Chapter 8
“Damn that director. If it’s your plants, you should take care of them yourself. Why are you making me water them?”
I had rushed over, thinking something serious had happened, only to find out it was something as trivial as watering a plant.
“This is really useless in life.”
Muttering to herself, Selena’s eyes caught a head of hair as white as freshly fallen snow.
“…Riotis?”
Sensing Selena’s presence, Riotis lifted his head.
Fluffy white hair like cotton, pale, soft cheeks like rice cakes, and eyes as black as beans. Seeing Riotis looking like a young Pomeranian puppy made Selena scream silently in her heart.
How could someone be this cute and lovable?
“Why are you so late?”
If he didn’t speak, he’d be like an angel.
Selena let out a short sigh.
“…What’s wrong? Did you get scolded for being late?”
Riotis’ face darkened, thinking Selena had been scolded by the director. His restlessness was obvious.
To Selena, he looked exactly like a whining little puppy.
His personality was cautious like a cat, but he looked like a dog.
“No… are you worried about me?”
“…No.”
Watching Riotis pretend otherwise, Selena silently made a vow:
I’ll raise you well so that you don’t grow up to be a jerk.
Days passed peacefully without any major incidents.
‘Well, not exactly peaceful.’
Selena had spent countless efforts protecting Riotis from the director’s abuse.
“Riotis, I told you to clean the windows properly. What’s with these smudges?”
‘That crazy director… asking someone who can’t even see properly to clean windows.’
“Miss, please teach me how to greet properly!”
“Selena, I’m sorry, but I’m busy right now. I’ll teach you next time, so go play over there for a bit.”
“I want to greet the ladies elegantly tomorrow… Won’t you teach me?”
The director paused for a moment.
‘Think carefully, Director. How adorable would it be if such a young child made a clumsy greeting?’
Thinking of how cute Selena would look greeting the noblewomen, the director beamed.
You can hear the gears in his head turning, trying to collect donations.
Filling that money-crazed director’s stomach wasn’t exactly pleasant, but it was the only way to distract him so he wouldn’t torment Riotis.
“Alright. Go study etiquette with the teacher. Riotis, you go clean the windows again.”
Phew.
Selena let out a sigh of relief.
In this way, every time the director called for Riotis, Selena would distract him. Thanks to this, the frequency of Riotis being tormented noticeably decreased.
Selena’s efforts brought in lots of donations from the nobles. With the finances in better shape, the director stopped venting his anger on the children so much.
As a result, the children at the orphanage slowly became brighter. And since Selena was always close to Riotis, the bullying he received noticeably decreased.
From the beginning, the other children were simply copying the director’s behavior.
If the director didn’t use violence, no one felt the need to pick on Riotis.
Everyone except one—Limon.
Thud!
Riotis tripped over Limon’s foot.
“You fell because you’re not keeping your eyes open properly.”
Limon giggled at Riotis struggling to get up.
“Hey! Limon!”
Selena, seeing the scene, shouted and ran over. She first checked on Riotis. Luckily, the floor was padded with soft mats, so he wasn’t seriously hurt.
“You pathetic thing, mom’s here.”
Limon mockingly called Selena Riotis’ mother, teasing her for always stepping in when Riotis was bullied.
“Why do you keep doing this to Riotis? Has he ever done anything to you?”
“Has Riotis ever harmed you? Heh~”
“Don’t repeat after me.”
“Don’t tell me what to say~”
Typical of children.
Limon exaggeratedly mimicked Selena’s tone. Selena struggled to contain her boiling anger.
“What? Not talking now?”
Limon suddenly shoved his face closer. Selena wanted to punch him immediately but held back.
‘No matter what, violence isn’t the answer. Hold it, Selena.’
She lowered her head and took a deep breath, thinking of enjoyable moments she’d had recently.
What recent fun memories were there? Riotis’ cotton candy and his bunny-like eyes, and…
“Cry? Ebebe~ He’s crying! What a fool~”
Don’t fall for such provocation, Selena.
This is just a child who just moved out of kindergarten. Getting angry won’t do any good.
“He’s a crybaby~”
Ignore it. He does this all the time.
“An ugly witch and a filthy blind person… they really suit each other…”
Wham!
Before Limon finished speaking, Selena’s fist flew.
‘I don’t mind if they insult me, but I can’t forgive them teasing Riotis.’
“You… you hit me!”
Limon jumped up, fists ready. He was bigger than the average child, while Selena was smaller and fragile. Physically, she couldn’t win a fight against him.
‘Only physically.’
Selena picked up a block from the floor and dropped it in Limon’s path.
Angrily running forward, Limon stepped on the block.
“Ah!”
He clutched his foot and fell.
‘Brains over brawn.’
Seizing the moment, Selena jumped on top of Limon, beating him.
“Move, you pig, witch, idiot!”
At first shouting insults, Limon soon burst into tears.
“Apologize to Riotis immediately. Or I’ll squash your face like dumplings.”
“No! Why should I apologize? What’s wrong with calling a blind person blind?”
You still haven’t been beaten enough to talk nonsense.
Selena raised her fists again.
“What are you doing, kids!”
The director finally arrived, ending the fight for the moment.
“Selena, I thought you were smart and well-behaved, but causing such a commotion… I’m very disappointed.”
Both Selena and Limon were punished, and they missed dinner.
‘I’m hungry…’
Skipping dinner seemed trivial, but when mealtime came, her stomach growled loudly.
‘How dare they treat me like this when I’ve earned all that money?’
She was angry at the ungrateful director and at Limon.
‘This is all Limon’s fault.’
If Limon hadn’t teased Riotis, there wouldn’t have been a fight.
Whether from hunger or frustration, tears came.
Why cry over something so small?
Feeling her body’s youth, her spirit also felt young and fragile. Sniffling just because she was hungry hurt her pride.
‘That cruel director. How can he make children skip meals?’
As she cried, the door opened.
“Riotis…?”
Selena quickly wiped her tears with her sleeve.
“…Are you crying?”
Riotis, noticing the quiver in her voice, asked with unusual intensity. Selena quickly composed herself and answered naturally.
“Who, me? Not crying.”
Riotis stepped forward, his expression serious, and reached out, tracing the edge of her eyes. Selena couldn’t bring herself to pull away.
“You’re crying, aren’t you?”
“…Yes, I cried! So, what? Do you have a problem with that?”
A childish, clumsy response.
“I’m sorry.”
His voice was unusually earnest. Perhaps because of the warmth of his hands on her cheeks, Selena hesitated to answer.
“Because of me…”
Riotis’ words snapped Selena back to focus.
“Why are you apologizing? You haven’t done anything wrong, Riotis.”
“Because I made Selena fight Limon.”
“It wouldn’t have happened if Limon hadn’t teased you.”
“But… if I weren’t weak…”
Selena held Riotis’ hands firmly. Even knowing he couldn’t see, she looked him straight in the eyes.
“Being weak isn’t a fault. Riotis, you did nothing wrong.”
“But…”
“The bad ones are those who bully the weak. I hate them the most. If it happens again, I’ll act just like today.”
“……”
“I told you, Riotis. I’m on your side.”
Riotis’ expression was hard to describe—both happy and angry at the same time.
‘It’s not your fault.’
Perhaps this was the very thing Riotis, often misunderstood by everyone, most wanted to hear.
“By the way, Riotis, what are you holding?”
He fumbled with a black bag and pulled out bread, a carrot, and a sausage.
“You snuck these out?”
“Wow, Riotis! You’re the best! I love you the most in the world!”
Overjoyed at the food in front of her, Selena hugged Riotis tightly, showering him with praise.
“……”
Selena didn’t notice his ears tinged pink, like spring blossoms.
