Chapter 92: Academy Heroine's Right Diagonal Back Seat
Chapter 92
Nodding at Sylvia’s suggestion to do something together, I sent her back to her room with a pleased look on her face.
Early in the morning, I finished preparing to go out with Sylvia, and we arrived somewhere in a car driven by Sylvia’s servant, Mr. Sebastian. I checked outside the window and chuckled inwardly.
So that’s why she asked if I liked kids yesterday.
While I was quietly observing the building outside the window, Sylvia spoke to me.
“I thought it would be nice if we did some volunteer work today while delivering supplies. It’s a meaningful activity, so I thought it would be great if you could join me, Scarlet.”
The sign on the building visible through the window read "Future Orphanage" in cute letters.
*
As we got out of the car, Mr. Sebastian took out bags full of wrapped items from the trunk and handed them to us.
When I looked at Sylvia with a puzzled expression, she smiled slightly and explained.
“These are for the children. There are toys, fairy tale books, and drawing tools. Astra directly supports this place, so we sometimes deliver needed items like this.”
Nodding, I followed Sylvia into the orphanage, where I could hear the chatter of children everywhere.
The interior was neat and charmingly decorated.
I could tell it was a proper orphanage by the rounded edges of the corners to prevent children from getting hurt.
“First, we need to greet the director. Please follow me.”
Following Sylvia down the hallway, we entered the room marked as the director’s office. A kind-looking woman, who seemed to be the director, greeted us with a broad smile.
“You’re here, Miss Sylvia? Oh dear, you didn’t have to bring so much again.”
“Really? Should I take them back then?”
“Oh, no need for that. We never refuse gifts. Thank you, as always. The children will be thrilled.”
The director, who seemed familiar with Sylvia, playfully conversed with her while accepting the bags of items. Then she noticed me standing awkwardly and asked Sylvia.
“Could you introduce this young lady to me?”
“Oh, this is Scarlet Evande, my friend...no, my classmate at Aegis Academy. She’s here to play with the children and help with the volunteer work today.”
When Sylvia introduced me, I bowed my head slightly to greet the director, who responded with a delighted smile.
“So you’re Miss Scarlet. I’m Maria, the director of this Future Orphanage. Thank you so much for coming to help today. We didn’t have any damage, but a recent incident has made it difficult for some staff to come in. We were in need of people to play with the children...Thank you very much.”
“Oh...it’s nothing. You don’t have to thank me.”
When I waved my hand modestly in response to the director’s polite gratitude, she chuckled briefly before stopping and asking us.
“Do both of you attend Aegis Academy? If so, you might know our Si-woo.”
...I only know one person named Si-woo.
“Are you talking about Yoon Si-woo? The boy with white hair...”
When I answered hesitantly, the director’s face lit up with excitement.
“Yes, that’s right! The handsome boy. Are you close to him?”
“Yes, we’re in the same class. We’re friends.”
As I recalled my recent conversation with Yoon Si-woo and answered, I felt Sylvia’s gaze on me.
When I glanced sideways, wondering if I had done something wrong, Sylvia looked away and asked the director.
“But how do you know Yoon Si-woo?”
The director smiled and replied.
“Si-woo is from our orphanage. He became independent a bit earlier than the others.”
“Really? Is that true?”
Sylvia was startled by the director’s words.
Come to think of it, Yoon Si-woo’s backstory involved losing his parents, who were heroes, to a monster and being raised in an orphanage.
While I was marveling at the coincidence, Sylvia whispered to me.
“...Scarlet, you don’t seem very surprised. Did you know?”
Well, I read it in the novel...
As I nodded, Sylvia murmured to herself, seemingly a bit upset.
“Huh, I see...So Scarlett knows such things because she’s friends with Yoon Si-woo...”
Her tone suggested she was slightly offended.
But since her voice was barely audible, the director continued speaking.
“I only knew that he was going to enter the academy from our last conversation, but then I saw him on the broadcast of the group memorial service yesterday, receiving his official hero appointment. He should have contacted me first about something like that. It was worrisome...”
The director spoke with a somewhat wistful expression, then looked at us with a meaningful gaze and asked.
“Anyway, did Si-woo cause any trouble at the academy? When he was here, the girls fought every day over who would marry him. I was most worried about that when he said he was going to the academy. He’s too kind to be harsh to those who like him, so I was worried he might get into trouble over that. How is it?”
Well, it’s understandable that the director would worry about that.
As the protagonist of the novel, Yoon Si-woo was notorious for unintentionally attracting women.
Though, I haven’t seen many girls clinging to Yoon Si-woo at the academy.
Sylvia seemed interested in Yoon Si-woo at times, but then she didn’t seem to be.
As I thought about it, I glanced sideways and made eye contact with Sylvia, who was looking at me for some reason.
When I tilted my head in confusion, Sylvia sighed and answered the director.
“...I don’t think you need to worry about that. Yoon Si-woo is quite good at keeping his distance, even if it’s not obvious.”
“That’s a relief. I thought Si-woo might die because of a woman.”
The director’s words, though said with a smiling face, were quite harsh. She then gathered the bags and said to us.
“I’ve talked too much. Shall we go to the playroom now? Miss Scarlet, it’s your first time, so the children might be shy, but they’re quite friendly, so you’ll get along with them soon. Don’t worry.”
Though I nodded at the director’s reassurance, I was more worried about getting too attached to the children too quickly.
I had volunteered at an orphanage a few times before, and I knew it was hard to leave when the children got attached to me.
Recalling the memory of reluctantly removing the hands of children who begged me not to go, I hesitated a bit as we arrived at the door of the playroom.
When we opened the door and entered the playroom with the director, the small eyes in the room turned to us.
“Pretty sister!”
“There’s someone new!”
The children, shining their eyes, seemed eager to rush toward us, but the director called out.
“Attention! Today, we have guests to play with you! Everyone, say hello!”
“Hello!”
At the director’s command, the children placed their hands on their belly buttons and bowed.
As I was about to smile at their cute bowing, the children, released from their formality, ran towards Sylvia and surrounded her.
“Pretty sister! Show us the sparkly thing like last time!”
“Sparkly fairy!”
It seemed like they already knew Sylvia and focused their attention on her, but then one child pointed at me and exclaimed, changing the atmosphere.
“Look! This sister has a robot arm!”
“Wow! So cool! Can you shoot it?”
“Rocket punch! Rocket punch!”
The children’s curiosity about my prosthetic left arm made them suddenly flock to me, leaving Sylvia.
As I was overwhelmed by the children crowding around and asking questions, Sylvia took something out of the bag she brought and said.
“Everyone, do you want to see this?”
It looked like just a hilt without a blade at first glance.
However, when Sylvia pressed the button on the hilt, a golden light shot up from the hilt, forming the shape of a sword.
I was impressed by what I saw.
A toy sword modeled after the Holy Sword of Radiance.
It was broadcasted only yesterday, yet they managed to create such a high-quality toy in just one day. Is that the power of Astra's capital?
Anyway, the quality of the toy, which even impressed me, was enough to captivate the children's attention, shifting their focus from me to the toy sword.
The first child to snatch the toy sword from Sylvia held it aloft proudly and shouted.
“I am Yoon Si-woo! Where is the evil witch?”
“Aah, I want to be Yoon Si-woo too!”
“Now, now. I’ll give everyone a turn, so don’t fight.”
It seemed that the children had watched Yoon Si-woo's debut on the broadcast yesterday, as they all chanted his name and started role-playing with the toy sword.
As I was taken aback by the chaotic scene, the director approached me with a smile.
“Ahaha, it’s a bit surprising, right? The children are very lively. Well, let them play for a bit, and they’ll calm down soon. You can then take your time playing with them.”
“Oh, okay...”
...Seeing the children so purely happy, I realized this was a good facility.
While I was thinking that, I noticed a girl sitting alone in a corner, staring at the sketchbook hanging around her neck, not joining the laughing and chatting children.
“...Excuse me, Director. Why is that child over there by herself?”
Concerned about the girl exuding a melancholy atmosphere, I asked. The director looked at the girl and gave a bitter smile.
“...You’re talking about Rion, right? She’s new here; she just arrived a few days ago...”
“Ah...”
I didn’t need a lengthy explanation to understand.
It meant she had come to this orphanage after losing her parents in the recent incident.
As if drawn by something, I headed towards the girl named Rion.
When I approached, she closed her sketchbook and looked at me with emotionless eyes. I asked cautiously.
“Um, may I sit next to you?”
Rion, who had been staring at me silently, nodded slightly. I gently knelt beside her and asked.
“What were you doing?”
She didn’t answer immediately but eventually spoke as if she had no choice.
“...Drawing my mom and dad...”
“I see. Do you miss your mom and dad?”
Rion didn’t respond.
She probably wasn’t in the mood to talk to someone else.
At times like this, trying to force a conversation was pointless.
I unbent my knees and sat with my back against the wall, murmuring.
“Haa, I miss my mom and dad too...”
Even though it’s been years since I last saw them, the longing hasn’t faded.
As I was reminiscing about the past, Rion spoke curtly.
“...If you miss them, you can go see them.”
At her question, I chuckled and answered.
“I can’t see them, that’s why I miss them.”
“...Can’t you see your mom and dad either?”
“Yeah. I can’t see them anymore. That’s why I miss them every day.”
When I answered, Rion quietly placed her small hand on the back of mine.
Perhaps it was a sense of solidarity from sharing similar pain.
Through that hand, I felt a connection with her.
I looked at Rion sitting next to me and noticed the sketchbook hanging around her neck.
The sketchbook looked a bit old to be a recent gift, indicating it was something she had before coming to the orphanage.
“...Is that sketchbook precious to you?”
“...My mom bought it for me when I turned five. My dad bought me crayons, but they’re all used up now.”
“I see. You must really like drawing, Rion.”
“...I do. I like drawing.”
To the girl who said she liked drawing, I asked gently.
“I brought some crayons today. Would you like to draw with them?”
After a moment of hesitation, Rion slowly nodded.
I retrieved a set of crayons from the bag I had brought and handed it to Rion.
She looked at me and bowed her head slowly.
“...Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Rion untied the sketchbook from her neck, placed it on the floor, and looked at me.
“...I’ll draw something for you as thanks.”
When I pointed at myself and tilted my head in curiosity, Rion nodded.
She opened the new crayon set, took out a few crayons, and her hand touched the sketchbook.
At that moment, Rion’s eyes changed.
While drawing, she stared straight at me.
However, her gaze seemed hazy, as if she was looking at something beyond me.
As the drawing gradually filled the paper with her touch, her eyes never once looked down.
After a short while, when the paper was full, Rion’s eyes regained their clarity.
She handed me the sketchbook.
A picture filled with red.
“...What did you draw?”
“...I don’t know. I just drew what I saw.”
What she saw...
I examined the picture.
It depicted a woman with red hair and flames filling the entire world.
I wondered if I had ever used fire since coming to the orphanage.
While pondering, Rion leaned against me and said.
“...I’m sleepy, so I’m going to sleep...”
The girl closed her eyes and fell asleep with soft, steady breaths as soon as she leaned against me.
I was momentarily taken aback, then adjusted my posture to make her comfortable and carefully looked at her drawing again.
As I turned the page of the sketchbook, I saw other drawings she had made, some of which were ordinary family pictures, while others felt oddly strange, like the one she just drew.
And the most peculiar one was on the very first page of the sketchbook.
The sketchbook given to her as a birthday present when she turned five.
Judging by its condition, it had been with her for at least a few months, if not longer.
But for some reason, on the very first page of the sketchbook,
a boy with white hair swinging a golden sword toward the dark sky was drawn.
What exactly did this child see in me?
She can see the future
ReplyDeleteSus power
ReplyDeleteDoes that mean scarlet will engulfed in fire... In only 5 months? DAMN IT AUTHOR
ReplyDelete"Misery demands company" in the most wholesome way possible
ReplyDelete