The Worst Villain is Actually a Cute Girl

Chapter 23: Kind Yet Somehow Suspicious

Isaac visited the orphanage.

In his hands was a large gift bundle.

“““Wowwwww!”””

The effect of the gifts was tremendous.

The children’s faces were filled with excitement.

Their eyes sparkled like jewels.

They couldn’t take their eyes off the gift bundle.

“Ahem!”

Isaac cleared his throat, and only then did the children, enchanted by the gifts, snap back to their senses.

Isaac seemed a little sulky.

The children, embarrassed for being so distracted by the gifts, looked at each other before finally welcoming Isaac with bright smiles.

I couldn’t help but chuckle at their reaction.

Was it Isaac they liked or the gifts?

In the cheerful atmosphere, I glanced at the person standing behind me.

Red was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, looking somewhat displeased.

Her expression seemed the same as usual, so the children didn’t notice anything, but I could tell by looking closely.

It was a subtle yet distinct difference.

Her expression was visibly uncomfortable.

I knew why.

It was because of the uninvited guest.

I didn’t know what had happened between them, but Red seemed uneasy around Isaac.

On the other hand, Isaac didn’t seem to care about Red’s attitude.

Anyway, it wasn’t polite to leave a guest standing at the entrance for too long.

Reluctantly, Red let him inside, and the children and I opened the gift bundle in the room.

The children gasped, and even I couldn’t help but be wide-eyed.

Toys, dolls, picture books, snacks—all of them were the latest items.

And they were all quite expensive.

Just buying one of those toys could feed us for a week.

The other items were of similar value.

Isaac was quite a big spender.

To think he’d buy such expensive things for the children.

Maybe he cared for them so much that he didn’t mind the cost.

“I like this one.”

“I’m choosing this!”

“Hehehe…”

Everyone was excitedly picking what they wanted.

The children were smiling so brightly, brimming with happiness.

As I looked through the items myself, I noticed that two people were missing.

Wondering where they had gone, I slipped out under the pretense of using the restroom.

As I walked down the hallway, I heard voices coming from the office room.

“Thanks for inviting me.”

“Sure, must’ve been tough coming all this way. So, what’s your plan now?”

“I’ve prepared a surprise performance for the kids.”

“A surprise performance…? Do whatever, just don’t make a mess, and leave quickly once you’re done. You’re busy anyway, aren’t you? You don’t have time to hang around here.”

“Telling someone who just arrived to leave already… That’s harsh.”

“…”

“You don’t have to worry. I specifically made time to come, so I’m not in a hurry.”

What a pleasant conversation.

Poor Isaac.

It’s obvious he’s interested in Red. Maybe his visit was meant to get closer to her.

The problem is, Red dislikes Isaac.

She doesn’t even try to hide it.

She blatantly shows her distaste for him, yet he keeps smiling.

I wanted to tell him to stop obsessing over an impossible love and give up quickly.

‘That’s a dead end.’

As I silently consoled Isaac in my head and turned to leave, I heard another voice and stopped.

“Ms. Red, the boss came with good intentions, taking the time to visit the kids. I think your attitude is rude.”

Was it the woman who had been behind Isaac?

She was probably a Problem Solver too.

She seemed dissatisfied with Red’s attitude and didn’t hesitate to voice her opinion.

The atmosphere grew tense.

“My attitude? I’ve always been like this. You know my personality.”

“I still don’t understand. What did the boss ever do to you to deserve such cold treatment? If you have a reason, just say it outright.”

“Nina, I’m fine, so don’t get worked up.”

“It’s because you keep acting so passive that Ms. Red keeps treating you this way.”

“The kids might hear us. Keep your voice down.”

This wasn’t a place for me to be.

It wasn’t hard to guess the mood beyond the door.

Quietly, I left the area.

When I returned to the room with the children, I felt like I could finally breathe again.

Seeing me return, Lena looked puzzled and asked, “Lily, are you okay? Did you see a bug in the bathroom?”

I nodded.

Lena made a slightly horrified face.

There was no need for the children to know about the adults’ issues.

Let them handle it themselves.

*

We went out to the yard.

It was to watch the performance Isaac had prepared.

The children sat comfortably on the grass under blankets, waiting for the show to start.

The children whispered excitedly.

“I’m so excited.”

“It’s been so long since we last saw a performance.”

“Thump-thump…”

Their faces were full of excitement and anticipation.

Even I felt a bit excited.

Now that I think about it, I read in a magazine that one of the reasons Isaac was so popular with kids was because of his fun shows.

At that moment, Lena lightly tapped my arm.

I turned to look at her.

Smiling brightly, Lena whispered in a small voice, “This is your first time seeing Isaac’s ice performance, right, Lily?”

I nodded.

“It’s so beautiful. You’ll definitely love it, Lily.”

Hearing that made me feel even more excited.

I hoped it would be as amazing as she said.

Thinking of what had happened in the room earlier, I glanced at Red and the Problem Solver named Nina.

They were standing quietly as if nothing had happened.

It seemed they were suppressing their emotions in front of the children.

Good. Don’t fight in front of the kids.

Just then, music began to flow from a machine placed on the grass.

A gentle, melodic tune filled the air, and Isaac began to move.

He snapped his fingers lightly.

Tiny ice particles gathered in his hands, quickly solidifying into an ice bird.

The bird moved as if it were alive.

When he released it, the bird soared into the sky.

The bird flew in circles above us, releasing fine white ice particles that slowly drifted down, like snow.

The children held their breath.

Clap!

The children’s eyes all turned to Isaac.

When he clapped his hands, cold air spread rapidly from his feet.

It brushed past us but wasn’t surprisingly cold.

‘Amazing.’

While I was marveling at it, new ice sculptures began to form one after another.

Isaac created various sculptures, then moved them to craft a story that matched the music.

A sad, beautiful yet wistful story.

The dazzling and dreamlike performance captivated everyone.

‘This is incredible.’

Everyone was completely drawn into the story he had created.

Even the sound of the children’s breathing seemed to vanish.

Perhaps the children wished the performance would never end.

Like someone dreaming endlessly in the cold.

But no story lasts forever. It was time to wake up.

No matter how reluctant, every page eventually leads to the end.

Just as a book is closed after its final page, Isaac’s story came to its conclusion.

As with all stories, it ended on a happy note.

All the ice sculptures shattered simultaneously, leaving ice particles floating in the air.

They sparkled.

The particles glittered in the sunlight.

I heard sniffles.

Some children had tears in their eyes.

While the others were still immersed in the afterglow of the performance, I found myself recalling the time I had fought Isaac before.

Though he was a novice in martial arts, his skill with magic was quite impressive.

Correction: this was a realm of talent.

His artistry left me no choice but to be in awe.

And in a corner of my mind, I firmly reminded myself that he was not someone to underestimate.

If he became an enemy, he’d be a bit of a problem.

Silence filled the yard.

Then cheers erupted, and applause poured out.

I clapped too, amazed by the performance he had shown.

*

Even after the performance, Isaac stayed with the children.

He played with them and showed them magic, making them excited.

The children’s pure laughter echoed through the orphanage for a long time.

However, Isaac seemed very interested in me.

He kept asking the children about me.

“When did Lily start living here?”

“How did she come to this place?”

“What kind of life did she have before coming here?”

The innocent children answered Isaac’s questions honestly.

Of course, there was much they didn’t know, and each time they didn’t, I caught glimpses of a peculiar disappointment on his face.

Even at dinner, his curiosity didn’t wane.

“She’s still wearing a mask, just like the first time I saw her.”

“She doesn’t want to show her face to others.”

“Is there a reason for that?”

“I don’t really know. But it’s probably not a good one.”

“Have you ever seen the inside of that mask?”

“No.”

He even asked Red about me.

Maybe because of that, I started to feel a little uncomfortable around Isaac.

I mean, wouldn’t you feel strange if someone kept obsessively asking about you?

Even while playing with the kids, he kept glancing my way.

He seemed too conscious of me.

At first, I didn’t think much of it. Seeing him be kind to the children made me think he was okay.

But now, something suspicious was starting to feel off.

And naturally, I became very curious about why Red disliked him.

‘Could he be… a lolicon…!?’

Shudder.

If that were true, it would explain everything. But I didn’t want to jump to conclusions.

Still, I kept that possibility in the back of my mind.

After his first visit.

The number of times Isaac came to the orphanage started to increase.