45 minutes of horror."

"Ten, nine...

" "Stop counting down!" Darek said indignantly, adjusting his backpack, which was falling off his shoulder.

"I feel like I'm going to an execution." "Because you are," said the short blond, staring blankly at the floor.

"True. Now we have German. Does anyone know anything? Stupid question...

" "Five, four...

" "Tell him to shut up, or I'll do it myself.

" Ten. Ten fourteen-year-olds stood in front of the German classroom, waiting to be sentenced. Every German lesson brought with it fear or dread. Even those who intended to finish their education in middle school dreaded this hour. It wasn't about the subject, because it was optional anyway, but about her—the teacher.

Mrs. Maul had been nicknamed "the demon" or "the butcher" for a long time. The mere mention of her gave rise to goosebumps. This character was familiar to all the students in The local school. A true legend. In fact, no one even knew her name. Students crossed over whenever they saw her petite figure emerging from the dark school corridors. Other teachers were rarely seen in her company, as she usually stayed in her classroom. She didn't even leave it during long breaks. It was surprising that the key to that room was in the door. No prankster ever thought of turning it. No one was suicidal... So, as I mentioned, Mrs. Maul was surrounded by a justified aura of mystery.

"Two, one, and the bell," Jacob said at the same moment as the dull sound announcing the end of break echoed around them.

Everyone looked anxiously at room number thirteen.

"Are we going in?" one of them asked. The other classes had already entered their classes.

"Look! Look at my hands!" Anne said, holding them out. "I have Seizures, convulsions...

"No," commented the blond man leaning against the wall, "I think they're near death.

" "Very funny, Robi, very funny. And you know what I can laugh at?

" "Give it a rest!" said Darek, his voice laced with a hint of desperation. "We're arguing, and the butcher's already waiting. There are more of us! Not the whole class, but we'll still manage.

" "Lucky ones," Robi said, looking at the nearby classroom. "They have English. What would I give to...

" "No point in arguing. I'm coming in.

" "We're with you... in spirit."

He approached the door. Now it seemed like a gate, towering over his small frame. With a shuddering breath, he gripped the doorknob. He felt his heart pounding, his legs shaking, their support weakening with each passing moment. He slowly pressed the handle, sensing the mechanism giving way. Fear. The word he had so often uttered now settled like a feeling in his body. He opened the door a crack and slipped inside.

The room was dim. Pale rays of sunlight filtered through the vertical blinds, which were drawn to their maximum depth. Single-seat desks stood in three even rows, creating narrow passages between them. German-language posters, grammar boards, and German proverbs adorned the walls. Complete darkness enveloped the complex of wardrobes furthest from the windows. Silence reigned in the room, and the only sound he could hear was the gentle rustle of a hamster, who, for some reason, had found himself in this very room. The teacher's desk was empty, and on the chair where Mrs. Maul always occupied lay only her faded green purse.

"She's not here," whispered Darek, looking again. "She's not here...

" "Impossible," said Ania, leading the rest of the group inside. "It's some kind of miracle..."

They took their seats at their desks, slowly unpacking their textbooks.

"Maybe something happened to her?" asked Jakub, searching for his lunch in his backpack.

"Impossible. Nothing can happen to a demon.

" "Right...

" "She could have gotten sick. It happens to everyone," Ania tried to solve the riddle.

"She can't be sick either. There's no substitute in front of the office, and besides, her purse is here," said Darek, pointing to the teacher's chair.

Silence fell. Everyone's eyes fell on a small, woman's purse.

"Maybe we should take advantage of her absence..." suggested the obese boy, whom everyone called Kuba.

"So?"

Kuba stood up slowly, not taking his eyes off the chair.

"I wonder what she's hiding in that bag of hers...

" "A purse," Ania corrected him. "A women's essentials

." "What difference does it make?" the boy said, approaching the "women's essentials."

"What matters is what's inside." "Well, you probably won't do that... you're not suicidal. If she comes in here..."

The teenager acted as if he hadn't heard the warnings. Reaching the desk, he leaned forward to reach the bag.

"Someone stop him!" one of the girls shouted, watching the doorway to see if the butcher was coming in.

Darek and Robi immediately stood up to stop Kuba, but it was too late. He took the bag and unzipped it in one swift motion. Everyone froze. A soft hissing sound could be heard from Ania's chest, threatening to escalate into a squeal at any moment.

"Empty," Kuba said, turning the "essentials" upside down. "Completely empty..."

"What an idiot," Anka snorted, then took a deep breath. "How can you be such an idiot!

" "Why are you so tense? It's just curiosity."

Darek and Robi returned to their seats, shaking their heads.

"Put that away and leave it where it was..."

Suddenly, the back door swung open, and a short woman stood there.

Small, mouse-like eyes scanned the gathered students, glancing every now and then at Kuba, who froze mid-movement. His small, pointed nose twitched as if trying to sniff something out. The woman was dressed in a black suit, reminiscent of the attire worn when a corpse is placed in a coffin. It was her—Mrs. Maul.

Anka, unable to contain her nerves, screamed hysterically. Another girl tried to grab the edge of the adjacent desk to keep from fainting. All the boys stared in horror at the teacher's dark silhouette, and Kuba, still holding her bag, now resembled the whitewashed walls of the school with his skin.

"Oh my God," someone whispered quietly, but every sound, even the slightest, reached the butcher's ears. "She'll kill him..."

The teacher took a step forward and said triumphantly in her hoarse voice,

"For your information, I'm neither sick nor have I had any accidents. Nothing can happen to a demon, after all." She smiled wickedly. "And what about Her Kuba? How's the search going? Did you find anything interesting in my bag?"

Now she was staring at him. There was something unnatural, almost animalistic in that look.

"I... I mean

, I'm listening.

" "Nothing...

" "Dear Kuba," she said, approaching him, "Answer me a question!"

The boy stood there for a few seconds. Then his color changed from pale to green, and the teenager fell heavily to the floor. Mrs. Maul was unimpressed.

"Would anyone like to add anything else? "

Silence.

"Good. In that case...

" "Two, one..."

The bell rang.

"Lesson's over. I hope you learned something."

When everyone had packed up, several boys came to carry out the unconscious Kuba.

"Oh no," the teacher said sweetly. "Leave him alone. Kuba and I still have a few things to discuss."

They left without a word, closing the classroom behind them.

Epilogue

After this whole incident, Kuba was no longer a student at the local school. No one expelled him; quite the opposite—the principal was very surprised to learn of the boy's intention to leave school. After his conversation with Mrs. Maul, he became exceptionally taciturn, and whenever anyone asked him what he had been talking to her about, he ignored the question.

Over time, the question was abandoned. More legends emerged about the hated teacher, and generations of students listened to incredible stories about her.

What really happened after that German lesson? Why did Kuba leave school? We'll probably never know.

Only speculation remains...