Chapter 128: Cursed Children
Even with Little Red Riding Hood’s explanations, Yu Sheng still found it difficult to comprehend or imagine life within this Orphanage, or how it operated on a day-to-day basis. He couldn’t fathom what the Cursed Children here thought or did each day, nor could he grasp the precise responsibilities of the “High Council employees” assigned to this place. He couldn’t even begin to guess how the governing “High Council” of the Borderland viewed such a unique Orphanage.
In truth, he didn’t even understand how the vast Boundary City itself functioned, nor the enigmatic High Council. His only contact with any official body had been the Special Affairs Bureau, and that organization was merely a subset of the Council.
There were too many discordant elements in the Borderland for Yu Sheng to wrap his head around. The lives of Little Red Riding Hood and her companions only added another layer of mystery to his growing list of questions.
It was then that Foxy, who had been silent since entering the Door, suddenly spoke up, “Why don’t the Special Affairs Bureau or the Council just set up a department to directly manage the entire Orphanage?”
Little Red Riding Hood looked at the Demon Fox Maiden in surprise.
Foxy blinked nervously and scratched her head. “Did… I say something wrong?”
“No… not wrong,” Little Red Riding Hood quickly composed herself and shook her head. “It’s a very reasonable thought. But do you know how many groups or organizations like ‘us’ exist throughout the Borderland?”
Foxy opened her mouth, but no words came out.
“I’ve said this before: most Spirit Realm Detectives and Investigators only ‘change careers’ after being caught up in Otherworld incidents. The Cursed Children of the Fairy Tale Organization, too, are influenced by the Otherworld-Fairy Tale. In essence, every child you see here today, whether now or in the future, is a Spirit Realm Detective. We are just one of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of extraordinary organizations in the Borderland. Thus, many matters must be handled in the manner of extraordinary organizations.
“Of course, the Special Affairs Bureau once considered giving us ‘special care.’ That was a long time ago. As you said, they proposed creating a ‘special orphanage’ entirely overseen by the Council and directly managed by the Special Affairs Bureau—a place where all children affected by Fairy Tale could be protected and guided collectively, cared for by ‘adults’ rather than governing ourselves.
“But then… something went terribly wrong.”
Yu Sheng frowned slightly. A dozen horror plots from films, TV shows, and games immediately sprang to mind. “…The Cursed Children were treated inhumanely, and then the Fairy Tale went out of control?”
“No, the opposite,” Little Red Riding Hood shook her head. “The Special Affairs Bureau and the Council aren’t fools. They know that the Otherworld doesn’t follow any ‘human rules’ when it comes to taking lives. According to records, they handled things perfectly. They were meticulous in their care, addressing each child’s needs. Nothing inhumane occurred. But they overlooked one thing.”
Irene poked her head out from Foxy’s arms. “…Overlooked something?”
“Fairy Tale doesn’t like adults,” said Little Red Riding Hood calmly.
Yu Sheng pondered that, feeling like he was beginning to understand.
Foxy also gave a slight nod after a moment, as if she too had grasped the point.
Irene tried to think hard, lifting her head. “Wait, what does that mean? Why do you all look like you get it? What exactly did you understand?”
Nobody answered her.
“Ahead is the East Building,” Little Red Riding Hood lifted a hand to point toward the structure before them. “The Orphanage’s main compound is composed of two buildings. The East Building, the one you saw right after entering the Door, serves as the primary residence and activity area. The main canteen and the ‘classrooms’ for the younger children are here. The other structure is the West Building, which houses safe rooms and medical bays. When the state of a Cursed Child becomes unstable, they go to the West Building.
“There used to be two connecting passages between the buildings. But after some problems with the underground corridor, it was sealed. Now we can only cross via the upper-level skybridge. Of course, the West Building also has other conventional entrances and exits.
“That open space over there is the play area for the Cursed Children. The slides and swings were all made by us. We even dug out the sandbox ourselves. The sand was brought in by trucks dispatched from the Special Affairs Bureau—for free. There was even a little incident: we made the pit too large and too deep. One truckload wasn’t enough, and even after three trucks, it was barely filled. The Bureau thought we were trying to scam sand to sell it.
“See those trees over there? We planted those ourselves too. I was only ten years old at the time… The Guardian who helped me plant them is no longer with us.”
Yu Sheng listened quietly. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed several curious faces peeking out from behind the East Building’s large Door. A few older children stood with some younger ones, all crowding near the doorway, sneaking glances at the visitors in the Orphanage, whispering and pointing among themselves.
Then an older girl came from behind and shooed the Cursed Children away.
“How many children live here?” Yu Sheng asked, curious. “Uh, including you Guardians.”
“Seventy-six,” Little Red Riding Hood replied. “Smaller than you expected, right?”
“Yeah… a bit fewer than I imagined.”
“It’s always about this number, only occasionally fluctuating by a few,” said Little Red Riding Hood as she led Yu Sheng through the towering Door of the East Building, heading toward the so-called “Guest Room.” “New ones come, old ones go. The Fairy Tale Organization accepts only those children who meet its standards—and it eliminates the unfit without hesitation. In comparison to our numbers, this entire Containment Facility feels overly extravagant—most of the rooms above the fifth floor on this side are empty, and much of the West Wing remains unused.”
“Out of seventy-six Cursed Children, sixteen are Guardians. Roughly half of the rest are between eight and fourteen years old, the other half are even younger. Overall, girls make up nearly three-quarters, and boys only about a quarter…”
“I noticed that too—most of the ones I saw were girls,” Yu Sheng nodded, curiosity surfacing in his voice. “Why is that?”
Little Red Riding Hood smiled faintly. “Because princesses are always the ones in peril—and so are village girls like me, Little Red Riding Hood. You’ll need to learn to analyze this place through the lens of Fairy Tale.”
Yu Sheng nodded thoughtfully.
Under her guidance, Yu Sheng, along with Irene and Foxy, arrived at the end of the corridor in the East Building, stepping into the Guest Room.
Yu Sheng noticed several curious gazes peeking through the Door—tiny figures flickered about in the hallway beyond, clearly intrigued by the day’s newcomer but too shy to approach.
“I brought some gifts for the Cursed Children,” Yu Sheng said as he lifted the bag of cookies and candies he had been carrying. He gave Little Red Riding Hood a nod. “Let them share it.”
“Thank you—you’re really thoughtful,” she beamed at him with genuine appreciation. Then she turned and waved at a teenage girl standing near the Door. “Hui Hui, take these to the Canteen No.2 and hand them out during dinner.”
Hui Hui—around thirteen or fourteen years old—ran in cheerfully. Several little ones, perhaps five or six years old, seized the chance to slip into the room as well, scampering around the table in gleeful chaos.
“I want chocolate! The golden one!”
“Any gummy bears?”
“Thank you, Uncle Yu!”
“Hui Hui-jie! Ya Ya stepped on my foot!”
Then, from beneath the table, a rosy little thing suddenly popped out, staring wide-eyed at Yu Sheng and Foxy before pointing at Irene and declaring, “I want to hug that one too!”
Instantly, Irene raised her arms and snarled, “I’m not a gift!”
The little one froze… then burst into wails.
The pack of Human cubs exploded into a frenzy—squealing, yelping, darting about like startled squirrels in a thunderstorm. The cacophony was exactly what Yu Sheng had imagined earlier that morning when he pictured a house full of Irenes.
He was stunned into stillness.
Yet the chaos lasted only a moment. Little Red Riding Hood stood up and with a few calm words, quelled the riot. Hui Hui seamlessly stepped in, wrangling the little ones back out to the hallway with a mix of coaxing and gentle authority—shutting the Door behind them.
Yu Sheng stood there, jaw agape, watching the whirlwind of disorder transform into quiet in mere seconds. After a long pause, he turned to her.
“…You’re… impressive.”
“You’ll get used to it. The Cursed Children here are actually very well-behaved. While they still have their quirks, like any children their age, most of them learn to calm down faster than ordinary kids. They understand the necessity of following the older children’s instructions,” she replied, her smile carrying a trace of quiet pride. “We’ve all come up the same way.”
Somehow, those words made Yu Sheng feel even more uncomfortable.
“Tell me about the Fairy Tale Organization,” he shifted topics, shaking his head. “I mean the Otherworld—and that ‘Black Forest’ I saw. What exactly is that?”
“The Black Forest is a subset of Fairy Tale, but before I explain its structure, I want to go over some basics,” Little Red Riding Hood spoke steadily. In that moment, Yu Sheng saw again the calm, precocious Spirit Realm Detective he had first met. “Let me ask you—do you know how many categories there are in the Otherworld?”
Yu Sheng thought for a moment, then shook his head, serious now. “No idea.”
Little Red Riding Hood: “……”
“I’m pretty sure that’s one of the first entries in the archive,” she said with a subtle look, clearly unimpressed. “Weren’t you supposed to review that material?”
Yu Sheng scratched his head, sheepish. “Been… extra busy these past couple days.”
“What? Has the Special Affairs Bureau thrown another task at you?”
Yu Sheng immediately searched his memory, trying to look stern.
Clearing out Otherworld realms, gardening, shoveling ash, raising chickens, snuggling Foxy at home, experimenting on Irene’s construction, and brainstorming how to mass-produce more Irenes using rebar and Grade-42 cement…
Yeah, saying it out loud would annihilate his adult dignity.
“Yes. The Special Affairs Bureau called me in. About the Dark Angels.”
He maintained a solemn face, and not a single word of it was a lie.