“Where have you been, Siena? The family is so busy.”
After checking that the supplies for the orphanage had been properly delivered, I returned to the Duke of Buetri’s mansion.
Uncle Marshall greeted me at the door with a sly smile.
Here he is—the parasite of our family.
Marshall Buetri.
My uncle, who had been cast aside by my father and never inherited the title.
I smiled faintly at him.
“It’s been a while, Uncle.”
“I think I saw you just yesterday. I even visited you at the hospital.”
“Did you? I don’t remember trivial things very well.”
“Yes, yes. You must have forgotten because you’re exhausted. Of course you would, after losing your entire family…”
By law, I was still a minor. To his eyes, I was nothing more than a fragile child who had lost her wits after a tragedy.
In the meantime, my uncle was quietly selling off the ducal assets, inching closer to seizing my guardianship.
“I care about you so much. You should rely on your only remaining family. Someone like… a guardian.”
He patted my shoulder, thinking I was too young and naïve to recognize his schemes.
But you will die by my hand, Uncle.
My decision to live a good life and my decision to punish villains were two entirely separate things.
I brushed off his hand and laughed softly.
“Thank you for your kind words, Uncle. So, where did you go today?”
“I went to the Harbor Bridge.”
“And why was that?”
“Oh, Siena. You might not realize, but trade at the harbor is incredibly important. Since our Buetri family oversees the bridge project, I must manage it personally—”
“Yes, I know. But why did you leave the mansion?”
“Wh–what?”
As I recalled, in the past, he earned the elders’ trust by completing the Harbor Bridge Project.
From there, he tightened his grip on the family, all under the guise of being my future guardian.
Not this time, Uncle. I won’t let it happen.
“Since the project is being carried out in the Buetri family’s name, I, as the head of the household, must represent us. Especially since a legal guardian has yet to be appointed.”
“Hahaha, Siena, don’t trouble yourself with such headaches. Leave the burden to me, and get some rest. You must be tired.”
“Uncle, your eyes are clouded with age. Please rest instead.”
No—I had to find a better guardian than him.
Someone truly trustworthy.
A few days later, a white bird tapped at my window. Tied to its leg was a bundle of letters.
From Elpis Orphanage?
My heart sank. Worried something had happened, I quickly dismissed the maid and opened the letter myself.
The moment I saw the handwriting, I froze.
How to Write a Letter to Nunya—
He had tried, clumsily.
“What is this? Another world’s language?”
For a second, I was stunned. But then, in just three heartbeats, I realized—
The boy in the yellow raincoat had sent me this letter.
“I’m here, working together with the owner.
They told me to play the role of Leaf 13, called ‘Puppu.’
I miss you so much.
Will you come, Shu Innana?
The date is set.
I’ll wait for your reply.From Puppuni, Leaf 13.”
Once I deciphered it, the message was shockingly simple.
“Children are children, after all. Just longing for attention and affection.”
I crumpled the letter in my hand.
“I can’t go.”
I whispered as though soothing a child.
“I’m too busy. I need to keep an eye on Uncle Marshall… and I must find a guardian. There’s too much work here in the mansion. So, I can’t.”
But still…
Should I at least reply?
He said he would wait. That alone would be enough.
And somehow, it felt like the child needed something more.
“Oh my gosh, why are there so many spelling books?”
“The sponsor sent one for each child!”
“Wow, and they even sent gifts and snacks for tomorrow’s play!”
“I’m so grateful.”
The children’s voices filled the orphanage with excitement.
But among them, one boy’s excitement outshone the rest—
the boy in the yellow raincoat.
His eyes sparkled with a light he had never felt before.
It was the first book he had ever owned, the first gift he had ever received.
Heart pounding, he sat at his desk and carefully opened the Imperial and Ancient Language textbooks.
The very first word written inside was aldehyde.
Aldehyde—salvation of my life.
The boy stared at it in silence.
It was the first time he had ever encountered such a word.
And he remembered the day he had met “the salvation of life.”
It was the day he first met the girl in the gray robe.
Exactly three years had passed since his mother abandoned him.
Even after all that time in the orphanage, he still had no name.
The director had tried to give him one, but he refused. He didn’t want anyone to call him.
All he thought about was dying.
Because his mother had left him at an orphanage.
Because she had said, “You’ve ruined this family. Just die quietly.”
She was right, he thought.
Long ago, in the mountains where he lived with his family, he had been cursed—or blessed—with a power.
The power of instant death.
Anything he touched could be killed.
Tragedy followed.
One night, his drunken father beat him again. The boy resisted—and accidentally killed him.
It had been self-defense.
But his mother, jealous and fearful of him all along, abandoned him in the rain.
“You’re a monster, just like your father. Don’t touch anyone. Live that way until you die.”
Director Jenny had taken him in.
And so, he lived by his mother’s words—never touching anyone.
On rainy days, he wandered the orphanage alone, wearing a yellow raincoat.
If I get wet, I’ll catch a cold and die…
That was the only thing he believed.
Until one day, he met the ghost in the gray robe.
The moment he took her hand—everything changed.
The headaches that drove him mad.
The hallucinations of his mother calling him a monster.
The heartbeats that thundered painfully in his chest.
All of it… calmed.
For the first time in his life, someone’s touch did not sicken him. Instead, it healed him.
Even a fleeting contact was enough to etch a memory into his heart.
She was like sunlight breaking through after the rain.
A faint light had flickered around his wrist that day, then vanished. A mysterious mark, like the warmth of the sun—unknown to anyone but him.
The boy rubbed his reddened wrist and looked again at the book she had given him.
Perhaps it’s fate that this word—“aldehyde”—was the first I ever read.
While he brooded over this, Jenny appeared, carrying letters.
“You know what? The sponsor even sent a letter.”
His eyes widened. A letter? For me?
Jenny smiled knowingly and winked.
“Go on. Read it secretly.”
Clutching the bundle, he ran to a corner and unfolded the letter.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t come to see the play.”
“Ugh…”
The words stabbed into his chest.
Still, he held on, reading the next line.
“Runt. Study your spelling.”
“Heeeeee…”
Another stab.
But then—more writing appeared beneath.
“But even your spelling mistakes are cute. Even the word ‘Puppu.’”
His eyes widened.
Cute? Did she just call me… cute?
She liked cute things. She even said “Puppu” was cute.
He touched his cheeks. Recently, he’d been eating more. His face had grown plumper, rosier.
Jenny was kind, but always busy. She could never give her full attention to every child.
That single word—cute—from his sponsor was the first compliment he had ever received.
And so…
“I… I’m cute.”
From that moment, “cuteness” became part of who he was.
“And since she said Puppu is cute, I’ll work hard!”
Though she had said she couldn’t come to the play, he held onto hope. Maybe, just maybe, the little ghost in the gray robe would appear again.
This time, I’ll show her. I’ll truly be Puppu, forever.
