episode_0001

“Hey kids, it’s time for lunch!”

“What’s for lunch today?”

“They say we’re having steamed potatoes.”

Upon the daycare teacher’s announcement, the children paired up and dashed to the cafeteria. I lagged behind, making my way to the dining hall at a leisurely pace.

“Maru is always calm compared to the other kids. So composed.”

A young daycare teacher ruffled my hair. Despite her praise, I maintained a stoic expression.

“Well, my mental age is twenty after all.”

I sighed at this absurdity. Little did I know that I would be reborn into the world of “Hakdoyeon,” a webtoon I started reading out of boredom after the college entrance exam. The details are so cliché that they’re not even worth explaining in a web novel.

As for when I realized that this world was that of Hakdoyeon’s, it was after I heard the name of the daycare center.

“Sunshine Nursery.”

The name had stuck in my mind from the webtoon. Since I was an orphan in my original world, I wondered if I had been reborn in an orphanage in this life as well. I must be the first person to claim the orphan title two lives in a row.

But even with these circumstances, I couldn’t easily believe that I had been reborn into a webtoon. Because this world had reversed gender norms.

“They call this gender reversal, right?”

There were male parking lots instead of female ones, many women in politics, and women excelled in physical abilities.

Despite these bewildering elements, the reason I eventually acknowledged being reborn into Hakdoyeon’s world was due to one character.

“The main villain, Alex, spent his childhood at Sunshine Nursery.”

Alex is a student at Haneul High, causing friction at every turn with the protagonist’s group. He leads the antagonistic faction. As his name suggests, he is of mixed heritage.

Hakdo is the top dog who practically rules the school district, and his adopted family is a conglomerate in South Korea, so there’s nothing to pick on about him. Looks, family background, academics, fighting… He’s set up as a perfect guy, which is why he has a lot of female fans.

Today is the day that Alex is admitted to the Hwatsalnuri Orphanage.

“Am I going to enroll in the high school under Hakdo?” No one knows if I’m going to attend the school under Hakdo, and I didn’t really want to make contact with the villain.

I couldn’t relate to Alex’s behavior at all because it didn’t show the typical plot development even in webtoons.

I didn’t want to know the villain’s past deeply or become friendly with him, so I just wanted to quietly spend my time at the orphanage and then quietly enter high school, not under Hakdo, and live an ordinary life.

But life doesn’t always flow according to one’s will.

“Alright, we have a new friend joining us today. Let’s all give her a round of applause!”

The children at the orphanage looked wide-eyed at the foreign girl who appeared hand in hand with the director.

The kids at the orphanage showed blatant curiosity towards her different appearance.

“Wow, her hair sings.”

“Her eyes are blue, wonder where she’s hurt.”

The children critiqued the new girl without filtering their pure cruelty.

The teacher also tried to quickly change the atmosphere considering the girl’s feelings.

“This child’s name is Alice. She’ll be staying in the girls’ room on the second floor, please inform her about the orphanage schedule. We’ll need to appoint a helper….”

No one readily raised their hand. It’s already a burdensome role, and they were wary of the unfamiliar child named Alice.

And I didn’t raise my hand either. Well….

Because the existence of this Alice is highly likely to be Alex’s TS version.

It makes sense given the circumstances.

“The adoption date in the webtoon is today, and today, there’s only one adopted child, Alex.”

Moreover, the names were similar.

Alice.

Alex.

Perhaps what has changed in this world is not just gender perceptions but also the gender of the main characters I knew.

“Suddenly, a headache struck me.”

As a webtoon set in a school, there were constant clashes and power struggles.

It seemed cool when guys did it with sweat and all, but it felt unsettling when girls did the same.

I decided not to play the role of Alice’s helper. If my prediction is correct, that girl will eventually become the worst villain who ruthlessly undermines Hakdo.

There’s no need to get involved for no reason.

At that moment, Alice’s blue eyes met mine directly as I glanced at her.

Our gazes locked.

I quickly averted my eyes, but I could feel Alice staring right through me.

“Alice? Who are you looking at? Oh… then Maru, since no one else is supporting, should Maru be the helper?”

The vice president, noticing the strange tension between us, smirked wickedly and pointed at me. Was he trying to provoke something?

‘Why is she staring at me!’

If I avoided eye contact, it would be normal for Alice to do the same, but she continued to gaze at me intently.

In the end, it was settled that I would be Alice’s helper. With a sullen expression, I showed Alice around the orphanage.

“This is the yard. You can come out and play during playtime.”

“This is the dining hall. Come here for meals.”

“This is the study room. Finish the day’s workbook and you’re done.”

I explained as succinctly as possible.

While doing so, I observed Alice discreetly, but she just gazed blankly at the places I introduced without any particular reaction.

Her emotionless expression gave me chills.

‘What kind of experiences has she been through…’

The fate of children flowing into orphanages might be similar, but Alice seemed to have experienced something beyond that.

Perhaps due to her doll-like appearance, her complete lack of expression made her seem almost inhuman.

‘This must be why she becomes a villain.’

If Alice had also led a normal childhood, would the story have taken a different direction from the webtoon?

‘It’s a meaningless speculation.’

As we left the study room, we heard the sound of several kids running away. It was the same kids who had been peeking at us just a moment ago.

If you’re that curious, why don’t you just help yourselves?

The kids seem to want to approach Alice, but she looks so alien and expressionless that they can’t approach her recklessly. Even I, who was standing next to Alice, could feel the coldness emanating from her.

Then, a faint sound echoed.

It wasn’t me.

Alice slowly lowered her head to gaze at her stomach. Then she raised her head and looked at me.

“…Want food?”

“……”

It was an unspoken affirmation.

I pointed to the restaurant with my finger.

“Then let’s go to the restaurant and grab something to eat. Normally, you can’t eat outside of meal times, but it should be fine since it’s your first time here.”

“……”

However, she didn’t flinch at my words, as if she couldn’t go alone.

“No, can’t remember the way?”

Shake, shake.

She shook her head to indicate denial. Ultimately, it meant she wanted to go together.

“Did she used to be like this when she was young?”

This was something that hadn’t been revealed in the webtoon, so I couldn’t know.

“Let’s go….”

I guided her to the restaurant, uttering a resigned voice.

When we arrived at the restaurant, no one was there. However, there were steamed potatoes left over from lunch in the pot, still warm.

“It must be insulated; it’s still warm. Come here.”

I sat at the table with the pot in hand. Alice also came over and sat beside me.

I peeled the potato skins and placed them on her plate. I also peeled a potato and took a bite.

“It’s really well-seasoned.”

As I watched Alice while eating, she was still blowing on the potato, holding it in her hand.

“It should have cooled down enough by now. Why not just eat it?”

At my words, she opened her small mouth and took a bite. Then her pale cheeks moved awkwardly. It seemed like she was chewing hard.

Without saying anything, I also chewed on the potato, savoring the taste. In the midst of this, I heard intermittent sobbing.

I turned my head to look at the source of the sobbing.

Tears were streaming down from Alice’s blue eyes as she mumbled through her food, quietly crying without stopping.

The small shoulders trembled, and the frail legs shook. The ruthless villain I knew was nowhere to be found.

“……”

Looking back now, it seems like this was a turning point.

Whether to continue to regard her as the wicked villain, disregarding Alice’s tears, or to be moved by her tears and consider her a girl worthy of sympathy.

There wasn’t much time for deliberation.

I reached out my arm and wiped her tears with a tissue. Her blue eyes met mine.

“This Alice hasn’t committed any sins yet.”

And perhaps, just perhaps, she could change.