Miss Maria

"Little Eleven, are you all right?"

An anxious voice came from a distance. A young woman dressed as a nun was running toward Eleven, holding up her skirts.

"Little Eleven, don't cry, don't cry. It's all right now~ Does anything hurt? Tell me. Don't be scared, don't be scared."

The nun dropped to her knees beside Eleven in a panic, paying no mind to the mud. She was a little incoherent. She had only recently started working here, and this was the first time she had encountered a problem like this.

Eleven turned his head and curiously studied the flustered nun beside him. He had never seen someone look so nervous before. He found it a little interesting, and his heart felt warm.

In Eleven's memories, everyone called her Miss Maria. Miss Maria was always smiling, and she was usually quiet and composed. He had no memory of her ever being this flustered and at a loss.

"Mm, Miss Maria, I'm all right now."

Eleven pushed himself upright with some effort and smiled at Maria, baring a row of little white teeth.

"Honestly, little Eleven, don't move around. Let me clean your wounds first. Water Therapy Technique!"

Maria stopped Eleven from moving, pressed both hands against his chest, and chanted under her breath. A stream of blue-green water poured from her palms. Under Eleven's astonished gaze, it wrapped around his body.

The spell didn't actually have much healing power; it served mostly to clean. But as he felt the water surrounding him, Eleven was surprised to find that the small cuts and bruises on his body hurt less. The back of his head, which had been throbbing faintly, also felt cool and much more comfortable. The water also washed away the mud and grime clinging to him.

When the spell ended, Eleven stood up. Although he still looked pitiful, he no longer looked as ragged as a filthy rag.

"So this is magic! It's amazing, Miss Maria!"

Eleven looked at Maria, his eyes filled with little stars. He had encountered so many things at once today that he could hardly contain himself.

Maria looked a little tired, and her expression was full of apology. "Sorry, little Eleven. This is all I can do with my Magic Power. Does it still hurt? It's all my fault for not taking good care of you children... sob~~"

As Maria spoke, her eyes reddened, and she actually began to sob.

Eleven stood beside her, instantly at a loss. He had never seen anyone cry before, much less comforted anyone. In his nervousness, he instinctively concentrated his Spiritual Power, and a vast surge of it poured out. Eleven discovered that he could easily sense the fluctuations of Maria's spirit, and a powerful wave of sadness, regret, and self-reproach welled up in his heart.

Feeling Maria's emotions, Eleven immediately felt a sting in his nose and burst into tears with a wail. Perhaps because of the influence of Eleven's Spiritual Power, Maria didn't comfort him when she saw him crying. Instead, she cried even harder. And so the two of them, one big and one small, crouched in the corner, embraced, and wailed together.

Holding little Eleven's hand, his eyes still red, Maria had a face as red as a ripe apple.

That was far too undignified! I actually bawled together with a ten-year-old child. How can I maintain my authority as an adult now? Maria, your cultivation still isn't enough~ You have to work harder!

Maria put on a stern expression and set herself a stricter cultivation goal.

"Little Eleven, when we get back, I'll make Gouzi and the others apologize to you. They've gone too far!"

Maria tightened her grip on Eleven's hand and looked at him, her face serious.

"Okay."

Eleven instinctively agreed. He didn't know what to do either, so he naturally went along with the arrangement.

"Little Eleven, don't worry. I definitely won't let them bully you again, or I'll spank their bottoms raw."

Hearing Eleven's indifferent reply, Maria thought he didn't trust her. She immediately waved her little fist and reassured him. Perhaps because they had cried together in the corner, Maria now felt especially close to Eleven and instinctively took his side.

"Whoa, Miss Maria's back with that brat! Run!!!"

As Maria led Eleven toward the orphanage gate, a few older children spotted them, and one immediately shouted. The rest scattered in all directions, whether they knew what was going on or not, laughing as they fled.

The moment Maria saw the naughty children, anger flared up in her. She felt it was time to show them her authority as an adult. She let go of Eleven's hand, stepped forward, and roared.

"You little brats, all of you stop right there!!"

Maria's shout startled Eleven. He looked at her, a little frightened. It was the first time he had heard someone shout like that.

Some of the fleeing children were frightened too. After all, when the normally gentle Miss Maria suddenly spoke so loudly, she had to be truly angry. A few little girls were even scared into wailing.

But the children who stopped were the ones who hadn't known why they were running and had simply joined in. Those who knew they had done something terribly wrong ran even faster and vanished in a flash.

"Those hateful little brats. Eleven, wait here. I'll catch every last one of them and bring them back."

Watching the children flee, Miss Maria felt a sudden, inexplicable surge of fighting spirit. She rolled up her sleeves and gave chase.

Eleven stared blankly as Miss Maria ran farther and farther away, then breathed a small sigh of relief. He turned to look at the well-behaved children still standing there, too scared to move. Eleven didn't recognize a single one of them. In his memories, he had only arrived at the orphanage three days ago. As for why he had been beaten up after only three days, Eleven couldn't understand that either. It seemed they had been talking, and then he had been beaten up.

When the well-behaved children saw that Maria had run far away, they exchanged looks. Once they were sure there seemed to be nothing more for them to do, they scattered too. No one came to talk to Eleven, because he had just appeared alongside the furious Miss Maria, which had made the children a little afraid.

Eleven didn't mind. He hadn't expected anyone to talk to him in the first place. Everyone ignoring him was normal for him, and having so much interaction with Miss Maria today had already left him very satisfied.

Eleven found a comfortable spot and sat there in a daze. He really didn't know what he was supposed to do at a time like this, so he simply sat there blankly, waiting for Maria and taking the opportunity to fully enjoy the warmth of the sunshine he had never felt in his previous life.

He waited for half a day.

By the time Maria stood before Eleven with a group of half-grown children in tow, the sun had already set.