘Sheep.’ So cute, so cute~!”
She felt so happy as those tiny hands squeezed her chin and cheeks, doting on her. It was a secret she could never tell anyone, but what could she do? She had been "educated" to enjoy this situation.
Wishing this time would last forever, the end eventually came for Lee Ji-yeon as she played "horse" (?) in the empty classroom.
♂
A ringtone characteristic of a young boy rang out.
“Ah, it’s time.”
“Mee~?”
“I have an appointment with Mom’s friend today. Ji-yeon, the sheep is finished for today! You’re a teacher again!”
“I-Is that so?”
A perfect ON-OFF switch. As if her wanton bleating from moments ago had been a lie, Lee Ji-yeon stood on two feet and crouched down to match the boy’s eye level.
“I heard from your mother, but you’re filming a commercial? What kind of commercial is our Yong-hwan filming?”
“I don’t know. I’ll be going now~!”
As the boy bowed politely at the door, Lee Ji-yeon waved back, looking every bit the kind and gentle teacher.
Waiting for the boy outside was a luxury car that would cost her about a hundred years' worth of salary to buy.