The Gray World Shatters
When did it begin for Elysia? The moment she started believing the entire world was coated in nothing but dull, lifeless gray.
People’s laughter grated like nails across a chalkboard. The sunlight that should have felt warm was merely an irritating burn against her skin.
“That kid. Is she really mine? She doesn’t look anything like…”
“Are you suspecting me? How could you…!”
“Maybe it’s been this way since the day she was born.”
From what her parents had told her before they abandoned her, she had never cried or laughed when she came into the world. She had simply stared at the ceiling with inorganic eyes, and from that moment they had called her a cursed child.
“Does she even have emotions? She doesn’t react to anything…”
“Is that my fault?”
“Today too. Nothing good ever happens because this kid was born!”
There had never been any warmth. Only cutting accusations and the cold punishment known as indifference.
Still.
“Elysia. Today we’re going to a good place.”
“A… good place?”
It was the first time her parents had ever spoken to her gently instead of with violence or disregard. For the briefest moment, she had allowed herself to feel something like hope.
“Then we’ll leave her in your care.”
“I understand the circumstances, but are you sure this is all right?”
“It’s fine. That child… she’s ominous.”
That was why, even on the day she was abandoned, she had been able to remain dry-eyed. As she watched her parents walk away from the orphanage with obvious relief, she had simply thought:
‘Ah.’
At least I won’t have to listen to that noise anymore.
“What a bunch of idiots. With a face like that, if we raise her properly… Oh ho ho.”
The woman’s low murmur scraped against her ears. She wore a nun’s habit and a benevolent smile, but the greed lurking behind her eyes could not be hidden. That gaze wasn’t looking at a child. It was staring at the pile of gold coins she would receive once she sold her.
But none of that mattered anymore. This place would be the same as everywhere else. Hope was something that had never been in her pocket from the moment she was born.
‘Maybe it would be better to just die.’
She was curled up, counting dust on the floor and thinking such things, when—
“Her name is Ria. Lucian, dear, make sure you take good care of this child.”
The woman’s fake-sweet voice rang out above her head. Elysia buried her face between her knees and held her breath, wishing this moment would pass as quickly as possible.
That was when it happened.
“…Hey.”
A indifferent voice. Or rather, one completely devoid of sincerity. There was no pity, no disgust—just the sort of casual greeting you might give to an unnamed wildflower blooming by the roadside.
“…….”
It carried not a single drop of kindness. It was light, dripping with annoyance. Yet at the sound of that voice, she unconsciously lifted her head just a fraction.
And her gray world shattered without mercy.
The Protection of the Geumtaeyang is deeply imprinted on the target.
Saintess Elysia’s emotional instability is temporarily suppressed.
The threads of fate are reorganized with owner Lucian at the center.
“Get up.”
The girl called Ria, who had been sitting on the floor in an undignified heap, flinched and staggered awkwardly to her feet.
‘…Why do a kid’s eyes look like that already?’
Her eyes were cloudy. Like someone who had given up on everything. She had the dead-fish stare of a person with not a single ounce of will to live left in her. I met that gaze head-on without flinching.
“…….”
“…….”
‘Does this kid not talk?’
If we kept this up, we’d be having a staring contest until nightfall. Since I was the one who wanted to get this tedious power struggle over with and rest, I had no choice but to speak first.
“Ria, was it?”
“…….”
Sigh. If she just stared without answering even the simplest question, it would wear us both out. She was looking at me with wide eyes and a blank face like she’d seen a ghost. I scratched the back of my head for a moment, then decided to be a little harsh with the kid. Standing here all day wasn’t exactly appealing.
“If you don’t want to answer, fine. It’s not like many people here are going to be calling your name anyway.”
“Lu-Lucian! That’s too harsh!”
“Hey.”
Celine, who had been standing beside us, jumped in with a flustered expression. She clearly hadn’t expected me to say it so bluntly. I waved a hand at her, signaling that it was fine.
“Sister. Do you think fairy-tale words will reach a kid who ended up in a place like this? It’s better to teach them reality first, don’t you think?”
“W-well… even so…”
Anyway, her story was obvious. She had a decent face but still ended up in an orphanage. That left two possibilities: abandoned by her parents, or her parents were dead. What kind of hopeful nonsense was I supposed to feed a kid like that?
‘Besides, just taking care of my own body is hard enough.’
Instead of offering a hand to Ria, who was still sitting on the floor, I lightly kicked her shabby bundle of belongings with my foot.
“Follow me. I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping.”
I turned around indifferently and left the director’s office. Behind me, I heard her stumbling to her feet.
Step. Step.
“…….”
“…….”
As I walked down the hallway after leaving the director’s office, small, regular footsteps trailed behind me. Even though my stride wasn’t that long, she was moving her short legs frantically, as if she would die if she lost sight of me, stepping on my shadow the whole way.
“…….”
I didn’t need to turn my head to know it. Her gaze was fixed on the back of my head like it had been nailed there.
‘My skull’s gonna get a hole in it at this rate.’
For a kid who had looked ready to give up on life just moments ago, her tenacity was impressive. I was starting to wonder if I had worried for nothing when—
Creak.
Every time we climbed the old wooden stairs, they let out a loud groan that echoed through the hallway. We finally arrived at the communal sleeping quarters located at the far end of the orphanage’s second floor. The moment the door opened, the musty smell of mold hit us, along with the sight of dozens of rickety bunk beds used by the children.
“Shh! Lu-Lucian’s coming!”
Whatever gossip Hans’s underlings had been sharing in the corner, they flinched the moment they spotted me and quickly split apart to make a path. I had been watching with a mix of anticipation and worry, wondering if they would try to pick a fight again, but it seemed the incident in the cafeteria earlier had been quite effective. Otherwise they wouldn’t have cleared the way so obediently.
“How kind. Thanks.”
“…Tch.”
“Lucian. You watch yourself.”
“Worrying about me? I’m gonna cry, dude.”
“What? What? I’m not worried about you, idiot!”
If you’re not, then you’re not. Why get so worked up about it? Kids these days are scary.
“…Just enjoy the moment while you can.”
“Thanks to you, I’m enjoying it plenty.”
So loosen that face. How am I supposed to live comfortably if a kid your age is already glaring at me like he wants to kill me?
After staring at me for a long time, they finally noticed the platinum-haired girl standing behind me and narrowed their eyes.
“By the way, what’s with that doll behind you? New kid?”
“…Wow, she’s really pretty. What’s your name?”
One of Hans’s lackeys approached Ria and reached out a hand. She flinched.
“…Eep.”
She shrank deeper behind my back. I could feel her small hand trembling as it clutched the hem of my clothes.
“Why are you hiding? Come out and say hi.”
“Yeah! You gotta get on our good side!”
Right before the boy’s hand could touch her, I kicked him lightly in the shin with the tip of my shoe.
“Ack!”
The kid who took a direct hit to the shin screamed and fell backward. Jack—one of Hans’s leftovers—rolled on the floor clutching his leg, tears and snot mixing on his face.
“Lu-Lucian! You bastard!”
At Jack’s scream as he writhed on the ground, Hans’s gang—who had been seething with poison since the cafeteria—instantly surrounded me. Their menacing aura was hard to believe coming from twelve-year-olds, but I didn’t even blink. Instead, I twisted my lips into a smirk as if enjoying their stares, looked down at the sobbing Jack clutching his shin, and spat out coldly:
“Don’t touch her carelessly. She’s a kid the orphanage director cherishes.”
“…What?”
“If you don’t understand, get out of the way. You’re wasting my time.”
I shook my head at the idiots who stared blankly as if asking what that was supposed to mean, then shoved past them toward the beds. A few of them ground their teeth and clenched their fists, but none dared to actually jump me.
Pat, pat.
“There. Let’s not fight and just get along, yeah?”
“You son of a…”
After lightly patting the shoulder of the kid whose face had turned bright red and was shaking with rage, I pulled Ria closer. She was still gripping my hem like it was a lifeline.
“Let’s go. Stop watching these morons.”
I walked boldly through the middle of them. The crowd parted like the miracle of Moses. Ria kept her head down and followed only the sight of my heels.
The place I led her to was a corner spot by the window. Unfortunately, the bed in that corner was mine, so I pointed with my chin at the empty bunk right next to it.
“Use that one. Since it’s next to mine, the other guys won’t dare touch you.”
“…….”
Instead of answering, Ria simply stood there staring at me. The intensity in her gaze was almost piercing. I scratched my head for a second, then bent down to her eye level.
“Since it’s just us now, I’ll ask again.”
I reached out and brushed the dust off her cheek with my finger.
“Your name’s Ria?”
“…….”
“…If you don’t answer, I’m just going to leave?”
“…Ah!”
When I started to stand, she panicked and grabbed my sleeve tightly. She gripped it so hard her small knuckles turned white.
“…….”
After a long moment of hesitation, her lips trembled and a tiny voice like a whimper escaped.
“…R-Ria. Elysia.”
“…?”
Huh. That’s strange. Of all names, it’s exactly the same as the original heroine.
“…….”
I stared at her for a moment, wondering if she could possibly be the saintess, but then shook my head and dismissed the thought. No matter how I looked at it, the current her was nothing like the Elysia from the novel.
‘She’s too dark. She can’t be the saintess.’
Besides, I had never heard that the saintess was an orphan. Though it was possible that damned author bastard had changed the setting…
‘No way. It can’t be.’
I forcefully erased the sudden suspicion that had grabbed my ankle and finished my thoughts. Then I spoke again to her—to Elysia—who had been quietly staring at my lips.
“All right, Ria. Last name?”
“I… don’t have one.”
“Yeah, that’s how it is around here.”
I patted her head a couple times and stood up.
“Listen carefully. From now on, in this orphanage, there’s only one thing you can trust.”
I pointed at my own chest.
“Me. Senior Lucian. Got it?”
“…….”
I hadn’t particularly wanted to become anyone’s senior. Surviving on my own was already difficult enough; I had no room to take care of someone else.
…That’s how it should have been.
Maybe it was because she had a pretty face that could get away with half the work, or maybe because her earlier look of complete resignation had bothered me. Whatever the reason, my mouth was saying things my mind had never planned.
“If the kids bother you, if you’re hungry, or if something scary happens, come to me no matter what. I’ll take care of everything.”
Her eyes shook violently.
“It’s not free. Since you’ve come under me, you have to listen to what I say too. Understand?”
To a child, those words might have sounded quite coercive, but what could I do? I wasn’t running a charity. Besides, if you excluded me, who in this place was even trustworthy? The director was rotten to the core, the other nuns wouldn’t take responsibility for her, and the orphanage kids were even less reliable.
‘It’s up to her whether she accepts it or not.’
If she took those words as unpleasant, that would be the end of it. I had no intention of interfering any further. The director had given instructions, but simply pretending to follow them would be enough.
“…….”
After pondering for a while, she slowly raised her head. She gripped my hem even tighter, then gave a small, careful nod.
In that instant, a very small, incredibly faint smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.
“…Yeah.”